At night on the seventh day of the New Year, City B returned to its usual bustle. With the celebration of the New Year these past few days, the entire city had been emptier than usual, yet tomorrow would be the first day back to work. With that in mind, many people returned to the city, so the entire city returned to its usual flourish.

Outside the VR Spa, Li Si was seated in the car.

Li Si stared at the spa entrance as he asked, "Anything new?"

"They're still inside. Bro Bao has already arranged for some of our guys to block the back door. Don't worry."

Li Si nodded as he pushed his sleeve up to take a glance at the watch on his wrist. The time showed that it was close to 1 a.m. He thought to himself, 'These two women had so much time in there. It's already past midnight, and they're still there. Doris really knows how to enjoy herself. Does Gu Qiwu not care?'

He found it a little odd as he thought about this.

While Li Si was deep in his thoughts, the bodyguard on the side called out, "Assistant Li, they're out!"

Li Si was alert as he quickly put away his thoughts and looked at the entrance of the spa. Indeed, they saw that Doris and Gu Lingsha were cheerfully leaving the place before getting into a luxury car.

"Follow them, but be careful. Don't let them notice us! I'll go in to take a look." Li Si quickly ordered and then got down from the car.

Mu Yuchen had found a way to get into the spa with his partner, CEO Li's help, so he should be there.

"Okay."

Quickly, the black cars left the spa one after another.

Actually, the night was not quite peaceful. The next morning, just when they had finished their breakfast, Li Si returned with the guys, but Ah Bao was nowhere to be seen.

Mu Yuchen set aside the cutlery in his hand, and took a napkin to wipe his mouth as he looked at Li Si by the table and asked calmly, "How's the situation?"

Li Si bowed respectfully and said, "We found out that Doris and Gu Lingsha really did hang out at VR Spa for the entire night. They only left at dawn, but they didn't get in touch with anyone else in between, so the pen should still be with them. According to the people at spa, the mother and daughter pair have been frequenting the spa, especially Doris."

When Mu Yuchen heard the update, he immediately asked, "Did you ask whether Gu Qiwu often went with her?"

Li Si shook his head. "We asked. Those attendants say that they've never seen Gu Qiwu accompany Doris there. Maybe it's because he's quite busy too, so he wouldn't have the time to accompany this woman for such pastime. Doris is a dame raised in a rich household. She doesn't even need to go to work, but Gu Qiwu's different. He's managing the entire Hui Gu Corporation alone. I'm sure he's worn out. Right, Master, I've checked Hui Gu Corporation. It seems like because of poor management, they've been a little tight on funds."

Mu Yuchen's dignified expression was grave as he fell into deep thought. Even when Zhou Zimo called out to him several times, he did not move and his gaze flickered, so you could not tell how he felt at the moment.

A while passed before he tossed the napkin in his hand down and stood up unhurriedly. "Get the address of Xiang She Residences. Prepare the car. We'll go over for a look right now."

"Okay, Master!"

Xiang She Residences was in the north of City B around the old city area. While there were quite a few old looking buildings on the side, of course, there were also new streets and newly built buildings. However, with the old and new mixed, it did not look very harmonious.

The car slowly drove past the wide Doyle Street, and after making a huge turn, they reached a somewhat old alley.

"Master, Master Mo, we're here. The map shows that it's right here." Li Si had just finished when Mu Yuchen and Zhou Zimo already got down from the car.

They followed Li Si's gaze and looked over to see a very quiet alley with green flagstones laid on the pavements. On one side was a tall wall, while the other side had an old house that had not been demolished. A tall building that rose steeply from the ground level was on the other side of that wall, and in the middle was this road with green flagstones separating them was a very clear divider line.

"Master, that exit used to be the exit of Xiang She Residences. There were more than ten villas in the residence, but now they've all been relocated. That tall building over there was the old address of Xiang She Residences. Now, traces of Xiang She Residences can't be found anymore."

Li Si looked pitifully at those high rise buildings. "I heard that those high-rises have only just been built in recent years. Xiang She Residences used to be a place where only the rich and powerful could purchase. If Miss Mu Zi could really have bought a place here, I think with just her alone having to hide it from everyone wouldn't have been easy."

"Have you found out about the investors of Xiang She Residences back then? And that of the people that sold their houses? Years ago, did Aunty personally interact with them? We have to find out about all these," Mu Yuchen said as he walked towards the alley.

"I'm afraid we won't be able to meet the people who sold their houses. Ah Bao found out that the person seems to have passed away two years ago. The investor was a foreign developer who left City B over 20 years ago, but Ah Bao found out that there was another investor with that developer back then too. I'm sure you wouldn't have guessed which company it is, Master," said Li Si in a lowered voice.

"Who is it? Is it that secretive?" Zhou Zimo stopped his steps and turned to look at Li Si.

"Hui Gu Corporation."

When Li Si said that, Zhou Zimo's eyes immediately widened. He reeled back a little in shock as he shook his head. "That's not right. How could it be him? Gu Qiwu? Also, based on what you said, Xiang She Residences was only built in a short while, so why did it so quickly get demolished for relocation?"

"Oh, it's because City B's new plan was released. The old city area was being refurbished again, so they had to demolish these houses."

Mu Yuchen did not say anything. His eyes just flickered while his expression was a little gloomy. You could not tell how he felt. He glanced up again at the large area before nodding calmly. "No need to continue investigating over here. Let's leave first," he said, then turned around with waning interest. His stooped back profile looked like he was very troubled.

"Stop the investigations? Master Mo, Master, he..."

Zhou Zimo shrugged as he lifted a hand to pat Li Si's shoulder and sighed. "We couldn't find out anything even after we investigated, so forget it. I'm afraid your Master will have to go meet Gu Qiwu personally. You should know that that's something he really doesn't want to do," said Zhou Zimo. Then, he could not help but knock his forehead as he sighed deeply and then chased after Mu Yuchen.

"Boss, I've followed your orders and investigated the guestlist for yesterday's auction. We found something."

Ah Yong carefully presented his findings to the quiet man sitting in the passenger seat in the car. The man was still wearing a hat and dark sunglasses like before, and his black coat almost covered him wholly. Both his hands were in his side pockets as he took a glance at the paper. Then, he took it and then started to read through it.

When he saw the name Mu Yuchen, his gaze turned cold, but his eyes returned to normal soon after that.

"Mu Yuchen is in City B just like you said. I'm sure that pen was his trap for you, Boss. However, they took the pen away in the end. What should we do? Do we just give up like this?" Ah Yong seemed disgruntled.

The man who was called "Boss" took a deep breath as he put on a cold smile. "It's within my expectations. Also, it's only natural that we shouldn't take Mu Yuchen lightly."

"By the way, they also went to Doyle Street this morning. I bet they know about that house already."

"Mu Yuchen acts pretty fast. He saw through Qi Qiming's end very quickly and is now getting closer to the truth already. It might not be a good thing for them. Actually, it might have been better if no one knew." The man's tone was filled with sarcasm."Once these secrets are revealed, I doubt there's anyone courageous enough to accept them."

"What should we do now, Boss? There were two groups of people tailing us last night. The other group must be Mu Yuchen's people."

"Just leave it for now. You don't have to do anything from now on. Just wait for my orders."

"Yes, Boss!"

...

In the afternoon, Ah Bao finally returned to the hotel to report to Mu Yuchen after working hard for a whole day.

"Head in. Master is out on the balcony. I'm going out," said Li Si when he bumped into Ah Bao at the entrance. Ah Bao took a deep breath before going inside.

Mu Yuchen was relaxing on the balcony as he relaxed on a rattan chair. He was sunbathing while wearing a pair of huge sunglasses.

"Master!" Ah Bao quietly called him.

"Speak," Mu Yuchen replied briefly without moving his body.

"I've found out that the other group pursuing the man was the wife of the Hui Gu Corporation CEO, who is Doris."

Mu Yuchen clenched his fist as he heard the name. Even Ah Bao could sense some hostility in the air. Moments later, Ah Bao took a deep breath and continued, "But we don't know who the person we're chasing is yet. According to the other group, they are trying to find out who that man was well, but they lost track of him too, so..."

Mu Yuchen nodded. "I understand. Great job. You can leave for now."

"We're not doing any further investigations?"

"There's no need."

Ah Bao left after Mu Yuchen gave him a short reply.

"Have you figured something out?" Zhou Zimo asked after the door was closed.

Mu Yuchen took off his sunglasses and turned his head over to see Zhou Zimo standing nearby.

"What could I have figured out?"

Mu Yuchen smiled as he grabbed the glass of water beside him and took a sip from it before looking at the vast, blue sky. "Let's return to City Z tonight. Leave things here to Ah Bao and the others."

"What's wrong with you? You seem to have a lot on your mind. What are you thinking about?"

Zhou Zimo was friends with Mu Yuchen for many years after all, so he noticed something was not right. "What did Ah Bao tell you just now?"

"Nothing much, but I have a bad feeling. It's been some time since Ah Mo and Lingshi went to Australia. I guess there'll be news coming in a few days, so we'll talk about it again then. There's something else I need to do before heading back," Mu Yuchen said calmly.

"To meet Gu Qiwu, isn't it?" Zhou Zimo walked over and lay down on the rattan lounge chair beside Mu Yuchen.

"How will he face you? Now that I think about it, Gu Qiwu felt really strange to me. He didn't react ever since that incident, and he seemed too calm for it. He might be the one who saved Gu Lingsha and Qi Feng. Moreover, I remember his attitude towards you wasn't very agreeable. Does he not like you or something?"

"I don't really know him that well. We only started getting involved with each other after I left the army, but I do know he doesn't exactly like my parents a lot. When my father was still working in City B, several projects from the Hui Gu Corporation were stopped. I think the relationship between the Mus and the Gus has been deteriorating ever since, and six years ago, during the financial crisis, the Hui Gu Corporation almost went bankrupt. There was a project that could help them go through that difficult period, and they were secretly in contact with Qi Qiming. However, their opponent for that project was Glory World." While Mu Yuchen recalled the past events calmly, he did not project any emotions into his words.

"Oddly enough, he insisted on letting Gu Lingsha marry me, and his attitude towards me during that period of time was beyond expectations. In order to make me accept Gu Lingsha wholeheartedly, he suggested I stay with the Gu family for three months. He promised to leave us alone if we didn't feel anything for each other after three months."

Zhou Zimo nodded and took a deep breath. "I know about that. Ah Mo told me about it before too, but you didn't stay with the Gu family, did you?"

"Yes, I don't like Gu Lingsha at all, so I inherently reject her. I can't even stand talking to her. How could I stay with her for three months?" Mu Yuchen then put on a cold smile. "I left that night itself, but Gu Qiwu tried to use the media to force me to follow his plans. We were the talk of the whole town. If I just left, it'd be a big slap on their face in public, so I couldn't just go so easily."

"So, you decided to let Lingtian stay because he went there together with you. He was good friends with Gu Lingsha, wasn't he?" Zhou Zimo squinted at Mu Yuchen.

Mu Yuchen took a deep breath and nodded. "Mmm, back then, I knew that Lingtian was pretty close to Gu Lingsha and Qi Feng, and most people already know about Gu Lingsha and Qi Feng's relationship by then. I assumed Gu Lingsha succumbed to her family's pressure and agreed to stay with me. I told Lingtian everyone will be free after three months, and I asked him to trust me and stay with the Gu family on behalf of me as a part of an act for the media."

"But Lingtian and Gu Lingsha didn't stay through the full duration, did they?" Zhou Zimo roughly remembered the past.

"Nope, in fact, things were peaceful in the first two months, but I don't know why Gu Lingsha insisted that Lingtian bring her back to the Mu residence to see me. Gu Qiwu approached my grandfather several times for me to marry Gu Lingsha immediately. I noticed there was something up with the Hui Gu Corporation and Qi Kai. Gu Qiwu might've been trying to put Gu Lingsha beside me as a spy. In turn, I agreed to marry Gu Lingsha so that I could get her under control and prevent her from doing anything behind my back. Apart from that, I could find out what they were up to through Gu Lingsha."

"So, Gu Qiwu was desperate for Gu Lingsha to marry you for two reasons. Firstly because of the project with Qi Qiming, and secondly, to get help from Glory World to help him get past the financial crisis?" Zhou Zimo was surprised.

"It's just a hypothesis. Gu Qiwu can be quite cunning. He's much more difficult to deal with when compared to Qi Qiming."

"What happened afterward? Why did Gu Lingsha elope with Qi Feng? What about Lingtian? Why did they do all that?"

"I don't know. I'm dying to know the answers more than anybody else." Mu Yuchen crossed his arms behind his head. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door just when he was about to continue talking.

"Come in."

Zhou Zimo glanced at Mu Yuchen before looking at the door.

Li Si quickly came in with an invitation card in his hands. "Master!"

He stopped beside Mu Yuchen. "Gu Qiwu sent an invitation card over just now. He's invited you to have dinner at the Hua Tian Hotel tonight. Look at this."

Zhou Zimo raised his eyebrows in shock. "How did Gu Qiwu know you're in City B? And he even found out where you're staying? Moreover, he's inviting you to dinner all of a sudden! From my impression, he seems to be..." He trailed off in thought.

Mu Yuchen took the invitation card and looked at it, smiling wryly before gazing up at the sky. "Great. I don't have to visit him. Tell him to reschedule it for afternoon tea today in the coffee shop opposite. We'll be heading back to City Z by 3.30p.m. and we'll leave things here to Ah Bao. Get Ah Bao over here. I have some orders for him."

"Yes, Master!"

...

Within an hour after Li Si rescheduled, Gu Qiwu's secretary called him to inform him that Gu Qiwu had already arrived.

Mu Yuchen went to the said coffee shop alone. The shop was totally empty as the whole place was booked. Mu Yuchen instantly saw him in the corner the moment he walked inside.

He wore a black suit and a pair of dark sunglasses while flipping through a newspaper. Although he gave off a quiet vibe, it was impossible to ignore his existence.

Similarly, Mu Yuchen could sense something deep within this man before him.

Gu Qiwu lowered his sunglasses slightly when he noticed Mu Yuchen had arrived. He gave Mu Yuchen a sharp glance before pushing his sunglasses back up and pointing at the seat opposite him. Coldly, he said, "It's been six years. Long time no see, Ah Chen."

"Long time no see, Uncle Gu." Mu Yuchen sat down calmly, not losing out to Gu Qiwu at all in terms of aura.

The waiter soon came over with coffee and snacks.

Gu Qiwu put the newspaper aside as he looked at Mu Yuchen quietly. "I thought you wouldn't come."

"It'd be rude of me to turn down your warm invitation." Mu Yuchen looked right into Gu Qiwu's eyes.

Gu Qiwu returned the gaze with a slight smile. "It seems like I've underestimated you. I should've visited you since Shasha's incident, but I didn't want to cause any trouble for you. Do you know why?"

"Don't tell me it's because you're considerate about the relationship between our families. I'm afraid that it doesn't exist anymore in our generation. I'm sure you know that better than anyone else. Moreover, I feel that I should be the one to ask for an explanation from the Gu family. What do you think?" Mu Yuchen gave Gu Qiwu a cold smile as well.

"Explanation? You can't blame us for that. You broke the rules first by cheating."

"Why are you the one who makes the rules? Did you invite me out just to talk about the past?" Mu Yuchen's tone turned solemn as he looked at Gu Qiwu intently.

Gu Qiwu chuckled. "What else do you think it might be? I only returned to City B this morning, and I saw that my wife got a pen from the auction yesterday. Shasha told me that it belongs to Lingtian. I'm sure that you're in City B since that pen appeared at the auction. It's been a really long time since we last saw each other, so I just wanted to meet up with you."

"30 years ago, the Hui Gu Corporation heavily invested in Xiang She Residences in the north of City B, didn't it?" Mu Yuchen did not reply and asked him a question instead.

Pausing for a moment, Gu Qiwu took off his sunglasses and looked at Mu Yuchen in surprise.