Mu Qi asked in confusion, "I haven't even told you the price yet, are you really not going to consider it seriously?"
Li Zhonglou shook his head.
Mu Qi's brows immediately furrowed. "Brother Li, what do you usually do? I don't mean anything else, I just want to understand."
With "nothing else meant," Li Zhonglou could only say helplessly, "Miss Mu Qi, if you still want me to help you, then there's no need to say any more."
"Alright."
A look of disappointment flashed across Mu Qi's face. Then, the conversation shifted back to Li Zhonglou. In fact, the reason he agreed was to understand the plans of the Eastern District through Mu Qi.
When they were outside, he had already noticed that Feng Tian was not simple. And in such a place, Mu Qi could be recognized by a security guard, which naturally meant her status was also not simple. This was a perfect opportunity for him to understand the situation of the Wu family in the Eastern District.
Therefore, in the subsequent conversation, Li Zhonglou intentionally or unintentionally steered the topic towards the Wu family.
Perhaps it was because too many outsiders were interested in the Wu family first, Mu Qi didn't think much of it and proactively shared some general information she knew.
It was only then that Li Zhonglou learned that the most powerful force in the entire Eastern District was not another of the eight major families, nor the General Bureau, but the Wu family!
Although he had long ago asked Zhou Tong to secretly investigate the Wu family, out of fear of alerting them, he only obtained simple information, and that too was information that could be found online.
As for their true status and distribution of power, before coming to the Eastern District, he only knew that the Wu family was the foremost family in Shangjing and the largest family in the Eastern District. That was all.
And according to Mu Qi, the Wu family in the Eastern District was divided into three districts, with each district classified by status, not by location.
First was District One, which was the peripheral industry of the Wu family, Feng Tian.
Yes, Feng Tian, the most famous industrial park in the Eastern District, and a high-end venue that was the leading benchmark of the Eastern District, was merely a peripheral industry of the Wu family!
This point alone was enough to create a clear distance between the Wu family and other forces that were also among the eight major families!
Next was Beigang. This was the port that the driver, Master, had told Li Zhonglou about, referred to as Shangjing's little treasury. It was also merely the inner district of the Wu family.
The true core area was the Wu family's headquarters, a forbidden zone in the Eastern District connected to three large mountains, resembling a small city – the Wu Department!
According to Mu Qi, on the surface, the Eastern District still fell under the jurisdiction of the General Bureau, but in reality, eighty percent of the Eastern District's area was the territory of the Wu family! The remaining twenty percent, half of it, was the territory of another major family, the Du family.
When she said this, Mu Qi also emphasized, "Brother Li, what I've told you, you must never casually reveal. The Wu family has always been low-key and detests people who talk carelessly outside."
"Even for us, we usually don't discuss the Wu family if it's not necessary."
"The reason I'm telling you this is to make you understand, in the Eastern District, you can offend anyone, including the General Bureau, but you must never offend the Wu family! Like what happened inside the gate, you mustn't do that again next time."
Mu Qi's expression became extremely serious. "I know they've worked in the Wu family's industries for a long time, and they might look down on ordinary people, but you didn't have to confront him directly. Doing so doesn't embarrass him, it embarrasses the Wu family!"
Li Zhonglou's eyes immediately narrowed. "Then we can only let these snobbish people bully us?"
Mu Qi shook her head. "That's not the case either. Although the Wu family is powerful, they are usually very low-key. As long as you don't cause trouble, they are very reasonable and fair. In this regard, at least no other force can achieve this."
"So next time this happens, you should leave first and directly call his superior to complain. Someone will handle it."
Li Zhonglou remained silent, but he still didn't believe it.
Let alone a large family, even the General Bureau, which was the pillar of China, had cases of officials protecting each other. If one had some connections from above, complaining? Perhaps he would be the one at a disadvantage!
However, Mu Qi's words also made him understand one thing: if he wanted to act in the Eastern District, he had to first investigate the identity of the other party, otherwise, he could easily cause unnecessary trouble!
As they talked, they soon arrived outside the banquet Mu Qi was attending.
It was a top-tier hotel. According to Mu Qi, it had already been booked out, and people who could enter were those who could cause a stir with a mere stomp of their foot in places outside Shangjing!
Even though most of the attendees were from the younger generation this time.
Upon hearing this, Li Zhonglou's expression suddenly froze for a moment, recalling Yu Ke's leave request before leaving the company.
Didn't she say she was going to attend the grandest banquet for Shangjing's younger generation?
"Uh, could it be that I stumbled upon it by chance?"
Li Zhonglou muttered, and Mu Qi, who had suddenly stopped and was not entering, asked in confusion, "What did you say?"
Li Zhonglou shook his head and changed the subject. "Aren't we going in?"
Mu Qi glanced at the time and shook her head. "It's not time yet, and many people haven't arrived. If we go in now, it might cause some trouble."
Li Zhonglou immediately understood what kind of trouble she meant, so he followed her words and asked, "Then why are we here?"
"To get our passes."
After saying that, she led him to the staff to get two passes.
"This is not only a pass to enter the banquet, but also the highest-level activity card here. With it, as long as it's not a place explicitly prohibited, you can go anywhere."
"The meeting starts at three in the afternoon, and it's still early. You can go look around first, and we'll meet again at two-thirty?"
It was obvious she had her own business to attend to. Li Zhonglou nodded.
"Then let's exchange contact information first. You absolutely can't stand me up. This is not a joke."
Mu Qi was clearly not entirely at ease, but it seemed that for her own reasons, she had to separate for a while. Seeing this, Li Zhonglou could only comfort her, "Don't worry, I have that much integrity. If you're not reassured, you can contact me periodically. I'll be there whenever you call."
Li Zhonglou smiled. It was only then that he understood that if he had entered by himself, he would have at most stayed at the outer hotel. To enter this place, one still needed a certain status.
Although tourists could also come in to visit and play, this not only required identity registration but also imposed restrictions on their activity range.
If nothing else, on the way here, Mu Qi had used her identity card to have the security check her three times!
In other words, just this pass alone meant that Mu Qi had indirectly helped him a great deal. Therefore, Li Zhonglou would naturally keep his promise to her.
Seeing his sincerity, the latter finally felt a little relieved and nodded. After exchanging contact information, the two parted ways.
"Remember, contact me anytime!"
Li Zhonglou waved his hand. After Mu Qi left, he turned his gaze to his surroundings.