While Li Feng and Zhong Shuhui were talking, in a certain room in Tianhai City, a man completely shrouded in a black robe asked the middle-aged man standing before him, “How are things going with the task I gave you? What is the current situation of Fengyuan Group?”
“My lord, one-third of the employees at Fengyuan Group have already resigned. Not only that, but with Li Feng and Hu Yuanyuan absent from the company, Fengyuan Group is currently under the control of Hu Yuanyuan’s assistant, Xu Qing. However, Xu Qing has little influence there, and many people do not respect her. In the next couple of days, the company is likely to descend into chaos. Everything is proceeding according to plan.”
“Very good.” The black-robed man nodded with satisfaction and said, “You have done well. This is exactly the result I wanted. However…”
“My lord, do you have further instructions?” the middle-aged man quickly asked.
“However, this is not enough,” the black-robed man said.
“Not enough? My lord, do you mean…” the middle-aged man inquired.
“I need at least half the employees of Fengyuan Group to resign within the next two days,” the black-robed man said, a cold glint flashing in his eyes.
“Half?” The middle-aged man’s expression changed, a trace of shock appearing in his eyes. He had never imagined that the black-robed man’s demand would be so extreme.
“What, you cannot do it?” the black-robed man asked coldly.
“No, it is just that doing so would expose my piece on the board,” the middle-aged man replied.
“If it gets exposed, so be it. What is the big deal?” the black-robed man said indifferently.
“But…” The middle-aged man looked at the black-robed man, hesitating to speak.
“But what? Are you hiding something from me?” the black-robed man stared intently at him and asked.
“No, absolutely not,” the middle-aged man hurriedly shook his head.
“Really?” the black-robed man asked coldly. He knew this subordinate too well. The man was capable, but he often acted on his own initiative.
“Really, truly nothing,” the middle-aged man insisted, yet his flickering gaze betrayed him.
“Hmph, do you think I do not know you?” the black-robed man snorted, his tone filled with displeasure. “Speak. What are you planning?”
“My lord, I want to swallow Fengyuan Group whole,” the middle-aged man said gravely.
“Swallow it?” The black-robed man gave a cold laugh and said, “Your ambition is considerable. You actually think you can take over Fengyuan Group. Do you take Li Feng and Hu Yuanyuan for fools?”
“My lord, Hu Yuanyuan is currently in hospital, and Li Feng is not managing the company. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” the middle-aged man said.
“Oh? Then explain how this opportunity is so rare,” the black-robed man said with another cold laugh.
“My lord, my piece is a senior executive in Fengyuan Group with considerable authority. Under his leadership, we could completely form a new senior management team. Then we could control Fengyuan Group through him,” the middle-aged man explained.
“Is that so? Are Li Feng and Hu Yuanyuan idiots? They are the owners of Fengyuan Group. With a single word, they could wipe out the entire senior team you plan to assemble. What do you think?” the black-robed man said coldly.
At this moment, he hardly knew whether to call this middle-aged man clever or an idiot.
“My lord, at that point we could organise the employees to resist, while I apply pressure from outside. Li Feng and Hu Yuanyuan are young, after all. Given their lack of experience, they would probably be helpless in the face of such a situation,” the middle-aged man said confidently.
He had only decided on this plan after so many resignations had occurred at Fengyuan Group. In his view, the fact that his piece could orchestrate so many resignations clearly showed that Li Feng and Hu Yuanyuan were poor at managing the company and lacked support within it. This was the foundation he could exploit.
“So you are saying that the great effort we expended last time to steal the core technology of Intelligent One from Fengyuan Group was all for nothing?” the black-robed man asked with a cold laugh.
“Not entirely. Having the core technology of Intelligent One in our hands provides insurance. But my lord, Fengyuan Group is worth far more than just Intelligent One. Its total value is around ten billion. Acquiring it would benefit you greatly as well,” the middle-aged man said.
“Benefit me? Hmph, I think it is you who wants Fengyuan Group. How could I be unaware of your little schemes?” the black-robed man said with a cold laugh.
“Heh heh, my lord, you know my circumstances,” the middle-aged man said with a smile.
“Hmph, I think you are indulging in wishful thinking, utterly absurd,” the black-robed man snorted. “You take Li Feng for an idiot, but in fact you are the real idiot.”
“My lord…”
Before the middle-aged man could continue, the black-robed man interrupted him. “Enough. That piece of yours, do you truly believe Li Feng is still unaware of him?”
“My lord, that is impossible. Li Feng has not been at Fengyuan Group these past two days. How could he know of his existence?” the middle-aged man said without hesitation.
“Hmph, must one be physically at the company to know of him? You underestimate Li Feng far too much. Perhaps Li Feng is even now using your piece to lure you out,” the black-robed man snorted. He deeply feared Li Feng, otherwise he would not have resorted to using the middle-aged man to activate that piece inside Fengyuan Group this time.
“My lord, you overestimate Li Feng. Even if he knows of the piece, he cannot disrupt my plan,” the middle-aged man said, somewhat dismissively.
“What if Li Feng kills your piece?” the black-robed man asked coldly.
“Kill? How could that be possible? In the eyes of a pampered young master like Li Feng, killing is against the law. How could he commit murder?” The middle-aged man shook his head. He had known Li Feng for some time and believed that, no matter how much Li Feng had changed, he would never kill.
“Killing is against the law?”
At this, the black-robed man burst into loud laughter, his sharp gaze fixed on the middle-aged man as he laughed. “So in your view, Li Feng is the sort of person who knows killing is illegal. It seems you still have no real understanding of him. I truly do not know what you have been doing all these years in Tianhai City. If you think Li Feng is someone who dares not kill, you will probably die without even knowing how.”
“Do you know how many people Li Feng has already killed for the sake of Fengyuan Group?” the black-robed man asked coldly.
“Li Feng has killed people?” The middle-aged man was stunned. He had never imagined Li Feng capable of such a thing. Had these words not come directly from the black-robed man, he would never have believed them.
“Yes, and not just a few,” the black-robed man said, a trace of wariness in his eyes. Li Feng was the person he feared most since arriving in Tianhai City. Otherwise, if he were dealing with anyone else, he would not have needed to hide behind the scenes to obtain the core technology of Intelligent One.
“How many?” the middle-aged man asked, still incredulous. In his mind, apart from being a bit of a playboy, Li Feng was no different from an ordinary person.
“Not many, just a few hundred,” the black-robed man replied.
“A few hundred?” The middle-aged man’s face blanched, his eyes filled with disbelief. A few hundred people was not the same as a few hundred pigs. Killing even a few hundred pigs would be difficult, let alone people.
Had Li Feng really killed a few hundred people? Disbelief filled his eyes, yet he had no choice but to believe it. The black-robed man would never lie to him about something like this.
“That is why I say your plan is nothing but courting death,” the black-robed man said coldly. “When the time comes, not only your piece in Fengyuan Group, but you, and even I, will fall into Li Feng’s calculations.”
“My lord, Li Feng cannot possibly be that formidable. How could he calculate against you?” the middle-aged man shook his head.
“Nothing is impossible in this world, especially when it comes to Li Feng. If you wish to die, I can kill you right now to prevent you from dragging me down with you,” the black-robed man said.
The middle-aged man jumped in fright and hurriedly said, “My lord, I will immediately halt the plan. I will have my piece go dormant at once.”
“Hmph, there is no need for that piece to go dormant. His only remaining value now is to continue causing resignations at Fengyuan Group,” the black-robed man snorted as he looked at the middle-aged man. “As for you, cease all contact with that piece immediately and erase every trace of related communication.”
“My lord, you are prepared to abandon him just like that?” the middle-aged man asked, taken aback.
“What use is there in keeping a piece with no further value?” the black-robed man said coldly.
“But what about the promises made to him?” the middle-aged man hesitated.
“Promises? Those were merely his own delusions. You did not actually intend to honour those conditions, did you? When did you become so naive?” the black-robed man said coldly.
“No, no, I simply felt it was a pity to abandon him like this,” the middle-aged man said.
“There is nothing to pity. That piece no longer serves our plan. We have no need to waste time on him. Now that Li Feng’s attention is certainly fixed on that piece, we can take the opportunity to do something else,” the black-robed man said, a shrewd glint flashing in his eyes.
“Something else? What is it? What do you need me to do, my lord?” the middle-aged man asked eagerly.
“For the next step, our target is Xu Qing. I want you to do the following,” the black-robed man slowly outlined his plan.
“My lord is truly brilliant. I know exactly what to do,” the middle-aged man said, his eyes lighting up.
“Go arrange it at once,” the black-robed man said, waving his hand.
“Yes.” The middle-aged man acknowledged and left the room.
After the middle-aged man departed, the black-robed man gave a sinister laugh. “A piece? In my eyes, you are the true piece. Now let us see you test Li Feng.”
Having spoken, the black-robed man removed his hood, revealing a face that Li Feng would find extremely familiar.
