Hong Kong variety show: The mastermind behind the scenes is emerging.

Rome, a secluded safe house belonging to the Lubbers family.

The curtains were drawn, blocking out the midday sun, and only a dim, yellowish table lamp was lit inside.

Lu Chen sat at his desk, wearing white gloves, and was looking through his spoils.

On the table were two things: a black 5.25-inch floppy disk and a thick black photo album with a worn cover.

This is the "nuclear weapon" that drove the entire Corleone family mad and caused the godfather Antonio to vomit blood and fall into a coma.

"Boss, we've cracked part of the contents of the floppy disk."

Ahua turned a bulky portable computer screen toward Lu Chen, "It contains detailed records of all the Mafia's dirty money flows over the past twenty years. These include drug trafficking, arms smuggling, and casino money laundering. There are even many overseas accounts, involving amounts up to a billion US dollars."

"Money is just a number."

Lu Chen didn't pay much attention to the floppy disk; his gaze lingered on the photo album.

This is the real "Pandora's Box".

He slowly turned to the first page of the photo album.

The photo is slightly yellowed, but extremely clear. The background is a lavish private party, where a man in a judge's robe is kneeling naked on the ground with a dog leash around his neck, and next to him is a 'king' holding a whip.

That man is the current Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Rome.

Lu Chen continued flipping through the pages.

The second page contains a candid photo of the Speaker of the Italian Parliament accepting US dollars.

The third page shows the superintendent of the Rome Metropolitan Police Department helping the Mafia dispose of a body.

On page four, a private scandal involving a cardinal of the Vatican even appeared…

This album isn't thick, but each photo is enough to cause a magnitude 10 earthquake in Italian and even European politics.

"No wonder that old man Antonio values ​​this thing more than his own life," Lu Chen closed the photo album, a playful sneer curling at the corner of his mouth. "With this, it's like having the throat of the entire Italian upper class. Whoever controls it is the 'underground emperor' of this land."

"Darling, the Mafia has gone mad these past few days," Sofia said gleefully. "They've mobilized all their manpower and turned Sicily upside down. They've even put a five million dollar bounty on King Kong's head, and now they're targeting several of our strongholds in Sicily."

"Let them look for it, it's part of the plan," Lu Chen tossed the photo album to Tian Yangsheng to put away, stood up and walked to the window, looking through the crack at the police cars rushing past on the street below.

"Chaos is the best way to fish in troubled waters."

……

3 PM.

Trastevere, the old town of Rome.

This is a long-established pizzeria called "Da Enzo". There are usually long queues here, but right now, the doors are closed and a "Temporarily Closed" sign is hanging on the wall.

Inside the restaurant, there were no customers, only a group of burly men in black suits, exuding a menacing aura, guarding all the exits.

In the innermost corner of the shop sat a burly, bald man with a fierce-looking face.

He was devouring a freshly baked Margherita pizza, eating it with a ferocious gusto, as if the pizza were his father's killer.

Luca, the third-in-command of the Corleone family, is the current leader of the "Martial Faction" and the family's most brutal henchman.

"Damn it... why hasn't that woman arrived yet?" Luca slammed the pizza crust onto the plate, wiped the grease from his mouth, and his eyes flashed with a furious irritation.

In the past two days, the whole of Sicily has been turned upside down in search of that damned Pandora's box.

Although Godfather Antonio awoke after vomiting blood and falling into a coma in the secret room, his health deteriorated rapidly. He frantically ordered everyone to search for the missing ledger, as if possessed. Panic gripped the family; everyone felt as if a Damocles' sword was hanging over their heads.

Luca was no exception. He was worried that the exposure of the ledgers would implicate him, but he also had a vague feeling that... this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Paul, the second-in-command, had been gradually marginalized because of the black glove incident, and now Luca's ambition was rising with the chaos in the family—he wanted to take the position of Mafia leader.

That's why he accepted the invitation to leave Sicily and come to Rome for pizza at such a crucial moment.

Just then, the shop door was pushed open.

"jingle--"

The clear sound of wind chimes rang out.

A woman walked in, surrounded by several bodyguards.

She wore a well-tailored white suit, a wide-brimmed hat, and high heels, looking as elegant as a swan that had stumbled into a pack of wolves.

"Mr. Luca, you have a good appetite."

Sofia took off her sunglasses, revealing her captivating blue eyes, and sat down opposite Luca with a smile.

"The Lubers girl..." Luca narrowed his eyes and asked coldly, "The whole country is looking for the thief who stole the ledgers. Many people in the Mafia are saying that it was your Lubers family who did it."

"You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want," Sofia waved to the waiter. "One Margherita pizza, with double cheese. Thank you."

She turned to look at Luca, a playful smile playing on her lips. "I'm not here to argue with you. I'm here to make a deal with you."

"A deal?" Luca scoffed. "What kind of deal could we possibly have? You took advantage of our misfortune, seizing so much territory from our family, and now you want to humiliate me?"

"No, you might have misunderstood. I'm not making a deal with the Mafia, but with you," Sofia leaned forward, lowering her voice, each word like a serpent tempting Eve, "to help you... get that seat."

Luca's hand jerked violently, and he almost spilled his coffee.

"Help me?" Luca laughed as if he'd heard the funniest joke in the world. "Don't pretend! The Italian underworld is now divided between your Lupus family and our Mafia. You'd be kind enough to help me? You'd be lucky if you didn't take advantage of my misfortune!"

"Mr. Luca, businessmen are all about maximizing profits," Sofia said calmly. "That's true. I did manage to acquire quite a bit of territory while you were strategically retreating recently. For example, the arms supply lines in Milan, the port of Naples... But I'm only human, and my appetite is limited. Overeating will lead to indigestion."

"What I need now is time to digest these territories, not to perish together with a mad dog that is fighting back in its death throes—I want a truce."

"truce?"

This is indeed logical, since although the Lubbers family rose to power quickly, its foundation is not as deep as that of the Mafia, and it does need time to consolidate its power.

"Since you want a truce, why don't you just talk to that old guy Antonio?" Luca probed.

"Impossible."

Sofia shook her head. "Antonio is like a gambler who's lost everything. He's lost his books and his prestige is gone. He has to keep the wars going to distract him from internal problems and keep his crumbling rule going. As long as he's in power, there will be no peace in Italy, and our two countries will just keep dragging this out until we're both exhausted."

"so……"

Sofia lowered her voice, like a devil's whisper, "There is only one person who is preventing us from making money peacefully—Antonio."

Luca's heart skipped a beat.

He understood.

"You want to kill the Godfather?" Luca lowered his voice, a hint of panic flashing in his eyes, but more so... greed.

“No, it’s us together,” Sofia said, holding up a finger. “We’ll make a deal. You acknowledge your current sphere of influence and give up the territories you’ve lost—you can’t take them back now anyway. In return, I won’t interfere in the Mafia’s internal affairs and will fully support your rise to power.”

Luca remained silent.

He was weighing his options.

This woman is intelligent, but also greedy.

But Luca wouldn't mind making a deal with the devil.

"call……"

Luca let out a long breath, and a slight smile finally appeared on his sinister face. He picked up a slice of cold pizza in front of him and took a big bite.

"This pizza is a little cold."

Luca chewed while looking at Sofia, "But it tastes pretty good."

"So, deal?" Sophia raised her coffee cup.

"make a deal."

Luca raised his coffee cup, and the two ceramic cups clinked together in the dim light.

"How do you plan to cooperate?" Although a cooperation agreement had been reached, Luca still knew nothing about Sofia's plans.

"It's simple. You're in charge of creating opportunities, and I'll send someone to kill the Godfather," Sofia laughed, a smile like a fox. "We'll take down Antonio together. That's our 'pledge of allegiance,' and also the leverage you're leaving me so you won't turn your back on us."

"...Okay! The day after tomorrow, Antonio will go to the church on the outskirts of the city for confession. That's his monthly routine," Luca lowered his voice and gave a contact number. "I'll replace the outer guards around him with my men then, and they'll create opportunities for you."

"very good."

Sofia put down her wine glass, stood up, and looked down at the future "Godfather." "It's been a pleasure working with you, Your Excellency."

Luca grasped that fair hand, feeling its icy touch.

"What a beautiful title! It's a pleasure working with you, Miss Sophia."