About the invitation from Zhonggui.

It was actually within Gu Shen's expectations.

When they met for the New World Project, Gu Shen had already noticed this guy's unusual "desire to survive." He even dared to remind him, in front of Cui Zhongcheng, that Huazhi might be conducting unethical "human experiments"... clearly preparing to choose a better tree to perch on.

Only a very few people knew about the Genetic Law.

But a special person like Zhonggui, even if he hadn't heard of it, would still have some suspicions about the council's news in this regard...

The only thing that surprised him today was the private meeting between Madam Lu Nanzhi and Ye Ningqiu, the second-in-command of Nanwan.

It was a coincidence.

And his luck.

"Chu Ling, can you provide their conversation?"

"I can, but it will take some time."

The girl's voice came from the other side of the deep sea.

"The sounds in the auditorium are quite mixed. I'll try to capture all the audio data here and then extract their two audio tracks."

"Why are these two... here?"

Xing Yun's expression was a bit strange.

He didn't choose to meet Gu Shen in the Liberty Auditorium for any particular reason, but simply because of his own personal hobby. Meeting Madam and Ye Ningqiu here was purely accidental.

Ye Ningqiu was a key figure in Nanwan who wielded great power. She had met with Lu Nanzhi in an informal setting... Xing Yun's expression became solemn. He vaguely felt that the Law was not as simple as he had imagined.

The nomination for alternate councilors was coming up soon.

Because of differing political views on the Law, Nanwan and Huazhi should be wary of each other. How could Madam meet with Ye Ningqiu?

"Did this kid... know in advance?"

What surprised Xing Yun even more than the meeting between these two was Gu Shen's advance reaction.

The seemingly naive young man gave a very mature answer to his "request for help."

Clearly, this was giving himself time to think and hesitate. If the Law's implementation didn't go so smoothly, his current situation wouldn't be so bad.

But the question was, how did Gu Shen know?

Did the Tribunal get the news internally?

...

...

Second movement.

The softly rising notes permeated the warm air of the auditorium.

The performance was so gentle and soporific that several "newcomers" and "affected aesthetes" were already curled up in their seats, dozing off.

The lighting wasn't very bright either, and soft light fell throughout the venue.

Almost no one noticed the entrance of the two ladies, and even if they did... they didn't look closely at their faces.

So the few attentive listeners simply glimpsed two women with excellent demeanors entering the venue and didn't pay any further attention.

Ye Ningqiu sat down, her hands folded in her lap, maintaining a ladylike posture.

A lace veil under her hat concealed her face.

"Do you like listening to performances?"

She was obviously a little surprised by the meeting in this setting. An auditorium performance was something that had been淘汰(taotai - eliminated) by the times.

"My father does."

Madam said softly, "He told me that for old, elegant, and dignified things... one needs to maintain respect. Times change, 去芜存菁(qu wu cun jing – discarding the dross and selecting the essential). The older the culture, the more it needs people to carefully appreciate it."

Ye Ningqiu seemed a little恍惚(huanghu - absent-minded).

She smiled and asked, "Do you think he's right?"

"Not entirely," Madam said slowly. "Everything has two sides. Old things can be good or bad, and simple good and bad have nothing to do with new and old..."

"For example?"

"For example, something that is currently being supported by countless people and opposed by countless people."

Finally, they got to the point.

"Many people view the implementation of the Awakening Law from the perspective of change," Madam said. "I don't think change is wrong, but the transformation of human society cannot be so drastic. Cutting off the old overnight will destroy both the good and the bad, which will not solve the fundamental problem. In the absence of order, a newborn society will create even more contradictions."

"Interesting..."

Ye Ningqiu smiled and said, "It's hard to imagine that you, with your position, would say such a thing."

"Tomorrow is the nomination for alternate councilors." Madam spoke softly in the dreamy music, "After the nomination, I will be elected as the third councilor of Dadu."

"Nanwan also has the right to nominate alternate councilors, and we have prepared more than one set of blocking plans in advance." Ye Ningqiu didn't hide anything. She smiled and said, "But obviously... none of Nanwan's alternate councilors are your opponents. Those blocking plans are unlikely to work. That's why I came to the auditorium to meet you today. This is a risky decision."

"You don't trust me, and I don't trust you. But since we've chosen to meet... why not try to trust each other?"

Lu Nanzhi said faintly, "This is a gamble. Before joining forces, I need to confirm that you are trustworthy people."

"How do you want to confirm?" Ye Ningqiu waited for what was to come.

"What I said earlier... I have already proved my sincerity."

"Now it's your turn." Madam lowered her eyebrows. "Do you choose to strongly block in the upcoming alternate councilor competition, be defeated by me one by one, and finally fail miserably in the Law competition, or do you choose to withdraw actively... and then reap the victory of the final Law?"

Ye Ningqiu looked at the woman in front of her meaningfully.

Who would have thought that Zhao Xilai's cultivated successor... was his greatest enemy in the Law controversy?

If Lu Nanzhi, who had obtained a councilor seat, opposed the passage of the Law.

Then this long-fought "鏖战(aozhan - fierce battle)" would end with a dramatic finale.

"You want us to withdraw from the alternate councilor competition." Ye Ningqiu smiled and said, "Just based on these few words, it's too草率(caoshuai - hasty), right..."

"As you can see, you have no advantage in the alternate councilor competition, and the final outcome is already predictable." Madam said solemnly, "If you do your best... then I will have to rely on the power of the Zhao family, and that vote on the Law will become an uncontrollable vote. This is a lose-lose situation."

"You can only gamble and choose to believe me."

Madam looked directly at the eyes under the lace veil.

"There's a saying... the eagle-keeper is blinded by the eagle. If one can be blinded, a second can be blinded."

Ye Ningqiu neither agreed nor refused. She simply thought for a moment and then asked softly, "I can't understand... why would you do this? What good is it for the Zhao family?"

Once the Law was passed.

The Zhao family would reap too many benefits.

And when Lu Nanzhi became the new leader taking over Huazhi, she would also become the most influential figure of this era.

Logically speaking, no one would look forward to the arrival of the new era more than her.

"Obviously, this is of no benefit to the Zhao family."

Madam said softly, "And the reason why I do this is very simple... because my surname is Lu."

She stood up and left the hall.

Ye Ningqiu sat alone in her seat.

...

...

All of the conversation between the two was clearly transmitted to Gu Shen's ears, with a slight delay.

But it didn't hinder understanding.

Chu Ling processed the data very quickly. She also listened to it once and啧啧(ze ze - tsk tsk) sighed, "Wonderful, wonderful... Lu Nanzhi is going to join forces with Nanwan to betray Zhao Xilai and the Awakening Law..."

"It's because of the Lion Lane case."

"Old Lu's death has always been remembered in Lu Nanzhi's heart." Gu Shen said softly, in a voice that only he could hear, "It's just that she handles this case differently from Senior Sister."

The two sisters both held hatred in their hearts.

Compared to Nan Jin leaving her hometown with a knife on her back, Madam's actions were obviously more conducive to "revenge."

After Lu Cheng's death, the Huazhi left behind by the Lu family was gradually吞没(tunmo - swallowed up) by the Zhao family. True revenge was not to kill the mastermind behind the scenes, but to reclaim what belonged to her...

"However, there's one thing I haven't figured out..."

Gu Shen said softly, "Even from the perspective of regaining Huazhi, she doesn't need to撕破脸皮(sipo lianpi - fall out) with Zhao Xilai at this juncture..."

Huazhi could already be considered Madam's.

Why did she want to oppose the Awakening Law?

Zhao Xilai amended the will, promoted councilors, and everything he did was to help Lu Nanzhi reach a higher throne. Even if she wanted to倾覆(qingfu - overturn) this giant ship, she should wait until she took over the crown.

While he was恍神(huangshen - in a daze).

The second movement had already reached its final stage. With the violent敲击(qiaoji - striking) of the timpani, the style of the music changed drastically. In an instant, layers of drum sounds震荡(zhendang - vibrated) like thunder. The sleepy and gentle sounds echoing in the auditorium were all撕裂(silie - torn apart), and several drowsy listeners were suddenly awakened, still in shock.

Immediately afterwards, the minuet of the third movement sounded briskly.

The dozing listeners looked at each other, realizing that they had been "戏耍(xishua - teased)."

The auditorium was filled with a快活(kuaihuo - cheerful) atmosphere.

"G major, Symphony No. 94, named 'Surprise.'"

Zhonggui, who was originally enthusiastically enjoying the music, now looked like a蔫了的茄子(nian le de qiezi - withered eggplant). He very敷衍(fuyan - perfunctorily) introduced it to Gu Shen.

"Surprise Symphony..."

Gu Shen found it a little funny.

Was this deliberately written for those who were affected aesthetes? People who hadn't heard the piece would fall asleep during the second movement, only to have a thunderclap sound in their ears.

Now Xing Yun was in no mood to listen to the performance.

His expression was complicated.

Every time he listened to this piece, there were always a few dozing guys who were awakened by the drums in the second movement.

This was one of the reasons why he enjoyed coming to the auditorium for performances—

Some of the audience members looked like clowns.

But this time it was different. After running into the private meeting between Lu Nanzhi and Ye Ningqiu, Zhonggui felt like a clown. The New World project team had prepared so much related work for the implementation of the Awakening Law, but in the end, the fate of the Law was likely to be decided by a few words from the big shots.

Although he didn't know what the two of them talked about.

But Zhonggui already had a vague "unlucky"预感(yugan - premonition) in his heart.

"Congratulations, it looks like the implementation of the Law won't be so smooth."

Gu Shen's expression was as usual. He got up and left. When he passed the auditorium, he patted Xing Yun on the shoulder. "Don't look so mournful. For you... this should be a good thing."