Deadly Trap.

Chapter 48. Power

"Didn't find it?" Gu Mufeng's voice was so low it sounded like he was asking himself.

"Hmm." With a furrowed brow, Dai slumped into a black sofa chair by the curtain wall.

His collar was open, his beard was unshaven, and he pulled out a cigarette and lit it. The entire office was silent.

Smelling the smoke, Gu Mufeng frowned in disgust, but this time he said nothing. He understood Dai Ze's frustration.

If Gu Mufeng can find solace in Su Li, why can't Dai Ze also find comfort in her?
The two remained silent for only a brief moment.

Still looking bewildered, Dai continued in a heavy tone, "These past two days, Li Enzuo and I have searched every inch of Minzhou, but we haven't found Yiheng's body."

Stepping onto the black embossed carpet, Dai Ze's dark circles revealed the bluish-gray tinge of an all-nighter.

"What about the frozen food chain? Have you checked it?"

"They've investigated. The first families they went to were the Sheng and Zhou families. I had to negotiate a bit. In the end, they let us search them thoroughly, both inside and out."

Unhurriedly, Dai kept bringing cigarettes to his lips, while reporting the detailed maneuvering and search to Gu Mufeng. With each puff of smoke, white plumes of smoke drifted away like jellyfish.

In Minzhou, since Gu Mufei reached the summit seven years ago, Dai has only been appointed to the same position: FN's foreign affairs advisor.

His foreign affairs team was specifically responsible for diplomacy, especially dealing with municipal affairs and the police; the complexities within that area were self-evident. Dai, on the other hand, always proceeded cautiously and methodically. Naturally, Gu Mufeng had good intentions.

"In the end, we still came up empty-handed." Dai took another deep drag on his cigarette.

His two fingers were stained yellow from the smoke. The embers hung high, the orange-red flame flickering: "I think the murderer wouldn't be so depraved as to dismember the body?"

For a moment, Gu Mufei didn't answer. Dai Ze immediately felt a chill run down his spine.

"The reason for the rapid freezing of the skull is twofold: to prevent decay and to facilitate its transport."

Behind a large, spotless black walnut desk, Gu Mufeng, dressed in a solemn silver-gray shirt, sat back, thinking as he spoke:

"After being quick-frozen, it can be delivered to the concert hall along with the catering for the dinner; then, while everyone is seated during the concert, someone will take it to the restroom. It's completely watertight."

His fingers clasped on the armrest of his office chair, and he pondered, "But is rapid freezing necessary for the body?"

"Perhaps, freezing the body also makes it easier to dispose of it in public?" Dai followed the reasoning closely, patiently lighting a second cigarette.

"In this way, if the head doesn't fall out as planned, the enemy can continue to dump the body, drawing the police's attention back and directing public opinion back to Fri-Night. In fact, didn't their plan to remove the head also fail?"

"However, three whole days have passed since the banquet. The other side is being far too slow."

"You've reminded me." At this moment, Gu Mufeng suddenly sat up. He rubbed his brow, which had been furrowed all day.

In slow motion, the banquet replays on the central stage in his mind: from Sheng Chunqiu, Mr. Tang, Zhou Yi to Tai Yisi, and of course, Su Li holding his arm.

In the darkness, when he needed her, he buried his uncontrollable breath deep within her tenderness…

He quickly forced himself to pull himself out of his thoughts of her: "Dai Ze. I don't think they'll use the corpse as a pretext again."

"What?" Dai Ze was taken aback.

"Have you ever wondered why, specifically at the Minzhou business community's New Year's Eve banquet, someone would poison me?"

With a sly smile, Gu Mufeng had no interest in scheming against others today: "The one you used was Autumn Water Immortal Essence?"

Dai was surprised: "Not Gu Jia?"

Impatient, Gu Mufeng interrupted directly:

“Li Enzuo said that colchicine is very special: at the fastest, it takes two hours to take effect and it is slow to kill.”

"If it were you, and you truly wanted to kill someone, why not act quickly? Why wait two hours, risking complications? And why take so long to kill? Moreover,"

With an ambiguous expression, Gu Mufeng raised an eyebrow:
"Beyond cure?"

A chill ran down his spine. Without realizing it, Dai stopped blindly smoking: "This…" He hadn't actually stopped thinking about it.

"Imagine the full picture of the other party's strategy."

Without a ripple of surprise, Gu Mufei spoke:
"If, as someone planned, Yi Heng's head were to be publicly discovered at the New Year's Eve banquet in full view of everyone, I wouldn't have time to react to this whole affair, nor would I have had the opportunity to exert my power. Therefore, they wouldn't even bother to cover up the traces."

"If that happens, not only will the Municipal Bureau arrive at the scene and suppress everyone, but I, as Yiheng's direct associate, will definitely be placed under the strict control of the police."

"Yiheng's death would have been the headline news on the front page of Minzhou on January 1st of the new year."

"If it weren't for the serious dereliction of duty by the police on New Year's Day morning, and the fact that the Chief of Police died of poisoning under police control on Friday night, and if this news hadn't even appeared in the newspapers," Gu Mufeng said, seemingly sighing, yet also sounding like a cold sneer, "you can imagine how you feel about that."

At this point, he actually smiled and said, "Is this person going to wipe out both the shady and legitimate worlds?"

He downplayed it.

Dai was dumbfounded. He had forgotten to smoke the cigarette he was holding. If Gu Mufeng's reasoning was correct, and the conspiracy was indeed as described, then they had been completely manipulated by someone.

Leaving aside the political, business, and financial circles of Minzhou, Fri-Night will completely lose its foothold for mediation, and its covert sovereignty will be revealed to the world.

It took Dai Ze a while to react, and he forced out, "What a vicious plan! I thought—"

With a flick of his wrist, Dai crushed the cigarette butt that had burned his hand into his wine glass, his eyes fixed on Gu Mufeng behind the desk: "'The great strategist of Minzhou,' isn't that you?!"

“Dai Ze, the world is vast.” Gu Mufeng calmly stood up and strolled to the curtain wall.

With a light touch, he picked up the crystal glass filled with amber cognac and leaned his arms against the desk.

“I’m not that arrogant, I’ve never called myself that. It’s just…” His gaze darkened, and he gently brought the glass to his lips.

Although the honey-colored alcohol was fragrant and mellow, a sorrowful bitterness sank and spread uncontrollably in his heart: "In that case, there is no need to keep Yiheng's body."

Dai remained silent.

He had known Gu Mufei for a long time. Back when the latter was just one of the gangsters, Dai had worked with him on missions and spent a lot of time together. He had once overheard Gu Mufei casually say:

The strategy to exhaust the opponent's liberties with the fewest pieces is the true measure of "strategy".

In the current game of chess between the black, white, and gray factions in Minzhou, Yi Heng's corpse is now superfluous.

"You and Li Enzu do your best to search and see if there's any chance left. I persuaded the widow to hold back; but she's pressing us. We can't keep Yiheng here for too long."

"Hopefully, I'm just overthinking it."

Yi Heng's death casts a shadow over the entire group, and everyone is eagerly awaiting Gu Mufeng's next move: who can guarantee that they won't repeat Yi Heng's mistakes?

He was never one to be easily swayed by praise or criticism, but this time, a genuine bitterness crept into his voice: "If I were thrown into the Parrot River—" His voice deepened.

Time flies like an arrow.

Dai hesitated, then asked, "Then, the funeral?"

Dai leaned forward hastily. With this slight movement, he was instantly bathed in the drenching sunlight. Today, the sky was perfectly clear.

Gu Mufeng couldn't help but turn his head. From the shadows where he was, he saw Dai Ze suddenly illuminated. In an instant, the ginkgo-lined path from his memory rushed towards him.

Standing on the campus of Minzhou University of Finance and Economics, amidst the falling ginkgo leaves, he watched as Zhou Yi, Yi Heng, and himself, the three young men, chatted and laughed as they walked past with their heads held high.

The sunlight shone brightly on them...

After a brief moment of distraction, Gu Mufeng pulled himself back to his senses.

Although by then he had already devoted himself to the underworld and his hands were no longer clean, he could only recall that pure ivory tower, and the image of his junior brother clinging to his and Zhou Yi's shoulders, his face full of hope for the future.

Now, only a head remains in the freezer, no longer able to answer. It couldn't even utter a "goodbye."

He wanted to use Yi Heng's death to stir up trouble in the political and police circles, to repay blood with blood, and to serve as a warning to others!
When did he become accustomed to the sordid power struggles?

"This afternoon, there's still the handover to be done with the finance team. I also have to personally deliver the compensation and insurance to the widow tonight." With a heavy heart, Gu Mufeng put down the empty crystal glass in his hand.

Su Li's existence was like a gentle bubble that belonged only to the depths of his heart.

Turning his back as if he didn't even want to look at the city anymore, Gu Mufeng felt weary: "The funeral, I'll think about it tomorrow."

>>>>>
Next chapter: Capital

[Author's Note | Chapter 48]

Power has no redundancy and is equally ruthless to everyone.

If you wield power and influence for others, you will naturally have to bear the fate of those others.

Today's shrewd strategist of Minhang still experiences this torment. But can you sense that he is already yearning for his own safe haven?
Is Mr. Gu's suggestion to discuss it again tomorrow a kind of subtle way of avoiding the issue?

What is he thinking right now? What kind of sparks will fly tonight?
Discussion is welcome in the comments section!
Thank you so much for your support, reading, and voting!



(End of this chapter)