Chapter 112 – The White Moonlight is Forcibly Loved by the Substitute 10
That teardrop landed on the back of Shuang Yu’s hand, searing him. The tip of his nose tingled, and he felt an unexpected urge to cry.
Gently wiping the tear from Xiao Jingmo’s face, he secretly used his magic to begin healing the boy.
Upon returning to his residence, he immediately called one of his subordinates, tasking him with finding Xiao Jingmo’s biological father.
As the country’s top hacker, the subordinate quickly provided an answer.
As it turned out, Xiao Jingmo was none other than the grandson of Pope Jing Wu!
[Master, if you can use this opportunity to build a good relationship with the Pope, wouldn’t that be a shortcut to the top?]
Xiao Ai slyly suggested.
Shuang Yu decisively shook his head and refused.
The identity of being the Pope’s grandson’s savior could certainly smooth his path, but he didn’t want to do it that way.
[Why not, Master? This is your best chance!]
Xiao Ai expressed its confusion.
Shuang Yu remained silent for a long time before slowly saying, “Perhaps it’s because I want to protect the innocence I saw in the child when we first met.”
He didn’t want Xiao Jingmo to mistakenly believe that he had helped him find his family just to curry favor with Jing Wu.
In his most difficult moments, the child had preserved his innocence and kindness, saving him without a second thought.
And he wanted to repay that life-saving grace, so he chose to give up on using him.
A pure friendship was the most precious thing of all.
He didn’t want to disappoint the little one.
Besides, his own situation was too dangerous to keep the child by his side.
“Jingmo, Jing Wu… I really know how to pick names. From now on, you won’t have to live in fear anymore, child.”
His features softened as he gently stroked Xiao Jingmo’s messy, short hair, having made his decision.
That very night, he secretly sent people to take Xiao Jingmo away, heading to High Cloud to find his biological grandfather, Pope Jing Wu!
***
A week passed in the blink of an eye. Today was the fiftieth birthday banquet of Gu Qiyan’s father, Gu Huai.
Lately, Shuang Yu had been using the excuse of recuperating to take a nap every day at noon.
When the time came, he greeted the men guarding him and went into his room.
But he didn’t take a nap.
When he reappeared, he was in a clock tower a kilometer away from the banquet venue.
Looking down at the bustling crowd below, Shuang Yu’s lips curled up slightly. With a lift of his hand, a sniper rifle materialized out of thin air.
He set up the rifle and began observing the banquet a kilometer away through the scope.
Dressed in a suit, Gu Huai wore a broad smile as he constantly shook hands and exchanged cheek kisses with the well-wishers, expressing his gratitude. To his left and right were his most trusted eldest son, Gu Yuanting, and his subordinate, Lin Yan. Standing behind them were his illegitimate son, Gu Qiyan, who had been performing exceptionally well recently and was starting to gain his attention, and his most despised second son, Gu Yanfeng.
The Gu family was a member of F Country’s Underground Trade Association, considered a mid-tier power—not at the top, but better off than many. This time, Gu Huai’s birthday banquet was exceptionally grand. Not only had he invited core members of several major families, but he had even managed to invite a member of the local Committee.
F Country had 128 underground trade associations, among which were 28 major families. Every province with underground trade had a Committee. The Committee acted as the highest arbitration body between the various “families,” empowered to deal with rule-breaking association members within any family’s territory without needing to inform the family itself. Above the Committee was another council composed of eleven people, known as The Eleven-Member Committee, which was the highest authority in the underground trade, reigning supreme over all the association families. Among these eleven, one was called the Pope, the highest position for reviewing the underground trade associations. The reason Gu Qiyan had wanted to kill the original owner was to bury all his dirty secrets and vie for the position of Pope.
Of course, the current Gu family was just a mid-tier family that still had to rely on the power of other major families to survive. For Gu Huai to have a member of the local Committee attend his birthday banquet was already a tremendous honor. Gu Qiyan followed behind his father, Gu Huai, greeting the important figures, and for the first time, a sense of longing and an unprecedented ambition arose in his heart.