We offered you a summer job, but you went and became a mercenary?

On the main road of Jiangcheng.

Lin Ye parked the shared bicycle on the side of the road and locked it.

He walked to the intersection carrying two bulging black woven bags.

Tonight's part-time earnings are quite substantial.

The two bags were filled with cash and gold bars, worth at least tens of millions.

"Workers should have the awareness of being workers; the more you work, the more you earn." Lin Ye patted the bag with satisfaction.

He took out He Laosi's phone and glanced at the screen.

All the dense red dots on the map have gone out, leaving only one flashing red cursor.

Lanshan Manor, in the western suburbs.

"To catch the thief, first catch the king; since we're already working overtime, let's work all the way through."

Lin Ye looked up at the night sky and hailed a taxi that happened to be passing by.

The taxi was parked on the side of the road.

The driver, a middle-aged man, rolled down the window, glanced at Lin Ye's attire, and then at the two huge woven bags in his hands.

"Young man, moving house in the middle of the night?" the driver asked casually.

Lin Ye opened the car door, stuffed the two woven bags into the back seat, and got into the passenger seat.

"Master, go to Lanshan Manor in the western suburbs."

Lin Ye fastened his seatbelt, his tone very calm.

"Please drive faster, I'm in a hurry to get off work."

······

Lanshan Manor in the western suburbs.

The meeting hall of the Ho family's private club was in a mess.

Whoosh!

He Zhen grabbed the Ming Dynasty blue and white porcelain vase worth millions from the table and smashed it hard on the floor.

Broken porcelain shards were scattered everywhere.

He gripped the armrests of the mahogany armchair with both hands, panting heavily, his chest heaving violently.

The three cell phones on the table vibrated in turn.

He Zhen picked up one of the devices with trembling hands.

"Master! The money laundering den in the east of the city is gone!" A subordinate's heart-wrenching cry came from the other end of the phone. "The security chief has been crippled, and all five hundred million in working capital has been transferred to a charitable foundation's account! Not a single penny is left!"

Smash! He Zhen smashed the phone to pieces.

He grabbed the second phone and pressed the speakerphone button.

"Master, the casino in the south of the city has been raided..." The voice was even weaker, with the sound of ambulance sirens in the background. "The vault door was blown open with explosives, and all the cash and gold bars inside were looted. Sixth Master... Sixth Master's right arm was shot off, and he is still being treated."

He Zhen's legs went weak, and he collapsed onto the armchair.

Black boxing gyms in the north of the city, casinos in the south, underground banks in the east, and smuggling warehouses in the west.

Less than two hours.

The four core businesses that the He family had built up over decades were all uprooted. Their financial chain was completely severed.

These industries are the foundation upon which the He family has established themselves in Jiangcheng.

Now it's all gone, not a single crumb remains.

Who exactly is targeting the He family?

He Zhen forced himself to calm down, his mind racing.

"Where's the Third Elder?" He Zhen suddenly raised his head and roared at the butler who was standing in the corner trembling. "Where did He Tianba go! I told him to go to Xingfuli Community to catch that kid named Lin Ye, where is he?!"

The butler swallowed hard, his voice hoarse: "Master, the Third Elder has gone missing. The phones of all thirty elite soldiers he took with him are also switched off."

He Zhen grabbed the butler by the collar: "Have you even been to the scene?!"

"I've checked," the butler stammered. "The brothers I sent to scout said the square in Xingfuli residential area is spotless, not a drop of blood. More than thirty living people, not even a ghost in sight."

He Zhen felt a chill run down his spine, all the way to the top of his head.

How could dozens of fully armed martial arts masters simply vanish into thin air?

Just as He Zhen's fear was about to become unbearable, three elderly men in gray robes walked out from behind the screen on the side of the hall.

The three men moved with steady steps, without making a sound.

The He family's last three trump cards.

Three high-ranking retainers at the late stage of Dark Force.

The elder, who was in the lead, stroked his white beard, walked up to He Zhen, and said in a very calm tone: "Patriarch, losing your composure is not your usual style."

He Zhen, as if grasping at a straw, quickly stood up: "Old He, the entire area outside has been ransacked! Third Brother got caught too. The other party is of unknown origin and acted ruthlessly, I'm afraid..."

"What's there to be afraid of?" Old He snorted coldly, interrupting He Zhen. "To be able to wipe out four venues in one night, they must have used a large number of men and heavy firearms. As for the third brother, he was probably careless and was ambushed by the other side with firearms."

Old Master He walked with his hands behind his back to the floor-to-ceiling window in the hall and pointed to the manor outside.

"The security outside is lax, so it's not surprising that someone could take advantage of the situation. But Lanshan Manor is the He family's stronghold."

"A high-voltage electric fence was erected around the perimeter, and infrared alarms provided full coverage. More than two hundred armed elite guards patrolled the area 24 hours a day."

Old He turned his head and looked at He Zhen.

"What's more, we three old bones are here to keep things in check."

"No matter who they are, if they dare to step into this Lanshan Manor, I guarantee they will never return!"

Hearing these words, He Zhen's heart, which had been in his throat, calmed down a little.

Old He is right. Lanshan Manor is impregnable. Even if the National Security Bureau's special forces were to launch a strong attack, they could hold out for several hours.

Waaah—!

Just then, a piercing air raid siren suddenly sounded outside the manor.

Red warning lights flashed wildly in the lobby.

He Zhen shuddered and jumped up from his chair: "Coming!"

The butler rushed to the control panel, typed a few keys on the keyboard, and switched the surveillance footage from the main gate of the manor to the 100-inch LCD screen in the center of the hall.

He Zhen and the three honored guests all stared at the screen.

There wasn't a large force.

There are no heavy armored vehicles.

There were no armed special forces soldiers either.

In the scene, only a green Jetta taxi slowly stopped in front of the manor's pure copper riot gate.

Inside the taxi.

The driver glanced at the towering walls and fully armed guards outside and swallowed hard.

"Young man, this place isn't open to just anyone. What are you doing in this desolate wilderness in the middle of the night?" The driver gripped the steering wheel with both hands, ready to shift into reverse at any moment.

Lin Ye sat in the passenger seat, carrying the two huge black woven bags in his hands.

"I'm here to settle my wages with the boss." Lin Ye turned his head and glanced at the meter. "How much, sir?"

The driver glanced at the screen: "The meter says 78. Driving this far in the middle of the night, going back empty would waste gas, so I'll charge a 10 yuan night surcharge. I'll give you 88."

Lin Ye's brows furrowed into a knot.

"Eighty-eight?" Lin Ye looked displeased. "That's so expensive? Can you round it up? How about eighty yuan?"

The driver was stunned.

The young man looked quite energetic, carrying two bulging bags that looked quite heavy.

As a result, I argued with him for half a day over eight yuan.

"Okay, okay, eighty." The driver pointed to the QR code on the center console. "Scan the code, hurry up and pay, I need to get back to the city."

Lin Ye pulled out the second-hand Android phone with its screen shattered into a spiderweb pattern.

The phone froze for a full five seconds before slowly opening the scan function.

"Received payment via WeChat, 80 yuan."

Hearing the notification tone, Lin Ye finally opened the car door.

He stood in front of the manor gate, carrying a woven bag in one hand.