Chapter 15: The Dota Project

In the lounge of the skyscraper, the atmosphere was strangely heavy. Zhou Ming sat on the sofa, staring blankly at the teacup in front of him, lost in thought.

At the door of the room, Lin Muqing played her role as a secretary perfectly, blocking anyone who might disturb him. Although Lin Muqing herself was shocked and still trying to calm down, she understood that her shock was nothing compared to Zhou Ming, who was about to be deeply involved in something significant.

As a mature woman, Lin Muqing knew better than to act impulsively. She understood that as Zhou Ming's woman, she needed to support him and not burden him with unnecessary worries while he was dealing with important matters.

"Ms. Lin, the meeting has long been over, and everyone has left. I don't understand why we're still here. Why are you the only one here? Where's Zhou Ming? Call him out, I need to talk to him."

Outside the door, Guan Sheng questioned Lin Muqing with dissatisfaction. But just as Guan Sheng was displeased with Lin Muqing, she also found him intolerable.

After all, Lin Muqing was demoted to a factory TV station from a municipal station because of such bureaucrats, so she deeply disliked them.

However, for Zhou Ming's sake, Lin Muqing kept her patience and said to Guan Sheng, "Director Guan, we're here to deal with a very important matter. Please don't cause trouble."

Hearing this, Guan Sheng became even more displeased. "Trouble? Ms. Lin, I can't believe someone like you would say that. I'm just asking about the situation, how is that causing trouble?"

Faced with Guan Sheng's relentless questioning, Lin Muqing frowned. To her, his words were unreasonable. If it were just her, she wouldn't bother with such a person. But for Zhou Ming, who was still in the lounge, she had no choice but to calmly suggest, "Director Guan, how about this: there's a café downstairs. If you're willing, I can have my secretary accompany you for a coffee. How does that sound?"

"No way! Today, I want an explanation from you, Ms. Lin!" Guan Sheng insisted.

Lin Muqing was genuinely frustrated. She thought that after making so many concessions, this Director Guan would be more sensible. But she didn't realize that after the series of blows he had suffered in the previous meeting, his psyche was now quite fragile. He might still feel intimidated by the people from Hong Kong, but when facing Zhou Ming and Lin Muqing, who were also mainlanders, or mainlanders who had come to Hong Kong, he harbored a morbid sense of superiority.

Understanding Guan Sheng's current psychological state, Lin Muqing didn't know what to do. Just then, a voice from behind her came to her rescue: "Since Director Guan isn't willing, Sister Muqing, let's not force him. Let's go."

It was Zhou Ming who spoke. He walked out of the lounge and, to Guan Sheng's surprise, took Lin Muqing's hand and left.

Guan Sheng was dumbfounded. He watched Zhou Ming and Lin Muqing walk past him in a daze. It took him a while to react, and he hurriedly caught up to Zhou Ming, asking, "Zhou Ming, what are you doing?"

"Of course, we're going to the café for a coffee. Director Guan, you didn't want to come, right? So you stay here," Zhou Ming said as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"What? Zhou Ming, do you know what you're saying?" Guan Sheng said angrily.

Zhou Ming, who had been unwilling to waste words with such bureaucrats before, now didn't even bother to respond. He simply left with Lin Muqing. This made Guan Sheng furious, and he reached out to grab Zhou Ming, but his hand was immediately restrained.

It was Zhou Ming's bodyguard, Guan Sheng who stopped Guan Sheng. When Guan Sheng saw that he was being stopped, he opened his mouth to curse, but when he saw Guan Sheng's sharp gaze, he didn't dare say anything further. The sharp eyes, along with the iron grip on his wrist, made him feel a genuine threat to his life.

With Guan Sheng by his side, Zhou Ming felt reassured and didn't pay any attention to Guan Sheng behind him. He just left the skyscraper with Lin Muqing.

"Are we really just going to leave Guan Sheng like that?" Lin Muqing asked Zhou Ming. Even though she disliked the bureaucrat, Guan Sheng was still an official sent by the central government. Zhou Ming's actions seemed improper.

Zhou Ming nonchalantly waved his hand. "Don't worry about it. Director Guan is a big man; it's not like he's going to get lost in Hong Kong. Besides, although there are triads in Hong Kong, the security has improved a lot after previous crackdowns, so there's nothing to worry about."

Lin Muqing nodded, understanding that what Zhou Ming said was true. Even if it wasn't, it didn't matter much, as they really couldn't afford to worry about that bureaucrat right now.

Zhou Ming took Lin Muqing out of the skyscraper and back to the car. After hesitating for a moment, Lin Muqing finally asked Zhou Ming the question that had been bothering her, "Zhou Ming, what exactly is the $20 trillion deal Mr. Nordleyman mentioned earlier?"

Zhou Ming wasn't surprised that Lin Muqing asked this question. After all, the amount itself was unbelievable. To put it in perspective, the entire annual output of China was only a few hundred billion dollars. It would take the entire nation, with its billion people, working hard for sixty or seventy years to match that amount. In this world, where could such a massive deal be made? Even with cutting-edge weapons or technology, it seemed impossible.

Considering this, it was impressive that Lin Muqing had held back her question until they were alone in the car. It showed her remarkable self-restraint.

Zhou Ming gently took Lin Muqing's small hand and said, "Sister Muqing, before I answer your question, I want to ask you, do you believe such a deal could exist?"

Lin Muqing thought for a moment, then smiled bitterly and shook her head. "I don't know if I should believe it. If someone else told me about such a deal, I wouldn't believe it. But you, Zhou Ming, and that Mr. Nordleyman, both of you discussed this so confidently, I can't help but believe it."

Zhou Ming patted Lin Muqing's soft hand and said, "You're right to believe it, because such a deal does exist..."

Zhou Ming paused for a moment before adding, "It's a business of taking advantage of chaos."

"Taking advantage of chaos?" Lin Muqing muttered in confusion at first, then suddenly realized and exclaimed, "Zhou Ming, are you talking about that superpower in the north?"

"Sister Muqing, you're really smart. Yes, that $20 trillion deal is there," Zhou Ming said.

Lin Muqing gasped, her face full of disbelief, muttering, "This is crazy, absolutely crazy. How is this even possible?"

It was clear that from Zhou Ming's words, Lin Muqing had figured out the answer. She realized that this so-called $20 trillion deal was actually about seizing the national assets of a superpower. Such an idea was indeed crazy.

"Crazy? That's because you're intimidated by the name of that superpower. If you knew that the finances of that superpower have already collapsed, that it has rotted to the core from top to bottom, and that everyone from the ruling party to the backbone of the nation is hoping for its downfall, you would understand that this deal is not impossible," Zhou Ming explained.

"This is just too unbelievable. But isn't that country really powerful? Even the United States wouldn't dare provoke them. What if something goes wrong?" Lin Muqing said worriedly.

"Sister Muqing, your concern is valid, but it won't happen," Zhou Ming said. "Because as I just mentioned, that country is rotten from the inside out, and everyone is hoping for its collapse, including its leaders and the military. In such a situation, how could anything go wrong?"

Zhou Ming added, "And don't forget, Sister Muqing, Mr. Nordleyman also said that I only have a ticket to enter the game. This means I'm just a peripheral participant. I don't have the capability to take all $20 trillion."

"I understand," Lin Muqing said. She had no doubt about this, as that amount of money was astronomical. If one person were to take it all, it would cause global chaos, something the world wouldn't allow.

"Then what exactly is this deal? Is it a conspiracy?" Lin Muqing asked again.

"You could say that, because this is the Dota Plan that the entire Western world has implemented against this country. The goal is to collude with the vested interests within that country and rob its national assets together," Zhou Ming continued. "What I need to do is to join the game, follow the Western countries' lead, and take a share of the pie."

Zhou Ming spoke lightly about taking a share, but to Lin Muqing, it sounded like a thunderclap. After all, this was $20 trillion. Even a tiny fraction of that would be an enormous fortune that would make the world's richest people green with envy.

The thought of this made Lin Muqing feel an overwhelming sense of madness and even fear. If Zhou Ming hadn't been holding her hand firmly, giving her emotional support, she might not have been able to handle it.

Lin Muqing was stunned for a long time, then took a deep breath, calming herself. She slowly said, "Zhou Ming, this is really too much, but I support your decision."

Zhou Ming smiled, leaned over, and kissed Lin Muqing's forehead. "Thank you, Sister Muqing."

As the car drove on, the skyscraper where Guan Sheng was left far behind. Neither Zhou Ming nor Lin Muqing paid any more attention to him. Their thoughts were now fully occupied with the massive Dota Plan.