Chapter 30: Drifting Wind
"How could he be here?" Shizhi Xuan narrowed his eyes, unable to believe what he was seeing. Then another figure came into his view, and he shook his head in disbelief, murmuring, "Sure enough, she must have come too."
After carefully replaying the television footage several times, Shizhi Xuan slumped back into his chair, covering his mouth in a daze.
However, the daze on Shizhi Xuan's face quickly disappeared. He turned to his eldest son, Yashida Ichiro, and asked in a deep voice, "Ichiro, in your judgment, is that Ling Xiao the person we are looking for?"
"This!" Yashida Ichiro took a deep breath, pondered for a moment, and then looked at his father, saying, "Father, strictly speaking, his strength is much, no, far greater than what Jiro described."
"Are you saying he's not the person we're looking for?" Shizhi Xuan looked at Ichiro, his brow slightly furrowed.
"Father, while that's a possibility, however," Yashida Ichiro looked at his father and said in a deep voice, "this person has enough strength to do that thing, and it's very possible that he deliberately controlled his power output that night. That's not impossible. In any case, he is a master, and he is also a Chinaman."
"I understand what you mean," Shizhi Xuan nodded slightly, crossing his arms over his chest, lost in thought.
Yashida Ichiro's meaning was clear: regardless of whether Ling Xiao was the person from that day, they had to treat him as such. Simply because he was a Chinaman, he had to die.
Shizhi Xuan didn't know that Ichiro's words contained a significant amount of his own personal agenda. For Yashida Ichiro, being stripped naked and thrown into a stinking dumpster last night was an utter humiliation, and the person who caused all of this had to die.
"Let's put aside the matter of this Ling Xiao for now," Shizhi Xuan suddenly looked up at his eldest son, giving an unexpected answer.
Hearing Shizhi Xuan say this, Yashida Ichiro couldn't help but question, "Why, Father?"
"No reason. Some things, it's not yet time for you to know," Yashida Jiro said calmly. He continued, "After you go back, you and Jiro will continue to investigate that matter. Remember, our goal is not to find out who acted that night, but to retrieve that box."
Yashida Ichiro looked puzzled and said indignantly, "But what if that box is in the hands of that Chinaman named Ling Xiao? Wouldn't searching elsewhere just be a waste of time?"
"Ichiro, you've grown up, even starting to question your father's words. Not bad, not bad." Shizhi Xuan narrowed his eyes slightly as he looked at his son.
Seeing his father's snake-like eyes on him, Yashida Ichiro couldn't help but shiver. He quickly bowed and apologized, "I'm sorry, Father, I overstepped my bounds, I'm sorry!"
Shizhi Xuan watched his eldest son with narrowed eyes for a long time before finally waving his hand and saying, "Forget it, there are some things you don't quite understand, and that's not your fault. You just need to remember not to provoke that Ling Xiao for now. If, after investigating from all angles, we still have no clues, then the person from that night is him, do you understand?"
"Yes, Father!" Yashida Ichiro immediately bowed halfway and agreed. After speaking, he looked up at his father and carefully asked, "Father, what if the Council of Elders from the Homeland inquires?"
"Don't bother with those old farts who are already half in the grave. Are they going to come all the way to Los Angeles to cause us trouble!" Shizhi Xuan sneered, clearly disdainful and displeased with those people from the Homeland.
Take this matter, for example. Shizhi Xuan had no idea what the items exchanged in their transaction were. It was one thing not to know what Kingpin was offering, but he didn't even know what his own side was providing for the exchange.
How could this not infuriate Shizhi Xuan? And after the item was lost, the Homeland called almost three times a day to inquire, which made the ambitious Shizhi Xuan utterly disgusted with the whole affair.
However, even so, under immense pressure from the Homeland, Shizhi Xuan still had to send his two sons to personally investigate, as a show of attitude to the Homeland. As for the outcome, hehe... Shizhi Xuan glanced at his eldest son and said in a deep voice, "That Ling Xiao is only temporarily untouched. You'll know in due time."
"Yes, Father!" Yashida Ichiro didn't know what his father was talking about and didn't dare to ask further. He just respectfully said to his father, "Then Jiro and I will still start with Qin Ming. Even if he's hiding in Zhang Xiaotian's house now, I don't believe he can hide forever."
Seeing the ruthlessness in Ichiro's expression, Shizhi Xuan nodded in satisfaction and said, "You just need to proceed with this matter systematically, without resorting to any aggressive methods. Zhang Xiaotian will soon be a thing of the past."
"Oh!" Hearing his father say this, Yashida Ichiro's heart stirred, and he couldn't help but ask, "Father, are you saying..."
"That's right, the General Assembly has finally decided to move against the Hongmen Chee Kung Tong. These Chinamen, for more than half a year, have ruined so much of our business. If we don't teach them a good lesson, they won't know when to stop," Shizhi Xuan said with a sinister expression. "I don't care about other places, but in Los Angeles, I will completely destroy the Si Hai Gang."
"Yes, Father!" Hearing his father say this, Yashida Ichiro couldn't help but get excited. Just thinking about the impending battle made his heart itch.
In fact, just now, several insidious methods had flashed through Yashida Ichiro's mind, such as kidnapping some of Qin Ming's friends to force him to reveal the true identity of the monkey-faced man. And Yashida Ichiro already had a few targets in mind, such as Zhang Xiaotian's daughters.
But now that his father had other plans, he had to temporarily lie low to avoid alerting the enemy. After all, the Chinese Gang was not easy to deal with. If they could catch them off guard, it would be fine, but once those people were prepared, even if the Nisshin-kai could achieve its goals, its own losses would certainly not be small.
"Alright, you can go back now. Inform Jiro of the situation. Also, see what he's doing. That child is becoming more and more unruly!" Shizhi Xuan waved his hand, and after giving a few brief instructions, he dismissed Yashida Ichiro.
Watching his son carefully close the door, Shizhi Xuan reopened the video. Looking at the two clear figures on it, Shizhi Xuan couldn't help but narrow his eyes and muttered to himself, "Coulson, Melinda, why are you two here? Is S.H.I.E.L.D. planning something again?"
In the spacious, deep office, only Shizhi Xuan's voice echoed. Slowly, he even began to recite an ancient Chinese poem: "My strength plucked up mountains, my Qi overshadowed the world; but the times are against me, and my steed Dapple will not advance. When Dapple will not advance, what can I do? Ah, Yu, my Yu, what will become of you?"
No one knew what Shizhi Xuan was truly thinking, nor had anyone ever heard him recite this ancient poem.
After leaving his father's office, Yashida Ichiro's previously excited face instantly turned grim. For him, he wished he could retaliate against Ling Xiao tonight, but without his father's support, he alone was no match for that person. So, before taking any action, it was best to observe first. Observe his every move, his social interactions, his personality weaknesses. Once the time was right, it would be a thunderous strike.
However, why his father's attitude suddenly changed was something Yashida Ichiro had to figure out. It was clear that his father had reservations about that Ling Xiao, and the only thing Yashida Ichiro could be sure of was that it was related to that videotape. What exactly did his father see on it?