Chapter 213 Assassination
The head of the Huo family was unusually attentive to this mission.
Xin Que had just come out of the patriarch's study when she bumped into a tall man striding towards her with his special assistant.
Xin Que immediately lowered his head and made way.
The man glanced at her. "You're here... Has Father given you another important mission?"
“Hmm,” Xin Que said without looking up, her voice devoid of emotion, “This time the target isn’t in the country, and I don’t trust anyone else to handle it.”
The man wasn't very interested in her or her mission; he exchanged a few polite words with her and then passed by Xin Que.
Before the study door closed, the patriarch's gentle voice came through the crack in the door, "Chenglong, about the company..."
Xin Que continued walking away without stopping.
Huo Chenglong, the eldest son whom the Huo family has nurtured with all their resources, is now gradually taking over the responsibilities of the family head and is appearing in public more and more frequently.
Anyone with eyes can see that Mr. Huo intends to make Huo Chenglong his heir.
The most direct impact of this incident on Xin Que was that the number of times she worked with Huo Chenglong increased exponentially.
The man was led out of the greenhouse by his father and walked steadily on the broad road under the spotlight;
Xin Que and her undercover agents, including the assassins under her colleagues, were the knives that the Huo family used to pave the way for Huo Chenglong. They were hidden in the shadows where the spotlight could not shine, silently eliminating any threats that might affect the future heir.
Just after leaving the main house, Xin Que ran into another young man.
Huo Fenglin had just returned from the club, looking travel-worn. He was somewhat surprised to see Xin Que coming out of the main house.
He probably wanted to exchange a few polite words with Xin Que, but when he caught a glimpse of Huo Chenglong's confidant guarding the door of his father's study, his face darkened.
Xin Que frowned slightly.
What an unlucky day! She ran into both of the boss's sons.
[It is understood that this multi-city meeting covers an unprecedented scale of industries. Yucheng will be represented by its Development Department Director, Lu Wei. The reporter interviewed Mr. Huo Tinghua, head of the Huo family and president of the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce…]
[Mr. Huo Tinghua stated that his eldest son, Huo Chenglong, would represent the Chamber of Commerce at this meeting... This news caused a stir throughout the city.]
[There is widespread speculation that after this meeting, Mr. Fok will relinquish power and step back from the limelight, handing over the family business to his eldest son, Fok Shing-lung...]
Xin Que gripped the steering wheel with one hand, speeding along the floating road while keeping an eye on the road conditions, and also paying attention to the current affairs news playing in the car.
[Lu Wei, Director of the Development Agency, male, 47 years old.] A mechanical voice sounded from the co-pilot's seat. [Xin Que, this mission target is very difficult to deal with.]
Xin Que didn't look at the mini spherical system carrier in the passenger seat. "What does that mean?"
Cheng Zheng had just transferred all his programming knowledge to the brooch on Xin Que's chest. [Literally, this person is ostensibly a high-ranking official in Yucheng, but he controls a vast amount of illicit activities, with interests in several cities.]
[Quite ambitious.]
Xin Que recalled what Feng Caijun had said before and understood, "He wanted to steal the Huo family's business, no wonder he was in such a hurry to get rid of him."
"By the way," Cheng Zheng's voice rang out again, "I just received an email from the Huo family; the people to meet you have been arranged."
Xin Que looked out the windshield at the towering, luxurious buildings that seemed to reach into the clouds.
It was the international hotel where Lu Wei was staying.
After parking the car, the young man, whose face was completely unrecognizable, opened the car door and got out.
“Sir,” the neatly dressed waiter said, his eyes lowered, as he took the suitcase Xin Que handed him. “Welcome to the Central International Hotel. I will take you to your suite. Please follow me.”
Xin Que merely glanced at him. The waiter's eyes remained lowered, but his fingertips twitched slightly, tapping the handle of the suitcase without making a sound.
Xin Que understood.
Lu Wei has no fewer than a hundred bodyguards around him.
If they can't take action in Upper City, then they can only wait until the talks end and he returns and leaves Upper City.
But how can one get past the heavy security surrounding him and approach him...?
As Xin Que pondered how to proceed, she pushed open the door.
The waiter had already left, and the two did not exchange a single unnecessary word throughout the entire meeting.
The talks lasted for about a week.
Lu Wei could never have imagined that during this week of peace and prosperity, from the upper city to the Yucheng city defense line, the personnel deployed to assassinate Lu Wei had been as inconspicuous as nails hidden in a wooden board, yet perfectly natural.
They're just waiting to lure you into their trap.
That's how it should have been.
"Lu Wei will be leaving Shangcheng tomorrow. Let's double-check the personnel deployment at all locations to make sure there are no problems."
Xin Que conveyed the order to the waiter who brought lunch via hand gestures.
But this time the waiter did not leave as usual.
"Breaking news: Lu Wei will be participating in a speaking event tonight at Belle Plaza."
"What the boss means is..."
We can start tonight.
...
[No,] Cheng Zheng searched through all his email inboxes but couldn't find any new messages from the Huo family. [The mission has changed, how could the Huo family not notify you?]
The informant posing as a waiter is suspicious.
Xin Que stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, looking down at the bustling traffic below the high-rise building.
"The informant's identity is not in question; he can only be a member of the Huo family."
"But it's hard to say which side of the Huo family he belongs to."
A moment later, she grabbed her coat, turned and left the room.
The recent power transition between Fok Ting-wah and his son Fok Shing-lung has almost captured the entire city's attention.
The Huo family was also in turmoil.
Not everyone can accept a peaceful transition.
For example, the subtle and overt rivalry between Huo Tinghua's brothers, and the unconscious dissatisfaction Huo Tinghua's second son, Huo Fenglin, showed towards his elder brother, Huo Chenglong.
As for why Xin Que was so familiar with the struggles between these nobles,
Besides assassinating Lu Wei, nine out of her ten recent missions involve protecting Huo Chenglong.
This includes the increasingly frequent meetings that Huo Tinghua has recently had with her and other colleagues.
Her years of experience and intuition as an assassin told her that this mission to assassinate Lu Wei had become a chessboard for the internal power struggle within the Huo family.
For her, the best solution right now is to immediately contact the head of the family to report the unusual activity of the mole, and then quickly resolve the internal factors affecting the assassination to ensure that the entire mission proceeds according to the original plan.
Soon, Huo Tinghua's trusted assistant, Feng Caijun, sent a reply.
Minister Xin, you're overthinking it.
[This undercover agent did indeed receive an urgent mission assignment.]
Along with the message came the architectural design of Bailey Plaza and the specific procedures for the lecture event.
Later, Feng Caijun sent a heartfelt apology letter from his private account.
The gist of the matter is that the patriarch is eager for Lu Wei to die, so that Yu Cheng will not have the opportunity to infringe upon the Huo family's interests through the talks.
Xin Que, however, still felt somewhat uneasy.
Feng Caijun was in charge of relaying information up and down the chain of command, and the messages he sent back did indeed represent Huo Tinghua's wishes.
But something's not right.
Since the assassination was planned to be brought forward, why isolate Xin Que in terms of information gathering, and have her subordinates, who were cooperating with her, only hurriedly tell her about the new plan a few hours before the assassination?
Moreover, Huo Tinghua's attitude changed drastically before and after.
Before issuing the mission, Huo Tinghua made sure that Lu Wei died outside the territory of Shangcheng, so that the death of this important figure would not be associated with Shangcheng. He even told him which faction to pin the blame on.
Now, however, they are only concerned with Lu Wei's death, completely disregarding the public opinion consequences of Lu Wei's death in Shangcheng.
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