Chapter 90

Two days after Zhang Xiaofei left, on the 25th day of the fourth lunar month, Wang Xiaojun was playing checkers with Han Qingwen in his room. As expected, the Fifth Master Wang was once again thoroughly defeated. What made him even more depressed was that Zhang Xiaofei had taught Han Qingwen the rule of sticking paper notes on the loser from her previous life, resulting in his face being plastered with small pieces of paper, making him look quite ridiculous. This was evident from the red face of the maidservant Meixiang, who was trying hard not to laugh.

Just as Wang Xiaojun was trying his best to persuade Han Qingwen to play a different game, there was a knock on the door. Meixiang went to open it and, seeing that it was Zhang Weixin, she quickly curtsied and said, "Seventh Master has arrived."

Zhang Weixin nodded at her and asked, "Meixiang, is my fifth brother here?"

"Master is here, please come in," Meixiang replied, ushering Zhang Weixin into the room.

Seeing his close friend, Wang Xiaojun felt as if he had found a lifeline. He quickly pulled off all the paper notes on his face and said to Han Qingwen, "My dear, I have some important matters to discuss now. We can play later tonight." Without waiting for Han Qingwen to react, he stood up and pulled Zhang Weixin, who had just sat down, out of the room and headed straight for the small meeting room.

Once inside the small meeting room, the two of them found seats and sat down. Wang Xiaojun first expressed his heartfelt gratitude to Zhang Weixin for his timely appearance. To his surprise, Zhang Weixin, who usually liked to make fun of his repeated defeats in checkers, did not pick up on his cue but instead frowned, looking deeply troubled.

Seeing this, Wang Xiaojun knew that something was on Zhang Weixin's mind and asked, "Old Seven, what's wrong? Did Yang Xiaomei stand you up today?"

At the mention of Yang Xiaomei, Zhang Weixin's frown deepened. After a moment, he said, "I wish she had stood me up today. If that were the case, I wouldn't have to worry about what she said."

"What did Yang Xiaomei say that has you so worried? Did she break up with you?" Wang Xiaojun asked, puzzled, as he couldn't think of anything that could trouble Zhang Weixin.

Zhang Weixin waved his hand and said, "Of course not. On the contrary, her greatest wish now is to marry me as soon as possible."

"That's a good thing, what do you have to worry about?" Wang Xiaojun asked, somewhat confused.

"The problem is, I can't marry her now," Zhang Weixin explained. "It's not that I don't want to, but because of Liu Yunyan, it's extremely difficult for Xiaomei to get married. However, I'm not worried about not being able to marry her immediately. I'm worried because Liu Yunyan has given Xiaomei, and by extension, me and our team, a difficult problem."

"What kind of problem can Liu Yunyan give us? Tell me more," Wang Xiaojun asked.

Zhang Weixin replied, "Here's what happened. Today, I went to the Vast Heaven Pagoda to meet Xiaomei. As soon as we met, she told me something unexpected. She said that Liu Yunyan came to her yesterday and asked about her relationship with me. At first, Xiaomei tried to cover it up, saying that we were just acquaintances and had no deep connection. However, Liu Yunyan pointed out the exact times we met at the Vast Heaven Pagoda over the past few weeks and said that she had been keeping an eye on Xiaomei's behavior for the past month, suspecting her motives for visiting the pagoda. She even sent people disguised as beggars to secretly follow Xiaomei and find out her true purpose for going to the pagoda."

At this point, Zhang Weixin paused, pounding the table in self-reproach. "It's all my fault. Because everything had been going smoothly, my vigilance dropped, and Liu Yunyan found a way to exploit it."

"This can't be entirely your fault. Who would have thought Liu Yunyan would send secret agents disguised as beggars?" Wang Xiaojun consoled him.

Zhang Weixin knew it wasn't the time for self-blame and calmed himself down before continuing, "Since Liu Yunyan had solid evidence, Xiaomei couldn't deny it anymore. She eventually admitted her relationship with me and took all the blame, saying that any consequences should be borne by her. She hoped Liu Yunyan would show mercy and not come after me. Sigh! This is also my fault. I didn't tell Xiaomei about the full extent of our team's capabilities for the sake of our safety. As a result, when the matter was discovered, she only worried about my safety and pleaded with Liu Yunyan, which gave Liu Yunyan a leverage point. Liu Yunyan used the lives of Xiaomei's three family members and mine to force her to accept her conditions."

Wang Xiaojun didn't think that Xiaomei knowing the team's strength would have helped much. He said, "The problem isn't whether Xiaomei knows our strength. Even if she knew, Liu Yunyan could still use her family's lives as leverage. The key is what conditions Liu Yunyan has set."

Zhang Weixin replied, "Liu Yunyan's conditions are actually quite simple. She wants Xiaomei to act as an intermediary to introduce her to us for direct contact."

"Direct contact with us? Why does she want to do that? What's her purpose?" Wang Xiaojun asked, puzzled.

Zhang Weixin shook his head and said, "I don't know. Liu Yunyan didn't explicitly tell Xiaomei why she wants to contact us. She just said that for the sake of her mission here, she hopes to make more friends."

"From her words, it seems that Liu Yunyan's mission here isn't going well. She wants to use our strength to help her," Wang Xiaojun thought for a moment and said, "Did she say how she plans to contact us or in what way she wants to interact with us?"

Zhang Weixin nodded in agreement and continued, "Fifth Brother is right. According to what we know, Liu Yunyan has been in Liangxiang for more than half a year. According to Xiaomei, since Liu Yunyan found her, she has been recruiting some ruffians to build her base and frequently leaving Liangxiang to investigate in Youzhou and nearby counties, seemingly looking for a suitable location to open a brothel as a cover for her future activities. However, Xiaomei feels that neither of these tasks is going smoothly. Although Xiaomei doesn't know the specific progress, from Liu Yunyan's behavior and expressions, it's clear that she is facing difficulties. The fact that she wants to contact us proves this. If everything were going smoothly, she wouldn't risk being reprimanded by her superiors to negotiate with us, who are not part of her 'system.' As for the method of contact, she suggested using Xiaomei as an intermediary to pass information and messages between us."

Wang Xiaojun supported Zhang Weixin's analysis and also believed that this matter was significant and needed to be discussed in detail at an expanded committee meeting. Whether to hold a full assembly would depend on the outcome of the expanded meeting. Zhang Weixin agreed and immediately went to gather the relevant team members for a meeting in the large meeting room.

At the expanded committee meeting, Zhang Weixin introduced the situation and expressed his theoretical support for contacting Liu Yunyan. He believed that doing so would, first, protect the lives of Yang Xiaomei and her family, and second, help the team break out of the current situation where they only have the support of Zhong Youpeng and his relatives, a local power.

Opinions on whether to agree with Zhang Weixin's proposal were divided. Most people were unfamiliar with ancient secret agents and viewed the so-called "Feiyan Hall" through the lens of the well-known Ming dynasty secret police, the "Jinyiwei." The result was predictable: most people were distrustful of Liu Yunyan and the "Feiyan Hall," maintaining a high level of vigilance. They believed that getting involved with such an organization would be a bad thing. If it infiltrated the team, it could be fatal. Moreover, based on the intelligence they had, this organization was sent from the south, meaning it was likely to be an enemy of the Liao government. If the team got involved with it, and the Liao government discovered this harmful secret organization and took action, the team would be implicated, with potentially catastrophic results.

Those who opposed the proposal were mainly members of the Dongshan faction. They did not support Zhang Weixin's suggestion just because they were in the same faction. While they sympathized with Yang Xiaomei and her family, they were more concerned about the potential dangers they faced.

Xu Shaoran, one of the representatives of the Xigou faction, had a different opinion. He neither supported nor opposed Zhang Weixin's suggestion but proposed an alternative solution. He believed that the team's security forces in Liangxiang were weak, with only three people, including himself, in the security group. It was not advisable to confront Liu Yunyan immediately, as it might provoke her. He suggested that the team temporarily show a willingness to cooperate to stabilize the situation. After all, even if they were to cooperate, they would need to negotiate and communicate, which would take time. During this time, the team could recall the scattered security forces, especially the personal guard squad being trained at Feilong Fort, to serve as guards at "Qingyuan." Once sufficient security forces were in place, the team could find various excuses to break ties with Liu Yunyan and, using their equipment advantage and the help of the government, eliminate Liu Yunyan and her limited number of followers. This would save Yang Xiaomei and her family and eliminate the threat Liu Yunyan posed to the team.

Xu Shaoran's suggestion was widely supported, including by those who opposed cooperating with Liu Yunyan. They believed that Xu Shaoran's suggestion was more tactful than a direct refusal and could eliminate future threats, making it a more comprehensive plan. This outcome made Zhang Weixin uneasy, as he felt that his proposal was unlikely to be accepted. As a party directly involved in the matter, he was in a difficult position to speak up and influence others' opinions.

Wang Xiaojun, although eager to support his close friend, had to consider the unity of the Dongshan faction in the face of opposition from many of its members. If he were just a regular team member, he could express his views without reservation. However, as the leader of the faction, his every word and action was closely watched. If he spoke up for his close friend, it might be misunderstood as being too self-interested, which could be more dangerous than rejecting Zhang Weixin's proposal.

Zhang Weixin understood Wang Xiaojun's current position and did not blame him for his silence. At this moment, he desperately hoped that other team members would stand up and speak on his behalf, explaining the potential benefits of cooperating with Liu Yunyan to the team.