Prioritizing profit, taking profit as the foundation.

When Zhang He caught sight of the figure brought by Old Wu trailing behind Fang Xu, he instinctively sprang to his feet, completely unaware that he had knocked over his wine cup onto the ground.

His eyes were filled with a trace of dread as he looked at the silhouette behind Old Wu, and then shifted to a gaze of utter puzzlement toward Fang Xu.

Before Zhang He could utter a single word, he noticed the corners of Fang Xu's lips curving upward slightly.

"Do you remember what I just said? This is the very person you will need to support from now on: Murong Bai. You should know him, right?" Fang Xu asked, as if speaking to himself.

At that moment, the person stepping into the ancient temple right behind Old Wu was none other than Murong Bai, who had previously departed with Murong Fu.

Zhang He felt as though his brain could barely keep up with his thoughts. Why on earth would Fang Xu say such a thing?!

Naturally, from Zhang He's perspective, wasn't Murong Bai one of Murong Fu's closest confidants? Why would he suddenly be designated as someone Zhang He was supposed to support in the future?!

Moments later, Zhang He's eyes widened as he stared at Fang Xu in disbelief.

Clearly, the fact that Zhang He could attain the position of Administrator of Danyang Commandery proved that he indeed possessed exceptional talent and a keen ability to read people and situations.

At this moment, he naturally began to discern Fang Xu's ultimate objective, especially when connected with the sudden appearance of Murong Bai.

A massive, intricate chessboard seemed to unfold before Zhang He's eyes, and he realized he was merely a single piece upon it.

Was the opposing player Fang Xu himself, or was it Qin Suwen standing behind Fang Xu?!

Zhang He had no way of knowing the answer to that, but one thing was entirely clear to him: what Fang Xu intended to accomplish right now.

"Everyone, take a seat. There's no need to keep standing." Fang Xu gave Old Wu a subtle look, and Old Wu immediately went to fetch a chair for Murong Bai along with two wine cups.

"You two should already be acquainted, right? I hope you can cooperate seamlessly in the future." Fang Xu poured a cup of wine for Murong Bai and said with a smile.

"That goes without saying! Lord Zhang, I will be relying heavily on your guidance in the days to come!" Murong Bai was naturally a slick and worldly person; he fully understood what his current choice signified.

Yet, having stepped onto this boat, Murong Bai knew there was no turning back.

After all, up to this very moment, Murong Bai still had no idea who was truly backing Fang Xu. Initially, he had suspected whether it might be Qin Suwen.

However, considering that Qin Suwen had always turned a blind eye to the four great local aristocratic families, could Fang Xu actually be an executioner sent by Qin Suwen to wield the blade against them?!

Back at the inn, when Murong Bai had caught sight of Zhuge Jun and Shangguan Lian, his suspicions had only deepened.

This time, however, he wondered if the Zhuge clan, the Shangguan clan, and Qin Suwen—representing the Great Qin Empire—were finally about to make their move against the Murong clan.

If that truly was the case, then aligning himself correctly beforehand was the only sensible path to survival.

After all, Murong Bai was well aware of the friction between Murong Fu and those three individuals, coupled with the Murong clan's persistently ambiguous attitude toward Great Qin.

Therefore, when Fang Xu sent someone to invite Murong Bai to this place, a vague premonition had already stirred in his heart, and he had accepted without a moment's hesitation.

In Murong Bai's eyes, did he even have the luxury of choice?

Zhang He remained in a daze, staring at Murong Bai, who was smiling back at him. Zhang He simply could not wrap his head around it: why would Murong Bai choose to betray Murong Fu and ally himself with Fang Xu?

Seemingly sensing the confusion written across Zhang He's face, Fang Xu nodded toward Murong Bai. Receiving Fang Xu's silent approval, Murong Bai broke into a smile.

"Is Lord Zhang wondering why I, as Murong Fu's cousin, chose to betray him?" Murong Bai asked with a smile, looking at the stunned Zhang He, who instinctively nodded in response.

Because Zhang He was genuinely curious. He desperately wanted to know what kind of lucrative bait Fang Xu had dangled to make Murong Bai turn against Murong Fu. One had to know that Murong Bai had practically been Murong Fu's most trusted and favored right-hand man!

"Everyone assumes I was the favored favorite by Murong Fu's side, but who actually knows how Murong Fu treated me? He treated me no better than a dog! I suppose Lord Zhang already has some idea of how Murong Fu treats people, right?" Murong Bai asked, eyeing Zhang He, which instantly brought back Zhang He's own recent humiliation at Murong Fu's hands.

Right in front of the common folk of Danyang, Murong Fu had shown the Administrator of Danyang Commandery not an ounce of respect, even publicly berating him as a worthless piece of trash.

In truth, furious as Zhang He had been at the time, what could he possibly do? He had no choice but to swallow his pride and endure it.

Now, hearing Murong Bai's words, Zhang He felt certain that Murong Fu was entirely capable of such despicable behavior.

"Since Lord Zhang is now also one of Young Master Fang's people, I won't beat around the bush. You must be dying to know what kind of benefit Young Master Fang offered me to make me betray my own cousin!" Murong Bai hit the nail right on the head, addressing precisely what Zhang He was dying to know.

"The position of the next head of the Murong clan—tell me, Lord Zhang, is this condition enough to sway my heart?" Murong Bai said with casual nonchalance, as if he were discussing a matter that had nothing to do with him at all.

"What?! The next head of the Murong clan?!" Zhang He stammered, his jaw dropping in sheer disbelief. The impact of this revelation was simply too staggering.

Yet, from Zhang He's perspective, if that truly was the offer, it was indeed powerful enough to shatter any shred of loyalty Murong Bai might have had toward Murong Fu—especially since Murong Bai had never possessed any genuine loyalty to begin with.

"After all, everything in this world revolves around profit and self-interest. I'm sure Lord Zhang can understand that, right?" Murong Bai swirled the wine in his cup and asked with a smile. Zhang He nodded dazedly.

How could Zhang He possibly fail to understand the meaning behind Murong Bai's words? If he didn't understand such basic truths, he would never have survived long enough to reach his current rank in officialdom.

"Since we are all clear on that, it's for the best. I trust both of you are reasonable men."

"And the feud between Murong Fu and myself should be common knowledge by now, shouldn't it?"

"As for me, I don't have many particular habits. The only habit I do have is completely nipping my opponents in the bud before they ever have a chance to grow." Fang Xu raised his wine cup with a smile, yet a chilling glint of murderous intent flashed deep within his eyes.

Feeling the weight of that murderous intent, both Zhang He and Murong Bai involuntarily shivered.