After ending the interstellar communication with Gu Hang, Mister Pei Desi still had another line open.
This was a connection with his younger brother, Pei Desi. His brother had listened to the entire conversation clearly as he had just spoken separately with an uncle-nephew pair from the Gu Family.
“The Gu Clan, who has always prided itself on ‘unity’, also has a day of internal strife, they’re going to make me die of laughter!”
His frivolous younger brother spoke with unrestrained glee, obviously taking delight in their misfortune.
Yet, this time Mister Pei Desi did not scold him but couldn’t help revealing a faint smile himself.
Indeed, the unity of the Gu Clan had crumbled. Did he still need to worry about the Gu Clan leaving the ‘Iron Triangle’, breaking the alliance between them and the Fufana Family?
Not at all.
Gu Ming had already expressed his loyalty to him, reaffirming their friendship multiple times.
And that stubborn Wang Qi, her son, whom he had personally supported into the position of Planetary Governor of Rage Owl Star. Now, the young fellow had also clearly promised to stand firmly by his side in the future.
All he had to do now was to choose the one more to his liking between the two of them.
“I suggest picking Gu Ming,” Pei Desi said, “Wang Qi is not easy to deal with. Even if her son agrees to all our conditions, it’s very likely that Wang Qi will still be in power of the Gu Family. She might not honor the conditions we agreed on so readily.”
Mister Pei Desi disagreed with this.
He countered, “So you think Gu Ming is very reliable? A man who initiated a violent coup within the ‘united Gu Clan’, do you think he will obediently follow our arrangements once he has power?”
“Uh…” When Pei Desi thought about it, indeed, that was true.
Mister Pei Desi spoke earnestly, “Don’t treat everyone as fools, as mere tools. Overall, we have no means to check the power of the Gu Family. Whether it’s toward the Gu Clan or the Fufana, we shouldn’t see people as mere pawns. Our rise is supported by them, and in turn, they develop better with our assistance—mutual benefit is the only way things can last.”
Pei Desi rolled his eyes: “The same old lecture…”
Although he showed disdain and sometimes thought his older brother could be quite old-fashioned, Pei Desi had to admit that at least one point was correct: they indeed had no ability to control the Gu Family.
No matter who they supported, whoever ultimately won, as long as the Gu Family didn’t completely disintegrate, retaining half of its power, it was still the biggest Chamber of Commerce across several nearby Star Sectors. They didn’t have to pay taxes to the Star Sector Government, nor did they require any support from it—what method could there be?
If they completely cut ties, the Gu Clan would be uncomfortable, as their operations within the Tianma Star Sector would become inconvenient since their headquarters were on Flying Wing Star. But likewise, without the support of the Empire Commerce Guild, lacking financial backing, the Star Sector Government would also suffer.
Both sides benefited from cooperation and would be harmed by separation—what else could be done? They’d have to make do.
Despite his irritation with the Gu Clan, Pei Desi understood this principle.
He quietly listened as his older brother continued speaking.
The words that Mister Pei Desi said to his younger brother were essentially his own thought process: “Any condition that Gu Ming can agree to, Gu Hang can too; plus Gu Hang can do one more thing, we’ve asked the Gu Family to draw a clear line with the Fatches Family, and he can take definitive action: disband Blackbird Heavy Industries on Rage Owl Star.
This will certainly deteriorate the relationship between the Gu Family and the Fatches Family greatly.”
“Moreover, we also have to consider the cost of making a choice. If we help Gu Ming, Wang Qi, without support, will perish, but do we have a way to deal with Gu Hang? Those eight Chamber of Commerce Fleets that were allied with Wang Qi in the past, if pushed to Rage Owl Star, could support Wang Qi’s son as the Family Head. Discover stories with empire
Do we have to dispatch the Imperial Navy to help Gu Ming control the Chamber of Commerce Fleet? Or should we send ground forces to rage Owl Star to eradicate Gu Hang? That’s all impossible. Neither the Imperial Navy nor the ground forces are completely under our command, and we can’t possibly find a suitable reason to attack the Empire Commerce Guild and a Planetary Governor.”
“By helping Gu Ming, indeed, we can achieve the goal of splitting the Gu Family, but we’d only garner the friendliness of at most half of the Gu Family, and we’d turn the other half, along with a Planetary Governor in the Star Sector, into enemies. It’s not possible to form the most ideal situation where both sides would want to keep on good terms with us.”
“What’s more, the cost of helping him is so high.”
“Conversely, by helping Gu Hang and Wang Qi, we’d have to do much less. Even though those two would be harder to control, and the power of the Gu Family wouldn’t be weakened too much, that mother and son, in fulfilling their promise, would have to stand in opposition to the Fatches Family, and our goal would be achieved. Moreover, wouldn’t they owe us a favor after a successful cooperation?
This lays a better foundation for future cooperation.”
…
Listening to his older brother’s lengthy explanations, Pei Desi pursed his lips and summed up, “So, you’ve ultimately decided to help that kid Gu Hang, right?”
Mister Pei Desi slightly smiled and said, “Roughly speaking, yes.”
“Fine then, do as you wish,” Pei Desi yawned hugely and stood up, “I’m off then.”
Watching his younger brother leave, Mister Pei Desi revealed a resigned smile.