This resolute and unwavering answer filled Li Zhonglou with relief.
The antique business was rotten to the core, with some individuals selling their conscience for money and acting as national traitors.
In stark contrast, these police officers, who knew nothing about antiques but were on the front lines, risked their lives to protect their cultural heritage.
What a bitter irony.
Li Zhonglou did not return to the hotel; instead, he went to the hospital to visit Bai Jing.
A day of rest had no effect on Bai Jing's injuries. She was not Li Zhonglou, nor had she practiced the heaven-defying technique from the sheepskin scroll.
Hearing that Li Zhonglou had successfully infiltrated Xingzhi Group, she did not hide her joy and shame.
She was annoyed that she couldn't help in any way.
After comforting her, Li Zhonglou left the hospital and returned to the hotel.
Before he could enter, he saw Ye Niao standing elegantly at the door.
After not seeing her for more than a day, the girl's eyes seemed to have become more weathered. Had she encountered some difficulties?
Since they had some connection, Li Zhonglou, in a rare display of concern, asked, "What's wrong?"
"No... nothing, I just ate something that upset my stomach," Ye Niao concealed, "I've been lying in bed all day..."
In reality, she had been lying on the floor by the door all day.
She couldn't move, and even when the room attendant came to clean, she couldn't respond.
What was most critical was that she had lost bladder control.
All of this was Li Zhonglou's doing.
She was so angry that she gritted her teeth in her heart, but on the surface, she couldn't show any change.
"It's good that you're okay," Li Zhonglou said, then opened the door to return to his room.
"Wait... Brother Li, let's have dinner together. Since we're both alone, I'll treat you," Ye Niao quickly called out to Li Zhonglou.
She had waited here for a long time to get Li Zhonglou back.
Waiting made her anxious and restless. Finally, she had Li Zhonglou back.
She intended to find an opportunity to strike and end this fellow's life to report back.
How could she let him leave so easily?
"No, I'm not hungry yet," Li Zhonglou declined Ye Niao's offer and walked into the room.
He closed the door casually, only to find that it wouldn't close, as Ye Niao had her foot propping it open.
The latter looked up at him with a smile, her expression playful and harmless.
She didn't say anything, just stared, waiting for Li Zhonglou to change his mind.
Li Zhonglou felt a chill from her gaze.
He gently moved Ye Niao's foot away, then slammed the door shut with a bang.
Ye Niao's expression twitched in anger, and her eyes blazed as she muttered, "Are you even a man?"
"If you dare to refuse me, I will kill you and make sure you have no burial ground!"
Then, she kicked open her own door and went back inside.
She thought to herself that this wouldn't do. Li Zhonglou was like a block of ice; no matter how she showed kindness, he remained unmoved.
He was completely different from those lecherous men.
If this continued, Li Zhonglou might return to Yong'an before she could find an opportunity.
Since gentleness wouldn't work, she had to resort to force.
Tomorrow, she would follow him and then assassinate him!
It was decided.
Li Zhonglou sat on the sofa, his eyes closed, resting.
However, in his mind, the words his master had spoken echoed – his master had vanished from Kunling without a trace.
Where had he gone?
Others might not dare to guess too wildly, but he was different. He himself had been reborn into the present due to Shi Boqiong.
Perhaps something similar had happened to his father.
However, whatever could make a body disappear along with a person couldn't have been Shi Boqiong.
What kind of thing could be so miraculous?
The only plan for now was to wait until the mission was over, and then find time to go to the scene with his master to investigate.
Perhaps they could find some clues.
Before he knew about this, Li Zhonglou had no hope of finding his father, especially after being tricked by Li Duo'er to Yong'an, which had shattered his dreams.
But now, he felt a sense of urgency and a clear path forward.
Even though he knew this was just an illusion created by the release of long-suppressed emotions, he still wanted to believe that his father was alive in this world.
But without his master's guidance, he couldn't even find Kunling, let alone search for his father.
Everything would have to wait until the matter in Zhonghai was settled.
Li Zhonglou skipped dinner, and time flew by as he cultivated.
The next day, after waking up and tidying himself, he put on his clothes and took a taxi to Xingzhi Group's headquarters.
Shortly after leaving the hotel, Ye Niao, wearing a sun hat, quietly followed him.
She also took a taxi, trailing him from a distance.
Xingzhi Group had purchased twelve hectares of land in the city and built an industrial park.
The headquarters building was the most dazzling and prominent structure in the industrial park.
Although it was nominally a trading company, its grandeur and scale were no less than that of any thriving internet giant.
The security guards at the entrance were also standing tall and straight.
Upon seeing Li Zhonglou, they questioned his identity and then let him pass directly.
It was likely that Kong Mo had made prior arrangements.
However, Ye Niao, who was following behind, did not have such a smooth experience and was stopped outside the park.
Her pretty face turned pale with anger, and she was forced to take extreme measures.
Gritting her teeth, she found a sparsely wooded area, cursing, "Damn Li Zhonglou, why can you get in and I can't!"
As she spoke, she climbed over the wall.
Inside the wall was a pavilion where a couple was sitting and eating breakfast.
It seemed they had taken advantage of the time before work to enjoy some intimacy.
However, they were stunned to see Ye Niao climbing over the wall, not even noticing a hand-sized pancake fall to the ground.
"What are you looking at? Keep looking and I'll gouge your eyes out!" Ye Niao glared, her beautiful eyes radiating killing intent, a complete contrast to her demeanor in front of Li Zhonglou.
The couple shivered and quickly lowered their heads.
When they looked up again, Ye Niao had already disappeared.
Soon, Li Zhonglou entered the headquarters building, reported to the human resources department, and received his work badge.
Under the pretense of familiarizing himself with the company, he began to wander around the building.
At the same time, Ye Niao was also wandering aimlessly inside the headquarters building.
She didn't know where Li Zhonglou was, nor did she know what this building was for. She just blended in with the employees, hoping for a stroke of luck.
Unfortunately, she overlooked one thing: Li Zhonglou had a work badge, while she had no identification.
As a result, she was soon spotted by the security guards.
"Boss, there's a woman on the fourth floor wandering around, seemingly trying to pry into company secrets. Requesting instructions on how to proceed," one of the security guards said unhappily into his walkie-talkie.
Immediately, he received approval for apprehension.
More than a dozen security guards from different floors converged on the fourth floor.
Three minutes later, they cornered Ye Niao at the stairwell.
"Miss, please come with us!" The leading security captain's eyes flashed with sternness.
While other employees might not know what Xingzhi Group did, he, as the head of the security department, knew perfectly well.
Under the guise of a trading company, they were engaged in smuggling cultural relics.
His duty was to ensure the company's secrets were never leaked for any reason.
Ye Niao's suspicious behavior had crossed his bottom line.
"Why should I go with you? Can't I just look around?" Ye Niao clearly did not realize the extraordinary nature of this company and showed no panic, snorting coldly.
In terms of combat power, she did not regard these security guards as a threat.
The most important thing now was to find Li Zhonglou, and anyone blocking her path was an enemy.
Therefore, her tone was very unfriendly.
In any other company, saying this would have been fine; looking around was not illegal.
But crucially, Xingzhi Group was engaged in activities that could cost them their heads. While looking around was not illegal, it was deadly.
In an instant, the atmosphere between the two became tense, like fire colliding with earth, on the verge of ignition.
"Take her down!"
A sharp glint flashed in the security minister's eyes. Without any wasted words, he gave the order, and everyone simultaneously lunged at Ye Niao with their batons.
These men had no regard for gender.
They all treated Ye Niao as a thief and were putting in a lot of effort.
Unfortunately, they hadn't expected that the suspicious girl in front of them was not a pushover.
But a tough nut to crack.
Bang bang bang...
Ye Niao was already furious and, upon seeing this, showed no mercy. She unleashed three kicks, instantly knocking out three of them.
Immediately after, she rushed up the stairs, preparing to escape.
The other security guards were stunned and quickly tried to intercept her.
However, Ye Niao took the opportunity to kick two more down, sending them tumbling down the stairs.
This scene made the security captain even more convinced that Ye Niao was sent by the police to gather evidence of the company's crimes.
His eyes hardened, and he drew a handgun from his waist, lunging forward.
Pointing it at Ye Niao, he threatened, "Don't move if you don't want to die!"
"Security guards have guns?" Ye Niao's pupils contracted sharply, realizing something was wrong.
The country had banned firearms for many years. Let alone real guns, even airsoft guns were subject to legal penalties if discovered.
Even if ordinary people had the guts, they had no way to obtain a gun; otherwise, she wouldn't have gone through so much trouble to assassinate Li Zhonglou at home.
Yet, a security captain had pulled out a handgun in front of her.
What was going on?
What kind of company was this?
Ye Niao's mind raced, and realizing that things were not good, she quickly went upstairs.
Bang bang...
Seeing her flee, the security captain pulled the trigger, but both shots were dodged.
However, the loud gunshots also triggered the alarm system of Xingzhi Group, and the entire building immediately blared with alarm sounds.
Many employees were startled by the sound and put down their work.
Many of them were ordinary people who considered Xingzhi Group to be a normal trading company.
They had never been exposed to the company's core operations, and after working for several years, they had never heard such an urgent alarm.
So, many looked confused.
"What's going on? Why is the fire alarm ringing?"
"Must be a drill, right? I don't see any smoke on any floor, and there's nothing in the work chat..."
"Real or not, let's just escape!"
...
Many people put down their work and fled down the emergency exits.
However, the security guards and Ye Niao were moving against the flow, going upstairs, staging an action scene.
The entire building only had a few security guards, but Xingzhi Group's security was not limited to security guards.
There were also many enforcers who usually stayed on the eighth floor and were responsible for cargo security.
As soon as the alarm sounded, they emerged in an orderly fashion and, based on the voices from the walkie-talkies, moved to intercept.
Each armed with a handgun, they blocked the stairs to the eighth floor, lying in wait.
Ye Niao, unaware of the situation, desperately tried to escape the security guards, but as soon as she reached the eighth floor, she was pointed at with guns by several people.
Her eyes instantly widened in panic, and she inwardly cursed.
Looking at this scene.
She was dead for sure!