Under One Person: The End of Technique, Company Building

The night breeze in Tianjin carried a hint of coolness, rustling the leaves of the old locust trees in the courtyard.

Less than ten minutes after Zhuge Qi and his entourage drove out of the North China branch's gate in their black van, Xu San's phone rang.

The Lü family's attitude was unusually proactive.

Xu San glanced at the caller ID, his expression changed slightly, and he answered the phone: "Feed?"

The voice on the other end of the phone said a few words urgently, and Xu San's expression changed from calm to solemn, and then from solemn to incredulous.

"What did you say?" His voice rose a half-octave. "Lu Ci himself? Are you sure?"

After a few more words were spoken on the other end of the phone, Xu San remained silent for a few seconds, then said "I understand" and hung up.

Xu Si was leaning against the wall in the corridor, smoking. Seeing his brother's expression, he put out his cigarette and asked, "What's wrong?"

"The Lü family has sent people." Xu San took a deep breath. "Lü Ci came in person."

Xu Si froze, his cigarette dangling from his lips.

"Who? Lü Ci?" He took the cigarette out of his mouth, his expression incredibly complex. "That Lü Ci? One of the Ten Elders, Lü Ci? Mad Dog Lü Ci?"

"Is there another Lü Ci in the entire world of supernatural beings?" Xu San rubbed his temples, his tone carrying an inexplicable sense of irritation.

Xu Si gasped and subconsciously glanced towards the main entrance, as if the legendary "mad dog" was already standing there.

"Just for Lü Liang?" His voice was full of disbelief. "Isn't Lü Liang just a traitor to the Lü family? The kind who was expelled from the family. Is it really worth making Lü Ci make this trip in person?"

"You're asking me? Who should I ask?" Xu San said irritably, but quickly frowned. "However, the fact that Lü Ci personally took action shows that Lü Liang's matter is much more complicated than we imagined."

Xu Si didn't speak, but his eyes said it all.

The two brothers exchanged a glance, both reading the same meaning in each other's eyes—

Zhuge Qi probably planned this from the very beginning by leaving Lü Liang behind alone.

"Brother," Xu Si suddenly spoke, his voice much lower than usual, "Do you think Zhuge Qi knew all along that Lü Ci would come?"

Xu San did not answer, but his silence itself was an answer.

"How much does that person actually know?" Xu Si's voice carried a apprehension that even he himself didn't realize.

Xu San took a deep breath, turned around and walked into the office building: "Don't think too much about it now, let's get ready to welcome him. Lü Ci is no ordinary guest, we can't neglect him."

"Should we inform Zhuge Qi?" Xu Si caught up with him.

Xu San paused for a moment, thought for a moment, and shook his head: "We definitely have to tell them. After all, they asked us to make contact, probably using us as a buffer. But since they left Lü Liang behind, they must know what will happen next. Maybe they know the situation even better than we do now."

Xu Si opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end he didn't say anything and just nodded silently.

Meanwhile, on the way to the hotel.

The black minivan drove smoothly along the night streets of Tianjin, the neon lights outside the windows flashing across the faces of the people inside.

Liu Yanyan sat in the middle row, looking out the window at the unfamiliar city, feeling a mix of emotions.

She secretly glanced at Zhuge Qi beside her.

The young section chief was leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed, his hands crossed in front of his lower abdomen, breathing steadily, as if he were resting with his eyes closed.

But Liu Yanyan always felt that this person knew everything even with his eyes closed.

In the back seat, Lü Liang huddled in a corner, his hands cuffed in front of him, head down, not uttering a word.

The car was quiet for a while, with only the low rumble of the engine.

In the front passenger seat, Ma Hong suddenly turned his head and said in a low voice, "Section Chief, there's a car following us."

Zhuge Qi didn't even open his eyes, his tone as calm as if he were saying the weather was nice today: "Hmm, they're from the North China branch, don't worry about them."

Ma Hong paused for a moment, but didn't ask any more questions. He turned his head back to stare at the road ahead.

Jiang Bai sat behind Ma Hong, pushed up his black-rimmed glasses, and pondered to himself.

If the section chief says not to worry about it, then it really means not to worry about it.

But the question is, what are the people in the North China branch doing with them?

Is it protection? Or surveillance?

still is……

As Jiang Bai thought about this, he suddenly realized a possibility, and his pupils contracted slightly.

But he didn't say it.

Having followed Zhuge Qi for so long, he learned one thing: don't say what the section chief didn't say; don't do what the section chief didn't do.

Often, silence is wiser than speaking.

The atmosphere inside the car was subtly quiet.

Lu Liang, sitting in the back row, seemed to sense something as well. He raised his head, glanced at the people in the front row, and then lowered his head again.

His intuition told him that something was about to happen.

And it's not a trivial matter.

The van stopped in front of a five-star hotel.

This is the designated hotel for Nadutong Company, arranged in advance by the North China branch.

Zhuge Qi opened his eyes, glanced at the brightly lit lobby outside the window, and said calmly, "We've arrived. Get out of the car."

Everyone got off the bus one after another.

Xiao Li had already checked in and came running over with his room key: "Section Chief, your room is on the executive floor. Liu Yanyan is next to you, and Lü Liang..."

She glanced at Lü Liang, and asked somewhat uncertainly, "What are Lü Liang's plans?"

Although Lü Liang has now sealed the Biyuan Needle, he is still a prisoner, and his situation is different from Liu Yanyan's. He still needs to be strictly guarded.

Zhuge Qi thought for a moment and said, "Take him to my room first, and I'll talk to him later."

Xiao Li nodded and turned to make the arrangements.

Ma Hong and Jiang Bai flanked Lü Liang on either side, following Zhuge Qi into the hotel lobby.

Liu Yanyan followed behind, curiously looking around the magnificent lobby, her eyes filled with a sense of wonder that she had never seen anything like it before.

She grew up in her hometown in western Hunan, and had never stayed in a five-star hotel before.

However, she was too embarrassed to show it, and kept a straight face, pretending to be someone who had seen it all before.

Inside the elevator, Zhuge Qi suddenly spoke: "Lü Liang."

Lü Liang raised his head, his green eyes meeting Zhuge Qi's calm gaze.

"Do you know who will come to pick you up from your home?" Zhuge Qi asked casually.

Lu Liang was silent for two seconds, then shook his head: "I don't know."

Zhuge Qi smiled and said nothing more.

The elevator doors opened, and the group walked through the corridor to the door of Zhuge Qi's room.

This is an executive suite, quite spacious, with a sofa and coffee table in the living room, and the night view of Tianjin outside the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Zhuge Qi took off his coat, hung it on the hanger, and then walked to the sofa and sat down.

He pointed to the single sofa opposite him: "Sit."

Lu Liang hesitated for a moment, then sat down.

Ma Hong and Jiang Bai stood at the door, not coming in.

"You should all go back to your rooms and rest first," Zhuge Qi waved his hand. "I'll call you if I need anything."

Ma Hong nodded and closed the door.

Only Zhuge Qi, Lü Liang, and Xiao Li, who was standing to the side not knowing what to do, remained in the room.

"Xiao Li, you should go and rest too," Zhuge Qi said.

Xiao Li glanced at Lü Liang, somewhat worried: "Section Chief, you're all alone..."

"It's alright, he can't hurt me." Zhuge Qi's tone was extremely calm. He glanced at Lü Liang, a slight smile curving his lips. "Besides, at this point, even if I asked him to leave, he wouldn't."

At this moment, Lü Liang seemed to have thought of something terrible; his face turned deathly pale, and he remained motionless.