Chapter 210: Hidden Arrows, Open Moves, Diverging Schemes

Lin Yu looked at Sun Lingyun's terrified face, the corner of his mouth curling into a meaningful smile. He lightly rested his hand on Sun Lingyun's shoulder, and the gesture immediately made the latter tremble even more violently.

"Brother Lingyun," Lin Yu said in a gentle tone, as if chatting with an old friend, exhaling a ring of smoke from his cigarette, "Did you enjoy your stay in Shen City this time?"

Sun Lingyun's lips trembled, but he could not make a sound. His gaze was unfocused, as if he might faint at any moment.

"Shen City is a fine place," Lin Yu said with a light chuckle, his tone still gentle but carrying an undeniable authority, "but not just anyone can come here."

His gaze turned to Wang Zhenwu, but his words seemed still aimed at Sun Lingyun: "Remember, this Shen City," he pointed with the hand holding his cigarette, ash falling lightly as he moved, "is my territory, Lin Yu's."

His voice suddenly turned cold: "Whether it's local warlords, the northern court, or those blond‑haired, blue‑eyed foreigners, anyone who wants to reach out here must first ask if I agree."

Pausing meaningfully, he let his gaze fall again on Sun Lingyun's ashen face: "The Sun family is big and prosperous; just hold onto your own turf. Any thoughts you shouldn't have," he emphasized, "are better put away early."

Sun Lingyun shivered under his stare, the cigarette already slipping from his trembling lips. Watching him like that, Lin Yu seemed pleased with his intimidation.

"All right," he released Sun Lingyun's shoulder, turned to Wang Zhenwu, and his tone suddenly became indifferent, "Take your young master away. A car has been prepared for you. Safe travels, I won't see you off."

Wang Zhenwu's feelings were now extremely complicated. The young master could finally leave this hell on earth, which ought to be cause for celebration. But seeing Sun Lingyun reduced to this state, and hearing Lin Yu's half‑clear, half‑veiled warning, he felt both relieved and deeply helpless.

Lin Yu's methods were terrifying. He not only wanted money and property, but through this means he planted eternal fear in Sun Lingyun's heart, making the Sun family completely abandon any thought of encroaching on Shen City. And what was most despairing was that this plan had obviously succeeded.

He dared not say more, quickly stepping forward to support the barely standing Sun Lingyun. The young master's body felt terrifyingly light in his arms, as if a breeze could blow it away. And those eyes, once bright and spirited, now held only endless fear and emptiness.

Wang Zhenwu helped Sun Lingyun out of the warehouse at a quick pace. Countless icy gazes followed from behind, as if watching two beasts escape a cage. Outside the warehouse, an ordinary black sedan waited, its engine idling softly.

He carefully shoved Sun Lingyun into the back seat, then quickly climbed in himself. "Hurry! Get out of here!" he urged the driver, his voice barely concealing his anxiety.

The sedan slowly started, drove away from the gloomy warehouse, and merged into Shen City's bustling traffic. The streets remained crowded, passersby coming and going, utterly unaware of what had just happened in the warehouse.

Inside the car there was dead silence, only the engine's roar and occasional jolts. Wang Zhenwu looked at Sun Lingyun beside him, his heart feeling as if cut by a knife. The young master curled up on the seat like a startled small animal, his gaze vacant as he stared ahead. Whenever the car jolted slightly, he instinctively flinched, as if bracing against some dreadful blow.

Wang Zhenwu several times tried to speak words of comfort, but each time he swallowed them back. What should he say? That it was all over? Yet the deep‑seated fear in the young master's eyes clearly told him this nightmare was far from over. He could only let out a heavy sigh, his eyes filled with concern and pity.

The sedan sped all the way without daring to pause for a moment. The scenery outside the window flew backward, from bustling downtown to sparse suburbs, then to open countryside. When the car passed the Shen City boundary marker and climbed onto the bridge leading to the outer province, Wang Zhenwu finally let out a long, deep breath, as if he had set down a thousand‑jin burden.

But he knew this was only the beginning of the nightmare. He watched the outline of Shen City recede outside the window, Lin Yu's last words echoing in his ears: "This Shen City is my territory, Lin Yu's...... The Sun family is big and prosperous; just hold onto your own turf. Any thoughts you shouldn't have, better put them away early......"

This was hardly a friendly farewell; it was a naked threat and warning!

Wang Zhenwu's gaze fell again on Sun Lingyun. The young master still looked shaken, as if leaving Shen City could not free him from fear. What trauma had half a month of imprisonment left him with? After returning to the Governor's Mansion, how should he report to the Governor? And how could he help the young master recover?

More importantly, what did the subtext of Lin Yu's words foretell? The Sun family's years‑long foundation in Shen City could be lost in an instant—could the Governor just let this slide? But if they sought revenge, given Lin Yu's methods and strength……

The sedan continued to speed forward, carrying two people heavy with worries, toward an unknown future.

The car's taillights vanished into the night. Feng An walked up to Lin Yu and spoke softly: "Commander, are you really just letting them go?" His tone held a hint of doubt, "Sun Lingyun is after all a liability; keeping him in hand or outright killing him would be safer, wouldn't it? You once said that when you have enough strength, promises are merely……"

Lin Yu raised a hand to cut him off, his face breaking into an inscrutable smile: "Kill him?" He turned to look at Feng An and countered, "Then what? Let Sun Dingyuan have no scruples and fight us to the death? Or make the world think I, Lin Yu, am a faithless brute who only knows how to kill?"

He walked slowly to the area where the ransom was stacked, his long fingers lightly stroking a gold‑bar box, his tone carrying an elegant cruelty: "Isn't this arrangement fine as it is?"

Feng An gazed at his master, thoughtful. Lin Yu continued: "If Sun Lingyun returns alive, his spirit already broken, to Sun Dingyuan he will be a constant reminder and humiliation." His voice was soft, yet each word struck home: "It would be best for him to stay meek and withdrawn; if the Sun family can't restrain itself and tries any further tricks……"

He paused, a flash of cold light in his eyes: "Or if Sun Lingyun himself steps forward...... that would give us a righteous pretext to completely annex their territory. Such a 'wealth‑bringing boy' and excuse are only valuable while he's alive."

Feng An listened, heartfelt admiration showing, and grinned: "Commander, you're brilliant!"

Lin Yu withdrew his hand from the gold‑bar box, seeming to have lost interest in such vast wealth. He turned to Feng An and suddenly shifted the topic: "Any movement from the Lu family side?"

Feng An's expression immediately turned grave: "Reporting, Commander, the Lu family's eldest son, Lu Xuan, has secretly infiltrated Shen City. Our Dark Night operatives have already set their sights on him."

"Oh?" Lin Yu's lips curled in a playful arc, "He moved quickly. Looks like we have another guest who needs our proper 'hospitality'."

The warehouse lights illuminated Lin Yu's face, his deep eyes gleaming with a predator's light. In his view, this prosperous Shen City was a vast chessboard, and those who recklessly intruded on his territory were merely his pawns.

New prey, a new game, about to begin.