Chapter 426 425: What a Messy Circle

Mu Lin was stunned. 'So Gong Jintang got cuckolded?'

But on second thought, maybe it was a knowing adoption.

Who knew what went on between them.

It was all just a mess, anyway.

Mu Lin was in no mood to dig into it. "He's your grandson, so what?"

"Can you spare him? Just leave him some money—ten million will be enough. I just want him to be able to live out his life in peace."

Mu Lin said, "Gong Ding doesn't have what it takes to harm me, so I have no reason to kill him. As long as he doesn't do anything stupid to provoke me, I won't touch him."

"But all your money is dirty. How can I leave it for him? You seem to be a little too optimistic."

Elder Deng's expression turned grim. "I know a secret. How about I trade it for ten million?"

Mu Lin said, "Let's hear it. But if you're trying to fool me, I won't play along."

Elder Deng said, "It's related to the Li Family. And it's extremely important to you!"

Mu Lin's eyes narrowed. But then he thought, 'I only care about the Anhua Li Family. What the hell does the Di Yang Li Family have to do with me?'

"There are two Li Families. Which one are you talking about?"

"The Anhua Li Family!" Elder Deng said seriously. He had Mu Lin's file down cold, so he naturally knew what Mu Lin cared about.

Tailoring his offer to his audience was proving quite effective. Elder Deng was delighted to see Mu Lin already deep in thought.

Mu Lin's gaze grew heavy. "Tell me."

He had come down from the mountain for the sake of the Anhua Li Family, to repay his debt of gratitude to the old man.

Anyone could run into trouble, but not Elder Li's family.

Otherwise, he would have no way to answer to the old man.

Mu Lin said, "Go on. What's this all about?"

Elder Deng spoke quickly. "Never mind you—even someone like me is still foggy on the situation in Di Yang. Don't think for a second that the six great families control everything in Nanjiang. That's all just an illusion."

"The Ning Family looks the strongest and has the longest history, but they're really just working for someone else. The power behind them is unfathomably deep."

"What you see before you is merely a shadow of this power."

"In Lanyang, even though Baiju Group is the largest corporation, Li Hong is the municipal chief, and Qiao Canhua is a real estate tycoon, I could destroy it all with a single word. And with a single word, I could build someone else up to take their place."

Mu Lin sighed. Though Elder Deng's words sounded outrageous, they were the truth.

"Just tell me. What is the secret!"

"Li Hao's family has a feud with a major power from Beijing. That power sent people to Anhua to keep an eye on the Li Family."

"The Di Yang Li Family is just one part of the plan. They're only targeting the Anhua Li Family because they were ordered to."

But Mu Lin thought for a long time and still couldn't figure out what about the Anhua Li Family made them worthy of being targeted like this.

'I'll have to make a trip to Di Yang later and ask the Li Family what's going on.'

Elder Deng probably couldn't explain it clearly right now anyway.

Mu Lin said, "I understand. I'll do as we discussed. Give him ten million and make him leave Nanjiang, this place of trouble. I'll have my men handle it."

Elder Deng let out a long breath. "Thank you. I really mean it, thank you!"

"Since you've agreed, I'll naturally consider you a semi-benefactor. I advise you to cut ties with the Anhua Li Family as soon as possible. Otherwise, I'm afraid you'll suffer a miserable death sooner or later."

Mu Lin smiled faintly. "You said that before, and didn't I still defeat you?"

Well... Elder Deng was speechless.

Mu Lin returned Elder Deng to the Military Suppression Bureau and went back to the villa.

"Miss Xiao, it's completely safe now. You can go home."

Xiao Hongling was stunned. 'How long has it been? And Mu Lin has already resolved the entire crisis? Just how incredible are you?'

Mu Lin casually made another call to Xiao Longjiang and told him everything Elder Deng had said.

Xiao Longjiang was furious. "No wonder they were so vicious! So it was the Ning Family pulling the strings. I understand now. You can rest easy!"

"Uncle Xiao, please don't be like that. I'm taking Miss Xiao to the station tomorrow. Let her return to Di Yang on her own."

Xiao Longjiang was momentarily speechless. He had actually been hoping Xiao Hongling would stay by Mu Lin's side and win his favor.

But he never expected that Mu Lin couldn't care less about it.

Standing nearby, Xiao Hongling felt a pang of displeasure as she listened. 'What is Mu Lin doing?'

'I'm a natural beauty, one for the ages, and he's just ignoring me.'

'Does he dislike me that much? On what grounds is he in such a hurry to send me away?'

Xiao Hongling couldn't have been more frustrated. She clenched her small hands into fists, wishing she could hammer them against Mu Lin to vent her anger.

The next morning, Mu Lin took Xiao Hongling to the high-speed rail station.

It was a weight off his shoulders. Otherwise, constantly having to worry about a woman was quite difficult.

Especially a peerless beauty. That was even more difficult.

If they were seen together in Anhua, it could cause big trouble.

Elder Li might not be able to accept the reality of the situation, since Mu Lin had cooperated with everyone else to deceive him on this matter.

After Xiao Hongling left, Mu Lin returned the villa Yuan Kun had given him, forcing him to take back the keys.

To him, such a thing was useless. Keeping it would just mean letting it go to waste forever.

'Heaven knows if I'll ever come back to Lanyang.'

Mu Lin went to the Qiao Family's residence. Qiao Canhua had already purchased a new, fully-furnished villa to serve as a temporary home while the old one was being repaired.

Nowadays, the more Madam Qiao looked at Mu Lin, the more she liked him.

"Mu Lin, where's that Miss Xiao who was with you before?"

"Oh, she went back to Di Yang."

Madam Qiao, having something on her mind, asked probingly, "What's your relationship with her?"

Mu Lin said, "No relationship. I was just entrusted with protecting her. Now that the crisis is over, she's going back to Di Yang to work and live."

Madam Qiao's eyes lit up. Mu Lin's gaze was clear as he spoke, and she could tell he wasn't lying.

'This was great news.'

Just yesterday, Liu Ye Zhen had called her, practically begging her to find a way to win back Mu Lin's favor.

'Now that Mu Lin and Xiao Hongling had no relationship to speak of, everything was fine.'

'She had also completed the task her older sister had given her.'

She felt a great sense of relief herself.

'This was some sweet vindication. Liu Ye Zhen always thought her judgment was perfect, so self-righteous, but this time she had been spectacularly wrong.'

'If it turned out that Mu Lin and Xiao Hongling really were involved, Liu Ye Zhen would probably regret it for the rest of her life.'

'From now on, Liu Ye Zhen would have to listen more to her advice.'

'Years ago, a rich young master had pursued her, but she had turned him down, as she was already in love with Qiao Canhua.'

'But back then, Qiao Canhua hadn't made his fortune yet and was dirt poor, so Liu Ye Zhen had always been against their relationship.'

'It was only because Madam Qiao had stubbornly insisted that the two lovebirds weren't forced apart.'

'But Liu Ye Zhen had continued to be critical of them until Qiao Canhua seized an opportunity and made his fortune. Only then did she finally shut up.'

"Mu Lin, when are you leaving? Why not stay and have fun for a few more days?"

Qiao Canhua was so busy he was run off his feet, which Madam Qiao found strange. When she asked, she learned that Mu Lin had taken down the entire Baiju Group and let Qiao Canhua take it over.

Qiao Canhua had spent the whole day rushing between various companies, overseeing all the procedures for the takeover.

Baiju Group was, without a doubt, the number one enterprise in Lanyang.

Although Qiao Canhua's company had also started in Lanyang, its headquarters was now in Di Yang. The Lanyang office was just an ordinary branch, a branch in name only.

If not for the pressure from Yu Jianglan, they wouldn't have returned to Lanyang to take refuge.

Now that they had absorbed Baiju Group, Qiao Canhua once again had a firm foothold in Lanyang.

Mu Lin thought for a moment. "I don't know. I'll see how things go. I'll probably leave in a few days, since there's nothing left for me to do here."

Madam Qiao sighed. "Since that's the case, I won't try to keep you!"

Mu Lin casually grabbed a pen, wrote out a prescription, and handed it to Madam Qiao. "Auntie, you can get these ingredients and steep them in water. It will help relieve fatigue."

Madam Qiao accepted the prescription, treasuring it. "Thank you! You're the one who knows how to treat me well. Your Uncle Qiao is absolutely heartless. He barely even looks at me properly anymore."

Mu Lin chuckled. "Isn't it just because he's been busy these past few days? Uncle Qiao is one of the best men out there. If he heard you say that about him, he'd probably start crying right in front of you!"

Madam Qiao had only been speaking casually. Hearing Mu Lin praise Qiao Canhua like that made her heart swell with delight.

Suddenly, Mu Lin received a call. It was from Jiang Lan.

Mu Lin answered it, but only a weak voice came from the other end. "Mu..."

Before the word was finished, the call was disconnected.

'This isn't good!'