After a moment of surprise, Li Chonglou firmly refused, "No, I absolutely cannot let you accompany me into danger!"
What kind of place was Xingzhi Group?
It was the stronghold of an artifact smuggling syndicate, and its executives were all desperate fugitives.
Someone like Lü Dong was merely a low-level thug.
His master's martial arts were now lost, making him no different from an ordinary person. If anything were to happen to him, Li Chonglou would never be able to forgive himself.
Such a suggestion didn't even warrant consideration.
Even if the mission couldn't be completed, he would never let his master risk his life.
Seeing the determination in Li Chonglou's eyes, Lin Zhendong knew that his request was indeed difficult for his disciple.
Between men, few words were needed.
A glance, an attitude, was enough.
Lin Zhendong nodded, "Since you don't want me to go, let Xiao Ying help you."
"With her skills and intelligence, even if something happens, she won't be helpless."
"Two fists are no match for four hands; with her by your side, I can also rest a lot easier."
Lin Ying's assistance was indeed more reliable than his own.
Firstly, he was quite famous in the national artifact appraisal circle. Being recognized would only cause more trouble.
Secondly, he was truly no longer what he used to be. With his tendons severed, his combat power was zero.
At best, he was now just a fate-accepting old man.
If he encountered trouble, he would only drag Li Chonglou down.
This suggestion was exactly what Li Chonglou wanted, and he immediately agreed.
His senior sister's assistance was as good as two people, and he was already stretched thin. With Lin Ying there, things would be very different.
Initially, Bai Jing was supposed to cooperate with him, but Bai Jing's fractured shoulder was an accident, and now this was even better.
Thus, the master and disciple called over Lin Ying, who lived next door, and discussed the plan.
"Father and son fight side by side, brothers and sisters fight together. I was almost bored to death coming to Zhonghai; finally, there's something to do," Lin Ying said, her pretty face flushed with excitement.
Always fearless, to her, Xingzhi Group was nothing but a paper tiger.
At the same time, at the Fan family villa.
Fan Keli looked at his son, whose head was bandaged like a dumpling, his face ashen.
On the floor in front of him lay fragments of Zisha teapots and tea soup, clearly indicating he had thrown a tantrum.
Still not satisfied, he gritted his teeth and cursed, "Xingzhi Group, a mere trading company, has so much arrogance!"
"They dare to hit my son, do they think my Fan family's name among the Eight Great Families is just for show?"
"Tell Song Yi to come and see me!"
As he spoke, his eyes glinted with ferocity.
In the past few days, one annoying incident after another had occurred.
First, he sent Song Yi to kill Li Chonglou, but the assassination failed, and the target escaped.
After Song Yi returned, he went into seclusion and didn't provide any explanation.
Then, his son was beaten into this state by Li Chonglou. If he didn't get revenge for this, Fan Keli would have no place in Zhonghai.
As for Xingzhi Group, he had heard the name, but only from his grandfather. He didn't know much about it.
He figured it was just a slightly larger trading company; what was there to be so arrogant about?
"Patriarch, Teacher Song cannot be woken up. I've gone several times, but I can't even get into his room..." the butler standing beside him said with a distressed expression.
Song Yi held a special position in the Fan family; only the old master could order him around.
The last time he was disturbed from his seclusion by Fan Keli was out of respect for the old master.
Trying to mobilize him again was impossible.
Moreover, for the past few days since his return, no one knew what he was doing. He wouldn't answer when knocked on, refused meals, and there was a strong smell of medicinal herbs in his room.
It was speculated that he might be refining pills and cultivating immortality.
"Useless, all useless!" Fan Keli's face turned ashen with anger, his eyes filled with growing malevolence. "If you can't get that old geezer, then invite Chen Rong over."
"He has received so many benefits from me over the years; it's time to use him."
"Just to deal with a country bumpkin, Patriarch this..." the butler showed shock.
Chen Rong was no ordinary person.
Twenty years ago, seventy percent of the people in Zhonghai had heard this name.
At that time, public security was far worse than it is now, with chaotic social order and rampant underground forces.
But in a single night, it was all unified by one person.
That person was Chen Rong.
From then on, Zhonghai's underground forces were solely dominated by him, making him the sole power broker in Zhonghai.
He could manipulate both the underworld and the authorities. However, due to unprecedented crackdowns on crime in recent years, Chen Rong had gone legitimate to avoid risks and transformed his operations.
On the surface, he engaged in business, but his nature hadn't changed; it had just become more covert.
Chen Rong played a crucial role in Fan Keli sending his own brother to prison.
However, this came at a great cost, with several of the Fan family's businesses being secretly transferred to Chen Rong.
Now, he was going to him just for some unknown country bumpkin.
This...
It seemed like a colossal overreaction.
"What nonsense! Can't you see my state? I want him dead!" Before Fan Keli could say anything, Fan Liang, standing beside him, impatiently roared, "Get lost, hurry up and get lost!"
The butler dared not say more and immediately turned to leave.
A moment later, in a private club in the eastern suburbs, a gloomy-looking middle-aged man put down his wine glass.
He smoothed his meticulously styled hair, a smug expression on his face.
The middle-aged man was dressed very refined, but a vertical scar above his left eyebrow gave his refined appearance a distinctly roguish air.
However, if anyone thought this person was just a thug, they would be gravely mistaken.
The eyes beneath those high brow bones were chilling.
It was Chen Rong, the underworld magnate who had been famous in Zhonghai for over twenty years.
"Boss Chen, any good news?" a noblewoman sitting next to Chen Rong asked, gently swirling her red wine.
"Heh heh..." Chen Rong replied with a sinister grin, "That brat Fan Keli is here to give me gifts again."
"His son was recently beaten, and he wants me to send people to deal with the person responsible."
"Perfect timing. You've been looking for organs everywhere lately, haven't you? Once that kid is dealt with, take whatever you want."
Upon hearing this, the noblewoman's beautiful eyes flashed with joy, and she raised her wine glass to toast, "Then thank you first, Boss Chen. My son's life depends on you."
"Don't worry. But since I'm doing this for you, shouldn't you also show some appreciation?" A cold smile played on Chen Rong's lips.
The noblewoman understood, and gently shrugged off her shawl.
However, Chen Rong didn't even look at her. He said coldly, "Put it back on. I want profit, not your body."
The noblewoman looked resigned and could only nod in agreement.
The next morning, as Li Chonglou and Lin Ying were going downstairs, they saw Fan Meng at the hotel entrance.
She had met Lin Ying in Yucheng before. Upon seeing her again, Fan Meng's face immediately lit up with joy, and she walked towards her, "Sister Lin Ying, why are you also in Zhonghai?"
"Of course, it's because of him." Lin Ying deliberately glanced at Li Chonglou, wanting to see Fan Meng's reaction.
However, the young girl didn't seem to show any signs of jealousy.
Instead, she affectionately took her arm, "Since you're in Zhonghai, how about I treat you to a meal?"
"What meal? We have to work," Li Chonglou said with a dark line across his forehead.
This woman, after disappearing for a few days, had suddenly appeared, surely to find him.
He already had too many things on his plate, and she was adding to the chaos.
"Brother Li, Grandpa Song came to find me," Fan Meng said nonchalantly. "He told me that you were the one who told him about the Fan family's affairs."
"I came today specifically to thank you. Without you, I'd still be hiding everywhere."
A few days ago, Song Yi had found her. After understanding the situation, he had asked her to be patient for a while.
He himself returned to the Fan family to refine medicine, attempting to wake up the old master.
As long as the old master woke up and Song Yi was by his side, Fan Keli would be unable to stir up any more trouble.
Her father might also be exonerated and released from prison.
Thinking of this, how could she not be happy?
And all of this was thanks to Li Chonglou, and it happened precisely when she was at her wit's end.
"No need to thank me. If you want to eat, wait until we finish work tonight. We have things to do during the day," Li Chonglou remained unyielding.
Compared to the mission, having a meal with Fan Meng was a minor matter.
Besides, today he had to take Lin Ying to report to the company, and as the vice president, he would be introducing her.
"We do have something to do, can we make a date for tonight?" Lin Ying asked with a smile.
"Alright then, remember I'll be waiting for you," Fan Meng reluctantly released Lin Ying's arm and nodded obediently.
Li Chonglou didn't want to get entangled with her further and took Lin Ying straight to the company.
After showing his newly acquired vice president's badge, the security guard at the gate immediately let them through.
"Not bad, junior disciple. You've become a vice president. Will you become the actual controller of Xingzhi Group in the future?" Lin Ying teased.
Li Chonglou gave a dry chuckle.
He knew the joke; it was from a movie about an undercover agent becoming a gang leader.
He wished he could, but he didn't even know who the real boss of Xingzhi Group was now.
Fan Lei's information didn't mention it either.
So he lowered his voice, "Senior sister, your goal for working here this time is to figure out the members of Xingzhi Group's overseas branch."
"And that mysterious former vice president; I suspect he is the real boss. As long as we find him, my mission will be successfully completed."
"Leave it to me," Lin Ying replied confidently.
After entering the company, Li Chonglou called Xu Bin and introduced Lin Ying to him.
Since Zhang Zhiyuan had been fired yesterday, the company was in need of an appraiser, so Lin Ying would temporarily work with Wu Tao.
Of course, she would be leading Wu Tao.
"Vice President Li, rest assured, everything will be done as you command," Xu Bin responded with great enthusiasm.
The morning passed uneventfully.
It wasn't until after lunch in the afternoon that the door to Li Chonglou's office was knocked open.
Kong Mo entered with a white-haired old man.
Upon seeing this old man, Li Chonglou's pupils contracted instantly, and a sharp glint shot from his eyes.
The next second, Kong Mo said with a fake smile, "Vice President Li, you're quite leisurely."
"Likewise. I'm still familiarizing myself with the business. General Manager Kong, what brings you here?" Li Chonglou concealed the sharp glint in his eyes.
"This is a renowned master in Zhonghai's appraisal world, Teacher Liu Yuanliang," Kong Mo introduced, a sinister glint in his eyes, "I've brought Teacher Liu to see you for two reasons."
"Firstly, Teacher Liu is an old friend of your father, Mr. Li Shi, and upon hearing about you, he insisted on meeting you."
"Secondly, I have a treasure that I would like you and Teacher Liu to examine together."
Hearing this, Li Chonglou's heart skipped a beat.
Kong Mo was still testing him; he still didn't believe him.
This was troublesome. His identity was likely to be exposed on the spot.