Miss Wang Weina, even your cousin won't do!

“Your Highness Wayne, I admire you.”

Wayne smiled, looked at himself, and shrugged: "What do I have that Mr. Wei would admire?"

"In half a day, without lifting a finger, two Dali Temple inspectors were sent to the Imperial Guard Bureau, and in this way, with this excuse, it's simply unheard of!"

Even though Wei Yanwu rarely spoke the truth, he swore that his compliments just now were absolutely from the bottom of his heart.

The Dali Temple Censorate has always been a major concern for him. If he were to raise an army to purge the court of corrupt officials, the Censorate, currently stationed in Longmen, would inevitably become aware of it. However, if he did nothing, they might very well uncover some clues through their investigation.

Wei Yanwu was a confident man, but confidence did not equate to arrogance. In such an extremely dangerous matter as vying for the throne, he couldn't guarantee he hadn't left the slightest flaw or clue. And just when he could only resort to passing the buck and feigning compliance to keep the Censorate in suspense, Wayne's methods took him completely by surprise.

In a place not on their home turf, using unknown means, they easily sent Jingzhe to the Lungmen Guard Bureau, which was controlled by Wei Yanwu, and even made Xia Zhi, the captain of the Surveillance Department, look bad and imprison him in a sorry state. They even forced them, whether willingly or unwillingly, to admit that they had "gone mad."

This was simply unheard of. Wei Yanwu had spent his entire life playing power games, and he had never seen anything like it.

Although he didn't know exactly what methods Wayne used, it didn't stop him from saying from the bottom of his heart:

"Brilliant! Prince Wayne's methods are truly remarkable. I have learned a great deal!"

"High?" Wayne scoffed. What had he done? He hadn't actually done anything. Jingzhe had come up and delivered it herself.

The people at the Dali Temple have truly exceptional imaginations; they can deduce a seemingly plausible conspiracy from the slightest clues. No wonder they come from a country like Yan, where even a simple statement like "There are two trees at the gate, one is a jujube tree, and the other is also a jujube tree" can be analyzed to deduce the author's emotions.

Oh, me too. Never mind then.

Wayne waved his hand: "It doesn't matter whether it's high or low. Right now, I only have one thing on my mind!"

Wei Yanwu asked, "What is it?"

What's in your box?

Wei Yanwu leaned back slightly on the sofa, gave Wayne a deep look, and his smile was still on his face, but it was somewhat stiff.

The Rat King sat to one side, hearing that the people from the Dali Temple had been "driven mad" and imprisoned in Wei Yanwu's personal guard bureau, and that Wei Yanwu was actually quite pleased with it. Even if he wanted to feign ignorance, he now understood what Wei Yanwu was up to. He took a deep breath and sighed:

“Wei Yanwu, I know what you’re thinking, but I advise you to take my advice: you have to eat one bite at a time, and walk one step at a time. If you take too big a step, you’ll tear your balls.”

"We haven't forgotten what happened to Edward, but with just you and our city, what do you think you have to fight the true dragon who issued that order? Besides..."

Moreover, the Rat King had already promised to give Edward's belongings to Wayne. In return, he ensured the safety of his daughter.

He now understood why Wei Yanwu had revealed to Wayne that Edward's belongings were in his possession. He probably wanted to bring Wayne, or rather, Victoria behind Wayne, into the game.

To Wei Yanwu's surprise, Wayne went directly to the Rat King and made another deal behind Wei Yanwu's back. Because Wei Yanwu insisted on secrecy and had not consulted the Rat King beforehand, the Rat King readily agreed to the deal.

Wei Yanwu wanted to use the intelligence gap to drag Wayne into the mess, but he didn't expect that in the end Wayne would use the intelligence gap to move back and forth between Wei Yanwu and the Rat King, and get what he wanted with just a promise.

Wei Yanwu, you've gotten old after all. It's the era of young people now.

Sure enough, after the Rat King finished speaking, Wei Yanwu intentionally or unintentionally turned his gaze to Wayne.

But Wayne smiled slightly, shook his head, and said firmly:

"I'm sorry, I have no interest in what I'm saying or what you're planning to do. I don't intend to get involved in this matter."

"All I promised was to protect my classmate Chen's safety. The rest is none of my business, neither Victoria nor I."

What a joke! How could Wayne possibly wade into the muddy waters of Dragon Gate and Great Yan?

There's no necessary enmity or alliance between Lungmen, Da Yan, and Victoria. The only people connected to Wayne here are Chen, Swire, and Lin Yuxia, who promised the Rat King. If you want to bring Hoshiguma or Jiu along, that's fine too; Wayne is happy to lend a hand.

But interfere with Wei Yanwu and Zhenlong's throne? How could that be? Wayne isn't a thug; why would he get involved in such dogfighting? The internal struggles of a feudal dynasty aren't like the Loken Water Tank incident in Colombia, where lives were directly taken and justice was disregarded. Wayne has no reason to intervene.

If their actions could awaken the people of Da Yan and lead to a revolution that would improve society, Wayne would be happy to see it happen.

But Wayne's denial made Wei Yanwu uneasy. He looked at Wayne in surprise, opened his mouth, and said:

"As far as I know, you must have something you really want. I have it, and we can make a good deal."

"Are you talking about Edward's belongings? I don't need that anymore."

Wayne glanced at the Rat King discreetly, thought for a moment, and decided not to reveal that the Rat King had already reached an agreement with him.

First, it's unnecessary. Second, even if it were said, it would have no effect other than tricking the Rat King and changing the already agreed-upon deal.

Moreover, he wasn't lying. Even without Edward's relics, it doesn't mean Wayne was afraid of the Celts and Draco's deep pool.

Currently, Victoria's political situation is stable, and the throne is secure. Aside from Vina's lack of an heir, which is a minor concern, Vine has little to worry about. Rebellion requires a foundation, and Victoria is now peaceful and prosperous, with no signs of moral decay or unrest. What grounds could the Celts possibly have to rebel?

Based on that treaty and that declaration?

Don't be ridiculous. With everyone well-fed and watered, who would want to risk their life fighting you? Aside from a few hundred Deeppool Death Squads, the Celts can't muster anyone with a claim on par with Wayne's.

Wayne wanted the relics only to avoid fighting Reed and the others. It was more of a bonus than a lifeline.

Is it too presumptuous of Wei Yanwu to convince him based on this alone?

Chapter Fifty-Five: You can only ask me, and then ask me if I agree.

Wayne doesn't need Edward's belongings.

Wei Yanwu sighed inwardly. He had considered this possibility, but ultimately wanted to take a gamble and see if he could use this to bring Victoria into his camp.

I've heard that the Western world values ​​claims far more than the East. In the Great Yan Dynasty, even if you were of royal blood, as long as the emperor wasn't incompetent, no one would respond to your call to arms, and you might even be arrested and handed over to the authorities. But in the West, the importance of claims is self-evident. As long as you have a claim and can make a promise, even if you're penniless, people will follow you.

But Wayne's words shattered Wei Yanwu's little scheme. Victoria was now as stable as a mountain; retrieving the relics was merely to ensure that mountain was even more stable. Even if she didn't retrieve them, any potential Draks would be throwing eggs against a rock and courting death.

"In that case, what do you want?"

Wei Yanwu spoke directly. He couldn't complete the plan alone. Without Victoria's help, or a force of equal strength to Victoria's, Wei Yanwu's ambition to quell the rebellion was nothing but wishful thinking.

But Wayne shook his head:

"I didn't come here to discuss these things with you."

"Those inspectors, they weren't sent to the Guard Bureau because I wanted to help you. They just almost got me into trouble, so I did it on the side."

Miss Jingzhe's barrage of "Young Master, wanna play?" nearly killed Wayne on the spot. He had just explained to Vina that he had no relationship with Sister Lei, and then he was immediately offered an ambiguous olive branch by an official from the Dali Temple. If he hadn't reacted quickly, he might have ended up in Cheng Ge's storyline.

Having caused such a mess, if Wayne doesn't teach Lei Zi a lesson, does he really think he's some kind of gentle protagonist? Anyway, Lei Zi is from the Dali Temple's Surveillance Department. If she's sent to the Guard Bureau, at most she'll be questioned, have her statement taken, clear up the misunderstanding, and then she'll be released. Nothing serious will happen to her. Consider it a small warning.

As for how Captain Xia Zhi ended up in jail and how he went insane, Wayne said he knew nothing about it and it had nothing to do with him.

Perhaps the feudal Great Yan Dynasty also had a 996 work system that poisoned the people, driving the poor working-class Xia Zhi insane?

Or is it, as the reason given by the Guard Bureau, that it's due to "acclimatization issues"?

Anything is possible.

Having severed ties with himself, Wayne had only one purpose in coming here:

"I've already said it once, but considering that Mr. Wei is the host, I'll ask again. I'm here to find out what's in your briefcase."

Wei Yanwu's expression was unfriendly. He shook his head, about to say, "This... I have no comment..."

Wayne interrupted him, saying:

"But as far as I know, based on the invoice you issued to Penguin Logistics, Mr. Wei, this shipment should have been a gift for a VIP, right?"

"During this period in Lungmen, the only guests you could call VIPs, besides our Victoria group, are probably the Inspectorate team. Since you have nothing to say to me, does that mean the contents of that box were given to the Inspectorate?"

Wayne flashed a confident smile.

"Since that's the case, and my relationship with the Inspection Department can be described as one of unexpected friendships, with a minor misunderstanding, it's perfectly reasonable for me to share this news with them as an apology, isn't it?"

"......"

Wei Yanwu fell silent. At this moment, he was more concerned about something else than questioning Wayne's intentions.

How did Wayne know Penguin Logistics' secret information?

The boss of Penguin Logistics, the Great Emperor, is an acquaintance of Wei Yanwu. Penguin Logistics' long-term existence as a "escort agency" type of organization in the shadows of Longmen is inseparable from Wei Yanwu's tacit approval and protection. Wei Yanwu trusts Penguin Logistics, and even when he was being closely watched by the Surveillance Department, he entrusted the task of transporting boxes to Penguin Logistics because they had never had any accidents or leaked any secrets.

But today, this "never" has been broken.

Someone leaked information within Penguin Logistics. And what was leaked was the most crucial secret.

Wei Yanwu couldn't afford the price and risk. The contents of the box were his last trump card. The Victorians were unwilling to get involved; fine. The Inspectorate was aware of it; that didn't matter. As long as the contents of the box remained in his hands, Wei Yanwu could continue to lie low, waiting for the next opportunity. This time could be a year, two years, four years, or even ten years. Dragons are inherently long-lived; Wei Yanwu could wait.

But what if Wayne leaks the information to the Inspectorate...?

There are only two groups of distinguished guests at Longmen: one is Victoria, and the other is the Inspectorate. Now, Victoria's guest has told the Inspectorate's guest that Wei Yanwu has secretly kept something under the guise of a gift. What will the Inspectorate do?

They were in dire straits. Captain Xia Zhi had gone mad and was imprisoned by the Guard Bureau. Even Jing Zhe, whose misunderstanding had been cleared up, was quarantined as a suspected source of infection and hadn't been released yet. The three members of the Surveillance Department had only one child, Xiao Xue. If she wanted to turn the tide, she could only seize this fleeting opportunity.

The Censorate has the right to demand Wei Yanwu's cooperation when suspicion arises. The price is their own career and even their life. Just like Xia Zhi, if Xiao Xue were to risk everything to write to the Emperor and then seek him out for a purposeful face-to-face confrontation, Wei Yanwu would have no choice but to produce the box.

But once the box was taken out, the Inspectorate completely turned the tables.

After careful consideration, Wei Yanwu spoke:

"We can make a deal."

"Forget about deals, I'm not here to do business with you. I'm here in Lungmen for tourism. If you want to do business, you can contact Victoria."

Wayne flatly refused.

"You can only ask me, and then see if I agree."

Wei Yanwu's face was ashen. Even without knowing what the two men were talking about, the Rat King could tell that Wei Yanwu had suffered a humiliation, and a major one at that.

He schemed against others, only to be schemed against in the end. Wei Yanwu was just one move behind, and he lost the whole game.

"Well."

Wei Yanwu said in a low voice:

"I'll let you know what's inside the box. Then, I'll ask for your support, how about that?"

"I can only provide the minimum level of support."

Wayne nodded. Wei Yanwu is no good. In the original storyline, he schemed against Rhodes Island and the Guard Bureau, disregarding the safety of Lungmen citizens, and introduced the Reunion Movement into the city, even into the core city.

He did have a plan, but plans are made by people, and if there is even the slightest deviation, millions of innocent citizens of Lungmen will suffer the same tragedy as Chernobog.

Not to mention, he ordered the massacre of the slum dwellers. He spared the ringleaders, but exterminated their entire clans. The slum dwellers certainly made mistakes, but can you kill all the poor just because one poor person made a mistake? If it weren't for the intervention of the Rat King and Lin Yuxia, the corpses from the slum might have truly filled the sewers.

For someone like that, Wayne's feigned friendship and superficial interactions are one thing, but support?

The most basic level of support—I support you in spirit.

At most, she wouldn't tell the Inspectorate about the box. As for who Chen would tell after she told Chen, or whether she would keep it a secret, that's not something Wayne should promise for her.

Wei Yanwu took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and said:

"You can stay later."