Xiao Zhu looked bewildered: "Fifth Brother, then you should bring them back..."
"Just you wait and see." I smiled faintly. "I only brought them back as a show of force and to curry favor. Their master will call soon."
Xiao Zhu, quick-witted as ever, immediately brightened up: "Fifth Brother, are you talking about that Allen? Were these people sent by Allen to follow the princess? If we capture the people he sent to monitor the princess, it will be very beneficial!"
I nodded, but then noticed Hammer standing next to me looking completely bewildered, and I sighed inwardly. It seems Hammer is only suited to be my bodyguard—a tough guy, but not quite as bright.
Allen and the princess have both colluded and conflicted. It seems Allen is starting to feel threatened; he's worried the princess might do something to harm him in Vancouver, which is why he sent people to monitor her. I deliberately arrested his men as a show of force. I wanted to make him understand that all his actions are under my control, to scare him a little.
"And then..."
I sat in my office for less than an hour when my phone rang.
"Hello." After answering the call, the other party's voice came through, and it was indeed Allen: "Mr. Chen Yang, I'm sorry to bother you."
I chuckled and waved for everyone around me to leave the office. Then, without a care in the world, I chuckled into the phone, "Hello, Allen... Well, I won't ask how you got my number. With your abilities, finding my number shouldn't be difficult for you."
The breathing on the other end of the phone seemed to pause for a moment. Then I chuckled and said, "Allen, you found my number and called. What's up? Or is there anything I can do to help you?"
Another brief silence followed. Then, Allen chuckled softly on the phone and said slowly, "Mr. Chen Yang, I don't want to waste time... Let me get straight to the point. You should understand why I'm calling. But first, I have something to say to you."
"What?"
“I didn’t do what happened at your wedding,” Allen said seriously.
"I understand," I replied calmly.
"Um, thank you." Allen didn't seem too surprised, but I caught a hint of relief in his voice. He then continued, "I don't know who did this... well, perhaps you've already found out yourself."
What a cunning fellow. But if he's playing dumb, I can play along. I said casually, "You don't need to worry about that."
“No, this has a lot to do with me.” Allen laughed again, but this time it was a bitter laugh: “I’m in Vancouver now, right under your nose, and your judgment on this matter is very important to me.”
"Oh? What do you think?"
“Someone wants you to kill me,” Allen said bluntly. “You’re a smart man, and I’m not a fool either. If you die, it will certainly be good for me. But even if I wanted to get rid of you, I wouldn’t do something so stupid. I know we’re not friends, but I don’t think you’d like being used.”
“…I really don’t like it,” I said calmly.
"So... am I safe now?" Allen asked me in a very strange tone.
"May I ask you a question?" I suddenly became very interested in him: "After what happened at the wedding, given our past grievances... I think you know about my cooperation agreement with Thorin. In that case, I'm bound to suspect that you're targeting me. This suspicion is inevitable. At a time like this, why are you staying in Vancouver? Do you have some important business in Vancouver?"
“Haha…” Allen chuckled. “Mr. Chen Yang, you’re joking. Vancouver is your territory. In this place, all underworld businesses are under your control. How could I possibly do business with anyone outside your sight?”
"Indeed, you couldn't possibly be here for some reason... So why don't you leave?"
Allen's tone then turned strange. He countered, "If I left in a hurry after the wedding... then if someone frames me as the murderer... wouldn't you immediately assume it's me? If I stay, you won't suspect me, right? So, to clear my name, staying is the smartest thing to do. But if I leave, and someone 'happens' to identify me, then you'll really hold me responsible. We're not friends, but I don't want to be your enemy right now. My current situation isn't suitable for making an enemy as powerful as you, is it?"
I laughed... but my laugh was complicated...
This Allen is indeed extraordinary!
"I plan to leave here by plane tonight," Allen said tactfully. "I know my two men may have offended you today... I wonder if..."
I immediately smiled and said, "Okay, I'll send them back in a bit."
"Thank you!" Allen said slowly. "You know what I mean by thanking you."
"I know."
We had a very tacit conversation.
Clearly, he wasn't thanking me for letting his man go, but rather for letting him off the hook! I had already agreed to allow him to leave Vancouver. This was undoubtedly important to him…
Because even if he wasn't the one who ordered my assassination, I have many other reasons to keep his life here!
The situation is quite delicate... Even though Thorin schemed against me this time, I can't afford to turn against him; at most, I can humiliate the princess. My strength is far from sufficient to challenge Thorin! Therefore, I even have to continue siding with Thorin and supporting his efforts to install the princess on the throne!
Although I no longer doubt Allen, we are definitely not friends! Because from a long-term perspective, Allen is far too shrewd! If he becomes the new leader of the Hells Angels… a powerful Hells Angel is not in our best interest!
I seem to have a reason to kill him, but I can't... because if I kill him, I'll fall into old Thorin's trap. But if I let him go, he might still be a problem in the future.
This is fucking ridiculous!
After much thought, I realized this was the only way I could teach him a lesson. Let him go back to fighting with old Thorin.
"Finally, I want to say... although attending your wedding wasn't my own choice... I feel it was a worthwhile trip! You are a wonderful person." Allen's tone was sincere: "And it seems that staying an extra day was the right thing to do."
I suddenly felt like scaring him, so I deliberately said coldly, "Aren't you afraid I'll change my mind and leave your life in Vancouver?"
“You won’t,” Allen said slowly. “Because someone told me that you are a very strange person, respectable yet with a certain Eastern stubbornness. You never go back on your word. Since you’ve already said I can leave, you will absolutely not do anything to keep me here.”
I sneered: "Do you think you know me that well?"
Allen smiled. "No, this is our first meeting... However, I have a friend who knows you very well. To be honest, after this incident, that woman, the princess, tried many ways to keep me here for another day. I originally saw through her intentions and wanted to leave as soon as possible... But a friend of mine suggested that I stay for another day! Because he told me that this way, you wouldn't suspect me."
I couldn't help but frown: "Your friend?"
“Yes, someone you know as well.” Allen said calmly, “His name is Li Wenjing.”
Part Three: The Pinnacle, Chapter Twenty-Two: My Daughter Has Grown Up
After hanging up the phone, I stood there stunned for a full two minutes. I didn't know what to feel...
“Li Wenjing…Li Wenjing…” I murmured the name to myself. After a long while, I suddenly smiled, but a shadow of gloom appeared in my eyes.
"Li Wenjing, Li Wenjing... what exactly do you mean by doing this?" I muttered to myself, then a thought suddenly popped into my head, and I couldn't help but shout, "Fuck!!"
At my shout, Hammer burst through the door: "What is it, Fifth Brother?"
Looking at Hammer, who exuded a fierce aura, I knew that if I gave the order now to have him take his men to stop Allen and bring him back, Hammer would definitely do an excellent job of completing the task I assigned.
Capture Allen...and kill him?
At that moment, I did suddenly have this impulse!
However, this impulse was quickly extinguished by another emotion.
"Hmph, Li Wenjing, you're something else!" I sneered to myself. "I won't go back on my word! Heh... You deliberately used that to put me in my place, didn't you? Hmm... Well planned, well planned. But since you've said that, how could I possibly go back on my word?"
At this point, I waved my hand, glanced at Hammer, and said, "Alright, that's all. You can go now."
For some reason, at that moment, I suddenly felt a bit of hostility!
The subtle thing is, this hostility wasn't directed at Allen. Because through my interactions with Allen, while I sensed he was no ordinary person, I hadn't yet considered him a major threat... What truly made me wary at that moment was Li Wenjing!
He told Allen not to leave, but to stay another day. This actually dispelled my initial doubts about Allen.
Then, Allen called again and frankly told me that he was going to leave... Well, this must be what Li Wenjing taught him to do... Sure enough, I allowed Allen to leave without hesitation, giving him a way out.
Is it simple?
No, it's not simple at all!! The two things Li Wenjing casually taught Allen to do precisely hit the biggest weakness in my personality!
In short: This Li Wenjing really got me figured out! He knows my personality too well! He can even make these two moves at will based on my personality, and then predict... no, you could even say "control" my next move.
If someone like that were to become my enemy, wouldn't he become a deadly foe to me?
I called Xiao Zhu over again: "Release all the people we've captured." Then, just before Xiao Zhu was about to leave, I stopped him again: "Wait... bring back the men we sent to monitor Allen."
"Hmm? Yes... Fifth Brother," Xiao Zhu replied.
I looked at his young face and laughed, "What? Don't understand? Hey! He's already called to beg for mercy, he's been a real hero. In this situation, if we keep people monitoring him, wouldn't we look petty? Let's bring them back. Allen is no threat to us now."
The sea was calm; this was a shallow bay south of Vancouver's waterfront, less than eighty nautical miles from the coast. The yacht was anchored at sea. I lay sprawled on the deck, sunbathing, wearing sunglasses.
Yan Di knelt down beside me, holding a bottle of sunscreen and applying it to me. Her soft little hands gently kneaded my thigh muscles, making me feel so good that I almost groaned.
thump!
There was a splash, followed by Aze yelling, "Qiaoqiao! You rascal! You scared all my fish away! Can't you swim somewhere else?!"
I sat up and saw Aze standing on the deck, holding a fishing rod and pointing at Qiaoqiao in the water, yelling at her.
"Fishing? You can fish? Give me a break, Ze! You little bastard, you're more suited for fishing for girls, not fishing! You might as well fish for turtles!"
Aze was so angry he was jumping up and down. He couldn't help but tug at the wooden guy sitting next to him: "Hey! Why aren't you saying anything? This girl scared all our fish away! Aren't you angry?"
Wood raised his eyelids slightly, then continued in a meditative state, "A good man doesn't fight with a woman."
The words weren't spoken loudly, but Qiaoqiao, who was in the sea, heard them and couldn't help but raise her eyebrows and shout, "Wooden head! What did you say!"
As she spoke, Qiaoqiao swam to the side of the boat, grabbed the handrail, and boarded the boat. As soon as she got on, she picked up the fishing rod on the ground and was about to chase after the wood.
Helpless, Mu Tou could only put down his fishing rod, stand up, and dodge, sighing, "A gentleman uses words, not fists..."
"I'm a woman!"
"...Women and petty men are the most difficult to deal with in this world...Oh dear!"
The wooden man was beaten so badly that he ran away with his head in his hands. The next minute, the words coming out of his mouth were, "When will this cycle of revenge end!"
At this moment, our little girl, Xiao Wu, came out of the cabin. She was wearing a lake-blue swimsuit, and her slightly immature figure was like a flower bud just beginning to bloom. In addition, she was originally a little beauty, which made Aze next to her take a few more glances.
"Sigh, another little loli... I'm telling you, Xiao Wu, this girl is probably on par with YoYo. You're not here with a harem-building plan, are you... Hey!" Before Aze could finish speaking, I snatched the sunscreen bottle from Yan Di's hand and smashed it on his head.
I've practiced throwing knives to improve my accuracy; how could I possibly miss?
Just then, Mu Tou walked over with a worried look on his face and picked up the fishing rod from the ground under Qiao Qiao's watchful gaze.
I asked curiously, "Huh? You guys aren't fighting anymore?"
"Go away! I'm a civilized person!" Qiao Qiao rolled her eyes, then laughed, "I made peace with Mu Tou... but we made a bet. He has to do one thing, or he won't eat today!"
"What?"
"To catch a sea turtle." Wood sighed, then looked pitifully at the fishing rod in his hand and gritted his teeth, saying, "She told me to use this fishing rod to catch a sea turtle, or I wouldn't be allowed to eat."
"What do you think Wu Gang's conditions will be?" I glanced at Aze and the others.
Aze blinked, then suddenly laughed, "...He wouldn't be asking you to help him get rid of Lai X Xing, would he?"
I rolled my eyes at him: "Seriously."
"That's hard to say," Aze said slowly. "If we're talking about the biggest conflict between the two countries right now, it's Lai Xixing's case. Should we try to extradite him? But that's not something a gang leader like you can get involved in."
"Well, I don't think it's very likely to be something that's highly political."
Suddenly, a soft, timid voice was heard say, "I think..."
We all turned our attention to her, only to see the little girl sitting to the side, who had been engrossed in eating a large crab. After listening to our conversation for a while, she suddenly put down her food, raised her greasy little hands, and spoke.
"Oh?" I laughed. "What are you trying to say?"