Xinzheng City, within the Yu Family’s luxurious mansion.
This mansion occupied a vast area, ranking among the top in Xinzheng City.
As three days passed without any news, Yu Duanchong once again gathered his family members.
"Is there still no news of Runming?"
Fingers lightly tapping on the armrest of his chair, Yu Duanchong looked imposingly at the others.
"The phone doesn’t go through, including the friends he took with him, all have gone missing without any message."
Yu Duanchong’s son, Yu Shichang, was somewhat uneasy.
The disappearance of seven or eight people without a word for days would arouse suspicion in anyone.
"Runming must have encountered trouble, big brother, you can’t ignore your nephew, it must be Mu Hua Company’s doing."
A man whose face couldn’t hide his sorrow stood up, he was Yu Ting’an, Runming’s father.
"Younger brother, we still don’t know what exactly happened, don’t panic."
Yu Duanchong took a sip of tea and instructed the others, "Second brother, have someone discreetly investigate, see if they can find Runming and his group."
"Alright, big brother."
Another middle-aged man nodded in agreement.
However, Yu Ting’an wasn’t ready to give up and couldn’t help saying, "Big brother, can we get the police..."
Cutting off Yu Ting’an’s words abruptly, Yu Duanchong put down his tea cup and said coldly, "If we call the police now, and they manage to find leverage, not only will we not be able to save Runming, but it might also put him in more danger. It’s not Xinzheng City there; we have no connections with the police department. We can’t let the police get involved."
Yu Ting’an was somewhat angry and shouted, "But that’s my son, your nephew!"
"Our Yu family relies on Yikang Group to feed dozens of people, do you think I don’t care? For Runming, do you want to drag Yikang Group down too?"
Yu Duanchong slammed on the table and stood up, his voice devoid of any warmth.
"If it wasn’t for your command for Runming to do those things, how could my son have…"
Yu Ting’an was resentful, and at this point, other family members couldn’t sit still and started to persuade him.
"Ting’an, I understand your feelings, but we need to prioritize the bigger picture!"
"That’s right, Ting’an, listen to your elder brother, he won’t harm us."
"I still want to collect my monthly salary from Yikang Group, if Yikang Company fails, what will we live on?"
A chorus of advice ensued, and these core members of the Yu family quickly formed their alliances.
They all depended on Yikang Group, the big tree; Yu Duanchong’s decisions being beneficial for Yikang Company also meant protecting their interests, so such choices were not surprising.
Opposed unanimously by all family members, Yu Ting’an’s face turned ashen, and ultimately, he had no choice but to bow his head.
The atmosphere inside the room became extremely oppressive and somber, making the situation a thorny one even for these core members of the Yu family.
Now, with Runming’s life and death uncertain in Guangyi County, the capability of Mu Hua Company might not be as straightforward as they appeared.
Wang Huilian, watching her husband break the silence, said, "Yu, we are too passive now, why don’t we make a call and see if we can reconcile with Mu Hua. Moreover, Runming might still be in their hands; if we can get him out, everything else can be discussed."
Hope returned to Yu Ting’an’s eyes and he looked expectantly at his elder brother.
"Foolish, what use is calling them now? If Runming is still alive, they will only demand an exorbitant ransom, threatening Yikang Company’s interests. We have already deeply offended them, and if we want to completely resolve this situation, the only way is to take down Mu Hua, show our strength, and then, if Runming is alive, they will naturally send him back obediently."
Yu Duanchong snorted coldly. Now, if the Yikang Company he led won this battle, they could nearly monopolize the pig farming market in Xiping Province. Why would he stop for the sake of Yu Runming and halt the battle?
In the face of several billion in profits, one human life is negligible, especially since it wasn’t his son.
"Enough, stop trying to persuade me, I have my own methods going forward."
With those words, Yu Duanchong walked out of the room.
Ghost Ridge Palace Black Market.
Su Jie walked down the street, with constant hawking noises all around. The disciples, seeing him in the blue robe of an inner disciple, all actively made way for him.
A few minutes later, Su Jie arrived in front of an imposing pavilion, with the brightly gilded sign "Taixu Pavilion" hanging overhead.
"Sister Cai, come out to greet a guest."
Entering Taixu Pavilion, Su Jie called out.
"Tsk, what greeting a guest, you make it sound so crude, this is not a brothel."
A voluptuous and beautiful mature woman came over, her tight palace dress hardly containing her lush figure, accentuating her slim waist, flat stomach, and round, full buttocks in the most enticing shapes.
"Isn’t that just a testament to how popular you are, Sister Cai! You’re so pretty, if you went to Wan Hua Building, all those young girls would feel downright ashamed!"
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"Mr. Su, you’ve become an inner disciple now, why are you still so slick with your words?"
Cai Chun’e rolled her eyes charmingly and said somewhat irritably.
"Being an inner disciple only elevated my status and position; my appreciation for beauty hasn’t changed."
"Go on, stop teasing me."
As she spoke, Cai Chun’e’s gaze flitted over Su Jie, her heart actually quite shocked.
When she met Su Jie a year ago, he was just selling some common Poison Insects. At that time, Su Jie was short on money, always hurrying in and out without daring to linger on any talismans or Magic Artifacts sold in the pavilion.
But now, just in the span of one year, he had become an inner disciple, not to mention his elevated status at Ghost Ridge Palace.
How could such a dramatic rise of a seemingly insignificant person not leave Cai Chun’e feeling moved?
"What have you come to buy today?"
Cai Chun’e turned the conversation to business and directly took Su Jie upstairs, where the best products of Taixu Pavilion were kept.
"I’m not here to buy today; I’m here to sell."
Su Jie took out a pile of Magic Artifacts, materials, elixirs, and talismans from his Storage Bag, including some damaged artifacts. These were his spoils from a recent outing, and they stacked up to be about two meters high.
Cai Chun’e was overjoyed.
Though the pile contained no high-grade items and many of the Magic Artifacts were damaged beyond repair so that they could only be recycled for materials, even so, the sheer quantity represented a substantial fortune.
With the Alien Ghosts rampant and trade routes blocked, many items couldn’t be brought in from outside.
But the Ghost Ridge Palace Disciples had high demands due to their constant battles, making the prices of battle-related Magic Artifacts and talismans skyrocket.
With a quick estimation, Cai Chun’e knew the materials were worth about four to five thousand Blood Marrow Crystals, an extremely astonishing amount.