Light Fortress
Chapter 98 - 90: 18 Lipu Street

Chapter 98: Chapter 90: 18 Lipu Street

"Madam... I..."

The wind on the rooftop blew, and Crow sobered up. He hesitated and struggled for a long time before asking cautiously, "Did I do something wrong?"

The woman with the umbrella silently gazed at the old city’s trees, buildings, and birds. She shook her head and said, "You didn’t do anything wrong."

Once the rules of the Sincere Heart Association are established, they should naturally be followed.

Those who overstep should be punished accordingly.

But... not everything should be judged on the basis of right and wrong.

Rather than right and wrong, important figures care more about benefits and detriments.

Sometimes, doing the wrong thing doesn’t matter as long as it’s profitable for everyone.

"If I didn’t do wrong, then there’s no need to hide!" Crow puffed up his chest and said loudly, "Since you’ve entrusted Beitang to me, Madam, I will not retreat. The rules were set by everyone, I’m just following them; there’s no reason to back down!"

"You’re strong, I know that," the madam spoke deliberately and with gravity, her speech slow but powerful, "But force can’t solve everything... Now the matter has passed; remember my instructions just now. I will take care of the rest."

Crow was stunned.

The madam’s words caused the passion that surged within him to gradually fade.

Song Ci slowly lowered his head.

Actually, he understood what the madam meant—the one who makes the rules is not always the strongest.

But in Song Ci’s world, a fist is the logic and strength is the rule... Thus, after joining the Sincere Heart Association, he quickly made a name for himself. The fearful fear the ruthless; the ruthless fear the reckless. The Sincere Heart Association is full of ruthless people, but he is someone reckless, an ordinary man.

When an ordinary man gets angry, blood splashes within five steps.

This is a principle that a hard-fisted fool, covered in wounds, came to understand. Hence, he regards it as a standard, never wavering from it.

He doesn’t care what Chen San might do—he’ll just throw caution to the wind if he has to.

The words spoken at the river bank meeting; he meant them.

"Ying Ji."

The woman spoke again, softly uttering a name that only she herself would vocalize.

The madam never called Song Ci "Crow."

When they brought this orphan back from the old city, everyone was calling him Crow, thinking of him as a harbinger of misfortune... but she didn’t see it that way. The child, dirty but with unique, pure light in his eyes, faced slander and contempt with indifference, though awkward, he was effective.

Only she saw the pitiable side under his ferocity, like a porcupine desperately showing its quills, all the savagery just a disguise.

Everyone called him Crow, not knowing that under the Crow’s black feathers, there was a heart of pure, untainted red.

Since that day, subtle changes have taken place in the database of Deep Sea. In the old city archives of Da Du, there was one less record of the sorrowful youth named Song Ci, and under the madam’s command, there emerged a "Song Yingji," a boy with a clear background, fierce and belligerent, extremely hard-fisted, who suddenly appeared in the underground of Da Du and, defeating all his opponents, took control of the entire northern hall of the Sincere Heart Association.

In the eyes of the Transcendents in the underground of Da Du, Song Yingji was a being even more terrifying than Zhao Xilai.

Significant figures sit high above, a spit from them couldn’t even reach themselves.

But Song Yingji was different; his fists would land solidly on one’s face.

So, a coincidental thing happened. From some day on, people in the underground also started calling him "Crow." Fate has a way of playing these unfunny jokes; Song Ci never would’ve imagined that, after a sudden shift in his life trajectory and changing his name, he still couldn’t escape the ominous nickname of Crow.

In the old city, that unkempt young wretch who outlived his parents, his name was Song Ci, and his nickname was Crow.

In the Sincere Heart Association, the one who single-handedly subdued the entire northern hall, feared by all, the name was Song Yingji, and the nickname was still Crow.

Everyone called him Crow.

Only the madam was different; she called him Song Yingji.

"Although Zhao Qi and I have no real marital relationship, he is, after all, my husband in name," the madam sighed softly and said, "Now in the Zhao family, he’s only left with the status of a sole son. No matter how much trouble he causes, he won’t make waves. So... if he does something very foolish in the future, I hope you won’t make rash decisions out of impulsivity."

This was a warning to himself to avoid conflicts with Zhao Qi as much as possible.

"I will listen to you..."

Crow smiled silently, struggling to speak.

After heeding just a short sentence from the madam, he had already expended a great deal of effort. Hence, the person who was just leisurely lying in the wicker chair basking in the sun now looked more like an enervated patient, weakly making a promise, "I’ll lay low for a while, no matter if it’s Chen San’s people or Zhao Qi’s people... if they come troubling me, I’ll run far away."

Running away, he was very good at that.

The madam quietly held the umbrella, standing with him for over ten minutes. In those minutes, neither spoke, while the heavy clouds on the old rooftop blew through, obscuring the sun.

"Really... I promise I won’t cause any trouble," Song Ci rubbed his face vigorously, sorting his emotions earnestly one more time, making sure his face showed no sign of dejection. He forced a smile.

"I’m going somewhere."

The madam glanced at him and said, "I need someone to drive, want to come along?"

"... Me? Of course!" Song Ci was momentarily stunned, somewhat flattered, and hastened to agree.

The lady added, "First, you have to change out of those clothes."

Song Ci then awkwardly lowered his head, inspecting his attire. Likely due to just having fled, a button was missing from his floral shirt, which was half-open and could not be closed, and his flip-flops were soiled with mud that had dried in the wind, making his feet feel stiff.

His current outfit certainly looked shabby.

He scratched his head and lifted his leg high, pressing his flip-flop against the railing of the rooftop, trying to scrape off the dried mud by rubbing it back and forth.

"We’ve prepared a suit for you when you arrived. Just head downstairs," the lady said with a frown as she watched him.

...

...

Half an hour later, a dark phantom vehicle glided along the road.

Song Ying Ji, now in a freshly changed attire, sat in the driver’s seat, driving quietly and steadily, not speeding too much.

To say he looked completely transformed wouldn’t have been an exaggeration.

A buzz cut paired with a black suit gave an impression of a sharp blade edge, especially when he was silent, an intimidating air overflowed his features. This presence was far superior to the bodyguards who chased him down alleyways earlier in the day... it was the difference between a lion and a house cat.

Song Ying Ji glanced at the GPS, Lipu Street.

He spoke softly, asking, "Lipu Street, we’ll be there in about forty minutes... Madam, are you going to meet a friend for afternoon tea?"

"I’m going to see a psychologist."

Sitting in the back seat, the lady, with her shoulders hugged, leaned against the window, feigning sleep. She spoke slowly, her voice revealing a trace of tiredness, "I’ve been having trouble sleeping lately."

Song Ying Ji was taken aback.

"Trouble sleeping?" he asked with some caution, "Are you sure a psychologist on Lipu Street can help with that kind of problem?"

"I don’t mean to interfere with your decisions," Song Ying Ji said gravely, "but your time is so precious... if the other person is just an ordinary person, then there’s probably no need to try."

Insomnia is, after all, a common issue.

Ordinary Spiritual Extraordinaries all have the ability to hypnotize, which in theory should solve the problem. Not to mention those under the Zhao Family and those in the Sincere Heart Association—there were plenty of Spiritual Transcendents. He, Song Ying Ji, could reach in and pull out seven or eight with one hand.

"Cui Zhongcheng recommended this one," the lady massaged her temples, worriedly saying, "I’ve sought several Spiritual experts before, even a Transcendent from the Deep Sea Tenth Layer couldn’t discern my issue. My sleep hours get fewer day by day, the turmoil regarding the laws is blowing up even more, I must pull myself together, I cannot afford to fail at this critical moment."

Upon hearing Cui Zhongcheng’s name, Song Ying Ji, who wanted to say something, instantly kept quiet.

In Da Du, there weren’t many who could actually make him listen respectfully, but Mr. Xiao Cui was among them.

"Deep Sea Tenth Layer couldn’t discern the problem... Could a small place like Lipu Street actually hide a Transcendent more formidable than those of the tenth layer?" Song Ying Ji found the idea somewhat unbelievable.

"Incredible, isn’t it?" The lady, supporting her forehead, rubbed her slender fingers gently, her voice weary, "If it wasn’t for Cui Zhongcheng... I wouldn’t believe it either... It’s said to be a seventeen or eighteen-year-old youth."

"A seventeen or eighteen-year-old youth? Even novel protagonists aren’t that impressive, right?"

Song Ying Ji couldn’t help but laugh, "Could Mr. Xiao Cui have made a mistake?"

Speaking of coincidence, upon hearing this, an image involuntarily sprang up in Song Ying Ji’s mind...

Seventeen or eighteen years old... a youth...

Gu Shen.

However, as soon as this thought appeared, he immediately dismissed it.

How could there be such a coincidence in this world!

And no matter how one looked at it, Gu Shen didn’t seem like the protagonist of a novel.

"Over these past ten years, has anything Cui Zhongcheng said not come true?" said the lady in the backseat, looking at the scenery outside the window. Merely half an hour ago the sun had been shining, but now it had started to drizzle outside. That’s how the city of Da Du was, located in Jiangnan, often shrouded in rain and mist after autumn, bleak and rustling.

She chuckled softly and said, "Although I’d like to see him make a mistake for once, I hope this time will be no exception."

"Of course... That’s Mr. Xiao Cui, after all!"

Upon hearing Cui Zhongcheng’s name, the tense string in Song Ying Ji’s heart due to concern loosened without reason. That man indeed had the knack for putting people at ease and inspiring trust.

He reassured her with a confident tone, "Madam, everything will get better."

The woman had already closed her eyes amidst the slight jostling, merely humming lightly through her nose, the sound like a dreamy murmur.

Raindrops tapping on the windows, the soft white noise transmitted through the glass into her ears, gentle and unobtrusive.

She dozed off, a rarity for her.

Song Ying Ji stopped talking, silently slowing down the car to avoid disturbing the lady’s rest.

"Lipu Street... Number 18..."

He glanced at the destination displayed on the GPS and quietly repeated to himself the somewhat bizarre name of the clinic.

"The Dream Speaker."