Chapter 424: Special Envoy Enters the Game

"Special Envoy, we have arrived at the Red Dust Restaurant."

As the car came to a steady stop, a magnificent and grand restaurant stood outside the window, and Gu Kaixian's gentle voice sounded.

The Red Dust Restaurant at night was very different from when Chen Ling came in the morning. Not only were there dozens of uniform golden spotlights on the outer wall, but a solemn red carpet had also been laid at the entrance. Two rows of bright flower baskets extended from the restaurant door. Before Chen Ling even got out of the car, dozens of figures in suits and leather shoes hurried over from the restaurant entrance.

Chen Ling didn't open the door, nor did he need to, because the next moment his car door was opened gently. Dozens of figures stood guard on both sides of the door, bowing deeply and respectfully:

"—Welcome, Lord Special Envoy!!!"

The loud shouting rang out, giving Chen Ling a strange sense of immersion like a gang leader being welcomed by subordinates in a Hong Kong movie. He slowly extended one foot out of the car door, stepping into the void three centimeters above the ground. As he turned to get out of the car, the ancient golden mask appeared before everyone's eyes again.

At this moment, everyone at the restaurant entrance went quiet.

The golden spotlights projected onto the restaurant's outer wall, and the reflected glimmer made the golden mask look like a god in the night. An indescribable sense of oppression instantly enveloped the entire street.

The hem of the black trench coat brushed past the stunned crowd. By the time they regained their senses, the figure had already drifted to the front of the restaurant...

He rubbed his fingertips lightly in the air, and an invitation appeared out of thin air like a magic trick.

"I am here to keep my appointment," he said indifferently.

The capable lieutenants of the major consortiums, specifically responsible for welcoming Chen Ling, were all intimidated by the aura of the golden mask and couldn't speak for a moment. It wasn't until Chen Ling handed the invitation to them that they suddenly came to their senses!

"...Yes, yes! Please come in! The directors are already waiting for you inside."

The heads led Chen Ling straight across the red carpet and into the restaurant.

The moment that black trench coat stepped through the restaurant door, faint thunder rumbled in the pitch-black sky.

Boom—

At this moment, the dozens of people responsible for reception at the door looked up at the sky in confusion, discovering that at some point, thick dark clouds had covered the sky over this area.

"Strange, how did the weather change so fast..." one figure muttered to himself.

A biting cold wind swept through the street, as if it were a precursor to a rainstorm.

At this moment, hundreds of meters away, on the desk in the auction house's VIP lounge, a page written by Chen Ling's own hand was illuminated by flashes of lightning, and the text on the first line was clearly visible:

—[Evening, Special Envoy Chen Ling enters the game, thunderstorm arrives]

……

Inside the Red Dust Restaurant, it was resplendent and magnificent.

Chen Ling followed them unhurriedly, his gaze beneath the mask fixed straight ahead, seemingly uninterested in the superficial luxury decorations.

The banquet venue was on the first floor of the Red Dust Restaurant, which was almost the largest banquet hall in the entire Red Dust Domain. When the heads slowly opened a corner of the relief-carved doors, melodious music reached Chen Ling's ears.

Creak—

As the relief doors opened, numerous eyes in the venue looked toward the entrance simultaneously. If this were a stage performance, there would probably be several spotlights shining there, reflecting the golden mask like a god... At this moment, everyone knew that the true protagonist of this banquet had arrived.

Among the crisp suits and elegant evening gowns, that black trench coat looked out of place. Against the backdrop of the faint thunder outside the window, it seemed to bring a touch of solemnity and mystery.

"Lord Special Envoy, you are finally here!" Zong Wen was the first to walk toward Chen Ling, his smile blooming like a chrysanthemum.

Today, Zong Wen was wearing a rose-red suit, his graying hair tied into an artistic little braid. He seemed much younger, like a lecherous old man lingering among flowers.

"Come, come, let me introduce you," Zong Wen walked to Chen Ling's side and said enthusiastically. "You've already met Lu Yuanzheng. The person next to him is the director of the Paradise Consortium, and the one next to that is the Whale Shark Consortium's... but these are all old men, nothing to look at. Let me focus on introducing the girls to you!

The girl performing on stage right now is the most popular musical talent in Red Dust Main City, Cui Shuizhen. Her cello playing is truly masterful... Do you see that group of girls waiting off-stage? That is the top girl group under our Flower Capital Consortium, the Rose Girl Group, with an average age of nineteen;

And also, that girl over there in the black dress, isn't she beautiful? That's a potential star we unearthed from Liu Town. She has temperament, dances well, and her body is as soft as if she had no bones. She is a natural dancer who combines beauty and talent, Liu Qingyan... She just turned eighteen this year."

Zong Wen was indeed an old fox. He immediately put on the appearance of being extremely familiar with the Special Envoy and began to introduce the banquet guests with the posture of a "host," narrowing the distance between them... The most critical thing was that he didn't even mention the names of the other consortium directors, going straight for the female artists under his own banner.

This scene undoubtedly made the other consortiums extremely unhappy. They immediately walked up with wine glasses, smiling, and interrupted Zong Wen's performance.

"Lord Special Envoy, I am Su Xiaohong of the Whale Shark Consortium. I happened to be in a meeting in the south of the city the day you arrived, so I couldn't make it in time. I am truly sorry... I will punish myself with a drink first," a capable woman in her thirties walked up, spoke to Chen Ling first, and then drank the red wine in her glass in one gulp.

"I am Pang Shan of the Paradise Consortium. I have long admired your name, Special Envoy," another man in his thirties also raised his glass.

Any one of these people was a big shot who could make Red Dust Main City tremble just by stepping out. Ordinary people might not have a chance to see their true faces in a lifetime, but at this moment, they were all accompanying Chen Ling with smiles, without any of the posture or majesty of consortium directors.

But what surprised Chen Ling was that only four of the five major consortiums had arrived so far. The Big Dipper Consortium, which had sent him a generous gift, had not yet arrived...

Chen Ling scanned the crowd with a calm gaze and spoke slowly:

"No need for pleasantries. I came to the Main City to do business."

Chen Ling rubbed his fingertips lightly, and a list appeared in his palm, which he handed lightly to the other consortium directors. "Part of the product list is already out. If you have any targets you are interested in, we can find an opportunity to talk... As for drinking, let's skip it."

As soon as these words were spoken, the faces of the crowd turned awkward. They looked down at the list Chen Ling handed over and found that they were all ordinary small items, neither valuable nor having any collection value, and they lost interest instantly.

Even though they tried their best to control their expressions, they still couldn't escape Chen Ling's [Secret Pupil]. He took it all in and sneered to himself.