Light Fortress
Chapter 160 - 148 Freedom Hall

Chapter 160: Chapter 148 Freedom Hall

Two days later.

On a sunny and breezy afternoon.

Da Du.

Freedom Hall.

The light and fluid symphony echoed above the circular vaulted ceiling, like snow-white clouds flowing slowly across the azure dome.

In this era, attending a live band performance is actually not an easy task... but Freedom Hall is an exception. Here, funded by the council, many enthusiasts of classical music are nurtured as "people with ambition."

Put another way, it might be easier to understand that it is the taxpayers who are sponsoring this cultural gem left from an olden age.

Just like with libraries, most people inherently disregard culture and spirit. As long as ownership is established, whether a book on the shelf is read or not no longer matters.

The people of Da Du know that Freedom Hall exists, and that is enough for them.

Even though attending a performance here isn’t costly, roughly equivalent to going out for a fast-food meal.

But obviously... in this era, most people would rather eat fast food than waste time chewing on spiritual nourishment.

"Today is a special day,"

Grave Ghost Xing Yun was squatting on the last row of seats in the grand hall, his posture quite strange, appearing like a ball hidden in the shadows. He turned his head, smiling, and looked at the boy: "Do you know what day it is?"

"I don’t know. But, I guess..."

Gu Shen began in a light and casual tone.

"Today could very well be the day your enemies catch you and blow your brains out with a shot."

He and Grave Ghost sat a few chairs away from each other, appearing like two unrelated people, but in reality, the hall was empty enough that there were practically no other people in the back row.

Those who truly wanted to enjoy the music were sitting in the front rows... There, vast swathes of seats were the best spots to immerse oneself in the performance.

"As the head of the ’New World Project’, wanted by the big figures of Changye, with an unknown number of people queuing outside to kill you, you should understand... hiding in the Huazhi Underground is the safest," Gu Shen frowned and said: "At such a critical moment, you dare to come out to a concert?"

Grave Ghost just smiled nonchalantly.

He stretched out his finger and rubbed it, asking, "Even a true wandering ghost should have its own spiritual pursuits, right? What’s wrong with stepping out to take in a concert... Do you know what piece this is?"

"I’m ignorant," Gu Shen shook his head again.

For him, enjoying symphonies was far too highbrow of a hobby.

Gu Shen was always honest and self-aware.

He knew he wasn’t one of the refined elite, but that didn’t make him scorn or disdain such grace... He’d tried to understand "symphonies" and "concerts", but unfortunately, he was born with a certain window closed by fate, a pure music theory idiot, who could only vaguely discern some emotions flowing through the melodies.

That was all.

"Haydn’s Symphony No. 94," Grave Ghost said softly: "I like this piece."

"..."

Gu Shen rubbed his temples, making sure he wasn’t hearing things.

He sorted out his thoughts, then slowly asked, "Are you serious... Tomorrow is the day for nominating the candidates for council, and you invited me here to listen to this symphony, just to tell me the name of the piece?"

"Yes, but not entirely." Grave Ghost smiled and said, "It’s not me who invited you, but the taxpayers. The citizens of Da Du funded the construction of Freedom Hall, and this band is supported by them."

"Alright, no more jokes."

Seeing Gu Shen’s expression, Grave Ghost gradually became serious.

He whispered, "As you said... tomorrow is the day for nominating alternative candidates, and I must ask you to meet up, regardless of the venue, because no matter where we are, we can’t escape the watchful eyes of Cui Zhongcheng."

Gu Shen’s expression remained calm.

He wore a pair of glasses, and the 3D structure of Freedom Hall appeared before him, with Chu Ling transmitting the hall’s data in real time. He had all the surveillance and personnel movements at his fingertips.

Not far behind him, there were three cameras, covering the back of the hall without any blind spots.

"Regarding... my way out."

Grave Ghost smiled, "I want to make a run for it, which is no secret. Just as the bigwigs are used to ’slaughtering the donkey when the grinding’s done,’ that’s no secret either. Once the proposal of the alternative candidates passes, Lu Nanzhi’s election is almost certain, and to me... the Awakening Bill is in its final step. And my value for use is also coming to an end. Once the bill is passed, the New World project team can be disbanded, and I think Zhao Xilai would be more than happy to hand ’Grave Ghost’ over to those old men in Changye City."

"Draining my last ounce of value, as payment for the time spent under the protection of freedom." He said softly with emotion, "This is likely the last concert I will ever hear."

"No need to pretend to be sad, that act doesn’t work on me." Gu Shen said indifferently, "Our meeting was purely coincidental, and the New World project was established years ago; I don’t believe you don’t have a backup plan... If you hadn’t met me, were you planning to just give up and wait for death?"

Grave Ghost looked at the young man beside him with some surprise.

This kid was smarter than he thought... He initially believed that due to his young age, he would be easy to fool.

He sheepishly smiled, "I heard, you are Zhou Jiren’s ’Closed-door Disciple’."

Gu Shen remained silent.

"I want to apply for a ’Special Pardon’," Grave Ghost laughed and said candidly, "Thinking it over, there are too few people in East Continent who can accomplish this... The Grand Judge should be one of them. To Zhao Xilai and Changye City, I’ve lost my value, but to Zhou Jiren, I still have my uses, I can help him stay in office."

Gu Shen continued to remain silent.

"Even I, an outsider, know that Judgement Institute’s Zhu Wang has long coveted the position of Grand Judge, and in recent years, he has made aggressive moves against Zhou Jiren. The internal strife within the Future Court will not calm down but will intensify. Once the Awakening Bill is issued, the Judgement Institute will face tremendous staffing pressure. Zhu Wang and several other sufficiently experienced Judges will join forces to propose the creation of an additional ’Grand Judge’ post—"

Grave Ghost’s pace quickened as he spoke, then he slowly stopped and said, "A lion always ages, no matter how strong it was in youth, once it grows old, its fate is often quite tragic. When the post of Grand Judge is additionally set up, the once Sky-reaching Tree... surrounded by wolves, is bound to wither. I am not qualified to meet Mr. Shu, and can only arrange to meet with you. I presume... you will convey these words to him, right?"

"I will convey them, but I won’t make any promises," Gu Shen said gravely, "If you change your mind before the concert is over, I can pretend I never heard anything."

Grave Ghost paused.

His pupils narrowed slightly; he noticed two figures who had arrived a bit late at the venue.

One following the other.

The woman in the front, in a white dress with a round-top hat, looked exceedingly elegant.

Lu Nanzhi.

And by Lu Nanzhi’s side was another lady in a low-key black dress with a fine veil over her face, obscuring her true identity.

Minutes before, Gu Shen had been informed by Chu Ling’s prompt that two "notable figures" had arrived together at Freedom Hall—

By the lady’s side... was another legendary woman of high stature from South Bay.

Ye Ningqiu.