Chapter 286 Velvet Soft Girl (2)
Chu Hengkong stood on a high stool, feeling the edge of the chandelier, inspecting it inch by inch. Every drawer in the room was open, and removed decorative paintings and mirrors were thrown in the corner. The curtains were in disarray, as if they had been scratched by a werewolf with clipped nails.
Velvet sat on the bed, feeling her brain stop working for once.
"……What are you doing."
"Just a basic check, kid." Chu Hengkong let go, and the chandelier spun with a creak. "There are probably micro cameras in every corner of the hotel. Checking in without checking is like taking off your clothes in front of hundreds of thousands of people."
Velvet resisted the urge to take a deep breath. "This is a hotel under the jurisdiction of the Covenant. There will be no mean behavior here."
"I really like your innocence. A girl should be naive to be cute." Chu Hengkong jumped down from his chair. "I know a streetwalker. Although she has experienced the world, she also has this innocence. She has a blind trust in high-end consumption and luxury goods. She always said that she spent a lot of money to stay in high-end hotels, so she would never encounter any scandalous invasion of her privacy... Until one day she opened her email and saw a videotape of herself receiving a guest in the hotel."
“Would a woman like this care about being recorded?” Velvet asked.
"The blackmailer threatened to send the video to her hometown. No matter what business you run, you always care about your family," Chu Hengkong said. "So she had no choice but to pay, $100, $500, $1,000... Finally, one time she couldn't afford it anymore, so she went to a pizza shop for a big meal, crying as she ate. I guess she was planning to jump off the building after she had her fill."
"And then?"
"Afterwards, I helped her get the money back, and that's the end of the story." Chu Hengkong shrugged. "This story tells us that we can't rely on blind trust for safety. Price and reputation are not trustworthy. Only people are trustworthy."
Velvet nodded slowly, "Father never taught me that."
"This isn't suitable as a bedtime story." Chu Hengkong laughed. "What did you buy?"
The knocks on the door came at the same time. The room was clearly well soundproofed, but this boy with extraordinary powers could still detect every move outside the door by his hearing. He opened the door, took a suit, and turned around with a smile on his face.
"boss?"
"I need to discuss business later. If you're willing to change your clothes, your chances of success will be higher."
Chu Hengkong looked at the small suit as if he was looking at a colorful clown hat, even though he was still wearing a delivery vest.
When he went into the bathroom, Velvet breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that this guy didn't take off his clothes in front of her.
A minute later, Chu Hengkong walked out in a very proud manner. His suit jacket was draped over his shoulders like a coat, the buttons on his shirt were all undone, and the lower half of his belt stuck out diagonally from the side and back, like a black monkey tail.
"Isn't he handsome?" he said proudly.
Velvet finally couldn’t hold it back and sighed deeply.
"Stand still, don't move."
She completely ignored Chu Hengkong's reaction and went straight to help him button up his shirt and smooth out his wrinkled shirt. She adjusted the length of the belt and tucked the disobedient back half back in. Finally, she stood on tiptoe and forcefully stuffed Chu Hengkong's arm into the sleeve of his suit.
"Did you buy this set of clothes just to torture me?" Chu Hengkong looked helpless, fiddling with the tight collar.
"If you're willing to wear a suit, please dress appropriately," Velvet told him. "If you find this unacceptable, please change back into your usual clothes."
Chu Hengkong stared at her for a few seconds, but Velvet refused to give in, and the boy was finally defeated.
"Okay, okay, you're the boss today, you have the final say." He sighed loudly. "You know what, Velvet? If things keep going like this, you'll become that kind of bossy wife who makes everyone frown. You'll control your husband all day long, and he'll have to look at your approval before he goes out for a cigarette."
"Sounds good."
"That's not good at all. I'm warning you not to go in that direction. Please be more cheerful and relaxed, and be a lively, pretty and lovely young girl, okay?"
Velvet stared at him silently. Chu Hengkong raised his hands exaggeratedly: "Come on, let me talk business with you."
He wasn't good at dealing with strong and friendly people. Velvet silently noted that this was because he always had the confidence to control the situation, but lacked the experience of negotiating with others on equal terms and hated inefficient communication. Therefore, when disputes arose that had nothing to do with likes and dislikes or bottom lines, he would habitually choose to give in, which was the most efficient way to resolve the problem.
In other words, as long as he thinks you are on his "side", he will subconsciously give in to you.
Before leaving, Chu Hengkong asked, whether intentionally or unintentionally, "Didn't you say at the beginning that you were going to negotiate with the Russians? Do the old officials know that you want to discuss business here?"
“I don’t know,” Velvet replied, “That’s why it’s safe.”
Chu Hengkong touched his chin and uttered, "Ah." Velvet was sure he was very perceptive, but she was too lazy to think about it.
"Tell me about the background."
"The head of the Rodrigo family will be dining at the hotel tonight. He's Spanish and one of Velus's few allies. He acts cautiously, and therefore lacks drive. Rodrigo will need to fulfill his obligations as a member of the covenant soon, but unfortunately, they weakened even faster than Velus."
"A rich man in a midlife crisis." Chu Hengkong laughed, "Interesting..."
The head of the Rodrigo family, a man in his sixties with a silvery, slicked-back hair, was the only table of guests in the restaurant. As the two men approached the table, his old eyes held an unconcealed look of surprise.
"Please sit down, Miss Velus," the old man said in surprise. "My God, it's been a long time since we last met... The last time I saw you, you were still in your mother's arms."
His bodyguard, a scoundrel-looking red-haired man, pulled out a chair for the two of them to sit in. Chu Hengkong patted his arm and thanked him in a familiar manner, but the red-haired man withdrew his hand without saying a word.
“Time always flies faster than we think, Mr. Rodrigo,” Velvet said. “Due to the ancient friendship between our two families, I have come to offer my assistance to Rodrigo.”
She spoke so naturally and confidently, as if she were a noblewoman in the city helping her poor relatives in the countryside. Rodrigo laughed in surprise: "I'm sorry, but..."
The red-haired man sneered and continued, "No offense, but how can Velus help us now?"
"The Blood Alliance has assigned you two missions: to exterminate the cultists on the west coast and the dark wizards in Iceland," Velvet said, directly disclosing the family secrets. "Rodriguez is now unable to fulfill his responsibilities, and the cost of withdrawing from the alliance is even greater. I believe you are staying here tonight so that we can travel south tomorrow and ask the Japanese to handle the situation on your behalf."
Rodrigo put down his knife and fork, put away the look of an elder, and stared at the young girl as if she were a witch.
"That's a slightly aggressive guess."
“The Japanese are asking a high price.”
"If you want to ask the Japanese for help, you always have to pay the corresponding price."
Velvet mentioned a number that amazed Chu Hengkong. Rodrigo's eyes narrowed, and the red-haired man's expression became anxious. No one at the table spoke for a moment. The waiter served the four people steaks and left silently.
"As a guess, it's quite reasonable," the old man said slowly.
"Velus only wants half."
"Why?"
Velvet started cutting into the steak and she casually said, "The deal with the Russians is over, and Velus wants a loud gunshot now."
Rodrigo shook his head repeatedly. "Son, I'm an old man. Bluffing is useless to me. Everyone knows you stopped here to prepare for tomorrow's negotiations with the Russians."
"Do you really think I'd be the one to conduct the negotiations? A ten-year-old?" Velvet chuckled. "The assassins thought so. They chased my car all day. During that time, Velus's military advisor negotiated with the Russians at an altitude of twelve thousand meters."
The old man's eyes were filled with doubt and uncertainty. The red-haired man suddenly stood up, stretched out his hand and said sternly: "Enough, little girl! What qualifications does a family that can't even take care of itself have—"
His roar stopped mid-sentence, like a goose being strangled. The outstretched hand where his folding knife should have been was empty.
The folding knife was beautiful, forged from Damascus steel and inlaid with black mother-of-pearl. It lay in Chu Hengkong's hand, cutting the steaming beef.
"You rich people are so particular, you even carry cutlery with you when you eat." He put away his folding knife and slid it along the tablecloth. "Your knife is pretty good. It cuts beef very smoothly."
The red-haired man's face paled and livid, and before he could yell, Rodrigo gave him the most serious look of the entire meeting. He then sat back down at the table, saying nothing.
“Forgive me, my friend doesn’t like weapons,” Velvet said at an inopportune moment.
"I'm sorry, we were rude first." Rodrigo nodded. "Rodriguez will remember your kindness."
“As it should be.”
The dinner that followed was dull, and afterward they returned to their room. Chu Hengkong sat at the table, thinking for a while.
"Why did the old man suddenly agree in the end?"
“Because he saw you,” Velvet replied. “I made him mistakenly believe that you were our trump card. He was convinced that you were strong enough to complete the mission.”
Chu Hengkong understood: "So you have to take me with you."
“The fox is taking advantage of the tiger’s might.” Velvet confirmed.
"So you're killing two birds with one stone by hiring me. Publicly, I'm helping you attract attention to your real fight, while secretly, I'm negotiating with the Spanish..." He tapped his temple. "But that's not right. The old ministers don't know anything about Spain. How can they make plans?"
"We won't negotiate with the Russians until tomorrow," Velbert said. "The funds our family can offer may be insufficient. The Russians will exploit Velus's plight and demand a high price. Therefore, we should first obtain the Spanish money and show Velus's ease."
Tomorrow I will tell the Russians that the Spanish deal has been concluded. When they know that Velus is confident in completing the task, they will be hesitant to ask for an excessive price.
Chu Hengkong nodded repeatedly: "When will that time come?"
"When that happens, we'll use Spanish money to buy Russian weapons," Velvet said. "After we get the Russian weapons, we'll complete the Spanish mission."
Chu Hengkong suddenly realized something and fell on the bed laughing. His smile infected the girl, and Velvet couldn't help but smile too.
"I really admire you this time, because you even tricked me," he said. "But have you ever thought about what you would do if the Russians still insist on asking for too much?"
"I went to Ohio to negotiate," Velvet replied. "In negotiation, you have to find a way to gradually bring things closer to your expectations and further away from your bottom line."
"You'll make it, boss," the boy told him. "You're born for this."
(End of this chapter)
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