RMM -Chapter 187 Poised to Strike

“Deputy, when are we going in?”

Xie Haomin edged closer to Gao Yunxiao and asked in a hushed voice.

“Wait for the captain’s order,” Gao Yunxiao replied, staring straight ahead at the brilliantly lit Imperial City without so much as a sideways glance.

Han Zhiyuan couldn’t help but snicker when he saw Xie Haomin’s pout. Look at that—telling him to keep quiet, yet he himself rushed over in a panic to ask and got shut down. Served him right.

After retreating to his position, Xie Haomin shot a look at Han Zhiyuan, who was clearly enjoying himself, a trace of helplessness flashing through his eyes. Was it really that funny? Was schadenfreude really necessary?

They had already been waiting outside for a long time, yet there was still no word from the captain. Who knew what was going on inside? Logically speaking, the timing should have been about right by now.

What worried him more was that the ten men who had infiltrated the Imperial City in advance had shown no movement either.

They had arrived outside the Imperial City two hours ago. The plan had been to wait for the captain’s signal before acting, but in those two hours, there had been no news whatsoever from inside.

Before the banquet began tonight, under Xi Yuechen’s arrangements, the action team had already split into two groups and set off separately.

If all thirty-plus of them acted at once, the commotion would be too great and would inevitably arouse suspicion. Too many people would also make it difficult to operate effectively.

So Xi Yuechen had selected ten men ahead of time, ordering them to infiltrate the Imperial City before the banquet began. Splitting into two groups would make operations easier, and those ten could also serve as insiders. For covert actions like this, coordinating inside and outside had always been the best strategy—and the most effective.

As for how those ten would get into the Imperial City, that was when A-Fei, who had been embedded in the Yan Sect for many years, finally had a chance to show his skills.

A-Fei’s long years of infiltration hadn’t yielded much in terms of results, but he had at least managed to stay close to Brother Long. Through Brother Long, he frequently entered and exited the Imperial City and was extremely familiar with the place.

Fortunately, A-Fei wasn’t useless either. Although he had failed to penetrate the Yan Sect’s inner core, he still had real abilities. This time, he successfully led the ten men into the Imperial City.

As for Gao Yunxiao, Xie Haomin, and the others, they stayed outside the Imperial City, waiting for news from within and ready to act at the right moment.

But with two hours passing and still no movement, it was no wonder Xie Haomin was anxious. Even Gao Yunxiao felt a twinge of concern.

Let’s hope nothing goes wrong tonight.

The people outside were waiting in such anxious suspense—but what exactly was happening inside?

Xi Yuechen, wearing his trademark “Cheng Yue–style” smile, moved through the grand hall, chatting and laughing with ease, deftly socializing on all sides.

Yet a strange feeling lingered in his heart. Why hadn’t the main event begun yet?

Wasn’t this so-called apology banquet ultimately all about the Zhao family’s shipment? But up to now, there hadn’t been any sign of it. What was going on?

“Brother Cheng Yue, let me ask you something.”

Someone suddenly grabbed Xi Yuechen by the arm, accompanied by a man’s voice.

By now, Xi Yuechen was more or less familiar with everyone present. He recognized the voice without even turning around.

“Boss Zhang,” he said with a nod and a smile.

“Ah, why call me ‘boss’? That’s too distant. Just call me big brother!” The middle-aged man surnamed Zhang laughed heartily and patted Xi Yuechen on the shoulder, his attitude warm and friendly. “I want to ask you something, and you’d better answer me honestly.”

Xi Yuechen went along with it smoothly, smiling as he replied, “Then I won’t stand on ceremony. Brother Zhang, what is it you want to ask? I’ll tell you everything I know.”

Boss Zhang laughed again, leaned closer, and lowered his voice. “Tell me—what’s your big brother thinking? At this point, why is there still no movement from the Zhao family?”

Xi Yuechen immediately understood that he was asking about the Zhao family’s shipment. It seemed that the prolonged silence from both the Yan Sect and the Zhao family had already stirred quite a bit of curiosity.

That was only natural. These people had come precisely for this matter—to personally witness the once high-and-mighty Zhao family bowing their heads and humbling themselves before the Yan Sect. How entertaining would that be?

But now, with everything so quiet, what did it mean? Driven by curiosity, they naturally grabbed Xi Yuechen to ask questions.

From the start of the banquet, this Cheng Yue had stayed by Bai Xiong’s side, and Bai Xiong’s words and demeanor clearly showed his regard and trust for him. Whatever the Yan Sect was planning, perhaps this Cheng Yue knew a thing or two.

Unfortunately for them, their calculations were off. Why the Yan Sect and the Zhao family had yet to mention the shipment—Xi Yuechen didn’t know the reason at all. Forget one or two details; he didn’t know anything whatsoever.

“I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you, Brother Zhang. It’s not that I won’t say—it’s that I really don’t know either. Please be patient and wait a little longer. The answer will naturally be revealed.”

Hearing this, Boss Zhang looked disappointed. It was hard to say whether he believed Xi Yuechen or not, but he did release his shoulder and stopped pressing the issue.

“In that case, I won’t make things difficult. Go on with your business, Brother Cheng Yue. I won’t disturb you.”

Boss Zhang chuckled, turned around, and left, clearly dissatisfied with the answer.

Xi Yuechen didn’t mind. He smiled calmly and also turned away.

“Look at these people,” Bai Xiong said irritably when Xi Yuechen returned to his side. “It has nothing to do with them, yet every single one of them is overly invested. Isn’t that like a dog sticking its nose where it doesn’t belong?”

Xi Yuechen’s expression shifted slightly. He knew Bai Xiong must have seen the earlier exchange. He didn’t panic—after all, it wasn’t a big deal—and smiled as he turned to speak.

“They came here eager to watch a show. Of course they’d get anxious when the climax doesn’t come,” Xi Yuechen said with a light laugh, glancing at Boss Zhang. “Boss Zhang just asked me why the Zhao family hasn’t handed over the goods yet.”

Bai Xiong had already expected that. He wasn’t surprised and merely snorted. “They’re quite good at making plans for themselves. What’s the rush?”

Xi Yuechen couldn’t quite tell what Bai Xiong meant by that. He was debating whether to probe further when Bai Xiong spoke again.

“The best show is always saved for last, isn’t it? In any case, the Zhao family will hand over the goods.”

With that, Bai Xiong stopped looking at Xi Yuechen and turned to walk elsewhere. Xi Yuechen followed his gaze and saw that Zhao Boss was standing there.

From Bai Xiong’s words, it seemed he had no intention of fully revealing his plans to Xi Yuechen. Xi Yuechen understood that impatience would only spoil things, so he wisely stopped there. Pressing further would only backfire.

Then he would wait for the final act. Hopefully, it wouldn’t disappoint.

Almost everyone present was waiting for the Zhao family to hand over the goods, burning with impatience. Yet the two main figures—Bai Xiong and Zhao Boss—looked as though nothing were happening at all. They stood chatting casually, never once mentioning the matter, leaving everyone else craning their necks in vain.

Likewise, the ten action team members who had already infiltrated the Imperial City couldn’t help but feel puzzled. What exactly were the Yan Sect and the Zhao family up to?

No one knew what methods A-Fei had used, but he had somehow managed to disguise four of the team members as servers and get them into the hall. At that moment, they were carrying trays and weaving through the crowd.

But with so many employees in the Imperial City, who would notice a few extra faces—or a few changed ones? People came here to indulge, yes, but not every day. And who would bother scrutinizing all the service staff?

Thus, even Bai Xiong and Liu Qi failed to notice anything amiss with those four. Even so, they dared not be careless. None of the people here were simple characters; one slip-up by the infiltrators could easily give them away.

The four played their roles convincingly, truly resembling well-trained servers. Even when they encountered their captain, Xi Yuechen, they showed no reaction—polite yet distant—then brushed past him. No one could detect a hint of anything unusual.

The other six who had infiltrated the Imperial City had taken on various disguises and were active around the hall.

Outside the Imperial City, armed police officers had also been quietly lying in wait for quite some time. Everyone was simply waiting for a single order from inside, after which they would strike like thunder.

Everything was ready—everything except the east wind. And that wind was stubbornly late. No one knew what Bai Xiong was really thinking.

As for Zhao Boss, although his face still looked displeased, the curve of his lips wasn’t quite as stiff as before. Even so, he made no mention of the shipment.

Thus, no matter how eager they were, no one dared to step forward to ask. Being mocked as “the eunuch fretting when the emperor isn’t” would be hard to recover from. After all, both the Yan Sect and the Zhao family were currently displeased with these people.

It made sense for the Yan Sect to be unhappy—after all, they had been blocked from swallowing up the Zhao family. But for the Zhao family to resent them as well was simply absurd. Who did they think they were, still acting like big shots? If it weren’t for these people mediating behind the scenes, the Zhao family would have been devoured by the Yan Sect long ago, leaving nothing behind.

Wasn’t it just because they’d forced the Zhao family to compensate the Yan Sect with that shipment? Why not think about who started the trouble in the first place? They even dreamed of monopolizing Province D—did they really think the current Zhao family had that ability? The Yan Sect wasn’t something to trifle with. Letting the Zhao family off with mere compensation was already an act of mercy—and wasn’t that thanks to them?

Now the Zhao family was turning the tables and blaming them instead. It was truly laughable. To put it bluntly, anyone could see it—the Zhao family was nothing more than a grasshopper after autumn.

Still, a starving camel was bigger than a horse. Even in decline, the Zhao family still had its uses—for example… keeping the Yan Sect in check.

In recent years, the Yan Sect had expanded too rapidly. Without someone to restrain them, wouldn’t it be these people who suffered in the end?

So no matter what, the Zhao family had to be preserved.

As for Zhao Boss, he could just swallow the loss in silence. At least tonight, seeing the Zhao family bow their heads and endure humiliation was worth the trip.

And after tonight—setting aside the future upheavals of the underworld—what happened this evening alone would be enough fodder for years of after-dinner conversation.

With that thought, they let Zhao Boss keep his dark expression.

At this moment, all that remained was to wait for the Zhao family to hand over the goods.