Chapter 136: Ambition Too Great

Let's do it tonight. I'll book that bathhouse at the edge of the village so all our brothers in the Fengyun Society can come and meet Brother Fei. Besides, the boss told me today there are a few ethnic minority chicks who just arrived straight from school, still pure. I was planning to go have some fun with them myself, but now I'll treat it as a welcome party for Brother Fei. What do you think? Da Bing was truly accustomed to the ways of the streets and naturally closed the distance between himself and Long Fei. However, he always trusted his own instincts, and he had a hunch that following Long Fei might actually lead to something great. To refuse? No, he had no chance to refuse; refusal meant ruin. He didn't care much about himself, but what about his disabled younger sister?

He was somewhat tempted, but after thinking about the beauties he already had at home, Long Fei knew he would quickly lose interest in girls who worked as hostesses in bathhouses—even if they were still untouched virgins. They might not be heartless yet, but they soon would be. People always said that prostitutes are heartless, and that saying was never wrong.

Forget it. I'm leaving immediately, so you don't need to go to all that trouble. Go enjoy yourself with whatever pleasures you like. I have no time for games right now. Since this is our first meeting, I won't say much to you. Just focus on developing your Fengyun Society well. Although I have the intention to take you under my wing, you need to show me some sincerity. At least give me a reason to prove your ability, so that I can figure out your future and know what you are truly capable of. Do you understand? Long Fei lit a cigarette, took a drag, blew out a smoke ring, and smiled meaningfully.

Da Bing felt a stir in his heart. After a moment of thought, he said, Does Brother Fei mean you want to raise our own banner here in Tianhai Beach?

I'll tell you about that in a moment, Long Fei smiled. Let me ask you first. Gouzi said the Green Gang doesn't dare mess with you much. Does that mean this surrounding area has become a vacuum in the Green Gang's underground territory—a lawless zone where no one cares?

Da Bing also smiled. To be honest with you, Brother Fei, the Fengyun Society only has fifty or sixty members in total. In terms of strength, we simply can't compare to the Green Gang. It's just that most of the brothers under my command have criminal records. Frankly speaking, nobody knows which day the police might catch them, and once caught, most of them will likely face the ultimate penalty, with no idea when their time might run out. That's why they usually act a bit more arrogant. People always say that while the King of Hell is easy to deal with, the minor demons are hard to handle. People are afraid of desperate troublemakers like us who don't care about their lives in a fight. In this world nowadays, it all comes down to who is more ruthless than whom. If we weren't ruthless, could we be living this carefree and easy life right now?

Haha, your words are spot on. It all comes down to who is more ruthless. It seems you see through this society quite clearly! Long Fei laughed out loud.

Da Bing put away his smile and sighed. Ah, Brother Fei, this world... better left unsaid. Sometimes I really feel the price of growing up is just too high. By the time we understand things, time has already passed, and many things can never be turned back to start over again.

Long Fei stood up and patted Da Bing's shoulder. There is no regret medicine in this world. For a man to truly grow up, he has to experience many things—unlike women, who can be transformed overnight. So what you should be doing is not reminiscing about the past, but planning for the future. Use your skills well and carve out a world of your own. Don't worry, however big your ambition is, I will give you just as much room to realize it.

Long Fei said goodbye to the three of them. He needed to hurry back to school to see Liu Ruoyi. Having not seen her for over a week, he missed her quite a bit. Besides, he had everything arranged to take Liu Ruoyi home tonight while Yang Danyin and Ye Qian were out.

Da Bing didn't completely understand Long Fei's words, and Long Fei didn't bother to explain them to him. Long Fei believed Da Bing would figure it out gradually.

When the three reached the edge of the village, just before getting into the car, Long Fei smiled at Da Bing who had walked them out. Didn't you just ask if I wanted to raise our flag in Tianhai Beach? I can tell you now: no.

As Long Fei got into the car, Da Bing stood frozen in place. Could his guess have been wrong? Did Long Fei really have no ambition?

Sticking his head out of the car window, Long Fei smiled. We aren't just raising our flag in Tianhai Beach. We are going to plant the banner of the Fengyun Society all over China, and even onto the territories of countries like Japan, the United States, and Britain. You might think this is just a dream right now, but one day you will discover that as long as we work hard, the distance between a dream and reality is often just a single step. As I said before, show me how big your ambition is, and I will give you a stage just as vast.

The car roared away, leaving Da Bing standing there with his mouth wide open. It turned out not that Long Fei lacked ambition, but that his ambition was far too massive—so massive that Da Bing couldn't even comprehend it.

A madman.

Da Bing muttered to himself.

The military training had ended three days ago, yet Liu Ruoyi still felt like she was recovering from a severe illness, unable to concentrate while sitting in the classroom. Because her relationship with Long Fei had become mostly public, and Long Fei had made quite a stir during the military training, many people came to show concern for her. Facing this genuine or hypocritical concern, she always responded with a faint smile. She knew she wasn't sick; if she really had an illness, it was a sickness of the heart.

She remembered the first few days of military training being quite fine. Although the daily training was grueling, with Long Fei accompanying her, she felt she could endure everything. Especially the days just before Long Fei left, when he ate with her every single day, she had felt so happy and fulfilled.

Later on, Long Fei left, taken away by two men whose reputations among the students were legendary. Since then, Liu Ruoyi felt as though she had lost her spiritual pillar. The training was no longer as focused or serious as before. Fortunately, Luo Hongli had given private instructions, and the instructors showed her exceptional care and consideration. Later on, even when her entire platoon was punished, she was never once included. Everyone knew the reason in their hearts; though they complained in private about this unfair treatment, not a single person dared to utter a word of discontent.

National Day was just around the corner. Word was that Liu Ruoyi had always been the class's cultural committee member back in middle school, and since this year's National Day coincided with the school's anniversary, the school was not only holding regular cultural performances but also inviting numerous leaders from the municipal and district committees to observe. The Department of Performing Arts had always been the artistic backbone of Jiaoda; performances were not only expected for the school, but students were also required to participate in various national competitions. The standards were undeniably high.

Therefore, under Wang Ziguo's instigation, the cultural committee member approached Liu Ruoyi, hoping she would temporarily assist in managing this performance. However, Liu Ruoyi obtusely turned it down. With her thoughts entirely consumed by Long Fei day and night and her mood in a terrible state, how could she possibly have the energy for such matters? The cultural committee member spoke ill of Liu Ruoyi behind her back to Wang Gengsheng, which boiled down to a single point: in the face of such a major event, Liu Ruoyi's refusal didn't just mean a lack of respect for Wang Ziguo and the committee member; it was a manifestation of disregard for the collective honor of the class, making the issue extremely grave.

This petty report failed to move Wang Ziguo. He wasn't a fool; although he didn't know Long Fei's exact background, the school leadership had previously spoken to him about Long Fei, explicitly instructing him not to restrict Long Fei and to grant him absolute freedom. Of course, it had to be done without making Long Fei feel constrained—meaning he had to show concern for Long Fei without putting any pressure on him, ensuring that Long Fei lived happily every day and avoiding any incidents during his university years that the school couldn't afford to bear.

So how could Wang Ziguo possibly listen to a student's petty complaints? He certainly wouldn't.

In the car, Long Fei quickly scanned the materials gathered by Gouzi. Although a few parts matched his guesses, the vast majority of things were completely unexpected, leaving him quite curious about the remaining details that couldn't be investigated.

Long Fei smiled—a smile that was somewhat bitter yet filled with a hint of excitement. Perhaps this was destiny. He had originally been a homeless orphan who didn't even know his biological parents, yet in the end, he was being used by the old man to reclaim something the old man had failed to obtain twenty years ago. This made Long Fei somewhat displeased. Being used never felt good. But now that the old man was dead, Long Fei no longer stubbornly clung to his past thoughts or views. Since the chess player controlling him as a piece was gone, Long Fei decided to simply stir up the game. Who knows, perhaps those things that rightfully belonged to the old man might end up in his own hands.

He had been feeling lost recently, unsure of what to pursue in life. Now that he had money, was he really just supposed to live for chasing women and gratifying his primal instincts? Long Fei felt that spending every day surrounded by beauties was indeed wonderful, but a life like that always lacked something. Money was there, beauties were there—so what was missing? Ah, power. Therefore, Long Fei now decided to simply move in the direction designated by the old man. On one hand, he could prevent others from reaping the benefits of his hard work; on the other hand, it would serve as comfort to the old man's spirit in heaven. A win-win situation—why not?

It's truly interesting. I never imagined the old man was so glorious back in the day. But is that Dragon Gang really that mysterious? How come I've never heard of it? Long Fei asked Gouzi, though his tone didn't sound like he was genuinely questioning Gouzi; it was more like talking to himself.

Gouzi replied earnestly, Brother Fei, the Dragon Gang does indeed exist. You've read the files. That Dragon Unit is just a small detachment under the Dragon Gang. While it appears to work for the government, it is actually controlled by the Dragon Gang and takes orders only from the Dragon Lord. As for more detailed information inside the Dragon Gang, it's impossible to find. I've hacked into several top-secret servers like the Ministry of State Security and the Archives Bureau, but I couldn't dig up a single piece of information.

You said that guy has kept a very low profile all these years. How can a man around fifty suffer such a huge blow? Could it really be that he was crushed by the old man back then? And does this matter have a profound connection with Ye Wentian and his wife? Long Fei frowned deeply.

To be honest, Gouzi hadn't completed this mission very well, but Long Fei didn't blame him. This matter was extremely complex, and since twenty years had passed, investigating it was indeed difficult. Being able to uncover this much already felt remarkable to Long Fei. Besides, they were brothers of the same fold; he had no reason to point fingers at Gouzi.

Based on the information currently available, Ye Wentian, the old man, and the Dragon Lord of the Dragon Gang had all been prominent figures in Beijing back in the day. Furthermore, the old man had served as the White Dragon Envoy of the Dragon Gang. After a series of open and covert struggles between the two, they finally came to blows. In the end, though these fellow disciples didn't resort to fratricide, they parted ways as enemies, holding onto that hatred for twenty full years. Over these two decades, the old man never gave up on his vengeance and had secretly plotted for years to settle the score with the Dragon Lord during the Dragon Gang's decennial assembly next year. Unfortunately, just as he finished training Long Fei and Phoenix, he met his untimely death. Thinking of this, Long Fei's feelings became somewhat complicated; he didn't know whether to feel pity or relief for the old man.

A person who lives for love is in pain, yet because of love, life can also be joyful.

A person who lives for hatred is in pain, and because of hatred, life can never be happy.

Both types of people might be too obsessed, and that obsession leads to two entirely different outcomes. Such is life.

Lighting a cigarette, Long Fei tried to push the matter out of his mind—it was simply too complicated. In any case, Uncle Fu was still pulling the strings behind the scenes, so the old man's death wasn't the end of the world. Even if only for Uncle Fu's sake, Long Fei had to go to Beijing and fight to reclaim what the old man had hoped to gain. Long Fei comforted himself with this thought.

Furthermore, he felt he shouldn't rush. Didn't Ye Wentian say he would tell Long Fei certain things he deemed appropriate after returning from Japan? Perhaps he could hear a different perspective from Ye Wentian's lips. Long Fei suspected that Ye Wentian and Qi Feiyu had played pivotal roles in that great battle years ago.

Rushing all the way, Long Fei still arrived at school late. Counting the time, military training had ended several days ago. With a sense of anticipation, Long Fei walked toward his classroom, wondering along the way whether Liu Ruoyi's skin had tanned during the military training. Even if it had tanned, Long Fei didn't care—dark was fine, it was a healthy color and would eventually recover. However, if he got the chance to run into Luo Hongli, he would definitely settle accounts with him; Luo had promised to take care of Liu Ruoyi before leaving. Thinking of Luo Hongli—who didn't look like a military officer at all, yet managed to secure a division commander's position purely on his father's prestige—Long Fei chuckled all the way.

Of course, along the way, Long Fei couldn't help but act a bit stealthily. He couldn't let the little witch Ye Qian spot him; otherwise, his plans for the evening would fall through. He had already called Ye Qian yesterday, chatting with her for a long time and even confessing how much he missed her. At the time, it had excited Ye Qian so much she almost booked a flight to Japan right then and there to soothe his longing.

To be frank, the only reason Long Fei had spent so much breath on her was to figure out where Ye Qian was currently staying. To his satisfaction, it seemed neither Ye Qian nor Yang Danyin was living at his place. That made sense; with him, the male host, absent, it was hard for two competing women to live together under one roof. Without him serving as a buffer, heaven knows what kind of chaos would ensue. Long Fei thought about this quite logically the entire way.

When Long Fei reached the doorway of the classroom, he instantly drew the gaze of every student. Naturally, the most excited was Liu Ruoyi. She couldn't help but smile, but immediately reined it in, her face flushing crimson. Feeling shy, she lowered her head and pretended not to see him, leaving Long Fei feeling rather depressed. What was wrong with this girl? Why was she acting like this upon seeing him? Was she embarrassed, or was she harboring some other thoughts?

Hey, this classmate, who are you looking for? A middle-aged female teacher on the podium was lecturing passionately. Lowering her head, she noticed all the students in the audience staring fixedly at the doorway. Following their gaze, she saw Long Fei.

To clarify, this female teacher's surname was He, and her full name was He Lingshan. She had previously taught at a third-rate university and transferred to this school at the beginning of the semester thanks to a relative's connections. She had spent the first week handling paperwork, which meant she was officially starting her classes these past couple of days—and unfortunately, Long Fei ran right into her.

Teacher He had a lovely name, but her appearance formed a stark contrast. No matter how Long Fei looked at it, this middle-aged woman was likely still unmarried mostly because she had studied too much. Otherwise, even if her looks were subpar, how could she still be single at her age? Furthermore, Long Fei had a basis for this arbitrary conclusion. What basis? Weren't breakouts on a woman's face a sign of excessive estrogen? And didn't that mean she had too few opportunities for Yin-Yang dual cultivation? If that didn't mean she was unmarried, what did?

Of course, there was another possibility: perhaps this Teacher He was naturally brimming with lust, while her husband was ninety-nine percent impotent, leading to a severe deficiency in her supply of male hormones. Having thought this far, Long Fei quickly found yet another reason.

Then again, there was a third possibility: it was summer and extremely hot, and what she had on her face weren't acne breakouts at all, but sores? Long Fei shook his head inwardly, recalling that he used to have similar breakouts and the doctor said they were caused by excessive male hormones, so what she had on her face definitely wouldn't be sores—well, maybe they were also called sores, he chuckled to himself.

While Long Fei was letting his imagination run wild, his feet hadn't stopped moving. Having never attended school before, he wasn't accustomed to shouting permission to enter. In his mind, you teach your class, I enter my classroom, and neither of us interferes with the other—how wonderful is that?

Unexpectedly, Teacher He wasn't as indulgent as other teachers, or perhaps she simply wasn't aware of Long Fei's notorious reputation. She immediately called out to stop him.

Long Fei paused and chuckled, Sorry, teacher. I'm a student in this class and forgot to greet you earlier. Let me make up for it now. Hello, teacher, hehe.

He Lingshan's face turned green with anger. In her eyes, Long Fei showed complete disrespect for his elders and teachers—something she valued above all else. Consequently, she said ungratefully, Please step outside and come back in after shouting your report properly.

Long Fei suddenly remembered encountering a similar situation once before. Who had that teacher been? He had forgotten. So, imitating what he did last time, Long Fei actually stepped back out, then grinned and said to He Lingshan, Hello, teacher, report.

He Lingshan frowned, set down her textbook, and stared at Long Fei with undisguised disgust. Her gaze made Long Fei equally disgusted, and instantly, the two of them developed a mutual aversion.

This classmate, regardless of your reason for being late, as a student you must understand respect for teachers and the path of learning. Even our ancestors knew the principle of 'Heaven, Earth, Sovereign, Parents, and Teacher'—don't you even know that...