Chapter 1781 — The Industry in Hand
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
As the saying goes, a horse may stumble and a man may slip; in this line of work, the occasional misstep is unavoidable. But the crux of the matter was that the error had come right at the very start—how could An Jiande stomach that? Had it been the police catching them red-handed, that would have been one thing. But no—it was a few meddlesome young people who had tipped them off, and that galled An Jiande even more!
Whoever stood in the way of his plans would pay.
"Brother De, we've identified those busybodies!" Cao Zhuge had just received his men's report and hurried off to tell An Jiande.
"Oh? Who was it?" An Jiande asked at once.
"Nothing on the Land Rover yet, but the Audi S5—according to our investigation, it's frequently seen coming and going from the Seaview Bay villa district. Our people went there to sniff around. The owner is Gu Mengyao, daughter of Gu Pengzhan, chairman of the Gu Group!" Cao Zhuge said. "As for the others, they must have been with her. No need to dig any further—we've got our targets."
"Damn it! So the Gu Group's little princess thinks she's something special? Get a few brothers together and torch her house. Let her learn what happens to people who get in the way of my plans! Burn them alive!" An Jiande was in truth a ruthless man; murder and arson were everyday matters in his eyes.
"Brother De, but according to our investigation, Gu Mengyao has already gone off traveling. There's no one at home. Even if we set the fire, we won't burn them. And for wealthy people like them, burning down a house isn't much of a loss, is it?" Cao Zhuge said.
"Gone traveling?" An Jiande was taken aback, but then asked, "So what do we do?"
"Maybe... wait until they come back?" Cao Zhuge was equally at a loss. After all, they couldn't gather intelligence as fast as the local factions could. With that lag in time, Gu Mengyao had naturally slipped away.
"Wait until they come back? The daylilies will have wilted by then!" An Jiande was thoroughly displeased, feeling as though he had strength to spare but nowhere to spend it.
"This..." Cao Zhuge pondered a moment, then said, "How about we direct our retaliation at Gu Pengzhan instead? There's a saying—the child's debt is paid by the father. That way, Gu Mengyao will suffer too..."
"Hmm... Gu Pengzhan is a notable figure in Songshan City. If we move against him, won't there be trouble?" An Jiande was thinking further ahead. "On this matter, I'd better consult my father first. After all, Gu Pengzhan is a man of standing; with my father's backing, there'd be no problem."
"Quite right. Caution never hurts. Even though it was Gu Pengzhan's daughter who provoked us first, if we're going to move against him, we still need President An's approval," Cao Zhuge said.
An Jiande dialed his father An Mingri's number directly and reported to him what had happened and what he intended to do, only adding at the end, "Father, I've just arrived in Songshan City. If I don't make some kind of response to this, An Liwen will look down on me, and that will hurt my standing in the Fire Wolf Gang!"
"What? You want to move against Gu Pengzhan?" An Mingri did not ask a single question about the matter itself, but refused outright: "No. Absolutely not!"
"Why?" An Jiande was somewhat defiant. "Sure, Gu Pengzhan's Gu Group used to be neighbors with Uncle, and they've had some business dealings, but we have no ties to him. What's wrong with moving against him?"
"I said no, and no it is!" An Mingri said with finality. "At least not now—absolutely not! Jianwen is working on something big. If it comes off, every asset of the Gu Group will fall into the An family's hands. I know you may resent it, but there's nothing I can do. This matter benefits the An family enterprise—that's what counts. Bear with it for now. Once the Gu Group's assets are under the An family name, you can beat Gu Pengzhan to death for all I care. But until it's done, you are not to lift a finger!"