The Extraordinary Life of a Certain American Comic...

Chapter 118 Old De's Final Plan (5/5, Please Subscribe)

"What did you say?"

"That's impossible, try another one."

"This is it."

Don't even think about it.

Locke flatly refused old Underwood's request, then leaned back in his chair and asked with some curiosity, "Who asked you to act as an intermediary?"

Is there any chance for Nick Fury's situation to change?

Have.

There's always a chance for things to turn around.

The same applies to Nick Fury's case; all that's needed is for Locke, the victim, to choose to forgive.

After all, this is Washington, D.C., a circle where compromise is considered an art.

If Locke forgives him, then the Sentinel Special Operations Bureau won't be able to hold onto this matter.

After all, the victims have chosen to forgive, haven't they?

But in doing so, Locke has undoubtedly betrayed the Sentinel Special Operations Bureau to which he served.

Moreover, it was an extremely shameful betrayal.

Because he had just been promoted to deputy director of the New York Sentinel Operations, and then you betrayed the Sentinel Secret Service.

What is this if not a shameful betrayal?

Well known.

Traitors are never welcome anywhere.

So Locke was a little curious. Old Underwood couldn't possibly not know something so simple, but he still chose to say it anyway.

Clearly, there must have been a powerful lobbyist behind this, who convinced old Underwood that he was different from Locke, who was driven by a desire for revenge; old Underwood was a typical politician.

Such people often say, "Politics is always the art of compromise!"

Locke filtered through the possible candidates in his mind, and then thought of the most likely one.

"Alexander Pierce?"

"no."

Old Underwood shook his head directly: "My relationship with Pierce is so-so."

Locke raised an eyebrow.

"That-..·"·

"Don't overthink it, it was Malik who contacted me."

"Who?"

Locke was taken aback when he heard the name, then frowned and looked at old Underwood.

"Gideon Malik?"

"right."

Locke suddenly realized.

Gideon Malik, a family whose reputation is not particularly prominent among the general public, but is well-known among the Washington elite.

To put it another way, the Malik family is not only the financial backer of many members of Congress in Washington, but also the financial backer of S.H.I.E.L.D.

As mentioned before, since Nick Fury took office, the East and Russia have quietly established their own "S.H.I.E.L.D."

Although neither company withdrew its stake in S.H.I.E.L.D., their sponsorship of the agency has been decreasing year by year.

It can be said that after Nick Fury took office, S.H.I.E.L.D. has transformed from a global secret law enforcement agency into a Western secret law enforcement agency.

The massive S.H.I.E.L.D. relies on funding from the British and French, spearheaded by the Federation.

And it was at this time that federal capital sponsorship came into play.

Gideon Malik became a major financial backer of S.H.I.E.L.D. around that time.

Of course, Malik has another identity.

Malik's family has followed Hydra for generations and is one of the most important families in the organization.

But that's not the point.

Locke stroked his chin, looking at old Underwood with a somewhat strange expression: "Gideon called you personally?"

As mentioned earlier, Malik is not only a major financial backer of S.H.I.E.L.D., but also one of the major financial backers of many members of Congress in Washington, D.C.

Among these many is the elder Underwood.

The most important thing.

Gideon Malik and Francis Underwood have a very good relationship, and Gideon Malik's daughter, Stephanie Malik, also knows Locke, and the two are Harvard alumni.

On certain holidays, the two families will also take time to get together.

Old Underwood smiled slightly as he looked at Locke's expression.

"You agree?"

"hehe."

Upon hearing this, Locke chuckled inexplicably and gave old Underwood a wary look.

"That's impossible."

Old Underwood's face finally broke down, and he suddenly turned dark.

"You just said you would agree."

"I'll agree, except for this one. Choose another one."

"That's it, Locke. Washington has no permanent enemies, only permanent interests."

"Excuse me, I'm a New Yorker. We New Yorkers are straightforward and quick to settle scores, unlike you Washingtonians who are hypocritical and deceitful."

"No, this is it!"

"Then you're just dreaming."

"Snapped!"

Old Underwood finally couldn't hold back any longer. He slammed his fist on the table, stood up abruptly, and his powerful aura as the House Whip swept over Locke.

He tried to force Locke to comply by using his power.

"I'll ask you one last time, yes or no?"

"Old man, I'm telling you one last time, it's impossible. Be smart and make another request, and I promise I'll agree. If you keep harping on this, you might end up losing more than you gain."

Locke didn't tolerate old Underwood's behavior. He jumped up and, with full force, kicked the chair he was sitting on backward.

Boom!

The chair, like a cannonball, pierced straight through the study door, then crashed through the second-floor railing with undiminished momentum before falling to the floor of the first-floor hall.

With a snap!

The moment the chair hit the ground, it shattered into pieces, becoming a corpse that could never be restored.

Esme and Claire, who were talking on the living room sofa, heard the noise, looked at the chair that had fallen to the floor and was now shattered, and then subconsciously looked up at the second floor.

In the study, Locke and old Underwood's voices grew louder and more furious than each other's.

He kept calling his son a rebellious son.

He kept calling me "Old De" (a derogatory term for a German).

Esme listened to the commotion upstairs, opened her mouth, and looked at Claire beside her.

"Does this happen frequently?"

"listen-..

Claire, the mother, also opened her mouth, gave Esme a forced smile, and said, "This is part of a special program."

Esme gave an "oh," then blinked at Claire, who remained unmoved.

"Um—Claire, shouldn't we go up and take a look?"

"unnecessary."

Claire had regained her composure and, looking at Esme who seemed a little worried, smiled and said, "As I just said, this is their special program, there's no need to worry. Besides, we don't need to get involved in men's conversations unless absolutely necessary."

Esme met Claire's gaze and nodded, seemingly understanding but not quite.

Claire looked at Esme's expression and smiled again.

In the study.

Old Underwood, his breathing noticeably labored, glared at the family: "Locke, you can't only do what's in your own best interest for the family."

Locke sneered at old Underwood's words and glared back, "You can't compromise on everything just because it's in your favor."

Old Underwood gritted his teeth.

"The traitor."

"Old De!"

"What did you say?"

"Calling you 'Old De' is already being polite. You call me 'rebellious son,' and I didn't call you 'old bastard' only because I've been kind since I was a child."

"hehe."

Old Underwood laughed in exasperation when Locke boasted about his kindness since childhood.

"Have you always been kind since you were a child?"

"Isn't that right?"

Locke glanced at old Underwood and used concrete evidence to support his claim.

"Others buy luxury cars, have fun, hug women, and attend all sorts of parties."

Do I have one?

"I don't."

"Your enemies can attest that they can't find any fault with me to attack you, can they?"

"I've been so kind to you, and you still don't call me 'baby,' but you keep calling me 'rebellious son.' If I really became a rebellious son, you'd probably explode with anger."

Which wealthy son of Washington, at his age, wouldn't already be living in a villa, driving a luxury car, and having a supermodel by his side?

And him?

The apartment is rented, the car is a three-year-old used car, and even the savings are only a pitiful two million.

Why is he so harsh on himself? It's because he's kind.

Because no one wanted old Underwood to go further than him.

Who told him to have the surname Underwood, and to be the eldest son of the Underwood family?

Since ancient times, what legitimate son or daughter wouldn't want their family to prosper?

chant··..

It's uncertain whether she'll be a legitimate daughter, but it's certain she'll be a legitimate son.

Ultimately, however, his upbringing made him prefer to be a salted fish rather than a scoundrel.

Old Underwood, seeing Locke's confident demeanor, laughed in exasperation once more.

"Good, haha, I never expected that our family would produce such a philanthropist."

Am I not kind?

"You might as well just say you're white cotton."

"That's who I am."

Upon hearing this, Locke spread his hands toward old Underwood: "Although our family is poor white, you've been black-hearted since you were little, while my mother's family owns a plantation. Our ancestors started by growing cotton. You're from the black soil, and my mother has her own cotton seeds. It's not surprising that you two would have a child as white as cotton."

Well known.

Cotton seeds need to be planted in black soil to grow into pure white cotton.

Upon hearing Locke's words, old Underwood instinctively clutched his chest.

He's in pain.

He had never felt this way, not even when he was arguing with others in the House of Representatives.

But right now.

He suspected he would be driven to his death by Locke's sheer rage.

Locke raised an eyebrow at old Underwood clutching his chest, swallowed the words he was about to say, and softened his tone slightly: "Alright, tell me your real terms. Do you really think I've been in the Sentinel Special Operations Department for nothing these past two years?"

Again.

Forcing him to forgive Nick Fury would be tantamount to betraying the Secret Service and giving up his own political future.

Even if he agreed, old Underwood certainly wouldn't.

Because Locke was the only son in his family.

Simply put, no matter how hard old Underwood strives, the only one who can inherit his estate in the end is Locke.

An heir tainted by political betrayal is definitely not what old Underwood wants.

so·

Old Underwood said that only to set the stage for what he was about to say.

Simply put.

He said he wanted to lift the roof, but actually he wanted to open the windows.

really!

As soon as Locke uttered those words, old Underwood, who had been clutching his chest and seemed about to faint from anger, immediately recovered and looked intently at Locke.

"You and Stephanie haven't seen each other for two years, have you?"