Emperor’s Pavilion.
Liu Shichao stood trembling before a middle-aged man. He had only met this man a few times, but each encounter left him with a chilling sense of dread, especially when he caught the man’s gaze. In that moment, Liu Shichao felt as if he were plunged into an endless abyss.
“Liu Shichao, you’ve disappointed me greatly lately,” the middle-aged man said slowly, his words laced with a bone-chilling coldness.
“I, I…” Liu Shichao was too frightened to speak.
“Hmph, what did I tell you to do by getting close to Li Feng? And what have you been doing? Do you want to die?” The man snorted coldly, his eyes brimming with murderous intent as he glared at Liu Shichao.
Liu Shichao’s face turned ashen, and he dropped to his knees with a thud. “I, I… Brother Peng, I…”
He truly didn’t know what to say. Brother Peng’s goal was for him to deal with Li Feng, but his life was in Li Feng’s hands. How could he dare act against him? Everything he did required Li Feng’s approval.
“Hmph, useless trash,” the middle-aged man snorted, his eyes filled with disgust.
Liu Shichao kept his head down, not daring to speak.
“Liu Shichao, by my temper, I’d kill you right now,” the man said coldly.
“Brother Peng, spare me!” Liu Shichao pleaded desperately. He had seen this Brother Peng kill before. To someone like him, the idea that killing was illegal was a joke.
Liu Shichao came from the Liu family of Tianhai City, which held some influence locally. He knew the dark side of this world well. He understood that laws were only for ordinary people.
“Hmph, hmph, you’ve got one chance now. If you handle it well, I’ll spare your pathetic life. If you fail, hmph…” The man’s voice dripped with killing intent.
“Yes, I’ll definitely get it done. Please give your orders, Brother Peng,” Liu Shichao said hurriedly.
“Three days from now, take Li Feng to this place.” The man tossed a piece of paper in front of Liu Shichao.
Liu Shichao glanced at it, his expression shifting slightly.
“Don’t worry, Brother Peng. I’ll complete the task.”
“Get lost,” the man snorted coldly.
“Yes, yes.” Liu Shichao scrambled out of the room, not wanting to stay a moment longer in the man’s presence.
“Brother Peng.” After Liu Shichao left, a bald, burly man emerged from a side door. The middle-aged man quickly approached, addressing him respectfully.
“Yefei.” The bald man was imposing, nearly six feet tall, dressed in a light camouflage outfit, exuding a soldier’s aura.
If Liu Shichao were here, he’d be stunned. The man he called Brother Peng was now addressing this bald man as Brother Peng, while the bald man called the middle-aged man Yefei.
“Yefei, send someone to follow Liu Shichao,” the bald man ordered coldly.
“Yes.” Yefei nodded, then looked up and asked, “Brother Peng, you suspect Liu Shichao? He’s just a spoiled rich kid.”
“Hmph, Yefei, Li Feng was supposed to be a nobody. Why haven’t you killed him yet?” The bald man gave him a cold glance. Yefei, who had been by his side for years, was so slow to react—a true waste.
“Brother Peng, I…” Yefei lowered his head, speechless. Indeed, Li Feng’s “nobody” status was a facade. Could Liu Shichao, this spoiled rich kid, also be a fake?
“This is your last chance. If Li Feng is still alive in three days, don’t bother coming back,” the bald man said icily.
“Don’t worry, Brother Peng. I’ll complete the task this time,” Yefei said hurriedly. He knew this true Brother Peng controlled everything in the Emperor’s Pavilion from the shadows. He was merely a puppet on the surface.
“Get lost,” the bald man said coldly.
“Yes.” Yefei, like Liu Shichao before him, scrambled out of the room.
Both the Black Stone Gang and the Emperor’s Pavilion had adjusted their strategies due to Li Feng’s transformation. From this moment, neither could treat him as a nobody. They now saw him as a formidable rival.
As for the other party involved, Li Quan, he lacked the intelligence networks of the Emperor’s Pavilion and the Black Stone Gang. Neither had shared their information with him, so he was unaware of recent events or Li Feng’s triumph in forming the Fengyuan Group and swallowing the Sun Group. He was still scheming to get Li Feng to sell his Xiangfeng Investment shares quickly.
Sure enough, when Li Feng returned from the training base, he saw Li Quan waiting at the villa’s entrance. As soon as Li Feng stepped out of the car, Li Quan rushed over, all enthusiasm. “Young Master Feng, where were you today? I’ve been waiting for ages.”
“Waiting for me? For what?” Li Feng asked, puzzled. Was Li Quan really this good at pretending? Acting like a lackey even now—did he enjoy it?
“Young Master Feng, I’ve got my eye on a stock. It’s set to soar this year. By year-end, it’ll make a fortune,” Li Quan said with a smile.
“Oh, that’s great,” Li Feng nodded, grinning as he tried to guess Li Quan’s intentions.
Seeing Li Feng’s interest, Li Quan grew more animated. “The stock market’s been sluggish this year, but with the government’s bailout policies rolling out, the market will rebound in the coming months. If we pick some good stocks, making money will be easy.”
Li Feng remained calm, making Li Quan curse inwardly. What was going on? Before, Li Feng would have eagerly asked for details. Had he really changed?
“Young Master Feng, aren’t you interested?” Li Quan couldn’t help but ask.
“Interested? Why should I be? I’m not into stocks. What’s it got to do with me?” Li Feng said nonchalantly.
“Young Master Feng, don’t you want to make money?” Li Quan asked quickly.
“Make money?” Li Feng grinned at him. At that moment, he realised Li Quan was unaware of his moves against Su Xin and Sun Xipeng, still thinking he was the old Li Feng. If so, he’d have some fun with him.
“Of course I do. Got any ideas?” Li Feng said, feigning eagerness with acting skills that impressed even himself. “Oh, I get it. You want me to buy stocks, right? I’ve got a few billion on hand. Investing sounds good. Which stock is it? I’ll buy in tomorrow.”
Li Quan was stunned. This didn’t fit his plan. Damn it, how had he forgotten Li Feng still had billions? That kind of money could buy a company, let alone stocks.
What now? What now?
Li Quan’s eyes darted, and a sinister plan formed in his mind.
