Chapter 265: The Realization of Being Used

Although he had missed this opportunity, Shan Liang wasn’t too regretful. For one, there would be plenty of opportunities in the future. For another, he was away on business all the time. Having a “naturally clueless” maid at home was one thing; adding a Western woman who didn’t speak the language would make it questionable whether he could even get a proper rest when he returned from his trips.

Just as he was about to head to the Commercial Guesthouse—which was different from the teahouse. While the teahouse served exquisite dishes, its menu was limited by the size of its clientele. The menu changed daily on a seven-day cycle, meaning the selection on any given day was restricted, and you’d have to wait until the same day next week for a particular dish. Moreover, many dishes had to be ordered in advance.

In contrast, the Commercial Guesthouse was open to the public, offering a wide variety of dishes of a quality comparable to the teahouse, as well as some “grand dishes” not available there. The guesthouse operated for sixteen hours a day, from morning tea to late-night snacks.

Shan Liang decided to go to the guesthouse alone, order a few dishes, have a drink, and enjoy himself. Once he was drunk, he would sleep, and when he woke up at night, he would continue to dally with his maid.

Just as he was heading for the guesthouse, a figure suddenly appeared before him, blocking his path. “Are you Master Shan Liang?”

Shan Liang looked closely. It was a maid he didn’t recognize. “Who are you?” he asked.

“My master has something to discuss with you.”

“Who is your master?”

“You’ll know when you get there,” the visitor said with a smile, yet her will was firm, implying that refusal was not an option.

How can two maids be so different? Shan Liang lamented inwardly, his curiosity piqued.

“What is it about?”

“My master said you won’t regret coming,” the maid said mysteriously.

“I’m not going if you don’t explain. I need to save my energy,” Shan Liang said, stretching lazily.

The maid didn’t understand the joke, but she knew Shan Liang was refusing to go. She said, “My master asks if you remember the time you rallied thousands with a single cry at the Farmstead Café?”

Shan Liang’s expression darkened. “Interesting.” He rubbed his chin. “Lead the way!”

“Is this really true?” Cheng Mo asked, his eyes wide. The dim gaslight in the teahouse’s private room cast a distorted shadow on his face.

“Do you think I’m Wen Zong, just spouting nonsense?” Shan Liang glanced at him, displeased. “Of course, it’s true!”

“I’m talking about abolishing the school, not about you meeting that woman!”

“It’s highly possible. The news was leaked by the maid of Xiao Zishan’s lover.”

Cheng Mo shook his head. “This is secondhand news. We can’t just go and ask his lover if it’s true. Besides, do you even know this woman?”

“No. I only know her name is Cheng Yongxin and she works at the Great Library.”

“Well, there you have it,” Cheng Mo said, then suddenly frowned, seeming to catch a whiff of alcohol. “Were you drunk at noon?”

“No. Half a catty of Guoshi Wushuang, a catty of Huadiao, and three bottles of beer…”

“Damn, and you say you’re not drunk!”

Shan Liang sneered. “You think I’m drunk and talking nonsense?”

Cheng Mo fell silent, seemingly agreeing.

“Old Cheng, although I drank a lot at noon, I’m not so muddled as to talk nonsense,” Shan Liang said with a sneer. “If you don’t believe me, forget it. Our group has been marginalized for years, we can’t even get the hot shit. Now there’s a fresh pile, are you going to eat it or not?”

“You call it fresh, but right now it’s just a fart in the wind. We don’t even know if the shit exists,” Cheng Mo said. “Based on a single sentence from Cheng Yongxin, with no proof, what can we do? Go straight to Xiao Zishan and ask him if it’s true? We’d be accused of making baseless claims and slandering others.”

“Comrade Cheng Mo, even feudal society allowed censors to ‘report based on hearsay.’ We are Elders, one of the five hundred families of this nation. Are we not allowed to act on ‘hearsay’ regarding matters of our own vital interests? We’ll just say we ‘learned from a certain source.’ The maid issue is a matter of the utmost personal interest to the vast majority of Elders. Even if we’re just chasing shadows, at worst we’ll be seen as oversensitive. Who can question our motive of ‘fighting for the welfare and rights’ of the Elders?”

“But isn’t that too flimsy? Even if it’s true, what can we do if he flatly denies it?”

“Heh, if this is really happening, those bastards on the Executive Committee have probably held countless secret meetings. The implementation plan might even be ready. How could he just deny and abandon the plan because of a single inquiry from a few of us? He’ll surely hem and haw, using delaying tactics. It will be something like ‘there is no current plan to levy a property tax’ or ‘there are no plans to raise prices in the near future.’ Then we can seize on that, pursue it relentlessly, and stir up public opinion. This Elder Cheng said the propaganda department will support us.”

“What if it’s all nonsense? What if this Elder Cheng is just making it up? She’s playing games, using us as a shield while she stays out of it…” Cheng Mo said. “I heard from Comrade Sun Li that this Elder Cheng has been very active at the teahouse recently, networking with Elders everywhere. She’s likely brewing some conspiracy. We can’t let ourselves be used as a gun.”

“I say, Comrade Cheng Mo, if you’re afraid of taking the heat, why bother with revolution? We’re already on the verge of being forgotten!” Shan Liang’s eyes widened as he slammed the table. “What are we? The opposition! If we don’t even make a peep all day, we’re just obedient subjects! If there’s a problem, we must seize it. Even if there isn’t one, we have to invent a few, otherwise what’s the point of our existence? To be forgotten is to die!”

These words moved Cheng Mo. Indeed, their group hadn’t done much since the end of the Maid Revolution. They had organized inquiries at several hearings, only to find that the Executive Committee’s power base was much larger than they had thought, and they had the “shysters” from the Law Society backing them up. Although they all looked down on “those bastards from the Law Society,” their skills in logical analysis and sophistry were far inferior to their professionally trained opponents. They often lost in general debates, let alone being able to “beat a drowning dog.”

Regarding the “independent actions” of the overseas stations, from the early Guangzhou station to the later problems in Hangzhou, Sun Li and Cheng Mo had thought of making an issue of it, but they found they couldn’t control the narrative in any of the waves of questioning. And the Otaku Party, which did control the narrative, had an ambiguous attitude towards the overseas stations.

The establishment of the Standing Committee had co-opted a group of “fellow travelers.” With the great development of the Elder’s cause, the proportion of ignorant and powerless “soy sauce Elders,” who had been their popular base, had shrunk significantly. Many had become high-ranking officials, and the Elders’ living standards had greatly improved, causing many to “lose their revolutionary spirit.”

With the Elder’s overseas expeditions, trade, and industrialization, the Elders’ energy was drawn away, and their attention to politics waned. Sun Li and Cheng Mo had discussed the pressing issue of their dwindling popular support in several meetings.

Thinking about it carefully, Shan Liang’s proposal was indeed a good entry point. Firstly, whether to abolish the school was a matter of the Elders’ vital interests. Secondly, the topic of maids could remind the Elders who was the first to stand up and loudly call for the protection of their rights three years ago. This would be of great benefit to them, whether for restarting their activities or simply to avoid being forgotten.

“I will inform Comrade Sun Li. I personally support your view, Comrade Shan Liang,” Cheng Mo said. “But Cheng Yongxin’s motives are unclear. What if we fall into her trap…”

“Cheng Yongxin’s motive is clear: to use us to expand the media’s influence, instead of continuing to be the Executive Committee’s mouthpiece,” Shan Liang said. “She wants to use this to make a move. It seems she has already convinced Panpan to ally with her. There’s no harm in us being her gun. We need to boost our presence by petitioning for the Elders, and she can help us do just that. No matter what she wants to do, at least for now, she is our ‘fellow traveler’.”

Cheng Mo nodded. He wasn’t very familiar with Cheng Yongxin. Apart from knowing about her recent frequent activities, they knew nothing about her, which made him very anxious about the upcoming activities.

Shan Liang returned home very late that night, his spirits high and his mood unusually good. So good that when he saw the still messy room and Shan Huixiang still wiping the windows, he didn’t get angry. Looking at the maid timidly climbing down from the windowsill, he issued his latest directive: “Stop wiping. Go take a bath and get in bed.”

“Okay, A-Liang. Which outfit should I wear?”

“Don’t wear anything. Go straight to the bedroom and get in bed!”

“Got it, A-Liang. Should I get the rope and candles?”

“No. Don’t ask about things I haven’t told you to do!”

“A-Liang, don’t be angry…”

“How many times have I told you, you must call me Master!”

“Yes, Master A-Liang…”

“Also, from now on, you’re not allowed to go to that damn 2D fan club anymore!” Shan Liang sat down and began to take off his shoes. This was another piece of information he had gotten from Cheng Yongxin today: his maid frequently participated in activities at the 2D fan club—an ACG club organized by a certain Elder. Besides Elders, it also attracted some maids: some were brought in by their masters, while others were just curious and went with other maids to see what was going on, and then got corrupted. Shan Huixiang was the latter.

“Wuuu,” Shan Huixiang, without his command, actually squatted down in front of him to take off his shoes, her large eyes welling up with tears as she looked at him.

“No acting cute!” Shan Liang scolded. “I knew that bunch of otaku bastards were up to no good! Still spreading the pernicious influence of the Japanese in this new world!”

“Wuuu wuuu wuuu,” Shan Huixiang continued to bite her handkerchief, looking at him innocently with misty eyes, her hands resting on his knees.

“Alright, you can only go once a week!” Shan Liang said. “First, learn how to make curry rice and omurice for me!”