Edward continued, “Forget everything else for now. Just look at what Mr. Adolph did to my Ford family. The chaos is a mess that’s hard to clean up. The Ford family was the first underling of the Street family, but there are layers beneath them, all the way down. The branches and roots go so deep, it’s impossible to untangle.”
“The underworld is a one-way street,” Edward said, his voice growing darker. “Both the Dark family and the Street family have reached the top. No one’s going to ‘clean up’ their operations because it’s a matter of respect in the underworld. Those lower down, don’t have that kind of respect. They might try to go legit, but deep down, they’re still tangled in the underworld’s web. If you cut off the top, the chaos that follows will be catastrophic.”
“The chaos caused by the Ford family has led to this situation today. If either the Street family or the Dark family were to fall, the whole world would probably go into chaos. Without the Tiger King holding down the fort, the animals in the forest would go wild. That’s why Mr. Ryan and Mr. Kevin keep their arrows on the string but don’t fire,” Edward said in one breath.
Echo leaned back against the sofa, frowning. “So, neither family can fall. Then why…?”
She didn’t finish her sentence, but Edward understood what she meant. He coldly replied, “One mountain can’t hold two tigers. Everyone wants to be king. It’s fine if they don’t move-if they’re prepared to devour everything in one bite, there’s no need for any chaos. But if both sides get hurt, the world will be reset.”
Echo raised an eyebrow at his words and fell silent, tapping her fingers on the sofa. Edward nodded and added, “That’s the state of the underworld. Remember, you’re at the top. You don’t need to charge into battle. What you need is strategy.”
Echo raised an eyebrow, then looked at Edward with a slight smile. “Know how to use people well.”
Edward’s lips curled into a bright smile as he nodded. “Exactly. No need to get your hands dirty. You just need to…” His expression suddenly turned serious as he glared at Echo.
The contrast between his young face and his stern look made it oddly comical. While others might find it intimidating, to Echo, it just seemed ridiculous.
Without missing a beat, Echo reached out, pressed him down, and smiled. “You are a great strategist, why wouldn’t I use you? Wouldn’t that be a waste of talent?”
“Let go of me!” Edward growled, his voice heavy with anger as he tried to shake her off.
Echo expected a bit of a struggle, but instead, she smoothly stood up and gracefully leaned back against the sofa. Her eyes locked onto his, sharp and focused like she was stalking her prey.
Edward raised an eyebrow and stared back. “You really think you can use me?”
He was from the Ford family-if she was going to use him as her helper, then she was either too naive or way too arrogant. If Ryan had said that, Edward would’ve believed the latter. But with Echo? He wasn’t so sure.
Echo met his gaze, smiling slightly. “If you didn’t want to help me, why would you be saying all this?”
She glanced at his unchanged expression, her smile widening. “Smart people always figure out what’s best for them. It’s up to you now.”
With that, she stood and walked out, leaving him with little more to say.
Edward watched her leave, raising an eyebrow. She was definitely interesting.
“By the way, kid, I don’t like the serious, old-before-your-time look. I still prefer the angel.” As the words left his mouth, Echo was already out the door.
Edward’s face immediately darkened as he watched her retreating figure. He gritted his teeth, adjusted his clothes, and slowly forced a weak, charming smile before following her.
That evening, Ryan returned to the room to find Echo already in bed, smiling in her sleep. It was a far cry from the fierce energy she’d shown the past few days. Frowning, he sat on the bed and patted the covers.
Echo had gotten used to it. As soon as she felt him beside her, she instinctively wrapped herself tighter in the blanket, made space, and reached out, trying to pull Ryan closer to her. It had become a reflex, something she even did in her sleep without thinking.
Ryan, seeing this, immediately reached out and pulled Echo out of the blanket, his voice low and cold as he said, “Have you finished your work?”
Feeling a cold wind whip past her ear and hearing the chill in his voice, Echo instinctively shrank her neck. It was summer-why was it so cold? She groggily backed away, wondering why she felt like she was getting hit by arctic winds.
Ryan saw that Echo wasn’t waking up, so he narrowed his eyes and grabbed her head, pulling it toward him. With one hand covering her mouth and nose, he leaned down and kissed her on the lips, like it was some sort of wake-up call.
“Boss, what are you doing?” Echo, suddenly jolted awake, pushed Ryan off her and gasped for air, her chest heaving.
She’d been through this a few times already and still couldn’t figure out what Ryan was thinking. He’d promised not to let her get hurt, even saying he wouldn’t hit her anymore. Now, though, he seemed to have developed a fondness for waking her up this way. Compared to the near suffocating kiss, Echo preferred the old way-just a light slap. It didn’t hurt, and it got her up.
“Have you finished your work?” Ryan asked again, his tone cold as he held her neck, forcing her to meet his gaze.
Seeing the anger flash in Ryan’s eyes, Echo immediately nodded, now fully awake. “I’m done.”
Ryan’s eyebrows shot up, and a wave of anger hit him.
Echo quickly wrapped her arms around him, resting her head on his shoulder and rubbing it gently. “Don’t be mad. I know what I’m doing. I’m not slacking off. I just found some help.”
At her words, Ryan let out a cold snort, lowered his head, and stared directly into Echo’s eyes. He didn’t say anything, but Echo understood that he was waiting for her to explain.
Echo gave him a sweet smile, sitting in his lap and looking up at him. “I didn’t know you had such a useful person around. Thanks, Boss.”
As she spoke, she leaned up and gave him a quick kiss on the chin, since that was about her height.
Ryan’s anger slowly faded as he looked at her, his voice still low but softer. “Edward is indeed impressive. He’s been able to stay hidden for so many years. He’s useful.”
Ryan could see right through people. With just one look, he could tell if someone was genuine. He’d only glanced at Edward in the private room, but he knew the guy wasn’t as weak as he seemed. No matter how deeply Edward hid his true nature, he was still only thirteen. He didn’t think anyone could fool him.
But the fact that Hawk, Tiger, and the others couldn’t see through him showed that the kid had some real skill.
Echo smiled and nodded when she heard Ryan’s assessment. She’d figured out everything earlier that afternoon when she overheard Edward’s frustrated words and saw how Ryan had been targeting him. When the entire Dark family also doubted Edward, she suddenly understood why she had spoken to him the way she did.
Echo knew how sharp and ruthless Ryan’s judgment was. There was no way he would miss something like that.
Ryan hadn’t made any moves or applied pressure, but his silent pressure had clearly made Edward crack and speak up on his own.
It was obvious now-Ryan had no intention of doing anything other than handing Edward over for her to use.
Echo couldn’t think of any other reason for his actions.
The people in the Dark family had already accepted that Ryan was like a god-no one dared to help Echo under his nose.
But Edward was different. The pressure Ryan put on him meant that if he wanted to survive, he had no choice but to fight back. The only way Edward would be okay was if Echo was okay.
Ryan wasn’t just strong; his ability to control people was top-notch. Otherwise, Hawk and the others wouldn’t be so loyal to him.
Echo smiled as she leaned against Ryan’s chest and asked, “Boss, how did you figure out the kid had some skill?”
She knew Ryan could tell, but that didn’t mean she understood why he could tell.