Chapter 90: Night Star
After Nan Yu left, the expressions on Lan Feng and Lan Yu's faces gradually changed.
To be honest, it was truly difficult for them to simply let this matter go as though nothing had happened.
If they hadn't met Nan Yu, then during the next—or perhaps the one after that—Mental Power User examination, Lan Feng's Mental Sea would very likely have shattered completely, leaving him with no possibility of ever waking up again.
At that point, there would only have been two outcomes.
Either he would become a living corpse, lying in bed as a vegetative patient for the rest of his life, never waking again...
Or he would simply die.
Neither possibility was something Lan Yu could accept.
As for Lan Feng, what occupied his thoughts was something else entirely.
If he had truly died...
Then the younger brother he had doted on for so many years would have suffered endlessly after he fell unconscious. Not only would he have endured countless hardships, he would also have had to bear the pain of losing his only remaining family before continuing through life completely alone.
Even imagining such a future made Lan Feng's heart ache unbearably.
So even if they didn't take any action for the time being...
There was no way they would simply let the matter rest forever.
Lan Feng took his brother's hand.
"Ah Yu, don't act impulsively."
"No matter how capable we are, we can't fight an entire group by ourselves."
"Let's wait."
"Wait until they lower their guard."
"Wait until they believe this matter has completely blown over."
"Then we'll slowly collect what they owe us."
"Understood?"
After managing the corporation for so many years, Lan Yu naturally understood these things.
"I know, Brother."
"Don't worry."
"I won't act recklessly."
After finally getting his brother cured...
If someone managed to scheme against him again, that would truly drive him to despair.
For now, living cautiously was the best choice.
He had endured all these years already.
Waiting a little longer didn't matter.
His patience had always been excellent.
But once the opportunity arrived...
They shouldn't blame him.
Of course, he also understood the seriousness of the situation.
Those Mental Power Users were among the strongest Mid-Tier Mental Power Users.
If anything really happened to them, the Lan brothers wouldn't come out of it unscathed.
So Lan Yu's target wasn't the Mental Power Users themselves.
It was the families behind them.
He would slowly devour their family fortunes bit by bit.
Until they had no choice but to rely solely on their own mental power to earn money and support their households.
Wouldn't that be wonderful?
Once the Ability Users who had once surrounded them realized that these Mental Power Users were no longer lofty figures with status, wealth, influence, and powerful families behind them—but merely people who could be hired with enough money...
Those Ability Users would naturally stop gathering around them and obeying their every word.
That was what Lan Yu truly wanted.
Hurt a Mental Power User?
Don't be ridiculous.
Imperial law explicitly prohibited harming Mental Power Users by any means.
Even if a Mental Power User committed a crime, they had to be kept under supervision and continue working for the Empire.
Private punishment and corporal punishment of any kind were strictly forbidden.
If they made sufficient contributions while under supervision, they could even have their sentences reduced.
The only thing they lost was their freedom.
For many relatively reclusive Mental Power Users...
Such supervision had virtually no effect.
Some might even enjoy the peace and quiet without anyone bothering them.
Before long, news that Lan Feng had fully recovered slowly began spreading.
Everyone who heard the news reacted the same way.
First, they froze.
Then they immediately sent people to investigate who had accomplished such a thing.
After all, even Nan Yu, who had previously accepted the commission, had claimed he couldn't do it.
Yet after investigating over and over...
They discovered only one fact.
No Mental Power User besides Nan Yu had ever entered Zhou Huayin's residence.
Which meant...
Nan Yu had been the one who cured Lan Feng.
But if that was true...
Why had Nan Yu previously claimed he couldn't?
Most people had no idea.
But a small number knew the reason perfectly well.
From the beginning, they had believed Nan Yu, like themselves, had chosen to conceal the truth.
What they hadn't expected was that Nan Yu hadn't been incapable.
Instead, he had deliberately delayed the treatment, first completing the remaining four commissions before finally handling Lan Feng's case.
They also vaguely guessed why Nan Yu had hidden the fact that he could cure Lan Feng.
Wasn't it simply because he didn't want to alert the enemy?
The few of them were currently discussing the matter in a group chat.
"So tell me, what exactly is Nan Yu trying to do? What benefit does this bring him? Is it really just for that enormous commission fee? What kind of reason is that? Sure, it's a lot of money, but for Mid-Tier Mental Power Users like us, earning that amount isn't exactly difficult."
"Exactly. Back then I even demanded double compensation from the Lan family for wasting my time, and they paid without saying a word. They were unbelievably easy to bully. On the surface, everything seems fine, but I keep feeling something's wrong. Do you think Nan Yu might actually be planning to deal with us?"
"Don't joke around."
"Nan Yu doesn't even know us."
"We've never had any grudge against him."
"Why would he target us?"
"I think so too."
"If anyone wants revenge, it'll be the Lan family."
"How about we strike first? That would eliminate future trouble."
"But the Lan family's corporation isn't something that can simply be destroyed overnight."
"They don't even have any weaknesses to exploit."
"And over the past few years, Lan Yu has donated enormous sums to the country."
"They're already on the government's protection list."
"So we're just supposed to sit around waiting for them to retaliate?"
"Not necessarily."
"The Lan brothers actually seem incredibly happy right now."
"They look like they know absolutely nothing."
"Maybe Nan Yu kept the truth from them."
"If we attack the Lan family now, wouldn't we basically be announcing to the whole world that something suspicious happened?"
"If investigators start digging into the matter, won't our secret become impossible to hide?"
"Exactly!"
"That's what I think too."
"The Lan family appears to know nothing."
"So we'll also pretend we know nothing."
"We just need to keep people secretly watching the situation."
"We don't need to make the first move."
"Making the first move only proves we're guilty."
"Anyone capable of uncovering this matter has both brains and influence."
"They'll probably suspect we have something to hide."
"Even if that doesn't directly harm us..."
"Have you forgotten?"
"There have recently been several new Mid-Tier Mental Power Users."
"If our reputation suffers, those Ability Users will definitely push us to the bottom of their priority lists."
"Then we'll only end up with the leftovers."
"Are you willing to accept that?"
Of course they weren't.
Mid-Tier Mental Power Users appeared glamorous on the surface.
But that was only an illusion.
The relationship between Mental Power Users and Ability Users had always been one of mutual selection.
It had never been a one-sided choice.
In fact, those with the greater freedom of choice were usually the Ability Users.
They would first select several outstanding Mental Power Users and try working with them.
If they were accepted, wonderful.
If not, they would simply move down the list.
And these Mental Power Users absolutely did not want to become the ones lower down that list.
Unfortunately for them, that hope was destined to fail.
Yu Lanfeng had already learned everything.
He had compiled a complete list of them and quietly ordered members of the Legion to begin investigating.
For now, everything remained confidential.
But nobody knew when news that Yu Lanfeng's Legion was secretly investigating this entire group of Mental Power Users would eventually leak.
At present it was classified.
But classified information didn't remain classified forever.
Moreover, investigating so many Mental Power Users at once required even Yu Lanfeng's Legion to notify the Imperial Family beforehand.
Once the Imperial Family knew...
People working inside the Imperial Palace would inevitably become the first outsiders to hear.
Then, if someone accidentally mentioned it to a relative or friend...
The information would gradually spread until everyone knew.
Naturally, that process would take time.
Neither Nan Yu nor the others knew any of this.
Meanwhile, the group continued discussing the matter for several hours.
In the end, they reached only one conclusion.
Remain inactive for now.
Wait and observe.
If any news unfavorable to them emerged, they would minimize their losses immediately and strike first.
They also discussed sending a representative to approach Nan Yu.
However, contacting him now wasn't easy.
Nan Yu was currently on vacation.
Whenever he wasn't home, he usually spent several consecutive days at the Legion Hospital.
Finding him there was impossible.
Except for people with specific authorized identities, outsiders weren't even permitted to approach, let alone enter, the hospital.
During the rest of his time, Nan Yu was either at the Nan residence or visiting Yang Zhou.
The best opportunity for them would be to speak with him while he was visiting Yang Zhou.
So they secretly had people watch Yang Zhou for several days in a row.
Yet Nan Yu never appeared.
Left with no alternative, they could only continue waiting patiently.
Meanwhile, Nan Yu was still at the hospital.
Things had been unbelievably busy lately.
Even though he was only there to help and teach, he was so exhausted he wanted nothing more than to collapse onto the floor.
Things like maintaining his image...
He wanted to throw all of them out the window.
Nan Yu let out a long sigh.
"I'm going back to rest."
"You should all get some sleep too."
After saying goodbye to everyone he had been working with, he turned and headed upstairs.
When he entered the resting room, he discovered someone was already there.
But Nan Yu had long since gotten used to it.
That person often came here just to sleep on the sofa.
At first, Nan Yu had been shocked, confused, and unable to understand it.
Gradually, he accepted it.
Now, he had completely grown accustomed to both his presence and his closeness.
The two of them were now like friends who could talk about anything.
Or perhaps...
Both of them knew the other harbored certain feelings.
Neither, however, was willing to be the one to pierce that final layer of paper between them.