Although Liu Xiaoshan had only been working with Director Ying for a few years, he was highly skilled in his profession and had outstanding interpersonal skills. Before this young man arrived, he had already collected enough information.
No overseas letters were found during the search of the Qin family home. Ying Yan lived in the South Courtyard, a gathering place for powerful and wealthy people in Kyoto.
This compound was divided into the South Compound, North Compound, East Compound, and West Compound. The South Compound represented nobility, the North Compound represented power, the East Compound represented the military, and the West Compound represented wealth. Even today, living there is still a symbol of status and prestige.
The Qin family is one of the three major powers in the Southern Noble Family. Ying Yan is handsome, intelligent, skilled in martial arts, righteous, and comes from an extremely powerful family. He has many followers in all four courtyards. It wouldn't be an exaggeration for everyone to secretly call him Crown Prince Qin!
Back then, there were ten people in the four courtyards who were within five years of each other. They became sworn brothers, and Ying Yan was the ninth among them, so everyone liked to call him Ninth Master.
Once you find Ninth Master, there's nothing you can't accomplish.
Although the Qin family has fallen from grace, Ying Yan's nine sworn brothers now occupy important positions in various industries in the capital. These are not people Ying Ju dares to provoke. In fact, Ying Ju even wants to climb the social ladder by attaching himself to these connections.
Furthermore, the Qin family are red capitalists. The old master and old lady Qin are kind-hearted and have helped many people, including some who hold extremely high positions of power.
Even if they don't feel they owe the Qin family much, it's just a small favor for them to clear the Qin family's name and help the Qin family's descendants.
If they put in a little more effort for Director Ying, the Ying family could also climb to a higher level!
As the saying goes, "When one person rises to heaven, even their chickens and dogs attain enlightenment," Liu Xiaoshan, as the capable assistant in charge of the situation, could also rise in rank.
In the blink of an eye, many thoughts raced through Liu Xiaoshan's mind. He had to flatter this young master, even more so than the local authorities.
My beloved is someone I won't allow anyone to covet or scheme against.
However, the upper class has its own set of rules: beauties can be played with, but not made into wives. A strong alliance is the most rational choice to establish oneself in Kyoto! This is a temptation that no ambitious man can resist.
In this respect, no matter how capable Ying Yan is, he cannot match Ying Ju. After all, they were once father and son, and there is no way they haven't hit each other's weak points.
If you choose the right wife, you can leverage her strengths in any situation!
The Yellow Crane Tower is an extremely elegant and exquisite ancient building, in the same style as the palace not far away. It features beautiful eaves, carved stone pillars, and a pair of Qilin beasts. The red and gold colors are mixed together without appearing gaudy. Instead, it has a magnificent and luxurious style.
At the entrance, four elegant women dressed in modernized cheongsams greeted customers with sweet smiles. The lobby had many tables, and the waiters, all dressed in clean white suits, hats, and aprons with cotton towels draped over their shoulders, moved about busily.
In the center of the hotel was a stage where the play "The White-Haired Girl" was being performed. The audience was already full, and the hotel was well-stocked with everything from melon seeds and peanuts to candies, fruits, tea, and drinks. It was a rare place in this day and age to have such attentive service.
The hotel features a central atrium design, with private rooms arranged around the second floor, offering a clear view of the performances below.
As soon as they entered, a waiter came up and led them away with a smile.
Liu Xiaoshan gave his room number, and the group went to the second floor.
As they walked up the stairs, a fashionable woman wearing a bright red, fitted, puff-sleeved dress, white high-heeled sandals, with flowing wavy hair and exquisite makeup, came up to them with a surprised smile. "Ninth Brother, when did you come back? You've finally come to your senses! You didn't even tell us beforehand!"
"What a coincidence! Third Brother, Fifth Brother, and Eighth Brother are all inside. The food was just served but they haven't eaten yet. Shall we join them?"
After saying that, she looked at Ke Meiyu, a flash of amazement and jealousy crossing her eyes. She nodded with a polite smile and said naturally, "Ninth Brother, who is this beautiful sister? Aren't you going to introduce her to me?"
"Everyone says you haven't come back for so many years because you must have found a beauty and are so happy you don't want to leave. And sure enough..."
Ying Yan smiled and put his arm around Ke Meiyu's shoulder. "When we were kids, we were pretty rebellious. When we were building houses in Kyoto, we became sworn brothers with nine people. This is the tenth one, and I'm the ninth."
Then he said lazily to the woman, "This is my wife!"
They didn't introduce each other by name, but it was clear at a glance how close or distant their relationship was.
The woman's eyes narrowed, and her expression almost cracked.
This was different from what she had imagined. Ninth Brother had never liked delicate girls, nor did he care whether they were pretty or not. After all, he himself was exceptionally handsome and had always claimed that he did not like the most deceptive illusion of appearance.
And she is the only woman who has stayed by his side as a tomboy all these years.
She has attracted the attention of countless women. There's no way around it; she comes from a good family and is one of the top socialites in Kyoto. Few dare to confront her directly.
The brothers all knew that she was Ninth Brother's little shadow. Although Ninth Brother didn't talk about love, everyone accepted her identity and assumed that if Ninth Brother got married, Tenth Brother would be his first choice.
She believed that too with such confidence.
Normally, if she spoke in such a joking tone, Ninth Brother would directly say that she was some aunt's daughter, denying it without any ambiguity.
But reality hit her hard. Was it all because she had been absent from his life for five years?
"Hello, sister-in-law," she said, her expression momentarily blank before continuing with a polite smile. "My name is Huang Zhirong. I work in the finance department, responsible for auditing the finances of various factories. My brothers like to call me Rongmei, Laoyao, or Shimei."
She then said to Ying Yan with a bitter face, "Ninth Brother is so unfair! He got married without telling us. Does he not plan to acknowledge his brothers anymore?"
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