Investigation Report of the Gods

Chapter 10: Super Metropolis

Han Su held back his anger and went downstairs, only to see a flamboyant red sports car parked in the cramped alley below.

“Give me one reason not to kill you.”

“Aiya, you’re this angry, so I must’ve called right when you were busy with your craft?”

“…Stretch out your neck!”

“Bro, I was wrong… I heard someone’s giving you trouble again?”

Han Su gave Xu Ji a slightly surprised look and got into his car. Xu Ji immediately leaned in, his face serious, and said:

“It was my dad’s assistant who called me. Our security department detected a bounty on the internet that’s unfavorable to you. They guessed some fools might come after you. Since I hang out with you a lot, they were worried it might affect me, so they specifically warned me.”

Han Su was surprised. “Then why did you come looking for me in the middle of the night?”

Xu Ji said, “I was worried you’d be in trouble, so how could I not rush over?”

“It just so happens that you’re coming out with me tonight. I’ll introduce you to a friend. He’s got quite the connections here in Qinggang City. Once you know him, a lot fewer people will dare mess with you.”

“There are indeed a lot of shady characters in Qinggang, but they’re too low-level. They’re not even afraid of my dad’s name. But once they hear his name, they’re scared shitless.”

“Hm?”

Han Su glanced at Xu Ji with some surprise.

In that kidnapping case back then, this eldest young master of the Xu family was also one of the kidnapped kids.

But after Han Su rescued him, society at large forgot he had ever been kidnapped. Or rather, in this world now, it was as if the kidnapping had never even happened.

Still, that case had made many of Qinggang’s noble families highly alert.

They all strengthened the protection around their children, and Xu Ji’s family was no exception—perhaps even among the most extreme.

Now, ten years had passed. Though things weren’t as tense as before, the security department established to protect him still existed.

On the surface, it looked like he could do whatever he wanted without even a bodyguard. But in fact, he had a security team monitoring him at all times.

The odd part was that this security department even monitored information related to Han Su?

Normally, if parents thought someone was dangerous, wouldn’t they just tell their kid to cut ties?

As for the help Xu Ji mentioned, Han Su didn’t reject it.

In fact, back at school, Xu Ji had already helped him a lot.

Their relationship was so close that many who wanted to target Han Su had to think twice because of Xu Ji’s presence.

Just like the CEO of Magic Box Corporation who occasionally came to school looking for Han Su.

If it weren’t for Xu Ji, many people would’ve gladly helped the CEO persuade him.

Thinking of those annoying private investigators, Han Su pondered for a moment and said, “Would he be willing to help me?”

“Not willing?”

Xu Ji snorted coldly and said, “That depends on whose face he’s looking at. If he refuses to help you, then he can forget about getting any of my West Continent cellared red wine or imported cigars from the South Continent.”

Han Su didn’t say more.

The rich kids of Qinggang City all liked hanging out with Xu Ji.

Coincidentally, each of them had some minor favor only Xu Ji could help with.

Like certain wines only Xu Ji could procure, or certain professors in Qinggang that only he could introduce.

They’d ask Xu Ji for help, and he just so happened to be able to do it. After the favor, they’d treat him to a thank-you meal. One thing led to another, and they got very close.

The downside of this was that Xu Ji often felt he was very important.

“Let’s go!”

“Awesome.”

After being refused so many times, Han Su’s rare moment of straightforwardness made Xu Ji extremely excited. He slapped Han Su hard on the back and said, “Told you, you’re finally willing to give in to temptation.”

“Don’t worry, my friend’s super generous. It’s his birthday tonight. He said it’s gonna be a lively one—invited a few hundred beautiful women, from mature ladies to little lolis to Ultraman. Everyone gets ten.”

“Maybe they can’t match the finesse and attentiveness of your own craft, but that real warmth can still barely make do.”

“……”

Han Su was speechless.

How could someone manage to perfectly combine the attributes of both being rich and a loser?

With that kind of character… why was he so damn rich…

How could someone as dignified as himself be so poor and run into so much crap?

Xu Ji picked up Han Su, and the two of them drove for over an hour along the intercity highway before barely reaching the outskirts of the city.

In today’s world, the extremely prosperous commercial growth had birthed countless super metropolises.

With populations starting from twenty to thirty million, it was said some cities had populations over a hundred million, or even several hundred million, and these exceptional metropolises drained population and industries from surrounding areas, causing widespread desolation and decline in many towns.

Nowadays, aside from specific industries and a few reclusive groups, towns and villages had largely become wastelands, with only undocumented people roaming about, surviving through smuggling or farming.

Many children born in the city might never step foot outside its boundaries their entire lives, growing up and dying in the concrete jungle.

But the children of wealthy families like Xu Ji’s often fled the city, finding novelty in sparsely populated places.

At the end of a remote road overgrown with weeds, all kinds of luxury cars—brands Han Su couldn’t even name—were already parked.

Barrels of waste oil were lit as fires, and there were large hanging power supplies illuminating the entire area in a dazzling glow.

Countless young men and women dressed either uniquely or in sexy fashion gathered here, with blinding lights turning the city outskirts into a nightclub.

Han Su got out of the car and looked around: as expected, Xu Ji was bullshitting again—his usual habit.

Where were the hundreds of beautiful girls looking like celebrities…?

There were clearly only a few dozen.

The men here couldn’t each get ten women; from a rough estimate, two per person was already generous.

“Why’d you bring him again?”

Seeing Xu Ji arrive, a few of his familiar companions immediately came up to greet him.

One of them, wearing a dark blue casual suit, was someone Han Su had seen before.

His name was Zhang He, tonight’s birthday host, and the “underground boss” Xu Ji especially wanted to introduce to him.

This man was also wealthy, but unlike Xu Ji’s other friends who only knew how to spend, Zhang He clearly had power in Qinggang’s underworld, despite being a young master from a rich family.

Mention Zhang He’s name, and even street thugs would tremble.

“You went back just to get him?”

Zhang He walked over holding a glass of champagne, glanced at Han Su, casually asked, then politely but distantly nodded to him and said, “Go grab something to eat first, I have something to discuss with Xu Ji.”

That sentence was a bit like treating Han Su as a flunky, commanding him around.

Han Su didn’t mind, just nodded slightly and went off to find food.

Xu Ji, however, immediately showed a change in expression.

In front of a few canvas tables and chairs, Han Su saw a spread of food, mostly simple fare like pizza and barbecue.

Not far off, someone was grilling juicy steaks over a barrel fire.

There were rows of alcohol and unidentified drinks laid out.

If he hadn’t come in person, he wouldn’t have guessed that rich kids also just ate this stuff.

Grabbing a few pieces of grilled meat at random, Han Su casually ate while surveying the surroundings.

Among the wealthy crowd, the concept of loss or theft didn’t seem to exist.

Discarded clothes, watches, camera gear, and laptops were just left lying around.

Han Su casually picked up a camera placed on a car hood, turned it on, zoomed in, and aimed in Xu Ji’s direction.

Using the camera’s display, he watched the lip movements of the two men talking nearby.

His eyesight was excellent.

While not good enough to magically read every word through lip reading, he could still roughly guess their conversation.

Xu Ji looked visibly annoyed, and was scolding the man in the blue suit: “What the hell is wrong with you?”

“I’ve told you so many times—Han Su is my brother. We’ve been through life-and-death together. He’s not one of those cronies trailing behind you.”

“I even told you ahead of time I’d be bringing him. The way you talked to him just now made me really uncomfortable—worse than hearing someone insult my dad.”

“If you curse my dad, I can still respect you for having guts. But throwing attitude at my brother in front of me? You’re disrespecting me. Do that again, and we won’t be hanging out anymore.”

“……”

Zhang He didn’t look displeased.

Instead, he gave a cold smile and said, “I know you two are close, but frankly, he’s not on the same level as us. You keep dragging someone outside the circle into our crowd—what’s the point?”

Xu Ji sneered, stared at him seriously, and said, “Only people who need help from others choose their friends based on usefulness.”

“Unlike you, I don’t need to compete with seven or eight siblings for the family inheritance, and I don’t expect my friends to help me with anything.”

“So I hang out with whoever I like.”

“……”

Those words were blunt, but Zhang He actually smiled and suddenly said, “You’re right. If we’re being precise, we’re just rich people—but your family has real status.”

“But you don’t need to be mad at me. Maybe after this birthday, I really won’t have the chance to hang out with you anymore.”

Xu Ji was taken aback. “What do you mean?”

All this time, it had always been he who didn’t want to hang out with others—never the reverse.

Zhang He smiled.

Unlike the faint arrogance he showed in front of Han Su, his demeanor in front of Xu Ji was gentle and tolerant, as if he had no temper at all.

“I’ve recently decided to stop being a rich playboy in Qinggang’s underworld. I want to retire clean.”

“?”

Xu Ji was stunned. “Can you help my brother with a little favor before you wash your hands clean?”

“……”

Zhang He said, “Didn’t you just say you don’t expect anything from your friends…?”

Xu Ji replied, “Do I look like the kind of guy who cares about class and face?”