Chapter 1357 - 1333: Hidden Dangers

Chapter 1357: Chapter 1333: Hidden Dangers

"Me?" Hua Qingyi, feeling a bit uneasy under the gaze, pointed at himself!

Lian was amused by Hua Qingyi’s expression and nodded. "No one is more suitable for this than you."

"But I..."

"As juniors, none of us knows the full story from ten years ago, and even if we have some news, it’s very one-sided." Lian spoke as she looked at Xiao Lin. "Among us, Young Master Hua has the least direct conflict with Quan Xianglin. Hua Uncle was also one of the participants in the experiments over ten years ago, so this time, we’ll have to trouble Young Master Hua to play the middleman again."

"Oh!" Hua Qingyi blinked innocently. "I have no problem being the bad guy again, but since my old man was also part of it over ten years ago and has close ties with the Xiao Family, how can you ensure Quan Xianglin will definitely accept me?"

Lian giggled again. "Of course, you can’t just go there like this. To dispel Quan Xianglin’s concerns, you need an auxiliary item." Her eyes shifted to Lao Jiu.

"What do you mean?" Lao Jiu jumped back a step, the anger he suppressed now being ignited to the peak.

"Originally, I planned to send Chu Qi as a gift. However, a defected prisoner on death row wouldn’t appeal to Quan Xianglin. The situation is different with the City Lord of the Underground City. You’re the lifeline of Sin City. With Young Master Hua taking you, at least it’s an added selling point. Quan Xianglin won’t ignore it."

"Undermining!" Xiao Lin looked at Hua Qingyi and Lao Jiu and uttered four words.

"Exactly!" Lian nodded satisfactorily, appreciating that speaking with Xiao Lin didn’t require much thinking.

"Although this scheme is worth considering, how can you ensure the safety of both of them? Delivering my core to Quan Xianglin won’t necessarily achieve your desired effect. With Shao Qinyi around, your strategy could easily be uncovered. If the opposing side asks Lao Jiu to backstab Sin City, the situation would become a dilemma. Do you have a follow-up backup plan?" Xiao Lin asked.

"No! My plan doesn’t include a backup." Lian paused. "The concerns you mentioned are noted in the second step of the plan. In fact, the first and second steps run parallel. The second phase will require you, Lin, to step up."

Xiao Lin leafed through Lian’s plan again but didn’t find anything about himself, prompting curiosity. "Is there... here?"

"A plan is just a plan, something for others to see, not for us. Everything is here." Lian pointed to her head. "With so many people involved, we must guard against contingencies."

"I trust my people." Lian’s tone was tactful, and her intention was for Xiao Lin’s benefit, but her words stirred some discontent in Xiao Lin.

"I understand, I don’t mean you, but Sin City isn’t a closed fortress. Everything visible to the eye could potentially leak. I don’t want you to fail due to unnecessary loopholes."

"What do you need me to do?"

"Murong Lengyue!"

"Impossible!" Xiao Lin immediately refused.

"Murong Lengyue witnessed Quan Mingyuan’s death. It’s up to you to involve Murong Lengyue in the plan. Taking things out of context is the simplest thing for any businessman. This is also crucial. Without removing Shao Qinyi, our plan is challenging to implement. He’s Quan Xianglin’s military advisor. Although I have confidence in my plan’s perfection, there’s no guarantee that Shao Qinyi won’t see through any details. Each link in the chain must be seamless by timing it perfectly."

Xiao Lin’s face darkened. Even though he stopped speaking, his expression didn’t look pleased.

"The death of Xun Xiangxiang is an opportunity for you to approach Murong Lengyue and also a chance to capture Boss Xing. Quan Xianglin currently distrusts prisoners, but we can leverage them as the early forces, and we can take advantage of this."

Lian observed that Xiao Lin didn’t speak further, understanding he had acquiesced, so she shifted the topic to the plan. "The third part is a continuation of another task, requiring the leader of Darkness to accomplish it."

Yelu Shou remained unusually silent throughout, like a forgotten figure standing in a corner.

"We need to utilize Darkness to gather a large amount of information, regarding all illegal activities of Quan Xianglin, the experiment’s backstory from ten years ago, and someone needs to follow behind Xiao Ya to find Mu Rongyun."

"Understood!" Yelu Shou didn’t have a word of rebuttal, behaving like an obedient child, doing whatever was asked.

"I have a condition!" Hua Qingyi suddenly spoke. "Wang Zhanting is mine."

"No problem." Lian readily agreed. The hatred of a father cannot coexist under the same sky. Although Elder Hua didn’t die at Wang Zhanting’s hands, to Hua Qingyi, not killing Wang Zhanting is tantamount to not avenging.

"OK! Anyone else got any questions?" Lian felt they were almost there; what’s left are just the details.

"What about me?" Chu Qi interjected at this moment. Everyone had tasks except him, and he felt somewhat excluded.

"Chu Qi is a person who came out of death row, how to dismantle death row needs you to do. For now, stay by Xiao Lin’s side as his bodyguard, and the connection with Boss Xing, I’ll leave to you. The assassination tasks will be arranged by Yi, I don’t need anyone else to interfere."

"I can agree to anything but this." In a moment no one expected, Xiao Lin suddenly voiced his opposition.

"Why?"

"I don’t need ’Black Crow’s’ assistance. If we need an assassination, I believe we can handle it ourselves."

Lian sighed again, she really didn’t want to embarrass Xiao Lin in front of so many people, but ’Black Crow’ played a very important role in this plan. Without these people, she wouldn’t be able to protect the ones in front of her. Xiao Zhenfeng wouldn’t save them based on whether the mission succeeded or not, and Quan Xianglin’s death would certainly require a scapegoat to confess, which she couldn’t discuss.

"There has to be a scapegoat, I hope it’s Mu Rongyun." Xiao Lin’s follow-up words shocked Lian even more. "I know what you’re thinking, using ’Black Crow’ will certainly gain the old man’s protection, but I don’t need that."

He and Hua Qingyi could easily evade guilt, but ultimately the ones most likely to be betrayed were Lao Jiu and Yelv Shou. Lao Jiu would certainly be the first one targeted, to Xiao Zhenfeng it didn’t matter whether there was an underground city or not, as for Chu Qi or Black Doctor, they were not sufficient evidence.

"Understood!" After Lian sighed for the third time, she finally made up her mind. "’Black Crow’ I will use, but the plan will be adjusted, give me time to think about it."

Everyone began adjusting and preparing their tasks, except Xiao Lin who was still lingering on the eighth floor. After detailing every aspect, Lian returned to her room. She knew Xiao Lin’s mood was very complex at this moment, the plan wasn’t foolproof, it might sound well orchestrated, but she knew Xiao Lin had certainly found some doubt in it, only he didn’t express it due to others’ presence.

"Do you think my plan isn’t solid?" Lian placed her hands on Xiao Lin’s shoulders, looking out the window with him.

"No! Overall it’s fine, the second and third are easy, I’m just worried about the entry point of the first step, also, there’s something else I haven’t mentioned."

"Does it have to do with this mission?" Lian thought about it, she didn’t think there was anything she still hadn’t designed. "Lin, this is very important, you can’t hide anything from me, it’s still possible to change now, I don’t want you to suddenly tell me there are other issues halfway, at that time, it won’t be me who gets hurt but everyone."

"I understand, it’s my personal matter." Xiao Lin rubbed his forehead. "The experiment ten years ago is the origin of everything, I’m trying to say who I really am."

Lian showed confusion, she didn’t understand what Xiao Lin was talking about, nor had she heard Xiao Zhenfeng mention these issues. "What did you encounter here?" Xiao Lin wasn’t the type to be troubled by personal matters, she believed what Xiao Lin referred to was definitely not love.

"Arrange a time for me, I want to talk to Yi."

The Assassin Group was gathered by Yi, perhaps he could get some information about Liu Yi’s identity from him, Xiao Lin thought. "I have no other plans, just hope that after eliminating Mu Rongyun, my people can be safe without suffering any negative impact."

"You’re doubting your identity!" Lian blurted out, she thought Xiao Lin was acting a bit strange.

Xiao Lin pulled the corners of his mouth, but didn’t answer Lian’s question.

"Why?"

"I want to know too, it’s just not the right time, maybe I’m not a member of the Xiao Family." This question had flashed countless times in Xiao Lin’s mind, the results always oscillating between denial and confirmation.

He didn’t want to believe Liu Yi, but he couldn’t get affirmation under Xiao Zhenfeng’s repeated schemes. Such contradictions made him very uncomfortable and conflicted.

"You already have the answer in your heart, don’t you?" Lian circled Xiao Lin from behind, resting her chin on his shoulder. "If you had no answers in your heart, you’d not be like this now."

"I would rather hope I’m not a member of the Xiao Family." This was the truth.

"But you can’t convince yourself of the pains you’ve suffered for this identity."

"Perhaps!"

The crow beside seemed to feel its owner’s sadness too, letting out a whimper and resting its head on Xiao Lin’s leg.

"Who is that person who gave you such thoughts?"

"I don’t know, he knows a lot about the Xiao Family, including that forbidden area, including my mother."

The Xiao Family’s forbidden area, Xiao Lin had never entered. Even in the woods closest to the forbidden area, he never once wanted to break in. Someone once told him his mother lived in that forbidden area, but soon he was taken from the Xiao Family and thrown into one experiment after another, living a life less than human.

After meeting Liu Yi, he suddenly had the urge to break in once. (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)