Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

……

Xiaomei's eyes held a complex expression. Rationally, she felt this was not a good thing, but emotionally, she admired the girl in front of her.

She was just a ranch worker with absolutely no resources. She had to gamble big with little, walking a tightrope, and she actually succeeded.

“I didn’t want to tell Finney about this because I was afraid he was too impulsive and might do something rash in a fit of anger,” Jenny sighed. “But he still found out, and in this… worst way.”

“Your parents were killed by the Haisen family’s factory,” Zhang Renfeng said in a deep voice. “It’s only natural that he hates them.”

“I know that, but what good is hatred? Can I bring my parents back to life by swearing every day?” Jenny gritted her teeth. Actually, Zhang Renfeng didn’t mean to criticize her, but deep down, she was quite bothered by this.

Her parents were driven to their deaths by the Heysen family, yet she went to great lengths to become Henry Heysen's mistress—a truly shameful act.

Rather than trying to persuade Zhang Renfeng and Xiaomei, she seemed to be trying to persuade herself, saying excitedly, "My brother is only 13 years old. There are a lot of workers his age in the factory! I can't control others, I just don't want him to end up like my father, whose lungs were ruined by toxic fumes at such a young age. Once he starts working, he has to work shifts for months at a time, and it's hard for him to even come home."

“It’s true that my parents were killed by the factory, but in this city, the Heisenberg family is everything. We have nothing to rely on except this family.”

“But look at me… everything I eat, wear, use, this house, this farm, the way people look at me… everything is something I never dared to imagine in the past.”

Material disparities can erase many things; after all, having money is having money, and not having money is not having money.

Two completely different lives.

At this point, Jenny's tone shifted again, becoming hesitant and pleading, "So... when you go back, could you... say a few good words for me? I don't expect him to understand me, just... tell him that your sister wouldn't harm him, okay?"

"Everything you have now is ultimately just something given to you by others," Zhang Renfeng sighed. "Others can give it to you, and they can take it back at any time. If you always depend on other people's opinions, you'll end up living a life that's not even human."

----

……

Jenny fell silent at those words, and after a moment, a resolute glint appeared in her hazelnut eyes.

"Sir, you're absolutely right. Ultimately, I'm just a mistress. Once he loses interest in me, it'll all be over, so..."

"I must seize this only window of opportunity to make everything a done deal, so that it doesn't just become a dream!"

She suddenly stood up, walked quickly to Zhang Renfeng, and grabbed his wrist.

For her, every step she's taken so far has been a desperate gamble, a dangerous game of fire. Jenny is used to it all, and she says with absolute resolve, "Can I make a deal with you?"

Chapter 612: Obtained Without Any Effort

"Knights?" Zhang Renfeng looked completely bewildered. "Those two guys from just now, they're going to participate in a competition?"

"Don't say that. Those two are actually the best players we can field..."

Jenny's tone was somewhat helpless; among all the shepherds, finding someone of this caliber was like picking the tallest among the short. That's why, after seeing Zhang Renfeng single-handedly tame a bull, she began to consider this idea.

"In another week, they will clear a track in Central Park and start holding the 'Knights' Tournament.' During the actual competition, there will be a 30-meter-long wooden fence to separate the knights from each other."

"Like a medieval knightly duel, each rider brings their own armor and lance, mounts their horses, and charges at each other. Victory is achieved by thrusting the opponent off their horse with their lance when they pass each other. If neither has armor, they wait until they switch positions before launching a new charge."

"……ha……"

Zhang Renfeng's eye twitched. When he fought in the arena, it always started with a life-or-death contract, with no regard for death. He couldn't understand this abstract way of dueling. "What is this, playing house? What about the length of your spear? Wouldn't I just stab you in the back with one shot?"

"It's a knightly duel, just like a cowboy duel. Hundreds of years ago, before guns were invented, knights seemed to duel like this," Xiaomei explained from the side. "I heard that when they charge at each other on horseback and stab each other, it's assumed that no one will be killed."

"And once a rider is knocked off his horse, if he is unwilling to admit defeat, he can request to fight with real weapons. Once that stage is reached, it is no different from a regular duel, and both sides will switch to real weapons and can go all out to kill."

Zhang Renfeng squinted and half-jokingly complained, "Can we fast forward to the second part?"

"This match was directly overseen by Henry. He just loves these things—knights, armor, honor… like a little kid. As the referee, he would personally present the laurel wreaths to the top five knights one by one."

“Every year, the lance competition fills the entire park square with spectators. This novel and exciting competition is something that neither homeless people on the street nor noblemen in mansions would want to miss.”

"I originally wanted to choose someone to fight as my substitute knight. As for the top few... to be honest, I didn't expect to beat them. As long as I ranked in the top five and got the chance to contact them, that would be enough."

Jenny patted her chest, a smug expression returning to her face. She patted her chest again and laughed, "When Henry comes to present them with the laurel wreath, this acting knight will introduce me to him. At that time..."

"In front of everyone, I handed him a bouquet of flowers and told him, 'Unfortunately, I am a woman and cannot participate in the game of the brave. Please allow me, through the hands of a knight in shining armor, to offer this insignificant victory to my beloved!'"

……

Xiaomei's expression was somewhat worried. Although Jenny described the scene romantically, she still sensed a strong sense of calculation. Declaring love in public before the relationship has progressed to that stage is a form of moral coercion, especially with more witnesses.

As she just mentioned, on the day of the competition, many spectators will come to fill the venue, and each of them will witness this romantic declaration of love with a chivalrous touch.

At the same time, this is also a powerful declaration that her relationship with Henry has been upgraded from "lover" to "lover," which is Jenny's ultimate goal.

Given Jenny's status and position, if she followed the normal path, she would probably remain a mistress for life. Perhaps in another two months, once Henry loses interest in her, she won't even be considered a mistress anymore. She has no way out; if she wants to keep the wealth she has gained, she can only rack her brains and climb up step by step.

Henry is interested in the Knights game, but will he really be moved and happy to accept this carefully crafted confession? Or what if the contestants this year are all very strong, and her proxy knight doesn't even make it into the top five?

As before, Jenny couldn't guarantee anything.

But she had no choice; she was in a lower position, and if she wanted to continue playing at the poker table, she had to go all in every hand!

……

Zhang Renfeng looked at her with a meaningful gaze, "You've got quite a plan."

Do you really believe that every time you scheme against someone, things will turn out the way you want?

“I don’t know.” Jenny bit her lip, a hint of ruthlessness flashing in her eyes. “But I do know that I don’t want to spend my whole life serving their horses, and I don’t want my younger brother to die young in their sweatshop like his parents. It’s that simple!”

These words were spoken with such conviction that Zhang Renfeng pondered for a moment, then could say nothing more.

To achieve her goal, she was even willing to break her own leg. Faced with such a young girl, verbal persuasion is largely meaningless. Perhaps only when she suffers a severe setback in this matter will she change her mind.

“You just said this is a ‘deal’.” He shrugged. “So far, I haven’t heard anything about a deal. Am I missing something?”

Jenny looked the two of them over again, then suddenly changed the subject, asking, "Judging from your attire, you must be bounty hunters, right?"

"……almost."

"As far as I know, this industry is not easy to navigate. It's high-risk, low-reward, and you might even end up shooting each other in the same industry," the girl said confidently. "Have you two considered that as civilization spreads everywhere, sooner or later the West will no longer be as barbaric as it is today, and problems can be solved with guns and bullets? And that day will definitely come in your lifetime."

"On that day, public authorities will fill the vacancies, and there will be no more fugitives to hunt. Even if there are, it will be official sheriffs and police who will take the lead. At that time, the large number of bounty hunters who are armed but not subject to jurisdiction will become unnecessary."

Jenny blinked, her eyes sparkling with confidence. "I wonder how you two should conduct yourselves?"

Zhang Renfeng was somewhat surprised.

Admittedly, she was referring to the major trends, and Igor had already explained the underlying principles of urban expansion to him in detail. However, discerning these major trends requires considerable analytical and judgmental abilities.

The ranch girl before me, of course, didn't have the family background and access to information that Igor had. She analyzed the changing trends of society from the daily labor on the ranch and from the extremely limited things she could access—how remarkable!

Zhang Renfeng sighed, feeling even more sorry for her.

"what do you mean……"

“What I mean is, you two should leave yourselves a way out, at least so that when that day really comes, you can make plans for yourselves.” Jenny skillfully steered the conversation back on track. “And right now, I can offer you a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to ‘socialize upwards’!”

"Two weeks from now, on Mr. William Hyson's birthday, he will invite many socialites to his mansion for a high-society social party. In addition to socialites, there will be many participants, and I can arrange for you two to be among them."

"The party will start at 4 p.m. and last until 10 p.m., a total of six hours."

"For ordinary people, these are six hours that they will never have the chance to experience... How to grasp and utilize them is up to your abilities."

Zhang Renfeng and Xiaomei exchanged a glance, both seeing the joy in each other's eyes.

It’s not a waste of time to break through the iron shoes.

There's no need to even bother with security gear; the opportunity to sneak into the banquet openly and legitimately is practically yours!

Chapter 613: True Love?

"Do you think this is really a good idea?" After hesitating for a long time, Xiaomei finally asked the question timidly.

The streets were bustling with people. The two had returned from the ranch north of the city, and it was completely dark by then. One by one, the gas lamps on the streets lit up, their brilliance undiminished, living up to the city's name, "City of Lights." The noisy, chaotic sounds of people and laughter added a touch of vibrancy to the city.

This also makes Xiaomei's question seem a little untimely and cold.

What do you mean?

"Well... it's just..." Xiaomei hesitated to speak, "Sister Jenny, what she plans to do next, her plan."

"It was her own choice, wasn't it?" Zhang Renfeng's gaze pierced through the lamplight, looking towards the boundless darkness in the distance, and he explained softly, "What do you think I should do? Advise that girl that selling her body and using scheming to gain love is wrong and immoral, is that right?"

"To gain the pity of those in power, she even went so far as to break her own leg. Do you think a girl like that would listen to the advice of someone she's known for less than 24 hours?"

“That’s not what I meant…” Xiaomei’s voice grew softer and softer. She wasn’t really confident about her suggestion. “I just think that Sister Jenny did this because she had no other choice.”

“She has a choice.” Zhang Renfeng shook his head. “Either she stays on the ranch, spending her whole life taking care of racehorses, packhorses, and horse-riding horses for the patriarchs of the Haisen family, enduring the sun and wind, earning just enough to survive, and living a mundane life.”

"Either... sell her body, sell her morality, sell her soul, sell everything that can be sold. Even if she sells everything, she still needs to rely on her cunning and intelligence, which are far superior to those of her peers, to connect these things and win a chance to get a foothold."

"Once she entered the household, she was constantly gambled with her life. It was at this cost that she acquired servants, dazzling jewelry, gorgeous dresses, and this large house. Based on her original salary, she probably wouldn't be able to afford a house like this even in her next life."

He glanced at Xiaomei and said in a deep voice, "You think this decision is terrible because you think she 'sold her soul,' right?"

Xiaomei pursed her lips and nodded.

"But many people in this world are not as fortunate as you and me. They only feel humiliated when they have sold everything and only their souls are left to sell... When they first come up, all they can sell is their souls. And even so, many people want to sell them, but don't have the means."

“We can recruit her and have her join us,” Xiaomei finally voiced her true thoughts. “There’s no need for her to sell her soul… just give her a better option, wouldn’t that be enough?”

But the next second, Zhang Renfeng shattered her idea from a more realistic perspective: "If you want to recruit her, you have to at least reveal your identity to her. Who are we? This involves a lot of confidentiality issues. Who are we? What do we do? Where does our funding come from? In the end, all the questions will converge on one thing—my true identity."

"How can you be sure that a girl who would sell her soul wouldn't betray us?"

……

"I'm sorry, Mr. Hongzhong," Xiaomei said, her voice slightly downcast. "I was too childish."

"That child is indeed intelligent, that's for sure. But her intelligence has great limitations... She has never left this city, and in her heart, there is a deep-seated longing for the life of the nobility. The ultimate goal of all these deep thoughts is to make herself a member of the nobility."

"Perhaps she has no feelings for Henry himself, but only a strong obsession with becoming 'the lover of Prince Hysen.' Once she becomes a noblewoman, all the contempt she suffered in the past can be wiped away, and she can turn the tables and become the master of her own destiny."

At this point, Zhang Renfeng couldn't help but sigh.

Many things can never be truly understood without experiencing them firsthand.

She had made up her mind about this path, and if others tried to stop her, she would only feel that they were ruining her plans. Besides, they were just strangers who had met by chance, and Zhang Renfeng wasn't that idle. Their purpose in coming to Mingdeng City wasn't to save the soul of a lost girl.

Maintaining a simple relationship of mutual benefit is the best option for both sides at present.

"We should think carefully about how to tell her brother what happened today."

------

Finney's gaze was vacant. He sat on the bed, clutching the letter in his hand, leaning against the wall.

After resting for an afternoon, his body had recovered somewhat, and he was no longer having difficulty breathing as he had at the beginning. However, while he had been restless and struggling to get out of bed in the afternoon, wanting to see what was going on, he was now like a wooden doll, frozen in place, with no expression on his face.

Zhang Renfeng wasn't sure if he was listening or had already fainted, but he still tried to recount the story in a neutral tone.

Including the deal they made with Jenny: he would fight as Jenny's proxy knight and make it into the top five, in return Jenny would send both of them directly to William Hysen's birthday party.

……

"So, that girl named Jenny is planning to announce her relationship with Mr. Henry in front of all the spectators at the knights' competition?" Eva pushed up her glasses—she had just returned from her office and hadn't had time to take them off yet—"How audacious of her to use a 'stamping strategy' on a nobleman."

"stamp?"

"Simply put, when a report, document, or agreement has not been stamped and confirmed, it is no different from a piece of waste paper. But once it is stamped, it becomes legally binding, and it takes a lot of effort to overturn it."

Eva explained, "In this case, the public's impression is that it's a stamp of approval. As long as she does it and Mr. Henry shows a certain degree of cooperation, the public will assume it's true."

"Once this impression is given to everyone, the Heisenberg family will have no choice but to accept this lover who comes from a humble background but has 'true love' for Mr. Henry. Miss Jenny wants to use this as leverage to force the Heisenberg family to accept her."

"What do you mean by 'low status'?" Finney suddenly gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his forehead, and glared at Eva with extremely fierce eyes, saying viciously, "In the eyes of you elites, milking cows and shoveling manure for horses is considered low status?!"

"I...I didn't mean that..." Eva's shoulders trembled with fright, and she quickly explained, "I meant, considering factors such as salary, division of labor, and social status..."

"And what about 'having true love for him'... No... No!!!"

For Finney, such words only intensified his inner turmoil. Even more terrifying was the fact that soon everyone in the city would know how deeply their sister loved Henry Hyson.

He screamed in agony, grabbed a pillow from the bed, and threw it at Eva. "How could she do this? How could she do this?!"

Chapter 614: Right and Wrong, Love and Hate

“Calm down, Finney,” Mei tried to persuade her. “Your sister doesn’t mean you any harm. She’s doing this... for your own good…”

"Ha, ha!" Finney seemed to sense the hesitation in her tone, laughed twice, then slumped back in despair, repeating, "For my own good? Really? You really are doing this for my own good? If you really are doing this for my own good, why didn't you tell me even the slightest hint?!"

She knew perfectly well how much her younger brother hated the Haisen family, and this reaction was exactly what she had expected.

To prevent Finney's impulsiveness from ruining everything she had meticulously planned, she chose to run away. Since she couldn't gain her family's support no matter what, she decided not to tell him about it at all. Jenny was confident that when he grew older and realized just how important material abundance was to a "person," he would naturally understand her good intentions.