Various factions were stirring up trouble. In the past two days, Xiao Jin showed Han Xiao information about the activities of other factions and also transferred the agreed compensation and reward to his Dark Net account, totaling eight million Aquamarine Dollar.
Han Xiao's current assets are enormous, totaling over 40 million, more than ten times the amount he previously possessed. With ample funds, he can lavishly invest in machinery and begin implementing his ideas, such as the robot army concept that he previously hesitated to build due to its high cost.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and the internal meeting was held as scheduled in the Overmela Councilroom, with high-ranking officials from various factions gathered together under heavy guard.
Han Xiao, wearing a hood, entered the council hall disguised as an ordinary high-ranking member of the Xiao Faction, attracting no attention. He found a seat and sat down.
In the center of the council chamber was a large round table, with the person in charge sitting at the table. Other high-ranking officials sat around the table, with members of different factions sitting behind the person in charge. The factions were clearly defined and divided into small areas from different angles.
It was snowing lightly outside, but the council chamber was heated. Everyone took off their coats, whispered among themselves, and made quite a racket.
Ding ding.
Todd rang the bell on the table, and the council chamber quickly fell silent.
"Then the meeting begins." Todd's expression was serious. "There are four candidates to succeed the Chief: myself, Second Chief Xiao, Third Chief Saqi, and Mr. Angoleton. Those who are ready can vote."
"Well then, before we vote, I'd like to say something..." Angoleton up to speak, making a declaration before the vote—this was a standard procedure, and although most of the high-ranking officials present already had their preferred candidates, this procedure was still indispensable.
Soon, all four had finished speaking, and Todd glanced around. "Then let's begin the vote."
The top executives stated their respective choices.
Todd looked nervous. He had been busy contacting other high-ranking officials these past few days, promising them many benefits. During the meetings, they had basically finalized their decision to elect him. In terms of votes, he could overwhelm the other candidates.
However, he was quickly stunned. Those high-ranking officials who had vowed to vote for him all voted for Saqi instead, without glancing at him at all.
"How could this happen..." Todd exclaimed, filled with shock and anger.
Saqi looked smug and frequently smiled and greeted the executives who had voted for him. Seeing that he had an absolute advantage in the votes, he immediately felt relieved.
When Delo was assassinated, Saqi realized that the successor election was an opportunity. He secretly contacted Terilous, Terilous promised Terilous many benefits after he became the head of the family.
Although Overmela is Terilous's partner, Terilous is very aggressive and secretly wants to control Overmela's power. Before long, he got involved with Saqi, the third-in-command who was unwilling to be subordinate to anyone. This time, Terilous used his connections to secretly win over a large number of high-ranking people and create an advantage for Saqi.
As for Angoleton from the Northern Faction, he was basically just there for show. Even his own Northern Faction didn't vote for him. He sat awkwardly in his seat, unsure whether to sit or stand.
Angoleton was elected by the Northern Faction to maintain order. He was unwilling to relinquish his position as leader, yet knew he had no chance, leaving him in a conflicted state of mind.
Saqi took the lead in votes, and unsurprisingly, his votes exceeded half, sealing the deal.
"Haha, thank you all for your support. I will live up to your expectations." Saqi stood up, his face flushed and his spirits high, unable to hide his pride.
At this moment, Xiao Jin spoke up, "Wait."
Everyone immediately looked over, their expressions varied. Xiao Jin was also a strong candidate, and everyone was curious about his backup plan since he had only intervened now.
"Second Master Xiao, do you have any objections?" Saqi's heart tightened, and he emphasized the words "Second Master".
Suddenly, a voice rang out from within the Xiao Faction faction, a voice that the assembled high-ranking members could not forget.
I have a problem with that.
Everyone's eyes widened, their faces turning terrified. They recognized the voice as belonging to Black Phantom!
The Xiao Faction members parted, revealing Han Xiao Han Xiao, who was still dressed in a black trench coat and black gloves, arms crossed, expressionless, and said, "I think Xiao Jin is more suitable for the position of leader."
Saqi was stunned for a long time before he came to his senses and said incredulously, "Xiao Jin, how dare you let an outsider interfere in family affairs? Do you want to break the rules?!"
"Black Phantom is not an outsider; he is an elder of my Xiao Faction, and my child has already acknowledged him as his godfather."
As soon as Xiao Jin finished speaking, the younger generation of the Xiao Faction bowed to Han Xiao in unison, as if they had rehearsed, and called him "godfather".
Everyone was dumbfounded.
"That's shameless..." Todd's face twitched.
Based on Black Phantom's previous behavior, he had been very detached and didn't care about the internal changes in Overmela, but now he's interfering with the Tu Shu.
They thought about it again. When Black Phantom was suspected, only Xiao Jin spoke up for him. In the end, it was Xiao Jin who found the True Culprit and cleared Black Phantom's name. At that time, other factions were only concerned with winning over the votes of the higher-ups.
The various factions suddenly realized that it was perhaps through this incident that Xiao Jin made contact with Black Phantom, which is why Black Phantom was willing to help Xiao Jin.
Moreover, Xiao Jin must have gone to great lengths to win over Black Phantom as a relative of the Xiao Faction.
Although the various factions were dissatisfied, they could not deny that Xiao Jin's actions had strengthened Overmela's overall strength, and Black Phantom was nominally Overmela's relative and helper.
Han Xiao sat down with an air of authority, scanning the entire room with a dangerous glint in his eyes.
The higher-ups all turned their gazes away, not daring to meet his eyes.
No words are needed; Han Xiao's mere presence here speaks volumes.
A silent threat.
The atmosphere became awkward, and the high-ranking officials who had cast their votes became very uneasy, exchanging furtive glances.
Finally, one of the higher-ups couldn't hold back any longer. Wiping his sweat, he hesitated and said, "I've thought about it carefully, and I feel that Xiao Jin is more suitable for the position of leader. I wonder if we can switch sides?"
According to the rules, one cannot change their vote, but Todd, who was chairing the meeting, cursed inwardly. With the Black Phantom glaring menacingly on the side, he dared not say no and could only nod sullenly.
After the first person, a second and a third quickly followed. Han Xiao's gaze slowly swept over them, and whoever he saw immediately switched sides, as if his gaze contained magic.
Saqi was unwilling to give up and wanted to try one last time, but then he saw Han Xiao's gaze turn to him, his eyes like knives piercing his heart. A sense of fear exploded in his heart, and Saqi hurriedly shut his mouth in fright, watching helplessly as the position that should have belonged to him slipped through his fingers.
The result was as expected; Xiao Jin won by an overwhelming majority of votes.
The Xiao Faction members were overjoyed, while the other factions could only hold their noses and offer their Xiao Jin one by one.
Xiao Faction's methods made things difficult for all factions, but the result was not unacceptable. At least Xiao Jin was a veteran who had made many contributions.
"I never expected Xiao Jin to win in the end." Todd felt a pang of heartache. The Main Family Faction had been in charge of Overmela for so many years, but due to a sudden change, they lost their long-held power and were usurped.
Todd knew that from this day forward, their Main Family Faction would gradually become subservient.
Seeing that the dust had settled, Han Xiao put on his coat, turned and left. The crowd parted automatically, and the high-ranking officials who were congratulating Xiao Jin also stopped and stared at Han Xiao's the Sight of Father's Back.
Although Xiao Jin was the ultimate winner, in everyone's eyes, the protagonist of this meeting was the fleeting Black Phantom. He only made one appearance, yet he established Xiao Jin's status.
This is the deterrent power of overwhelming force.
Everyone envied Xiao Jin. As long as Black Phantom was nominally still considered a member of the Xiao Faction, Xiao Jin's position was as secure as a rock.