Chapter 255 - Underworld Apocalypse
After Iris' confession, the lovers became even more inseparable. She could barely leave Jin Liwei to attend her lessons in the afternoon with her instructors. She wished that she had cleared her entire schedule for the day to spend more time with him.
"Being in love is great and all but make sure to learn how to balance it with the other aspects of your life," Grandpa Lu reminded her when the lovers returned to the chalet after their date. "Treat love as your inspiration, not as a distraction."
The elder's words of wisdom enlightened not only Iris but also Jin Liwei. Compared to Iris, however, Jin Liwei could afford to focus on their relationship a bit more because he was already successful and stable. All he needed to do was to maintain the quality of his work.
On the other hand, Iris was still on her way up. Yes, she was already enjoying the first fruits of success, but it wasn't stable yet. Any missteps or carelessness on her part and everything would come crashing down back to square one.
So with a lingering kiss, Iris left Jin Liwei and Grandpa Lu at the chalet and headed to her lessons after lunch.
As for Jin Liwei, he wore a stupid grin on his face for the entire time before Grandpa Lu couldn't take it anymore.
Grandpa Lu left the chalet and headed to the main castle to bother Professor Erwan Dupont in his office. It was only then that he learned about the altercation between Iris, Jin Liwei and Amanpio Kileksky.
"You cunning old bastard! Ten requests free of charge?! That's not a punishment but a rip-off! How dare you swindle my granddaughter?! Hmph!" Grandpa Lu huffed.
The headmaster ignored him, continuing to work on his desk. A smug smile could be faintly seen on his face.
For the next couple of days, Jin Liwei and Iris were always together except when she had lessons. He refused to leave and return to China before her. She still couldn't go home right away because she had a commitment with Maestro Ludovico De Luca to perform with him in his upcoming orchestra concert in Germany.There were quite a few urgent matters that Jin Liwei needed to attend to at work, but he insisted on making it harder for himself and worked remotely instead through e-mails, phone calls and online conferences. He didn't inform Iris because she might send him back, but Grandpa Lu was aware of his situation.
"Fine! Your grandpa will run Jin Corporation in your stead again while you young lusty lovers enjoy yourselves," he announced. "I'm bored out of my mind here in the mountains, anyway! That Dupont bastard works all day and won't play with me. Boooriiing! And it's also getting colder here each day! Not good for this old man's creaking bones! So better for me to return to China and do something productive. I also need to check in on your Fifth Brother, that pinheaded grandson of mine! I hear he's always out, but what in cuckoo's head is he doing?! I want to know!"
"Thank you, Grandpa Lu. I owe you," Jin Liwei said in his sincerest tone.
"Indeed! You owe me great-grandbabies! Don't make me wait too long! This old man is not getting any younger!"
With that, Grandpa Lu dragged Professor Erwan Dupont and everyone else still remaining in the academy to party before he left and flew back to China. Before he left, he promised Iris that he would fly to Germany to watch her performance with Maestro De Luca.
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Shadow Winds Headquarters.
While Iris and Jin Liwei were basking in their love in the Swiss Alps, Lu Zihao was busy developing and strengthening his group. His identity as Lu Zihao didn't have any roots at all in the Underworld, so he decided not to make Shadow Winds an outright criminal group.
Instead, they were becoming more known as an increasingly powerful vigilante group. A group which skirted the lines between crime and justice.
Criminals were afraid of being targeted by them, while the authorities were wary of them. For now, the authorities were turning a blind eye on their activities to a certain extent. After all, they were helping purge the country of the most heinous of criminals while the authorities were restricted by legal boundaries.But at the end of the day, they were still only vigilantes who didn't have any legal capacity to punish criminals under the law. As long as the authorities deemed that they were still useful and within their realm of control, the Shadow Winds were allowed to run freely.
Of course, Lu Zihao took advantage of the authorities' current lax attitude towards them. He knew that there would come a day when they would become a big threat and would eventually be suppressed. He needed to grow Shadow Winds into an unshakable force before then.
At times, they were bounty hunters. At other times, they were "Good Samaritans". They dispensed justice in a vicious manner, not allowing their targets any chances of recovery. Their methods earned the gratitude and respect of the criminals' victims and their families. Some of them even readily joined the group, but only a few of them were accepted. Lu Zihao only chose those who met his high standards and of course those he could make loyal to him.
Despite their reputation as unofficial agents of justice, Shadow Winds wasn't a charity. They weren't doing all of these out of the goodness of their hearts. Everything they did was because they had ulterior motives.
They chose targets based on how much resources they would be able to obtain in the end. Every single thing was planned to the smallest detail by their meticulous, cunning and ruthless leader.
Lu Zihao was reviewing a blueprint of their next mission with his subordinates when someone from the hacker team interrupted them.
"Boss Hao, we found something about the matter you told us to keep an eye on."
Lu Zihao's eyes lit up but for only a fraction of a second, so nobody noticed his excitement.
"Give it to me."
The hacker handed him a tablet.Everyone was silent and unmoving as their leader read on the tablet. After a few moments of reading, Lu Zihao unleashed a bloodthirsty and murderous aura, frightening his surrounding subordinates.
They looked at him in alarm but still forced themselves to act impassive, even when they were sweating bullets and shaking in their shoes. Fortunately, the aura was quickly controlled, disappearing until the subordinates felt like they just imagined it.
"Heh~ I see. So this is how they want to play it. I understand now."
His devilish smile made everyone shiver.
"I'll keep this," he said, referring to the tablet. He placed it on the table in front of him. "Return to your post now and continue keeping an eye on this matter," he instructed the hacker.
"Yes, boss!"
Lu Zihao's eyes glanced once again at the tablet. A working title for a biography was displayed on the screen.
"Underworld Apocalypse: The Fall of a Criminal Empire and the Tragic Demise of the Most Evil Family in History"