In the name of supernatural powers

Chapter 178 Meeting Liu Hanwen
The welcoming ceremony has concluded.

Lu Zhao was pulled into the smoking area by some heavy smokers to puff away, and Zhao De was among them.

There were few barriers between the people as they talked; in informal settings, the hierarchy wasn't so rigid, and they all shared the same identity.

Special guests attending the anniversary of the Great Patriotic War.

At that moment, a middle-aged man dressed in a formal suit and exuding an air of sophistication walked into the smoking area.

Upon seeing the newcomer's face, Zhao De stubbed out his cigarette and walked over.

"Secretary Wang, what brings you here?"

In an instant, everyone present turned their attention to this, including Lu Zhao.

Secretary Wang shook hands with Zhao De and said, "The leader sent me to pick you up."

As he spoke, his gaze locked onto the most eye-catching person present.

He was handsome, had a refined demeanor, and possessed a pair of phoenix eyes that shone with divine light.

They're a bit like those old Taoist priests in Taoist temples who practice ancient methods.

"Is he Lu Zhao?"

Zhao De nodded, and Secretary Wang took three steps at a time, approaching and extending his hand, saying, "Hello, my name is Wang Rui. I am Chen Wuhou's secretary and also the deputy director of the Finance, Taxation and Household Registration Department."

Lu Zhao was puzzled, but she still reached out to shake his hand and said, "Hello."

Secretary Wang looked Lu Zhao up and down and praised, "Comrade Lu Zhao is much more handsome than in the photos. He will definitely be dragged out to shoot propaganda in the future."

He initially thought from photos that the man looked similar to a celebrity. Now that he's seen him in person, he finds him to be more attractive than most celebrities.

Aside from her complexion not being the best, likely due to exposure to wind and rain, everything else about her—from her facial features and physique to her overall demeanor—is striking.

No wonder Miss Chen hates it so much.

Lu Zhao replied neither humbly nor arrogantly, "You flatter me, sir."

After a brief chat, Secretary Wang led Zhao De away from the smoking area.

Lu Zhao couldn't figure out the other party's purpose, or perhaps they didn't have any purpose at all, and were just saying a few words.

The officialdom is like war, but it doesn't necessarily have to be a fight to the death.

He was Chen Wuhou's secretary, and just that, a secretary. There was no need for him to harbor deep hatred upon seeing him, to stage a scene of a subject dying for his sovereign.

At this moment, the old butler entered the smoking area and was able to locate Lu Zhao immediately.

He strode over and said respectfully, "Young master, Miss is waiting for you outside."

"Let's go."

Lu Zhao stubbed out his cigarette and, led by the old butler, left the smoking area and entered the VIP passage. From afar, he could see a black sedan parked in the airport passageway.

If you look closely, you'll notice that other vehicles that came to pick up the car nearby were blocked by airport staff to avoid affecting the passage of this vehicle.

The black sedan wasn't particularly expensive, probably in the 300,000 range; the only difference was the license plate.

A license plate starting with "[South 0]" and ending with "1" indicates the chief of staff in Nankaido. If it ends with "2", it's the license plate of the deputy chief.

The arrangement in sequence symbolizes the order of power.

However, there is no specific department, and the situation is different in each prefecture. The same department may be the second-in-command in Nankaido, but may not be ranked in other places.

The old butler jogged over to open the door, and Lu Zhao saw Lin Zhiyan sitting in the back row waving at him, the beaded bracelet on his wrist sparkling.

She wore a white long dress with a plain black short-sleeved top, relying solely on the clothes to accentuate her figure, creating a simple yet elegant look.

Elegance isn't about how well you dress, but rather an innate composure.

Lu Zhao got into the car, with the two of them on either side, while the butler drove in front.

The vehicle slowly started and drove out of the airport, with traffic police on motorcycles clearing the way ahead.

In the bustling metropolis, you can travel smoothly with all the green lights.

"Senior, how have you been lately?"

"You call me every day to harass me, do I even need to ask that?"

"Tsk, you really have no sense of romance at all."

As the ancients said, "Those who have different tastes may not seek to be the same even if they are rich and noble. Those who share similar interests may not change their minds even if they are poor and lowly."

Lin Zhiyan looked puzzled, clearly not understanding.

Lu Zhao replied, "If our interests are different, we will not seek to be together even if we are rich and powerful. If we share the same interests, we will not change our desire to associate with each other even if we are poor and lowly."

Which type do you think we are?

Lin Zhiyan frowned slightly and said unhappily, "Are you really that unwilling?"

Lu Zhao said calmly, "Weren't we talking about romance? Lin, you're being a bit sensitive."

"Humph!"

Lin Zhiyan turned her face away, seemingly angry.

The closer you get, the worse the filter becomes. She discovered that Lu Zhao was completely bad at chatting. He couldn't be described as just a straight man anymore; his mouth was like it was smeared with poison.

She remained silent, and Lu Zhao was happy to have some peace and quiet.

He was getting a little numb from the endless phone calls he'd had over the past two months. Lu Zhao felt he should let Miss Lin understand the situation a bit more; they couldn't be so disregarding the spirit of the contract.

We should give Miss Lin a little bit of negative emotion, and not really think they are dating.

The old butler, who was driving, glanced at the rearview mirror out of the corner of his eye, and was utterly astonished.

This was the first time he had ever seen the young lady get the short end of the stick.

After a long pause, Lu Zhao asked, "Where are we going next?"

Lin Zhiyan glanced at him and replied indifferently, "Go see Master Liu. He wants to see you. He hopes you will remain steadfast in your poverty and lowliness later."

Ignoring her sarcastic tone, Lu Zhao asked, "Have you explained our situation to Chief Liu?"

Lin Zhiyan asked in confusion, "What's the difference?"

"If not, I still have to cooperate with you."

Lu Zhao still values ​​the spirit of contracts. Since he had promised to take care of her family, he naturally had to perform well in front of her family.

Lin Zhiyan looked out the window and said casually, "I told Master Liu that I was pregnant, so he agreed to my request."

Lu Zhao's expression froze for a moment, then he realized that these words could not possibly fool a Marquis Wu.

He said, "If we're going to go all the way, let's go to a hotel." Miss Lin's ears turned slightly red, and she shifted her buttocks slightly away from Lu Zhao, saying fiercely, "I should have just handed you over to Aunt Ding, and let Aunt Ding take advantage of you and you'd behave."

Forty minutes later, the vehicle entered the Liu residence and parked directly at the entrance of the open hall.

Lu Zhao got out of the car and, through the open doorway, could see two elderly people playing chess in the antique-style hall, with two men and a woman sitting there, all of whom were middle-aged.

Lu Zhao recognized one of the women; that woman was Ding Shoujin.

One of the two men was Tu Bin, the captain of the Special Counter-Strike Force, whom he had met recently.

Lu Zhao's spiritual power could not detect any aura from any of them, and the two old men simply had no aura at all.

Even under the 'vision' of mental power, they are invisible and can only be seen with the naked eye.

Both of them were known as Marquis Wu.

At this moment, they stopped what they were doing, and two pairs of cloudy eyes looked at each other.

Lin Zhiyan got out of the car and took Lu Zhao's arm.

The delicate fabric rubbed against his skin, causing Lu Zhao's breathing to quicken slightly, only to calm down in an instant.

Lu Zhao really wanted to ask, "Is it necessary to hug so tightly?"

Lin Zhiyan led him into the open hall and stood in front of everyone.

With a polite smile, she introduced to everyone: "Master Liu, Master Lü, Aunt Ding, Uncle Liu, Uncle Tu, this is Lu Zhao."

Lin Zhiyan then introduced Lu Zhao: "This is Master Liu, the chief of the South China Sea Circuit."

She pointed to the old man on her right. He had short, gray hair, a square face, high cheekbones, and lips that were habitually pursed into a straight line.

Sitting there upright, an air of authority and dignity naturally arose.

Lu Zhao said, "Hello, Chief Liu."

"Ah."

Liu Hanwen nodded slightly, his voice slightly nasal, and scrutinized Lu Zhao with a critical gaze.

At first glance, he is indeed handsome and dignified; there's nothing wrong with his appearance alone.

He doesn't have the typical handsome man's demeanor; he's more like a battle-hardened warrior.

This was undoubtedly the person Liu Hanwen was most satisfied with; at least he wasn't a gigolo.

Lin Zhiyan then pointed to another old man and said, "This is Master Lü, the former chief of the South China Sea Circuit."

Lu Jun looked older, was slightly overweight, and always had his eyes squinted, which made him appear very kind.

Lu Zhao said, "Greetings, Master Lü."

"Oh, hello, hello."

Lu Jun chuckled and said, "Young comrade, you're quite impressive. You can get on stage and give a speech without needing anyone's help."

"You flatter me."

"This is no compliment. Looking back over the past thirty years, you are the first person to rise to the top solely based on merit."

Lu Jun shook his head and said, "There are many people in the Federation who have made great contributions, and there are also many people with connections. Many good things require both merit and connections."

"This time, Hanwen didn't help you; you went up there entirely on your own."

People outside thought that Liu Hanwen had pulled some strings, but Liu Hanwen didn't give Lu Zhao any special treatment.

He didn't say a word from beginning to end.

Liu Hanwen also spoke up, "You don't need to be modest; this was indeed due to your personal efforts."

Lin Zhiyan then continued to introduce Liu Hao, Tu Bin, and Ding Shoujin.

The latter two do not need to be introduced in detail. Liu Hao is Liu Hanwen's secretary-general and part-time director-general of the Human Resources and Social Security Bureau.

He is the top person in charge of personnel matters in Nankaido, and also Liu Hanwen's successor.

They participate in core decision-making, coordinate all parties, and wield immense power.

The other two are respectively the highest-ranking leaders of the Nankaido surveillance system and the captains of the Nankaido Special Counter-Strike Force.

It symbolizes the leader of the three major systems: administration, supervision, and counter-terrorism.

Lu Zhao had just arrived in Cangwu, and before he even started working or met his colleagues, he already knew the superiors of more than half of the officials in the South China Sea.

This is the benefit of relationships.

Lu Zhao didn't want to use connections for everything; he just hoped that no one else would kick him out from behind.

With these people around, no one can arbitrarily exercise power against Lu Zhao.

At the same time, Lu Zhao himself has completely boarded the Liu faction's ship, and in the future, they will share both prosperity and adversity.

Liu Hanwen said, "Sit down, and stay for lunch later."

"Yes."

Lu Zhao sat down and then noticed that Lin Zhiyan was still holding his arm, chatting and laughing with Ding Shoujin as if nothing had happened.

He wanted to pull his hand away, but he was afraid that Liu Wuhou would punish him.

Lin Zhiyan's ears turned slightly red, while Ding Shoujin, who was talking to her, gave her a mysterious smile.

'You virgin just don't know how to flirt with guys, I have to teach you.'

Having seen countless men, Ding Shoujin knew roughly what kind of person Lu Zhao was at first glance.

With his looks, and having never had a girlfriend, he looks like a hedgehog. Trying to win him over using normal methods will be difficult and might even backfire.

The only way is to go for it, even if it means eating something full of thorns, at least you've gotten it into your mouth.

An hour later, it was lunchtime.

Lunch at the top of the power circle in Nankaido is very simple, mostly consisting of Nankai-Eastern cuisine, with the most expensive dish being a grouper.

It's not cheap, but it's not extravagant either.

After their conversation, everyone was quite satisfied with Lu Zhao.

He is impeccably handsome and highly capable. Apart from not being very close to Lin Zhiyan, there is almost nothing wrong with him.

After the meal, Liu Hanwen called Lu Zhao into his office alone.

Lin Zhiyan was a little worried and wanted to follow, but Ding Shoujin carried her away.

(End of this chapter)