Chapter 1 An Unknown Estate

In a mountainous region of Sichuan Province, an unnamed estate.

A beautiful three-story villa stood in the center of the courtyard, with precious green plants and flowers planted in front. It seemed someone regularly tended to them, as the plants were lush and vibrant.

At that moment, Wu Han stood in front of the villa under the blazing sun, a thin layer of sweat on his forehead. He had rushed over after receiving the call, but even with the cool rooms so close, he hesitated to go inside.

Wu Han took out a tissue, wiped his sweat, and waited a moment. The door opened from the inside, and Jiang Zhou walked out.

Seeing Wu Han, Jiang Zhou waved. "Brother Han, you're here. Why aren't you coming in?"

"Jiang Zhou!" Wu Han hurried over and glanced inside. "What's going on in there?"

Jiang Zhou sighed. "Ah, my mom, your mom, my sister, my aunt, and a bunch of old ladies are playing mahjong."

"Holy crap, that's terrifying..." Hearing this, Wu Han eyed Jiang Zhou. "How can you look so relaxed?"

"Relaxed my ass. I've changed the tea three times and keep getting scolded." Jiang Zhou waved his hand. "Forget it, let's talk business. The thing is... the Huagong Association and Lao Li's team are a bit tense over the joint association. The higher-ups want you to mediate."

"It's no problem for me to mediate, but you have to tell me..." Wu Han pointed to the villa. "...what kind of result are they looking for?"

Jiang Zhou patted his shoulder. "Just one requirement... the scheme can't fall apart, and the joint association has to be established."

"Okay, I understand." Wu Han nodded, pointing towards the outside. "I'm leaving if there's nothing else."

Jiang Zhou grabbed his arm. "Don't be in such a hurry. Why don't you come in and serve the game with me?"

"Forget it, I'd rather not go in..." Wu Han immediately waved his hand. "What kind of combination is that inside? Even your dad would be confused. I won't join the fun. I was just diagnosed with heart disease last week, and I'm not suitable for this kind of gathering..."

Wu Han was clearly afraid of the women inside. He yanked his arm away, took off, and sprinted towards the entrance.

"Hey, don't go!" Jiang Zhou shouted. "Don't leave me alone! I'm shaking too! Brother Han, Brother Han, Wu Han!"

Wu Han seemed not to hear him and ran even faster, impossible to stop.

"Little Zhou..." A woman's clear voice came from inside. "Is Little Han here?"

Jiang Zhou replied helplessly, "He said he left already."

"That child runs whenever he sees me..."

...

That night, Saint Paul City.

A plane slowly taxied into the airport.

The weather in Saint Paul City was a bit muggy, and Wu Han kept sweating after getting off the plane.

"What kind of weather is this?" Wu Han walked out of the security checkpoint, feeling annoyed. The Huagong Association had done this secretly without informing him beforehand, and now that they couldn't handle it, they reported it to the higher-ups, which was a bit irritating.

Four cars were parked in the VIP lane. As Wu Han came out, five Huagong Association staff members immediately jumped out of the cars and hurried towards him.

"Director Wu!" Wang Xiao walked in front and rushed to Wu Han, taking the luggage from his hand.

"Mm." Wu Han responded faintly.

Noticing Wu Han's expression was not good, Wang Xiao quickly said, "You must be tired from the trip."

"It's okay, not too tiring." Wu Han glanced at him sideways, saying sarcastically, "Just flew to four places in a week, across two continents. I just got back to the Hua District, and before I could even sleep, I received your work order."

"Haha, you're joking. With one word from you, Young Master Wu, the entire Huagong Association will stand at attention...!" Wang Xiao was still very polite to Wu Han, just a little too eager to suck up. After all, he was from a military background and hadn't trained with Director Su at the All-Systems Bureau, so his skills in that area were a bit lacking.

The two got into the car one after the other, and the car slowly drove towards the Huagong Association headquarters.

The night view of Saint Paul City was still beautiful, with the local favorite Ibe trees planted on both sides of the road, the green shade forming a continuous stretch.

"So, what's the situation?" Wu Han had no interest in the scenery. He rolled up the car window, looked at Wang Xiao sitting next to him, and asked.

"It's like this, Director Wu..." Wang Xiao touched his nose. "We had a bit of an unpleasantness with the All-Systems Bureau and the An family..."

"I know it's unpleasant," Wu Han asked. "Tell me the specific reasons."

Wang Xiao said softly, "Isn't this because of Wu Boxin... During the retreat, the First District locked down many areas. We sent him to Saint Paul City for his safety. As a result, Su Tianyu found out, which made them unhappy..."

"Stop it! Don't play games within the family." Wu Han frowned and glanced at Wang Xiao. "Isn't it just that you didn't say hello and secretly stole the person? Honestly, Uncle Wang, we handled this a bit sloppily."

Wang Xiao scratched his head awkwardly but still forced himself to reply, "Yes, I won't argue with you about that. It does look bad. I advised Chairman Huo to handle this more tactfully, but Huang Peishan kept fanning the flames, and they didn't listen to me... But to be honest, Wu Boxin was only here for a few days. He chatted with Chairman Huo very well and shared the same political ideals, which is why he was willing to stand on our side. We didn't force Wu Boxin to choose sides..."

Wu Han crossed his arms and frowned. "Did Chairman Huo inform you in advance before doing this?"

"No, he gave the order after Wang An picked up the person." Wang Xiao frowned. "However, Chairman Huo was also thinking of the Huagong Association. After the Panama City incident, we have been very passive..."

"Alright." Wu Han interrupted Wang Xiao again, frowning. "What's done is done, there's no point in mentioning it again."

"I understand, Director Wu." Wang Xiao had no choice but to shut his mouth.

"What about Old Huo?" Wu Han continued. "How is he planning to handle it?"

"The chairman and Wu Boxin mean that we can give up some of the association's management positions to the All-Systems Bureau and the An family to arrange." Wang Xiao said immediately, "And the chairman said that we can even use the name 'Hua Tong Association' that Su Tianyu came up with for the joint association. Isn't that sincere enough?"

"Okay, I understand, Uncle Wang." Wu Han waved his hand and slowly took out his phone from his pocket.

...

Saint Paul City, hotel.

Su Tianyu sat by the window in his room, overlooking the night view of Saint Paul City while drinking tea.

"Ring, ring, ring!"

The phone on the table rang. Su Tianyu picked up the phone, glanced at the caller ID, and couldn't help but think to himself that what was coming, was coming after all.

"Hello?" He answered the phone, saying with a smile, "Young Master Wu?"

"What are you doing, Director Su?" Wu Han's laughter came from the phone. "I'm in Saint Paul City. Want to come out and relax?"