Ling An’s father barely looked at the documents Ling An had given him. In his view, as long as his son was no longer drifting aimlessly like before and was willing to start his own business, that was a good thing. With a grand wave of his hand, Ling An’s matter was settled.
With the money in hand, all that was missing was a capable person.
His Spiritual Power had accumulated quite a bit by now. Walking up to the rooftop, Ling An cast a concealment spell on himself.
He raised his hand, and wind rose, gently sweeping across his palm as a long sword slowly condensed in Ling An’s palm.
With a flick of his wrist, the sword settled into Ling An’s grip, and he tossed it out.
The thrown sword didn’t fall to the ground but floated in midair. Ling An stepped onto it, pressed down hard, and poured Spiritual Energy into the sword in an instant, he shot into the sky.
He enjoyed it for less than two minutes before arriving at his destination. He jumped off the sword, which dissipated on the spot.
The moment the sword dissipated, Ling An’s vision went black, and his head spun for a good while before he recovered.
He couldn’t help but give a wry smile. What a huge gap, after flying just that little bit, his Spiritual Power was nearly depleted.
Looking around, he saw an old residential complex, many facilities rusted, wall paint peeling and cracking with no one caring for it.
It seemed this capable butler wasn’t doing so well these days.
Xu Wen, an all-around and loyal butler, was the ultimate tool-man who let the male and female leads act as hands-off bosses.
While the male and female leads showed off their love around the world, Xu Wen diligently managed the company. While the male and female leads had babies around the world, Xu Wen was still diligently managing the company until his eightieth birthday, when he finally retired with honor.
Such a hardworking person, he naturally wouldn’t let slip away.
According to the plot, Xu Wen’s gambling-addicted father should have already run off with all the family’s money, leaving him with a five-million debt. The company he worked at happened to be doing layoffs, so he lost his job and was languishing at home.
With no hope left in life, Xu Wen drifted through a year like this. His house was forcibly auctioned off, and he resolutely chose to end his life, only to be saved by the female lead and become her devoted lapdog.
As long as he saw the female lead happy, he felt happy.
After reading this part of the plot, Ling An couldn’t help but ponder. Had he come too early? It seemed the effect would be best when the man was at his most desperate.
But he was short-handed right now and couldn’t wait that long.
Ling An waited at the entrance of the complex for only a short while before he saw a dispirited man carrying a box.
Though the man wore formal attire, his tie had been pulled loose and crooked.
Without needing the system’s confirmation, Ling An could be certain this was the person he was looking for.
He strode straight toward Xu Wen, who was walking with his head down, unaware of Ling An’s approach.
Deliberately, Ling An collided with him, and Xu Wen was knocked flat to the ground, his things scattering everywhere.
Ling An cast what seemed like a casual glance and spotted Xu Wen’s résumé. He reached out, picked it up, and examined it carefully, nodding from time to time, a satisfied expression on his face.
In truth, Ling An understood none of it, he’d never done this kind of work before and couldn’t tell good from bad. But he had the plot, and he knew Xu Wen’s potential. His future slacker life would be incomplete without him.
And so, a thoroughly bewildered Xu Wen was recruited by Ling An into his not-yet-established company.
He hadn’t even recovered from his grief before throwing himself into Ling An’s enterprise, which was still under construction.
After poaching the employees, Ling An checked the time, there was still plenty of it so he found a hotel and booked a room. Looking at the cramped little room, Ling An didn’t mind it at all. He plopped down, crossed his legs, and began cultivating.
Although this world was in an age of declining cultivation with Spiritual Energy nearly depleted, even if a mosquito is small, it’s still meat.
Besides, this body was in terrible shape. His chest still ached from being rammed by Xu Wen earlier, he’d need to run Spiritual Energy through it several times to fix that.
Time flew by during cultivation. It felt to Ling An like he’d barely closed his eyes before the system was urging him to get up. In reality, a whole day had passed.
He checked the time, it was already eight. The plot should start at nine.
Ling An rose, cast a cleansing spell on himself, and went downstairs to check out. The moment he stepped outside, the taxi the system had booked for him in advance was already waiting at the entrance.
Only after getting in the car did Ling An turn on his phone.
The moment he opened Feixin, he saw a huge pile of work reports Xu Wen had sent him. Ling An couldn’t understand them, but he gave his approval to all of them anyway.
Next were messages from Ling’s father. Ling An didn’t read the contents; he just forwarded Xu Wen’s Feixin contact to his father, gave a few instructions, and exited the chat.
Ling An searched for a long time but couldn’t find the message he was hoping to see. Only when he scrolled to the very bottom did he suddenly remember, he had deleted the male lead.
Oh well. He’d add him back himself tonight, and then he’d have to give him a good talking-to: no deleting him next time.
Picturing that scene, Ling An’s mood instantly brightened, he even felt like humming a little tune.
The bar Wang Mengqing owned was located on the famous Rich Man’s Street. Anyone who could afford to spend money there was either wealthy or powerful. The name was chosen carelessly enough when Ling An arrived, all he saw on the signboard was one large traditional character:
Jiu
Four bodyguards stood at the entrance, flanked by two stunningly beautiful hostesses.
As Ling An approached, he saw a man arguing with the two hostesses.
“I have an invitation, I just forgot to bring it, just let me in first.” The man looked extremely anxious, shoving his way toward the entrance as he spoke.
Today was the opening day, and the Wang family had invited plenty of dignitaries. Anyone without an invitation was not allowed inside.
This was to prevent ordinary people from offending the distinguished guests at the source, and to guard against uncontrollable accidents.
The man didn’t cause a scene at the door for long before the bodyguards dragged him away.
Ling An took out his invitation. The hostess took it, checked it over, and quickly let him through.
Inside, luxurious decor met the eye at once. Walking further in, he heard music playing all around; on stage, a beautiful woman in a pure white dress was singing.
Below the stage, people sat in small clusters chatting, while many others mingled about.
Ling An easily spotted Qin Yeling in the crowd.
However, Qin Yeling hadn’t been drugged yet. He stood there coldly and properly, talking with the people beside him.
Ling An found an unoccupied seat and sat down. The next moment, a waiter came over carrying several glasses of wine.
Ling An casually picked one up, sniffed its aroma, and looked up.
Oh, what a coincidence. It’s the female lead.
The female lead didn’t seem to recognize him; seeing that he’d taken the wine, she turned and left.
Judging by the direction she was heading, she was off to deliver a drink to Qin Yeling.
Since the female lead had made her move, Ling An wasn’t in a hurry. There should still be a few minutes before the drug took effect.
It was just as well that he was eating something after cultivating for so long without food, this body couldn’t quite handle it.
He took a sip of the wine in his hand; after a slight sourness, a mellow fragrance spread out.
Ling An frowned and immediately pushed the wine away.
It wasn’t good at all. It looked clear, but who would have thought it was bitter? He had no idea how they managed to drink it.
Anyway, he couldn’t drink it, he couldn’t stomach even the slightest bitterness.