The night was deep, yet the Ye family compound remained brightly lit.
Ye Wenhai, Ye Wentao, Ye Wenming, and Ye Wence, the four brothers, along with their wives, had not yet departed. They sat in the main hall of the outer courtyard.
"Wenming, the Commander wants me to give you his phone. He also wants me to tell you that you don't need to concern yourself with the Luo family anymore. He has already spoken with Luo Yuanzhi."
Secretary Wang entered the main hall of the outer courtyard and handed the phone to Ye Wenming.
"Understood, Secretary Wang."
Ye Wenming nodded and took the phone.
Though he was puzzled and frustrated, he dared not voice any dissent regarding Ye Zheng's decision.
"Secretary Wang, do you know why the old man insisted on having that brat Jiang Wuming return to the Ye family?" Ye Wenhai asked after a moment of hesitation.
Swish, swish, swish...
At his words, all eyes turned to Secretary Wang.
This was a shared doubt in their hearts!
"The old man said this is a test he has set for you. If anyone can figure out the answer before Jiang Wuming arrives at the Ye family compound, they should go find him."
Secretary Wang continued to relay Ye Zheng's words, while inwardly admiring Ye Zheng's strategic thinking, as if everything were under his control.
A test?
Upon hearing Secretary Wang, the four Ye brothers were all struck by the implication.
Their rational minds told them that this test would likely determine the position of the next successor to the Ye family!
With this thought surfacing, the four Ye brothers stopped discussing among themselves as before and instead began to ponder in silence.
Ten minutes later, Ye Wenming was the first to leave the hall and head to Ye Zheng's study.
Three minutes later, he returned to the outer courtyard hall with a dejected expression.
Seeing this, Ye Wence stood up and was the second to seek out Ye Zheng.
Five minutes later, Ye Wence also returned to the hall, his expression mirroring Ye Wenming's.
Next was Ye Wentao, and Ye Wenhai went last.
"Brother, you didn't get the answer right either?"
Seeing Ye Wenhai also return to the hall with a grave expression, Ye Wentao asked.
Ye Wenhai shook his head gently.
Ye Wentao, Ye Wenming, and Ye Wence, upon seeing this, all felt a secret sense of relief.
Since Ye Wenhai had also failed to answer correctly, all four still had a chance to compete for the position of the next family head!
Just then, Ye Wenhai's bodyguard arrived at the entrance of the hall and reported, "Commander, Jiang Wuming has arrived!"
Huh?
Upon hearing the bodyguard's report, the four Ye brothers were all stirred. They then stopped thinking about the test and all stood up, walked out of the hall, and into the courtyard, awaiting Jiang Wuming's appearance.
Secretary Wang, meanwhile, emerged from the inner courtyard, gave a nod to the Ye brothers, and then headed towards the entrance.
He was going to the entrance to greet Jiang Wuming.
When Secretary Wang reached the gate of the Ye family compound, he saw Jiang Wuming approaching from the alley.
After Jiang Wuming and Xing Tian left the Luo family manor, they had hailed a ride-hailing car. The car was stopped by guards at the mouth of the alley.
Then, Jiang Wuming provided his identification and was allowed to proceed, but could only enter the alley on foot to reach the Ye family compound.
"Are you Master Jiang Wuming?"
Soon, as Jiang Wuming reached the gate of the Ye family compound, Secretary Wang, with a smile, asked a question he already knew the answer to, but his tone was very polite.
"I am Jiang Wuming."
Jiang Wuming nodded, squinting as he surveyed the courtyard whose entrance threshold was comparable to those of the Red Wall compounds.
"Master Wuming, please follow me."
Secretary Wang made a gesture of invitation and led the way.
Jiang Wuming nodded and followed behind Secretary Wang, stepping into the compound that all the powerful figures in Long Country dreamed of entering, and then saw the four Ye brothers.
"You scoundrel, you actually have the nerve to show up here?!"
The four Ye brothers also saw Jiang Wuming. Among them, Ye Wenming couldn't help but shout in reprimand.
"Ye Zheng invited me. Why don't you go discuss it with him and have me thrown out?" Jiang Wuming sneered.
"——"
Upon hearing this, Ye Wenming's facial muscles twitched.
Although he was displeased in his heart, he could only express his displeasure with a few harsh words. He didn't have the courage to have Jiang Wuming thrown out.
Ye Wenhai, Ye Wentao, Ye Wence, and their wives all stared at Jiang Wuming with unfriendly expressions.
"Oh, I almost forgot. You all confidently stated before that my return to the Ye family and entry into this compound was wishful thinking. Now that Ye Zheng personally invited me back, aren't you all feeling very awkward?"
Jiang Wuming said sarcastically upon seeing their expressions.
"Hiss..."
Facing Jiang Wuming's sarcasm, the four Ye brothers were greatly angered, but not a single one responded. At the same time, their confusion about Ye Zheng 'inviting' Jiang Wuming back to the Ye family grew.
Not just them, even Secretary Wang was quite surprised.
This was his first time interacting with Jiang Wuming.
Jiang Wuming's impression on him was one of arrogance and recklessness, utterly lacking in any subtlety.
Jiang Wuming took in their expressions, said nothing further, and continued to follow Secretary Wang.
Soon, the two arrived at the inner courtyard. Secretary Wang stopped, pointed to the brightly lit study, and said, "Master Wuming, the Commander is waiting for you inside."
"Thank you."
Jiang Wuming expressed his gratitude to Secretary Wang.
Huh?
Secretary Wang was slightly taken aback.
It seemed he hadn't expected Jiang Wuming, who had just openly confronted the four Ye brothers, to be so polite to him.
As Secretary Wang was in his moment of surprise, Jiang Wuming ceased his pleasantries, walked directly to the study door, and without knocking, pushed it open.
"You're here."
In the study, Ye Zheng, dressed in military uniform, sat at his desk, the stars on his shoulders gleaming under the light.
As usual, his expression was stern, and he exuded the dignity of a person in a position of power, giving off an aura of command without overt anger.
"Where is the letter?"
Jiang Wuming got straight to the point, mentioning the letter his mother, Ye Jinmei, had left for him.
"No rush, let's chat for a bit first. Please sit."
Ye Zheng gestured towards the sofa.
Jiang Wuming thought for a moment and then, as Ye Zheng suggested, sat on the sofa.
"Would you like some tea? I have black tea, green tea, white tea, and Wuyi rock tea. If you don't want tea, I have mineral water," Ye Zheng asked again.
"No need."
Jiang Wuming shook his head and said, "Let's talk about the main business. Once it's done, I'll take my things and leave."
"As I predicted, you have no desire to return to the Ye family, or rather, you've never considered returning to the Ye family from the beginning."
Ye Zheng looked directly at Jiang Wuming, having understood the unspoken meaning in Jiang Wuming's words.
"Whether it's about my parents' affairs or the matters concerning my adoptive father and those uncles from the Old Dragon Special Forces, your and the Ye family's actions have been disheartening. Such a Ye family, no matter how powerful, I have no desire to be a part of it—it feels tainted!"
Jiang Wuming stated his true feelings without a hint of reservation, his expression impassive.
"Heh, in Long Country, you're probably the only one who dares to say such things, and the only one who would say them."
Ye Zheng did not seem angered. Instead, he looked at Jiang Wuming with interest and then asked, "Since that's the case, why did you go to see Wentao back then?"
"It seems the Ye Wentao family hasn't told you the reason for my actions at that time."
Jiang Wuming said with a serious expression, "I went to see Ye Wentao not because I wanted to return to the Ye family, nor to ask the Ye family to seek justice for my father. It was out of respect for my mother, to give the Ye family and the military a chance to rectify their mistakes. But unfortunately, you did not cherish it!"
"Not for personal gain, not for power, not even for your own safety, yet ultimately you chose to return to the Ye family because of an outsider. You are truly perplexing," Ye Zheng couldn't help but sigh.
"He is not an outsider, he is my brother." Jiang Wuming corrected him.
"Alright."
Ye Zheng smiled, then asked, "If I'm not mistaken, the moment you decided to teach that Luo family brat a lesson tonight, you had already planned for Ye Qian to make that call.
I'm very curious, on what basis were you so certain that I would agree to your request?"
"You already have the answer in your heart, why ask me?" Jiang Wuming retorted.
"I want to confirm."
Ye Zheng looked directly at Jiang Wuming, his gaze sharp as a knife.