Lin Hao stirred, on the verge of waking. Long Xiao scanned their surroundings, finding no immediate danger, and said, "I'm leaving. Don't tell Lin Hao I was here."
Bai Xiaoqing stepped forward and said, "Thank you, Master Lin."
Long Xiao chuckled and pointed at Lin Hao on the ground, saying, "Take good care of this guy for me; he never fails to worry me. Also, stop calling me Master. Call me brother-in-law from now on."
Bai Xiaoqing's face blushed. She understood Long Xiao's implication. Seeing Long Xiao's capabilities, her inner hesitation vanished. With a brother-in-law like Long Xiao, walking sideways in Donghai would be no problem.
"Alright, brother-in-law, you can rest assured," she replied.
Long Xiao looked at Feng Xinwei and said, "Master Feng, there are still a few more magic artifacts that need your attention. I'll give you some medicine for the Bai family members; it should help them recover." Long Xiao retrieved several pills from the car and handed them to Feng Xinwei, then drove away with Xiao Ming.
Feng Xinwei, holding his compass like a master, soon unearthed several artifacts from the ground. He piled them onto the ghost infant and set them ablaze. As the fire caught, Lin Hao opened his eyes and struggled to sit up.
"What happened to me?" Lin Hao asked.
Bai Xiaoqing reached out and helped Lin Hao up, saying, "You were poisoned. Master Feng saved you."
Soon, Lin Hao recalled the details of his poisoning and turned to Feng Xinwei, bowing deeply. "Thank you, Master Feng, for saving my life."
Feng Xinwei felt a flush of embarrassment. It was taking credit for someone else's work, but he couldn't explain. "You're welcome, Lin Hao. Your grandfather and I are very good friends."
With the Bai family villa's enchantment broken, Feng Xinwei, Bai Xiaoqing, and Lin Hao went to the hospital. Before noon, everyone in the Bai family had recovered. Bai Zhenqian, Bai Xiaoqing's father, was extremely grateful and prepared to transfer a large sum of money to Feng Xinwei, but Feng Xinwei refused.
"Mr. Bai, Lin Hao's grandfather was kind to me; I am here to repay that kindness, so there's no need for money," Feng Xinwei explained.
Bai Zhenqian's gaze fell on Lin Hao. "Lin Hao is a good young man. He saved dozens of our family members; I will never forget it."
"Dad, Lin Hao is family, you don't need to be so formal," Bai Xiaoqing said.
Hearing Bai Xiaoqing call him family, Lin Hao's heart was so thrilled he almost shouted. This meant Bai Xiaoqing acknowledged him and accepted him as her boyfriend. Bai Zhenqian nodded slightly. "Alright, then I won't be formal. However, for Lin Hao to be Bai Zhenqian's son-in-law, he still needs to strive. I don't want to marry my daughter to an ordinary person."
Lin Hao nodded. "Please rest assured, Uncle Bai, I will accomplish something great."
With the Bai family's crisis averted, Bai Zhenqian hosted a banquet at Donghai Grand Hotel to express his gratitude to Feng Xinwei and Lin Hao.
Long Xiao and Xiao Ming returned to Xinglin Caotang, loaded all the unfinished pills onto a vehicle, and then called Lu Tianxing to inform him of the situation.
"Long Xiao, you're treating me like a errand boy," Lu Tianxing feigned displeasure.
"Director Lu, I have no choice. I'm simply too busy. These pills are very precious, and I don't trust anyone else to deliver them."
Lu Tianxing chuckled. "Don't worry, Long Xiao. I'll devote my afternoon to running errands for you."
"Director Lu, to thank you, I'll treat you to a big meal at noon." Hearing Long Xiao offer to treat him, Lu Tianxing readily agreed. He told Long Xiao that he had been wanting to meet with him anyway to discuss some matters.
The place Long Xiao and company chose for their meal was called Zuixian Tower, located at the last bend where the Huangjiang River flows into the sea, facing the newly built Military Sword Tower. They selected a private room on the fifth floor, with a window overlooking the Military Sword Tower.
As Long Xiao pushed open the door to the private room, Lu Tianxing and his younger brother Lu Tianzhi were already inside. Seeing Long Xiao bring a child, they both appeared surprised.
As soon as Long Xiao sat down, Xiao Ming said, "Boss, why haven't you introduced me?"
Long Xiao glanced at Xiao Ming. "What is there to introduce about a little brat like you?"
"What little brat? I'm your employee, a contract worker."
Lu Tianzhi looked at Long Xiao with a half-smile. "Long Xiao, are you employing child labor?"
Long Xiao glared at Xiao Ming. "What child labor? I took him in because he was homeless."
"No, boss, I'm a blade-seller. You bought a blade from me, so we established a verbal contract."
By the time Lu Tianxing and Lu Tianzhi understood the truth, they were both laughing heartily. Long Xiao hadn't told them how special Xiao Ming was, and they both saw Xiao Ming as an ordinary child.
Soon, the food and drinks arrived. Xiao Ming sat upright, motionless, showing no intention of eating.
Lu Tianxing smiled. "Xiao Ming, you eat first. Don't mind us; we'll chat as we eat."
Xiao Ming looked at Long Xiao, still motionless. Long Xiao called the waiter, pointed at Xiao Ming, and said, "Bring this guy two roast chickens first."
After a brief chat with the Lu brothers, Long Xiao got down to business. Both of them were very concerned about the current situation in Donghai. The Japanese were secretly targeting various prominent families. Although the Japanese hadn't gained any significant advantage in the few clashes, the families and factions had all suffered losses.
"Long Xiao, we need to fight back; we can't just wait for death," Lu Tianzhi said.
Long Xiao nodded. "Of course, we must counterattack, but I need your support." Both of them expressed that as long as Long Xiao organized the counterattack, they would clear any obstacles for him and, when necessary, provide covert assistance.
Long Xiao informed Lu Tianzhi that he had invested in Bao's pharmaceutical industry. Bao's two pharmaceutical factories and his own factory were currently producing "Beauty Pills" and "Scar Reducer."
"Long Xiao, the Japanese influence in China is too vast. We can only start from one aspect and defeat them," Lu Tianzhi said.
"Tianzhi, are you suggesting Long Xiao start by targeting the pharmaceutical industry and cripple the Japanese pharmaceutical companies in Donghai first?"
Lu Tianzhi nodded. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm thinking." Long Xiao found it strange; the Japanese pharmaceutical industry didn't have a significant presence in Donghai. Jingkou Pharmaceutical had always wanted to control Donghai's pharmaceutical market, but their attempts had failed multiple times.
Lu Tianzhi sighed. "Long Xiao, you don't know this, but it's not just Jingkou Pharmaceutical that has come to Donghai. There's also a Japanese company called Linchuan Pharmaceutical, which has fully entered Donghai's healthcare, hospitals, medical equipment, and drug retail sectors. Linchuan Pharmaceutical has invested in fifty percent of Donghai's pharmaceutical industry and directly controls thirty percent."
"How could this happen? How come I don't know?" Lu Tianzhi's words greatly surprised Long Xiao. He had always believed that Jingkou Pharmaceutical was the biggest threat in the pharmaceutical sector, never expecting another player like Linchuan Pharmaceutical. He took out his phone to check the situation with Linchuan Pharmaceutical. Long Xiao discovered that Linchuan Pharmaceutical's scale far surpassed that of Jingkou Pharmaceutical. If Jingkou Pharmaceutical was a teenager, then Linchuan Pharmaceutical was a giant.