Chapter Ninety-Seven: The Hidden Mastermind

At these words, everyone was utterly stunned. Compared to all this, the welfare housing seemed insignificant.

“Manager Lan, are you serious?” Nong Yixiang looked at Lan Tianxin in disbelief.

Lan Tianxin nodded. “Of course. The boss confirmed it personally.”

“But... Manager Lan, the company doesn’t have nearly enough funds to support such an enormous expense!” Nong Yixiang knew better than anyone that Fantasy Technology had less than seventeen billion available in its accounts, and that was only because the War Club had recently deposited twenty billion. Many projects had already drained substantial sums; now, to take out over twenty billion was simply impossible.

“That’s nothing you need to worry about. New funds are about to be injected, so the Dream Blueprint can be implemented.”

Lan Tianxin didn’t elaborate, nor did anyone ask further. Some things didn’t need to be explained.

News of the Dream Blueprint quickly spread internally throughout the company. Everyone was astounded by Zhu Lan’s methods. If the plan could really be built, it would mean every employee had a chance to be granted a house by the company. This was a tremendous incentive for many; what did people crave most these days? Salaries? Sports cars? Girlfriends? No, for most, it was simply the hope of owning a home.

“Boss, is there something you need from me?” Song Tingsan entered Zhu Lan’s office, still wearing the same clothes from earlier.

“Hmm, has Dan Mingshan’s situation stabilized?”

“It’s stable. If nothing unexpected happens, he’ll wake up tonight. I’ve arranged for staff to work overtime to ensure nothing goes wrong.”

Zhu Lan nodded. “Do you remember what I told you about relocating your research facility?”

Song Tingsan looked at Zhu Lan curiously and nodded. “Boss, but that building isn’t finished yet. Are we leaving here?”

Zhu Lan shook his head, rising from his chair and walking to a nearby bookshelf. “Red Queen, open the elevator!”

As soon as Zhu Lan spoke, the ceiling above the bookshelf cracked open, revealing a device that scanned Zhu Lan’s body with beams of light.

Click—

The bookshelf slowly split apart, exposing the wall behind it, which then opened to reveal an elevator in front of Zhu Lan and Song Tingsan.

“Come on, let’s see where you’ll be working in the future.”

“Boss...” Song Tingsan was startled by this unexpected sight; he hadn’t imagined there would be an elevator in Zhu Lan’s office.

“Let’s go!” Zhu Lan stepped inside, noticing Song Tingsan had yet to move and reminded him again.

“Oh!” Song Tingsan hurried into the elevator. The doors closed and instantly, the elevator began descending.

“Boss, what is this?”

“From now on, all research into virtual technology will be conducted in a secret location. You don’t need to know where it is.”

Song Tingsan nodded. At this moment, the elevator began moving laterally, but he didn’t ask further.

Azure Base had already been constructed. Equipment for virtual research and serum manufacturing had all been installed by Red Queen, waiting only for researchers to arrive and take over.

After much consideration, Zhu Lan decided to open up Azure Base. It would inevitably be discovered sooner or later. Zhu Lan was already contemplating whether to bring Moonwatch Base online, but for now, with so many matters at hand, he decided to wait. The military’s attitude remained ambiguous; Zhu Lan needed to understand their intentions before deciding whether to build Moonwatch Base.

The elevator opened, and Zhu Lan stepped out.

Song Tingsan quickly followed, exiting the elevator and passing through a long corridor to a vast plaza. The corridor was newly constructed; when Zhu Lan planned to develop Azure Base, Red Queen began building this hundred-meter-long passage to prevent accidents. It was equipped with laser defense systems, machine gun arrays, nanointervention bombs, and various detection devices. Of course, these were not yet complete and would take a few more days; for now, it was just a bare corridor.

The plaza was as large as a football stadium, with countless metal crates stacked throughout.

“Red Queen, come greet our guest!”

Still unsure of Zhu Lan’s intentions, Song Tingsan watched as a virtual figure appeared before him. “Hello, Manager Song. I am Red Queen, the intelligent system of Azure Base. If you need anything, just call me.”

“An intelligent computer?” Song Tingsan stared at Red Queen in shock, then glanced at his boss, utterly astonished.

Zhu Lan nodded. “Red Queen is modeled after the Hive AI from Resident Evil.”

He said little more, but Song Tingsan remained deeply surprised.

Zhu Lan led Song Tingsan around, showing him their future workplace. Song Tingsan was amazed at every turn—the equipment, the space, the labs were all perfect. Compared to Building Six, this place was far superior; it truly felt like a research center.

Leaving Azure Base, Zhu Lan simply instructed Song Tingsan to prepare, without specifying when he would begin work there.

Song Tingsan didn’t ask further. He had a rough idea—the base was likely beneath the company headquarters—and dared not speak of its existence.

“You’re back?” The next day, Zhu Lan looked at Kong Yan, who had hurried in, put down her papers, and leaned back in her chair.

Kong Yan nodded.

“Any results?”

“Yes, boss. We’ve identified the perpetrators of the attack!”

“Tell me!” Zhu Lan’s interest was piqued.

“The attack was carried out by a group called the Hess Mercenaries. Based on our investigation, it was a private job—Hess itself had no knowledge. I had Qite make contact with some Hess members, and they gave us intelligence. I traced a payment to an account; the money was transferred from P to someone named Dota, a skilled member of Hess, but he’s now vanished. I hacked the US Federal Bureau of Investigation’s global surveillance system and found Dota disappeared in Argentina, South America.”

“I don’t care about that. Who paid to have me killed?” Zhu Lan wasn’t interested in the attackers themselves, but in the person behind them.

Kong Yan nodded. Zhu Lan’s computer printed out a photo.

“This man, Xu Sanqian, is the payer. He used a fake account, but I tracked him through the police network—he works in the development department of Canglong Group.”

“Canglong Group?” Zhu Lan frowned. He knew he must have offended someone, but hadn’t expected it would be someone from Canglong Group.

He sighed helplessly. Fantasy Technology had repeatedly refused to give Canglong Group face, especially regarding the gene optimization serum. They had several times ignored the group’s authority. The bosses had tried to meet him, but Zhu Lan knew their notorious reputations; how could he possibly meet those infamous domestic scoundrels?

He hadn’t expected Canglong Group would actually hire assassins to kill him.

Whether it was the group itself or one of its princely heirs didn’t matter now; knowing it was Canglong Group was enough.

Knock knock—

“Come in!”

Lan Tianxin entered. Seeing Kong Yan present, she wasn’t surprised; Kong Yan was Zhu Lan’s secretary, so it was normal for her to be in the office.

“Is there something you need?”

“Boss, President Jin has replied. Headquarters has approved our loan request!”

Zhu Lan was stunned for a moment, then shook his head with a wry smile. “Isn’t there a director surnamed Zheng in Canglong Group?”

Lan Tianxin didn’t know why Zhu Lan was asking, but nodded. She’d handled all contact with Canglong Group, and had been threatened repeatedly. But Lan Tianxin had enough confidence to ignore their threats. Even so, she had someone investigate the group’s structure, so she’d know how to answer Zhu Lan’s questions. The group’s arrogance had left a deep impression on her.

“I remember there’s also a Zheng at the headquarters of China’s central bank, right?”

Lan Tianxin paused, then realized what Zhu Lan meant.

“Boss, you mean Canglong Group intervened in our loan?”

“Yes!” Zhu Lan nodded directly. Canglong Group’s rapid development wasn’t just due to their powerful connections. Among its key figures, two were sons of deputy bank presidents, another was the youngest son of the minister of market supervision in the financial department. Their combined influence was among the strongest in the country, not to mention the other backgrounds were anything but simple.

“Alright, you can go. Make sure the projects I mentioned yesterday are implemented—personally liaise with the people at ShengTang Group. Don’t be afraid to spend; build the best!”

Lan Tianxin nodded. “Then I’ll head out now?”

Zhu Lan nodded.

“Boss, will you retaliate?” Kong Yan asked.

Zhu Lan smiled and shook his head. “No rush. I have plenty of time to play with them.”

Kong Yan was puzzled.

Zhu Lan offered no explanation.

“Get the car ready. I’m going to the provincial government.”

Kong Yan nodded and left. Zhu Lan didn’t explain, so she didn’t ask. A secretary’s duty was to obey.

Now that Zhu Lan knew Canglong Group was behind the attack, he realized he had no way to deal with them.

Even if he told the military, it would do little. Those backgrounds weren’t something the military could resolve, especially since Zhu Lan was unharmed, giving the authorities an excuse not to pursue the matter too deeply. Zhu Lan simply didn’t have the leverage to prompt action against such important officials.

“Hmph, Canglong Group, I have plenty of time to play with you. Once the War Club is built, I’ll see how you meet your end!”

Though unable to retaliate yet, Zhu Lan wasn’t one to swallow grievances. After some thought, he quickly devised a plan for retribution against Canglong Group.

He had means to make them panic, but that wasn’t enough; Zhu Lan wanted to uproot Canglong Group entirely.

His ambition was wild. In China, aside from the state itself, no group could hope to eliminate Canglong Group. Its structure was terrifying; even the central leaders couldn’t touch it. Not only did it create immense national profits, but its key figures’ grandfathers were founding ministers who had made great contributions to the country. Unless there was a grave threat to national interests, no charge could affect them.

To bring down Canglong Group would require its directors to collectively betray the nation or steal state secrets—crimes so heinous that murder or arson, which ordinary people see as major offenses, would mean nothing to them.

“Boss, the car is ready. We can go now!” Kong Yan entered and spoke to Zhu Lan.

Zhu Lan nodded, walked to the side, picked up his coat, and strode out.

(To be continued.)