After work, Wei Kai learned that his wife had gone out again to perform rituals for someone, so he stayed home alone to cook.
After finishing his meal and having nothing to do, he grabbed a water bottle and went for a walk in the nearby park.
"A post-meal stroll keeps you alive till ninety-nine."
This was a phrase his wife had been repeating for years, and Wei Kai always remembered it.
Along the way, whenever he encountered acquaintances, they would always greet him willingly.
But Wei Kai never bothered to look these people in the eye, only responding with a nasal grunt, "Mm."
It came across as quite authoritative.
When he strolled to a small wooded area and saw no one in sight, Wei Kai decided to turn around and go back.
However, he hadn’t walked far before someone suddenly jumped out behind him.
The person pulled out a burlap sack and threw it over his head.
As Wei Kai struggled, he felt his eye socket being punched.
Before he could call out, a sharp sting hit his nose, and two lines of bright red blood quickly streamed out.
Having held a high position, Wei Kai had never endured such hardship before. He soon collapsed on the ground.
The assailant, wearing a baseball cap and a mask, noticed Wei Kai had fallen and instinctively began to flee.
But after running a short distance, the person suddenly seemed to remember something.
Turning back, they delivered a kick to Wei Kai’s chest.
Wei Kai struggled on the ground for a long time before finally managing to tear off the burlap sack.
After gritting his teeth and getting up, he reached to dab at his nose.
Sure enough, there was blood!
To avoid being ridiculed, Wei Kai sat on a nearby bench for quite a while.
He waited until his nose stopped bleeding before hurriedly tidying up his dust-covered clothes.
As for the shattered glass scattered on the ground, he didn’t have time to deal with it.
He ran home and immediately washed the blood off his nose with warm water.
Sitting on the sofa, he pondered for a long time, eventually concluding that the only person capable of doing such a thing was Lu Huisheng.
After all, the two of them had always maintained a surface-level camaraderie while constantly plotting against each other in private.
Taking a deep breath, Wei Kai reflected on the remarks Chen Bin had made earlier that day, feeling a mix of surprise and admiration.
"No wonder he’s a disciple of an expert—he actually foresaw I’d have a misfortune involving blood!"
At this moment, Wei Kai was convinced that Chen Bin’s abilities far surpassed those of his wife.
The next day at work, as soon as Chen Bin entered his office, there came a knock at the door.
The next thing he saw was Wei Kai walking in while clutching his bruised and swollen eye socket.
Chen Bin quickly stood up, feigning shock as he asked.
"You... Are you Secretary Wei? How did you end up ?"
Wei Kai sighed, a bitter smile crossing his face as he answered.
"I embarrassed you, Secretary Chen. I got beaten up last night."
Just as he finished speaking, Chen Bin slammed his desk and shouted angrily.
"Ridiculous! In this day and age, someone dares lay hands on a government official?"
Wei Kai awkwardly interjected, "Secretary Chen, keep your voice down; after all, family disgrace shouldn’t be aired publicly!"
"Impossible! People like that must be severely punished! By the way, have the attackers been caught yet?"
"No, the place where I was attacked has no surveillance, and the guy moved quickly and forcefully. Before I could react, he was gone."
"Then you should report this to the police immediately—it’s unacceptable for such people to roam free!"
Letting out a heavy sigh, Wei Kai replied with a wry smile.
"Let’s just drop it. I didn’t even see whether the attacker was male or female, and there’s no surveillance. Reporting it would only disgrace me further. For now, I just want to ask: does this misfortune involving blood now count as over and done?"
Struggling to suppress his laughter, Chen Bin pretended to scrutinize Wei Kai’s face for a long while.
Finally, he shook his head and let out a long sigh.
Terrified, Wei Kai trembled all over and quickly said.
"Secretary Chen, whatever amount of money you need, I can give it. Just reveal a little of Heaven’s secrets to me."
Frowning and acting torn, Chen Bin eventually replied, "My master often taught me to do good and accumulate virtue. I won’t take your money, but I can’t share too much either—for fear that it may affect my own destiny."
Wei Kai immediately stood up and bowed to Chen Bin.
In his life, it was the first time he’d encountered someone reading fortunes without charging a fee.
Chen Bin was truly extraordinary!
"Secretary Chen, please speak—I will listen attentively."
Clearing his throat, Chen Bin cryptically said.
"This misfortune involving blood has passed for now, but there’s a petty person working against you. Until the petty person is removed, you’ll have no peace of mind."
"May I ask who this petty person might be?"
Chen Bin closed his mouth and repeatedly shook his head.
He pointed to the sky, implying that Heaven’s secrets must not be disclosed.
Seeing this, Wei Kai chose not to press further.
After expressing his gratitude, he left.
Back at his office, pondering for a long while, he finally decided to call Jiang Huai.
"Book a private room at Qinghe Hotel. Tonight, I’m inviting Chen Bin to dinner."
"What? You’re inviting Chen Bin to dinner?"
Jiang Huai’s stunned reaction was met with Wei Kai’s calm reply.
"Yes, I’ve decided to form an alliance with Chen Bin."
"Alliance? Then what about Lu Huisheng?"
"What do you mean, ’what about him’? He and I were never part of the same camp. Why should I help him? And if we oust Chen Bin to help him become Qinghe Town’s top official, what benefits would there be for us?"
Faced with Wei Kai’s retort, Jiang Huai hesitated but ultimately said.
"Solidarity has always been our tradition. How can we support an outsider to go against one of our own?"
"Jiang Huai, don’t forget—Chen Bin was sent here by the higher-ups. If we oppose him, we’re opposing them. Do you think opposing the organization ends well for anyone?"
"This... Alright, I’ll follow your lead."
After hanging up the phone, Wei Kai’s eyes gleamed with cunning.
Sure, he was superstitious, but his ability to rise to the position of Qinghe Town’s Deputy Party Secretary was no accident.
First, Chen Bin’s quick rise at such a young age meant he wasn’t someone to be underestimated.
Second, his constant power struggle with Lu Huisheng made ousting Chen Bin of no benefit to him.
Lastly, Lu Huisheng’s audacity in orchestrating last night’s attack deeply crossed Wei Kai’s limits.
Therefore, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. Wei Kai’s strategy was simple: team up with Chen Bin to take down Lu Huisheng, the schemer!
That evening after work, Wei Kai personally invited Chen Bin to dinner at Qinghe Hotel.
During the meal, Jiang Huai was there to accompany as well.
Amidst drinks and chatter, the alliance was solidified.
Meanwhile, word of Wei Kai inviting Chen Bin to dinner quickly reached Lu Huisheng’s ears.
Lu Huisheng immediately gathered his camp at his home.
He issued two orders without hesitation.
First, the group must stay united and no one could switch allegiance.
Second, efforts had to be made to win over Cai Lixia and Ding Zi to prevent Chen Bin’s camp from expanding.
Thus, the two major factions in Qinghe Town Government officially formed.
Although there had previously been two camps, Wei Kai’s faction had always been too weak to compete with Lu Huisheng.
With Chen Bin joining, Wei Kai’s side began to gain the upper hand.
But it didn’t take long for new troubles to arise.
First, the front door at Wei Kai’s house was smeared with red paint.
Then, Jiang Huai’s windows were repeatedly smashed in the dead of night.
Chen Bin called both men into his office and asked, "Secretary Wei, what’s your take on this?"
Wei Kai clenched his fists and snarled fiercely.
"Tooth for a tooth, blood for blood! Otherwise, Lu Huisheng might really think I’m a pushover!"