Mei Zhu rubbed at the bags under her eyes, exposing bloodshot, cloudy eyeballs. This was both a question and an inquiry from a superior. "Recently, both sides have kept a relatively low profile. The Lost Kingdom has basically stopped operating in the city, and the few large-scale rituals they held have been getting farther and farther away. As for the Giantwood Consortium, we don't have any particularly clear leads either..."
"No, there definitely are." Tang Li answered casually. "I attended their banquet and nearly got blown to pieces the moment I walked out. They have to give me an explanation."
"The Giantwood Consortium is asking us for an explanation too."
Only Peng Yang would dare say something like that, but before he could get any further, An Sa jabbed him from the side.
Tang Li laughed again. "I know. The Silver White Sword Tower in East 824 District collapsed, and it won't be rebuilt anytime soon. The temporary surveillance equipment is also in short supply because those Rebellious Executive Officers have been making trouble at sea, requiring deployments from multiple sides. The Giantwood Consortium wants to leverage the low-latitude launch site advantage here in the Twelve Great Districts to secure equipment production orders and get into orbit quickly. But because of that business with the Lost Kingdom, they fell under suspicion and got held up in the process. Is that right?"
Tang Li delivered that long account of causes and effects at an unhurried pace, his gaze sweeping around the hospital room. By the time he finished, he had taken in everyone's reaction—or, more precisely, pressed the full weight of the pressure into each of their hearts.
For a moment, no one in the hospital room spoke.
Tang Li pointed at Peng Yang. "I've heard that exact explanation twice since