Chapter 125: Employment Relationship

Peacock remained silent for a moment before saying calmly, "Go ahead and try to take him down. Talk is cheap if you don't back it up with action." She did not really believe Shao Xiaoyao was a match for Tang Long.

When Tang Long was cracking jokes with you, he was just an ordinary person. But when his expression darkened and he became serious, those who knew him said he was a god!

Yes, not just an ordinary person, but a god! The kind of god who truly stood at the pinnacle of all deities.

Forget about Shao Xiaoyao; even White Dragon... never mind, there was no point in dwelling on that. Since Shao Xiaoyao wanted to take Tang Long down, she might as well let her try. She, too, would love to see Tang Long get knocked down a peg or two, though it was unlikely—but what if she actually succeeded?

"Hee hee, so we're sisters-in-arms now," Shao Xiaoyao giggled. Her eyes darted around, and she added, "I need your help!"

On the other end of the phone, Peacock smiled. She knew this little rascal wouldn't call her for no reason.

"Go ahead. How do you want me to help?" Peacock asked.

Shao Xiaoyao giggled, "It's simple. Just help me secure a sum of money—no less than ten billion. Well, twenty billion would be even better!"

"..." Peacock was speechless. Never mind twenty billion; she didn't even have twenty million. "That request of yours is a bit excessive."

"Finding money should be easy for you, right? Hee hee, as long as you open your mouth, that Young Master Yang will be tripping over himself to bring the money over."

Peacock frowned. "You want to bring Yang Wujiang into this?"

Shao Xiaoyao chuckled, "Why not?"

Yang Wujiang was younger than Peacock, but his father was the head of the country's top pharmaceutical enterprise, and his mother was the chairwoman of a multinational conglomerate. Going back three generations, his family were legendary "Red Merchants." Their wealth wasn't just top-tier; it was arguably at the very pinnacle of the country.

For a rich kid born with a silver spoon in his mouth, money was truly just a number.

Forget about tens of billions; if he gritted his teeth, he could probably pull out hundreds of billions without much trouble!

Beyond his powerful parents, Yang Wujiang had three older sisters and seven or eight female cousins within the clan, all of whom were formidable figures. With the web of connections they had woven, there was likely nothing in the domestic business world they couldn't handle.

The Yang family had only one son—you can imagine how powerful that made him!

"If you mess around and end up getting your bottom spanked, no one will come to your rescue!" Peacock knew that even if she told Shao Xiaoyao to drop the idea, she wouldn't listen, and her warning likely wouldn't even register.

Shao Xiaoyao pouted, genuinely confused. "Why would it be me getting spanked instead of me spanking someone else?"

She didn't believe that if she brought Yang Wujiang in, with the help of Peacock and her Brother White Dragon, they couldn't take down a mere "Tang Long."

Peacock sighed in resignation. Regardless of her age, this girl was stubborn; once she set her mind on something, she wouldn't stop until she reached her goal, and she never gave up halfway. Did they really think that by joining forces, they could handle Tang Long?

Did they really think their little arms and legs could withstand Tang Long's strength?

"If you get Yang Wujiang involved, whatever you do is your own business. It has nothing to do with me. I won't oppose it, but I won't participate either," Peacock said indifferently. She wasn't foolish enough to join a group attempting the impossible. The odds of success were slim, and it was highly likely that in the end, they would just get a spanking from Tang Long and return home in tears.

Shao Xiaoyao's eyes flickered. She hadn't expected Peacock to help anyway; she only called to keep her in the loop and gauge her reaction. As long as she didn't oppose it, that was enough.

"Alright, Sister Peacock, I want to ask you something. That Black-Scaled Jiao that appeared in Yutou Village—that should be under your jurisdiction, right?" Shao Xiaoyao asked curiously.

"Yes."

Peacock hummed. The moment she spoke, she knew exactly what the girl was going to ask. In the Sky-Eye monitoring center, if they wanted to keep an eye on a certain place in the country, every move made there twenty-four hours a day could not escape their surveillance.

"Then why haven't you guys taken action to finish off that Black-Scaled Jiao or capture and remove it? Did you reach some kind of agreement with that guy Tang Long?"

That was the real question she wanted to ask. Theoretically, it was impossible for the special departments to ignore a massive creature like the Black-Scaled Jiao appearing anywhere in the country.

The fact that it was still there after all this time only meant that someone had already reached an agreement with Tang Long.

Peacock remained silent, then said helplessly, "Classified. Guess for yourself; I have nothing to say."

Shao Xiaoyao wasn't surprised by Peacock's response, as such matters wouldn't be easily disclosed even if an agreement had been reached.

"Was it an agreement with your department, or with your superiors? It's fine to 'free-range' that Black-Scaled Jiao in Yutou Village, right?" Shao Xiaoyao blinked.

"Yes."

Peacock hung up the phone. Given Shao Xiaoyao's understanding of her department, it wouldn't be hard for her to guess who Tang Long had made the deal with. After all, a task like keeping a "Black-Scaled Jiao" wasn't something you could just do because you wanted to, nor was it something anyone could greenlight. At the very least, not even her own approval, or even the approval of someone two ranks higher, would suffice.

"That kid Tang Long is quite impressive!" Shao Xiaoyao held her phone, her eyes darting around. Even though Peacock hadn't said much, it was enough for her to analyze quite a bit.

For some reason, even though she had never met Tang Long, Shao Xiaoyao instinctively disliked him.

With her limited abilities, if she wanted to take him down, she would have to find outside help.

"Hmph, even if you were a god before, you're living in the world of ordinary people now, which makes you an ordinary person. And if you're an ordinary person, you have to follow the rules of this world," Shao Xiaoyao muttered to herself.

There were certain things no one could change: the rules of a world. The divine realm had its rules, and the world of ordinary people had its own. You had to follow the rules of the world you lived in, or else you would be cast out.

Bringing Yang Wujiang in to deal with Tang Long was just a preliminary idea; whether it would work remained to be seen.

Even if Shao Xiaoyao could goad Yang Wujiang into action, given his resources and connections, it shouldn't be too hard for him to dig up Tang Long's background. And with his sisters, who were like female strategists, it wouldn't be easy to turn him into a patsy.

At the same time, precisely because of Tang Long's extraordinary past record, it should be even easier to ignite Yang Wujiang's competitive spirit!

Why not try? If it actually worked, it would be a "surefire bet" for her anyway!

...

At the cliff behind Yutou Village, Wu Zhengyao and the others were dumbfounded, truly stunned by the massive size of the Black-Scaled Jiao. How could such a gargantuan creature exist in the world? It just wasn't scientific!

"This is the 'ancestor' of our Yutou Village, and also our village's guardian deity!" Tang Long said with a smile.

The Black-Scaled Jiao crawled up from below the cliff, its massive body even more shocking and terrifying. Those who were timid felt their legs go weak and couldn't even stand.

Tang Long grinned at Zhang Xiue, who looked rather helpless. No one believed what she and Tang Long said, but they couldn't just summon the "Black Dragon King" every time someone visited just to prove "seeing is believing," could they?

Wu Zhengyao didn't know how to describe his current feelings. He just felt it was all too absurd; it was shaking his entire worldview!

It wasn't a dream, not special effects, and not a movie set—everything was real. If he hadn't seen such a terrifying, massive creature with his own eyes, he wouldn't have believed it!

"It... won't get angry and lose control, will it?" Wu Zhengyao regained his composure and asked. Having such a terrifying monster within his jurisdiction, he didn't know whether to be happy or worried. This wasn't just some ordinary wild animal.

In movies, these were always boss-level entities—the big bosses that usually brought an unforgettable disaster to humanity before being destroyed.

Tang Long smiled, his expression full of confidence. "County Magistrate Wu, you can rest assured. It is definitely under control. Think about it: if a creature of this size weren't under control, would any department allow it to survive?"

Some things couldn't be said too bluntly to Wu Zhengyao, yet he couldn't leave him in the dark either. He had to at least give their local official some peace of mind.

Wu Zhengyao paused and looked at Tang Long. "You mean to say that this 'ancestor' of Yutou Village living here has already been vetted by the relevant departments?"

"More or less!" Tang Long smiled. "The big shots' stance is that keeping it is fine, but if anything goes wrong, it's on me. If there are any problems, I'll shoulder them. Also, it can't be put on display like a giant panda—in other words, we can't let people know of its existence too blatantly. That’s the general idea!"

As the official responsible for Taoyuan County, Wu Zhengyao had to be presented with all the development strategies for Yutou Village, so Tang Long had to be honest with him about certain things.

Wu Zhengyao took a deep breath. For a moment, he didn't know what kind of decision to make. With a "true dragon" kept in Yutou Village, never mind a ten-kilometer radius—even if they handed over the entire Donghe Town to them, it wouldn't be out of the question!

A village with a "guardian deity" was not something an ordinary village could compare to.

"Let's discuss these things after we head down and my head is clear!" Wu Zhengyao looked up at the Black-Scaled Jiao again. In his entire life, he had never seen such a terrifying creature, and one that was human-controlled, at that.

It wasn't just Wu Zhengyao; almost everyone present was seeing something like this for the first time in their lives.

"Why is it under your control?" Wang Feiyue asked Tang Long, voicing the question on everyone's mind.

A creature so terrifying it could be called prehistoric—why would it be controlled by a single person?

It was all too fantastical!

Tang Long stopped smiling and said with a serious expression, "Brother Wang, you've misunderstood. 'Big Black' is not controlled by anyone. It just reached an agreement with Yutou Village. From now on, Yutou Village will provide it with food and shelter, and ensure its peace.

"In return, it must follow the rules of Yutou Village, not disturb ordinary people, and it is willing to protect the village.

"It's not submission. Simply put, it's more like an employment relationship. It's now an 'employee' of Yutou Village, and we are its bosses. Yutou Village pays it a wage, and it provides services to the village in return!"

There was no control involved. Tang Long felt there was a misunderstanding in how everyone perceived it, and the contract he reached with Big Black was exactly as he described.

"Thank you, humans. I will honor our promise forever; I hope you will do the same!" The Black-Scaled Jiao conveyed its thoughts to Tang Long via telepathy.

It wasn't an ignorant, cold-blooded creature driven only by instinct. Having lived for so long, it had long since evolved its own wisdom. It certainly didn't like being treated as a slave, and the contract it had with Tang Long was not a slave contract.

"An employment relationship?"

Tang Long's words left everyone stunned. They hadn't expected such an answer. If the Black-Scaled Jiao was compared to an "employee," did that mean it could be "poached" by someone else?

For some reason, hearing Tang Long's words made everyone feel a bit strange.

Yutou Village had "recruited" a terrifying creature as an employee? How could that feel... so incredible?