Gong Wushang never thought he would end up in such a situation. His father was already in jail, and his mother was useless, only crying and wailing at home. She sat in the living - room, shedding tears in despair. "Wushang, what shall we do? Your father is in jail, and the Gong Corporation is going bankrupt. What can we do?"
He felt annoyed and smoked one cigarette after another. Before long, he had finished a whole pack. Hearing his mother's sobs, he said coldly, "Stop crying. Crying won't help. It's a fact that he's in jail. We should think about how to avoid taking on debts when the company goes bankrupt."
Hearing this, Mrs. Gong didn't dare to cry anymore. She looked at her son, who was different from usual, trying to guess his thoughts. She asked cautiously, "I... I'll call your grandparents. They will surely help us, right..."
Even as she said this, she lacked confidence. The Gong Corporation was now deeply in debt. If her parents stepped in, it would only drag their company down as well. Then there would be no way out.
Gong Wushang smoked another cigarette. "No, it's not necessary."
Just as he was in despair, his phone suddenly rang. It wasn't the work number he used for business, but another little - known private number.
Gong Wushang trembled all over. The person who could call this number at this time might... help him, or perhaps push him deeper into hell.
He hesitated for a long time, and the phone kept ringing. It seemed that it would never stop until he answered. Mrs. Gong was now afraid of the phone ringing, fearing it was a creditor. She wanted to see who it was, but looking at her son's face, she didn't dare. She glanced at her son and then at the phone.
Gong Wushang smoked another cigarette. Finally, he made up his mind. He picked up the phone and left the living - room. This call was from an unknown number that Gong Wushang had never seen before. Answering it could lead to heaven or hell, but he had no other choice. He gritted his teeth and pressed the answer button.
"Mr. Gong, do you want to make a comeback?" The other person's voice was hoarse and unpleasant, but the words sounded like music to Gong Wushang's ears. "As long as you help me catch a person, I'll give you whatever you want."
Gong Wushang squinted his eyes. "What other benefits do I get besides this?"
"Ha, ha, ha." The other person laughed a few times. "Does Mr. Gong have any room to bargain? You only have this one chance. I think Mr. Gong doesn't want to spend the rest of his life burdened with hundreds of millions in debt, right?"
Hearing this demand, Gong Wushang closed his eyes. He didn't want to live like a dog in the future. "Okay, I agree."
*
Zhu Shuangyao didn't know that a conspiracy was brewing against her. When she woke up, the sun was shining brightly. The sky was clear, and the sunlight was gentle. She found the sunlight coming through the window too bright and closed her eyes. But the next moment, a broad palm gently covered her eyes.
The man's warm breath was right beside her ear. "Sleep a little longer."
Zhu Shuangyao nestled into Huo Qizheng's arms and chuckled. "Fortunately, Brother Ying has been busy recently. Otherwise, if he found out you're in my room, the two of you might fight."
Huo Qizheng said calmly, "He can't beat me, and I won't let him find out. I've been in and out so many times, and he never noticed."
Before Zhu Shuangyao could speak, the man gently massaged her temples with his other hand. "Does your head hurt?"
"No." Zhu Shuangyao praised him. "How could I have a headache when Mr. Huo is taking care of me? Even if it hurt before, it doesn't hurt when I see you. You're my painkiller."
Huo Qizheng tapped her forehead lightly. "Don't be so glib. Does it really not hurt?"
"No, don't worry. Mr. Huo's hangover soup is super effective." Zhu Shuangyao grabbed his hand and pulled it down. "I'm awake. You don't need to cover my eyes anymore."
Huo Qizheng let his hand fall and instead held the girl's hand tightly. He flexed his arm, and his muscles bulged as he picked her up. "Then it's time for us to get up and have breakfast. Let's go."
Zhu Shuangyao exclaimed, "Mr. Huo! Put me down quickly."
Huo Qizheng blinked. With such a delicate beauty in his arms, how could he let go? "No way. Can't I even carry my own wife?"
Just as they were playing around, there came a sudden, urgent knock on the door. Zhu Shuangyao wondered, "Who is it?"
Huo Qizheng put her down, stroked her hair, and said gently to her, "You go wash up first. There's breakfast in the kitchen. Eat it and then come out. I'll go see who it is."
Zhu Shuangyao nodded and went straight to wash up. Huo Qizheng opened the door, and there stood Luo Yingying, looking in a sorry state. She asked with a bitter smile, "Is Yaoyao here?"
Huo Qizheng nodded to her. "Yes, she's washing up now. Come in first."
As soon as Luo Yingying entered the room, she dropped a bombshell. "I've found my biological parents. No, it should be that my biological parents have found me."
Zhu Shuangyao, who was having breakfast, started coughing on the spot. Huo Qizheng stood up, patted her on the back, and got her some water to help her calm down.
Zhu Shuangyao didn't cough too badly and soon recovered. She took a sip of water and asked in disbelief, "Aunt Luo isn't your biological mother?"
"Yes." Facing the delicious food on the table, Luo Yingying had no appetite at all. Originally, Zhu Shuangyao wanted to accompany her, but Luo Yingying directly pressed her down at the table and told her to have breakfast first and then listen to her story.
"Mom told me that she found me in a trash can. Gong Wushang used this to threaten her before, trying to make her give in, which was why she ended up in the hospital." Luo Yingying said with a worried face. "Who would have thought that my so - called biological parents would come looking for me today?"
Zhu Shuangyao asked, "Does Yan Yan know about this?"
Luo Yingying shook her head. "He doesn't know yet. They've been extremely busy recently. He's been out on missions. That's why I came to you. I want you to give me some advice."
Fortunately, Luo Yingying didn't drink last night. Otherwise, with a hangover and facing this situation, she might have had a breakdown.
"What are your biological parents like? Do you have a good impression of them?" Zhu Shuangyao needed to figure out Luo Yingying's thoughts to know how to handle the situation better.
In fact, Luo Yingying didn't dislike the people who came to find her. Although they were dressed in fine clothes and had an imposing manner, they weren't overbearing. Their attitude towards her was also very cautious. Since they knew that her mother had been in the hospital, they pretended to be someone else when they came to visit and talked to her privately. They also gave her the choice.
So Luo Yingying said it was okay, but this kind of impression was just like meeting one or two strangers on the road. She had a good impression of them because they were well - behaved and had high emotional intelligence. If it came to any sudden impulse because of blood relationship, she didn't have such a feeling.
Zhu Shuangyao rubbed her chin. "They said you're their biological daughter. Have you done a paternity test?"
"Yes." Luo Yingying's face looked rather ugly. "That's what puzzles me. I don't remember ever doing a paternity test with anyone. Someone must have taken something from me and done the test with them."
Zhu Shuangyao thought and thought but couldn't come up with a better solution. This kind of thing was always complicated. She could only say, "Just treat them as ordinary relatives for now. You said they gave you a choice. You can go back or not. If you have time, go and stay with them for a while. Just think of it as having an extra relative. If something really happens, don't indulge them."
Luo Yingying sighed. "That's what I thought too. But I have another thing to ask you. Have you heard any news recently?"
After Zhu Shuangyao finished her breakfast, Huo Qizheng cleared away the dishes and let the two of them talk privately. "Recently, Yan Yan has been busy outside. I heard it's because of an organization called the Phoenix Society. It used to be abroad, but recently, for some reason, it has suddenly extended its reach into the country. He told me to warn the people around me. These are cults and shouldn't be trusted."
The Phoenix Society?
In recent days, Zhou Boxiang had caught more and more people with systems. Some of them were okay. They had gentle personalities, and the systems they were bound to were rather laid - back. But some of them just wanted to make a "big career." Zhou Boxiang finally managed to get them to talk and found out about an organization called the Phoenix Society.
This organization was very secretive, but its influence was huge. From the partial list of members they had obtained, many were high - level people from abroad. As for in the country, they hadn't appeared yet, or maybe they were hiding too deeply to be discovered.
The doctrine of the Phoenix Society was rebirth. As long as one believed in the cult, devout believers could get a second chance at life, while peripheral believers would gain some special abilities, such as being bound to a system, which made many people flock to it.
Just at this time, he received a message from the Great God. The previous matter of the hallucinogenic drug was also related to this organization. Along with the message, there was also a beautiful woman. The message said that this woman had contact with a high - level member of the Phoenix Society.
Not to mention anything else, just the problem of the hallucinogenic drug was enough for Zhou Boxiang to take it seriously. This drug was addictive. When using it, one would feel euphoric, but using too much would damage the central nervous system. The most terrifying thing was that, so far, there was no way to quit this drug.
Fortunately, the laboratory sent a message that they had recently made some progress. Zhou Boxiang rubbed his temples and ordered, "Strip the system from her body, check her identity, and interrogate her to see if we can find out who is behind her."
No matter who it was, as long as it was something that endangered the people and dared to reach into the country to harm their people, they had to cut off that hand. No matter how many hands it had, as long as they caught one, they would chop it off. They would never let their dirty goals succeed!