Lanya: "Ultimately, it's still Principal Sun's problem. We need to keep a closer eye on this old fellow. I heard he's already been discharged from the hospital and is staying at home."
I said: "Although I went through near-death experiences in the triangular region, I still insisted on starting with Wu Guodong. If this line is cut, Mr. Sun will be a snake without fangs; he won't be able to bite anyone even if he opens his mouth. By the way, did yesterday go smoothly? Who took the bid king?"
Jing Lei: "Yesterday was quite smooth. All the rough stones that could be shipped out were shipped out. We didn't see any of Crown Prince's men causing trouble. It was just a bit complicated when bidding for the bid king. The Guangdong group was originally determined to win it, but unexpectedly, a Fujian group emerged and took it for twenty million more than Guangdong. That rough stone was bid at eighty million."
I said in surprise: "The Fujian group? I don't think we invited them. Did they suddenly show up yesterday?"
She said: "Yes, they were introduced through a friend of Brother Bao. The initiator of this group originally did jade business in Guangdong. Later, they were squeezed out by the Guangdong group and returned to their hometown to establish a market, which is now quite substantial. This time, it seems they deliberately came to confront the Guangdong group, aiming to suppress them."
This is quite interesting. That rough stone was something we pieced together temporarily. It wasn't really a prime candidate for the bid king, just had some weight. I didn't expect it to fetch such a sky-high price.
Actually, the true value of the bid king is secondary. The main purpose is to gain prestige, to come out on top at some grand gathering. This is an invisible advertisement for one's market, an advertisement within the national circle, and its significance far exceeds the value of the rough stone itself.
In my memory, there are currently three major jade distribution centers in mainland China: one each in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou, and then the Hong Kong market. Hong Kong mainly deals in fine pieces, while the domestic market covers high, medium, and low grades, making it the largest market.
It's my fault for being so ignorant that I didn't even know about the existence of a Fujian group.
It seems I need to do some homework and learn about the Fujian group.
The car arrived at the hotel entrance. Jing Lei and I got out, and Lanya went to park.
We stood at the lobby entrance waiting for Lanya to park and come back. Jing Lei held my hand. Ever since I told her about our experiences in the car, she hadn't let go, as if I would disappear if she did.
I don't know how she and Lanya got through last night when they couldn't contact me. Jing Lei said they didn't sleep all night, staring at their phones, afraid to even blink, lest they miss any news from me.
At this moment, Lanya walked over from the parking lot. Just as she reached the entrance, someone ran out from the shadows, snatched the bag from Lanya's hand, and turned to run.
Lanya cried out in surprise. By the time she reacted, the person had already run far away.
I chased in the direction the person ran. Fortunately, there weren't many people on the road. Seeing me chasing him, the person ran desperately forward. I was already very tired today, and after running two or three hundred meters, my strength began to fail, and I started gasping for breath.
Seeing the distance between us growing, I felt anxious and gritted my teeth, refusing to stop.
Instead of me stopping, the person slowed down. At a corner, he stopped, as if waiting for me, standing there motionless.
I struggled to reach him, my legs almost giving out. I was very curious why he suddenly stopped running.
He stood in the shadows, and I couldn't see his face clearly. He was taller than me and dressed in black.
I started to realize something was wrong. He probably wasn't after the bag; he was just trying to lure me here.
I didn't have time to think about why he stopped. I stepped forward to snatch the bag from his hand.
Unexpectedly, he willingly handed the bag to me. Just as I took it, he punched me hard on the forehead, stunning me instantly.
Was Crown Prince still Principal Sun's man? This was all a premeditated plan, and snatching the bag was just a means to conceal their intentions.
I tried hard to regain my senses. He wouldn't stop attacking now. If I didn't sober up, I might fall here.
My eyes couldn't open properly, so I couldn't tell if he was going to attack again. I couldn't care less. I used my knee to forcefully strike his lower body. I heard a muffled groan, and I felt him stumble back a few steps, leaning against the wall.
Using the faint peripheral vision from my eyes, I judged his position, lunged forward, and punched him fiercely in the abdomen.
One punch, two punches, three punches, until he collapsed limply.
At this point, my eyes could open a bit more. I grabbed his hair and made him lift his head, then asked him, "Who sent you?"
He glared at me without speaking, looking like a stubborn pig that wasn't afraid of boiling water.
Just then, Lanya and Jing Lei rushed over, along with two hotel security guards.
The guards came up to grab him. I handed the handbag back to Lanya and said, "Brothers, please help me take him to the hotel entrance. I need to take this guy with me."
Lanya: "Not a bag snatcher?"
I said: "He came for me."
Lanya immediately kicked him and cursed, "You want to die!"
The man lowered his head, still silent.
I said: "Let's go back to the hotel first. You two go to Qing Ge's farewell banquet. I'll go back and interrogate him."
Lanya nodded and let the security guards take him away.
Judging by his physique, he didn't look like Crown Prince's subordinate. This person looked like a professional assassin.
So, he must have been sent by Wu Guodong. Since he confirmed I had returned to Rui City, he wanted to strike while the iron was hot and eliminate me.
With this understanding, I felt more at ease. It seemed Wu Guodong was determined to deal with me and wouldn't rest until I was dead.
It makes sense, after all, I broke his unbreakable rule. I broke the impenetrable Death Valley, and I didn't even get Principal Sun's reward.
It looks like I need to expedite dealing with Wu Guodong. Otherwise, with his constant, relentless attention, he will completely disrupt my plans.
I asked the hotel to find a staff member who could drive to help me, and had the two security guards escort the assassin back to the rough stone base with me.
Upon returning to the base, I asked the security captain to send two people to take over the assassin from the hotel security guards and escort him to the first floor. I needed to interrogate him.
I grabbed the security captain's walkie-talkie and called Wen Siqiang, telling him to come to the first floor of the office building with Qian Fugui.
Wen Siqiang acknowledged. I glanced at the assassin, who was standing with his hands behind his back, still expressionless. I really admired his composure. He was truly a standard professional killer, just unlucky enough to encounter a resilient survivor like me.
Wen Siqiang and Qian Fugui came in and saw me confronting the man. Wen Siqiang asked, "Boss, what happened? Caught another one?"
I said: "He ran right into us. Qian Fugui, come here and see if you recognize him."
Qian Fugui stepped forward, took one look, shook his head in horror, didn't say anything, and stepped back a few paces. He then whispered in my ear, "This is Wu Guodong's professional killer. They rarely fail, and if they do, they usually commit suicide."
Fortunately, I had the security guards tie him up first, preventing him from having a chance to end himself.