Chapter 456: The Change Begins

In the end, they decided to eat at the Binhai University cafeteria.

Dongfang Yuqing walked in the lead, while Feng Qingwan was in the middle. Feng Qingwan would occasionally glance back at Chen Erbao, her gaze full of melancholy, which made Lin Rui furious.

As a show of defiance, she hugged Chen Erbao’s arm, pressing her chest against his bicep and staking her claim.

Passing students couldn’t help but stare at the strange quartet, though most of their gazes were captured by the three campus belles.

Upon reaching the cafeteria, the four of them went straight to the second floor. Lin Rui used her meal card to order an upsized chicken hot pot for Chen Erbao, while getting just a small portion for herself.

After they sat down, Feng Qingwan put her meal on the table and said to Lin Rui with a smile,

“Lin Xue Mei, I said I was treating for this meal…”

“There’s no need to trouble you, Senior. It’s just a meal.”

Lin Rui keenly sensed that this woman had ill intentions toward her Brother Er Bao, so she refused to give her any opportunity to get close to him.

Feng Qingwan saw this and had no choice but to drop the matter, venting her frustration by stabbing at the food in her bowl with her chopsticks.

Dongfang Yuqing was extremely serious when she ate. Her eyes were fixed on the food before her, her delicate face chewing meticulously, her pupils reflecting the dishes on the table.

Unable to sit idle, Feng Qingwan looked up and asked,

“Hey, there’s another match in a couple of days. Are you going to compete?”

Chen Erbao knew she was talking to him.

‘The only reason I was fighting was to get close to Huang Sanlang. Now that I’ve achieved that goal and we even have a plan to deal with Huang Baiwen, there’s no way I’m going back to fight life-and-death battles with a bunch of fighters who haven’t even reached the Grandmaster Realm.’

“No, I’m busy.”

He refused flatly, but Feng Qingwan wasn’t about to let him off the hook that easily.

“If we win this time, I’ll give you a… a seventy percent cut of the money. How about it!”

Chen Erbao still shook his head in refusal. He polished off the food in his bowl, then stood up, pulling Lin Rui by the hand.

“We’re done. You two take your time. Goodbye.”

With that, he pulled Lin Rui away.

Although Lin Rui hadn’t finished her meal, she certainly wasn’t going to object when Chen Erbao made the move to leave, so she followed him out of the cafeteria.

…

Binhai Pier had been under a full lockdown since yesterday. Private vessels were prohibited from docking, and by the time the ferry arrived early this morning, the city Patrol had already sealed off the entire area.

Within the pier’s inner perimeter, one could even spot special operations teams, fully armed with live ammunition. Occasionally, a few figures in Daoist robes could also be seen moving about.

Binhai City clearly placed immense importance on this meeting, a fact made obvious by the level of security.

This was all because Binhai was welcoming a group of very important guests today!

As the Governor of Binhai, Dongfang Ming naturally had to personally attend such an important occasion. Dressed in a suit with his hair combed immaculately, he led a dozen or so similarly attired high-ranking bureau officials to the ferry landing to welcome them.

As the gangway was put in place, a group of blond-haired, blue-eyed Westerners emerged.

“Mr. Smith, welcome to Binhai…”

Dongfang Ming smoothly stepped forward to greet them, a warm smile on his face.

The Westerners smiled back, their attitude respectful enough.

Following them were the Neon People and Koreans, also yellow-skinned, clustered in small groups. They were all renowned business tycoons in their home countries, invited by Dongfang Ming to Binhai to discuss potential partnerships.

Bringing up the rear were wealthy magnates and tycoons from smaller, peripheral nations.

The leader, a Brit named Smith, smiled and shook hands with Dongfang Ming. The group then headed toward the line of Red Flag sedans waiting in the distance.

“This evening, there will be a welcome banquet held in your honor. Many heads of Binhai’s local families will be in attendance to discuss potential partnerships with all of you…”

…

Chen Erbao had just arrived at a shopping mall with Lin Rui when his phone rang.

It was Huang Sanlang.

“Where are you?”

Huang Sanlang’s voice sounded somewhat grave.

Chen Erbao glanced around and told him which mall he was in.

“Stay put.”

Huang Sanlang replied, then immediately hung up.

“Brother Er Bao, what’s wrong?”

Lin Rui asked curiously, seeing Chen Erbao standing there and staring blankly at his phone.

Chen Erbao put his phone back in his pocket and smiled.

“It’s nothing. A friend might be coming to find me about something.”

“Oh… does that mean we can’t hang out today?”

The girl’s head drooped in disappointment, and she mumbled unhappily.

Chen Erbao stroked her soft hair reassuringly.

“Of course we can! It’s probably nothing urgent, he just wants to discuss something with me in person. Don’t worry…”

Hearing this, Lin Rui’s spirits lifted. She took Chen Erbao’s arm, and they began to wander through the mall.

Huang Sanlang was quick. Less than twenty minutes after their call, he called again.

“I’m in the cafe on the first floor.”

“Okay, we’ll be right there.”

Chen Erbao pulled Lin Rui and headed straight for the first floor. He saw Uncle Xu at the entrance to a restaurant.

Uncle Xu knew Chen Erbao was a Grandmaster, so he didn’t dare show any neglect, giving him a respectful nod and a smile. Chen Erbao nodded back in acknowledgment.

Uncle Xu led Chen Erbao and Lin Rui to a private room in the restaurant. When they pushed open the door, they saw Huang Sanlang sitting at the table, intently brewing tea.

“You’re here… And this is?”

Huang Sanlang was taken aback for a moment when he saw that Chen Erbao hadn’t come alone, but had brought an impossibly beautiful girl with him.

Chen Erbao had Lin Rui sit down beside him.

“My girlfriend, Lin Rui. She’s a sophomore at Binhai University… You seemed to be in a rush. Is something wrong?”

Huang Sanlang gave Lin Rui a long, hard look before turning his questioning gaze to Chen Erbao.

Chen Erbao waved his hand dismissively.

“She’s one of us. You can trust her. No need to hold back on her account.”

Lin Rui, who had been curiously sizing up Huang Sanlang, was overjoyed to hear Chen Erbao’s words. She hugged his arm contentedly, a goofy grin spreading across her face.

Huang Sanlang nodded. He didn’t look at Lin Rui again, instead handing the two prepared cups of tea to Chen Erbao and Lin Rui before starting on a new cup for himself.

“The situation is already changing. This morning, a group of foreign tycoons arrived in Binhai. They were invited by that new governor. They plan to invest in a number of projects here, and most of them are in sectors that are the Huang Family’s key industries…”

After Huang Sanlang’s explanation, Chen Erbao began to understand the full picture.

The Huang Family’s roots in Binhai ran extremely deep. Aside from easily replaceable, low-tech sectors like services, food, and apparel, the core of the Huang Family’s power lay in heavy industry.

This was the source of their unbridled power.

The higher-ups had been displeased with the Huang Family for a long time. However, the family’s influence was so vast that any rash move against them would shatter Binhai’s entire economy. Until a suitable replacement could be found, the Huang Family could not be touched!

And Dongfang Ming’s mission wasn’t just to topple the Huang Family. More importantly, he had to do so while simultaneously stabilizing Binhai’s economy to ensure the city’s continued prosperity!