——Did you bastards forget about me?
.
.
The venue for the banquet was in the manor of one of the five top leaders of the Alliance—the Arakawa Family.
Just outside Kyoto, beyond the ancient and serene manor, it was now bustling with cars and people.
Nominally, it was the engagement ceremony of the second son of the Arakawa Family and the eldest daughter of the Ochiai Family, another of the five top leaders, but in reality, at such a precarious moment, it had subtly turned into a serious meeting among the five top leaders.
Perhaps in the foreseeable future, all decisions and directions of the Alliance will be settled here.
Among the five families of Tobio, Ochiai, Hisashiga, Chiba, and Arakawa, the Tobio Family’s main base was in shipping trade, smuggling, and now even deep-sea fishing, the Ochiai Family dealt in gambling, the Hisashiga Family was rooted in electronic products, the Chiba Family in usury and illegal investments, and as for the Arakawa Family, it adhered to the traditional Extreme Path with illegal labor and sweatshops...
Generally speaking, after reaching the level of the five top leaders, they would gradually shake off their black industries, clean up, and transform into legitimate capital.
But in Yingzhou, how could such a good thing happen to the Hybrid?
How could the Dukes and Wu Family tolerate their rise and growth?
Over the long years, the Drug Expulsion Alliance had formed a network laid in darkness, uniting the hybrid enclaves across Yingzhou through the existence of the five top leaders, creating the scale of today’s Alliance.
Even so, it still couldn’t break through the stalemate.
In an environment with formidable foes, once the Alliance tried to expand outward from the Tanbo Inner Circle, it would face suppression and ambush by those with mutual understanding.
Over time, the Alliance abandoned the idea of expansion, and cohesion gradually waned, but this time was different from before.
If they didn’t unite now, then the day after the Order of Nothingness was issued, the so-called Hybrid Alliance would be devoured by all sides.
"...Do you think what I said makes sense, Huaizhi-kun?"
"Makes sense, a lot of sense."
After listening to Tobio’s analysis, Huai Shi nodded vigorously: "But there’s just one question... why are you telling me this, old man?"
He raised his hand, pointing at his face: "What is the Huaizhi Gang in the Alliance? And what am I? A nobody, knowing all this, what use is it?"
"The sandalwood tree gives off a fragrance as leaves grow, Huaizhi-kun, how could someone like you fade into obscurity due to a temporary setback?" Tobio squinted, smiling, and frankly told him: "Old man here sees great potential in you, hoping you can become my right arm."
"The Tobio Family has so many arms, does it matter if it loses mine?" Huai Shi shrugged indifferently, retorting: "Besides, can Tobio-dono really trust a helper like me with an unknown background?"
"Mutual understanding is indeed a necessary process, but just like I don’t understand you, Huaizhi-kun, do you understand me? Through records on paper, rumors from others, does that really count as understanding? Even if trusting with one’s life, does it really count as trust? As honesty?"
Tobio grinned, "Isn’t that right? So-called trust, does it really exist in the Extreme Path?
Huaizhi-kun, we set up rules anew in the chaotic area, but essentially we still continue the survival method of beasts—so-called beasts, they just need to sniff each other’s scent to recognize if they are the same species."
Huai Shi laughed, "Am I of your species?"
"Kidding, of course not, otherwise would I dare recruit you, Huaizhi-kun." Tobio laughed heartily and told him: "You still have that thing called conscience."
That’s why I dared to hold a little hope for you.
The mercy not possessed by the Iron King Party, the lack of reason in the Earth Sky Fool Team, the ambition absent in the Triad and the Great Circle, the bloodline the Russian Federation K Party could not fake, and what the Light Illumination’s Church definitely couldn’t sacrifice for undercover missions...
Not to mention those high and mighty Dukes and the Wu Family.
Ultimately, after the verification of Green Day, you still possess the conscience absent among the Extreme Path.
Like a giant elephant and whale appearing among a pack of fighting beasts—a presence so powerful it’s almost glowing, impossible to ignore.
"Please help me, Huaizhi-kun, come to my side."
Tobio extended his hand, sincerely inviting: "To save the Tanbo Inner Circle, to save the Alliance—help me secure the position of head of the Alliance!"
"..."
In silence, Huai Shi lowered his head, looking at the wrinkled palm for a long while, and suddenly asked: "Everything you said is good, very good, but aren’t these all things you stand to gain?"
He asked, "Where’s my reward, what I deserve?"
"That depends on how much you can take."
Tobio smiled, telling him: "As long as you can take it, Huaizhi-kun, it’s all yours—in the Alliance, you can grow freely, as long as it’s beneath me alone.
Even if later you wish to overthrow, it’s no problem.
I, Tobio Souhei, promise you in my name, this is the pact between you and me."
"Sounds pretty much like an empty check."
Huai Shi chuckled softly.
"Deal."
Huai Shi, the Astronomical Society officer, shook his hand.
The car just happened to stop before the broad entrance, the light outside illuminating their smiling faces.
Each harboring ulterior motives.