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Wang Huacheng was a bank employee who used to enjoy dressing himself in a refined and elegant manner. However, his way of speaking and behavior were more akin to that of a rogue, a fact that Xu Nuan was well aware of; otherwise, with her temperament back then, she wouldn't have remembered him at all.
It didn't matter that Wang Huacheng wasn't being truthful; there was still Chi Xiaoming.
Xu Nuan immediately turned to look at Chi Xiaoming, silently appreciating his serious demeanor.
"Do you still have any interactions with him?"
The three of them were Second Batch Players, but at that time, each had their own agenda and had no real connections. Now, after going around in circles, they found themselves gathered together again, without any sentimentality about the passage of time.
Xu Nuan believed she had asked her question clearly and knew that Chi Xiaoming's nature wouldn't allow him to joke around like Wang Huacheng. She was confident that Chi Xiaoming would speak the truth.
On the other hand, Wang Huacheng disliked Chi Xiaoming's straightforwardness. Although he felt that revealing himself would indicate something significant.
"Yes," Chi Xiaoming replied, maintaining his expressionless face, devoid of any emotion. "To be precise, he was introduced to me by Gu Ze later on."
"Is it related to Ze?"
Concerned about her boyfriend, Xu Nuan became alert and quickly connected her thoughts. Combining the actions of Gu Ze and Chi Xiaoming with what Gu Ze had mentioned to her before, Xu Nuan immediately realized what role Wang Huacheng played.
"You are the one responsible for gathering information on Zhang Xiao?"
Xu Nuan's gaze pierced through Wang Huacheng like a knife, as she suddenly grasped many things.
"Could it be that the other person responsible for gathering information is lying in wait on the other side?"
Two plus one.
Wang Huacheng and his companion were described by Gu Ze as fence-sitters; one moment they were nearly tempted by Zhang Xiao, and the next they were recruited by Gu Ze to gather information. Therefore, these two posed only a fifty percent threat to Gu Ze. Just now, Gu Ze had rushed out with a serious expression, which meant that the other person on that side was not one of these two's companions.
Xu Nuan quickly ran through these thoughts in her mind, feeling increasingly close to the truth of the matter.
After she finished, Wang Huacheng's expression showed a moment of embarrassment, and Xu Nuan did not miss this detail.
Just as the usually glib Wang Huacheng was contemplating his words, Chi Xiaoming, who he thought would remain silent, admitted to the situation with a hint of admiration.
"That's right."
Chi Xiaoming's voice was deep and carried his unique coldness, matching the somberness of the night.
"So are you turning against each other again?"
Chi Xiaoming even pointed out the fact that Wang Huacheng wanted to gloss over.
"How could that be? Gu Ze offered such favorable terms; how could we go back on our word?"
Wang Huacheng glanced around with his exposed eye, seemingly searching for an opportunity to escape.
Unfortunately, it was already too late.
"Is that so? But Gold Breakthrough has already acknowledged it. Are you still going to struggle?"
Another voice, in tune with the dim moonlight of the night, made Wang Huacheng want to flee, yet it brought a joyful smile to Xu Nuan's face.
"Ze, you’re here."
Her tone was calm, but Chi Xiaoming standing beside Xu Nuan could sense the underlying joy.
From Chi Xiaoming's perspective, he watched as Gu Ze, whose build was similar to his own, approached Wang Huacheng with a smile at the corners of his lips. Wang Huacheng retreated as if he had encountered a cat.
However, in front of the formidable Gu Ze, there was truly no escape for Wang Huacheng.
Initially, when Chi Xiaoming first met Gu Ze, he thought Gu Ze was a very gentle man. But as he got to know him better, he began to witness many of Gu Ze's tactics. At that time, he genuinely felt that Gu Ze was well-suited for this game.
After collaborating with Gu Ze, he was fortunate enough to see Gu Ze's methods of recruiting, threatening, and punishing people—all done behind Xu Nuan's back. This led him to believe that Xu Nuan was unaware of Gu Ze's true nature. It was because she didn't know that she could laugh so freely and trust Gu Ze wholeheartedly. But what if she found out?
Chi Xiaoming suddenly had this thought. Now that Gu Ze had come over, this was no longer his stage; regardless of what he thought inside, he had no opportunity to express it.
Wang Huacheng dared not act recklessly in front of Gu Ze, which surprised Xu Nuan. She was astonished but did not have much desire to understand what had transpired between the two; her focus was more on her own curiosity.
Now that she had already engaged with Wang Huacheng, there was no way for Gu Ze to hide anything from her anymore. Thinking of this made her feel a surge of excitement rather than the frustration of being kept in the dark.
Wang Huacheng followed a few people dejectedly toward the temporary resting area, forced to listen as Gu Ze introduced his experiences with Wang Huacheng to Xu Nuan.
With Gu Ze's explanation, Xu Nuan reorganized the relationships among these individuals once again.
Just as Xu Nuan suspected, Wang Huacheng and Gold Breakthrough were two individuals who were solely focused on making money in the game. One was a bank employee and the other a lawyer; both felt unfulfilled in the city and performed quite ordinarily in the game, surviving several times by narrowly escaping death.
Their desire for money and their close brush with death led them to resort to unscrupulous means. Whether it was plotting against others who were more capable or being lured by the bright future described by Zhang Xiao, they acted quite openly.
However, one was thirty-four and the other thirty-seven—both had rich life experiences and would not be easily manipulated by Zhang Xiao's promises of a future. They would not resort to murder simply for money or the chance to walk away alive. They each had their own principles and standards for judging matters, and gradually they began to feel that Zhang Xiao was making empty promises, leading them to anxiety.
It was at this moment that Gu Ze appeared before them. The conditions he offered were far more realistic than those presented by Zhang Xiao. Gu Ze calmly confirmed the existence of a secret passage and demonstrated their capabilities in overcoming challenges. As long as they were willing to gather intelligence on Zhang Xiao, Gu Ze would provide them with an opportunity to leave the game. However, whether they could ultimately escape depended on themselves. The chance to determine life or death lay in their own hands rather than relying on someone else's charity; this was entirely different.
This was far more realistic than Zhang Xiao's assurance that they would receive the Billion Dollar Prize and leave alive. Yet from Xu Nuan's perspective, Gu Ze's conditions were similar to Zhang Xiao's—only broader in scope and thus more genuine.
This required a keen understanding of the different psychological states of various individuals, and Gu Ze accurately grasped the mental activities of the two and utilized them.
Moreover, Gu Ze also revealed that he was the young master of Gu Group and presented a series of evidence, which further excited the two.
For someone like Wang Huacheng and Gold Breakthrough, who were indecisive, Gu Ze skillfully leveraged their motivations, allowing him to benefit from their situation.
However, now that the two were preparing to ambush Gu Ze and his group from different directions, it indicated that the tide had turned.
Xu Nuan believed this shift was the answer she sought, and she felt no aversion towards Gu Ze's method of enticing people through secret channels. This left Chi Xiaoming, who had been observing her reactions, feeling somewhat frustrated. Yet, even in his frustration, his expression remained neutral, leaving no one aware of his inner thoughts.
As for what this shift entailed, Gu Ze stated that bringing Wang Huacheng back would allow him to explain things to Gold Breakthrough.
Xu Nuan had no objections. As she heard the noise from the Temporary Resting Place, another thought crossed her mind.
"Wait a minute, you should have encountered two people over there; who is the other one?"
"Hey, did someone else come too?"
Wang Huacheng, who had been downcast, suddenly lifted his head to ask. Upon meeting Gu Ze's half-smiling expression, he quickly lowered his head again and fell silent.
Xu Nuan was both curious and waiting for Gu Ze's response.
At this moment, they had already reached an open area where two unfamiliar figures stood. One was Wang Huacheng's companion, Gold Breakthrough, and the other was a very tall man with a gloomy expression named Fang Zheng. He was forty-six years old when he first entered the game and was a retired soldier.
Upon seeing Fang Zheng, Xu Nuan's expression immediately darkened, her voice becoming somewhat subdued—mirroring He Min's expression on the other side.
"Fang Zheng, it's you?"
In fact, the recent commotion was caused by a conflict between He Min and Fang Zheng, who had been brought back by Xu Hang. Over the past few days, He Min had been in a low mood, struggling to find motivation and nearly falling into danger several times. However, just moments ago, when Xu Hang and Gu Ze returned with their two subdued subordinates, her expression changed.
As Gu Ze left to find Xu Nuan, He Min erupted at Fang Zheng, charging at him with a knife in hand, completely ignoring Xu Hang's words about needing to extract some information from Fang Zheng.
Xu Hang had to endure for the time being, while Deng Yinyin and Xie Huai rushed to stop He Min. The scene quickly became chaotic, while Feng Feng watched as if nothing were happening, a glint of malice flashing in his eyes that went unnoticed by anyone else.
After being restrained, He Min gradually calmed down and ceased her attack on Fang Zheng, though she still did not give him a pleasant look.
Just as they settled down, Xu Nuan and the others returned. Upon seeing Fang Zheng, Xu Nuan's expression darkened as well, and everyone immediately understood that Fang Zheng was likely a formidable character.
Originally viewing Fang Zheng merely as someone with ulterior motives against them, Gu Ze's demeanor shifted sharply when he noticed Xu Nuan's change in expression. He looked back at Fang Zheng with a much colder gaze.
However, Fang Zheng seemed completely oblivious to having been beaten by Gu Ze. He grinned at Xu Nuan, but his expression remained gloomy, making it appear quite odd.
"Long time no see. It seems Guo Dafu really messed up; I can't believe you’re still alive."
Noticing the change in Xu Nuan and Gu Ze's expressions, Fang Zheng maintained his strange demeanor as he continued speaking.
"Don't look at me like that. I advised Guo Dafu not to fall for that person's temptations. He didn't listen to me; I don't have ambitions like his."
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