Chapter 197 Internal Conflict
March 17, Tuesday.
In the end, I still didn’t want Jiang Yan to join me before her recovery, so Meng Huai left shortly after one AM, riding out on a barely repaired all-terrain motorcycle, and returned just before dawn.
Aside from slightly messy clothes, Jiang Yan found no injuries on Meng Huai, which calmed her down a bit. She decided to accompany him, gathering various intelligence materials in the room.
It was almost lunchtime, yet Meng Huai was still engrossed in studying the map, writing and drawing, occasionally frowning, sometimes smiling.
As he updated the notes on the map based on the information he had gathered in person, the more he wrote, the stranger Jiang Yan felt.
“It’s odd. If they’re all in this together and have so many people, why have they allowed Brother Hao and the others to hold on for so long? If they’re not working together, why haven’t they clashed?”
Jiang Yan paced back and forth in the room, struggling to understand the current situation in and around the Old Street.
“Meng Huai, don’t you get the feeling that the Nawa group came from so far away, not to occupy the Old Street or to support the northern Myanmar warlords in dividing the spoils, but rather to help someone coordinate?”
As for the small blood clans in northern Myanmar, being reduced to cannon fodder by Nawa couldn’t have been intended to replace the Luo family and the Alliance of Seekers in Old Street either…
Jiang Yan’s analysis was based on the intelligence gathered from Chairman Yin and Meng Huai, and it was filled with many puzzling aspects.
“Jiang Yan, northern Myanmar, eastern Myanmar, southern Myanmar, and northern Myanmar are the three primary land smuggling routes in Southeast Asia, leading directly to Huaguo. They stretch along the border from west to east, and the hardest to control is here in northern Myanmar.”
Meng Huai dropped his pencil, clasped his hands behind his head, leaning back in his chair as he seemed to reorganize his memories and understanding of the situation in the Southwest.
“Northern Myanmar connects the two countries of Huaguo and Yindu, where local powers intersect, ethnic conflicts run deep, making governance extremely difficult and facilitating various smuggling activities. In the past, the Dark Arrow once compiled statistics showing that the smuggled blood entering Huaguo through northern Myanmar annually accounted for over fifty percent of the total smuggling in Southeast Asia, with over a third of that occurring around the Old Street area.”
The issue that Meng Huai pointed out could be described as Huaguo’s most difficult border ailment. Since the founding of the nation, it had constrained a large part of Dark Arrow’s military power.
The benefits from the Old Street are too significant, which is why a few months ago, when the Luo family seized the opportunity to comprehensively attack the Black Dragon Society, they联合ed with the Alliance of Seekers, meaning the action to counterattack the Old Street led by Xiang Zuxing also allowed Fuxin to benefit slightly.
The forces outside that engage in blood smuggling change every year, but on the domestic side, the situation is indeed grim, dominated mainly by four powers: the Alliance of Seekers, the Black Dragon Society, the Luo family, and the Liang family.
Regardless of how the landscape in Old Street and northern Myanmar changes, it ultimately cannot escape the hands of these four families. Without their participation, all discussions about dividing the spoils are empty talk and cannot be realized.
Saying this, Meng Huai once again pointed at the Old Street on the map, his expression growing increasingly serious: “Jiang Yan, the collapse of the Liang family, the encirclement of the Black Dragon Society, and the Luo family’s retreat—all this turmoil in Old Street has a high probability of being an internal conflict within the Alliance of Seekers… or rather, someone is trying to consolidate Xiang Zuxing’s remaining forces and territory?”
Jiang Yan was taken aback, and her pacing came to a halt.
“You’re right… no wonder Sister Wan instructed Brother Hao to hold his ground as much as possible. This is not only targeting the northern Myanmar blood forces; even if someone is trying to recruit under the flag of the Alliance of Seekers, that wouldn’t work.”
“The Alliance of Seekers appears to be one entity, but internally it’s rife with factions. Once Brother Xiang is dead, those eyeing the legacy he left in northern Myanmar will surely emerge… Nawa’s persistent oppressive harassment is just in coordination with those people!”
Jiang Yan suddenly comprehended and finally understood the logic and intent behind Wan Yue’s orders.
The greatest hidden hand is meddling in the internal conflicts of Huaguo’s blood clans, creating widespread turmoil, including in the sensitive Southwest region. The Liang family, Wang family, and the Alliance of Seekers have all suffered significant blows because of this.
If another force were to be supported in completing the integration and control of the underground smuggling routes in the Southwest, it would be enough to plunge Dark Arrow and the Wang family into a quagmire from which any subsequent conspiratorial actions could be executed at minimal cost.
Sister, I want us to delay this process as long as possible, maybe even interrupt it, forcing the shadowy big hand to change strategies.
Nawa is merely a pawn, the first thug to jump out and act!
Thank you, Meng Huai! I will think about how to proceed next…
Seemingly having figured everything out, Jiang Yan quickly walked to the map, carefully scanning each annotated location, her face beaming with joy.
The girl was entirely focused on the map, seemingly forgetting about Meng Huai’s presence.
Meng Huai suddenly felt that this Jiang Yan was different from before, or rather, some feelings had accumulated for a long time—Jiang Yan seemed to possess two utterly distinct kinds of thinking or personality.
One was calm and rational, decisive in action; the other was gentle and kind, tender and sensitive.
With his arms crossed over his chest, Meng Huai sat upright in his chair, wearing a faint smile as he watched the girl contemplate on the map he had annotated.
He didn’t know how much time passed, but a soft snore echoed in the room.
Meng Huai, I plan to…
Jiang Yan finally lifted her head from the map, turned, and found Meng Huai had actually fallen asleep in the chair!
Ah, I forgot, he hasn’t closed his eyes for over twenty-four hours… Jiang Yan dropped her pen and hurried to Meng Huai’s side, looking at his weary face in deep sleep, letting out a sigh.
Having gently called his name several times, hoping to get him to return to his room to rest, but Meng Huai remained completely motionless; he seemed to be utterly dead to the world.
“Jian Jie, someone is coming.”
At this moment, the familiar female knight Xiaoguo from the霸府 knocked on the door, poking her head in halfway.
“Someone’s coming? Who?”
Jiang Yan dragged Meng Huai to her bed without looking back. “Sent by Chairman Yin?”
“No, it’s Elder Deng from Shengli, sent by Deng Baoyi…” Xiaoguo hesitated, secretly glancing down the hallway. Now that Tao Ge had entered the sixth floor, he must be going to see Brother Hao.
“Is it someone from the Alliance of Seekers…? Hmm, it’s fine; I understand. Everyone, stay vigilant.”
After settling Meng Huai, Jiang Yan took out the only satellite phone she brought along on this southern trip, intending to head to the rooftop and report the analysis results she and Meng Huai had reached to Wan Yue.
“Um, Jian Jie, can Xiaolian and I follow you and Sister Wan in the future…”
Xiaoguo bit her lip, resolutely retreating into the room and closing the door tightly, her expression anxious.
Xiaolian was another female knight trapped in the Hongtian Entertainment Center, currently responsible for taking care of Guo Hao.
“Brother Hao and Sister Wan are like one; do you not want to stay in Old Street?”
Jiang Yan frowned slightly, seemingly remembering something, but just as she asked the question, she felt a bit foolish—regardless of gender, even other male knights in the霸府 likely wouldn’t want to stay in the Old Street for long.
Not to mention whether the Old Street can stand firm, just getting accustomed to life domestically makes it truly difficult to persist in such a poor and shabby small town.
All I can say is that Guo Hao is still too inexperienced in the eyes of the霸府 knights; aside from his realm and strength, he lacks the authority and charisma of figures like Xiang Zuxing and Wan Yue.
“Don’t worry; the second batch is about to arrive in Old Street. Once this matter is over, this place will be Brother Hao and everyone’s real home.”
Regardless of whether Xiaoguo believed this grand promise, Jiang Yan could only state it this way. She had no qualification to interfere in the internal matters of the霸府, nor could she sabotage Guo Hao’s position.
Strictly speaking, both she and Meng Huai were outsiders; the霸府 and Fuxin, despite having some ties with each other, remained two entirely different entities.
Xiaoguo felt a bit let down but could only nod silently.
“Um, Jian Jie, you wouldn’t really be interested… in Brother Li, would you? I heard from Tao Ge and Hai Ge that he’s a mixed-type knight…”
As she was heading out, Xiaoguo suddenly turned her head back, her eyes catching a glimpse of the young man lying on Jiang Yan’s bed.
“Don’t talk nonsense…”
Jiang Yan hurried to close the door securely, her ears heating up considerably.
Pressing her hands against the door, she lingered for a full minute before finally turning back. However, when she shifted her gaze to the bedside, she found Meng Huai sitting quietly, gazing at her.
“Just keep sleeping, it’s fine…”
Jiang Yan looked down, walking to the corner desk to sit down, uncertain of what she was thinking.
Meng Huai stood up, raised an arm to sniff at his underarm, somewhat awkwardly joked, “This is your bed. Forget it, I’m all sweaty.”
“Go take a bath on the third floor; it’s really nice. I have your change of clothes here, I forgot to give them to you.”
Jiang Yan hurried to the corner, dragged out her backpack, and fished out a plastic bag, turning red in the face.
At that moment, Meng Huai deliberately walked over to the desk to study the map, pretending not to hear.
Both of them inadvertently recalled their encounter the previous midday at a luxurious bathhouse on the third floor.
Even if their personalities were not typically sensitive, that minute of “benefit distribution” was enough to make anyone think for a long time.
“Meng Huai, do you like me?”
Jiang Yan squatted by her bag, looking down and gripping the plastic bag containing men’s underwear, her voice soft, not daring to look at Meng Huai, her heart racing.
“Mm.”
A few seconds later, Meng Huai turned from the desk, nodded directly, and maintained a straight face.
“Isn’t it because of loneliness or stress?”
Jiang Yan bit her lip, pressing on with her question—almost as if inquiring of him or even herself.
“I don’t know either…” After a while, Meng Huai managed to spit out a few words. It seemed he hadn’t seriously thought about such questions before.
“Let’s stop talking; go take a shower… After the shower, eat something, then sleep.”
Jiang Yan hastily shoved the underwear into Meng Huai’s hand and hurriedly left the room.
…
Near dinnertime, Guo Hao, who had not made a formal appearance for several consecutive days, suddenly gathered everyone, including the seriously injured, for a meeting in the hallway on the sixth floor.
It seemed he hoped to show respect and sincerity to his comrades by adopting such an open manner.
While Jiang Yan and Meng Huai were invited to join, they stood at the very periphery of the crowd, maintaining their outsider status and reclining against the corridor to watch.
“… This is how things are. Elder Deng and Elder Feng are willing to accept us, and together we can carve out a career in Old Street. Sister Deng has already brought people here and is negotiating with Nawa.”
“It’s said that this is also the intention of Elder Chu from the Central Authority; Elder Wu’s people in Huadong S City basically follow Elder Chu’s arrangements, and now it’s just us left…”
Thus, it is basically safe now. Whether to stay or leave next, or follow Elder Feng, everyone is welcome to express their opinions…
Guo Hao surveyed the group of霸府 knights, his expression calm, but his eyes held a flicker of anxiety.
In the back of the crowd, upon hearing Guo Hao’s words, Meng Huai furrowed his brows, while Jiang Yan shook her head repeatedly if she turned away.
Guo Hao, after all, was an impressionable youth lacking decisiveness and courage; on the surface, he seemed to solicit everyone’s opinions but was actually shattering the hard-earned collective morale once again.
Not everyone is adept at taking grasp of their destinies and making the right choices. Concepts like justice, self-interest, or simply an impulsive emotional decision can lead to choices that deviate from their true nature. Even worse, some may try to influence and sway others’ judgments.
Ultimately, such free expressions of opinions could morph into a drama where opinion leaders or the louder voices coerce others or fragment the group.
Guo Hao had effectively relinquished the responsibility of unifying thoughts and leading everyone forward, which was an irresponsible pass-off rather than true respect for others’ opinions or consideration for others.
Compared to the domineering leadership qualities and thoughts of Xiang Zuxing and Wan Yue, Guo Hao simply did not measure up.
“Brother Hao, although Elder Deng and Elder Feng are not from the霸府, they are still deacon elders in our alliance and have gained support from Elder Chu in the Central Authority. The two elders have traveled thousands of miles to support Old Street; our perseverance over these past days has finally been justified.”
Now that Elder Deng has personally led a team over to support us, we are ultimately still in the hands of our own people. Putting aside any possible power dynamics, unity is the tradition of our霸府!
Xiao Tao was the only higher-ranking knight present. During Guo Hao’s injury, he had carried the burden of organizing everyone’s defense until the reinforcements arrived. His identity and opinions naturally held weight among the lower-ranking knights.
“I oppose! Brother Xiang previously said that if anything重大 arises, we must ask Sister Wan to make the final decisions. This time, it was thanks to reinforcements from Jian Jie and the others that we could hold on! Tao Ge, this was originally what Brother Xiang entrusted before everyone, including Brother Hao, in person!”
Xiao Hai stepped up, locking eyes with Xiao Tao in a fierce glare, clearly agitated: “Elder Deng and Elder Feng haven’t had any dealings with us in so many years, and even had some disputes in business. Yet, suddenly at this time, they come to take us in with such goodwill?”
“Elder Deng and Elder Feng have had such a comfortable life in the provinces of G, so far away from here, and even if they nominally safeguard us, they would still leave us here to run their business errands, but the territory wouldn’t belong to us!”
Xiao Hai’s words directly pointed to the current reality within the Alliance of Seekers and exposed the internal discord, causing Xiao Tao’s complexion to darken.
In the wake of the first round of arguments between Xiao Tao and Xiao Hai, the dozen or so霸府 knights on site had split into three factions.
One faction supported Xiao Tao, making up about half, believing it was only right to accept the leadership of their alliance elders.
Another faction, slightly fewer in number, firmly believed they should maintain their independence in the Bureau according to Xiang Zuxing’s previous directive, and if it came down to it, they’d rather abandon the Alliance of Seekers than join with the suspicious Elder Deng and others.
The last faction was the smallest, comprising only two or three people, who had no opinions whatsoever.
“Brother Hao, the deaths of Brother Xiang and Sister Wu were already suspicious; if we heed only Elder Deng’s side of the story this time, trusting their promises, then in the future, nobody will care about us anymore!”
Xiao Hai grew anxious, directly grabbing Guo Hao’s arm.
However, Xiao Hai had yet to realize that when Guo Hao tossed out what was referred to as the freedom of choice, he had already lost the last vestige of authority, becoming isolated. Especially with that XP elder, who hadn’t appeared directly yet and held a higher realm strength than Guo Hao, this was precisely what Xiao Tao was capitalizing on.
Combined with Guo Hao’s recent dispirited performance, his leadership in the eyes of the霸府 crowd likely fell short of even the newcomers like Jiang Yan or Meng Huai.
“Look at you all! After just two days of relative stability, you’re already in disarray. The goal that Nawa hasn’t accomplished in the past half month, you quickly help them achieve!”
A cold voice rang out from the outskirts of the crowd, and everyone turned to see Meng Huai heading toward Jiang Yan with a sneer on his face.
In the past several hours, Meng Huai could be said to be one of the greatest contributors to the霸府 knights escaping their plight. Though merely a low-ranking knight, the people present, including Guo Hao, did not dare to underestimate him.
Xiao Tao was taken aback, giving a cold hmph as he slowly turned around: “Brother Li, we are all discussing this for the long-term interests of our霸府 brothers and sisters.”
He felt that the people of Fuxin might also have an interest in the Old Street; after all, Xiang Zuxing initially shared part of the Old Street’s spoils with Wan Yue.
This time, Wan Yue sent people over to support Guo Hao, seemingly honoring the sentiment Xiang Zuxing left behind, but who truly understood the real intentions behind Wan Yue’s actions?
In this world, there’s no such thing as free affection; it’s possible she just didn’t want to give up the business resources she had in Old Street.
“If this continues, they’ll definitely be doomed… Guo Hao is such a fool…”
Meng Huai cast one last glance at the silent Guo Hao, muttering quietly to himself, words only audible to him and Jiang Yan. Then he turned away, taking Jiang Yan with him, unwilling to waste more words on Xiao Tao.
“How did it come to this…”
Watching the once unified elite of the霸府 now suddenly splintered, Guo Hao felt as if he had been struck by lightning, unable to process the situation.
I should have listened to Brother Xiang and Sister Wan; it shouldn’t have been like this today…
At that moment, Guo Hao was filled with regret.
On the rooftop, Meng Huai looked up at the sky, his face pale, while Jiang Yan’s mood was weighed down.
“Meng Huai, you shouldn’t have said those words earlier… Even though I know Brother Hao made a mistake this time. Some words, as long as they aren’t brought up, can keep people’s hearts together. Once the windows are broken, various troubles will arise.”
Jiang Yan sighed heavily, revealing a worried expression.
“What could be more foolish than what Guo Hao said? A group of faithless rabble, collapse was only a matter of time.”
Meng Huai turned back, his eyes obvious with disdain.
“But we still have the task Sister Wan entrusted us; we haven’t drawn out the people behind,” Jiang Yan bit her lip, taking several steps closer, staring intently into Meng Huai’s eyes, “What do we do now?”
“Annihilate Nawa and let the thugs withdraw first.” Meng Huai took a deep breath, his expression gradually calming, “Pressure that Elder Deng to reveal his true nature; only then will they wake up.”
“Only by pushing them to their demise can we have a slim hope of turning the situation around. Even if today’s drama hadn’t played out, Nawa would still be a target we must actively confront!”
With that, Meng Huai strode toward the rooftop exit, no longer looking back.
At dusk, in the mountain forest east of the Old Street, a military-grade small drone descended slowly, finally landing in a patch of grass in the woods.
“Instructor, I think we’ve gathered enough intelligence this time. The ones trapped in Old Street are Xiang Zuxing’s people from the Alliance of Seekers; the Luo family left long ago.”
“Currently, we haven’t found any prominent European and American blood family members, Liang family, or the Black Dragon Society appearing in Old Street, nor any traces of the Frankenstein serum being used in northern Myanmar.”
A team member removed a storage device from the drone and plugged it into a portable tablet computer.
After a few seconds,大量 videos and images captured around the Hongtian Entertainment Center were displayed before the目 of the brutal army.
“Nawa’s people are fewer than we anticipated, but five new arrivals arrived at the Hongtian Entertainment Center the other day… Instructor, look, this is Guo Hao, Xiang Zuxing’s number one underling.”
“This woman, who rescued Guo Hao the other evening and killed one of Nawa’s barons, appears to be a peak upper-tier knight on the surface, but her real realm is probably an intermediate viscount; she’s very good at disguising her aura… Currently, there are no records of her in the monitoring database of the Alliance of Seekers; she should be a new addition.”
Now, with insufficient information and no frontal facial shots captured, verifying her identity further is impossible.
Standing beside the brutal army, the team members explained the various videos and photos taken by the drone.
“Wait, who is this person…”
The brutal army scrutinized each aerial photo in the tablet, suddenly pausing on a side profile of a stern young man.
“He was one of the five who, the other day, assisted that woman in reinforcing the Hongtian Entertainment Center; nothing particularly special, his realm probably only reaches that of a knight.”
“Okay, good, Xiao Zhou, once Xiao Chen comes out of the city, you guys take this intelligence data and return home to submit it to the Intelligence Bureau. I will stay behind for a few more days to get closer to Nawa’s group and see if there’s any high-value intelligence.”
The officer of the brutal army continued to flip through the pile of aerial data, and at a subtle moment, he deleted a particular image he had previously paid attention to.
“Instructor, no! Let’s go together; it’s too risky for you to go alone… This intelligence data can be transmitted back via satellite.”
A team member was startled and quickly approached.
“I’m Baron Yapingning; I’m best at disguise and infiltration; you won’t have much use… Xiao Zhou, merely sending data back via satellite isn’t enough. Headquarters may inquire face-to-face, and you must obey orders!”
“Understood!”
The team member straightened up, then watched as the officer of the brutal army disappeared into the depths of the forest.
