Solving Middle Age Crisis by Intelligence System-Chapter 489 - 304: Jackpot Gold Coin Burst

At ten o’clock in the evening, a black Maybach stopped at the entrance of a tea house in the New District. Three people got out of the car, led by a person who looked to be about forty years old, with blond hair and blue eyes, exuding an elegant aura in every movement.

Behind him, the two people had tall statures. Compared to those muscular foreign men, these two were not particularly robust, but their presence was powerful enough to make a passing child cry at a glance.

From the moment these three appeared, Niu Da’s gaze was locked relentlessly on one of the bald men, with battle readiness surging in his eyes.

He had once confronted this bald man in France, and because of a careless move, he suffered a setback. However, because Ah Jiao and others were present, Niu Da’s attention was somewhat divided.

So although he acknowledged the opponent’s strength, he still felt somewhat unconvinced in his heart.

The three of them walked up the steps, and Niu Da and Duan Pingyu stepped forward to block their way: "Only one of you is allowed to enter." Niu Da nodded towards De Gaulle at the forefront, his tone unyielding.

Upon hearing the words, the two subordinates of De Gaulle instantly had their gazes turn cold, looking at Niu Da with undisguised hostility.

Niu Da and Duan Pingyu were not to be outdone, coldly staring back at them with a demeanor suggesting they were ready for a fight at any moment, instantly intensifying the atmosphere.

At this moment, De Gaulle gently raised his hand to restrain his subordinates’ actions. He glanced over at Niu Da and Duan Pingyu, the corners of his mouth curling into a slight smile: "It seems Mr. Qi is very cautious."

Niu Da didn’t care what he was saying, still refusing to yield an inch: "Our boss only agreed to meet you alone."

De Gaulle nodded slightly and instructed the two behind him in French.

The bald man frowned, seemingly wanting to say something, but meeting De Gaulle’s gaze, he ultimately restrained himself and stepped back along with the other subordinate, standing at the bottom of the steps.

"Is this satisfactory?" De Gaulle raised his chin towards Niu Da, his tone remaining composed.

Niu Da snorted, stepping aside to make way: "Go inside."

De Gaulle adjusted his shirt cuffs and walked up the steps.

As he passed by Niu Da, he suddenly stopped and smiled in accented Chinese: "It’s a pleasure to see you again."

These words seemed to imply something, but Niu Da didn’t respond, his gaze filled with even stronger battle readiness. If something were to happen later, he would first confront that bald man.

De Gaulle didn’t pause further and pushed the door open to enter the tea house.

The bamboo door slowly closed behind him, sealing off the tense atmosphere outside.

At the bottom of the steps, the gazes between the bald man and Niu Da clashed silently in the air, thickening the atmosphere to the point where even the passing breeze seemed to carry a hint of gunpowder.

Duan Pingyu quietly edged closer to Niu Da and whispered: "Don’t act rashly, wait for the boss to speak."

Niu Da clenched his fists tightly, the joints cracking audibly: "I know."

Inside the private room, Qi Yun leisurely sipped his tea. As the door of the private room opened, he raised his head to scrutinize this French noble he was meeting for the first time.

De Gaulle entered the private room, exchanged looks with Qi Yun for a moment, then nodded slightly with a polite smile on his lips, hiding an undeniable pride in his gaze.

"Mr. Qi, you are younger than I imagined."

Qi Yun couldn’t help but smirk. This foreigner was indeed rather inept when it came to social manners, making even compliments sound so stiff. Surely this guy has investigated his ancestors back eight generations, so it’s impossible he hasn’t seen a photo of him.

But even thinking that, he maintained enough politeness on his face, raising his hand to gesture towards the other: "Mr. De Gaulle, you flatter me. Please, have a seat."

De Gaulle nodded and sat down on the opposite armchair.

Qi Yun picked up the teapot and poured a cup of tea for him: "We Huaxia people like to drink tea, so we didn’t prepare coffee for you. Hope you don’t mind having tea?"

De Gaulle raised the teacup to his nose and sniffed: "West Lake Longjing, Mr. Qi has good taste."

Qi Yun raised an eyebrow in surprise: "It seems Mr. De Gaulle is quite knowledgeable about Huaxia tea."

"I know a bit." De Gaulle took a sip and gently placed the teacup down, "This is my sixth visit to Huaxia. Previously, a friend specifically introduced me to Huaxia’s tea culture."

Qi Yun heard it and nodded with a smile, recognizing it as a way of saying "I have friends in Huaxia too."

The brief probing ended, and Qi Yun continued to sip his tea calmly. Although he couldn’t discern how this three-thousand-yuan-a-pot tea was worth its price, he had to put on a good show.

Both of them were aware of the purpose of this meeting, but cooperation is about bargaining chips.

The Gwen Clan had been pursuing the secret of that map for centuries, undoubtedly they had more information. Compared to Qi Yun, they unquestionably held more bargaining power.

That’s why Qi Yun couldn’t afford to hurry. He projected an air of nonchalance, intending to show the other party that he wasn’t as obsessed with the so-called secret of "eternal life" as the Gwen Clan, who would go to any lengths to explore it.

Within the private room, a brief silence ensued. Seeing that De Gaulle didn’t speak either, Qi Yun suddenly had a faint idea, as a familiar-looking light screen appeared before him.

[Available Intelligence Categories: Red (costs 3 intelligence points), Green x2 (costs 9 intelligence points)]

Qi Yun’s heart warmed with joy at the unexpected surprise.

[Intelligence points -3...]

[Intelligence Level (Red): De Gaulle’s uncle, George, is gravely ill. Even after undergoing a heart transplant, he doesn’t have long to live. The battle for the leadership of the Gwen Clan has reached a fever pitch;

George wishes to pass the position of clan leader to De Gaulle because he knows his son isn’t biologically his, nor is he even of the Gwen Clan’s bloodline.]

Hmm?

Qi Yun looked at De Gaulle, who was sitting opposite him, with a surprised glance, inadvertently catching some gossip.

For an ancient family like theirs, the purity of bloodline is of utmost importance.

It’s even absurd to the point that when a king dies without an heir, a distant relative from another country might be brought over to become king...

Such incidents are not uncommon in European history.

If De Gaulle learned of this news, once he announced it, there’d be no need for competition; he could just lie back and secure the leadership position.

"Perhaps... this could be a good bargaining chip..." Qi Yun silently mused to himself.

[Intelligence Points -9...]

[Intelligence Level (Green): To compete for the position of family leader, De Gaulle reached an agreement with the CEO of the Dutch ASML Company, Christophe. By offering a benefit fee of two hundred million euros, he secured their assistance in helping his private company acquire 8% of ASML’s shares. If this scandal were exposed, Christophe would likely lose his position as CEO.]

ASML!?

Qi Yun’s heart trembled. He hadn’t expected De Gaulle to be so capable, managing to connect with the CEO of this company.

ASML, as an absolute dominator in the lithography machine industry, once had a market value exceeding a trillion, second only to Microsoft, knocking Apple from the second position.

Though its market value has dwindled due to certain policies, it remains a giant company.

Qi Yun wasn’t very interested in who became CEO, but he suddenly recalled some intelligence from a few days ago, that Fu Wentao was tasked by superiors to find a way to acquire some ASML equipment.

Could he use De Gaulle to secure some equipment?

It’s not that the Fu Family’s influence is less than De Gaulle’s. Even without considering whether ASML’s upper management would agree, the EU certainly wouldn’t allow Huaxia funds to meddle with such a sensitive company as ASML...

Otherwise, there’d be no need for the superiors to have asked Fu Wentao to attempt this.

[Intelligence Points -9...]

[Intelligence Level (Green): Regarding the secret of the sunken ship map, the Gwen Clan currently holds clues to four locations: Khufu’s Pyramid, Mayan Ruins, Mount Kilimanjaro, and they’ve also acquired knowledge of the Loulan Ancient City through special means.]

Qi Yun sighed inwardly, so this guy knew about it after all...

There are a total of six places corresponding to six clues. Currently, both parties know the Loulan Ancient City’s stele; the other party has three of the clues, while he holds the Bronze Mirror from Genghis Khan’s Tomb...

So that just leaves the last place, the St. Petersburg Cathedral...

Spending these 21 intelligence points was worth it! Each piece of information is crucial!

Across the table, De Gaulle’s teacup was almost empty, and he finally couldn’t resist speaking first: "Mr. Qi, shall we discuss cooperation?"

As Qi Yun predicted, the one anxious was the other party.

He only wanted to cooperate to find the truth and didn’t genuinely believe there’s some longevity involved.

But De Gaulle was different. His family had already invested too much in this endeavor, and it had become a mission they must strive to complete.

"Well, how does Mr. De Gaulle propose we cooperate? Why don’t you tell me?" Qi Yun sipped his tea, feeling entirely different from before.

To him, De Gaulle now seemed like a golden boy.

With the three pieces of information obtained earlier, even if he couldn’t uncover the map’s secret, he could certainly extract a lot of gold coins from him.

De Gaulle straightened, looking Qi Yun straight in the eyes: "First, allow me to ask a question, and I hope Mr. Qi can answer truthfully."

Qi Yun picked up the teapot to pour more tea, motioning for him to continue.

"Did you get the item from Northern Mongolia?"

Qi Yun smiled at him: "Mr. De Gaulle, your sources are indeed quite impressive."

Though he didn’t confirm it, De Gaulle could read the meaning from his smile, and his eyelid twitched involuntarily.

He had dispatched several groups of people and spent a huge amount of money and time searching for the location in Northern Mongolia, only to have Qi Yun beat him to it in the end.

After a short silence, De Gaulle quickly adjusted his mindset, showing a warm smile again: "Since Mr. Qi is willing to cooperate, it doesn’t matter whose hands the item ends up in."

"Hmm, you make a good point." Qi Yun nodded in agreement, even though he noticed the hint of insincerity in De Gaulle’s words.

"Then let’s discuss the previous proposal. I’m willing to buy the complete map from you, Mr. Qi." De Gaulle paused, looking sincerely at Qi Yun, "You name the price."