She stepped aside to make way.
Lin Chen, feeling as if granted a reprieve, stumbled out of the banquet hall, leaving behind the clamor of luxury and danger.
He didn't take the hotel elevator, but instead ran frantically down the fire escape. His footsteps echoed loudly in the empty stairwell, mirroring the pounding of his heart. He ran down more than ten floors in one go, until his lungs burned, before stopping at an empty exit, gasping for breath.
Temporarily…safe?
He leaned against the cold wall, his palm trembling as he opened it.
It was a black metal object slightly larger than a regular USB drive, without any brand markings, only a small connector and a tiny indicator light. It lay quietly in his palm, cold and heavy, as if bearing countless secrets and…his and his father's fate.
This was what he had risked his life to obtain? Could it really contain enough core evidence to bring down Xingyao Entertainment?
A surge of elation and immense uncertainty gripped him simultaneously.
But now was not the time to verify! He had to leave the hotel immediately, find a completely safe place, and then figure out how to contact Su Yuqing!
He quickly slipped the encryption device into a discreet little pocket inside his suit jacket, straightened his clothes, took a few deep breaths, trying to appear calm, before pushing open the fire door and heading towards the hotel lobby.
As he walked through the opulent lobby, he felt every gaze upon him was scrutinizing. He kept his head down and strode quickly towards the exit.
Just as he was about to step out of the hotel's revolving doors, he caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye of several men in black suits, wearing communicators, seemingly casually gathering towards the lobby entrance from different directions.
It was Xingyao's security! They had realized what was happening!
Lin Chen's scalp tingled. Without another second thought, he burst through the revolving doors, merging into the bustling crowds and traffic outside the hotel.
He dared not take a taxi, dared not walk on the main roads, relying only on his remaining memory of the city streets, weaving through dimly lit alleyways like a frightened rabbit, desperately darting through the city's veins.
The night wind was biting, chilling him to the bone as it blew against his sweat-soaked back. But he dared not stop, dared not look back.
He knew the hunt had begun.
And he was the prey being hunted.
The small encryption device in his palm now felt as heavy as a thousand pounds.
It was both a flame of hope and a death warrant.
The race against time was far from over.
He had to fight his way out for himself and his father in this urban escape!
The city's neon lights stretched into blurry streaks outside the car window. Lin Chen huddled in the shadows of the taxi's back seat, his heart still pounding. He dared not return to the company-arranged apartment; that would be walking into a trap. He got out of the taxi in a chaotic urban village on the other side of the city, his fingers trembling uncontrollably as he paid the fare.
He squeezed into a narrow, damp alleyway, reeking of a mixture of mold and garbage, finally finding a brief respite. It was a melting pot of people, with sparse surveillance—an ideal hiding place. Using the cash he'd withdrawn earlier, he rented a tiny top-floor room from a landlord with murky eyes. The room was barely a few square meters, furnished only with a broken bed and a crooked table.
He locked the door, propped it up with a chair, and slid down to the floor against the cold wall, his heavy breathing echoing in the cramped space. The fear of escape subsided temporarily, replaced by a feeling of utter exhaustion from surviving a near-death experience.
But the relaxation was fleeting. He immediately reached for his inner chest pocket; the cold, hard metal object was still there. He took it out, clutching it tightly in his hand, as if it were his only weapon against the world.
What to do next?