Chapter 58: The Guxia Token

At this moment, in a shadowed corner of the world, five masked figures sat around a round conference table in a dimly lit room. Their masks were starkly simple: pure white, emblazoned with a bold black letter "Y." The masks reflected a cold gleam, piercing even in the gloom.

One of them held a phone in one hand, while the fingers of his other hand tapped rhythmically on the tabletop. Though their faces were concealed, beneath the mask his brows were tightly knit.

"What did you say? A man none of us have seen before climbed out of Qin Mengxue's car?"

"Yes, Mr. Y. The man who got out of her car wasn't in any of the materials you provided. And he seemed extremely alert—his eyes locked on my position the moment he stepped out."

"So you're saying this man isn't ordinary?"

"Exactly. Though perhaps I'm overthinking it—after all, he glanced only briefly before leaving."

"Alright, I understand. So the point of your call is, you're not accepting the job anymore?"

"Heh, one man isn't enough to stop me. But I'd like to request additional payment. Since circumstances now differ from your information, it's not unreasonable for a hitman to ask for more, is it?"

"Hmph, so that's it. Even the tenth-ranked assassin in Huaxia's Heavenly List, Chain, can't escape the laws of money," the man in the Y mask snorted coldly.

"Ha ha ha, Mr. Y, nobody refuses money. Even the top three on the World Assassin List—Phantom Butterfly, KING, and Jesus—would do the same," Chain laughed on the other end.

"How much do you want?"

"Three million. I believe that's a trivial sum for you, Mr. Y."

"Deal. If you can bring me Qin Mengxue's head, I'll add another two million."

"Very well, Mr. Y. Here's to a successful partnership."

With those final words, the call ended. The masked man sighed softly and pressed a button on the table.

A large white screen descended, and the projection system whirred to life. As the screen stabilized, the image of a delicate young man appeared.

"This is the man who got out of Qin Mengxue's car this morning. Any opinions? Have our 'Pawns' uncovered anything about him?" asked the Y-masked man.

The other four scrutinized the face on the screen. After a moment, one chuckled.

"Could he be Qin Mengxue's kept boytoy? He does look quite handsome."

"And just now, a 'Pawn' sent some info about him. His name is Xue Tian'ai. His background is as simple as can be: father was a construction worker, died in an accident two years ago; mother was a teacher, passed away from cancer a year ago," another man said, glancing at his phone and pressing a button.

The screen shifted, displaying Xue Tian'ai's details: age twenty-eight, father Xue Youyi, deceased construction worker; mother Dan Wanshu, deceased high school English teacher. Xue Tian'ai's current occupation: assistant to the president of Menghua Group; previous job: bartender.

A photo of Xue Tian'ai working at the bar appeared. In it, he bowed obsequiously, wearing a fawning smile.

"See? It's just Chain trying to squeeze more money out of us. Someone so insignificant is nothing to worry about!"

"Seems he's really just Qin Mengxue's boytoy. How else would a bartender become her personal assistant?"

"Still, never let your guard down! He bears the surname Xue," one masked man, unlike the others, stared intently at the two photos of Xue Tian'ai—the one from the bar and the one sent by Chain that morning.

Even a child could see both photos were of the same person.

"Ha ha ha, Third Brother, are you suggesting this guy is from the Xue family in the capital?"

"Ha ha ha, the Xue family cares only for themselves. Look how we wiped out the Ye family years ago—Xue showed no reaction, let alone the declining Qin family. Besides, there are plenty of Xues in China; you can't just assume anyone surnamed Xue is from the capital's Xue clan."

"Third Brother, I agree with Second Brother. Besides, except for that stubborn fool Xue Gangtao, the Xue family doesn't have any young men like him, right?"

"In any case, I think caution is warranted, and I don't believe Xue Gangtao is the useless obstinate you claim," Third Brother's gaze never left the two images.

He sensed subtle differences between them—the light in the eyes, minute nuances in posture—a discordant feeling hard to articulate.

"Enough. Whoever he is, Chain is already testing the waters for us. We needn't worry," the man who'd made the call tapped the table with his index finger.

"By the way, Third Brother, has the 'Pawn' you sent to investigate the destruction of the Skull Organization returned?" the masked man asked, shifting focus.

"Yes, Big Brother, I was just going to bring it up. The 'Pawn' returned, but found nothing useful in the ruins. The Skull leader's shoulder bone was missing, and a large sum of the organization's funds was transferred out—there's no way to trace the receiving account."

"So we have no clue whether it was a vendetta between organizations or if Skull was destroyed to protect Qin Mengxue."

"Exactly, that's what our information suggests," Third Brother nodded.

"Forget it, whoever did it doesn't matter! The Guxia Token is our primary target now. Everything else is secondary. Once we obtain it and unlock the Guxia treasure, not only the Xue family hiding in a corner—even all of Huaxia will be at our fingertips."

"Ha ha ha, Big Brother is right! Once we have the remaining Guxia Tokens, heh heh, all of Huaxia will be ours!"

"Ha ha ha ha..." Their laughter echoed in unison throughout the room.

While the five masked figures laughed in the dark, in a hotel near Menghua Group, Chain, the assassin, sat on the bed, two Desert Eagles and several magazines scattered beside him.

He was carefully polishing a sleek black dagger, sneering at a photograph of Qin Mengxue pinned on the wall.

"Sorry, little beauty. Don't blame me when you’re dead—I mean, your head is worth thirteen million! Ha ha ha ha..."

In the next moment, the dagger slipped from Chain's hand, transformed into a streak of black light, and stabbed viciously into the image of Qin Mengxue's head.

...

Meanwhile, in Qin Mengxue's office, Xue Tian'ai was staring excitedly at his computer screen, one hand flying across the keyboard, the other incessantly clicking the mouse.

His mouth, too, was firing off words like a machine gun: "Damn! Didn’t I tell you? Don't rush B, don't rush B, isn’t rushing A better?"

"I can snipe alone—why do we need four snipers in one match?"

"Throw the grenade, throw the grenade—not the flashbang!"

"...Damn, f**k..."

Xue Tian'ai was engrossed in the popular CS:GO shooter game, his eyes alight with excitement. Arriving at Qin Mengxue's office that morning, he found the laptop he'd requested yesterday waiting for him.

He swiftly used Menghua Group's high-speed internet to download the hottest shooter and started playing. Though new to the game, Xue Tian'ai's sharp reflexes and childhood experience with 3D shooters let him master it quickly—so much so that he was having a blast.

While Xue Tian'ai was thoroughly enjoying himself, Qin Mengxue’s pretty face grew colder by the minute. It was bad enough he played games at work—worse still, he kept muttering aloud! He had no sense of decorum whatsoever!

Watching his mounting excitement, her expression darkened, eyes blazing with fury.

Just as Xue Tian'ai finished a round and stretched, he looked over at Qin Mengxue, noticing how sour her expression had become.

"Wife, why are you staring at me? Did I get even more handsome this morning and captivate you again?"

"Ugh! Xue Tian'ai! Who would be captivated by you? Do you even know where you are?"

"Of course, I’m in your office," he replied, shaking his head.

"So you know! This is my office, the company, not our home! Playing games is already against the rules, and you’re making so much noise! Aren’t you a bit too much?" Qin Mengxue’s anger grew as his nonchalant attitude infuriated her.

The company was already swamped with work, and she needed to focus. Yet this idiot kept generating noise, making it impossible to concentrate.

"But I’m bored! I'm a motivated young man, but with nothing to do, I have no choice but to play games!"

"Bored, are you? If you’re really so bored, go play in the entertainment room on the fifth floor! Or wander somewhere else. In any case, leave immediately and don’t disturb my work!"

She had no idea what to do. After all, he was her legal husband, and company rules didn’t apply to him. Besides, she doubted he’d follow them even if she told him.

"Alright, with your permission, I can go play without worries!" With that, Xue Tian'ai zipped out of the office without hesitation.

Watching his retreating figure, Qin Mengxue sighed softly, massaged her aching temples, and quietly returned to her paperwork.