Above the Galaxy
Chapter 316 - 208, Scandal!

Chapter 316: Chapter 208, Scandal!

Once the children had left, Zhong Daolong lit a cigar for himself.

Taking just a couple of puffs, Chen Fenglei quietly walked in.

"Ling Yunxiao still hasn’t been found?" Zhong Daolong’s facial features were shrouded in smoke, which made him look somewhat gloomy.

"No." Chen Fenglei looked guilty as he addressed Zhong Daolong, "It’s as if he vanished from this world... We’ve cast a wide net and utilized all electronic and intelligence devices, searching every possible hiding spot..."

"The incident on Crab Island was the closest we ever got to him... After that, we completely lost track of Ling Yunxiao."

"That time on Crab Island... Did you say there were signs of a struggle in the courtyard?"

"Yes." Chen Fenglei nodded and replied, "There were neat cut marks on the bluestone bricks, likely left by a Sword Dao master..."

"Ling Yunxiao himself is a master of Sword Dao, could these cut marks be left by him?"

"It’s not out of the question," Chen Fenglei said solemnly. "Either he made them during his sword practice, or someone got to him first and made a move..."

"If it’s the latter, what kind of expert could abduct a person right under our watch without a trace?"

"Why would someone want to snatch Ling Yunxiao from us? Who would be interested in an assassin?" Zhong Daolong asked aloud.

"Only by finding Ling Yunxiao can we know the truth..."

"It seems Phoenix City isn’t as safe as we imagined," Zhong Daolong remarked as he sipped from his wine glass with a sigh.

"I am incompetent," Chen Fenglei bowed and admitted.

"You are indeed incompetent," Zhong Daolong leaned back, tilting his head upward and squinting his eyes as he scrutinized Chen Fenglei standing before him. "With so many agents scattered throughout the Beehive, expending so much time and effort, yet you can’t even find one person... Tell me, have you really been dedicated to working on my behalf?"

"I am aware of my guilt."

Chen Fenglei offered no excuses; he truly did not know what to say.

All he could do now was apologize and take all the responsibility upon himself.

If the higher-ups trust you, they’ll continue to use you.

If they no longer trust you, whatever you say is futile.

"The tasks I’ve assigned you haven’t been completed properly, which is a crime," Zhong Daolong shouted angrily. "Keep searching, I want to see him alive, or at least his body."

"Yes," Chen Fenglei respectfully acknowledged.

Zhong Daolong took another drag of his cigar, exhaling his inner ferocity along with the smoke, which made his mood somewhat more placid.

"So, what brings you here this late? What else is there to report?"

"King, you asked me to investigate the case of the Eldest Prince getting diarrhea at White Crane Academy..."

Zhong Daolong’s eyes narrowed and he straightened up, fixing Chen Fenglei with an unfriendly stare. "What? Have you found the culprit?"

The incident involving Zhong Tianque was deeply injurious and insulting.

The Eldest Prince of the Phoenix Empire, his chosen successor, had been poisoned and suffered the indignity of diarrhea in public at a celestial institution like White Crane Academy.

Worse still, someone had recorded and posted the video online...

What were they trying to do?

They were slapping the face of the Zhong Family, slapping the face of the Royal Family.

Recalling the worldwide discussion of the incident, the mockery from other royal families, the video being shared within countless friend groups...

His own face felt burnt with disgrace.

Both the poisoner and the spreader deserved death.

He wanted to know who harbored such deep hatred towards the Zhong Family and the Royal Family...

"No," Chen Fenglei knew what his master hoped for but still gave him a disappointing answer.

"Did you uncover anything at all?" Zhong Daolong asked, unwilling to give up.

He knew, Chen Fenglei must have found something, otherwise, he wouldn’t come to discuss it at this time.

Which subordinate, with unfinished work, willing to talk about project issues in front of their boss?

Afraid the boss would remember, they wouldn’t mention a word.

"Yes. Through tracking and analyzing data over this period, we discovered a company called Dahe Commerce which used complicated transactions to send payments to foreign media companies that spread and promoted the related videos, providing corresponding promotional funds..."

"Dahe Commerce? Whose company is that?"

"This company is located in the duty-free zone of Guam. I had people focus on this company and found that aside from that transaction, they had no other business dealings..."

"I also had hackers investigate the actual controllers of Dahe Commerce and found out the company’s legal representative is a seventy-six-year-old lady named Zhao Xiaoyu..."

"..."

Zhong Daolong was growing impatient and spoke up sharply, "Get to the point."

"King, please let me finish explaining the process."

"Hm?" Zhong Daolong scrutinized Chen Fenglei thoughtfully and nodded, saying, "The people involved are not to be trifled with? Even you, a feared ’Mad Dog’, dare not provoke them?"

Chen Fenglei was unfazed by Zhong Daolong’s insult and continued, "How could a seventy-six-year-old lady register a trading company in a tax-free zone? So, we checked her immediate relatives and discovered she has a distant nephew named Li Zhi..."

"And who is this Li Zhi?"

"Li Zhi is Lei Xiangyang’s driver... and Lei Xiangyang is the key person in between..."

"You may speak your conclusion now," Zhong Daolong’s patience had evidently run out.

He cared not for the process, nor whom it involved, how many rounds it went...

All he wanted was the final result, and then to erase the entire chain.

Who cared for the well-being of these insignificant pawns?

"Lei Xiangyang is the owner of Xinghui Entertainment, and the shadowy owner behind Xinghui Entertainment is... Yu Huoshui..."

"Yu Huoshui?" Zhong Daolong widened his eyes and looked at Chen Fenglei incredulously. "My nephew, Yu Huoshui?"

"Yes. That’s the one," Chen Fenglei responded with his head bowed.

Thinking to himself, now do you see why I had to report the entire sequence to you?

Because the matter was too inconceivable, the subsequent impact was quite dire.

A slight misstep in procedure, or any oversight in any link, and I’d be in deep trouble...

Who is Yu Huoshui? And what kind of family is the Yu Family?

That’s the Empress’s family, the true royal kin...

Even more fatal was the question of who was Yu Huoshui really working for?

Was it for the Yu Family? Or for someone from the Zhong Family?

If there were no huge interests at stake, why would he risk so much?

Isn’t it more pleasurable to be a rich and privileged young master enjoying inexhaustible wealth?

Indeed, upon hearing that name, even Zhong Daolong, the ruler of a nation, couldn’t stay put.

He pressed his cigar firmly into the ashtray, pacing back and forth in the room with an unsettled expression on his face.

One round.

Another round.

After countless rounds, Zhong Daolong let out a cold laugh and said, "Well, well, well. I’ve been on guard against all, yet I never suspected a traitor within the family. After all the investigating, it’s circled back to one of our own."

Chen Fenglei hunched over, unable to reply, nor daring to.

"Yu Huoshui, what a Yu Huoshui... My dear nephew..."

"What is he doing this for? Is he choosing sides for himself, or has the Yu Family also chosen a side?"

"What are they trying to do? Dethrone my son... Do they want to take over themselves?"

"No, that can’t be right; they wouldn’t take over themselves... so that means they have someone else they are backing..."

"Zhong Tianque isn’t their chosen one, so who else could they be supporting?"

"Haha, isn’t the answer almost obvious now? Interesting indeed, truly interesting..."

"My dear son... I can’t believe I was so blind... I really must have been blind..."

-------

Silence.

A silence as if death itself had settled.

Chen Fenglei bowed his head and stooped low, but dared not utter a single word.

An affair of the Royal Family, especially involving succession, was not something for a mere steward to meddle in.

Zhong Daolong looked up at Chen Fenglei and asked, "Who else knows about this?"

"All the investigators on this case have already been detained by me," Chen Fenglei understood his master’s meaning and had already acted accordingly.

"Good, not a single word of this shall leak out."

"Yes, I understand," Chen Fenglei replied gravely.

This was a royal scandal; should any hint of it escape, it would surely cause an uproar in the outside world.

In matters of succession, no issue is too small.

"Send me all the investigative materials," Zhong Daolong said, "I need to think. And think some more..."

"Yes," Chen Fenglei replied, then turned and left.

He knew that in face of such matters, his lord’s heart was unsettled.

Not only was he the ruler of a nation, he was also a father to his children.

He could kill anyone in the world, but when it came to his own flesh and blood...

How could he bear to be so merciless, to do what must be done?

------

Phoenix Pavilion.

Phoenix was on a video call with Tang Fei, wearing a communication phone that could project the real-time image of the other person, making it seem as if they were chatting face-to-face.

"Have you been drinking?" Tang Fei asked, observing Phoenix’s slightly flushed cheeks and the faint hue on her neck.

"I had two glasses of red wine," Phoenix replied, holding Ballball in her arms, gently combing its slightly curled fur with her fingers, "My dad was in a good mood today, opened a bottle of vintage wine, I couldn’t resist and had an extra glass..."

"Is it because we did well at the Sky Dao Conference that your dad is so happy?"

"Yes," Phoenix nodded and said, "You won first place in the mechanics competition, Shen Xinglan took the championship in the martial arts competition, my dad said the talent of the world is in Phoenix, and he’s thinking about how to reward you properly."

"Did he mention what rewards we’d get?" Tang Fei asked curiously, "I’ve already got a house and a car, and I’m not short of money..."

"My dad said he’ll see what you lack. Whatever you lack, he’ll provide."

"Really?" Tang Fei smiled and looked at Phoenix, "Little Fatty lacks a sister-in-law, can your family give Little Fatty a sister-in-law?"

"..."

"What? People can’t claim it on behalf of someone else? It can only be awarded to the champion themselves, right?" Tang Fei asked, "Then find me a wife. Didn’t you say on New Star we should marry before establishing a career? I’m not getting any younger; it’s time to settle down..."

"Dream on," Phoenix retorted teasingly, "We’re not going to reward you with that."

"Didn’t you say you’d give whatever’s lacking? The Royal Family might also consider the specific needs of me and Shen Xinglan..."

"Shen Xinglan is even two years older than me. I’ve seen the way he looks at his pet bird, his eyes are all wrong, full of affection. You don’t think he could be... that sort of person, do you?"

"..."

"Although, it’s the era of space colonization now, we should have a broader perspective... We need to understand and support each other’s views on love..."

"I saw online that someone in a certain country even married a lizard. Shen Xinglan’s little bird is pretty cute too, fluffy and white..."

"..."

"My dad said, to make full use of someone, you need to understand them first," Phoenix looked at Tang Fei and said, "He said he wants to see your genetic test results..."

"..."

This time, it was Tang Fei who was at a loss for words.