Chapter Twenty-Six: Background

The clamor of the feast receded like the tide, leaving behind a mess and the lingering smell of alcohol.

The huge hall was empty again, with only a few low-level staff members responsible for cleaning silently tidying up the mess. Their figures looked small and tired in the dim light.

The laughter, flattery, probing, and confrontation that had filled the air before have now turned into a cold silence, like a magnificent but fleeting illusion.

Xu Yue did not stay in the main hall. Alone, she returned to her private study, located at the far end of the building and with the best soundproofing. The heavy oak door closed behind her, completely shutting out the last trace of noise from the outside world.

She took off the silver-gray satin gown that symbolized her role as the hostess of the banquet and changed into a more comfortable dark casual outfit. Her movements were unhurried, but her tightly pursed lips and slightly furrowed brows betrayed her inner turmoil.

Only a desk lamp was lit in the study, casting a warm halo around the huge mahogany desk, but it could not dispel the deep darkness in the four corners of the room.

The air was filled with the scents of old books, leather, and faint cigars—a familiar aroma that gave her a sense of control. Yet tonight, an indescribable, unsettling feeling lingered.

She walked to the huge floor-to-ceiling window, outside which was a thick, impenetrable London night fog, and in the direction of the Thames, only a few blurry, will-o'-the-wisps of navigation lights.

The banquet was a great success. The alliance with Lian Yeyi was fully demonstrated, potential partners were appeased or deterred, and the organization's strength and influence were undeniably presented to everyone.

Everything went according to plan, even more smoothly than expected.

But it was precisely this "smooth sailing" that made her feel a vague unease.

She picked up the long-cooled black tea from the table, took a sip, and felt the bitter taste spread across her tongue. Her sharp gaze swept across the endless darkness outside the window, and in the depths of her gray eyes, it seemed as if ice crystals were forming.

This is not directed at Lian Yeyi.

Although the man was as dangerous as a jackal, his ambition and desires were straightforward, and his promises were credible when bound by shared interests.

Their handshake and reconciliation were based on respect for each other's spheres of influence and consideration of practical needs. The danger was foreseeable, negotiable, and even exploitable.

What unsettled her was something else entirely. Something colder, more hidden, more…omnipresent.

Throughout the banquet, she had a constant feeling of being watched. Not by the guests in the public eye—their stares were driven by curiosity, awe, or calculation, and she could discern them all with precision.

This feeling of being watched was more like a cold, emotionless gaze piercing through the bustling crowd and dazzling lights, like an invisible thread clinging to her back from afar.

It had neither malice nor goodwill, only a pure, specimen-observing calmness.

This gaze was not entirely unfamiliar to her. Many years ago, when she was still trapped in that cold monastery, she seemed to have felt a similar indifferent gaze from a higher place every time she tried to resist or escape. It was the gaze of a larger, older, and more unknown force.

BXX.

The name haunted her mind like a ghost. Although Mu Ye's intelligence network had not yet fully mapped out the organization's entirety, it was known that it was deeply embedded in the power core of London and even the whole of Britain, with tentacles reaching into various fields such as finance, politics, and intelligence. Its style of operation was secretive and efficient, and it seemed to have an unusual... "interest" in the rise of the emerging power of Xu Yue.

Was that gaze tonight from BXX? What were they implying? What were they warning? Or were they simply... confirming something?

A strong urge to trace back to the source surged within her.

She wanted to know where she came from, why she had been abandoned, and why she had attracted the attention of a behemoth like BXX. This desire to explore her vague origins had been suppressed in the past by the urgency of survival and the pressure of organizational development, but now, after achieving a stage of success and the external threats seemingly being temporarily relieved or, rather, emerging in another, more terrifying form, this desire had become stronger than ever before.

She needed to talk to someone. Not to give orders, not to listen to reports, but to truly and honestly exchange her inner doubts. In this kingdom she had built with her own hands, yet which she had also wrapped in layers of armor, there was only one person with whom she could let down some of her guard.

She pressed an inconspicuous brass bell on the corner of the table. A moment later, the study door was silently pushed open, and Gongyang Yandaosi appeared in the doorway.

He had changed out of the slightly formal clothes he wore at the banquet and was now wearing his usual impeccable dark gray suit. His long, silvery-white hair was neatly tied back, and his face showed a hint of fatigue, but his eyes remained clear and focused.

"Boss." He nodded slightly, his voice steady.

"Sit down, Daosi." Xuyue gestured to the high-backed armchair opposite the desk and sat down behind it herself. Unusually, she didn't immediately get to the point, but remained silent for a moment, her fingertips unconsciously tapping on the smooth surface of the desk, making a soft tapping sound.

The ram didn't urge him, but sat quietly, waiting. He could sense that Xu Yue's emotions were somewhat unusual tonight; beneath that usual, rock-solid sense of control, there seemed to be a rare hint of confusion.

"What do you think of today's banquet?" Xu Yue finally spoke, her voice low.

“Very successful.” Ram’s answer was concise. “Lian Yeyi showed enough sincerity and also deterred potential swingers. Our alliance is solid in the short term.” He paused and added, “However, there are a few faces from the City and Scotland Yard that we haven’t had much contact with before, and we need to follow up and evaluate them.”

Xu Yue nodded; Gong Yang shared her view. She then changed the subject, her grey eyes fixed on Gong Yang: "Besides these people in the public eye, have you sensed... anything else?"

Gongyang's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. He recalled the details of the banquet, his usually anxious but extremely sharp eyes narrowing slightly: "In the northwest corner of the venue, near the ventilation duct entrance, there were two waiters whose movements were too standard, not like temporary recruits. Also, the curtain on the left side of the second-floor viewing platform swayed slightly and abnormally once when Lian Yeyi gave her toast, but there were no one of our people there at the time."

A hint of approval flashed in Xu Yue's eyes. Gong Yang's keen observation of details and vigilance regarding safety had never disappointed her. This was one of the reasons she relied on him.

“It’s not just that.” Xu Yue’s voice was even lower, with a hint of coldness. “I feel… a pair of eyes watching me. Very far away, very cold… not like anyone here.”

The ram's body tensed slightly. He knew Xu Yue; her intuition often touched the truth before the most sophisticated intelligence. "BXX?" He almost immediately thought of this only possibility.

“Not sure. But it looks like it.” Xu Yue stood up, walked to the window again, turned her back to Gong Yang, and looked at the dark night outside the window. “Dao Si, I’ve been thinking about a question lately… a question I should have thought about a long time ago, but I never had the chance, or rather… I didn’t dare to think about it.”

She paused for a moment, as if gathering her courage, then slowly turned around. The light cast interplay of light and shadow on her face, making her expression appear exceptionally profound and unfathomable.

“I want to find out about my origins.” She looked into the ram’s eyes and spoke each word calmly, yet with an undeniable determination. “I’m not talking about my time in the monastery. I mean, before that. Who am I? Where did I come from? Who are my parents? Why did they abandon me? And… BXX, why do they seem to be… paying extra 'attention' to me?”

A deathly silence fell over the study. Only the occasional crackling of firewood from the fireplace accentuated the heaviness of the stillness.

For the first time, a clear emotional fluctuation appeared on the ram's face—not surprise, but a deep, almost painful worry. His hands, resting on his knees, clenched quietly.

“Boss,” his voice was unusually urgent, “the past is the past. What matters is the present, the future of the organization. Digging into the past, especially the past that might involve entities like BXX, is tantamount to opening Pandora’s box! It will bring unpredictable dangers and could drag everything we’ve worked so hard to build into an abyss of no return!”

His opposition was expected. Gongyang Yan Daosi's core pursuit was order and security. For him, the unknown past represented the greatest uncertainty and source of risk.

"Precisely because they might be connected to me, we must investigate thoroughly!" Xu Yue's voice rose slightly, carrying a suppressed excitement. "Are we supposed to wait until they come knocking on our door with 'truths' I know nothing about before we react passively? Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. Without understanding our own origins, we will always be fighting an unseen enemy in the dark!"

“But the enemy is visible now! Lian Yeyi, and other gangs that are eyeing us covetously! We should concentrate all our efforts on consolidating the alliance and expanding our power, instead of scattering our strength to pursue a ‘truth’ that may not even exist!” Gongyang also stood up, his tone agitated, a few strands of his silver hair falling across his forehead, revealing a crack in his usually calm and composed image. “Moreover, what if… what if the truth we find is something you cannot bear?” He said the last sentence almost through gritted teeth, filled with reluctance and fear.

The unbearable truth. These words, like an ice spike, pierced precisely into Xu Yue's deepest fear.

Has she never considered this possibility? Perhaps her birth was a mistake, her very existence a kind of "pollution," which is why she was abandoned and why she attracted the "attention" of an organization like BXX.

But it was precisely this possibility that made it even more impossible for her to ignore. She had to know. Whether it was for revenge, for liberation, or simply... to figure out who she really was.

“Dao Si,” Xu Yue’s tone softened, but carried a deeper weariness and determination, “I understand your worries. I’m afraid too. But fear won’t solve anything. Once this thought arises, it can’t be suppressed anymore. It’s like a thorn stuck in my heart; I can never find peace until it’s pulled out.” She walked up to Gong Yang, gazing into his anxious eyes. “I need to know. I need your help.”

Looking at the unwavering resolve in Xu Yue's eyes, and the hidden vulnerability that even she herself might not be aware of, Gong Yang felt all his words of persuasion stuck in his throat.

He knew her; once she made a decision, especially one concerning her very roots, no one could change it. His duty was never to stop her, but to protect her as much as possible, minimizing the harm she might suffer on her path forward.

He remained silent for a long time, and finally sighed deeply, his shoulders slumping slightly—a helpless compromise. "...I will arrange for the most reliable people to start the investigation from the outermost, most inconspicuous channels."

"But we must be extremely cautious. We cannot use our core intelligence network, and we cannot arouse any suspicion, especially... BXX's suspicion," he added with difficulty. "And if any indication is found that could jeopardize your or the organization's security, the investigation must stop immediately."

“I understand.” Xu Yue nodded, a hint of gratitude flashing in her eyes. She knew that this was the biggest concession and support Gong Yang could offer.

Just then, there was a gentle knock on the study door. After receiving permission, Mu entered silently. She was still dressed in black, her face as pale as paper, and she held a small piece of paper in her hand.

“Xu Yue, Mr. Gongyang.” Her voice, like her eyes, was devoid of warmth. “We have just intercepted and deciphered a very brief, highly encrypted directional signal. The source of the signal cannot be precisely located, but its general direction… points to the parliament district on the other side of the river. The signal contained only one word—”

She placed the note on the desk.

Xu Yue and Gong Yang's eyes simultaneously fell on the note. It contained only one word written with a cipher pen:

"Observation complete."

The air in the study instantly dropped to freezing point.

That cold gaze was not an illusion. Beneath the surface of the grand feast, undercurrents were already surging.

The search for one's origins is destined to lead this undercurrent into an even more unpredictable abyss.