CHAPTER 355: CHAPTER 334: THE DIRECTOR’S TROUBLE

"Do you feel any discomfort in your body?" Xiao Lin’s seriousness startled Lian. She had known him for so long, but had never seen him speak so seriously.

"What do you mean?"

"Do you feel anything wrong?" Xiao Lin asked again, "Did that Fourth Master do anything to you?"

"I don’t remember!" Lian thought for a long time, but still shook her head. During her time at the base, she had completely lost her memory.

"Let’s go down the mountain first."

At the foot of the mountain, Hua Qingyi was already in the car waiting for Xiao Lin and the others, with Miao Shaoqing sleeping in the back seat. Seeing Xiao Lin come down, he honked the horn.

"Pilot, where are they now?" Xiao Lin asked Hua Qingyi as soon as he got in the car. Since the Fourth Master was the Empress Palace’s Angel, there’s no point in going back anymore.

"With Night Eagle." After leaving the base with Hassan’s car, Hua Qingyi first went to the Empress Palace. Just in case, he arranged for the Pilot to be by Night Eagle’s side, making foolproof preparations.

Hassan can be considered trustworthy. Upon entering the estate, he immediately arranged for someone to treat Night Eagle, and mobilized people to follow Hua Qingyi to the base, handing over all weapons in the warehouse to Hua Qingyi, allowing them to promptly disrupt the Fourth Master’s plan, catching her off guard.

"What did you promise Hassan?"

"Uh..." Hua Qingyi, driving the car, cleared his throat and glanced at Xiao Lin from the corner of his eye.

"Speak, if you dare to promise someone, you must dare to admit it."

"Invite the Military Doctor." Hua Qingyi chuckled at the person in the rearview mirror.

"Just that simple?" Xiao Lin didn’t believe it.

"Actually, there’s more, but what he asked for is outside my authority. After all, I’m not the Sect Leader of the Hua family yet!"

"I know what Hassan wants me to do." Xiao Lin was, of course, clear; it was he who eliminated the person. "Inform the Pilot to prepare to return home as soon as possible."

"Brother!" Xiao Lin adjusted the rearview mirror. "I think keeping someone like Hassan isn’t necessarily a bad thing."

"That’s for Lao Long to decide."

Lian, sitting next to him, fell into silence. She kept her head turned toward the window, saying nothing.

"Is your arm okay?" Hua Qingyi kindly reminded Xiao Lin, as there was no emergency material in the car. "Brother, if you keep bleeding like that, you won’t make it to the destination."

Xiao Lin knew he had already sealed the acupoints above and below his arm, blocking the qi and blood flow; bleeding was normal. In his mind, those eyes kept swirling.

In that moment, he felt utterly humbled. He had seen skilled people, powerful people, cold-hearted people, people with killing intent, but he had never seen someone so calm.

Perhaps such a description is not entirely accurate. The person who took the Fourth Master away was like a piece of iron, with eyes devoid of any emotion. You couldn’t fathom what he was thinking, but you could see your own reflection in his eyes. He was looking at you, but you weren’t sure if he was truly looking at you. The feeling was indescribable, eerie, as if you were facing not a human, but some other creature sharing the same blood.

Not being able to sense your opponent is a scary thing, so Xiao Lin chose to compromise. The other person did not pursue further, showing restraint. Facing an opponent like this, Xiao Lin was vexed because he couldn’t find the weakness.

Yet he had never heard of such an opponent before. Hidden too cleverly, or had he never been active domestically?

The Fourth Master’s matter was not over. He glanced at Lian, who remained silent. No one knew what she was thinking, adding to Xiao Lin’s worries. Lian was not someone who liked to share her thoughts, nor would he easily believe her claiming to have completely lost memory; she must have it, and deeply.

What exactly happened these two months?

Xiao Lin wanted to know, but also feared knowing!

Amman has been quite unsettled lately. Rem was pacing back and forth in his office, feeling agitated. He received multiple calls from the higher-ups this morning, demanding a thorough investigation of the explosion incident in the valley on the outskirts of Amman.

However, before this could be resolved, the most luxurious Empress Palace in Amman City was reduced to ashes overnight. Even more astonishing was that the fire was entirely natural, with no trace of criminal evidence, which deeply troubled Rem.

Hua Qingyi amusingly observed the comical movements of this middle-aged man at the doorway, before politely knocking on the door.

"Ah!" Rem was startled by the knocking and momentarily forgot what expression to use when facing Hua Qingyi.

"Hello, Director!" Hua Qingyi placed two bottles of wine on the table, smiling cheekily as he slumped onto the sofa, "Doesn’t the director want to see me?"

"Not at all." Rem habitually reached for his handkerchief to wipe his sweat but realized it was nowhere to be found in his pocket. Awkwardly, he wiped his forehead with his hand and sat opposite Hua Qingyi. "Young Master Hua, you’ve come this time...?"

"Oh, it’s nothing. I’ve been well taken care of by you these past days. I’m heading back home soon and came especially to thank you, with a little token of appreciation, hoping you’ll accept it."

"Oh, how could I accept this? It’s within our duty."

"Is Director Rem troubled by something?" Hua Qingyi leaned back, drumming his fingers on the arm of the sofa, "You were so focused that you didn’t even notice me come in."

"It’s about the valley explosion. You know, that area is controlled by the Fourth Master. Now... sigh, it’s hard to balance as the higher-ups are closely watching. It’s been bothering me for days; I can’t remain neutral on both sides, can’t afford to offend."

"Have you found out who did it?"

"Where would I look? Everyone’s dead and there’s no evidence left."

"I see." Hua Qingyi tilted his head, pondering. "Director, I do have a suggestion. See if you think it could work."

Like seeing the light of hope, Rem grasped Hua Qingyi’s hand tightly, "Young Master Hua, please advise."

Hua Qingyi withdrew his hand, somewhat helpless toward the police director. He couldn’t decide whether to say Rem’s ability was too poor or his mind was too foolish, in any case, he found him easy to fool: "Director, you could simply classify this explosion as a severe arms smuggling case, laying the blame on the base leader. A conflict between two factions, massive casualties on both sides. Your country has long wished to eliminate Fourth Master, hasn’t it? This is a golden opportunity. Hoarding a large stash of arms is already a grave crime, not to mention privately forming an armed force, which could be charged as a rebellion attempt."

Hua Qingyi glanced at Rem, clearing his throat to continue, "Of course, it’s up to you, Director, on how to word this. Whether to use this chance to cut down Fourth Master is your decision. Besides, the Hardley case might also be related to this Fourth Master. After all, both parties are tied to human trafficking transactions; it’s common for things like this to happen when business negotiations fall apart."

"Young Master Hua, truly meticulous, I hadn’t thought of that." Rem rubbed his head, his eyes sparkling.

"Director is smart; I won’t go on about it. Old Hassan asked me to bring his regards to you." After saying so, Hua Qingyi stood up, adjusted his clothes, and walked out the door.

He didn’t care how Rem would handle this case. When it involves influential figures, it’s usually a headache. Naturally, Hassan wouldn’t appear directly in such matters, which is called a confession without coercion. Hua Qingyi was more than willing to assist in such a small matter, given that everyone involved was in his place. Making a round trip wasn’t much of a problem.

If Rem were smart, he should push the responsibility onto the escapees. But whether he was a fool or pretending to be smart, nobody knew.

Walking nonchalantly to the scorched remains of Empress Palace, Hua Qingyi looked up at the building now in ruins and couldn’t help thinking of that face. Through the whole ordeal, perhaps Hua Qingyi was the most fruitless person. He had to admit to himself that he’d had true feelings for Angel during the Empress Palace times.

It’s not necessarily that every man likes beautiful things, but he liked her isolated purity, the kind that naturally exuded purity. Although Xiao Lin said it seemed too pure, losing its sense of reality, he was still enamored with that purity. Even if unattainable, just standing there and watching each day was enough.

But now, he couldn’t deny he felt disappointed. He did, quite heavily.

That day, when climbing up the mountaintop with Xiao Lin, the feeling was hard to describe. Was it deceit? This couldn’t be said to exist; for him, Angel was merely an illusion with whom he had no contact, just a so-called unrequited love. Yet, when such a beautiful fantasy suddenly shattered within, the feeling was innocent yet hard to savor.

Angel was Fourth Master, something he couldn’t connect. Until now, he couldn’t bring himself to equate these two names.

Workers continued cleaning up the scene, and TV reports stated there were no casualties. Perhaps only a few of them knew that the base was destroyed—Xiao Lin had ruthlessly executed Angel.

Knowing that none could elude Xiao Lin’s Zhan Fei maneuver, Hua Qingyi often thought Xiao Lin was extraordinary; no normal person could achieve his level. Even with different treatment and grooming since childhood, it was incredible to linger in the air and shift instantly—ideas too outlandish to conceive. Yet, Xiao Lin managed it.

After letting out a sigh of helplessness, Hua Qingyi headed towards the underground parking lot of the mall. No matter what, they had found the Military Advisor, so they could leave this country and return home. These troubles would become memories. As for Angel, no, Fourth Master, Hua Qingyi should bury her as a lost first love—sweet yet hazy. As long as he forgets the last moment, everything still remains pure to him. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)