Her calm and composed demeanor made Xu Zhi even more certain that Jia Zuowei must have negotiated some terms with Chuanliu.

Xu was a little anxious, but he remained calm on the surface. "Everything has its price. I think we can talk about it again."

Chuan Liu asked softly, "Do you think you can afford the price of '9 of Diamonds'?"

Xu Zhi was startled by what he said and stood up abruptly.

"What?!"

Chuanliu remained seated, unaffected by her excitement.

Xu Zhi quickly calmed down and tentatively smiled, "Impossible, Jia Zuowei isn't that generous."

Chuanliu shrugged. "Who knows?"

Once the seed of doubt is planted, it will immediately take root and sprout.

Xu remained silent for a long time. "I can't give you the 'Nine of Diamonds,' but you can make an offer. As long as the price is reasonable, I'm willing to pay."

Chuanliu: "If I don't agree, you're going to use force, right?"

“Once you become ‘Square 10,’ I can guarantee you will never be threatened by him again.” Xu Zhi extended an olive branch once more.

But Chuanliu burst out laughing.

"Pfft, you don't actually believe Jia promised me the '9 of Diamonds' spot, do you? He's just threatening me; if I don't vote for him, I'll be sorry."

This certainly sounds more like Jia Zuowei's style. Xu Zhi looked at her, trying to determine whether her words were true or false.

Chuanliu continued, "I just agreed to it. After all, my life is more important."

"And now?"

"Haven't we always been allies?" Chuanliu's smile deepened, revealing a smug satisfaction at having successfully toyed with the other party.

Xu Zhi breathed a sigh of relief. She lightly punched the person opposite her. "Don't joke like that. I almost hit you."

Chuanliu pounded back, as if recalling the oath they had made by shaking hands.

"My feigned agreement was just a delaying tactic. If he knew that everyone was on your side, he would definitely choose to resolve the issue with force."

Chuanliu's explanation reassured Xu Zhi, who instructed, "Then be careful during this time. If he causes trouble again, you can notify me... I still need to talk to one more person, and I should be able to apply to the higher-ups to initiate a vote soon."

"Apply?"

"Yes, according to the rules, after the vote is initiated, you will be arranged to vote anonymously at the Block Building. During this period, you will not have contact with anyone until everyone has voted. Finally, 'Block J' and 'Block Q' will jointly count the votes."

J and Q.

Chuanliu's eyes lit up for a moment, but he quickly concealed it.

"Okay, see you then."

The more high-ranking people she meets and gets to know, the greater the chance she will find "Joker." After this matter is over, she must find an opportunity to investigate these people.

With most of the matter that had been on her mind resolved, Xu Zhi relaxed and leaned into her male companion's arms.

She ran her fingers down the man's brow, to his lips, to his chest... The man simply sat there obediently, gently stroking her body with one hand.

"By the way, I heard you have a handsome guy living here, but I haven't seen him around."

While playing with her male companion, Xu Zhi looked around curiously.

Her male companion seemed to be jealous, and grabbed her chin and kissed her.

Chuanliu seemed oblivious to the erotic scene before him, replying, "He had to leave first."

Xu Zhichao smiled sweetly and tightened her grip, saying, "If you like something, you have to hold on to it."

The man winced in pain, but the kiss deepened.

"Thank you for reminding me."

Chuanliu didn't explain much, which was a good thing, as it kept Xu Zhi wary at all times.

Xu Zhi bid farewell at the opportune moment, saying, "It's getting late, so we'll be leaving now. Call my winery if you need anything."

The two were inseparable, kissing as they walked, but the moment they stepped out of the villa, the man reverted to his dominant role.

After seeing the two off, Chuanliu called Wu Fangming.

"Hey, Fang Ming, it's me. How are you doing over there?"

Wu Fangming rushed back to "Black Spade 10's" residence that night and found the house in a complete mess.

Having just calmed everyone down and cleaned up the mess, I'm now completely exhausted.

The man's voice on the other end of the phone sounded muffled. "It's 'Nine of Spades.' They brought a bunch of people to cause trouble, but when they didn't see me, they took their anger out on my family."

The place he lives in now, as well as the servants in his household, were all inherited from the previous "10 of Spades".

Because of the gang nature of the "Spade" suit, the servants in the household are almost 100% loyal to the person with this identity.

Although Wu Fangming was more used to living alone, he had nowhere else to go if his family wasn't here, so he decided to leave them all behind.

Little did they know that their departure would be the first to suffer.

When he arrived on the island, the one who came to "pick him up" was "Black Spade 9" - Lei Laojiu. After parting ways with Chuanliu, Lei Laojiu also took Wu Fangming's identity card as usual.

However, they underestimated Wu Fangming's strength. Their rudimentary skills were no match for the well-trained Wu Fangming, and in the end, they were all subdued.

Afterwards, Wu Fangming unexpectedly and smoothly took the throne of "10 of Spades".

The investigation also uncovered the cause of death of the former "10 of Spades"—Lei Lao Jiu had paid a hefty sum to kill him. Unfortunately, his dream of rising to power was shattered, and he ended up becoming the scapegoat for Lei Lao Jiu.

Throughout the entire ordeal, Wu Fangming believed he had never provoked Lei Laojiu, yet Lei Laojiu relentlessly pressed him.

Wu Fangming couldn't help but feel angry. Having not seen blood for so many days, he had almost forgotten what blood tasted like.

Wu Fangming roused himself and continued, "Don't worry, sister, I'll go back as soon as I finish what I'm doing."

After listening to the man's account of his conflict with Lei Laojiu, Chuanliu shook his head. "I'm not in any danger for the time being. You go ahead and attend to your important matters."

Wu Fangming: "Your matter is also important. I was caught completely off guard this time, but once I've arranged things for my men, this situation won't happen again."

A famous quote from Spade City is:

"Force can solve all problems."

How could the former "10 of Spades" be an ordinary person? If this position had no value, Lei Laojiu wouldn't have been so eager to get it.

After assuring Chuanliu that he was fine, Wu Fangming hung up the phone.

"9 of Diamonds" and "10 of Diamonds".

"9 of Spades" and "10 of Spades".

The battle for power has begun, and it involves not only the two sides, but also the low-income population, the homeless, and even other diverse groups.

There seems to be an invisible hand manipulating everything from behind the scenes.

Perhaps someone is orchestrating this, or perhaps it's because of "power."

Two pieces, one black and one white. Which one is black? Which one is white?