Apotheosis Begins with Tai Chi

Shen Xingguo slowly stood up, bracing his hands on the edge of the desk. His tone was one of utter helplessness, tinged with a hint of self-mockery.

”At this point, if we want to turn the tables... unless a giant bolt of lightning falls from the sky and completely obliterates Fuchang Trading Company...”

”A giant bolt of lightning?”

Shen Mi seemed to take his words to heart, her chest suddenly heaving a few times.

”Yes... all the shady things Fuchang Trading Company has done... If the heavens have eyes, they should send down a giant bolt of lightning to strike them down!”

”Master! Master!”

Just then, the voice of the steward, Granny Ding, came from outside the study, urgent and filled with utter astonishment.

Without even waiting for Shen Mi’s permission, Granny Ding pushed the door open and burst in.

”Aunt Ding, what’s wrong?”

Shen Mi and Shen Xingguo were both stunned. They had never seen Granny Ding so out of line before.

”Master! And Elder Master, you’re here too? Something’s happened... something big!”

Granny Ding looked like she had run all the way back, and she was panting, unable to catch her breath.

She leaned against the doorframe, taking a moment to recover before continuing.

”I went out to buy groceries this morning... and when I passed the Patrol Office, I heard a few constables saying... saying Fuchang Trading Company is completely finished!”

”Fuchang Trading Company? Finished?”

Shen Mi and Shen Xingguo exchanged a look, their faces filled with utter astonishment and disbelief.

”Aunt Ding, could you have misheard?”

Shen Mi said, her fine brows knitted together.

”Last month, the whole city knew about Fuchang Trading Company colluding with the bandits of Grass Head Mountain, but didn’t that just blow over in the end? Nothing major has happened recently. How could Fuchang Trading Company’s foundations be shaken?”

”Indeed...”

Shen Xingguo added in a low voice.

”Colluding with the bandits of Grass Head Mountain... any other family would have had their assets seized and their members executed! But didn’t Fuchang Trading Company smooth it all over? The way I see it... unless the heavens themselves decide to take them, they’ll never be finished...”

”I’m not wrong! There’s no way I’m wrong!”

Granny Ding finally caught her breath and spoke with absolute certainty.

”It all happened last night! The Captain’s Mansion sent over a hundred Armored Warriors! And there was also... some kind of Red... I’ve never even heard of them, from the Inner City’s Evil Extermination Bureau... the Red... Red Armor Guard! They say every single one of them is a Transforming Force expert!”

”Fuchang Trading Company’s main gate was torn right off, the courtyard walls were knocked down, and the inner courtyard, the accounting office, the warehouses... it was like they’d been ransacked by bandits. Nothing of value was left...”

”Oh, right, but not everything was taken...”

Granny Ding paused as if remembering something important, her voice dropping a little lower.

”The exception was that small warehouse that’s always guarded by Martial Artists. No one dared to touch the things inside...”

Shen Mi and Shen Xingguo were frozen in place by what they heard, silent and staring blankly, as if their brains had completely seized up and were unable to think.

Seeing their expressions, Granny Ding didn’t wait to be asked and continued on her own.

”Inside that small warehouse, it was all Fine Armor, Crossbows... and newly made banners and uniforms for the Northern Rebel Army...”

She swallowed, her voice growing even quieter.

”They say, if all that equipment was delivered, it could instantly raise an elite force of three thousand men.”

The study fell into complete silence.

After a long moment, Shen Mi finally gasped, her eyes widening as if waking from a nightmare.

”No wonder... no wonder Fuchang Trading Company spent so much to compete for the North Road Trade Document...”

”I did a rough calculation before and figured they’d be operating at a loss. It turns out their goal was never legitimate business in the first place...”

”Reb... rebel army...”

Shen Xingguo finally snapped out of it, his aged face filled with lingering fear.

”For Fuchang Trading Company to dare get involved in something like this... the person behind them must have an extraordinary identity... It’s a good thing this was exposed early...”

”Otherwise, when we were competing for the Trade Document, it would have been fine if we lost. But if we had won and gotten in their way, all of our lives wouldn’t have been nearly enough to pay the price...”

”Yes...”

Hearing this, Shen Mi also quickly understood the hidden stakes and dangers. Her delicate features were instantly clouded with retrospective fear.

”Thank goodness... thank goodness the heavens really did send down a giant bolt of lightning. Besides eliminating the wicked, it also helped us avoid this disaster that would have wiped us out...”

”Uncle...”

”Xiaowu...”

Just then, Shen Mi and Shen Xingguo spoke at almost the exact same time.

They looked at each other, having apparently thought of the same thing.

”We can’t keep the North Road Trade Document...” Shen Xingguo sighed deeply.

Shen Mi nodded emphatically. ”I’ll go to the Commerce Inspection Bureau today and return this Trade Document... Whoever wants to fight for it can have it...”

”Master...”

Granny Ding pursed her lips and said sheepishly.

”Perhaps... you should go take a look at the entrance first... When I came back, there was already a long line outside... They’re all waiting for our company to open.”

”What’s going on?” Shen Mi asked.

”Fuchang Trading Company has fallen. The people who worked for them have to find a new way to eat, don’t they?”

Granny Ding said.

”I took a quick look, and a lot of the people in the crowd are ones who jumped ship from our company. There are also a lot of veterans in the business.”

”I even saw Wang Daguo and Ma Daguo. We offered them a high price before, but we couldn’t manage to hire them...”

”What a pity...”

Shen Xingguo sighed again, his face full of regret.

”If we had the Trade Documents for other routes, we could recruit all this talent and immediately form two experienced, first-rate merchant caravans. Our profits would more than double...”

”But in the current situation, we can’t touch the northern trade route no matter what... Whether we get mixed up with the rebel army, or the rebel army gets mixed up with us, it’s a crime punishable by the execution of our entire family and the confiscation of our property!”

”Yes...”

Shen Mi, of course, was well aware of the risks involved.

A look of deep regret flashed in her eyes, but it quickly faded, replaced by clarity and resolve.

”Aunt Ding, go out and explain the situation. Tell them to seek employment elsewhere.”