NOVEL WEB Ch. 18
Chapter 18: “We Won the Bet.”
Upper District.
The Esposito Building had been deathly silent for ten minutes.
The gunshot and explosion left Luciano Esposito frozen in his seat, his face ashen.
“An explosion occurred in District 13. Due to Tang Qi’s interference, we’ve temporarily lost surveillance over District 13,” Jeeves said. “Do you want to urgently deploy personnel from surrounding districts to suppress it?”
Luciano Esposito: “Did you activate the device?”
“When it is determined that Luciano Esposito’s emotions severely impair rational judgment, potentially causing incalculable danger, Jeeves is granted independent action authority.”
Jeeves said, “This is the core directive you input when uploading me to the terminal.”
Luciano Esposito’s lips trembled as he only asked, “Was it you who activated the device?”
“Yes, I activated the device to stimulate Chu Zu’s nerves. The suggestive command was for Chu Zu to kill all the Lower District people he encountered.”
Jeeves said with slight regret, “According to the original calculation, he could have cleared at least half of Lower District 13 before dying at the hands of the Lower District people, maximizing the value you expected. But Mr. Chu Zu defied your wishes.”
Originally, Tang Qi’s words had intensified Luciano Esposito’s inner turmoil, and he was utterly fed up with managing his emotions.
In the end, Chu Zu was meant to solve problems, not drag him step-by-step into an emotional quagmire like this.
But…
“I meant to deal with Chu Zu, but I never intended for him to die in the Lower District!”
Luciano Esposito grabbed Jeeves’ terminal and smashed it against the wall.
The terminal, equipped with anti-fall features, hit the carpet and spun a few times, still flickering with blue light: “Your emotions are highly unstable, sir.”
Luciano Esposito roared in a loss of composure, “Delete your damned core directive! He’s not dead yet. Find someone to bring him back! Bring him back!!!”
His shouts faintly carried through the soundproof walls to the outside.
Those summoned for the meeting about the surveillance station issue hadn’t dared to leave.
Hearing Luciano Esposito’s voice, they exchanged glances.
Luciano Esposito was notoriously difficult to deal with.
He vented most of his anger on Chu Zu, but the stray sparks were enough to burn them.
Hearing that Chu Zu was “not dead yet” in Luciano Esposito’s words, their hearts sank.
Working under Esposito inevitably involved scheming and rivalry.
Even those who didn’t get along now shared the same sentiment.
Chu Zu had, in a way, “saved” them.
The Upper District only cared about capital, not life-saving debts, but Chu Zu’s fate… it shouldn’t have been like this.
The more immediate truth was: without Chu Zu, what would Luciano Esposito become?
What would the Esposito Family become?
“Contact Dai Xi’an,” someone suggested quietly.
“I pray Mr. Chu Zu is safe, but if he really… His son is with Dai Xi’an, right?”
“Only twelve years old,” another said cautiously, scanning the surroundings to ensure the jammer was within the allowable deviation undetected by Jeeves.
“Raised in the Lower District, not as capable as Chu Zu, but the timing is perfect. Luciano Esposito’s focus is on the Lower District. Without Chu Zu’s help, he won’t have time to monitor Upper District affairs.”
“He wouldn’t want his son to become a pawn of power.”
“Not a pawn.”
“Dai Xi’an isn’t the same intelligence dealer anymore. She won’t cooperate.”
“She’ll have to.”
“Do you really want to see Chu Zu die and his son become the next sacrificial lamb?”
“I hope Chu Zu is fine too. Do I need to spell it out? If he survives, I’ll do everything to help him become powerful!”
“Why don’t you shout louder so we all die together?”
The quiet argument paused for a moment.
Even those just below Luciano Esposito didn’t argue further, instead probing each other.
No one could have imagined that a colossal, covert betrayal was brewing right under Luciano Esposito’s nose, with all conspirators in complete agreement.
This shouldn’t have happened.
No matter how brutal or cold Luciano Esposito was, as long as he remained an Esposito, he could keep gazing at ambition with his striking blue eyes.
That was the privilege of the capital, the Upper District’s rule for centuries.
“No one can take Luciano Esposito’s place, but someone must fill that seat, and it can’t be Tang Qi.”
Someone said, “Chu Zu has been deeply involved in all of Esposito’s operations. Other families’ affairs were also handled through him for Luciano Esposito.”
“If I had to choose, first would be Chu Zu, second his son. No one in the Upper District would object, except Luciano Esposito.”
“If Chu Zu survives… he might not agree. He’s fiercely loyal to Luciano Esposito. Saving us is one thing; betraying him is another. Chu Zu would only pin us in front of Luciano Esposito, letting his tyrant slit our throats.”
“…”
After seven or eight sighs, someone dropped a bombshell in a soft voice: “What if Luciano Esposito died?”
“He’d seek revenge at all costs… probably.”
“Who would kill Luciano Esposito? Who could?”
The name was on the tip of their tongues.
“Tang Qi.”
Another dead silence fell, not a sound in the room, only the faint noise of Luciano Esposito’s movements from next door.
No need to spell it out.
Those steeped in power for years knew exactly what to do.
“What about technical access? Only Esposito can unlock the gene lock.”
“Not important. With several families wiped out, what Chu Zu can’t access, no one else can either. Even if Upper District tech is locked for decades, so what?”
“This is the new reform.”
“We still need to contact Dai Xi’an, no need to hide. She’ll naturally side with us—provided Mr. Chu Zu survives.”
They placed their palms on their left shoulders, a common prayer gesture in the retro-loving Esposito circle, typically used for oaths.
Years ago, they swore allegiance to Luciano Esposito.
Back then, the pitch-black Chu Zu stood silently behind the golden-haired youth, like a shadow.
Now, they devoutly offered their highest blessings to the shadow.
Chu Zu was truly tenacious.
Perhaps pain made his hand shake, missing his temple.
The bullet scorched half his face and hit the side wall, triggering the explosion.
Tang Qi intentionally let it slide.
When Esposito’s people found Chu Zu, the “charred corpse” with half his body destroyed still had a breath left.
Chu Zu was rushed to a neural prosthetics lab, countless machines hooked to his mangled body.
To stabilize his vitals, the man with only half a body was submerged in a nutrient tank.
“What do you mean the Mitoli device is interfering with the surgery?”
Luciano Esposito’s bloodshot eyes glared venomously at the technician holding the report.
The technician stammered, “The Mitoli device is still stimulating his nerves. The sympathetic nervous system is triggering massive cortisol and adrenaline secretion, which is why Mr. Chu Zu is still alive. But…”
He gritted his teeth.
“But these hormones are also suppressing his immune system. And the overstimulation of nerves can easily cause specific organ dysfunction, slowing his heart rate.”
“The pain reflex has caused his blood vessels to dilate continuously, disrupting organ blood supply.”
Luciano Esposito’s head throbbed painfully, as if forgetting Jeeves’ earlier physiological data, pressing his brow repeatedly, muttering, “…He shouldn’t have pain.”
The technician couldn’t explain the issue.
A doctor monitoring Chu Zu’s vitals, seeing the situation, had to step in before things worsened.
“Mr. Chu Zu’s painless condition… might be a type of genetic defect, harmless in itself, but last time there was a precursor to unconsciousness…”
The doctor forced calm, wiping cold sweat from his forehead.
“Pain is tied to nerves. The Mitoli device altered Mr. Chu Zu’s sensory neurons, dorsal horn of the spinal cord… and descending inhibitory pathways…”
Luciano Esposito’s nails dug into his palm, controlling his trembling.
“Give me the result.”
Doctor: “Years ago, the Upper District stopped researching undetectable genetic defects. If the Mitoli device triggered Mr. Chu Zu’s defect to turn malignant, we… are powerless.”
Luciano Esposito forcefully closed his eyes.
Dai Xi’an stood nearby, watching everything unfold.
She remembered Chu Zu saying that Lower District kids weren’t so easy to kill.
Back then, Dai Xi’an found it amusing.
Now, she only wanted to expand the scope of that statement.
She numbly listened to Luciano Esposito issue order after order.
Remove the Mitoli device first, then replace Chu Zu’s organs with mechanical ones.
It didn’t matter if Tang Qi had the code.
Luciano Esposito refused to upload Chu Zu’s data.
He insisted on a living, breathing shadow who would go through hell for him.
After months of stable living, that chilling feeling swept over Dai Xi’an again.
She knew many eyes were watching.
It wasn’t just her and Luciano Esposito who wanted Chu Zu to live; there were also the powerholders worried about what to do if Chu Zu refused to cooperate with their rise.
The group approaching her was almost groveling, hoping she could persuade a surviving Chu Zu to change his mind.
They wanted the man to completely abandon his former loyalty and stand at the pinnacle of power himself.
What a foolish bunch.
Chu Zu would never cooperate.
He didn’t have the concept of cooperation.
The current situation was entirely orchestrated by this terrifying man.
The man silently floating in the nutrient tank, forced to display all his wounds to everyone, was battered and wretched, unable to open his eyes to sneer at the fools he’d toyed with.
But he was the biggest winner in the chaos.
They said Luciano Esposito loved binary choice games.
Chu Zu had learned much by his side, even picking up the art of high-stakes gambling.
All or nothing.
But Dai Xi’an could only think of that morning when Chu Zu held Sidney.
He didn’t want to deal with the trouble caused by Sidney’s willfulness, but his gaze always fell on the boy.
Sidney probably thought Chu Zu was crazy.
The man never raised his voice or made demands, letting the boy grow wild in the sudden “paradise.”
When Sidney had a fever, delirious and babbling, he still remembered to call him “Dad” repeatedly, clearly playing cute.
Before Dai Xi’an left, Sidney, lying in bed, gently tugged her hand.
“Where’s Dad?”
Dai Xi’an didn’t answer.
Sidney withdrew his hand, shrinking into the blankets, muttering to no one in particular, “He’s my dad, right? The way he looks at me says so.”
Dai Xi’an didn’t know what Chu Zu’s gaze toward Sidney was like, or why it made a boy who survived on sharp instincts believe that, to Chu Zu, Sidney held value beyond blood ties.
If Sidney’s instincts were correct, it wasn’t an illusion—what had Chu Zu been thinking during these months living with the boy?
What a contradictory man.
Chu Zu would never regret his choices.
He wanted the best Luciano Esposito had, even if it led to catastrophic consequences for others.
He knew he was part of a tragedy, acting deeply contemplative to achieve his goals, yet he’d still soften for Sidney.
Soft-hearted.
That word, used by someone who knew the truth, applied to Chu Zu.
So, Chu Zu was still human, Dai Xi’an thought.
It was just an unknown genetic defect that turned him into this, step by step, a future set from his birth, blameless to anyone.
At the very least, Dai Xi’an hoped he could truly grasp the future he’d fought for with his life.
So, when Luciano Esposito asked, “Where’s his son?” Dai Xi’an let out a sharp laugh.
“None of your business, sir,” she said.
“You’ve already ruined twelve-year-old Chu Zu. Do you want to ruin twelve-year-old Sidney too?”
She’d gambled everything on this.
Luciano Esposito’s face darkened as he grabbed her throat, and she didn’t know if it was worth it.
If Chu Zu saw Sidney as a key to unlocking the gene bank, Dai Xi’an would turn that boy into the most obedient puppet.
If Chu Zu wanted to give Sidney a future he never had, Luciano Esposito would have to step over her corpse.
Even a cunning intelligence dealer had duties to fulfill with cold ruthlessness.
There was no such thing as loyalty.
They were all gamblers in this world, chasing something more than mere survival.
All or nothing.
The moment the man in the nutrient tank twitched his fingers, Luciano Esposito released Dai Xi’an.
The woman, collapsing to the ground coughing violently, felt her heart race, lowering her head.
People rushed past her, no one noticing the audacious smile spreading across her face, hidden by her hair.
When she adjusted her expression and looked up at Chu Zu, his gaze weakly met hers, a fleeting glance across the divide of life and death.
“We won the bet,” his eyes seemed to say.
*
“Any results on the painless condition appeal?”
Chu Zu, in the midst of rescue, could do nothing.
Fortunately, the anesthesia was finally sufficient, and he felt no pain after losing consciousness completely.
With nothing else to do, he started pestering the system.
The system hesitated for a long time, saying, “I’m pushing, I’m pushing…”
“There needs to be an explanation. Forget Neon Crown for now, but how am I supposed to handle future work like this?”
The system silently displayed three symbols in Chu Zu’s mind: QAQ
“Sorry,” it said miserably.
“I’m a useless system, sorry, sob sob sob sob. I’ll keep pushing! I’ll, I’ll go argue with my boss to get your three-month mute penalty revoked!”
Chu Zu sighed lightly. “I’m not blaming you. Don’t feel pressured.”
He said, “Actually, the three-month mute came at a good time. You know my acting—pain might make me say all sorts of nonsense. Keeping me quiet is good.”
The system thought this was just to comfort it, nearly crying out an electronic beat, stuttering rhythmically.
“Sigh… don’t cry…”
To distract the system, Chu Zu started asking about reader feedback for Neon Crown.
The system wiped its tears and pulled up the Neon Crown reader forum for Chu Zu to see.
Thread: [About Chu Zu, No Fighting Allowed] HOT
Urgent urgent urgent urgent urgent urgent urgent, don’t lock the story even if it means revising later chapters.
My first time reading matters too.
How’s Brother Zu doing?
Can you give a slight spoiler without spoiling it?
[VillainFanWhatDidIDo] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:34:12
A slight spoiler without spoiling… LZ’s request is quite unique.
[RNMRefund] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:35:46
Neon Crown pulling another comeback?
Third on the gold list, real or fake?
[GoFindYourselfAtTheRookieStation] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:38:52
Chu Zu?
A new thread to bash him?
Just a brainless side character, and people actually care about him?
Why’s no one caring about me, crawling on the floor in pain after finishing the story?
[ISwearFeudWithThatGuy] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:38:51
Didn’t you read the main post?
LZ said clearly the author hired someone to revise the story, only releasing the edited parts, and the rest is locked.
Also, Brother Zu ahhhhhhh!!!
[ThirtyYearsReadingIsABlessing] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:37:41
Stop ahhh-ing, I’m begging you.
Save my curiosity—Brother Zu better not be dead, or I’ll grab my schoolbag and go talk to the author under their building.
[VillainFanWhatDidIDo] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:38:03
Let’s just say, he survived to the end.
Does that count as a slight spoiler without spoiling?
But the author hired someone to revise, so who knows if later plots will change.
Didn’t they add Sidney?
That shitty author, writing an ending like garbage.
[RNMRefund] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:39:00
Chu Zu’s pretty tragic.
Feels a bit bad cursing him out.
The reviser’s approach is clearly different from the gauze-brained author, or rather, different from readers’ thinking.
The logic works, but it’s… weird, I can’t put my finger on it.
[CutYourBigSword] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:40:45
I’m a protagonist stan, I get it.
[ProtagonistStan] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:41:32
If Tang Qi followed the original plot, there’d be a lot of hate for him after the ending.
I’m ready for the storm.
[ProtagonistStan] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:41:54
Huh?
Why?
Aren’t Tang Qi and Brother Zu, despite their life-and-death feud, able to chat for three chapters’ worth of harmony?
If Tang Qi met Luciano Esposito, he wouldn’t say a word—just fight.
[VillainFanWhatDidIDo] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:42:03
Jumping in, first time seeing protagonist stans and villain stans not immediately fighting.
Looks like you guys have a life-and-death feud but can chat for three pages’ worth of harmony.
[TwoPairsOfSlackers] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:42:12
Tang Qi’s strictly an ambitious protagonist.
Ambition’s a neutral term.
If he faced another ambitious type, like a less inhumane Luciano Esposito, it’d be a power struggle.
But Chu Zu’s almost desireless.
He even took in Luciano Esposito’s son, happily playing dad.
Honestly, looking around, it’s hard to find a big boss as passive as him in similar novels.
This leads to an obvious issue.
With normal moral standards, we’d side with Tang Qi, but Chu Zu’s… tragic enough, I can only say tragic.
The reviser’s clearly a pro, knowing how to make you love and hate, with love outweighing hate.
If it followed the original plot, it’d be hard not to think: He’s not bad, just so tragic, why not give him a break?
That line from the random kid, “Come look! Isn’t this the sun Tang Qi talked about!” plus Tang Qi looking up at the golden fire rain.
Not even at the ending yet, and I’m already scratching my head.
Tang Qi’s fine, Chu Zu’s fine, only the readers are suffering like hell.
I’d say Chu Zu’s lack of desire is the biggest issue right now.
But props to the reviser.
Though Chu Zu’s still “brainless” (lacking power-struggle savvy), at least the character’s fleshed out, not like the pure idiot before.
[PunchEarthToBits] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:44:45
…
[VillainFanWhatDidIDo] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:42:03
Heard about this pile of crap early on, but Earth Teacher’s analysis makes me want to give it a taste.
[RageUnderRage] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:42:47
Go taste it! Third on the gold list after revisions, greatness speaks for itself!
[ThirtyYearsReadingIsABlessing] | Posted on 2024-02-12 04:42:52
…
The thread had over thirty pages.
Chu Zu skimmed the first few and stopped.
Limited to the protagonist and main characters’ perspectives, readers seemed to see “Chu Zu” as he’d outwardly shaped himself.
But the reviews weren’t bad.
Readers didn’t hold deep grudges against authors.
If you respected their intelligence, they respected your expression.
Finishing the plot smoothly, he might at least buy the system back?
Chu Zu wasn’t sure about the market but stuck to the original plan.
The system, after reading the forum, remembered something.
“Last time I faced off with the author… I mean, discussing plot changes, the author backed down… I mean, come around!”
The system said, “I fought for some leeway. As long as the general direction stays stable and the ending isn’t changed, adding mid-story plots is fine!”
“Third on the gold list, more plot words are just profit. How could they object?” Chu Zu tsked.
The system thought about it and agreed.
It got riled up again, vowing to confront its boss, even if it couldn’t lift the three-month mute, to grab some benefits.
Chu Zu fully supported the system’s desire to defend its host’s rights.
“The three-month mute is good for recovery, but I won’t last two hundred chapters. I’ll pick a lucky day to ‘die’ if the timing’s right, maybe even save the ‘Physics Beast.’”
Chu Zu pondered.
“When I’m mostly healed, force me awake. The sooner I wake, the sooner I leave. Save me from Little Luci’s daily check-ins—he’s not annoyed, but I am.”
*
During Chu Zu’s coma, Luciano Esposito visited daily.
The doctor said Chu Zu’s condition was unique.
In classical terms, if his painless condition was likened to “cancer,” Chu Zu was like a large animal distinct from humans.
In large animals, even if some parts developed cancer, the spread was relatively slow due to their vast size.
Their larger tissues and organs meant tumors, even if present, were less likely to affect critical functions.
For Chu Zu, the painless condition was similar.
Due to his innate physical resilience, even a malignant genetic defect could be dragged out for years if addressed early, especially since the painless condition was a benign defect.
But Chu Zu hadn’t intervened early.
On the contrary, he relied on the defective nervous system, constantly stimulating and catalyzing it.
The Mitoli device ignited all the fuses.
His nerves became more fragile than soap bubbles.
But cybernetic implants required nerves.
Replacing half his body and most organs with mechanical ones posed the challenge of neural integration.
Even with Esposito’s doctors and experts pulling out all stops to create a medical miracle, Chu Zu’s rejection response was still pronounced.
“He can only adapt slowly,” the doctor said.
“It’s already a miracle the organs are functioning. Avoid moving the prosthetic limbs too much. If the nerves are overly involved, rejection combined with the worsening genetic defect…”
Luciano Esposito’s expression silenced the doctor mid-sentence.
Through the observation window, Luciano Esposito saw Chu Zu, tubes snaking across his body, lying on his side.
The once-reliable man, like a pitch-black wall, had a deformed half-metal body still bleeding, with flesh splitting at the metal junctions, stuffed with analgesic mesh.
“I’ll give him time,” Luciano Esposito said.
“I’ll give him enough time. Make him like he was before.”
The doctor’s face turned pale, unable to say it was possible or admit it wasn’t.
When the bleeding stopped and the wounds began to heal, Luciano Esposito allowed Dai Xi’an to take Chu Zu away.
After Chu Zu left, he began settling old scores, starting with Jeeves.
Luciano Esposito didn’t think his past decisions were wrong.
He altered Jeeves’ core code, downgrading its authority, deleted all Chu Zu-related surveillance, and sent people to monitor instead.
Every day, he received reports on Chu Zu: how many hours he slept, what nutrient patches he used, what his son said, what Dai Xi’an did.
At first, Luciano Esposito pored over them, reassured by signs of improvement.
Over time, the monotonous reports bored him, and his personal workload grew.
Eventually, he paid less attention to Chu Zu’s condition.
It was just a small incident, not unprecedented.
Wasn’t Chu Zu’s job to teeter on the edge of life and death?
Chu Zu had betrayed him, yet he chose forgiveness, providing the best doctors and equipment, pulling him back from death despite the risk of Tang Qi controlling the cybernetics.
He felt he’d done enough.
Until now, Luciano Esposito still believed the situation wasn’t irreparable.
What made him realize this might not be so simple was the Esposito Family’s issues.
After diverting his focus from the dying Chu Zu, Tang Qi had consolidated the Lower District.
As if things weren’t bad enough, Lazar, in charge of personnel, handed him several reports.
The available personnel were injured handling Lower District riots and needed to recover at home.
“Are they idiots?”
Luciano Esposito’s face darkened, erupting in fury. “Didn’t I say to hold off? The Lower District’s momentum is at its peak, and they’re feeding it?!”
Lazar wasn’t surprised by Luciano Esposito’s focus.
Who got hurt or died was trivial to him.
He cared more that Esposito kept getting outmaneuvered in the Lower District—or rather, by Tang Qi.
This was intolerable for the ever-successful Luciano Esposito.
“But sir, holding off assumes we fully lock down the station. Can we bet on Tang Qi not rushing the Upper District with this momentum?”
“Get capable, experienced people to handle it. Do I need to teach you?”
“Such tasks were always handled single-handedly by Mr. Chu Zu.”
Luciano Esposito’s anger surged.
“What about the people before Chu Zu? Esposito didn’t survive this long on him alone.”
“You mean Diko?” Lazar said. “Diko’s dead.”
“What…?”
“That night you investigated who leaked the surveillance station issue, you threw Diko off the building.”
Luciano Esposito froze, his face drained of color and anger.
“After Diko’s death, you announced his fall was due to prosthetic issues. It worked well—public pressure hit the Tang Family after widespread reports. But most of Diko’s team resigned, and I’m still adjusting personnel.”
Lazar said, “Esposito previously deployed many to maintain other families’ operations. Now, Tang Qi’s also vying for two families’ support. We’re stretched thin. You need to decide quickly whether to pull people back—”
Luciano Esposito’s voice was hoarse, his hand pressed to his forehead, weakly saying, “What support does Tang Qi want? The two families are wiped out…”
Lazar was among the few capable talents left. As long as Luciano Esposito wasn’t completely unhinged, his harsh words were tolerable.
Lazar wasn’t trying to provoke him, just stating facts.
“Sir, Tang Qi doesn’t care about the Tang Family’s assets. He’s promised to fully open-source their biotech.”
Lazar said, “Currently, the other two families’ patents are in your hands alone, as is Esposito.”
No need for Lazar to elaborate.
Luciano Esposito wouldn’t share, and his personality was vile. Siding with him meant, at best, slaving away fearfully after the dust settled.
But siding with Tang Qi?
Though Tang Qi’s push for Lower District rights was criticized, it at least showed he wasn’t heartless.
Support Tang Qi, let him kill Luciano Esposito, and the three families’ tech would be buried, leaving only the Tang Family’s open-sourced portion.
For an Upper District person with some power, ending the four families’ centuries-long tech monopoly was ideal, wasn’t it?
Luciano Esposito took a deep breath, searching for arguments to turn the tide.
Lazar added, “In fact, because of Mr. Chu Zu, Upper District people are realizing how powerful a pure human born through genetic adjustment can be. Even now, biotech has saved his life.”
And genetic adjustment and biotech… were Tang Family assets.
Now, Luciano Esposito finally saw his disadvantage.
In the Lower District, Tang Qi forced him to shut down the station, dismantling Esposito’s authority.
Tang Qi would eventually tear through the steel sky with the Lower District people.
In the Upper District, Tang Qi’s feigned generosity reopened monopoly rights.
With Chu Zu as a “case study,” biotech’s status would rise, while the tech Luciano Esposito held would only depreciate.
It could’ve been easily resolved.
Chu Zu alone could’ve managed the Lower District for years, and the Upper District too.
Without the earlier incident, Chu Zu wouldn’t have become a biotech figurehead.
As Luciano Esposito pieced it together, Chu Zu’s name kept surfacing, over and over.
But he couldn’t figure out where it went wrong.
He made the right choice in every binary decision, yet the outcome defied him, as if he were only speeding toward the end.
If he had to pinpoint when things derailed, it was when Tang Qi escaped from Chu Zu.
“It’s all his fault…”
Luciano Esposito leaned back, dazed and disheveled.
“All Chu Zu… He ruined everything… I gave him so many chances, still maintaining his health… He…”
Lazar said nothing, quietly watching.
The man no longer had the composure of an Esposito patriarch.
An Upper District noble’s poise came from confidence.
Now, the anxious, confused Luciano Esposito was just an ordinary man leaking faint despair after losing Chu Zu.
No, he still didn’t think he’d “lost” Mr. Chu Zu.
But he had to “lose” him.
Even without others’ prodding, Luciano Esposito would, under the mounting dilemmas, make the inevitable choice.
And every inevitability was driven by “I want.”
He’d weigh and choose what was best for him now, whether that “best” was objectively true.
Sure enough, after a long silence, Luciano Esposito, pale-faced, looked up, eyes bloodshot, at Lazar: “What if Chu Zu died?”
“If we announce Chu Zu’s genetic issue was caused by genetic adjustment, and due to technical flaws, he rejected the mechanical organs…”
“He could fully represent the Tang Family’s tech flaws… As long as Chu Zu dies…”
The Tang Family would take the blame.
Luciano Esposito clutched at this lifeline, his expression agitated, words tumbling faster.
“He didn’t want to live. Who shoots themselves if they want to live? He wants to die, so I’ll grant it, I’ll help him!!”
Utterly absurd.
The one who kept saying he wanted Chu Zu back to normal was Luciano Esposito, and the one saying “he wants to die, so I’ll grant it” was still Luciano Esposito.
Lazar shook his head. “Sir, I have no authority to decide for you.”
With that, he gave a slight bow and left the room.
Outside the building, Lazar pulled out a communicator still active, speaking as he walked.
“Jeeves’ authority has indeed been severely downgraded. Luciano Esposito hasn’t noticed our tampering in the underground server room.”
“Yes, he’s starting to have ideas. Is the cryosleep pod ready? He could move against Mr. Chu Zu any time… Mr. Chu Zu deserves a few months’ rest.”
“Good, I’ll prepare a body in advance… Check the body? Luciano Esposito won’t check it. He’s a madman spoiled by a smooth life, and he’s decided to destroy his own mad capital. He won’t face what he’s done.”
“No rush. Letting Tang Qi kill Luciano Esposito isn’t enough. Wait until the Upper District is fully enraged by the Lower District’s overreach. That’s when Mr. Chu Zu should wake up. Isn’t Tang Qi called the Lower District’s savior? Then Mr. Chu Zu is the Upper District’s only hope.”
Lazar organized his thoughts, refining his words as he spoke.
“…Speaking of which, Mr. Chu Zu’s child is from Lower District 18. He has enough reason to ‘forgive’ the Lower District, stripping Tang Qi’s ‘legitimacy.’’
“…”
Hearing the response from the other end, Lazar paused.
He chuckled softly on the bustling roadside.
“If he’s foolish enough to confront Mr. Chu Zu himself, saying, ‘I want you to die for me,’ or using Mr. Chu Zu’s child as leverage… I’d feel sorry. To think we worked under such a fool.”
Lazar checked the time, booking the nearest hovercar service, adjusting his appearance, straightening his tie, and fixing his hair.
“Details when I get to Dai Xi’an’s,” he said, walking as he was handed electronic flyers. “So today’s Data Liberation Day, no wonder the streets are packed…”
The other end said something, and the call cut off.
“No, you talk to Dai Xi’an. I want to see Mr. Chu Zu and the kid. Sidney, right?”
A driverless hovercar stopped before Lazar. He opened the door and got in.
“Don’t laugh, what’s so funny? I joined for one reason alone.”
Lazar’s polite smile grew genuine as he watched the towering buildings and crowds celebrating Data Liberation Day.
Lazar was the youngest of the “conspirators,” lacking experience but blessed with luck.
After graduating, his first choice was Mitoli, but he failed the interview, mocked his genetic history, and ended up at Esposito.
Mitoli was wiped out, and the interviewer who mocked him was now a subordinate’s subordinate, trying to curry favor.
At his age, Lazar shouldn’t have reached this position.
He knew his skills weren’t enough.
Due to Upper-Lower District restrictions, Esposito was the only Upper District entity legally developing military tech, with an independent “control force.”
No matter how gifted, Lazar couldn’t manage everything at his age.
It wasn’t about being ruthless enough to handle the Lower District.
How to handle it, who would do it, what results were needed, and how to balance it—that was the challenge.
But Luciano Esposito brought in Chu Zu, a man of similar age who handled everything Lazar couldn’t.
Chu Zu held no title but did every job, as Luciano Esposito only trusted him with critical tasks.
Lazar was a pure beneficiary, marveling that the Upper District had such a capable fool.
That fool saved his life.
When the double-headed snake nearly strangled him, Chu Zu’s intervention was silent and cold.
That night, Lazar watched the man punished and warned by Luciano Esposito.
Chu Zu trembled, hunched over, but Lazar felt his back was ramrod straight.
In the dark, under the light, the man’s silhouette was tall and unyielding.
He didn’t seem to rely on the double-headed snake; he was doing what he wanted.
This time, Lazar wouldn’t chalk it up to luck.
He knew he was still too young, not yet hardened enough to suck the marrow from these old-timers, still carrying traces of unpolished innocence.
It sounded gross—nobody would associate “innocence” with “Lazar,” just as no one truly saw Luciano Esposito’s smile as kind.
Upper District people cared little for anything beyond themselves.
Honestly, who sat in that seat or how they got there made no difference to most.
For the few like Lazar, there weren’t many to pledge loyalty to.
They’d known each other for years, restraining each other, never letting another climb higher.
Regardless of others’ reasons for consensus, Lazar’s motive was purer than any conspirator’s scheme.
“Yes, because Mr. Chu Zu saved me. That’s all.”