novelraw Chapter 930: Aristocratic Families (1)
Chapter 930: Aristocratic Families (1)
Twenty-four hours before Song Ying's safe return.
The plane came to a stop, and Elizabeth immediately removed her eye mask and rubbed her eyes.
"Did you sleep well?" Zhong Luoyue casually asked.
Elizabeth yawned. "What time is it, Yuè?"
"It's 9:40 PM," Zhong Luoyue said, glancing at her wristwatch with a smile. "The start of the day."
For vampires, who are creatures of reversed day and night, the moon at 9 PM feels like the sun during the day for ordinary people.
At that moment, Elizabeth looked out the window beside her— they had landed at an airport in the capital of Hua Country. It was the middle of winter, and the night outside was vast and bleak.
Suddenly, Elizabeth said, "It's my first time in this Eastern country... a mysterious land."
With some time before the boarding bridge connected, they were still seated, and Zhong Luoyue curiously asked, "Do you find it mysterious too?"
"It's not just us," Elizabeth replied with a smile at Zhong Luoyue. "The thirteen clans have regulations that vaguely mark this country as a forbidden zone, and vampires rarely step in. Recently, there was news about a fifth-generation vampire who encountered danger here and could not be rescued. In the end, when members of the monitoring agency quietly recovered his remains, they could only find his leftover clothes. His body had long turned to ashes."Zhong Luoyue was astonished. "Was he burned by the sun?"
Elizabeth shook her head. "He died at night, during a full moon, when his power was strongest... I've read some ancient texts where our ancestors referred to this country as 'Shenzhou,' claiming it is home to powerful sorcerers and a guardian known as the 'True Dragon,' who possesses almost invincible power to summon the wind and rain, and move mountains..."
"How true..." Zhong Luoyue suddenly smiled bitterly.
She had grown up in this country but knew nothing about its mysterious side, only learning from Elizabeth.
It was somewhat ironic...
Zhong Luoyue suddenly felt worried. "Elizabeth, if my country is dangerous for you, then you..."
Elizabeth seemed unconcerned. "It's fine. Although this place is off-limits, many vampires are still curious and come here. In reality, the number of extraordinary beings in this country isn't high, and most are reclusive. As long as nothing causes great panic and one keeps a low profile, it’s hard to draw out those powerful beings. The vampire that was eliminated seems to have been involved in a war of aggression against this country. I'm not sure of the specifics... Oh, it seems to be from the Takizawa family."
Decades ago, during the war of aggression, only that war seemed to fit the description, right? Zhong Luoyue was taken aback. In those red years, were there extraordinary beings behind the scenes? If so, did the country know of their existence long ago? What about the Zhong family, which claimed to be one of the four great families of the capital?
Shouldn’t her grandfather have some unmentionable secrets?
At that moment, a slight tremor was felt in the cabin as the boarding bridge connected. Zhong Luoyue stood up to leave her seat, but her phone rang.
She glanced at the caller ID and smiled. Just as she answered the international long-distance call, an unpleasant voice filled with reproach came through.
"It’s me... You’re allowed to block me at the airport, but I'm not allowed to kidnap you? I've been more than lenient, just sending some small-time thugs after you, unlike you, who sent a team of elites..."
The call was abruptly disconnected... Zhong Luoyue smiled faintly, unfazed.
Her mood suddenly lifted...
"Is something wrong?" Elizabeth looked curiously at Zhong Luoyue.
The third young lady of the Zhong family chuckled lightly. "Nothing, just a greeting with an old friend... Come on, we still have some time. I'll show you some sights of this country's capital."
"Okay." Elizabeth observed the airport environment with curious eyes.
Zhong Luoyue turned to look at the plane they had just disembarked from, sighing at the incredible journey that had turned her into a vampire.
She shook her head with a bittersweet smile, glancing at the butterfly hairpin in Elizabeth's white hair... and that mysterious yet powerful man.
Luo Qiu.
As she silently repeated the name in her mind, Zhong Luoyue suddenly felt distracted... It seemed like she had heard that name somewhere.
Where was it...?
"Xiao Yue!"
Suddenly, a voice brought Zhong Luoyue back to her senses. She looked forward to see a man in his thirties, exuding masculinity.
"Elder brother." Zhong Luoyue nodded at the man.
The arrival was none other than Zhong family’s third-generation eldest son, Zhong Luoyun. He was wearing a fur coat over a white suit, radiating an air of dominance.
Zhong Luoyun was exceptionally tall.
In fact, Zhong Luoyue was already considered tall among Eastern women, yet Zhong Luoyun was still at least a head taller than her.
"Grandpa sent me to pick you up," Zhong Luoyun stated quickly, then glanced at Elizabeth beside Zhong Luoyue.
His eyes brightened momentarily before he asked in confusion, "Who is this young lady?"
Zhong Luoyue promptly introduced, "This is Elizabeth, someone I met while studying in the UK. I plan to do some business with her, so I brought her along."
"Elizabeth..." Zhong Luoyun nodded, certain he had never heard that name before.
But this girl, with her striking white hair, stood out vividly in the airport arrival hall... Zhong Luoyun smiled slightly. "Alright, since she’s your friend, let’s go back together. Guests are welcome; I’ll have someone prepare a guest room."
Saying this, Zhong Luoyun turned and led the way.
At that moment, Elizabeth walked alongside Zhong Luoyue and quietly asked, "Is he your brother?"
"Yes, I have another brother, who is three years older than me, but he’s not in the capital right now... What’s up? Do you have any thoughts about my brother?" Zhong Luoyue replied.
Elizabeth shook her head. "Not really, just that I don't like the way your brother looks at you."
Zhong Luoyue frowned. "Elizabeth?"
Elizabeth said indifferently, “Aggressiveness.”
Zhong Luoyue was taken aback, then suddenly understood… remembering the reputation Zhong Luoyun had in the circle, she couldn’t help but frown. “Elizabeth, my brother is naturally very proud, but he isn’t fundamentally a bad person. If he has offended you in any way, please forgive him.”
However, Elizabeth replied expressionlessly, “In fact, since you were initially embraced, you have had no blood relationship with these people… Yue, you have already detached from their world. If possible, I suggest you resolve these matters as soon as possible. Because one day, you may regret staying because of your own stubbornness.”
“I understand…” Zhong Luoyue turned her head away.
At that moment, Elizabeth suddenly walked into the nearby restroom, which puzzled Zhong Luoyue… it seemed that vampires didn’t have such needs.
For example, she hadn’t had that need for several days.
But Elizabeth quickly came out again, a smile on her lips, appearing quite cheerful and very charming.
“Is something good happening?” Zhong Luoyue asked curiously.
Elizabeth replied happily, “Yue, for a long time to come, you won’t have to worry about food anymore… The Thirteen Clans sent me a lot of pureblood, far exceeding the quantity that Inspector Ivan promised that day, and it has already been delivered to my home in London. Give me the address here later, and I’ll have my servants send it to me.”
More than what that arrogant inspector promised… was it because of Luo Qiu?
No, it should be related to the owner of the name that Luo Qiu used that day.
Eric… who is this person that makes the Thirteen Clans act in such an almost servile manner towards him?
And Luo Qiu, who casually took someone else's name and acted as if he didn’t care… was it because he had something to rely on and wasn’t afraid?
Zhong Luoyue suddenly felt a headache; her knowledge of the extraordinary world was merely a drop in the ocean, and she felt somewhat helpless…
Suddenly, Elizabeth stopped in her tracks, her gaze turned distant, and her expression became serious.
“Is there something else?” Zhong Luoyue asked in surprise again.
Elizabeth asked, “Is there something in that direction?”
“In that direction…” Zhong Luoyue thought for a moment and instinctively replied, “Basically, ahead is the Forbidden City, but you’re referring to the west side… um, that’s where our country’s leaders work. Is there a problem?”
Elizabeth said seriously, “There is a terrifying aura there, at least ten times more terrifying than what we encountered that day with Viscount Fernandez in the castle…”
“Compared to Luo Qiu?” Zhong Luoyue asked instinctively.
She really didn’t understand much about the extraordinary world. No matter how Elizabeth described it, she didn’t truly know how terrifying Fernandez himself was.
She could only use Luo Qiu as a standard—after all, she personally saw how this mysterious young man effortlessly eliminated Viscount Fernandez and the monster from Jin Wucheng in the laboratory during that day in the cellar maze.
“Compared to Brother Luo Qiu?” Elizabeth suddenly laughed, “There’s no comparison; Brother Luo Qiu is definitely the strongest!”
Seeing the blushing expression of this youthful-looking woman, Zhong Luoyue couldn’t help but sigh… it seemed that after this guy broke the taboo and had human blood for the first time, her personality changed in some strange way.
Zhong Luoyue shook her head and, at this moment, got into the prepared car of the Zhong family under Zhong Luoyun’s urging.
“Let’s take a detour; I’d like to introduce some aspects of the capital to my friend along the way.” Zhong Luoyue suddenly instructed the driver.
Taking a detour meant trying to stay as far away as possible from that area on the west side of the Forbidden City.
…
The Zhong family has a manor in Xiangshan, Beijing, which is their main base.
After arranging a guest room for Elizabeth, Zhong Luoyue followed her elder brother, Zhong Luoyun, to visit the elder patriarch of the Zhong family, while also trying to gather information about what had happened in the family during this time from Zhong Luoyun.
“When did this happen?” Zhong Luoyue instantly frowned and even stopped in her tracks.
Because, on the way to meet the patriarch, Zhong Luoyun told her something— the patriarch had privately transferred half of his shares in the entire Zhong family group to the second young master, Zhong Luocheng!
In fact, the three siblings of the Zhong family each held a portion of the shares in the entire group, but most of the shares were still firmly in the hands of the elder patriarch!
But now, the elder patriarch suddenly gave half of the shares to Zhong Luocheng, instantly making him the individual with the most shares in the entire group.
Zhong Luoyun’s expression darkened. “Now the shares in the hands of the second young master are more than the total of yours, mine, and our parents’ combined… In fact, because of his health, our father doesn’t handle affairs; he just holds shares. And judging by our father’s character, he won’t get involved in anything. Now, do you know what this means for the second young master, little sister?”
Zhong Luoyue remained silent.
For some reason, after hearing this news, although she was surprised, she didn’t feel the dissatisfaction she had imagined. At that moment, she even found the power struggle in such a wealthy family somewhat laughable.
Looking at her elder brother Zhong Luoyun, who obviously wanted to form alliances from now on, Zhong Luoyue suddenly felt that the patriarch transferring shares to their second brother, Zhong Luocheng, might be a good thing.
She knew that Zhong Luoyun was somewhat ambitious and overconfident… if her elder brother were to lead the entire group, it might not be a good thing.
“Grandpa must have his considerations.” Zhong Luoyue wasn’t as enthusiastic as Zhong Luoyun had imagined; instead, she replied coldly, “As grandchildren, shouldn’t we obey? Or do you really have some dissatisfaction with Grandpa’s decision, elder brother?”
“Hahaha!” Zhong Luoyun laughed loudly, “How could I have any dissatisfaction with Grandpa’s decision? I’m just afraid you wouldn’t be happy, little sister. Now it’s good; it seems you also support this decision, so I’m relieved. We three are siblings; we are one body, so it doesn’t matter who Grandpa gives it to! We are all for the group.”
“That’s the best way.” Zhong Luoyue smiled slightly, “Let’s go; Grandpa must have been waiting for a while.”
“You go ahead; I still have some things to take care of and will be there shortly.” Zhong Luoyun shook his head and then walked away.
After Zhong Luoyue could no longer see Zhong Luoyun’s figure, she directly entered a room in the corridor and made a phone call.
The person who answered was someone who had been arranged beside Zhong Luocheng a long time ago… an ambitious man.
Cheng Yun.
“Third Miss, I knew you would be looking for me soon.”
Cheng Yun, who was far away in several provinces, spoke with great certainty… Zhong Luoyue thought that this guy might have already learned about the share transfer.
Now the second brother could be said to be the spokesperson for the Zhong family group; whether this guy was willing to continue selling her information was uncertain.
Zhong Luoyue got straight to the point, “Let’s not talk about things everyone knows; just like before, has my second brother been making any moves recently?”
“There really is something.” Cheng Yun quickly said, “The second young master is currently investing a huge amount of money. I inadvertently saw a transfer check from him, with a single amount reaching fifty billion…”
Zhong Luoyue frowned, “The maximum amount we three can use annually is only ten billion… Where did the second brother get so much money?”
“This is probably the group’s funds,” the member suddenly said. “It seems that the second young master called the patriarch one night, and only then did the share transfer happen… but I don’t know what the second young master said to the patriarch.”
“I see.” Zhong Luoyue nodded and then asked, “Has the second brother done anything else recently?”
“Not much,” Cheng Yun thought for a moment and said, “He just stays at home every day, but he often chats with a singer his entertainment company is training… oh, her name is Cheng Yiran. He also frequently attends some Buddhist or Taoist seminars, as if he suddenly started to become interested in these topics. Oh, right, the second young master recently bought a website; I’ll send you the address, Third Miss.”
After listening for a while, Zhong Luoyue hung up the phone and then opened the website address that Cheng Yun had sent.
The homepage of the website immediately displayed a huge logo.
On a black background, a golden emblem; as soon as Zhong Luoyue saw this LOGO, she furrowed her brow—because this website's LOGO was exactly the same as that black card she had secretly switched out…