Zuo Ling felt the atmosphere was awkward, so she took out some candy to ease the tension, but she never expected Guo Qi to express such sentiments.

Seeing that He Xiao's eyes were red, it was clear that he was also quite upset.

He then pulled out two more handfuls of candy. "I have some more here. If you like them, you can have them all."

He Xiao smiled broadly, divided the portion into two equal parts, and carefully put away his own portion.

The other portion was divided: half was put in Guo Qi's pocket, and the rest was shared between Chen Hao and Di Fei.

At first, Zuo Ling found He Xiao's series of childish actions somewhat amusing, but as she watched, she couldn't laugh anymore.

The way a man who can develop real estate and has his own vast business empire was so careful and attentive when faced with a few pieces of candy made her feel uneasy.

Guo Qi tossed the candy he had received to Chen Hao and Di Fei, then clapped his hands and said, "Alright, let's get down to business."

His expression turned serious, and he asked Zuo Ling, "I'd like to know, what are your plans next?"

Plans? What plans? I'm just glad I can survive day by day.

"I have no plans. I'll just take it one day at a time. I'll be lucky to be alive."

The disappointment in Guo Qi's eyes flashed for a moment. He coughed twice and said:

“I know that Miss Zuo and her brother are no ordinary people. Why don’t I tell you about our plans?”

In the hillside villa area, several people were looking this way.

"What is Guo Qi trying to do? Is he trying to win over Pei Nansheng and his sister to oppose us?"

The steward smirked and cursed, "You didn't hit him hard enough. You should have killed him last time."

Guo Qi was exceptionally capable and had gathered a group of people under his command. Due to unfair monthly fees, he represented everyone in negotiating with the Ning family, but was beaten by Ning Da Ge and had been bedridden for several months.

I heard that he was almost dead from an illness a while ago, but now he's... better?

Ning Qiang casually tossed the binoculars aside. "Let's go join the fun."

...

"The country of Australia is a complex place with many conflicting forces, and it is not a place for us Chinese to live in for long. If possible, I would like to take everyone back to China, back to our own home."

Neither He Xiao nor Zuo Ling expected that Guo Qi's first words would be this.

Given the current conditions, returning to China is by no means easy.

"You don't know yet, do you? Kyoto has fallen, and who knows what's happening in the other places. If we go back, we probably won't even be able to find a place."

"What did you say? Kyoto has fallen?"

He Xiao jumped so high that his voice changed.

"Yes, it's fallen. I saw it with my own eyes."

Zuo Ling nodded. Your safe house, and the things inside, hahaha...

The safe house fell, and half of the stuff in that house is in my space, hahaha... Annoying, isn't it! I'm not telling you.

Guo Qi wasn't much stronger than He Xiao. When he received the news of abandoning Kyoto, he assumed it was a strategic relocation and didn't think much of it.

He packed up quickly, took Chen Hao and Di, and flew to the Northwest. What happened after that, he knew nothing.

Such a large city as Kyoto... has fallen?! His expression changed several times, bewildered and helpless, suddenly feeling a sense of homelessness.

"Not only Kyoto, but as far as I know, the area around Mount Everest has also collapsed."

Zuo Ling dropped another bombshell.

The fall of Mount Everest did not elicit a strong reaction from Guo and He. In their minds, Beijing represented China, and if Beijing had fallen, it would not be surprising if anywhere else fell.

He Xiao beat his chest and stamped his feet, spinning around and around. As he spun, he cried out, spat out a mouthful of blood, and fell backward to the ground.

Guo Qi, having anticipated this, caught He Xiao when he noticed something was wrong.

He Xiao's eyes were tightly closed, his face was pale and weak, and he was unconscious.

All his hopes were in Kyoto; the safe house held the key to his comeback and was his only support for survival.

Now, it's all over!

Originally, Zuo Ling had been secretly watching the show with amusement, but seeing He Xiao's reaction, that little thought vanished instantly.

He thought to himself, "Oh well, I'll just help you guys out."

"He Xiao, He Xiao..."

Chen Hao and Di Fei were sharing candy when they heard their older brother's voice and rushed over.

"What's wrong? What's wrong? What's going on?"

Guo Qi pressed a point on He Xiao's philtrum, and He Xiao slowly woke up. He rolled his eyes, remembered the fall of the capital, and spat out another mouthful of blood.

"Brother He, Brother He, what's going on?"

Chen Hao and Di Fei were completely baffled. They looked at their older brother and then at Zuo Ling. What did you two say? You've really made them want to vomit blood.

"Kyoto has fallen."

Chen Hao and Di Fei stared wide-eyed. They were fine when they left, so how did they end up in this predicament?

Guo Qi and Zuo Ling both looked grim; one had lost her home, and her faith had crumbled considerably.

The other one, having taken half a room's worth of things, felt a pang of pity seeing the person in such pain.

He Xiao lay half-dead on the ground, staring with two empty eyes, seemingly lost in thought.

The five people stood frozen in place, none of them in the mood to speak.

"Hey, what kind of pantomime is this? I was just looking forward to joining in the fun, but why is everyone so quiet?"

Ning Qiang smiled broadly, followed by a group of his underlings, making quite a grand entrance.

Xiao Hao and Pei Nansheng ran over one after the other, and Xiao Hao immediately pulled the bolt of his gun.

As soon as he pulled the bolt, Ning Qiang's henchmen followed suit, clicking and clacking, instantly creating a tense atmosphere.

Ning Qiang waved his hand, "Put it down, put it down, why are you so nervous?"

He waved to Xiao Hao, "Little brother, don't be so nervous, I mean no harm."

As he spoke, he took out a piece of chocolate.

Xiao Hao snorted, rolled his eyes, and snorted, putting on an air of disdain.

Ning Qiang very patiently stuffed the chocolate into his pocket, saying, "Here, take it. If you like it, I have more. Come visit me sometime, and I'll give it to you."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!