Currently, the Qin Family has one Marshal, two Admirals, and at least five Lieutenant Generals, their overall strength in the Military Department rivals that of the Gu Family.

The Su Family is not only involved with the Military Department but also has strong influence in the political arena. The Xu Family, where Xu Lei belongs, is not well-known to the public, but the power of this family is well understood by all the major figures. Besides these students, there are other families...

Large and small, almost encompassing all the families. Should the attack succeed, who knows what kind of upheaval it might cause.

The Xu Family is easier to handle, even if they take action it’s done cautiously, but the Su Family and Qin Family are troublesome.

Qin Mo is the undeniable heir of the Qin Family, and the family is notorious for their difficulty in having offspring. Having finally got such a precious child, should anything happen, it would certainly lead to an inescapable conflict. And Su Lu is the brother of the Su Family’s only Marshal, holding a frighteningly high seniority, while Su Yanjing is considered a rising star among the new generation... The Su Family members are all fiercely protective...

Moreover, Gu Ningzhi also noticed that there were no students from the Gu Family on the list, not even one. Although the Gu Family follows an elite path and has always had few offspring, counting both direct and collateral lines, it’s still considerable, with currently about ten students at the Xilena First Affiliated School. Yet, this list includes many major families from the Military Department and political arena, but none from the Gu Family...

What does this mean? Gu Ningzhi knew without thinking—it’s the perfect excuse to redirect disaster to the east!

"Do you believe this information?" Gu Qidong was also startled when he received this secret message, instructing his men to investigate, only to find the whole thing baseless, unless the sender could predict the future!

"At the very least..." Gu Ningzhi’s expression was grave, "Those people indeed plan to act on that day! The attack is real!"

Gu Qidong now took things seriously regarding his three sons... Although they were a bit rebellious, causing him endless headaches as a father, their strength and talent were undeniable.

Even though his second son transformed from a once high-spirited youth into a somewhat scruffy mature man, Gu Qidong trusted his son’s judgment. His statement indicated the event was very likely to happen!

"What do you plan to do?" Gu Qidong wanted to see how this son would handle the situation, whether the thirty-plus years spent outside the Gu Family were an improvement or a waste, "This is likely a malicious plan to kill multiple birds with one stone, incidentally dragging the Gu Family into the water..."

Gu Ningzhi contemplated for a moment and then shared his plan, bringing the father and son back to the mode of interaction where one teaches and the other learns.

Gu Qidong, despite being an over two-hundred-year-old sly old fox, was straightforward all his life but not lacking in brains.

Some parts of his son’s proposal were feasible, while others were not. After a discussion, the father and son finalized their strategy. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Finally, Gu Qidong asked a particularly difficult question for Gu Ningzhi, "Can the person you mentioned really help?"

Due to the constraints of a contract, Gu Ningzhi couldn’t disclose any information about Su Jiameng, so he replaced it with "a mysterious friend."

"Yes, I think this person will probably bring me quite a few surprises." His expression was no longer playful but extremely serious, deliberately avoiding the topic of Su Jiameng, saying, "Besides the attack incident, there’s also another matter to focus on... Who exactly informed us so early on? How did they know this information, and why was it passed to the Gu Family..."

"It’s also my fault for not thinking thoroughly. I thought it was a prank and didn’t investigate further at the time. It’s now very difficult to find out, but we can try our best!" Gu Qidong didn’t avoid admitting his mistake and instead acknowledged his shortcomings openly.

"Hmm... Oh, right, there’s something I want to ask..." Gu Ningzhi propped his chin, suddenly with a somewhat mischievous look, "Third Brother... did the family arrange an engagement for him?"

Gu Qidong raised an eyebrow, snorted irritably, "When you and your elder brother were home, did I ever arrange marriages for you?"

The men of the Gu Family believe in establishing a career before a family, marrying relatively late, with the thirty-plus years after graduation being the golden time for career-building.

Marriage and engagements are considered only after they are six or seven decades old, and marriages are mostly self-determined, as long as they don’t marry a troublesome woman, it’s generally accepted. The Gu Family has strict values, yet is quite open-minded about marriage.

Gu Ningzhi was puzzled upon hearing this, having experienced the Gu Family’s rigorous training methods, which basically meant being drilled to the brink. When did his Third Brother manage to have the children Huaixi and Huaifeng? If he had a fiancée, it might be possible...

But considering Su Jiameng’s age... His parents wouldn’t be so crazy as to betroth a sixteen-year-old girl to Ningxuan.

"Why are you asking this question?" Gu Qidong sneered, "What’s the matter, thinking about starting a family? After all, you’re not getting any younger..."

Gu Ningzhi returned a similarly mocking grin, "No, someone over a hundred years old only just ended his single life, so why should I be in a hurry?"

The "someone" Gu Er referred to had a stiff face, wishing he could crawl through the internet connection to give his second son a beating!

"By the way, Old Man Gu, why was Ningxuan kicked out of the house?" Gu Ningzhi asked with a smile, only to see Gu Qidong’s face change suddenly, looking furious. With a slap, the video went dark... His father hung up the video call.

"Strange... What did Little Three do to make the old man this angry?" Gu Ningzhi was deeply puzzled, even more so as he still didn’t know how his elder even managed to have those two kids, suspected to be Gu Ningxuan’s children... (End of the excerpt. If you like this work, you’re welcome to vote for it at Qidian (qidian.com) with recommendations and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please head to m.qidian.com to read.)