The Han Palace was booked today for a grand private auction before New Year's Day, with no outside guests received.
From the main hall to the meeting rooms, tall hostesses in qipaos were everywhere.
Wealthy patrons arrived one after another, all prominent figures in Yong'an.
Xiao Da, dressed in a security uniform, stood in a corner, his eyes scanning the arriving guests at will.
Beside him stood another inconspicuous middle-aged security guard with a slightly shifty demeanor, who was none other than Li Chonglou, transformed overnight.
Even his worldly eyes had become dull and lifeless.
It was believed that even Tian Shan might not immediately recognize him.
However, with his Heavenly Eye activated, the moment Tian Shan appeared, he would be instantly detected.
"You haven't slept all night, can you handle it?" Xiao Da asked in a low voice.
"Just one night, it's nothing," Li Chonglou replied, his expression unchanged.
He had to admit that Xu Qing's disguise skill was truly heaven-defying, different from the last time Li Hanlong met him.
To prevent Tian Shan from seeing through him at a glance, Xu Qing had brought out his ultimate skill. This face mold was made from a full face cast, and a single layer of skin cost hundreds of thousands.
When first worn, it felt foreign, but as time passed, it became indistinguishable from the skin, fitting perfectly.
Furthermore, with Xu Qing's use of silver needles to aid in bone reshaping, it would not deform for at least forty-eight hours.
Even if Jiang Yuxin and his mother came, they might not recognize him.
If Tian Shan didn't observe carefully, he would never discover him.
Hidden in the shadows, it was convenient for an ambush.
"If he weren't foolish, why would he come to this kind of auction?" Xiao Da's heart was still unsettled.
He didn't understand what Li Chonglou was planning.
If he were Tian Shan, he definitely wouldn't come.
Because there was no profit to be made. Private auctions were for the highest bidder, and Tian Shan was a master swindler.
From the fact that he had swindled Ren He out of most of her collection, it was clear that he dealt in zero-cost transactions.
When Li Chonglou told him this morning that the private sale had been changed to a public auction, he was very confused.
"Because you are not him," Li Chonglou's eyes flashed with cold light.
That beast, believing himself to be omniscient and powerful, disregarding even law enforcement agencies, was exceedingly arrogant.
Why would he fear Li Chonglou?
Moreover, in terms of martial prowess, Li Chonglou was inferior to him.
It was precisely this underestimation that allowed him to toy with Li Chonglou like a cat playing with a mouse.
And it was precisely this contempt that, unless he knew about this private auction, would ensure his attendance.
It was due to the arrogance of controlling the overall situation.
"What if he doesn't come?" Xiao Da was confused, unable to comprehend.
"If he really doesn't come, then I don't know how many years I'll have to wait to get revenge," Li Chonglou's cold gaze gradually faded.
He wasn't a god and couldn't control everything, he was merely thinking from Tian Shan's perspective.
If he knew this was Li Chonglou's setup, he would gladly come, turn the tables, and play with him at his fingertips.
If he didn't act like this, he wouldn't be Tian Shan.
But if he truly learned his lesson from being injured in one eye and had shed his arrogance and self-conceit, then Li Chonglou would truly have no way to deal with him.
However, the move had been made, and whether he accepted the challenge or not was up to fate.
The only thing to do now was to wait.
After Li Chonglou finished speaking, he remained silent, hunched over and observing every guest entering.
Some of them, he had seen at Ren He's company.
Some, he had seen at Zeng Wang's Ginza.
And some were invited by Ning Lang and Xiao Yun.
But some he had never seen before.
Perhaps Yong'an was too big, and they were all busy people, so it was normal not to have met.
But among these people, there was no Tian Shan.
Under Li Chonglou's Heavenly Eye, nothing could hide. Those outwardly refined and scholarly men, dressed in designer clothes, might have bloated bodies or even various strange illnesses.
And those heavily made-up women, beneath their cosmetics, were all like skeletons.
The auction began at 8:30 AM, and guests arrived gradually until 10:00 AM, when most had arrived.
But there was still no sign of Tian Shan.
In the meeting room, Zhang Chen sat in a wheelchair, complaining to Ren He behind the auction stage, "Master is such a weirdo, making a sick person like me watch here while he doesn't know where he's gone..."
"President Ren, what do you think he's thinking?"
"How would I know his plans? What are you rushing for? He's hired an auctioneer, and we don't need to show our faces," Ren He shot him a glance, her heart also filled with unease.
She didn't know the relationship between Li Chonglou and Tian Shan, but Li Chonglou's reaction after discovering he'd been swindled was strange.
From initially recruiting people privately to now holding a public auction.
On the surface, it seemed to be for her maximum benefit, but there was no need for such a grand display.
Li Chonglou stood to gain from both private contact and public auction.
Was it simply to drive up the price in a public auction and get more, thus making such a big fuss?
Scanning the front from behind the scenes, seeing almost all the big shots from Yong'an's business and collecting circles had been invited, Ren He couldn't help but marvel at Li Chonglou's reach.
He was usually low-key, but with a single command, he could mobilize so many resources.
She felt inferior.
"It was originally a private contact, so my presence would have been understandable, but now that it's a public auction, why do I still need to be here? It's superfluous," Zhang Chen continued to grumble.
Although he called Li Chonglou master, their relationship was more like friends.
He only honored his master out of whim, and now that he was feeling unwell, he wasn't afraid to complain.
Of course, he wouldn't say these things in front of Li Chonglou.
Who wouldn't let him say that his life was saved by Li Chonglou?
On the first-floor hall.
Xiao Da received a call, and after hanging up, said, "He Yinyin called, saying that the mastermind who tried to assassinate your young disciple on the elevated highway has been summoned."
"He will be detained at the city bureau's interrogation room within forty-eight hours."
"Why are you paying attention to such a person?"
"Because I suspect it wasn't him who sent people to kill Zhang Chen. Sometimes, stirring up trouble is very effective," Li Chonglou sneered, "That kid Zhang Chen, despite his bad conduct, isn't rotten to the core. He wouldn't push someone to the point of mutual destruction."
"The reason I made him stay at the scene in a wheelchair today is no longer about luring the enemy."
Xiao Da listened with confusion. He found himself understanding Li Chonglou less and less.
Ever since they shared a bottle of wine and he had a long self-criticism in front of the paper pile, Li Chonglou seemed to have become a different person.
His words and actions became more casual, but there was a subtle, unsettling power emanating from him.
It was as if he could explode at any moment and destroy everything.
So, Xiao Da had to watch Li Chonglou, stay by his side, and prevent him from becoming too dangerous.
"He's here!" Just then, red light flashed in Li Chonglou's eyes, his Heavenly Eye seeing everything clearly.
Outside the door, an old man with white hair, leaning on a cane and wearing sunglasses, was slowly walking towards the registration desk, supported by a tall, beautiful woman.
The old man appeared to be blind.
His movements and demeanor were identical to those of a blind person, but Li Chonglou clearly saw that one of his eyes beneath the sunglasses was without a pupil.
He had also seen through the disguise on his face.
If it wasn't Tian Shan, then who could it be!