On the other side.
Wu Yi was also mulling over the oil business. Though he had taken a loss on this front before, ending up with a tarnished reputation and failing to even gain credentials from the envoy mission—his standing had taken a considerable hit.
A prominent figure from the northeast had commented: “Still young, not steady enough.”
Being young and unsteady meant needing more tempering. So, any talk of promotion was set aside for now.
How could the ambitious Wu Yi tolerate that? At this point, he couldn’t even stand hearing the word “oil.” That was, until Japan managed to persuade him.
Yes.
Fall where you stand, and rise where you fall.
Even Yumen had oil—so the more promising northeast surely had it too. Determined to salvage his pride, Wu Yi threw himself into action, pulling strings even his father’s reputation, with Japanese backing behind him.
Finally, he pushed the matter forward.
In good spirits, he temporarily set aside the humiliation of the past.
But Su Ning just wouldn’t leave him alone!
One day.
He was in a hurry to go out on business, but the car wouldn’t move, driving him to the edge of his patience.
“Go see what’s blocking the road.”
His subordinate returned quickly. “Someone’s handing out foreign oil for free, and the road’s packed. They won’t leave—but it should be over soon, they say it’s only for half an hour.”
Foreign oil—meaning kerosene.
Because it was all imported from abroad, it carried that “foreign” label.
Kerosene lamps were bright and cheap.
So they’d quickly replaced candles and traditional oil lamps. Of course, Wu Yi knew all this. But what caught his attention was that kerosene was refined from petroleum.
His instincts prickled with unease.
“Did you find out who’s handing this stuff out for free?”
“Well—too many people, no time to ask,” the subordinate added hastily. “But I heard them say it’s not from abroad, so it shouldn’t be called foreign oil. They said…” Everyone who came to claim the free kerosene had to repeat it, so he remembered.
He didn’t dare finish the sentence.
Because Wu Yi’s face had turned a terrifying, ashen black.
“Su Ning!”
“Get rid of them all.”
At his command, the subordinates didn’t dare question him and began driving the crowd away. The common folk far outnumbered them, but none dared to clash with the henchmen of such an obvious power.
They could only dodge aside and mutter curses under their breath.
“Such bullies.”
“Can’t even wait for a little while—rushing off to get reborn or something?”
“They’ll come back as beasts next time. Bah…”
Wu Yi didn’t hear those words, but it didn’t keep his mood from souring. Sitting in the car, staring at the giant character “Su” stamped on the kerosene containers, he had only one thought—
How could this be so fast?
Wasn’t extracting petroleum supposed to be tough? And refining it too—domestically, this was uncharted ground.
Logically speaking, taking a year or two would be normal.
Ah, right. Su Ning had money.
A lot of money…
Realizing this, Wu Yi only grew more restless. Setting aside past grudges for now, he couldn’t let this slide. If Su Ning established herself first as the homegrown name for petroleum products, the public, fed up with foreign stuff, would surely embrace her.
Not only would she rake in money—
She might even save her god-awful reputation.
And as for him?
If he fell a step behind, he’d fall behind at every step.
The thought made him even more irritable.
His mind kept replaying that bitter scene of the past humiliation. If only she had agreed back then, he wouldn’t have been sidelined, subjected to endless sneers and taunts. Even though he had clawed his way back through his own efforts, the hatred remained.
And now, she was blocking his path again.
With fresh grievances stacked on old ones, Wu Yi narrowed his eyes. This time—he wouldn’t let her off easy!
“To the Young Marshal’s residence.”
…
Inside a splendid reception room.
The Young Marshal entered in a hurry, still smiling—clearly in a good mood. His eyes landed on the liquid container on the floor.
“What’s this? Trying to bribe me?”
His tone was relaxed, intimate.
He was obviously joking.
After all, the Young Marshal and Wu Yi were of the same generation. Though not close friends, they had known each other since childhood—a fact that had helped Wu Yi get back on his feet so quickly.
“It’s kerosene.”
“Kerosene?”
The Young Marshal repeated in curiosity, lifting the lid. The liquid was colorless and transparent, sharp-smelling. Indeed, it was kerosene.
“Why send me kerosene? I’ve got plenty as it is. Though, the quality’s not bad.”
Kerosene with impurities had a pale yellow tint.
What commonly sold on the market was usually that kind. Pure, colorless kerosene burned with less smoke and a more pleasant smell—just like what sat before him now.
“This isn’t ordinary kerosene.”
Hearing the remark about good quality, Wu Yi frowned out of instinct and added:
“It’s domestically produced.”
The Young Marshal nearly dismissed it—so what if it’s domestic?—until it struck him.
Then, with a tone of warmth, he said:
“So China can finally produce kerosene this good. Setting everything else aside, Miss Su Ning, just for this, she deserves praise from tens of thousands and a place in history. She must be quite a woman. I’d like to meet her someday.”
Wu Yi couldn’t stand it anymore.
“Young Marshal!”
He poured out all his worries, his fears.
The Young Marshal replied, “I think you’re overthinking it.”
“Besides, we don’t even know if there’s oil over here yet. The Japanese you hired said there is—but they also swore Yumen had no oil… Oh well. Even on the slim chance we do find an oil field here, it might not even meet our own needs.”
If you ask him, Wu Yi was not only overthinking—he was dreaming.
Nothing had even started yet, and he was already worrying about competition.
Wu Yi: …
“Even Yumen has oil. The northeast has even better conditions—there must be oil, and more of it. The Japanese have confidence in us too; they’ve put in money and resources. The surveying equipment, at least, all came from them.”
He put in a good word for the Japanese.
When he saw the Young Marshal’s expression sour, he stopped, though he still felt unrepentant in his heart.
He knew Japan and the northeast had sordid history between them.
But, when aiming for big results, you don’t sweat the small stuff.
If there was profit to be had, why care so much? Once things were settled, they could always kick Japan out—the northeast was, after all, their own turf.
The Young Marshal was far too rigid.
Whereas he…
“And as for Su Ning—maybe she doesn’t matter all that much. But what matters is that she’s tight with the government. Madame Kung herself has a stake in her oil business. You’ve said the kerosene’s good—then would diesel and gasoline from the same source be any worse?”
His expression grew heavy.
“With those in hand, the government would be like a tiger with wings. As their strength grows and ours dwindles, we’ll be in danger.”
Hearing this, the Young Marshal finally started to take it seriously. “So what do you want to do?”
“First, increase investment—you can’t catch a wolf cub without taking a risk. The sooner we find oil, the safer we are.”
“Second, strike first. After all, Su Ning is just a merchant. We’ll make sure she can’t produce oil—and whatever diesel and gasoline has been refined, we’ll either hijack or destroy. As long as they don’t fall into the government’s hands, that’s a win.”
The Young Marshal didn’t agree right away.
He said he needed to think it over again.
But Wu Yi knew it was only a matter of time. Before leaving, he declared with righteous fervor:
"I have a grudge against Su Ning, but this time I'm not acting out of personal spite. I'm doing this for the sake of our Northeast. The Old Marshal worked so hard to build this foundation... Sigh, please consider it carefully."
With that, he left.
Once in the car, he loosened his tie and smiled, then sent someone to notify the Japanese side.
Having handled the matter, he naturally wanted to claim credit.
In the afternoon, the Japanese sent over a batch of valuable gifts.
...
After he left,
the Young Marshal remained alone in the reception room, hesitant and indecisive, until a servant came in to ask for instructions on how to handle the kerosene. He stared at the high-quality kerosene and let out a long, weary sigh.
He made up his mind.
But when it came to increasing investment in oil exploration, the thought of the Japanese made him uneasy, and he always felt they couldn’t be trusted. So he agonized for another two days. Wu Yi, unable to wait any longer, came again.
He exhausted his arguments,
Pleading with the Young Marshal to set aside his mistrust of the Japanese. His efforts were not in vain—
The Young Marshal began to waver.
Just then, two pieces of news arrived.
Upon reading the first, he beamed with joy and even shouted in approval:
Su Ning had refused Madame Kung!
Half the weight lifted from his chest. The Young Marshal felt that the oil exploration could wait. With this lightened mood, he turned to the second piece of news...
His smile slowly faded.
