Chapter 389 Don't put all your eggs in one basket
Che Qi Tianwang was covered in both old and new wounds, his entire body battered and bruised.
He knelt in front of that solid wood bed from the Qing Dynasty.
Huo Wendong smiled and said, "Have you made up your mind, baby?"
"Yes, I've figured it out. I should tell the truth."
"Mm, go ahead. Don't waste time."
"This is how it is!"
Che Qi Tianwang suddenly regained his confidence:
"I am one of Lu Chengwen's subordinates."
"Oh?"
"He sent me to steal a treasure for him!"
"What treasure?"
"I don't know."
Huo Wendong tilted his head, looking at him, patience still burning.
Che Qi Tianwang hurriedly added, "But! This treasure is very magical!"
Huo Wendong's eyes lit up. "How magical?"
Che Qi Tianwang thought to himself, I have to make up a good story, or I'll die at the hands of this damn rich second-generation heir.
"The treasure isn't big!"
"Mm."
"But it has a bit of weight to it!"
"Oh?"
"I got all these wounds because of this treasure."
Huo Wendong slapped his thigh. "Makes sense!"
"I brought the treasure back, and Lu Chengwen promised that as long as it was verified as authentic, he'd give me a billion!"
"Oh? It's that valuable?"
"But verifying its authenticity is a bit tricky."
Huo Wendong slapped his thigh again. "It matches! 'Treasure' and 'trouble' both match!"
Che Qi Tianwang continued, "Once he verifies it, he'll call me back and transfer the money. Of course, Xiao Huitianwan was because I did work for him—he couldn't just let me die. If he wants treasures in the future, he'll still need me!"
"Right, right, keep going, tell me about the treasure."
"Can I stand up while talking?"
"Of course!" Huo Wendong turned to Bang Daomang and said, "Get him a chair, let him sit."
"I'm thirsty."
"Serve tea, serve tea."
Che Qi Tianwang finally got a sip of water and chugged it down like crazy.
Huo Wendong anxiously waited. "Drink up, then keep talking."
"This treasure has a special, magical, and great ability!"
"What ability?"
"It can make… a man who can't, become as fierce as Lao Ai! Unstoppable! Wildly aggressive! Incredibly powerful! You could say it's a superpower—like coming back to life!"
Huo Wendong got excited.
Bang Daomang behind him also got excited. "Young Master! With this treasure, your illness can be cured!"
"Ahem!"
Huo Wendong coughed violently and shot him a glare.
Bang Daomang realized he had spoken too hastily and immediately lowered his head, staying silent.
Huo Wendong laughed, rubbing his hands on his thighs. "Hehehe… Hahaha… Brother, you holding up okay?"
"Still okay, just hurts… and hungry."
"I'll get you food right away. Tell me more about the treasure—what does it look like, and how is it used?"
"I heard—I only heard, mind you!"
"Mm, mm, mm."
"It's extremely simple to use."
"Really?!"
"It should be a small ball, said to be a luminous pearl from the Han Dynasty."
"Oh my god!"
"But this luminous pearl—guess what?"
"What!?"
"It has a scent!"
"Oh!"
"A man only needs to take a sniff…"
"And then?"
"Then he becomes the king of the bed! And it doesn't harm the body at all. After the deed, he won't be tired—he'll be refreshed, full of energy, and in peak physical condition! He could even go harvest wheat right after!"
Huo Wendong fell into deep thought.
"You're telling the truth?"
"There's more!"
"There's more?"
"Yes, listen."
"This thing can also be eaten."
"Eaten!?"
"Yes. Once swallowed, it stays in the dantian. It's said that even at eighty years old, the person who ate it will still be as vigorous as a young man! And even after death, when the body is cut open, it can still be retrieved—that's how it's been passed down to this day. But… there's one downside."
"What downside?"
"It smells… so bad that it drives people crazy. Most people can't swallow it."
Huo Wendong thought for a moment and then smiled.
"Brother, if you had just told the truth from the start, would we have had this misunderstanding?"
"Well… I was working for President Lu, and I thought, loyalty is important, right?"
"Loyalty is important, but life is even more important, isn't it?"
"Right, right, President Huo, you've enlightened me! From now on, I'll be loyal to you instead!"
"You see? That's smart!"
Huo Wendong was so excited that he couldn't sit still. He took a deep breath and calmed himself.
"Uh… Brother, let me put it this way… um… I have a friend."
Huo Wendong looked at Che Qi Tianwang, a little uncertain.
Che Qi Tianwang had an innocent face. "Oh? What about him?"
"He… can't."
"Oh, that's tragic. Is he rich?"
"Mm, he's rich."
Che Qi Tianwang copied his move and slapped his thigh—damn, that hurt!
He gritted his teeth and said, "If he's rich, then he's not lacking women. But if he can't… isn't that pure torture? He's missing out on more than half the joys of life! No—ninety percent! No, ninety-nine percent!"
"Exactly!" Huo Wendong said. "He and I are very close, and I always think, if I could help him… to become a man again… don't you think… I should?"
Che Qi Tianwang said, "Young Master Huo, you are such a loyal friend!"
Huo Wendong burst into laughter. "Hahaha! Of course, of course! When he was young, his family was rich, and he was reckless… uh, he went to some… less-than-healthy places and wrecked his body. Back then, he didn't feel it, but as he got older, he became more and more… powerless."
"Aiya, too miserable!"
"I always go all out for my friends, so..."
"You want this treasure!"
"Yes."
"I will find Lu Chengwen, steal this treasure, and give it to you!"
"Haha! That's right!"
"And then you will give me one hundred million!"
"Two hundred million!" Huo Wendong said, "I have to be more generous than Lu Chengwen, hahaha!"
"Huo Shao, I may not be good at other things, but when it comes to stealing treasures, I'm an expert!"
"Great! Bang Daomang!"
"Yes."
"Give it to him."
Bang Daomang pried open Che Qi Tianwang's mouth. Che Qi Tianwang struggled: "What!? What is this!?"
"Poison."
"I've taken quite a lot already, can we skip this one?"
"Silly brother, the ones you took before belonged to others. This one is from me."
Sending Che Qi Tianwang to the door, Huo Wendong took out a card: "There's five hundred thousand in it, and you can use this car to get around. One day, remember, my poison only lasts for one day. Bring me the treasure, and I'll give you the antidote—plus another two hundred million."
"And if I fail to steal the treasure?"
Huo Wendong shook his head. "Then your fate will be very interesting."
From the beginning—last night, at Lu Chengwen's villa.
After everyone finished beating up Che Qi, Hua Xuening was coaxing the little monkey to sleep.
Lu Chengwen started eating and holding a meeting with his ten subordinates.
At this moment, Fu Bo Tianwang was worrying about the employment situation of his group.
Following a big organization, there were many bad things they could do—assassinations, battles, and so on.
But following Lu Chengwen? He was doing business. What was the point of having so many high-level fighters?
Feeding them for nothing, with no profit in return.
The structure of power was flawed. Keeping them around was basically just to prevent them from rebelling or switching sides. The actual gains were almost zero.
This was a difficult problem.
Short-term, it was fine. But in the long run, his group would be nothing more than parasites—a burden, a deadweight.
But Lu Chengwen obviously had a better plan.
"Don't worry, not only do you have jobs, but they are very important ones."
"Please instruct us, Boss Lu."
Lu Chengwen smiled. "You all… will continue opposing me."
The five men looked at each other.
Lu Chengwen said, "Go wherever you want, but you can't leave Xuecheng, and you can't stray too far from my territory. Stay in touch with me."
"And then?" Fu Bo Tianwang asked.
"Then, gather intelligence for me." Lu Chengwen gritted his teeth. "Every time the big organization sends someone, they almost always contact you first. That way, I'll be prepared."
The five were stunned.
Lu Chengwen laughed. "I'm not abandoning you—I'm making you my insiders."
Fu Bo Tianwang was not very willing.
What kind of job was this? In the end, they'd just be traitors? Traitors to both sides?
Lu Chengwen said, "Don't doubt it. If I didn't absolutely trust you, I wouldn't let you do this. For your own safety, whenever someone from the big organization comes, you only need to report it. That's all. When they attack me, just pretend to fight—no need to put in real effort."
Ahu slapped his thigh. "Boss Lu! Brilliant!"
The other four stared at Ahu. Fu Bo looked at him. "You… understood?"
"Got it!" Ahu was excited, his face glowing. "Big Brother, this is an easy job! We can get benefits from both sides!"
Fu Bo was dumbfounded. "Didn't you consider the danger?"
Ahu said, "Big Brother, from now on, no matter which damn Tianwang comes, won't they have to ask us for inside information?"
"Mm."
"Will they kill us immediately?"
"Uh… probably not…"
"If we stay in touch with the strategist, we just have to act like we've already offended Boss Lu and can't go back to the organization. Meanwhile, we can enjoy life in Xuecheng. When someone comes, we report it. When we get a mission, we slack off. How great is that?"
Ahu turned to Axiao. "Axiao, just act like you don't know anything. That way, we brothers don't have to split up."
Along nodded. "Then what about me?"
Ahu patted his shoulder. "Along, don't ask. Just do whatever we do."
"Mm."
Axiao handed the card back to Lu Chengwen. "Boss Lu, take this card back."
Lu Chengwen clapped his hands. "Great! Now, five on the inside, five on the outside. A perfect pincer move. Let's see who the big organization sends next to clean up this mess."
The next day, Lu Chengwen and Xu Xuejiao took the little monkey to a psychology clinic.
Zhao Gang parked the car, and Lu Chengwen asked with a serious face, "Is this reliable or not?"
Xu Xuejiao said, "Relax, the little monkey probably saw something scary or experienced something traumatic, which caused an acute stress reaction and psychological issues. Teacher Zhao is an expert in this field. It's really hard to book an appointment with him."
"How hard?" Lu Chengwen was unconvinced.
"For us, of course, it's not hard! Let's go, let's go!"
Xu Xuejiao held the little monkey's hand. "Little Monkey, don't be scared, okay? Sister is taking you to meet an auntie. She's really nice!"
Jiang Xiaohou seemed to sense something terrifying and started backing away. "I don't want to go, I don't want to go… Brother, Sister, I don't want to go. Little Monkey doesn't want to go…"
After struggling for a while, Lu Chengwen finally lost his patience. He gritted his teeth and said, "Get in there! If you don't go, I'll beat you to death!"
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