Roadmap to the Bound Book 3, Chapter 162: Successor

Book 3, Chapter 162: Successor

After the door opened, ng Shu stood still at the entrance for a second. Chen Chuan saw her subconsciously taking in a deep breath before heading inside.

He followed her. The lighting in the study was great. The autumn sun shone in through the windows, making the majestically decorated study look even more grand.

Under a beautiful, complex crystal chandelier located at the center of the ceiling was a heavy-looking, wooden desk. On it was a globe the size of half an adult man. The paintings and markings on the globe were done in the style of the old era.

ng Lai was sitting on the sofa behind the desk.

Border Fusion was established sixty years ago, so ng Lai should be at least eighty years old, but he looked like he was only a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties.

He was handso and in good shape. His muscles weren’t loose either, and his skin was in good condition. He had thick, black hair, and gave off the air of soone who had been a leader for a long ti.

Chen Chuan noticed that ng Shu’s eyes were similar to his. Both of them had upturned almond-shaped eyes, but ng Lai’s gaze was more complicated and profound, like a bottomless lake.

Aunt Yu went to ng Lai and whispered into his ear. The man then smiled at Chen Chuan and gave him a nod before turning to ng Shu. “You’re here, Xiao Shu.”

ng Shu went forward and bowed to him as a greeting. “Grandfather.”

ng Lai gave her a nod. “Since you’re here, take a seat. We need to wait for one more person.”

One more?

Chen Chuan wondered whether he was referring to ng Huang. That was highly likely. But why would he refer to ng Huang as a guest? That title held a unique implication.

Aunt Yu then said, “Take a seat.”

Chen Chuan readily accepted the offer and nodded as thanks before sitting down on a long sofa by the side. He looked outside. From here, he could see the airship docking pad in the courtyard outside. ng Xu was still standing, as if waiting for soone.

Aunt Yu placed a hand on her Realm Pass and said sothing. A mont passed before a middle-aged man wearing a monocle with his hair neatly combed walked in. Beside him was an old man with a cane. His face was covered in age spots, and he had thin hair. He needed the middle-aged man to support him as he walked in.

Chen Chuan had read up on the people supporting ng Lai, and he recognized the middle-aged man as ng Lai’s personal lawyer, Ma Guangming. The old man had left a deep impression on Chen Chuan.

He was ng Zhenghuai, ng Lai’s granduncle and the man with seniority in the ng family. He was 120 years old and only alive due to dicine.

Aunt Yu went over and dismissed the servant. She then grabbed ng Zhenghuai’s arm and led him to a seat while saying, “Take your ti, Mr. Zhenghuai.”

“I’m old now. I feel winded after taking just a few steps.”

After he sat down, ng Zhenghuai put on his hearing aid with a trembling hand and turned to ng Lai. “Xiao Lai, I’m here now. While I can still hear, why don’t you tell us what you want to say?”

“You’re not old yet, Granduncle. If you want, I can set up an implant surgery for you. With the technology nowadays, you can get your body back in good condition,” ng Lai said with a smile.

“I told you, I don’t want those things in my body. I’m worried that my ancestors won’t recognize

after I get them. I’m already content for being able to live this long,” ng Zhenghuai rejected the offer with a shake of his head and a dismissive wave.

ng Lai didn’t try to continue convincing ng Zhenghuai to change his mind. He just turned to Ma Guangming and said, “Mr. Ma.”

“Here,” Ma Guangming responded with a bow.

“I’ve asked two of the junior mbers of the family to co over. They’re both potential successors I value. I’ve been observing them for a long ti. Now, since Xiao Shu is already here, I’m going to make my first announcent. Take note,” ng Lai said.

Ma Guangming’s expression beca stern. He took out a docunt from his briefcase, then grabbed a ballpoint pen and looked at ng Lai to continue speaking.

At that mont, the room turned silent.

ng Lai continued, “If ng Huang doesn’t co at the assigned ti today, I will see it as him giving up. I will then elect ng Shu as the company’s sole successor.”

ng Shu didn’t appear to be excited. She wasn’t sure whether this was ng Lai trying to appease her or whether he had actually made up his mind.

But she knew what sort of reaction ng Lai wanted to see from her, so she didn’t show anything.

ng Lai seed to like her reaction, and satisfaction appeared in his eyes.

Ma Guangming quickly wrote down what ng Lai said before looking up and saying sternly, “I’ve recorded your statent, Mr. ng.

“Based on the stipulated rules, if you’ve made any decisions regarding your successor, you need to present them to the other ng family mbers and have them approve it. Then, you need to put it in black-and-white.”

ng Lai humd at that. He picked up the teacup on his desk and blew at it. “I’ll announce my decision in the next family eting,” he said languidly.

“Then, there’s no other problem,” Ma Guangming said respectfully.

ng Zhenghuai then said, “Xiao Lai, I’m here today, so I’ll bear witness to the matter.”

He turned to Aunt Yu. “Xiao Shu is the fourth’s daughter, isn’t she?”

Aunt Yu bowed. “Yes. She’s the fourth young master’s daughter. Your mory is still strong, Mr. Zhenghuai.”

ng Zhenghuai chuckled and stroked his thin beard. “The fourth is a good kid. Xiao Shu is a good kid too. Xiao Lai, you’ve made a proper decision. I’ll support you in front of the other family mbers.”

Yan Yi cast a glance at ng Lai before quickly looking away to turn to Ma Guangming.

Even though ng Lai seed to have already picked ng Shu, Yan Yi didn’t think that the situation had really changed. ng Huang’s actions were still going to be the deciding factor as to whether ng Shu would be the successor. As long as they didn’t get rid of him, everything could change at a mont’s notice.

A company’s senior executives needed to be able to give their subordinates long-term expectations, but as part of the company’s managent, she knew that only things truly put into practice had real value. So promises might sound good on paper, but before they were fulfilled, they were empty promises.

Chen Chuan heard everything, and he had a feeling that those words weren’t ant just for ng Shu, but also for him.

Or rather, it was for the Resolution Departnt.

ng Lai was treating him as the representative of the Resolution Departnt.

That wasn’t wrong. He had co with so authority to act if things went awry. The permission to enforce the law had been delivered to him along with the other items, and he had brought them along with him.

Ma Guangming added a few more items on the docunt before handing it to ng Lai for verification. When ng Lai confird that there weren’t any problems with it, Ma Guangming took the docunt back and went out with Aunt Yu. Soon, Aunt Yu ca back and gave ng Lai a nod.

Then, ng Lai and ng Zhenghuai started talking about the good old tis. They would occasionally ask about ng Shu’s life, just like how an elder of a family would ask after the wellbeing of soone younger. The atmosphere was much more harmonious than before.

The seconds ticked by. After around half an hour, the agreed upon ti of the eting arrived, and the mantle clock started ringing.

ng Zhenghuai stopped talking and narrowed his murky eyes.

Yan Yi subconsciously clenched her fists.

As the final chi echoed in the air, the door of the study flung open, and a man in his thirties walked in. “Sorry, I’m late,” he said in a teasing voice.

Chen Chuan looked over and found that the man shared so similar features with ng Shu. He was pretty handso, but there was sothing about his expression that scread he was a man who did whatever he wanted and however he wanted.

When ng Huang stood in front of them, Chen Chuan found that he looked a little different from the photo the Resolution Departnt had provided for him. The biggest difference was in his height. ng Huang was supposed to be around 1.8 ters tall, but for so reason he was more than two ters tall.

Even though there was plenty of technology and implants that could increase a person’s height, Chen Chuan was sure that ng Huang hadn’t used those thods.

The people in charge of companies seldom used implants. They had better dicine and unique thods to get stronger bodies and increase their lifespan.

ng Huang didn’t co alone. Behind him was a burly man in sunglasses. His arms were pretty short and small, but his legs were thick. Compared to ng Huang, he didn’t draw much attention, so it was easy to overlook him. Once he ca in, he stood still and didn’t move.

Chen Chuan could sense that the man was not as he seed. He was also very certain that he was a Third Limit martial artist, so he had to be ng Huang’s personal security guard.

ng Huang scanned the room. After seeing ng Shu and ng Zhenghuai, he grinned before shifting his attention to ng Lai. Condescension appeared in his eyes, then he went to an unoccupied sofa and sat on it with his knees crossed.

“You’re late, but at least you arrived,” ng Lai said languidly.

“I didn’t want to co, especially to see you. Whoops, sorry for saying that. I just can’t bring myself to respect you when I see you,” ng Huang said with a nonchalant smile.

ng Zhenghuai had removed his hearing aid the mont ng Huang ca in and started nodding off while holding his cane, as if he was taking a nap.

anwhile, Yan Yi stared at ng Lai in disbelief. She had never expected ng Huang to be so rude to the company’s president. He didn’t even bother with basic politeness. Was it because he knew that he couldn’t be the successor anymore and had decided to just give up entirely?

ng Huang turned to ng Shu and pointed at ng Lai. “I don’t think you know it yet, my dear cousin, but this thing is just a bioreplacent with a consciousness regulator.

“Did you actually think he’s our grandfather? Don’t joke with !

“I don’t think we’ve ever seen the real him before. Our actual grandfather might already be dead, while this consciousness regulator is the one controlling the company.

“Are you willing to listen to a consciousness regulator’s orders and let this thing decide our fates? I’m not.”