Gazing at the two figures nestled together in the distance, Xiao Geng felt as if his heart were being ripped apart. His eyes were filled with fury, resentment, and utter bewilderment. He could never comprehend why Luo Ling’er, who had grown up alongside him, favored this rogue. Could his status, his achievements, truly not compare to the likes of him?

In recent days, he had tried every means to get close to Luo Ling’er, even daring to bare the deepest feelings of his heart, yet although she remained as warm and familiar with him as ever, he sensed an undeniable, deep-seated distance beneath the surface of that warmth. Only now, seeing the man and woman entwined so closely, did he finally understand why…

Had he truly lost just like that? Was he destined to lose her forever?

Xiao Geng was unwilling; he was truly, deeply unwilling…

The setting sun reflected in his eyes, resembling two fierce flames burning fiercely. With a long sigh, Xiao Geng turned and descended the city wall. He could not concede defeat, nor could he remain inactive; he had to do something…

The soldiers on the ramparts caught sight of the Great General Xiao Geng’s profound melancholy, and a chill crept into their hearts. They genuinely had no idea what sorrow had befallen their General to make him so wistful, so unwilling, so desolate. They were even less aware that the couple they saw nearby was the very source of Xiao Geng’s despair…

Ye Jingyu and Luo Ling’er were oblivious to the man watching them from behind, sighing. They remained close, leaning on each other until the last vestiges of the evening glow vanished from the horizon…

The city gates were about to close soon. Whether they wished it or not, they had to return. Although the customs of the Shu Yun Kingdom were relatively liberal, if a Princess failed to return home for an entire night, even Emperor Luo Xiaofeng, doting as he was, would have to administer punishment for the sake of royal decorum. With no other choice, Ye Jingyu quietly escorted Luo Ling’er back to the Royal Palace, while he himself returned to the residence of the Great General.

Zhuge Yi had returned much earlier, but he was currently serving as the chief strategist in the mansion of the Third Young Master, Luo Ruofeng. Ye Jingyu naturally had no intention of commenting on this development…

Several top-tier masters were now garrisoned in the General’s residence, elevating the defense to its zenith; there was absolutely no need to worry about assassins. Conversely, Ye Jingyu harbored intentions of sneaking into the Marquis of Baiyun’s manor that very night. However, having just returned to the city today, any incident at the Marquis’s residence might bring him unnecessary trouble. He forcefully suppressed the killing intent churning within him and returned to his own quarters…

“Young Master…” As soon as he stepped into his room, Lin Xiaoyi’s voice called from outside the door…

“Come in…” Ye Jingyu adjusted the lamp wick, brightening the room slightly, and spoke calmly…

The door opened softly from the outside, and Lin Xiaoyi, clad in a long robe of deep cyan, slipped inside…

“Young Master, I have completed everything you tasked me with. Here is the intelligence I gathered—please review it…” Lin Xiaoyi presented a stack of documents held close to his chest with utmost deference.

Ye Jingyu’s eyebrows rose. He accepted what Lin Xiaoyi offered and glanced over it, a faint smile touching his lips…

This was what he had instructed Lin Xiaoyi to do secretly while he was journeying to White Cloud Mountain: investigate the various ei gangs operating within Yun Jing. To the officials of the Shu Yun Kingdom, those petty thugs and vagrants were merely the lowest form of societal pests; no one cared whether they lived or died, nor did they concern themselves with their existence. But Ye Jingyu knew that these people living at the very bottom of society, if properly controlled, held immense potential utility—at the very least, they could provide him with ample intelligence, preventing him from being in Yun Jing yet feeling as if his ears and eyes were covered.

Thus, he had long since formulated the plan to bring the Yun Jing ei gangs under his control. Of course, for a Great General serving in the court to associate with such lowlifes would be seen as a profound disgrace by other officials. But Ye Jingyu paid them no mind; all he sought was tangible advantage…

In all of Yun Jing, he lacked the inherited lineage of Xiao Geng, or the formidable backing of Huangfu Buyue. The only thing he could rely on was his own strength; beyond that, he possessed no other bulwark. To secure a better life, he had to continuously forge a power structure that belonged solely to him…

Those vagrants and hooligans dwelling at the lowest stratum were his primary target. After all, this was a venture with no initial capital investment, and it was unlikely to attract the notice of the Imperial Palace or other court officials, wasn’t it?

The papers clearly documented that while Yun Jing harbored countless large and small bng factions, the three dominant ones were the Golden Dragon Gang, the White Tiger Gang, and the Azure Dragon Gang…

Such common, utterly common names. But Ye Jingyu disregarded the titles. Instead, he looked up and smiled faintly at Lin Xiaoyi, stating lightly, “Xiaoyi, would you like to become an ei gang leader?”

“Ah…” Lin Xiaoyi blinked, his thoughts aligning with the majority in this world who looked down upon those idle street ruffians. He was perplexed by his Young Master, the dignified Great General, investigating these ei gangs, and now, hearing his master suggest he become an ei gang leader, his confusion deepened…

“Heh heh, go invite Mr. Xue, and then we’ll take a walk…” Ye Jingyu paid no mind to Lin Xiaoyi’s acceptance or refusal, merely smiling faintly before rising from his chair…

Lin Xiaoyi rubbed the back of his head, uncertain of what Ye Jingyu truly intended, but he quickly turned and hurried toward Xue Hengzhi’s room. Since the Young Master commanded it, he would simply obey…

In the Southern City of Yun Jing, at the Golden Dragon Street’s largest establishment, the Golden Dragon Casino, business was booming. Countless gamblers, their eyes bloodshot, hunched over various tables, watching silver piling up and shifting across the felt, but it invariably moved away from them, while the money in their own purses flowed steadily outward…

Their eyes grew redder, and the wagers they placed grew larger, but the rate at which they lost increased even faster. Only when they were stripped of every last coin did they stumble out of the casino, their faces etched with deep dissatisfaction…

Some, having lost everything, even dared to take out high-interest loans from the casino establishment just to plunge back into gambling. Yet, the outcome was invariably a crushing defeat…

Only a small handful managed to win money, their faces wreathed in smiles, but even then, they were reluctant to leave. For behind the gambling floor lay a massive den of dissipation—there were beautiful courtesans, the most exquisite flesh. Unwilling and unready to depart, they were led by young attendants through the corridors into the rear courtyard, where they violently threw their winnings upon the women, indulging in a life of drunken oblivion…