Chapter 109: I’m Not Bluffing

Chapter 109: Chapter 109: I’m Not Bluffing

"I won’t accept you. At least not in the short term, it’s impossible for me to take you in," Gu Weilan said directly.

Xie Jing’s lips trembled. Acknowledging her with a soft murmur, he nodded. His grip on the Incubation Pod tightened.

Glancing at Zhan Heng, Shi Lingfeng, and Samuel Riel, Gu Weilan directly made a Light Brain video call to Lorenzo Snow and Shen Mianzhou.

Lorenzo happened to be free. Carrying his Light Brain, he stepped away from his relatives, entered his room, and closed the door. Shen Mianzhou also coincidentally had just come off his shift.

Gu Weilan briefly summarized what had just happened and continued, "I’m video calling you two to let you know that I will immediately issue a purchasing ban on the Blue Tiger Clan, Sand Fox Clan, Porcupine Clan, Python Clan, and Dolphin Clan."

Xie Jing looked at Gu Weilan in astonishment. He hadn’t expected her to mean business; she wasn’t just making empty threats. His lips moved as if to speak, but he didn’t dare make a sound. Instead, he kept glancing at Zhan Heng.

Yet Zhan Heng acted as though he hadn’t noticed Xie Jing’s meaningful looks, his eyes fixed entirely on Gu Weilan as she spoke.

"The ban will last for five years. If they behave and stop causing trouble, I will naturally lift the restrictions when the time is up. But if they still act as if Heavenly Milk is first and they are second, looking down their noses at me and acting like they’re doing me a favor by causing me trouble, then I’ll make sure even more Beast Clans show them no mercy.

"To that end, the upgraded Cultivation Liquid I’ve developed... hmm, let’s call it the Mid level Cultivation Liquid. I will need to find other Beast Clans to collaborate with on this Mid level Cultivation Liquid.

"Of course, it won’t be an exclusive authorization. I still plan to cooperate with the academies.

"By collaborating with more Beast Clans, I’ll have more allies to protect me whenever the Blue Tiger Clan, Sand Fox Clan, Porcupine Clan, Python Clan, and Dolphin Clan try to make a move against me.

"The reason I called Lorenzo and Mianzhou is that once I enforce the sales ban on them, I don’t know if they might try to manipulate or harm you.

"I want you to be mentally prepared. Don’t let yourselves get screwed over simply because you were left in the dark."

After learning of the situation, Lorenzo and Shen Mianzhou had no objections. Gu Weilan hoped they would rest well—especially since the dark circles under Shen Mianzhou’s eyes truly worried her—so she urged them to hang up quickly and go to sleep.

After ending the call, Gu Weilan finally sat down across from her three Beast Husbands.

"Do you have anything to say about my decision just now?" Gu Weilan asked, looking at the four males.

Zhan Heng was the first to speak. "I have no objections. The things they said today relied entirely on their arrogant assumption that they could use our legal marriage to manipulate my Female Master. They wanted to force you to suffer a massive loss just so they could line their pockets.

"By doing this, they haven’t just failed to treat me as family; they haven’t even treated me as a proper Beastman.

"No Beastman would ever dare approach a stranger and say, ’I’ve taken a liking to your business, and I think it’s very profitable. Now get on your knees and hand it over to me.’

"Since they didn’t treat me as a Beastman, I won’t humiliate myself by insisting on acknowledging them as my elders. When my father sought out my Mother to form a bond back then, it was because she was good at bearing children. He gave her many of our Qilin Clan’s businesses, all just to beg for a single offspring.

"Perhaps because of that, she feels we should always be begging her, always kneeling before her. That’s why she dared to adopt such an arrogant attitude toward you, Female Master.

"This is an unprovoked disaster brought upon my Female Master because of me. The reason I didn’t speak up and argue with them earlier is, firstly, if I had spoken, the nature of this incident would have escalated. If I opened my mouth, it would become an issue of filial piety, distancing it even further from the fact that they were simply trying to rob us and trap a White Wolf empty-handed.

"Secondly, once it gets defined as a matter of filial piety, everything I say would be deemed wrong. It would only diminish your advantage, Female Master.

"I’m sorry, Female Master. Because of me, I’ve brought you trouble."

Hearing Zhan Heng’s explanation, the slight displeasure lingering in Gu Weilan’s heart finally dissipated. She had been somewhat unhappy that he hadn’t spoken up earlier. She wanted to protect Zhan Heng from being accused of unfilial behavior by Xie Jinglan—that was her business. But the fact that Zhan Heng hadn’t said a single word had indeed made her uncomfortable.

Now that he had explained it, Gu Weilan understood. At that moment, Zhan Heng truly shouldn’t have spoken.

Shi Lingfeng waited until Zhan Heng finished before speaking up. "Female Master, our Shi Family has some business dealings with the Python Clan. Their Family Head is a highly principled female."

As he spoke, he noticed that Gu Weilan didn’t impatiently interrupt him or look as though she thought he was speaking up for the very clan she intended to target. Weighing his words carefully, he continued, "Based on my understanding of the Python Clan’s Family Head, she is somewhat fiercely protective of her own. Do you need the Shi Family to slowly sever our business ties with the Python Clan as well?"

Gu Weilan tilted her head slightly, asking curiously, "Is she protective without distinguishing right from wrong?"

Shi Lingfeng pursed his lips. "That... I’m not entirely sure. But she is usually extremely principled in how she handles things."

Gu Weilan crossed her legs. Beneath her black trousers, her red-soled, black-topped combat boots accentuated her long, straight legs. Wearing a burgundy silk blouse with lantern sleeves and ruffled trims, she leaned forward slightly. Resting her elbows on her legs, she cupped her chin and looked at Shi Lingfeng.

"Let’s do this: have your family give her a heads-up in advance so she knows the whole story of what happened.

"If she expels that Python Clan male who married Xie Jinglan from the clan, or deals with him, or cancels their business dealings with the Dolphin Clan or something similar, then we’ll resume selling the Cultivation Liquid to the Python Clan in three months.

"But if she decides to target the Shi Family, I’ll give your family 100 sets of my personally customized Super Selection Level Cultivation Liquid every year. One hundred sets means 600 bottles. You can use these to win over other Beast Clans to deal with them, or use them yourselves and handle them on your own. It’s entirely up to the Shi Family’s arrangements. How about that?"

Shi Lingfeng nodded, indicating he understood. He couldn’t help but reveal even more admiration and affection for Gu Weilan in his eyes. He puffed out his chest and thought, "Who does such a capable and shrewd Female Master belong to? Mine!"

Samuel raised his hand timidly.

Gu Weilan raised her chin slightly and nodded at him, signaling him to just speak his mind.

Blushing, Samuel said, "I know that the strongest Sea Clan on the West Coast isn’t the Dolphin Clan; it’s the Tiger Whale Clan. However, the Tiger Whale Clan has been in somewhat of a decline, mainly because they don’t like intermarrying with Beastmen of other races, which has led to a decrease in their population.

"They primarily run the sea mining industry and hunt marine Star Beasts on various Deserted Stars. If you extend an olive branch to them, Female Master, they’ll definitely be more than happy to contact the White Shark Clan and Tiger Shark Clan to cause trouble for the Dolphin Clan together."

Gu Weilan nodded. "No problem! I can provide them with the Selection Level Cultivation Liquid. Currently, our Selection Level Cultivation Liquid essentially never even hits the shelves. The moment it reaches the distributors, it’s immediately snatched up by their close VIP clients before they even have time to sell it to regular customers.

"But I can let the Tiger Whale Clan get their hands on it directly. They won’t need to go through the usual ordering channels.

"If you help me act as a middleman for this, your Sea Horse Clan can also receive 20 sets of the Super Selection Level Cultivation Liquid. How does that sound?"

Samuel pursed his lips and looked at Gu Weilan. "Can I ask for something else instead of the Cultivation Liquid?"