Spirit Master Girl: Contracting with an SSS-Level School Beauty at the Start-Chapter 271: The Four Great Families, Martial Arts Tournament

Chapter 271: Chapter 271: The Four Great Families, Martial Arts Tournament

"They’d even prefer it if it were our own people. Once we show them we’re capable of taking down the Li Corporation, logically and sentimentally, the higher-ups of Long Summer will choose to support us."

"So, this collaboration is essentially a low-risk high-reward situation. After my analysis, I went ahead and accepted on your behalf."

Having listened to his explanation, Xiao Zhan nonchalantly nodded, "Accepting is no issue, but how credible is this Ghost Abacus? What if he has already defected and become one of the Kimchi Federation’s own?"

"That won’t happen."

Hose immediately shook his head, very confident in his understanding of Ghost Abacus.

He said, "First of all, to Ghost Abacus, money is everything. If he were to follow someone, it would only be the one who allows him to make money."

"The existence of the Li Corporation obstructs his ambitious path to wealth accumulation, so he could submit to anyone, but he’d definitely not submit to the Li Corporation."

"Secondly, he was picked up by the old master on the border battlefield. At that time, we had military friction with the Kimchi Federation, and it was their army that destroyed his family. He harbors inherent hatred towards the Kimchi Federation."

"Thirdly, and most importantly, after synthesizing all the available information and data, the likelihood of Ghost Abacus defecting is less than 0.001 percent."

There, the last point was key; he was very confident in his calculating capabilities.

But if that’s really the case, then indeed, the chances of Ghost Abacus defecting are very low.

Xiao Zhan nodded, choosing to trust, then asked, "When is the meeting with him scheduled?"

"It’s tomorrow, he’s coming to see you."

"He’s taking the initiative to see me?"

"Yes."

Xiao Zhan couldn’t help but chuckle, "Is he worried that I would chicken out and not dare to meet him in the Kimchi Federation?"

"Master, you’re overthinking it," Hose explained, "He’s simply in a hurry to make money. Actually, he wanted to come today, but I postponed it for a day."

"I see."

Xiao Zhan felt as if he had gained another insight into the extent of Ghost Abacus’s love for money.

...

Time quickly advanced to the next day.

It was in the same room.

Xiao Zhan saw for the first time the true appearance of Ghost Abacus--not very tall, around 1.60 meters, with a rather slim build, his small body unable to fill out his suit.

His hair was sparse, missing around the edges with only some in the middle, tied into a bundle, on top of which was a black abacus, seemingly used as decoration.

His skin was a yellowish hue, but lacked elasticity, creating several wrinkles with the slightest facial movement.

His eyebrows were raised, and he sported a beard about ten centimeters long on his chin. The beard was well-groomed, tied into a whip-like shape, with a coin attached to the end.

It was like he personified money itself; his unscrupulous trader’s vibe evident with every movement he made.

There was no Artifact Spirit accompanying him, but with a brief Perception, Xiao Zhan realized that the black abacus atop his head was his Artifact Spirit.

As Xiao Zhan sized him up, Ghost Abacus was doing the same.

The ghost in Ghost Abacus’s eyes flashed with momentary surprise upon seeing how young Xiao Zhan was, but it quickly faded.

Then his eyes fell on the tattoo between Xiao Zhan’s eyebrows, his expression growing more solemn, but just as quickly, that too disappeared.

"The old master having such an exceptional successor, the Ye Family is indeed blessed with future prospects," said Ghost Abacus as he sat down, starting with the businessman’s customary flattery.

Xiao Zhan smiled, about to exchange pleasantries, but before he could speak,

Ghost Abacus blurted out, "I’ve made up my mind, if you can help me oust the Li Corporation and take control of the entire Kimchi Federation, I will return to the Death Organization and serve you as my master!"

Xiao Zhan was taken aback, not expecting such directness; truly, Ghost Abacus did not beat around the bush.

Straight to the point, leaving Xiao Zhan slightly unresponsive for a moment.

Aren’t businessmen supposed to relish profound doctrines?

"But..."

Just as Xiao Zhan was about to agree, Ghost Abacus preemptively continued, "However, after you become my master, you cannot restrict me from making money; otherwise, I will still leave you."

Hose had already anticipated this and had briefed Xiao Zhan about it.

Xiao Zhan could accept it.

"Agreed, but..."

Xiao Zhan hadn’t finished his sentence when Ghost Abacus once again interrupted, "Rest assured, I will still adhere to the rules left by the old master."

"Alright, then I agree with you."

This time Xiao Zhan was able to finish his sentence.

He took a deep breath, the feeling of being constantly interrupted was almost suffocating.

The only concern he had was about this; after subduing Ghost Abacus, he could let him accumulate wealth, but he must not exploit the people of Long Summer.

"Good, let’s talk about our cooperation plan now."

Seeing Xiao Zhan agree, Ghost Abacus proceeded to the next step.

He looked at Xiao Zhan, then at Hose.

Then he took out a document and said, "Relying solely on the power of the Hand of Death is not enough to contend with the entire Li Corporation, so we need a bit of a workaround."

"This workaround I imagine Hose has already thought about, but I have a better plan. If executed well, we can oust the Li Corporation from the stage of history with minimal cost."

Hose had already mentioned this workaround to Xiao Zhan, and Xiao Zhan nodded for him to continue.

Ghost Abacus continued, "Here’s the deal, the martial arts tournament of the four great families of the Kimchi Federation is in a week’s time, an event that takes place every four years, coinciding with the election for the highest seat of authority."

"That is to say, the direct outcome of the tournament will determine who will be the next highest leader of the Federation."

"I want you to represent the Xiao Family in the tournament and strive for first place. Once you secure first place, the Xiao Family can legitimately replace the Li Corporation, and any subsequent suppression of them will be much smoother."

Upon hearing the plan, Xiao Zhan was somewhat surprised, but Hose beside him showed no major reaction.

That’s because he had already considered this in his plans.

Now that Ghost Abacus had brought it up, he immediately voiced his concerns, "What you said is true, but the difficulty is immense."

"You must know that ever since the Li Corporation first seized control over ten years ago, no other family has managed to recapture it from them. Their rule is so strong that even now, the combined strength of the other three great families is no match for them."

With that, Hose turned to explain to Xiao Zhan, "This Li Corporation was just a normal, small family over ten years ago, on the political periphery of the Kimchi Federation, an ignorable presence."