Chapter 435: The Mastermind Behind the Scenes

A few days later, in Xia Country.
In the smoking room of the guild building.
“Hey, Old Lin, speaking of which, this game is really fun, isn’t it?
You get to know a bunch of complete strangers just by playing, and before you know it, you’re best buddies, calling each other brothers.
Hehe, I feel like joining our guild was the right decision!”
Du Yuanhang said, puffing on his cigarette, his face beaming.
“…”
Lin Fan beside him simply smoked silently, offering no reaction.
Du Yuanhang couldn’t help but steal a glance at him.
This Vice Chairman Lin, though usually a quiet type, would at least give some kind of response.
What’s wrong with him today? Something on his mind?
"Oh, by the way, I heard about it. You pulled off something big in Japan this time!
When I first heard, I thought someone was bragging.
Those bastards in Japan really agreed to all those conditions?
My god, how did you manage to fool them so easily?"
"...It was just like that."
Lin Fan's reaction remained indifferent.
"Fine, looks like it was my fault for talking about work on my day off." Du Yuanhang felt he'd been rebuffed.
"And then there's our Chairman Su. His character is truly impeccable, absolutely top-notch!" Du Yuanhang continued his effusive praise.
"To be honest, I used to hear all sorts of exaggerated rumors about Fang Huan Investment, saying he was a bloodthirsty demon king in the capital market, ruthless and leaving nothing but desolation in his wake.
They even said there was an invisible hand manipulating everything behind the scenes, turning the world upside down.
I thought Chairman Su was that mastermind, and I was quite intimidated by him.
But now, after playing games with him and getting to know him better in private, I've discovered he's genuinely kind and gentle.
I can't understand how I could have imagined him to be so terrifying, haha!"
Hearing this, Lin Fan, who had been silent all along, finally managed a strange smile.
"You're really naive."
"...Huh?" Du Yuanhang was taken aback.
“Let me remind you as a friend,” Lin Fan slowly exhaled a smoke ring,
“Our Chairman Su is no saint.
He’s far more terrifying than you imagine.”
“W-what nonsense are you spouting?”
Lin Fan didn’t answer directly, but cautiously scanned his surroundings, making sure no one was around before lowering his voice.
“Didn’t you just say I pulled off a big heist in Japan?
Actually… I didn’t do anything.
I just flew over, got a definite result, that’s all.”
“Damn, getting a result is the hardest part, okay? That takes so many rounds of arduous negotiations…”
“Negotiations? There were no negotiations at all. I just went to hear a result.” Lin Fan chuckled self-deprecatingly,
“I met with them, and before I could even exchange two words, they told me they would immediately fulfill all the conditions they had promised. And then… that was it.”
“…?”
Du Yuanhang was completely bewildered. This sounded like a complete fantasy.
"They didn't mention any additional conditions?"
"They did mention them at the beginning. The only condition was that we find a way to help them win the election."
“But what can we do? This election is only happening because the former prime minister died…”
Du Yuanhang’s words trailed off.
“…”
Lin Fan didn’t speak, only silently chain-smoked, his eyes unfathomable through the swirling smoke.
Du Yuanhang froze at first, then seemed to understand something, abruptly jumping up from his seat, his voice trembling.
“I… I swear! Could it be that this whole thing…!”
“Shh! Keep your voice down!” Lin Fan shoved him back down.
Du Yuanhang immediately lowered his voice, but the shock in his tone was impossible to conceal:
"What the hell are you talking about! So, according to you, this really has something to do with Fanghuan Investment?!
That's why the Japanese are so scared they're practically crawling on the ground, agreeing to any conditions?
You saw it with your own eyes? The company hired assassins?"
"No, I didn't see it. The company certainly didn't hire assassins. But..."
"But what?"
Lin Fan nervously glanced around again, then leaned close to Du Yuanhang's ear:
"Can you take this to your grave?"
"Huh? What...what happened? It's so scary."
"Our Chairman Su, a few days before the shooting, asked me a question."
"What question?"
"He asked me...if the Japanese mafia can secretly get guns now."
"!?!"
Du Yuanhang shuddered, but quickly forced himself to calm down.
"To connect these two events based solely on this... that's a bit far-fetched..."
"Yes, it is a bit far-fetched. But the timing is too coincidental.
Think about it, as soon as Chairman Su saw the request for help from Japan, he immediately, without warning, started asking about Japan's gun issues.
Then, a few days later, something happened there."
Lin Fan finished three cigarettes in one go, stubbed them out fiercely in the ashtray, stood up, and dusted off his clothes.
"Our Chairman Su isn't as simple as you think.
I've been by his side for so many years, and I still haven't figured out what kind of person he really is.
I dare say, even Chairman Huang might not truly understand him."
"..."
So, don't be too naive.
Always maintain a sense of awe and be on your guard in front of Chairman Su.
His eyes can see through everything.
I shouldn't be saying this to anyone else, but I'm reminding you out of consideration for our friendship."
Du Yuanhang swallowed hard.
"Oh, right." Lin Fan walked to the door, then suddenly stopped and looked back at him.
"That thing you mentioned last time."
"...Huh? W-what thing?"
"It's about this guild. You said it's not just a simple gaming guild, that there must be other motives behind it.
At first, I didn't take it seriously, but now it seems you were probably right."
Lin Fan's eyes became incredibly deep.
“How could someone like Chairman Su go to the trouble of building such a huge organization just for playing games and organizing social events?”
With that, he pushed open the door and walked out of the smoking room.
Leaving Du Yuanhang standing there like a wooden stake, dumbfounded.
Every moment he spent with Su Hao in the past—his gentle smile, his simple words—flashed wildly through his mind like scenes from a black-and-white film.
Each image seemed imbued with a new, chilling meaning!