Chapter 147: Overt and Covert Struggles

Xiong Zi stood frozen for a long time, ultimately unable to utter a single word. He was intimidated, completely intimidated, thoroughly cowed.

Tang Jiu sneered and said to Xiong Zi, "I will say this for the last time: get lost, Xiong Zi. If you disobey me again, don't blame me for being impolite. I've already given you a chance; make sure you know where you stand."

Xiong Zi gritted his teeth, a deep resentment burning inside him. If he failed to handle this matter, he wouldn't even have the face to go back and face Tang Yifei. If he couldn't get this done, Tang Yifei would certainly dispose of him.

Suddenly, Xiong Zi’s expression shifted, and he muttered in a low voice, "Ninth Miss, offense is taken!"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than he lunged forward to grab her. Tang Jiu was taken aback; she had never expected Xiong Zi to be audacious enough to make a move against her. Naturally, with Xu Yun by her side, Xu Yun would never allow Xiong Zi to succeed. The very instant Xiong Zi reached out, Xu Yun lashed out with a kick.

Xiong Zi felt a biting gust of wind rush toward his face, crushing his nose and mouth completely out of shape. Immediately following that came excruciating pain—a heart-rending agony. Xiong Zi felt as though every single tooth in his mouth had been yanked out by a massive, violent force!

The onlookers watched as Xiong Zi's figure crashed directly to the ground, his head striking the hard pavement violently, blood streaming freely from his mouth and nose.

Xu Yun rolled his neck and challenged the crowd provocatively, "Anyone else with a death wish can step up and say so. How dare you intercept Ninth Miss? Go back and think carefully about who actually runs the Tang family!"

Without a leader, the flunkies had no idea what to do.

Tang Jiu’s gaze swept across the crowd like lightning. "I’ll say this one last time: I can pretend today's events never happened. Anyone still foolish enough to block me can try!"

Since these people all relied on the Tang family for their livelihood, Tang Jiu still held considerable authority. The men who had just been standing in a tight row hastily stepped aside. Too lazy to make them move the cars properly, Xu Yun strode forward, swung his arm in a wide arc, and shoved the car blocking the middle of the road directly to the left! Then he pushed the car on the right clear to the right.

The row of blocking cars was shoved into a messy pile, leaving the onlookers with their jaws dropping to the floor, but a clear path had been opened in the middle. Without wasting another word, Tang Jiu climbed into the driver's seat; she knew the road ahead quite well and preferred to drive herself.

Amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd, Xu Yun got into the car, and they sped away directly.

"Daddy is so cool!" Gugu exclaimed excitedly, then turned to Tang Jiu, "Big Sister Jiu, were those the traitors from your family? You shouldn't ever use people like that again; they have zero loyalty."

Gugu understood this deeply. After Feng Qiansui fell, the only person who remained utterly loyal to the Feng family was Qiu Yan, though there certainly had been no shortage of people stabbing them in the back.

"Once I have some time later, I'll deal with them properly." Tang Jiu’s expression was extremely grim. Judging by the current situation, her father Tang Zhengtian had likely already been stripped of his actual power. If she hadn't rushed back tonight, control of the Tang family probably would have changed hands.

Watching Tang Jiu drive away into the distance, Xiong Zi struggled to his feet from the ground while clutching his mouth; Xu Yun’s kick earlier had literally knocked his jaw out of alignment.

"Brother Xiong, Ninth Miss is gone. How are we going to answer to the Second Young Master?" asked an oblivious underling, stepping forward.

A sharp pain racked Xiong Zi's face, leaving him in a wretched state. Mentioning this matter now only added immense pressure to his chest. A surge of violent rage welled up within him, and he lashed out with a vicious kick! Speaking with a slurred and muffled voice, he yelled, "Asking me is fucking useless! Hurry up and call the Second Young Master!"

...

At this very moment, Tang Zhengtian was sitting in the high-seat rosewood chair inside his family's villa. Every year on October first, the Tang family held its grandest family gathering, and all members of the Tang family were required to be present on this day. As the third-generation head of the Tang family, it was naturally incumbent upon him to hold down the fort.

"Uncle Tang, I wonder if Ninth Sister will be coming back today?" Tang Yifei walked up to Tang Zhengtian and spoke indifferently, "This is the Tang family assembly after all. Don't you think you should give her a call to urge her along?"

Tang Zhengtian smiled faintly and shook his head. "Although Xiao Jiu has been mischievous since childhood, she has never missed a single Tang family gathering. I believe she won't miss this one either, so you don't need to worry about that."

Tang Yifei smiled slightly, and Tang Long, who had been standing behind him, chimed in, "Uncle Tang, I think you'd better listen to my second brother. The past is the past, but things are different now. Ninth Sister has found a boyfriend outside, so perhaps she isn't as obedient as she used to be."

Tang Long was the eldest of the fourth generation of the Tang family—the eldest young master of the Tang family—yet he fell far short of the second-ranked Tang Yifei in every aspect. Over the years, Tang Long had grown accustomed to standing behind Tang Yifei, even having to carefully consider whether his words might offend Tang Yifei before he dared to speak.

In time, Tang Long had essentially become Tang Yifei's lackey. Although no one in the Tang family dared to voice this aloud, and even Tang Yifei himself would never say it openly, it had already become an open secret.

At this Tang family assembly, Tang Long would not be participating in the division of the Tang family's assets. He had long since made his stance clear to Tang Yifei: he would support him in becoming the head of the fourth generation of the Tang family, hoping only that once Tang Yifei ascended to that position, he would elevate Tang Long's status within the family as well.

Tang Yifei naturally adored this unamibitious older brother. As time went on, he stopped treating him like an outsider and had even shared his entire plan with him. Tonight, Tang Yifei had already prepared himself to play a solo act.

Tang Zhengtian remained entirely unbothered. How could he not know what was running through the minds of these two juniors? "If there truly is a man capable of taming Xiao Jiu, then as her father, I can finally rest easy. Heh, if that man is even capable of keeping Xiao Jiu in check and preventing her from returning to the Tang family gathering, then I would be even more at ease."

"Uncle Tang, you can't talk like that. Even if Ninth Sister is a daughter who will eventually marry out, she is still a descendant of the Tang family. How can she disregard the rules laid down by our ancestors?" Tang Long said, "Anyone who fails to show up for the October first gathering will be expelled from the Tang family!"

Tang Yifei sneered inwardly and cast a covert look at Tang Long. Well said, wonderfully said! He simply wanted to see how Tang Zhengtian would still make excuses for Tang Jiu after hearing this. Once Tang Jiu was expelled from the Tang family, the succession would have to follow the order of age. Since Tang Long was already his obedient dog, Tang Yifei had no fear that this dog would snatch his position. The next step would simply be to control anyone attempting to split apart the Tang family.

Tang Zhengtian smiled faintly. "Indeed. If Xiao Jiu doesn't return, then we will simply pretend the Tang family never had such a daughter. Heh, girls really can't be kept at home once they grow up. From now on, you older brothers will have to help me discipline her more."

"Uncle Tang, it's all my fault for being useless as an older brother; I saw Ninth Sister and yet lacked the ability to bring her back," Tang Yifei put on a hypocritical display of crocodile tears. "If I had been able to bring Ninth Sister back that day, today's events wouldn't have happened."

Tang Zhengtian was startled. "What events today? Heh, it's still far too early for you to jump to conclusions; Xiao Jiu might very well still return. The man capable of keeping her in check probably hasn't even been born yet."

Tang Yifei gritted his teeth and cursed inwardly, but maintained a smile on his face. "Yes, perhaps Ninth Sister will be back in a moment."

After saying this, Tang Yifei turned around, his expression shifting as he thought to himself, *You old dying fossil, let's see how long you can keep that stubborn mouth of yours closed.* At the same time, a trace of panic gripped Tang Yifei's heart, because Tang Jiu's car had already appeared in Jinbei City. Although he had immediately dispatched men to pursue and intercept her, until he received definitive news and had one hundred percent certainty, Tang Yifei didn't dare to speak boastfully.

Finally, just as anxiety gnawed at Tang Yifei's heart, Xiong Zi's call came through. He felt a surge of elation, hastily stepped out of the Tang family villa's main hall, and walked briskly into the outer courtyard to answer the call. "Speak."

Over the phone, Xiong Zi vented his stifled frustration. "Second Young Master, we failed to block Ninth Miss."

Tang Yifei's expression darkened, his voice turning vicious. "Useless trash! You can't even stop Ninth Miss, what else are you good for?! Hmph, Xiong Zi, did Ninth Miss give you some benefits? It seems you're trying to betray me, aren't you?"

"No, no!" Hearing this, Xiong Zi panicked on the other end. "Second Young Master, please listen to my explanation! If it had just been Ninth Miss, we certainly wouldn't have let her leave, but the person Ninth Miss brought with her is an absolute master! I was no match for him at all; with just a single-handed squeeze, he completely crushed and ruined my gun."

Tang Yifei was inwardly astonished. It seemed Tang Jiu had indeed brought that fellow from the other night along. Could it be that Xiao Jiu had actually managed to tame such a thorny character?

*Hmph!* Tang Yifei sneered inwardly. Even if you brought that wild man back with you, I still have ways to ensure you never leave alive. The Tang family is vast; it's not a place for an outsider like you to stir up trouble. Since Xiong Zi couldn't stop them, he would simply have to hire someone else of superior caliber. Weren't they masters? The Tang family certainly wasn't short on money to hire them.

After hanging up on Xiong Zi with a heavy slam, Tang Yifei immediately dialed a number and spoke in a slightly respectful tone, "Asura, I have a matter I need to trouble you with..."

...

With Xu Yun's help, Tang Jiu shook off the pursuit and interception of Xiong Zi and his men, driving straight toward her family's villa. She checked the time; there was still enough time to make it to the start of the family gathering, but she sped up anyway, uncertain if anyone else would try to trip her up along the way. If she missed the assembly, everything would be for naught.

Sensing Tang Jiu's tension, Xu Yun spoke calmly and reassuringly, "Is it true that as long as I stand before your Tang family today, I can legitimately help you secure the succession rights of the Tang family?"

"That will depend on your performance. If it were that simple, I wouldn't have had to beg you to come; there are plenty of people available in Jinbei City," Tang Jiu replied. "Xu Yun, you should know that the Tang family is not short on martial arts experts. Those people just now were merely low-level thugs who couldn't stand on a real stage. They won't rely solely on those trash to deal with you—this is only the beginning."

Xu Yun smiled faintly. "Oh? Is that so... Heh, then I really need to prepare myself. Fortunately, I brought a master along too."

With that, Xu Yun glanced back at Qiu Yan. Qiu Yan wore a completely expressionless face, looking entirely unfazed. Since she had come, she naturally wouldn't stand idly by. Gugu and Tang Jiu had already sworn themselves as sisters; as someone from the Feng family, she was naturally going to give it her all.