Chapter 1008: This Is My G.o.dfather!
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
The emergency exit door on the third floor was suddenly pulled open. The staff guarding the exit turned his head, only to see a few unfamiliar faces. He immediately blocked the exit and gave them a stern warning. “Outsiders aren’t allowed on the third—”
Before he could finish saying his piece, Lu Yī, Lu Jiu, Lu s.h.i.+, and the others swiftly moved to subdue him. After making him pa.s.s out with a whack to the nape of his neck, they tossed him aside.
The reason they had only made him pa.s.s out was that Lu Chengzhou had ordered them not to take any lives. Lu Yī and the others thus exercised restraint. Otherwise, they could’ve killed that person with just their bare hands.
Having worked for Lu Chengzhou for a long time, Lu Yī could tell that his boss was trying hard not to get his hands stained with blood ever since he found out that Gu Mang was pregnant. In fact, Lu Chengzhou was so superst.i.tious that he even placed a consecrated Buddha sculpture in his Red Flame office and prayed to it every day.
Before this, Lu Yī could never imagine that Lu Chengzhou would ever believe in Buddhism. Of course, the former knew who the latter was doing all these for. Lu Chengzhou was never certain about anything that had to do with Gu Mang, and that was why he didn’t hesitate to turn to Buddhism to acc.u.mulate merit.
The group of people walked out from the emergency exit.
The earlier commotion had alerted the staff patrolling on the third floor. A flurry of anxious footsteps could be heard approaching.
Lu Yī pressed the earphone and said, “Close the main gate.”
“Understood,” responded the person who had already taken control of the power distribution room.
Meanwhile.
“What’s going on over there?”
“I think someone has come up to the third floor.”
“Let’s go over and check it out.”
The voices, along with the sound of weapons being loaded, came from the corridor area.
The next second, the entire third floor descended into darkness. Having temporarily lost their sense of sight, everyone stood still and dared not to move around lest they cause confusion.
“What’s going on? Why did the lights go out?!” The speaker was looking around, but he couldn’t even see his hands in the darkness.
This lot of people had undergone strict training, so they instinctively moved to have their backs facing each other in order to defend themselves.
“Contact the power supply room,” ordered the leader calmly. However, he frowned immediately after he said that because he sensed an approaching danger. Before he could react, the other party had made a move.
The entire corridor was filled with the sound of fighting.
Lu Yī and the rest were wearing night-vision goggles, so they had the advantage in the darkness. In less than one minute, Lan Sha’s men were all lying on the ground.
Lu Chengzhou, He Yidu, and Qin Fang stepped across them and headed straight to Lan Sha’s observation deck.
…
On the observation deck.
The auction was still going on normally downstairs. Although the lights had gone out in the room, it didn’t affect the people inside as the light from outside was s.h.i.+ning in from the window.
Lan Sen said, “There might be a problem with the circuit. I’ll go out to take a look.”
Lan Sha nodded.
Lan Sen turned around and walked to the door, only to see a group of unfamiliar faces when he opened the door. As outsiders were strictly prohibited from going up to the third floor unless they had Lan Sen’s permission, it was clear that this group of people came uninvited with ulterior motives.
“Who are you people?” He took a glance outside as he icily posed the question at them. It was very dim outside, so he could barely see the faces and clothes of the people standing in the corridor, and none of them were their men. They’ve all been taken down?
Lan Sen’s heart sank, and he clenched his fists slightly. He didn’t do anything though as they were apparently outnumbered.
“Our boss just wants to have a talk with Mr. Lan. Please step aside. Oh, and don’t worry, your buddies are fine. We merely knocked them out.” Lu Yī flashed a polite smile at him. Although he spoke courteously to the other, his actions weren’t. He pushed Lan Sen away from the door.
He Yidu and Qin Fang didn’t go in and only stood at the entrance.
With a hand in his pocket, Lu Chengzhou slowly made his way onto the observation deck, and Lu Jiu immediately closed the door from outside.
Lan Sha, who had been sitting on the sofa the entire time, cast his cool gaze on Lu Chengzhou. As it was a little dark in the room, he couldn’t see Lu Chengzhou’s face clearly.
Lu Chengzhou sat across from Lan Sha and leaned back against the sofa while putting a leg atop his knee and placing his arms on the armrests. It was a very arrogant sitting pose.
Lu Yī, meanwhile, stood behind him.
After a few seconds of silence, Lu Chengzhou spoke up. “Mr. Lan, you should be pretty clear about what I want, so let’s not waste time anymore. Just tell me, are you going to accept our orders regarding Base 102?”
“No, please go back.” Without showing any changes in his expression, Lan Sha calmly and aloofly rejected him.
Lu Chengzhou’s eyes lightened up a little, and he smiled a moment later. “I heard that the President of the Underground Trading Guild has never shown his face before and that you’re fully responsible for all the trading here. Seeing how you’ve managed the underground market for nearly 20 years, you must be guarding this place for someone, right?”
There was a slight crack in Lan Sha’s calm appearance. “What do you know?”
Glancing at the empty gla.s.s on the table, Lu Chengzhou surmised that Lan Sha’s guest had probably left. He picked up a clean teacup from the tea tray and poured himself some tea while saying, “Not much, but you probably won’t be able to bear the responsibility of having the underground market destroyed by your hands.”
Lan Sha’s eyes darkened slightly, but he didn’t speak.
“You have two choices now. One, take my order. Two, I’ll replace the underground market with fresh blood.” Lu Chengzhou refilled Lan Sha’s empty teacup, his tone carried an unmistakable murderous aura.
What he meant was that he would dispose of everyone working in the underground market and replace them with his own subordinates from BESE if Lan Sha refused to cooperate.
The aura Lan Sha exuded became even more biting. “Are you threatening me?”
Lu Chengzhou put down the teapot. “Didn’t I also provide you a win-win solution? You should make a wise choice, Mr. Lan.”
“You think this is a place where you can come and go as you please?” Lan Sha narrowed his eyes.
Lu Chengzhou smiled. “Try me.”
Lan Sha’s gaze became sharp and cold.
“Please make a choice, Mr. Lan,” said Lu Chengzhou politely as he raised his teacup. This was equivalent to giving Lan Sha the choice of life or death. If the latter drank the tea, it meant that he agreed to cooperate with the former.
…
Gu Mang was was.h.i.+ng her hands when the lights in the restroom suddenly went out. She paused for a moment, then moved to turn off the faucet.
Bai Qingqing quickly entered the restroom while holding her phone in her hand. The phone’s flashlight function was turned on and the white light was very bright. Her voice sounded somewhat tense as she asked, “Are you okay, Young Lady?”
“Yes.” Based on her memory, Gu Mang fumbled in the darkness and pulled out a napkin to dry her hands. She then turned around. “What’s wrong?”
Bai Qingqing shook her head. “I don’t know. The power suddenly went out.”
Gu Mang frowned. The twin towers is an international trading center, and there’s an underground market in between them. How could this place possibly experience a sudden blackout? Even if the power really did go out, there’s backup power too. This situation shouldn’t happen.
It was then that she suddenly remembered what Lan Sha had told her. ‘A lot of people have been eyeing Base 102 recently.’
The underground market has been doing business with Base 102 for so many years, so it’s inevitable that people will notice something no matter how secretive they are. The fact that there’s a blackout now… Then G.o.dfather… Gu Mang crumpled the napkin into a ball and tossed it into the trash bin before walking out coldly.
Bai Qingqing hurriedly followed her. “What’s wrong, Young Lady?”
Gu Mang didn’t answer her question. After walking in the silence for about thirty seconds, she completely adapted to the darkness and could see slightly in the dark.
Just as they were about to reach Lan Sha’s observation deck, Gu Mang suddenly stopped at a corner.
Bai Qingqing’s position in the Bai family wasn’t low and was, in fact, quite important. From the time they left the bathroom and reached here, she had noticed that something was wrong. She looked at her phone screen and whispered softly to Gu Mang, “Young Lady, there’s no signal.”
Her phone had completely lost its signal when the power went out. She couldn’t help worrying when she realized that something had probably happened in the underground market. I’m the only one who came with Ms. Gu tonight. If anything happens to her, my death won’t be able to make up for it. What should I do?
Gu Mang pursed her lips slightly and slowly poked her head out from the corner. She was surprised to see two familiar figures standing outside the doorway though. Qin Fang and He Yidu?
Gu Mang suddenly realized who was behind the blackout: Lu Chengzhou. She fell silent for a whole ten seconds and couldn’t describe the complicated emotions she was currently feeling. What the h.e.l.l?! Lu Chengzhou? D*mn it!
“Young Lady, what should we do?” After seriously taking into consideration that some of them were severely outnumbered, Bai Qingqing said, “Why don’t we find the exit and leave first? I’ll call Bai Sui to get our men over.”
Gu Mang closed her eyes and walked out with an expressionless face.
“Young Lady…” Bai Qingqing anxiously tried to pull Gu Mang back, but she failed to do so and thus had no choice but to follow her out. With clenched fists, she tensely walked over to Gu Mang’s side.
Lu Jiu and Lu s.h.i.+ frowned when they saw two black figures approaching them. They had already removed their night-vision goggles, so they couldn’t clearly see the other party’s faces in this dim corridor.
Upon receiving a signal from Qin Fang, who lifted his chin in the black figures’ direction, Lu Jiu and Lu s.h.i.+ nodded and immediately rushed forward to knock them out. However, when they were about three steps away from the figures, they heard a cold and deep female voice say, “Are you sure you guys want to fight me?”
The voice was extremely familiar to Qin Fang, He Yidu, and the rest. Lu Jiu and Lu s.h.i.+, who almost failed to stop themselves in time, froze on the spot and stared wide-eyed at Gu Mang.
“Ms… Gu?” called Lu Jiu in disbelief.
The jaws of Qin Fang and He Yidu were completely slackened, and they immediately straightened their backs.
Gu Mang didn’t say anything. She just walked past Lu Jiu and Lu s.h.i.+ and headed straight toward the observation deck’s doorway.
As she got closer to Qin Fang, the latter became certain that she was indeed Gu Mang, for n.o.body else could command such a presence.
He Yidu, on the other hand, fell into a momentary daze, having never expected to see Gu Mang here. After he got back to his senses, he asked, “Sister-in-law Mang, why… are you here?” She didn’t come with us nor Lin Shuang and Yun Ling. Did she come here on her own?
Gu Mang glanced at them somewhat tiredly and pressed down on the door handle. The moment the door was pushed open, she was greeted with the sight of Lu Chengzhou holding a teacup in his hand as he said to her G.o.dfather in an arrogant and threatening manner, “Do think it through, Mr. Lan.”
Upon hearing the door open, Lu Chengzhou looked back and was surprised to see Gu Mang at the door. It seemed that he hadn’t expected to see her here.
An expressionless Gu Mang walked over to them.
Lan Sha, on the other hand, squeezed his fingers together slightly as a hint of worry surfaced in his eyes. All of a sudden, it caught his attention that He Yidu and Qin Fang, who were behind Gu Mang, seemed to treat her with respect. He knitted his eyebrows together. Does Gu Mang know these people?
By the time Lu Chengzhou snapped back to his senses, Gu Mang was already in front of him. He thought that she had found out about his plans to make a move on the underground market and had come here out of worry for him. Thus, he gently said, “I can properly settle this matter. You needn’t rush over instead of accompanying your G.o.dfather.”
Gu Mang, who was standing in front of the table between Lan Sha and Lu Chengzhou, gave him a speechless look when she heard what he said.
Lan Sha looked at Gu Mang, then He Yidu, Qin Fang, and Lu Chengzhou. “Do you know these people, Gu Mang?”
A cold silence instantly fell over the room when the rest of the people heard Lan Sha calling Gu Mang by her name. Lu Chengzhou’s expression stiffened, while Qin Fang gasped in shock and fear that they had unknowingly offended another of Gu Mang’s acquaintances once again. “H-He Yidu, did we just…”
He Yidu’s heartbeat quickened, but he didn’t say anything. How come she knows Lan Sha?
Gu Mang awkwardly scratched her nape and pointed her chin in Lu Chengzhou’s direction while saying to Lan Sha in a rather stiff voice, “Ah, G.o.dfather… This is Lu Chengzhou, my boyfriend…”
The next second, everyone saw Lu Chengzhou bouncing up from the sofa and the tea in his teacup splas.h.i.+ng onto his hand due to the sudden huge movement.
With a rather stiff expression, Lu Chengzhou looked at Lan Sha before directing his gaze to Gu Mang and repeating in a strained voice, “…G-G.o.dfather?”
Gu Mang’s eyeb.a.l.l.s slowly moved to the side as she affirmed this while staring expressionlessly at his face. “Yes, my G.o.dfather.”
At the thought of the atrocious things he did earlier, Lu Chengzhou felt as if all the blood in his body was flowing in the reverse direction. He cringed, remembering how arrogantly he had acted earlier.
Lan Sha looked at him coolly.
Qin Fang nearly died on the spot when he heard what Gu Mang said. What the heck?! Lan Sha is Gu Mang’s G.o.dfather?! Not her friend, but her freaking G.o.dfather?! This is way worse than offending her friend! We actually brought out men here to threaten her G.o.dfather! Oh no, we’re dead now! Is it too late for me to pack my things and run?
The corners of He Yidu’s lips couldn’t help but twitch as he looked at Lu Chengzhou and silently prayed for him. Good luck, Brother Cheng. You haven’t even married Gu Mang yet, but you nearly destroyed your father-in-law’s territory…
n.o.body spoke, and the room was filled with an odd silence.
Qin Fang and the others dared not to breathe out loud. They kept looking back at the doorway wanting to escape, but they dared to even move.
Standing in front of Lan Sha, Gu Mang and Lu Chengzhou lowered their heads slightly in unison as if they had made a mistake.
Lan Sha, however, kept glaring at Lu Chengzhou.
In Qin Fang’s opinion, given Lan Sha’s foul temper, he was fully capable of throwing Lu Chengzhou into the sea and making him swim back to the capital just for the fact that he was Gu Mang’s boyfriend and that he had nearly destroyed Lan Sha’s territory. Qin Fang reckoned that Lan Sha might even rip Lu Chengzhou apart if he were to find out that Gu Mang was pregnant on top of that. Lu Zhan had wanted to kill his own son when he found out about it, and there was no telling what Lan Sha’s reaction would be.
Gu Mang seemed to have sensed her G.o.dfather’s murderous intent as well. She tapped the back of Lu Chengzhou’s hand and whispered, “What have you done behind my back?”
Lu Chengzhou, who had completely calmed down, was trying to find a way to make up for his mistake. His fingers curled slightly, and that was when he realized he was still holding a teacup in his hand. He said sincerely, “Would you believe me if I say that I’m here to have tea with your G.o.dfather?”
Gu Mang shot him a “Are you kidding me?” look in return.
Sitting on the sofa, Lan Sha scoffed. “Aren’t you here to replace the underground market with fresh blood, Mr. Lu?”
Lu Chengzhou looked up nervously. “G.o.dfather, I—”
“Don’t call me that,” interrupted Lan Sha. “IGu Mang is my only G.o.dchild.”
Lu Chengzhou and Gu Mang were at a loss of what to say.