Chapter 26: Trust in the Light.

Chapter 26: Trust in the Light.

A new member was added to the family. The other three young masters had no objections, but they all agreed that naming the cat "Li JJ" wasn't quite right. In the end, it was the eldest young master, Li Wenzhao, who made the final decision and gave the kitten a name: Tangyuan.

Jing Yi turned his head and asked, "Why this name, eldest young master? Are you hungry?"

"Are we preparing to keep a cat as emergency food? [Looks terrified] Who in their right mind eats cats?!?"

Li Wenzhao was already used to being exasperated every day and explained, "It's because he looks like a tangyuan with its filling leaking out."

Jing Yi took a closer look and indeed, it was true.

The soft, furry little creature had delicate fur, a snow-white belly, and a patch of black along the spine. At first glance, it looked like a black sesame tangyuan that had burst open.

Jing Yi chuckled, "Then why not just call him Sesame?"

Li Mingzhi said, "Sesame doesn't have a nice ring to it. Tangyuan is better. It sounds nice and is sweet."

Li Wenzhao glanced at the young butler beside him, "Hmm."

And so, the kitten's name was decided. Li Mingzhi doted on it. As long as he wasn't going out for work, he would stay home and play with the cat. Sitting on the sofa, he let the kitten crawl on his chest, creating an indescribable harmony between the two.

Jing Yi had now accumulated some assets.

He kept all the income he had received since he crossed over into a small box, including the 500,000 yuan bonus given by Li Wenzhao, the gold watch gifted by the second young master, Li Xu, and a salary card that deposited 100,000 yuan monthly.

He was just waiting for Secretary Fan to help him buy a house, and the box would soon contain a property deed.

Jing Yi was happily planning and felt that life was full of hope!

In the evening, after Jing Yi took a shower, Secretary Fan sent a bunch of floor plans to his phone, followed by an explanatory file that detailed the distance to supermarkets and subway stations around the neighborhood.

No wonder he's the CEO's secretary—he's super efficient!

Jing Yi picked out a set he liked. The housing prices here were several times more expensive than in his previous life, so he didn’t dare buy anything too big. A one-bedroom would be fine since he was living alone. After selecting it, he immediately sent it to Secretary Fan.

[Secretary Fan]: Young Butler, are you sure about this set?

[You Jing Dàye]: Yes, yes! Please place the order fast—before someone else does!

[Secretary Fan]: These properties are from unopened Li Corporation developments; no one will snatch them.

Jing Yi understood.

[You Jing Dàye]: Oh, I'm an insider with connections.

[Secretary Fan]: Correct, using Mr. Li's connections.

[You Jing Dàye]: Hahaha.

Lying face down on Tangyuan's bed, he typed a message to Secretary Fan. Halfway through, he suddenly froze.

The name of this development sounded oddly familiar...

Jing Yi opened the information file Secretary Fan sent and after reading it for a while, his face turned pale.

[You Jing Dàye]: Secretary Fan! Secretary Fan!

[You Jing Dàye]: Hold on! Don't place the order yet!

[Secretary Fan]: What's wrong? I was just about to make the payment.

Jing Yi's fingers flew across the keyboard: [Don't buy it, don't buy this one, whatever you do, don't buy it!]

If he remembered correctly, there was a brief description in the original story, though it was only mentioned in passing, and Jing Yi had almost forgotten about it.

——A week before the Li Corporation's property was due to go on sale, an ancient tomb was discovered at the neighboring property developed by Shen Shubai. In order to bring down the Li family, the main character spread the news far and wide, immediately attracting an archaeological team to start excavations.

Since the Li Corporation's property was too near the ancient tomb, instead of a beautiful morning light, what greeted the residents when they opened their curtains was rotten soil and bones from an unknown era. No one wanted to cohabit with ghosts from thousands of years ago, and the property became completely unsellable—no units moved.

After the incident broke, Shen Shubai reported it to the authorities and was awarded by the state, while the stock prices of Shen Group skyrocketed. The Li Corporation almost had a cash flow crisis.

Anxious, Jing Yi dug up Li Wenzhao’s contact info and messaged him late at night.

[Eldest Young Master, are you asleep? (cat peeking gif)]

[Li Wenzhao]: What's up?

[Jing Uncle]: Found something big! Need to report in person!

[Li]: Upstairs in the study. Come on up.

After getting the reply, Jing Yi instinctively checked the time. It was past 10 PM, and Li Wenzhao was still working late. No wonder he’s the boss.

If it weren’t for Shen Shubai, the main character, Li Wenzhao would have the perfect life.

The study on the second floor.

Li Wenzhao set down his phone, pausing his work. He wondered what new issue the young butler had discovered that required a late-night warning.

So dedicated; he was considering giving him a reward.

Li Wenzhao pressed the intercom, directly connected to the kitchen.

The kitchen staff were on duty until midnight daily, ensuring the Li family’s young masters could eat anytime during late hours. “Eldest Young Master.”

“Bring up some food,” Li Wenzhao said. “No main dishes, just snacks.”

The chef was quick, and five minutes later, several plates of delicate fruit platters and snacks were sent up.

Li Wenzhao placed the items in the corner of the desk, planning to let the young butler have a taste when he couldn’t resist drooling over them.

He could already imagine the young butler's eyes sparkling with excitement as he tasted the appetizers.

Another five minutes passed.

The study was quiet, with no one coming in.

Has the young butler been gone so long?

Could he have gotten lost?

Just as Li Wenzhao was about to stand up, his phone suddenly rang multiple times, and he sat back down.

On the phone, the young butler had sent several random links.

"Expert Opinions: If an intact ancient tomb is discovered on your property, how much could you get..."

"#Shen Group real estate project halted abruptly, dead bodies were secretly removed overnight, nearby residents heard screams of terror, suspected worker fell to death..."

"Heavenly Eye News: This vegetable field, dating back 500 years, has revealed a massive ancient tomb..."

"balabala Video: Turning an ancient tomb into a museum, I never thought I'd live to see this. It's truly fitting for the modern-day capital!"

"Qiao Yin Video: Live-streaming the ancient tomb, giving viewers an up-close look at the Han dynasty couple’s coffins, local subway plans have been stalled for a decade due to the tomb’s protection..."

"..."

Li Wenzhao frowned. What the heck is going on here?

Li Wenzhao moved his fingers and sent a question mark to the young butler.

The phone screen flickered, and the other party replied instantly.

"Auto-reply": Master is out cold, no need to burn any incense Zzzzz...

Li Wenzhao: “......”

·

·

The next day.

Jing Yi woke up refreshed and clear-headed.

After a good night’s sleep, even the morning light felt amazing.

Last night, he had dropped so many hints to Li Wenzhao—such clear clues. He should have understood, right?

After all, villains are supposed to be smarter, right?

It was almost 8:30, and Jing Yi appeared in the living room on time, ready to head to the company and earn some extra cash.

Li Wenzhao, uncharacteristically, had woken up a bit late and hadn’t come down yet. So, Jing Yi played with Li Mingzhi’s cat on the first floor.

"Young Butler, the first episode of our show will air in three days. I’ll be at the company then, so make sure to watch it, okay?"

Jing Yi remembered the green frog suit he had seen that day, his toes gripping the floor: "Do I really have to watch?"

"Of course," Li Mingzhi said. "This is my big debut. You can’t miss it!"

Jing Yi: “......”

Forget it. If he had to watch, he’d just have to cringe a little less on behalf of others.

It was almost 9 o’clock when Li Wenzhao finally came downstairs, looking like he had stayed up all night.

"Wow, the CEO sure is dedicated to his work. Were you busy fixing problems until dawn last night?"

"..." Li Wenzhao stumbled slightly.

Fix what problems?

The young butler had sent several ambiguous links. He had stared at them all night before finally finding a hint of something fishy.

As a businessman, he has a sharp eye for certain things. Even the slightest hint of something fishy is enough to catch his attention.

Considering the potentially dangerous projects involving the Li and Shen families, he did a simple process of elimination and quickly arrived at the result—an ancient tomb was discovered on the land of Shen Family's real estate project.

He immediately set everything in motion overnight, waking up all the employees of the housing construction department in the middle of the night. They probably have a lot of resentment now.

Damn idiot butler.

Why can't he just say it straight? Why bother with all these cryptic hints?

If he’s going to use hints, at least make them more straightforward. What was this nonsense he sent?

It had him spinning his wheels all night, chasing dead ends.

The young butler even had the nerve to ask, "Eldest young master, didn't you sleep well?"

"Well, with such a big loophole, who could sleep? The brand-new house suddenly became a haunted mansion overnight. I can understand how that would affect someone," he said.

Li Wenzhao was left speechless.

He coughed lightly and headed out to work.

Jing Yi immediately followed.

As soon as he stepped out, Secretary Fan sent a message. Jing Yi was buried in his phone while walking and bumped into a wall of flesh.

A voice from above teased, "Another soft landing?"

"No, I just wasn't paying attention," Jing Yi said calmly.

"……" Li Wenzhao gave a cold, indifferent scoff, "You’re actually proud of that?"

Jing Yi thought for a moment and gave an example, "Eldest young master, have you ever seen a rear-end collision where the front car brakes suddenly, and the rear car is at fault?"

Li Wenzhao: "……"

Li Wenzhao let out a cold laugh, "So it's my fault?"

Jing Yi tightly pressed his lips, "Not on your life."

The butler’s guts are growing. He needs to be put in his place.

Li Wenzhao let out a half-conscious laugh, put on a serious face, and got into the car.

Jing Yi sat in the front passenger seat. After driving for a while, he realized something was off, "Eldest young master, aren't we going to the company?"

"No," Li Wenzhao said, "We're going to Shen Group first to discuss a project."

"？？？"

"You're going to negotiate with Shen Shubai? That brave, huh? Eldest young master, you really are a reckless fool!"

The eldest young master himself: "……"

·

The Shen Group and Li Corporation were quite far apart, with each occupying the southern and northern parts of the capital city, standing in stark opposition to each other, a well-known rivalry in the city.

Compared to the Li Corporation's twin towers, the Shen Group's side was much more extravagant, having built a structure resembling the Five Fingers Mountain.

Five buildings were intricately embedded in the ground, symbolizing the special treatment of the main character's mother.

Clearly aware of Li Wenzhao's early morning visit, Shen Shubai had sent his personal secretary to receive them downstairs.

"Mr. Li, I am Secretary Zou, Mr. Shen's chief secretary. Please follow me, Mr. Shen is already waiting for you upstairs."

As they got out of the car, they saw Secretary Fan emerging from a taxi, still appearing efficient and distant. "Mr. Li, apologies for the delay caused by traffic," he said.

"No problem." Li Wenzhao said meaningfully, "As long as there's no rear-end collision."

Jing Yi paused and turned his head.

"Were you rear-ended on the way, Mr. Li?" Fan Ming immediately turned to inspect Li Wenzhao's car.

"No need," Li Wenzhao said, "No car rear-ended me, but someone did."

Jing Yi looked away, saying nothing.

"Wow, he sure holds a grudge."

Secretary Fan glanced at the unusually flustered Jing Butler and got the hint.

Oh, Butler Jing had run into Mr. Li's arms.

Just some typical lover's antics.

Nothing surprising.

Secretary Fan adjusted his glasses knowingly.

·

They headed upstairs and made their way to the top floor.

The protagonist's top-floor office had that typical cold, austere look from novels, but the only difference was that Shen Shubai had placed a life-sized statue of Guan Yu, the God of War, right at the elevator entrance.

As soon as Jing Yi stepped out of the elevator, he was almost startled into choking by the fierce red face staring him down.

"What kind of unusual hobby does Shen Shubai have?"

"Could you please step aside? Thanks."

Four young men carried a large chest draped in red cloth, heading directly towards the chairman's office.

Secretary Zou frowned and asked, "What's going on here?"

The movers replied, "This is a consecrated (blessed) wealth god statue that Mr. Shen got from a temple. We've been told to move it into the lounge. Please step aside and avoid touching the red silk. The master said we shouldn't remove it for seven days."

Secretary Zou nodded and said, "Proceed."

Jing Yi watched as the red silk swayed through the doorway. He whispered to Li Wenzhao, "Hey, eldest young master, doesn't our Li Corporation do stuff like this?"

He'd never seen anything like this at Li Corporation.

Li Wenzhao looked at Jing Yi's curious round eyes and said, "No, we're a legitimate company."

Jing Yi picked up on that and said, "Oh, so Mr. Shen's company isn't legitimate?"

Secretary Zou, who was about to invite them into the office, was left speechless.

Top floor office.

Secretary Zou entered the room to report, and soon after, Shen Shubai came out. Upon seeing Jing Yi, the smile on his face faltered slightly. "Mr. Li, you even brought your butler to this meeting. Looks like Jing Yi has really won your approval."

Li Wenzhao responded calmly, "He's versatile. It's quite interesting to discover his skills."

Shen Shubai: "..."

He didn’t know what to make of it.

Jing Yi also looked confused and tilted his head up. "Ah?"

Li Wenzhao lowered his eyes. "He's praising you."

Jing Yi: o.o

Yeah, right.

Jing Yi knew that today he was just there as a mascot. The real work was being handled by Secretary Fan. He had no tasks, just needed to accompany Li Wenzhao to the meeting and then wait quietly in the rest area for the event to conclude.

Meanwhile, in the next office, Li Wenzhao and Shen Shubai were already deep in a heated negotiation.

Jing Yi was still interested in the statue of the wealth god.

Shen Shubai said with a smile, "Mr. Li's plot of land in the south of the city has been completed. Now it's just waiting for the sales to start and the funds to flow back. Why bother fighting over such small gains?"

"Mr. Shen is too optimistic. The funds may not flow back before the presales start," Li Wenzhao coldly chuckled.

In business, Li Wenzhao was cold and arrogant. Even sitting opposite the protagonist with all his glory, his presence did not fall short by even a fraction.

In just a few minutes of exchange, he gave no ground and pressed forward step by step, catching Shen Shubai off guard.

During the conversation, the young butler sneakily moved toward a red, fluttering altar in the rest area.

That angle was where Shen Shubai had just placed the wealth god.

Why is he so fixated on worshipping the wealth god? Li Wenzhao wondered.

What miserly wish is he going to make this time?

"Do consecrated wealth gods... work better?" Jing Yi wondered, staring at the red silk.

Li Wenzhao: "..."

Of course.

Jing Yi eyed the red silk, itching to act.

Li Wenzhao started to zone out.

Why hasn't the young butler started praying for wealth yet? Why couldn't he hear the inner thoughts? It shouldn't be—

"Oh crap, why didn't those people secure the wealth god properly?" The young butler quickly steadied the altar.

The red silk fluttered down, and the young butler stepped on it, causing the God of Wealth on the table to topple over along with it.

"Oh crap, oh crap... This thing just toppled over! Over!"

The young butler took a big step and shoved the wobbling God of Wealth deep into the shrine.

There was a soft thud.

The God of Wealth wobbled for a moment, then face-planted and lay still.

Li Wenzhao: '...'

The troublemaking butler was causing quite a ruckus.

"Which delivery guy was so unreliable, daring to use the God of Wealth as a weapon? It's so heavy, they could've killed Shen Shubai..." the young butler grumbled.

Li Wenzhao: '...'

He wanted to laugh.

But he had to hold it in.

Meanwhile, Shen Shubai continued his enthusiastic pitch, "...What does Mr. Li think of this collaboration model?"

Li Wenzhao, not fully back to reality, instinctively replied, "Mr. Shen is overly optimistic. The properties haven’t even gone on sale yet. Who knows if the funds will come back?"

Shen Shubai: “……???”

Was it just him, or did this sound familiar?

"What I mean is," Li Wenzhao cleared his throat lightly, coming back to his senses, "Li Corporation has invested a significant amount, so we have every reason to hold a larger share of the equity."

Outside the door, the young butler was tiptoeing, struggling to straighten the God of Wealth’s body, his face turning red from the effort, but he still couldn’t manage it.

"This isn’t the God of Wealth; it’s the Iron God! How can it be so heavy?"

Inside the office, tensions were running high, while outside, the young butler was breaking a sweat.

Shen Shubai continued, "However, Li Corporation has most of its funds tied up in real estate projects. Does the company even have spare cash for new ventures? We at Shen Group are different. We have ample funds, staff, and experience, making us ideal to spearhead the project..."

Meanwhile, Jing Yi had exhausted all his strength but still couldn't move the solid God of Wealth even a bit. He gave up and slouched.

"Screw it, let it fall. It’s not my fault anyway. Let Shen Shubai worship the butt of the God of Wealth every day..."

Grumbling, the young butler haphazardly wrapped the red silk around the statue.

"Mr. Shen’s statement isn’t quite right," Li Wenzhao said, unable to suppress a chuckle, "leading sheep... Heh."

Shen Shubai: “……”

What's so funny? Is the idea of being a sheep poking at your funny bone?

Jing Yi didn’t notice the tense atmosphere in the adjacent office. He stared at the butt of the God of Wealth, deep in thought.

"This doesn’t seem right. Won’t Shen Shubai notice something's off at a glance?"

"I need to find something to prop it up..."

His eyes wandered around the resting room, then suddenly paused, his gaze landing on a corner.

Li Wenzhao suppressed his smile and glanced at his watch. "Let's wrap up the laughter for today. I have some other things to take care of. We'll discuss further with Mr. Shen next time."

Shen Shubai: “…………”

Li Wenzhao stood up. "Jing Butler."

The person skulking by the altar froze and quickly turned around. "I'm here."

Li Wenzhao: "Let's go back to the company."

"Oh." Jing Yi tugged at the red silk on the altar.

Outside the office, Secretary Fan, the only one who had been seriously attending the meeting, couldn't help but express his dissatisfaction.

"What do they think we are, the Li Corporation? Is there anyone in the world who'd invest time and money without wanting shares? Mr. Shen is really too much."

Just after his complaint, he noticed the statue near the elevator.

Furious, Fan Ming was far from his usual calm demeanor. "How can someone like him have the nerve to worship Guan Yu, the God of War?"

Jing Yi glanced at the statue. "Maybe so the statue could blush for him."

Li Wenzhao: “……”

Secretary Fan readily accepted this explanation and chuckled. "Man, I wish I could be invisible. I'd pour boiling water on their money tree, switch off the main power strip in the office, pull out the internet cables, coat the toilet paper with menthol balm..."

Li Wenzhao: “……”

Hanging out with Jing Butler had rubbed off some of his madness onto the usually competent secretary.

Jing Yi was shocked.

"Secretary Fan, you're the eternal god of business warfare!"

After venting, Fan Ming exhaled. "But what I really want is to steal their God of Wealth statue and throw his company into chaos."

Hearing this, Jing Yi revealed a sly smile.

Li Wenzhao noticed. "What's that smile for?"

Jing Yi, acting all sneaky, whispered, "I did a little something to the altar."

Li Wenzhao: "?"

Secretary Fan was also surprised. "Jing Butler, what did you do?"

Jing Yi blinked. "I replaced his God of Wealth statue with Ultraman."

There was a small cabinet in the rest area, filled with various small items. It wasn’t clear where they came from, but Jing Yi’s sharp eyes spotted a Dyna, which he slipped under the red silk.

Li Wenzhao: “……”

Secretary Fan: “……”

Jing Yi chattered, "I hope he believes in the light."