Steven was greatly intrigued by Shen Jinmo's suggestion.

However, Steven quickly became wary: "No, I spent a lot of money to recruit these artists; their value is far more than ten million."

Steven wasn't entirely stupid; he didn't fall for Shen Jinmo's trick.

"But the paintings you made them have lost their soul. They won't fetch the high prices they used to. Besides, the police are already investigating these paintings. Their paintings are unique and will be blocked by the police once they are recognized. No one dares to buy them."

Are you sure their value is enough to recoup that ten million?

Shen Jinmo spoke slowly and deliberately, a slight mocking smile playing on his lips.

Steven's azure eyes deepened, and he hesitated somewhat, swayed by Shen Jinmo's words.

His collaboration with the Luo family was to control these artists, thereby dethroning Lu Zhiwei from her position as president of the Art Association, and incidentally, to manipulate Lu Zhiwei.

If Old Master Luo were to ask him for Lu Zhiwei's life one day, he would have to personally deliver her to him.

So this whole scheme was set up for Lu Zhiwei from the very beginning.

The reason they've brought Shen Jinmo here is nothing more than for some petty gains.

He can distinguish between what is important and what is not.

Shen Jinmo seemed to see through his thoughts and pressed on, saying, "Judging from the scale of the artists you've caught, you're good enough to earn two or three billion."

"You've always been in charge of the people detained here. If you replace these artists with your subordinates, how would the Luo family know? Besides, their focus has always been on Lu Zhiwei; they can't interfere with you in other areas, can they?"

“Of course.” Steven proudly raised his head.

He was unwilling to be controlled by the Luo family.

Who wouldn't want to be rich and powerful, to dominate the world, and to act like a tyrant?

This was his greatest dream throughout his military career.

"Why do I get the feeling that you came here to rescue these artists? Were you just trying to fool me?" Steven suddenly cocked his gun and pointed it at Shen Jingmo's forehead.

The darkness was stark, and the cold muzzle of the gun pressed against his pale skin.

If one is not careful, pulling the trigger will leave a bloody hole in his forehead.

"I'm here to discuss a deal with you, but whether you choose this deal or not is up to you." Shen Jinmo was too lazy to waste any more words and closed her eyes to await his decision.

Even if he were to shoot him now, he would remain calm and fearless.

Steven slowly removed the gun from his forehead: "You businessmen are cunning; I can't completely trust you. We'll talk about cooperation later."

Steven assigned several men to keep a close watch on Shen Jinmo before leaving the dungeon.

After the person left, the light that had been shining on Shen Jinmo disappeared along with them.

His tall, aloof figure was once again plunged into boundless darkness.

It was very cold here, so cold that he was shivering all over.

His current physical condition is no longer able to withstand this damp cold.

The excruciating pain spread throughout his limbs and bones.

After returning to his office, Steven leaned back in his swivel chair and fiddled with his pistol.

His bodyguard, Rod, solemnly advised him: "Boss, businessmen are always cunning and treacherous. He must be here to rescue everyone. He may have even arranged for the police to watch our every move. We must not take any risks."

Steven waved his hand: "How could I not know? But these artists are indeed producing fewer and fewer works, and their paintings don't sell for much money. Even if you dissected their internal organs and sold them, you still wouldn't get ten million."

"So you want to?"

"It's stupid not to make money when you can. Making billions is a sure thing. Besides, Shen Jinmo is still in my hands. I'll have Lu Zhiwei come and redeem Shen Jinmo with the money herself."

I'll make sure she loses everything, never to return. That way, I can give the Luo family an explanation. Isn't that a win-win situation?

Steven stroked his chin, deeply admiring his own intelligence.

"Should I have my men contact Lu Zhiwei?"

“I will contact you personally. You are responsible for gathering our people to stay in the prison for these redeemed artists. We need to have doubles here to fool that old fox from the Luo family.”

“Okay.” Rhodes received the order and turned to leave the office.

——

Lu Zhiwei and her son had just settled in after arriving in Country M.

Then I received a call from an unknown number in the border area.

She told her son to go back inside and play, and then went to the backyard to answer the call.

"Hello……"

“Miss Lu, I am Steven, the mastermind behind the abduction of those artists.” Steven introduced himself as soon as he came in.

This caught Lu Zhiwei somewhat off guard. She frowned and exclaimed, "Where is Shen Jinmo?"

"He's with me, and I'm taking good care of him. You don't need to worry about that. I have a business deal I'd like to do with you. I wonder if Miss Lu would be interested?"

"Speak!" Lu Zhiwei answered the phone while going upstairs to her study and turning on her computer.

Then, they accessed a computer webpage and attempted to use hacking techniques to locate the position displayed by the number.

The location was determined shortly afterward.

It almost perfectly matches the positioning given on Shen Jinmo's bracelet at the time.

In other words, the other party did not lie.

“I have about twenty or thirty artists here. As the president of the art association, you wouldn’t just stand by and watch them die, would you? They are living in dire straits every day, begging me to let them go back.”

"If Chairman Lu wants to be a savior, he can use money to redeem them all, including Shen Jinmo!"

Steven laid out his collaboration details directly, without any beating around the bush.

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