The Gulfstream G650 was in flight.
After waking up from his sleep, Chen Xiaolian could feel the airplane in the midst of landing. Wearing her uniform, the beautiful flight attendant came nearby and used a gentle voice to inform him that the airplane had arrived at its destination.
Chen Xiaolian checked his surroundings. On the other seat, Qiao Qiao’s body was curled up into a ball while being covered by a blanket. One of her hand was tightly forming a fist.
Chen Xiaolian smiled. He got up and patted Qiao Qiao on her shoulder.
“Have we arrived?” Qiao Qiao sighed and quickly straightened her body.
“We will arrive at Haneda Airport in 5 minutes time,” Chen Xiaolian observed the interior of the passenger compartment to see that the others have already woken up. The two brothers, Lun Tai and Bei Tai were drinking beer. Neither of them slept during the trip and were instead showing excitement.
Qiao Qiao yawned and asked. “Did you get some sleep?”
“I slept only for a bit, on and off,” Chen Xiaolian shook his head.
“Nervous?”
“It is not exactly all from nervousness. There is also a sense of wonder,” Chen Xiaolian forced out a smile. “This is my first time on a private jet. When I first boarded this plane, I do not even know where to place my hands. I am really curious, just how much wealth does your family have?”
Qiao Qiao laughed out and softly replied. “So much money that we do not have to worry about money.”
“Do you know? When I saw the first Ironman movie, it became my life’s dream to own a private jet.”
“Oh? Because you can travel to any place in the world?”
“Nope, he was envious of Ironman’s private jet because he could instruct those beautiful flight attendants to dance the pole dance!” Roddy’s head leaned over from the back and evilly uttered those words.
Chen Xiaolian laughed and slapped Roddy’s head.
…
After the airplane landed and came to a stop, the passenger compartment opened and a black coloured limousine could be seen waiting. While everyone was getting off the airplane, Xia Xiaolei was still inquisitively touching and pulling everything within the plane.
The airplane captain was a middle-aged man who stood at the doorway. He spoke to her. “We will be resting here for one night. Arrangements have been made to go pick up your father in Brunei tomorrow morning at 9 o’clock. How long will you be staying in Tokyo? If you have the time, you can come with us tomorrow morning. Your father misses you and it so happened that he has one day’s worth of free time.”
Qiao Qiao frowned and coldly replied. “Another time.”
On their way out of the airport after getting on the limousine, Chen Xiaolian realized that Qiao Qiao was being somewhat quiet.
He sat beside Qiao Qiao and patted her on her shoulder. “Not in a good mood? You… your relationship with your father doesn’t seem well.”
“You win some, you lose some. I have so much money that I do not have to worry about money. But, I almost never get to see my father. Just imagine, how would it feel to need an appointment in order to meet your own father?”
Chen Xiaolian was silent for a moment. He then looked at Qiao Qiao and softly replied. “At least you have a father.”
“…” Qiao Qiao quivered and then she whispered out. “I am sorry, I forgot that your family…”
“That is enough,” Chen Xiaolian waved his hand and put on a smiling face. “Where will we be staying tonight? As a super wealthy person, surely you have made the arrangements, right? Allow us to experience the extravagant lifestyle of the rich.”
Beside her, Soo Soo moved close to Qiao Qiao’s ears and whispered with a frown. “Unnie, oppa’s family…”
“Shh,” Qiao Qiao smiled and ruffled her mushroom shaped hair. “Do not ask this question, understand?”
Soo Soo puffed up her face and nervously combed her hair. She then put on her bunny shaped earphones. “I get it! Unnie, don’t mess up my hair.”
…
As the saying goes: Stick with the wealthy and you will have meat to eat. At present, Chen Xiaolian was experiencing it for himself.
A private jet flew them directly to Japan; when they arrived, a limousine was there to pick them up. The limousine then drove them to one of the most luxurious hotel, Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Even before their limousine came to a halt, several Japanese men in formal black suits had appeared. They stood in a row before the entrance and made a 90-degree bow.
After the doors of the limousine were opened, Chen Xiaolian and the others alighted and walked into the hotel. However, these men in black motionlessly maintained their 90-degrees bowing posture.
There was also a middle-aged man who anxiously followed beside Qiao Qiao, his face filled with modesty and carefulness. He bowed all the way while welcoming every one of them into the hotel.
The hallway had been cleared and not a single person could be seen within the large hotel lobby. They were able to directly enter the hotel and the elevator.
In the deluxe suite, Roddy entered through the door and exclaimed loudly as he threw himself onto the sofa. He flailed both his arms and legs as he rolled around. Then, he got up and smiled. “Big Miss Qiao, I have decided that I will follow you around in the future! This time’s trip is just too satisfying!”
Xia Xiaolei who was beside Roddy appeared to want to roll around on the sofa as well. However, he was hesitant.
The two brothers, Lun Tai and Bei Tai exhibited the qualities of veterans, examining the doors to each room right after entering, investigating the windows and checking out the view of the outside. Next, they checked the map of the building and committed each of the emergency exits to memory.
“I want to eat Japanese food!” Roddy jumped up and rushed to Xia Xiaolei’s side. “Let us go, brother! I will bring you to enjoy the best Japanese food available! Haha! Let us go! In order to have space for them, I intentionally not eat anything while on the plane.”
Qiao Qiao looked at Chen Xiaolian. “Do we eat out or do we get them to send the food over?”
Chen Xiaolian was astonished to find that everyone in the room was looking to him. Even Lun Tai and Bei Tai were silently staring at him, awaiting his words.
Chen Xiaolian who was only 18-years-old suddenly felt strange and asked while smiling bitterly. “This… I have to decide?”
“You are the Guild Leader.”
The one who spoke out was Lun Tai.
His tone was one of seriousness and he spoke with a heavy tone. “You are the guild’s Guild Leader. The Guild Leader must decide the guild’s collective action. If you are not used to it, then use this opportunity to do so! Once we enter the instance dungeon, your every decision will involve the life and death of the guild – remember this, the guild members are all counting on you!”
“… I will adapt to it as fast as I can,” Chen Xiaolian pursed his lips – he was still feeling a little loss.
That was only normal considering that he was only an 18-years-old youngster. Additionally, this was not some online game’s Guild Leader position. This was a real risk-taking guild that must stake its life on the line.
To have to suddenly bear the weight of such a heavy responsibility, Chen Xiaolian was somewhat unable to adapt.
“Then, let us eat out,” Chen Xiaolian replied after thinking about it. “We were all confined within a small space in the airplane. By moving around, everyone will be able to loosen up. Moreover, we could also discuss about tomorrow’s matter while we are having a meal.”
Pausing, Chen Xiaolian continued with a heavy voice. “Lun Tai, Bei Tai, the both of you are responsible for determining the location for tomorrow’s business summit. Also, familiarize yourself with the surrounding area… get some maps from the hotel staff and make a copy for each of us. Do not put too much faith into mobile communication devices. In the event that the internet goes down, having a map in hand would be the best form of insurance.”
“All right, leave it to us,” Lun Tai nodded his head. He looked at Chen Xiaolian, a trace of a smile appearing in his eyes.
“Qiao Qiao, you are responsible for tomorrow’s transport. En, arrange for a 7-seater car. Don’t get ones that are too flashy or too expensive. Just one of those commercial 7-seater cars will do. For the sake of secrecy, do not get a chauffeur. We will drive it ourselves.”
Qiao Qiao smiled and looked at Chen Xiaolian. “Now you are looking a bit more like a Guild Leader. Just leave it to me.”
Chen Xiaolian nodded his head. “Roddy, Xia Xiaolei, the two of you retrieve those walkie-talkies that were prepared when you were waiting outside the Mausoleum Area of Qin Shi Huang. Replace the batteries and ensure that they are constantly fully charged. Once again, do not put too much faith in mobile communication devices. In the event that the communication network fails, the walkie-talkies are more dependable. Roddy, you are responsible for teaching Xia Xiaolei how to use the walkie-talkies.”
“OK, leave it to me,” Roddy grinned.
“Everyone will move out on their own. In half an hour’s time, we will convene in the dining area,” Chen Xiaolian smiled.
“What will you be doing?” Qiao Qiao narrowed her eyes and regarded Chen Xiaolian.
“Me? I will be bringing Soo Soo to the dining area to wait for you all while familiarizing myself with this place,” Chen Xiaolian smiled. “On the way here, Soo Soo has been saying that she wanted to eat ice cream.”
After saying that, Chen Xiaolian laughed and pulled Soo Soo with him as he headed out the door.
Before he left, Qiao Qiao noticed that Chen Xiaolian was winking towards her. Qiao Qiao immediately smiled and said. “I will bring you there. Besides, arranging for the car is not that difficult. One phone call will be sufficient to get it done.”
After saying that, she went after them.
After walking out of the room, Qiao Qiao caught up to Chen Xiaolian. She did not say anything and the three of them walked into the elevator. It was only after the elevator doors have closed and they were slowly descending did Qiao Qiao furrow her brows. “Is there anything you want to say to me alone?”
“To be precise, I need to speak to only you and Soo Soo. The three of us need to talk,” Chen Xiaolian’s face became very serious.
…
They went to the 38th floor of the hotel and into the Sushi Sora bar. They walked along the solid granite tiles and arrived before the long dining counter fashioned from cypress wood.
The middle-aged man from earlier seemed to have been waiting at the entrance to the dining area. He immediately moved over to escort them, using Japanese to introduce the place to Qiao Qiao.
Due to the presence of the system, Chen Xiaolian was able to understand what the man was saying. He was merely explaining that this place sells the most traditional Edo Japanese food.
Additionally, this man was also very observant. Although he has been explaining things to Qiao Qiao along the way, he was also watching for any reactions. He observed that Qiao Qiao was walking beside Chen Xiaolian while Chen Xiaolian’s face showed no change in expression, revealing neither joy nor rage. He gradually felt them to be unpredictable and cold sweat trickled down from his forehead drop after drop.
Sitting upon the cypress counter, they found that a serious looking chef was already standing inside. After performing a 90-degrees bow to them, he began to skilfully work on making Japanese food.
Chen Xiaolian glanced at the middle-aged man who was escorting them and Qiao Qiao waved him off.
“What exactly do you want to talk about? Must we do so behind the others backs?” Qiao Qiao asked.
Chen Xiaolian’s eyes were focused onto the chef’s hands. The chef wielded a sharp knife and sliced out a strip of meat from a fish before cutting the strip into uniform pieces.
Chen Xiaolian seemed lost in thought. Slowly, he spoke.
“The three of us have a common secret. I am aware that there needs to be honesty within a guild, however… this secret is too shocking. Thus, it would be best for us to talk about it when there is no one else around. Roddy and Xia Xiaolei is all right, however… Lun Tai and Bei Tai seemed like good people. But, we don’t really know them too well. I have not the desire to harm others, but lacking not in the desire to protect myself is not a bad thing. Besides, this involves the critical secret that could decide the life and death of us three.”
Qiao Qiao’s face turned solemn and she whispered. “What you mean is…”
“The three of us are not exactly ‘Awakened ones’,” Chen Xiaolian looked at Qiao Qiao and Soo Soo. He then smiled bitterly. “We are actually not the same with Lun Tai, Bei Tai and Xia Xiaolei.”