Under One Person: The Seeker of the Dao in the Lü Family

Chapter 273 Forced Coercion, Unregistered Residents

"What?!"

Inside the office, Zhao Fangxu's question broke the tranquil atmosphere. Chairman Su put down his teacup and watched as Zhao Fangxu's expression changed from calm to serious.

"Master Tang, are you joking?"

Zhao Fangxu lowered his head slightly, maintaining the calm and composure of a superior in his speech, but his tone was flat yet complex, making it impossible to discern what he was thinking or what he intended to do.

At this moment, Zhao Fangxu was like a deep pool being attacked by a sudden gust of wind; the surface of the water rose and fell but remained calm, while unknown currents were hidden beneath the surface.

"If I remember correctly, Xu Xin, one of the Thirty-Six Thieves from back then, has already been expelled from your Tang Clan's ranks, according to the company's records."

"Since they are already dead, how can they be brought back to life?"

On the phone, Tang Miaoxing's words were still somewhat nonchalant, showing no concern what a bolt from the blue for the company dedicated to maintaining stability that she had implicated.

"Then I must have misremembered. Xu Xin is dead, but my Tang Clan still has an unregistered person named Tang Xin."

"Tang Xin has been in seclusion for years, not seeing any outsiders. Now that he has emerged from seclusion, the Tang Sect wants to give him a legitimate identity."

"It's my fault. The two names are similar and easy to pronounce, so I accidentally said the wrong name. I hope Chairman Zhao will forgive me."

Listening to the voice coming from the phone, which was transmitted through radio waves, Zhao Fangxu felt no relaxation despite the gentle tone as if the person was talking about everyday matters.

"Ha, Master Tang is quite the schemer. Tang Xin and Xu Xin are both old hands from back then. It's probably not appropriate for them to come out like this, naked and exposed."

"These days are different from before. That person, living in seclusion deep in the mountains, probably wouldn't be very comfortable."

"Oh dear, Chairman Zhao is indeed very thoughtful, but my Tang Clan has also considered this point."

For some reason, Zhao Fangxu's eyebrows twitched when he heard this, and then a lively atmosphere and sounds seemed to come from the phone.

Hearing the seemingly joyous banquet taking place across the street, Zhao Fangxu was not infected by the celebratory atmosphere; instead, his heart sank deeper and deeper.

"Master Tang, where are you?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell Chairman Zhao again, our Tang Clan accepted the invitation from the Lü family and are coming to the Lü family's banquet."

Tang Miaoxing seemed genuinely surprised by this, slapping his forehead and saying, "Old people's memories aren't so good anymore. Oh, there are quite a few old friends at the Lü family's birthday banquet this time."

"Chairman Zhao, I'm going to greet these old friends from various families first. I wonder if there are any unregistered residents like Tang Xin among them."

"As for Tang Xin's matter, I'll leave it to you, Chairman Zhao, to handle."

"beep--"

As Tang Miaoxing eagerly awaited her reunion with her "old friend," a busy signal came through the phone; the other end had already hung up.

Zhao Fangxu silently put down his phone, casually placed it between himself and Chairman Su, and then picked up his teacup and took a sip.

A quiet atmosphere enveloped the office. Sitting opposite Zhao Fangxu, Chairman Su felt that his usually calm and composed boss looked somewhat tired for some reason.

It's like being repeatedly disturbed by sudden emergencies, and then having to remain silent for long periods of time – a kind of exhaustion.

"Phew, this position is really difficult."

After finishing his tea, Zhao Fangxu's fatigue vanished, and he returned to his usual calm and reliable self.

"It's a pity I can't rest, and I shouldn't rest. I can't relax for even the time it takes to drink a cup of tea from now on. It's like I have a knife to my neck."

Zhao Fangxu looked at Chairman Su, and jokingly gestured with his hand near his neck. Seeing the hesitation in Chairman Su's eyes, he waved his hand again.

"It's nothing, we were just forced to inform them of something. We didn't have time to stop it, nor did we have the ability to stop it."

"This feeling of instability is unsettling."

Zhao Fangxu looked down at the tea in his cup, his eyes flashing with many calculating thoughts.

Although Tang Miaoxing verbally made a request, his actual actions forced the company to accept Xu Xin's reinstatement.

The Lu family's birthday banquet brought together guests from all over the world, including both old friends and newcomers.

If Xu Xin simply stands openly and honestly in front of these people, then the Tang Clan will have achieved its goal.

The company couldn't stop this in time, nor did it have the ability to do so, because of Tang Miaoxing's final, frank, threatening statement.

Like Tang Xin, he is an unregistered resident.

What is meant by "unregistered resident"?

People without identification documents or official registration, in other words, people without a registered household.

These kinds of people aren't really scary, since they don't have any registered identities.

But the company dares not investigate, nor can it find out, because the interests involved are too numerous and too significant.

For a group like the "Outcasts" who possess extraordinary abilities, the lack of a registered identity likely means they are hidden "private soldiers."

In ancient times, the reason why powerful families were feared by feudal dynasties was not only because they occupied resources such as land and knowledge, but more importantly because they controlled a huge population.

Among these people, some are registered, but the majority are unregistered undocumented individuals.

Looking back at history, we find something very interesting. Just like the "fire dragon burning the granary" that was common in every dynasty, in ancient times, a large number of people would "disappear" during times of war, and many household registers would be burned.

For example, during the great war at the end of the Sui Dynasty, the population plummeted from more than 46 million to more than 10 million, a loss of more than 30 million people.

War is a man-made disaster caused by war, and the loss of life, destruction of cities and buildings is inevitable, but it would never result in such a large-scale loss of population and the burning of books.

That's because someone did it on purpose, deliberately burning privately kept lists and deliberately hiding people.

What could they do by hiding these two things? Naturally, it was to become king and dominate, because these people were the "soldiers" they kept.

Therefore, it's not important whether someone is unregistered or not; what matters is where they are unregistered.

Although times have changed and the world of supernatural beings is weak, making it impossible for large-scale "private armies" to exist, there are still some "old monsters" hidden away as a foundation.

There's no need to doubt whether any family would have the guts to hide someone, because if they didn't, they wouldn't have survived the long years to this day.

Now that Tangmen has revealed its hidden "Xu Xin," the company can only swallow this bitter pill.

Although the company represents the official authority, it's just a figurehead. If they violate any taboos within the entire world of supernatural beings, the official authority will simply replace them with another spokesperson.

They couldn't afford to provoke the wrath of the entire supernatural community, nor did they have the power to purge the populations of each individual.

Zhao Fangxu is now being forced by Tangmen to accept Xu Xin's new life because the company lacks the ability.

Power and strength, though different, are interconnected.

A moment later, Zhao Fangxu rubbed his head and instructed Chairman Su, "Chairman Su, prepare to begin another round of census of all companies' rosters."

"Furthermore, the Ten Elders will be expanded next time, and the Tang Clan will be considered for inclusion."

"What about the Truth-Seeking Society?"

"Let's see if they can get out of Lüjia Village alive this time."

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Chapter One!