The Banquet

"Are you sure you're okay? You've been looking distracted since earlier."

At the bar, Meg gazed at Simon with concern.

"I'm fine! I just have a feeling that tonight's event might not be as peaceful as it seems. I need a drink to clear my head." Simon forced a wry smile.

"Alright, I just saw Su Yang. I'm going to say hi."

Simon nodded. "Send my regards. Tell her I'll catch up with her later."

"Will do!"

As Meg walked away, Simon let out a deep sigh.

Since the auction included nuclear weapon materials, it was clear that at least one black market arms dealer or terrorist was among the guests.

And where there were criminals, there were also intelligence agents.

For example, the bartender who just started his shift—Simon recognized him immediately.

"Casey?"

"Heh, Simon Lewis. What a coincidence!" Casey responded with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, what a coincidence. Didn't expect you to be working a part-time job here at night," Simon replied with meaning.

Casey didn't explain, simply giving him an icy stare.

Simon raised his hands in surrender. "Relax, buddy. I have no intention of interfering with your operation."

"You'd better not. Or else…" Casey made a throat-slitting gesture.

"Come on, Casey! I've helped you guys out a couple of times, haven't I? Also, a little tip—next time, be more thorough with your setups."

Casey narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"That painting—it's your bait, right? If you already knew there was something hidden in the frame, why not replace it with an identical one? Anyone observant enough could tell that the painting had been tampered with."

Casey fell silent for a moment before speaking. "How do you know this?"

Simon smirked. "You didn't read the morning paper? The Lotus Painting was on the front page. Compare it to the one here, and you'll notice the difference immediately."

Perhaps due to the information in his head, Simon now recalled every detail of the newspaper article he had only glanced at earlier.

Casey, now taking the matter more seriously, activated his communicator.

"Chuck, get to the bar. Now."

Only then did Simon notice that Casey's watch was actually a communication device.

Not long after, Chuck appeared at the bar.

"Simon? What a surprise!" Chuck blinked in shock upon seeing him.

"Heh, looks like we're both here. I guess tonight won't be as peaceful as I hoped," Simon said with a half-smile.

"We can talk later! Chuck, take a look at the painting," Casey ordered.

"The painting? What's wrong with—oh my god, Casey, it's been tampered with!" Chuck exclaimed.

Hearing Chuck's confirmation, Casey immediately contacted Sarah.

"Walter, we have company."

But there was no response.

At that moment, Sarah was being held at gunpoint, forced towards the exit.

Simon caught sight of the man beside Sarah, and instantly, another flash of intelligence erupted in his mind.

A sequence of assassinations.

A classified document.

The document detailed a mysterious arms dealer known as Luxuda.

According to the intel, anyone who had ever seen Luxuda's face had vanished.

And the man with Sarah was connected to Luxuda.

Simon clenched his fists.

If this was who he thought it was, then Sarah was in extreme danger.

But this wasn't his fight—interfering would be reckless.

"You two stay here and don't move," Casey ordered, before vaulting over the bar counter and heading out.

The moment Casey left, Chuck stood up.

"Casey told you to stay put," Simon reminded him.

Chuck waved him off. "It's fine! Nothing bad will happen."

With that, he strolled off nonchalantly.

Simon sighed but didn't stop him.

Finishing his drink, he casually walked over to Meg.

"Simon!"

Before Meg could speak, Su Yang greeted him first.

"You look stunning tonight, Su Yang," Simon complimented her.

"And compared to Meg, who's prettier?" Su Yang grinned mischievously.

Faced with this trap question, Simon chuckled.

"As the saying goes, 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.' To me, Meg is the most beautiful. But to others, you might have the edge."

Since Simon had spoken in Mandarin, Meg was clueless.

"What did you say?" Meg asked curiously.

"I said you're the most beautiful," Simon replied smoothly.

"Thank you!" Meg beamed.

Su Yang, seeing how smoothly Simon had dodged the question, simply smiled and said nothing more.

The three of them continued chatting until a waltz began playing.

As the music filled the room, couples gracefully took to the dance floor.

"May I have this dance, my lady?" Simon extended his hand to Meg with a charming bow.

"Of course!" Meg smiled and placed her hand in his.

After briefly saying goodbye to Su Yang, Simon led Meg to the dance floor.

With elegant tango steps, the two danced to the melody, immersed in the moment.

As the song ended, they stepped aside.

Su Yang was nowhere to be seen, likely mingling elsewhere.

Simon didn't bother looking for her—tonight, he only cared about Meg.

"This has been such a wonderful night! Simon, thank you for being here with me." Meg leaned against him, sipping champagne.

Simon wrapped an arm around her, smiling.

"I should be the one thanking you—for letting me experience an event like this."

Leaning close to her ear, he whispered, "I booked a room upstairs. Should we go now?"

Meg smirked. "I'd like to take a shower first."

Simon grinned. "Then what are we waiting for?"

The two exchanged knowing looks and walked towards the elevators.

But just as they approached—

Meg froze.

"Wait… isn't that Chuck?"

Simon turned his head and immediately spotted Chuck—with three men and one woman surrounding him.

His eyes sharpened.

One of the men pressed a gun against Chuck's back.

He was being taken hostage.

Meg instinctively started to call out, but Simon grabbed her arm.

"Chuck's in trouble," Simon whispered. "Act like we don't know him. Let's figure out his room number, then call for backup."

Meg nodded. "Alright, I'll follow your lead."