Chapter 213

Lin Yu's gesture seemed to open some gate, but Lu Xuan did not immediately sketch out Nanjiang's blueprint. He pondered slightly, his gaze thoughtful as it swept over Lin Yu's probing eyes, then he glanced at the darkening sky outside the window.

The crystal chandelier in the reception hall had come on at some point, soft light spilling between them. A wisp of blue smoke curled up from Lu Xuan's cigarette, forming a hazy veil in the light.

"Before we talk about Nanjiang," his voice remained calm, yet carried a power that made one want to listen involuntarily, "Commander Lin, perhaps you would be more interested in me as a person."

"I want to tell you a story about the 'fortunate one,' a story that everyone thought he was blessed with three lifetimes of luck."

Lin Yu had expected to hear concrete plans for Nanjiang, but Lu Xuan's unexpected opening drew him in. He leaned back slightly, resting against the soft sofa back, a hint of amusement appearing on his face.

Obviously, he accepted this "roundabout salvation" style of talk. Perhaps out of curiosity, or perhaps he wanted to see what medicine this audacious young man was selling from his gourd. His slender fingers lightly tapped the sofa armrest, as if beating some rhythm.

Feng An, standing aside, remained vigilant, but his attention was also involuntarily drawn over.

His gaze shifted back and forth between Lin Yu and Lu Xuan, trying to catch every subtle change in expression.

Only Lu Xuan's calm tone remained in the reception hall. The previously tense atmosphere eased temporarily, replaced by a more subtle mood.

No one knew where this story would lead, but everyone could feel that a deeper psychological contest was unfolding silently.

Lu Xuan's choice to open with storytelling was clearly the result of careful thought. At the negotiation table, laying all cards bare might not be the best move. He needed to first establish his personal image, explain his motives, and add credibility to the later-proposed Nanjiang Opportunity.

Smoke curled in the light, adding a touch of mystery to the story about to unfold. Lu Xuan's expression was calm as water, but his deep eyes glittered with sharpness. This story might become the key to breaking the situation.

Lu Xuan's voice echoed in the reception hall, calm to the point of near indifference: "Twenty-six years ago, the Lu family adopted an orphan. To outsiders, this was a great blessing." He lightly exhaled a smoke ring, "A child wandering the streets became, overnight, the adopted son of the Nanjiang's foremost clan. Fine clothes and jade food, a future as bright as brocade."

Lin Yu listened quietly, his sharp eyes catching every subtle change in Lu Xuan's expression.

"But fate always likes to joke." A hint of bitterness curved Lu Xuan's lips, "After the Lu wife was diagnosed infertile, she miraculously became pregnant three years after adopting that orphan. Lu Xiao, the Lu family's true bloodline, was thus born."

He paused a moment, his gaze seeming to pierce through time and space toward distant past: "Everyone said he was lucky, even he himself thought so at first. Only after the child's birth did he realize that fate's gift had already been priced in the shadows."

Smoke curled in the air, like shadows of the past.

"From that moment on, his life's course was replanned. The harshest military training, the most specialized tactical education. From the Nanjiang Lecture Hall to the Germanic Imperial Military Academy, he was forged into the Lu faction's sharpest sword." Lu Xuan's tone remained calm, yet his words carried an indescribable coldness, "But the hilt of that sword forever lay in another's hand."

Lin Yu's eyes twitched slightly, as if he had sensed something.

"Every bit of his excellence was not for himself." Lu Xuan continued, "but to better protect that true heir, even if that heir......" A tremor appeared for the first time in his voice, "and is not worth protecting."

The atmosphere in the reception hall grew increasingly heavy. Even the perpetually tense Feng An felt a suffocating oppression from Lu Xuan's calm narration.

"Do you know what's most ironic?" Lu Xuan locked eyes with Lin Yu, "No matter how great his achievements, no matter how the outside world praises his talent, within the Lu family's core circle he remains the 'outsider' who constantly needs to be reminded of his status."

He stubbed out his cigarette, the motion still elegant, but his whitened knuckles gave him away: "When he led the Lu faction's troops to take three cities in succession, people praised the Lu clan's prestige; when he returned victorious from the Germanic Imperial Academy, the guest of honor at the family banquet was the Lu Xiao who had just entered college; when he......"

Lu Xuan suddenly stopped, a self-mocking smile touching his lips: "Commander Lin, you say, is such a 'fortunate one' really fortunate?"

The room fell into an eerie silence. Lin Yu narrowed his eyes, gazing thoughtfully at the young man before him.

Lu Xuan's story not only displayed his extraordinary background, but also revealed a huge rift hidden beneath the Lu family's glossy surface. This irreconcilable internal contradiction might very well be the true motive behind all his actions tonight.

The smoke gradually dissipated, and the atmosphere in the reception hall grew even heavier.

Lu Xuan slowly stubbed out his cigarette, the elegant motion laden with an indescribable heaviness. The cigarette butt let out a faint "hiss" in the crystal ashtray, like a silent sigh.

He lifted his head, his gaze once again meeting Lin Yu's. In those calm eyes, ripples finally surfaced—resentment, anger, irony—all eventually turning into a bitter self-mockery.

"With Commander Lin's intelligence, you must have figured it out by now." His voice remained steady, but gained a hoarse edge.

Lin Yu said nothing, merely watching him intently. The crystal chandelier's light spread a soft halo between them, yet it could not reach the depths of their own eyes.

"That's right, I am that 'fortunate' orphan."

A simple sentence, yet it seemed to carry a weight of a thousand jin. Lu Xuan let that heaviness hang in the air for a moment, then continued: "This time I came to Shen City, my father......" His voice showed clear agitation for the first time, "He not only didn't let me bring ransom, but actually hopes I can persuade you to release my useless brother."

His fingers unconsciously rubbed the sofa armrest, his knuckles whitening from the pressure: "Or......" he drew a cold arc at the corner of his mouth, "using my life as a 'discard' to exchange for his true precious son."

As soon as those words left his mouth, even the ever-vigilant Feng An couldn't help but frown. Lin Yu's eyes narrowed slightly; from Lu Xuan's clenched fist and the repressed fire in his gaze, he clearly felt the turbulent inner turmoil of a man toyed with by fate.

Lu Xuan struggled to keep his composure, but his voice now carried a barely concealed tremor: "How ironic, isn't it? Twenty years of cultivation, tens of millions of taels invested, and in the end, to them I am nothing more than a disposable piece."

The air in the reception hall seemed to solidify. The brutal truth of "discard exchanged for heir" was exposed, pushing Lu Xuan's situation into a suffocating dead end.

Lin Yu gazed thoughtfully at the young man before him. At this moment, he seemed no longer the dreaded Major General of Nanjiang, but a poor soul played with by fate. Yet the fire burning in his eyes showed he would never resign himself to being a pawn moved by others.