"No matter how things were in the past, we've now entered a very critical period. Lian, you have to admit, this has come faster than we expected. What does this indicate? It means those old men are starting to lose patience, doesn't it? It also means something is about to happen."

Lian nodded understandingly. The Middle Eastern affair had always been a thorn for those newcomers, especially for Xiao Lin. However, upon returning to Yanjing, he encountered too many troubles and had yet to truly address the issue there.

"Xiaoxue, listen to what Qing Yi says, don't go near Xiao Mu. No matter what he says, don't listen to him, understand?"

Xia Xue nodded numbly; she couldn't afford to do anything that would drag down Xiao Lin. "I understand, I will take good care of myself, don't worry."

Lian glanced at Xia Xue with suspicion. "Xiao Lang will be back next week, so for the next few days, stay in Xia Garden. It's safer there."

"I still want to stay at the farmhouse. Actually, nowhere is truly safe." Xia Xue didn't want to return to the Xia Family because of Xia Yuxuan. "'Rhein' has a lot of affairs that need managing. I think it's the only way I can help."

"Is there nowhere in 'Rhein' that needs my help?" Hua Qingyi asked worriedly. The elders had already filed a proposal at the standing committee, marking the first step for the Xia Family entering politics in the near future. His concern wasn't about this, but about the Xia Family itself. Without Xiao Lin, could Xia Xue handle it alone? Now with Xiao Mu, would she be his match?

"It's alright! I will handle everything, including all matters of the Xia Family." Xia Xue hinted at something. Xia Yusheng had been busy with the necessary courses for entering politics, and most of 'Rhein''s affairs had already fallen into her hands, including the post-tracking of the 'inone' case. Of course, it also included her aunt Xia Yuxuan. Her father ultimately couldn't face his own sister. She understood her father's dilemma, but the malignant tumor had to be removed, and no one could stop her. This was what Xiao Lin prepared for her, and she wouldn't let him down.

"I can't help with what's happening on Xiao Lin's side, please have some patience."

"Let's go!" After giving Xia Xue a hug, Lian and Hua Qingyi headed back to Dragon Soul Headquarters. This was Lian's first return since escaping from Dragon Soul. Her heart raced, and she dared not face Shen Qizhen and Chu Yun.

"What are you nervous about?" Hua Qingyi noticed Lian's nervousness. He wanted to tease her, but then he realized he was no longer in the mood.

"Let's not talk about me, did you know you looked quite scary earlier? You shouldn't have talked to Xia Xue like that; she hasn't gone through the kind of life we have."

"Precisely because she hasn't experienced it, I had to tell her. She must know what she's going to face." Hua Qingyi didn't think he was wrong. "Xiao Mu is just the beginning. Apart from targeting the old men and Xiao Lin, we don't know his exact purpose, and what about those lurking in the shadows? They haven't acted yet, have they? Xiao Mu might not be the most malicious, but he's certainly the most insidious. Xia Xue is no match for him."

"Even so, you shouldn't have done it that way." Lian turned her head. The closer they got to Dragon Soul, the more restless she felt. "And what's with you?"

"What?"

"Be honest. Don't think I didn't notice something was off with you today as well."

"The elders want me to prepare to take over." Hua Qingyi recalled the expression on Hua Muyun's face when he suddenly called him out of bed in the middle of the night - hesitant, solemn, and worried. These were expressions he had never seen on Hua Muyun's face. He watched enough of it that night. Hua Muyun said nothing, offered no explanation, only came to inform him to get ready to take over.

"Is your blissful time coming to an end?"

"I didn't agree."

After witnessing so many expressions from Hua Muyun that night, Hua Qingyi resolutely refused. His reason was simple. "Unless Xiao Lin steps into that position, he won't inherit the elder's position."

Without a word, Hua Muyun left in a huff. Hua Qingyi presented a dilemma. Without Xiao Lin, there wouldn't be him, Hua Qingyi. That was his condition.

Lian chuckled. "Elder Xiao and Elder Hua have been partners for a lifetime. Are you and Xiao Lin planning to be partners for life too?"

"Why wouldn't we?" Hua Qingyi smiled. If he had to enter politics, the only person he could trust was Xiao Lin. No matter who in the Xiao Family took the position, he could never fully trust them. Without this person, he'd rather stay in Dragon Soul for life until he perished in a mission one day.

"That's a blatant threat." Lian believed Hua Muyun must have looked quite upset at the time. "There's more than one member in the Hua Family."

"Yes, and there's more than one member in the Xiao Family. But are any as good as us?" Hua Qingyi's confidence made his already handsome face even more brilliant. "If we weren't competent enough, would those old men have chosen us? Lian, your first lesson is to always use your strengths to attack others' weaknesses, regardless of who they are. In that moment, they are your enemy. Once the task is done, it doesn't matter how they punish you as long as our objective is achieved, right!"

"Thank you!" Lian wisely caught the essence of what Hua Qingyi wanted to convey. In combat, there is no room for emotion, and that's what she was lacking.

"It's best if you understand, but not doing anything is useless." Hua Qingyi parked the car directly on the flat ground of the Dragon Soul Headquarters, and the guards naturally recognized his car. "We'll be leaving in a bit, no need to use the garage." After exchanging a few words with the guard at the entrance, Hua Qingyi parked the car to the side, leaving the main road clear.

"I'll go with you."

"I'll go up by myself." Lian refused Hua Qingyi's offer; she wanted to face it alone.

"Your face says 'not confident' all over it. With that expression, they'll definitely have you for breakfast." Hua Qingyi got out of the car. "Since our brother's not here, I'll have to protect you guys. Let's go!"

In the Dragon Soul meeting room, three old men sat together, listening to the information reported from the guards. Lao Long was the most relaxed one, eagerly anticipating the arrival of the young ones. He had high hopes for his current batch of people, who were very assertive, unlike how dull they were back in the day. Thinking of using "dull" to describe the two old men in front of him, he found it satisfying.

"Lao Long, why aren't you worried at all?" Lao Shen was the first to speak, feeling conflicted upon hearing that Lian was already downstairs—both happy and furious.

"What is there to worry about? Know your enemy and yourself, and you can fight a hundred battles with no danger of defeat. We understand their intentions clearly, don't we? Let's just wait and listen to what they have to say!" He sat there with his military uniform open, showing none of the demeanor of a Marshal.

"Lao Shen, this old fox is just waiting to laugh at us!" Chu Yun bluntly exposed Lao Long's scheme. After working together for so many years, how could he not know what this old fox was thinking? "Mu Yun has already sent news, saying Xiao Lin must be protected, guess why?"

"Stop being cryptic, just get to the point." Lao Long couldn't help but roll his eyes at Chu Yun.

"Who came with Lian, huh? Hua Qingyi, that kid, really threw Mu Yun under the bus."

"Hahaha, this kid's got guts, I like it." Lao Long burst into laughter, while Lao Shen remained silent among the three.

"You two better start thinking of a solution!"

"When they ask, we answer. What else do we need to do?" Lao Long replied without even thinking. He was ready to go all out this time. Regardless of whether Mu Rongyun really existed, since the past issues hadn't been resolved, this time, they needed complete resolution, and he didn't care.

"You're oversimplifying it. How do we explain it? Do we tell them that in the past, we didn't clean up our act, which caused them this crisis?" Lao Shen, rarely angry, seemed truly anxious.

"Lao Shen, don't be so paranoid. I don't think these kids are so bad; they're all pretty sharp." Chu Yun tried to console Lao Shen with a pat on his shoulder. "Let's go with Lao Long's suggestion—wait to hear what they say, then we can react. With our experience, we won't have trouble handling those two kids. As long as it's not Xiao kid coming, we might not have to..." Suddenly realizing he misspoke, Chu Yun stopped mid-sentence, and the other two nodded in silent agreement, especially Lao Long, who understood most deeply.

"As long as it's not the Xiao kid, we can manage." He still had some apprehension about the time when his video equipment and headset were smashed; it was truly embarrassing for a general. On the video end, aside from Lao Xiao, everyone else probably had their hearts in their throats. This kid was even more ruthless than Lao Xiao.

"Three generals, the guests are at the main entrance. Do we permit their entry?" The guards' report came through the speaker on the table.

All three of them tidied up their attire and returned to their serious expressions. "Let them in."

With a click, the door opened from inside. Lian and Hua Qingyi pushed the door and entered, walking through a glass corridor into the meeting room.

"Hello, sirs!" Hua Qingyi didn't appear as restrained as Lian, perhaps due to their different statuses. He seemed more at ease in their presence, whereas Lian still couldn't help but lower her head upon seeing Chu Yun and Shen Qizhen.

"You two, come sit here." Shen Qizhen felt a pang seeing Lian, thinking how she had lost so much weight.

"Go on, let's go!" Hua Qingyi placed his hands on Lian's shoulders, guiding her to Shen Qizhen's side, pulling out a chair for her to sit, while he stood beside her.

"Why aren't you sitting?" Lao Long glared at Hua Qingyi.

"I like standing!" Hua Qingyi replied with a playful grin towards Lao Long. These old foxes must have already known Hua Muyun's plan. Since his path was set, now they were on equal footing, he must stand to maintain his momentum.

"Sit down!" Lao Long ordered sharply, startling the others. "It's not time for that yet." (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, please visit Qidian (qidian.com) to cast recommendation votes or monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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