Li Estate
The ride to the Li Estate was silent.
The black sedan moved like a shadow between the manicured hedges and iron-wrought gates, escorted on both sides by Li Group guards. Inside, the second branch sat in a tense, controlled stillness — not afraid, but fully aware of the weight of the summons.
When the car stopped before the estate's main hall, the doors opened in perfect synchrony.
"Second Branch," one guard announced. "This way."
Li Feng stepped out last.
His gaze flicked over the guards: tall, disciplined, muscular. These weren't standard household staff — they were trained corporate enforcers.
He pulled up his current stats from the system:
[Skill Dashboard — Current Sync]
Cyber Security — Lv. 2 (5%)
Programming — Lv. 2 (3%)
Software Engineering — Lv. 1 (75%)
Machine Learning & AI — Lv. 1 (50%)
Yi Jin Jing — Lv. 1 (0%)
Zhan Zhuang — Lv. 0 (97%)
Meditation — Lv. 1 (10%)
[Passives:]
Accelerated Comprehension
Cognitive Resonance
System Integration
Accelerated Parallel Cognition
Neural Harmony
With his current physique—tempered by Yi Jin Jing's tendon-strengthening and Zhan Zhuang's rooted stability—paired with the precision granted by Neural Harmony—accelerated reflex processing, motor–thought synchronization, high-clarity motion tracking—
Li Feng already knew the math.
One guard?
Effortless. He could down one before the man even understood the fight had begun.
Two?
Risky, but doable. He had the body and reflexes—just not formal combat training.
Three?
A gamble. He might walk away; he might not.
Four or more?
A guaranteed loss.
These weren't street thugs. They were trained enforcers—coordinated, conditioned, disciplined.
And though Li Feng was strong, he could not yet be considered "supernatural".
He walked behind the guards with his father and sister, his expression calm, his breathing steady.
None of the cold calculations passing through his mind touched his face.
They moved through the estate corridors—silent, polished, lined with old portraits of past patriarchs watching like stern judges—until the doors of the main dining hall swung open.
Warm light.
Fine silverware.
Two long rectangular tables forming a U-shape around the patriarch's seat.
All branches were already gathered:
First Branch on the left side
Third Branch on the right
Fourth Branch opposite the door
The head seat… empty, waiting
Conversations halted the moment the second branch entered.
Three empty seats had been placed near the open end of the arrangement. Close enough to remain "included,"
but far enough to show exactly where they stood in the family.
Li Feng's gaze swept the room once.
He did not sit immediately.
He stepped aside, pulled out the chair beside him with a quiet, deliberate motion, and nodded for Li Xue to take her seat.
She sat — composed, chin lifted despite the pressure in the room.
Only then did he pull out his own chair and take his place.
The moment he settled,
the murmurs began.
---
It wasn't the elders who spoke first.
It was the younger generation.
Naturally, casually—
but with intent sharpened like lacquered steel.
Han Rui leaned slightly forward, tone warm enough to pass as polite.
"Second Uncle, Xue, Feng — good evening.
The escort didn't inconvenience you, I hope?"
His smile was gentle.
The implication was not.
Li Cheng gave a soft, low laugh.
"Inconvenience? A full security team at your door before sunrise… that's practically a red-carpet greeting."
A few polite chuckles drifted across the table — elegant, practiced, empty.
Li Xinya rotated her chopsticks between her fingers, her voice light.
"Waking up to guards on the doorstep… I imagine that must feel quite unsettling."
A thinly veiled jab — sugar-coated, not subtle.
Xue's fingers tightened minutely on her napkin.
Her face never broke.
Li Yichen's gaze slid toward Li Feng — quiet, assessing, lingering a fraction too long.
He said nothing.
He didn't need to.
Feng lifted his teacup with unhurried calm, the very picture of composure.
Whatever faint smirk had been forming on Li Cheng's lips faded.
Even seated quietly, Li Feng carried a steadiness that didn't match the position he was supposed to be in.
It unsettled them—
not with fear, but with irritation.
Their jabs had landed on air.
Rui's smile thinned a fraction.
Cheng shifted in his seat, almost imperceptibly.
And so they tried again—
pushing a little harder, a little sharper.
Li Han leaned back with a soft scoff.
"I was wondering when the Second Branch would arrive.
Thought perhaps the pressure might delay you."
Han Rui stirred his tea, tone mild, almost sympathetic.
"With Silent Hands drawing attention, things must feel… heavier than usual."
Xue's shoulders stiffened by a breath.
Feng didn't blink.
Guowei tapped his pen once, the sound crisp.
"Innovation is promising," he said smoothly. "But genius without institutional support tends to burn out.
A tool like Silent Hands needs infrastructure behind it… otherwise it stops at being a school project."
A gentle dismissal wrapped in praise.
Guotao followed, tone calm, almost instructional.
"And capital interest is sharp," he added. "Without a full department shielding it, smaller teams collapse under scrutiny.
It's not about ability—it's about weight."
Not insulting Feng.
Not denying his achievement.
But shifting the narrative:
Silent Hands is too big for a mere individual
Only a large structure (the Li Family) can protect it
Therefore ownership should shift
Not because Feng is incapable, but because the world is too big for him
The implication was razor-thin but unmistakable:
Silent Hands shouldn't belong with the one who built it.
It should belong under the Li Family's banner —
"for its own good."
Xue inhaled slowly, controlled.
Guohua remained expressionless.
Li Feng simply watched the table in silence, expression unreadable — and that silence, that refusal to react, disrupted the rhythm of their jabs more effectively than any rebuttal.
One by one, the subtle prods lost steam.
There was no reaction to exploit.
No weakness to press.
No advantage gained.
The room's quiet sharpened.
And then—
every gaze shifted, almost in unison, toward the back of the dining hall.
The patriarch was coming.
---
The doors opened.
Li Zhonghai entered without fanfare, without greeting, without hurry.
The branches rose.
The room bowed.
He sat.
Only then did everyone else follow.
He lifted his teacup, took a deliberate, unhurried sip, and set it down.
"Silent Hands," he said, "has garnered attention. Locally. Regionally. Online."
A pause.
"Predictable."
His gaze shifted fractionally toward the second branch — a flicker so small only Feng caught it.
"This project requires direction. Structure. Protection. It cannot remain in the hands of a small household with limited reach."
A pause.
Then—
"I intend for Silent Hands to be integrated into the Li Group."
No request.
No discussion.
A decree.
He continued:
"Fourth Branch will manage the narrative.
Third Branch will secure regulatory ground.
First Branch will structure the innovation pipeline."
His voice was quiet. Absolute.
"In recognition of the Second Branch's early contribution," he said calmly,
"Li Guohua will receive a minor promotion within Li Group Logistics.
Salary adjusted.
Responsibility increased."
It was a small step upward—
the kind that looked like reward but created more work and less time.
"And," he added,
"the family will publicly acknowledge the Second Branch's support of youth-driven initiatives."
A polite way of saying:
We'll praise you as caretakers —
not creators.
A perfect political lie.
He folded his hands.
"In exchange, Silent Hands will be transferred to the Li Family. Effective immediately."
All eyes turned—
to Guohua.
---
Li Guohua stood slowly.
He bowed respectfully — but not submissively.
"Patriarch," he said, voice calm,
"Silent Hands belongs to my children."
A ripple moved through the room.
"They built it. They refined it. And they alone hold the rights to it."
No shaking in his tone.
No fear.
"For that reason," he continued, "the Second Branch cannot agree to transfer ownership."
Silence hit the room like a dropped stone.
Yichen's eyes sharpened.
Guowei's pen stilled.
Guotao's fingers curled around his cup.
Rui leaned forward slightly.
The patriarch did not move.
"Guohua," he said softly,
"do you misunderstand your position?"
A chill seeped into the air.
"You refuse the Li Family's directive."
It wasn't a question.
He continued before Guohua could speak:
"You are a branch head with limited shareholding.
Your influence is shallow.
Without the family's support,
you have no platform,
no resources,
no voice."
His voice didn't rise.
Which made it worse.
"Defiance will not end well for you."
Guowei added like a knife slipped between ribs:
"Resignation from your position may become necessary."
Guotao followed with cold legality:
"Share recall procedures can be initiated."
Guifen added gently:
"And the children's future opportunities… would narrow significantly."
Xue froze.
Feng's gaze lowered — not in submission, but in thought.
Guohua stood alone against the pressure.
And yet—
He did not back down.
"Silent Hands," he repeated, "belongs to them."
That was the final line.
The patriarch's eyes finally hardened.
A pause.
And the all facade peeled off—
"Do you truly believe the Second Branch can stand alone?"
The weight in the room was suffocating.
Just then, unbeknownst to everyone in the hall, a soft vibration brushed Li Feng's wrist.
---
Li Feng lifted his head.
Slowly. Calmly.
His expression had changed —
no longer passive,
no longer observing.
Focused.
Calculating.
He raised his eyes toward the patriarch and the gathered branches.
And he spoke.
"It seems," he said softly,
"everyone here has a lot of spare time."
The room froze.
"I would've thought," he continued,
voice polite but edged with surgical precision,
"that a corporation as large as the Li Group would be more… busy."
A few brows twitched.
"With its many divisions, obligations, subsidiaries —
I would expect you all to be more occupied."
He set down his teacup.
"And yet," he said,
"here you all are."
A soft, deadly sentence.
The tension snapped so sharply someone inhaled to rebuke him—
RING.
A phone chimed.
Loud.
Sharp.
Invasive in the quiet hall.
Every head turned toward the sound—
Unbeknownst to them,
that was
the first signal
of the chaos
Li Feng had prepared overnight.
---
Hello, Author here,
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