Chapter 423 - 423: Xu Jia Lu
Luo Bing and the others in front of him, Zhao Yu was surprised. He had hired them back in Peace Town and hadn’t expected them to be Xu Jia Lu’s people.
According to the memories he had reviewed earlier, Xu Jia Lu seemed to be his predecessor’s ex-girlfriend.
“Meng Xian, take them around the fortress…”
“Okay!”
Meng Xian tried hard to hide her relationship with Zhao Yu in public.
However, Zhao Yu unconcerned about idle talk, had strongly supported her and appointed her as the vice-lord of the fortress.
Of course, this strong support was for Meng Xian’s benefit, though she wasn’t aware of it.
She thought Zhao Yu had faced a lot of pressure in giving her the position of vice-lord.
These days, she had implemented sweeping reforms and lost quite a bit of hair worrying about the fortress’s affairs.
“Rest assured, my lord, I will take good care of them!”
Meng Xian responded promptly and led Luo Bing and the others away.
Once they were gone, Zhao Yu finally opened the letter and began to read.
After finishing, he looked puzzled.
The letter didn’t seem to say anything useful, just inviting him to Black Rock City at the end.
“Can I even go there?!”
A wise man does not stand under a collapsing wall, and Zhao Yu wouldn’t go even if it were his current girlfriend, let alone an ex.
However, he delved into his brain, reviewing the memories of his time with Xu Jia Lu.
A moment later, Zhao Yu’s face showed an intriguing expression.
“Was my predecessor really this impressive?!”
Zhao Yu was astonished to find that his predecessor was not simple, having developed from a nobody to a billionaire, clearly having some remarkable qualities.
What shocked him most was his predecessor’s early wisdom. While other children were still naively, he had already charted his path.
From the age of thirteen or fourteen, he started scheming as class monitor to sneak into the teacher’s office and access student files.
He identified Xu Jia Lu, a rich second-generation girl, followed and investigated her for days, deducing her personality traits, and then tailored his approach accordingly.
With a little manipulation, he won over Xu Jia Lu, becoming the man she devotedly loved.
However, Zhao Yu also spotted a flaw.
His predecessor was too hasty, engaging with three other girlfriends while still with Xu Jia Lu, all from wealthy families like her.
“Fang Yue E…”
Through the memories, he realized that his predecessor had been expertly juggling relationships with four women, spending Valentine’s Day separately with each, a true master of time management.
Unfortunately, Fang Yue E’s powerful background led her family to investigate him privately, eventually uncovering the truth.
“Smart guy, quite capable!”
Zhao Yu couldn’t help but marvel. At least, he admitted, he didn’t have the same skills as his predecessor.
“Unfortunately, it was all in vain…”
This was probably the backlash, the risk of playing with fire – there’s always a day when one gets burned.
However, the predecessor had climbed his way up step by step with the resources he had acquired early on, eventually becoming a billionaire.
Regrettably, the apocalypse arrived unexpectedly, rendering the rules of the peaceful era useless.
Just having money made one a target; one needed corresponding power and influence as well.
Though the predecessor couldn’t foresee the future, he astutely sensed this change and invested all his funds into a shelter.
He might not have been as well-off as those noble families, but he lived quite well among ordinary people, at least surviving the most chaotic period.
“Following Xu Jia Lu, it’s been at least seven or eight years since we last met. What does she mean by this?”
Zhao Yu reopened the letter, reading it back and forth twice, still unable to understand Xu Jia Lu’s reason for the invitation.
“Does she think I would go?”
He revisited his memories, confirming there was no lingering connection after their breakup, which made it all the more strange.
“She was deeply hurt and after so many years without contact, she immediately sends an invitation upon hearing about me. Why does she think I would go?”
Zhao Yu had an epiphany, his face revealing a look of realization.
“If it were based on my predecessor’s character, he would definitely seize such an opportunity.”
“After all, Xu Jia Lu holds a significant status, not only as the foremost family in Black Rock City, It seems from the letter, she calls the shots in the Xu family…”
“Replacing my predecessor, with such a valuable resource, he would definitely go to see what’s happening…”
Zhao Yu pondered for a moment; his predecessor was quite confident in himself.
Receiving Xu Jia Lu’s letter, there was a high probability he would go, attempting to win her over again.
“Really…”
He didn’t know what Xu Jia Lu was thinking, but he was not his predecessor and wouldn’t rashly go there.
Even if he did go, it would be as a representative of Zhao Family Fortress, to negotiate with representatives of Black Rock City.
In Black Rock City.
City Hall.
This place rarely saw significant figures, usually only representatives from the four major families to handle residents’ affairs.
However, it was an unusual gathering of influential people. The heads of the four major families and representatives of the eight great merchant associations were present.
A temporary meeting initiated by the Han family was about Zhao Yu.
“Old Han, what’s the meaning of calling us here for your Han family’s business?”
“You’re not thinking of making us step in for you, are you?”
Across the long table, sitting parallel to the Han family patriarch, was a man in his forties.
The Han family patriarch glared at him and said indifferently, “I’ve gathered everyone here because there is a matter concerning Heishi City!”