The Beauty CEO's Personal Expert

"Exactly!" Mr. He nodded slightly and said, "Indeed, I have discovered something. Our purpose for this trip is to unravel this secret. Well, that’s all I can say for now. If you want to know more, it’s best to cooperate. Once we reach the destination, I’ll tell you everything. How’s that?"

"Mr. He, saying such things is as good as saying nothing at all, isn’t it?" Chen Younian chimed in, "You should at least show some sincerity."

"Sincerity?" Mr. He squinted and said, "I am already showing plenty of sincerity. If I were to tell you all the secrets, and you act behind my back, wouldn’t I suffer the losses? Mr. Chen, I’ve said everything that can be said. Whether you decide to go or not now isn’t too late."

Hearing this, Ling Gengqiu and Chen Younian exchanged glances, a hint of surprise flashing in their eyes. They showed a tough stance to extract more information from Mr. He, but he was even tougher, refusing to say another word.

After a brief silence, Chen Younian nodded and said, "Alright. Mr. He, I’ll follow your plan." After saying this, he gestured to Chen Qinghua and another middle-aged man, who immediately stepped forward to accept inspections by the Dark Pavilion members.

As expected, several surveillance devices were found on the two of them. When it was Ling Chen and Chen Junfeng’s turn, they were even more straightforward, directly handing over the tracking devices they carried. Since it’s cooperation, it’s best to be honest.

"Very good." Mr. He nodded and said, "Thank you all for your cooperation. Let’s rest for a bit, and we’ll set off in half an hour."

Soon, members of the Dark Pavilion arranged for the Dragon Tiger Hall and Netherworld Snake people to stay in two restrooms on the villa’s second floor. Ling Chen and the others had just settled down when suddenly there was a ’knock knock’ at the door. Ling Chen got up to open it, finding the visitor was the unnamed middle-aged man from Netherworld Snake.

"Ling Chen, right?" The middle-aged man extended his hand and said, "Hello, my name is Chen Derong."

Chen Derong? Upon hearing the name, Ling Chen instantly recognized the identity of the middle-aged man in front of him - the current leader of Netherworld Snake. Of course, his title of leader was only outward-facing; internally, Chen Younian was the one who truly held power.

"Oh, Mr. Chen, hello." Ling Chen shook hands with him and said, "Please come in!"

"No need. If it’s convenient, I’d like to chat with you alone."

"No problem." Ling Chen smiled slightly, agreeing readily. Leaving the restroom, the two moved to the spot by the staircase near the window. Seeing no one around, Chen Derong spoke, "I think you can guess why I’m here to see you."

"You want to partner with us?"

"That’s right!" Chen Derong said without reservation, "The Dark Pavilion suddenly contacted us without explaining why. I think you, like us, have some concerns. If the Dark Pavilion sets up a trap, we’ll all be in danger. So, I wanted to talk and see if we could collaborate. What do you think?"

"To be honest, Mr. Chen, that’s actually what I was thinking too," Ling Chen said with a smile, "Safety first, after all."

"Great, you really are straightforward. So, it’s a deal. If there’s trouble, we’ll take out the Dark Pavilion people first."

Watching Chen Derong return to his room, Ling Chen also went back to the restroom. Netherworld Snake seeking collaboration was expected. Even if they hadn’t approached him, he would have sought out Chen Younian. After all, they had already handed over their phones, couldn’t contact the outside world, and had no backup. If anything happened, they’d have to rely on these few people.

Half an hour passed quickly, and soon, Dark Pavilion members came knocking to lead them to the three business cars outside the manor.

Besides the driver, there was no one else on the car. Ling Chen, sharp-eyed, noticed that Mr. He only brought two people as well. This way, each of the three factions had three people. Once on the car, Dark Pavilion members proceeded to load the cargo boxes stacked at the door into the three business cars one after another.

Once everything was ready, the cars finally hit the road.

Ling Chen checked the time, it was half-past one in the afternoon, not knowing how long it would take to reach the destination. Thankfully, the business car was quite spacious, and the seats comfortable. He lay down on them, closed his eyes, starting to recharge for the upcoming actions.

No clue how long passed, but when Ling Chen woke up, he found it was already dark outside the car window. Checking the time, it was actually nine in the evening. At this moment, Ling Gengqiu and Chen Junfeng appeared to be resting quietly on the car. Ling Chen peered out through the window; it was pitch dark outdoors, not even streetlights, not knowing where they had arrived.

After more than twenty minutes, Ling Chen finally saw lights appearing. However, from the density of lights, it seemed this wasn’t a major city, likely a small county or town. As the three business cars entered the street, Ling Chen finally saw a large stone standing by the roadside with "Tianxi Town" written on it.

Arriving in the town, Ling Chen noticed that Tianxi Town wasn’t large, only two main roads intersected in a cross shape, each possibly stretching four or five kilometers long, with many residential buildings and shops built along the main roads.

What kind of place is this? Ling Chen wondered to himself.

As he pondered, the three business cars finally stopped in front of a hotel. The hotel’s exterior walls looked very old, and the window glass had an outdated design, at least ten years old. Getting off the car, Mr. He looked at everyone and said, "This hotel is already the best in town, you’ll have to settle here for the night. Tomorrow we’ll continue heading to our destination."

It seemed the hotel rooms were booked in advance. As the group entered the hotel, the owner was already waiting for their arrival. Since the town rarely had outsiders, the hotel business was quite bleak. The owner single-handedly handled duties as a waiter, cook, and cleaner.

Arriving in their rooms, Ling Chen inspected the surroundings; they were acceptable, not very exquisite but clean enough. They were in a three-bed room with three beds placed side by side.

Throughout the journey, everyone had been on the road and hadn’t managed to have dinner yet. After resting a short while in the room, Ling Chen and the others went down to the hotel’s dining area, where the owner had already prepared a warm meal.

"Where are the others?" Ling Chen asked the hotel owner after sitting for a bit, noticing no one else had come down.

"They had me take the meals to their rooms, didn’t come down."

Ling Chen nodded, stopped asking further questions, picked up his chopsticks and tasted the owner’s cooking. The hotel’s food was decent, two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and a soup, more than enough for three people.

At this point, the hotel owner came over with a bottle of Erguotou and a small plate of peanuts, asking with a smile, "Would you like to have a drink together?"

Ling Chen initially thought of refusing but reconsidered, realizing it was a good chance to inquire about the local situation, so he accepted the offer.