Chapter 28: The Feeling of Ascending the Throne
Boom!
Before Lu Yuqing could finish speaking, the cabin was suddenly rocked by a violent jolt.
He froze for a moment, then muttered, “Damn, are those terrorists trying to ram this yacht into an aircraft carrier or something?”
A few black lines seemed to fall across Liu Yiyi’s face…
She understood now—no wonder Lu Ye was so irreverent; he’d clearly inherited it from his father.
From the sound of footsteps racing back and forth above, it was clear there were quite a few people dashing across the deck, from bow to stern and back again.
Outside the cabin, the splash of bodies hitting the water could be heard from time to time.
Soon, the partition to the lower hold creaked open, and at last, Liu Yiyi could see the light of day again.
She was just about to poke her head out for a breath of fresh air, when she nearly bumped face-first into Lu Ye’s head as he peered inside, scaring her back in with a start.
Lu Ye waved energetically at Lu Yuqing. “Old Lu, you alright in there?”
Lu Yuqing replied with a deadpan expression, “Never been better.”
“Great, then you just stay in here a while longer, alright?”
Lu Yuqing cursed with a laugh, “You little brat, get down here and help your old man, I’ve thrown my back out!”
“Hehe!”
Lu Ye leapt into the lower hold and, one by one, helped Lu Yuqing and Liu Yiyi’s parents up, while Beauty Meng waited above to pull each of them onto the deck.
When it was Liu Yiyi’s turn, she murmured a soft, “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. If you hadn’t shown me the way, I wouldn’t have found my dad so quickly.”
Liu Yiyi blinked in confusion. “When did I show you the way?”
Lu Ye reached through her hair and plucked out a tiny, delicate device—a miniature bug and tracker.
“And you say you’re not a slowpoke? You managed to make the same mistake twice in a row.”
“Would it kill you not to mock me?”
“Funny you should ask—I might just die if I don’t.”
…
Once everyone was back on deck, they saw Chen Qi trussed up like a dumpling, tossed carelessly in a corner.
All the other people aboard the yacht had been subdued, and those few who resisted to the end had been thrown into the sea by Beauty Meng without a second thought.
Chen Xi strode forward and asked, “Dad, are you alright?”
Lu Yuqing had never heard that he had an adopted daughter. She was pretty, sure, but she wasn’t that future daughter-in-law surnamed Su!
He looked at Lu Ye in puzzlement. “And this is…?”
Lu Ye pursed his lips. “My ex-girlfriend. She tends to speak before she thinks—I’ll straighten her out later.”
Lu Yuqing nodded thoughtfully. “Oh.”
Chen Xi: “…”
Beauty Meng shuttled back and forth between the two yachts, hauling every captured member of the Hongying Society onto the “Apostle” and locking them all in the hold.
Afterwards, Lu Ye said, “Beauty, take my dad and Miss Liu’s parents back to our ship and let them get some rest.”
“You got it!”
On the deck, Lu Ye kept only Chen Xi, Liu Yiyi, and Chen Qi, who was tied up like a human cocoon.
Lu Ye crouched down, his tone mocking. “Chairman Chen, I never thought our first meeting would be like this.”
Chen Qi wailed, “Lu Ye, what the hell are you? Who are you really?”
“I’m the inheritor of the glorious revolutionary tradition, a successor to socialism. Now, I have some questions for you.”
“You’ll get nothing out of me,” Chen Qi snarled through gritted teeth.
Lu Ye said lazily, “How’s your wife and kid? Haven’t heard from them in a while, have you?”
Hearing that, Chen Qi’s eyes nearly burst from their sockets. “What have you done to them?”
Lu Ye smiled. “What do you think?”
“Lu Ye, men don’t involve women and children. If you’re a man, let my family go—come for me if you’ve got a problem!” Chen Qi shouted.
Lu Ye stomped on his face and spat, “And you have the nerve to talk about not involving families? Who was it that took my dad? Who held Liu Yiyi’s parents hostage?”
“How many more Hongying Society safehouses are there in Pearl City? Tell me, and I’ll guarantee your family’s safety!”
After a moment’s hesitation, Chen Qi gritted his teeth and confessed, “There are three left: an abandoned transport ship and two fishing boats, the numbers are…”
Lu Ye memorized the numbers and added, “Give me the list of all your members operating in Pearl City.”
“The list’s in an encrypted folder on my laptop, the password is…”
Chen Xi immediately dug out his laptop, confirmed the list, and copied all the files for backup.
Chen Qi begged, “I’ve told you everything—please keep your promise and keep my family safe.”
Lu Ye laughed heartily. “No problem. So, what are their names? Where do they live?”
“You don’t—damn it, you bastard, you tricked me?”
Chen Qi was dumbfounded!
If his hands weren’t tied, he would’ve slapped himself silly.
How could he be so stupid?
Before his capture, Lu Ye didn’t even know his name, so how could he possibly know anything about his family?
Lu Ye said innocently, “I don’t recall ever saying I had your family. How is that trickery?”
“You were the one who jumped to that conclusion. How is that my fault?”
I’m so mad I could spit blood!
When Chen Qi had coughed up three pints, Lu Ye kicked him back onto the deck of the “Apostle”.
Done. Time to head back!
…
Back at the yacht marina.
Chen Xi was left to handle the aftermath.
Lu Ye started up the Passat and personally drove his father home.
On the way, Lu Ye hesitated, then decided to be selectively honest with his old man.
“Old Lu, that beautiful woman just now is actually my mom’s adopted daughter.”
Lu Yuqing nodded. “I know.”
Lu Ye paused, then said, “Both our identities are rather…special.”
Lu Yuqing nodded again. “That too.”
“What else do you know?”
“I know your rules.”
Don’t speak of what shouldn’t be said, don’t ask what shouldn’t be asked.
Lu Ye was taken aback. So his father was far less naive than he’d thought…
“Some things are best left unspoken between us, no need to bring them up.”
“Old Lu, thanks for understanding.”
Lu Yuqing slowly rolled down the window, fished a cigarette from Lu Ye’s pack, and lit it.
Whether it was the smoke irritating him or something deeper, Lu Ye caught a glimmer of tears at the corner of his father’s eye.
Son, I have no right to judge the work you and your mother do.
I only hope I never receive a mysterious phone call telling me to come and collect your body.
The heavy mood dissipated the moment they stepped through the front door.
Lu Yuqing flopped onto the sofa and took a deep breath of lingering formaldehyde.
“Damn, is this really my house?”
“Why do I feel like I’ve just ascended the throne?”
The imperial-style, extravagantly gaudy décor and the brand-new, wildly expensive furniture had transformed his modest apartment of less than a hundred square meters into something fit for a palace.
This was also Lu Ye’s first time back since the renovations. He couldn’t help but twitch at the corners of his mouth.
Damn it, Roasted Duck and Xu Sanlong—those two idiots have no taste at all!
“If you don’t like the style, I can have it all torn out and redone. My wife’s got money to burn.”
Lu Yuqing waved dismissively. “No need. It’s fine as is.”
“Whatever you say.”
Suddenly, his phone lit up with an incoming call from Chen Xi.
“Old Lu, I’ve got something to take care of.”
“Go on, go on. I want to invite that lovely widow over to move in. Unless you’re needed, try not to come back too often.”
Lu Ye: “…”
He raced the Passat back to the marina.
Inside the “Apostle’s” cabin.
Liu Yiyi was cupping a mug of hot tea, chatting with Chen Xi.
When Lu Ye pushed the hatch open, Chen Xi said, “Brat, I need to head to Japan immediately.”
Lu Ye hesitated, casting a wary glance at Liu Yiyi.
Chen Xi explained at once, “Don’t worry, I’ve already checked her background thoroughly—she’s trustworthy.”
Lu Ye trusted Chen Xi unconditionally and gestured for her to continue.
Chen Xi paused, then said, “Yiyi is a computer expert. Chen Qi took her parents hostage to force her to crack a highly encrypted hard drive.”
Lu Ye looked at Liu Yiyi. “Did you succeed?”
She nodded. “I cracked it long ago, but I never let Chen Qi know. I stalled him until now.”
“Why? Didn’t you want to save your parents?”
Liu Yiyi explained, “Because that hard drive contains a trove of advanced scientific research. If Chen Qi knew what was on it, wouldn’t that make me a traitor to my country?”