Chapter 1095: Grand Duke Lu, I'm an Orphan Again. Lu Ding: I'll Take You to Get Revenge.

.....Lu Ding's voice rang out: "Qin Jinghao? Let me take a look."

He leaned in to check the information on Secretary Qiu's tablet.

What came into view was Qin Jinghao's face, which looked slightly more youthful compared to now.

Lu Ding took a deep breath: "One of my investigators is named Qin Jinghao."

Was this bastard picking a fight with his own men!?

Secretary Qiu suddenly understood: "Right!! There's a Qin Jinghao among the western investigators. So you..."

Lu Ding stood up: "I'll go."

"But I have to take him with me. Is that alright, Secretary Qiu?"

Although Qin Jinghao was wild and unrestrained, chasing fame and fortune, indulging in pleasure, eccentric in temperament, never holding back when he struck, with blurry lines between good and evil, and somewhat unscrupulous.

But as one of the first people to follow Lu Ding.

His seniority didn't need explaining.

Back then, he could be considered the first investigator of any real substance under Lu Ding, aside from the local bureau chief.

Though he had plenty of flaws, his loyalty to Lu Ding, his devotion to White Ridge 749, and his contributions to the western region's development were absolute.

If killing could get him promoted and rich, he'd put everyone except Lu Ding on his must-kill list.

Of course, despite all those issues, he also learned from Lu Ding and never accepted any gifts.

Earning contribution points with his own hands, he feasted on meat and fish every day, changed his clothes daily, tossed the old ones, and bought new ones.

Other than following Lu Ding's example of keeping his distance from women, he indulged in everything - eating, drinking, having fun - never leaving a cent in his wallet overnight, spending lavishly.

But Lu Ding thought his authenticity was refreshing.

Secretary Qiu said with some difficulty: "I suppose it's fine, but when you get there, you'll need to hold back a bit."

"After all, they're partners. Don't make things too ugly."

Lu Ding's face showed no expression: "Secretary Qiu, if that's how you put it, I'm not taking the mission. But I'm still going - just not in the name of the Great Han. I'll take Qin Jinghao there in my own name."

They thought they could push him around?

Lu Ding really didn't believe that nonsense.

Secretary Qiu's head ached: "Ah, fine, fine, fine, I believe the Nanshan Kingdom can make its own judgment. Compared to losing face, losing people, or having their country invaded by others taking advantage of their weakness, I trust the people of Nanshan Kingdom know which is worse."

Only then did Lu Ding's smile return. He pulled out his phone: "Then I'll make a call."

With that said.

Lu Ding made a call.

Meanwhile.

On the other side.

Western Region, Mouth of the Evil Prison.

Qin Jinghao was leading a team of investigators on patrol through the streets of the Evil Prison's Mouth, strutting with his chest puffed out, dressed in flashy clothes worth many thousands.

Ears ringing with greetings from the locals, feeling the gazes fixed on him.

Qin Jinghao basked in it.

Imposing!!

Handsome!!

Everyone respected him!

Wasn't this exactly what he wanted?

What kind of miserable life had he lived up in the mountains before?

This was the life he craved.

He really hadn't made a wrong choice following Grand Duke Lu.

He just wondered how Grand Duke Lu was doing now.

The thought had barely crossed his mind when his phone rang.

Qin Jinghao pulled out his latest model phone with its flashy case from his bag.

He glanced at it.

Grand Duke Lu!

He quickly answered and brought it to his ear, speaking in a very low voice: "Grand Duke Lu, why are you calling me? How are you? Are you safe? Do you need me to do something? Just say the word, and I'll rush to handle it."

This attitude put Lu Ding at ease.

[Pause whatever you're doing right now, find a place where no one's around, and video call me. I have something to tell you.]

"Sure, sure, sure, okay, just a moment."

Qin Jinghao covered his phone: "Continue your patrol. I need to handle something. When you're done, just head straight back to the bureau. Don't wait for me."

"Yes, sir!"

The team of investigators continued their patrol down the street.

Qin Jinghao turned around. In just a few moments, he'd found a teahouse and booked the best private room.

His motto was simple: spend money!!!

Enjoy life!!!

He set his phone upright on the table, tidied his appearance, let a natural smile spread across his face, and then opened the video call.

His first words.

"Grand Duke Lu, can you see me?"

Lu Ding said: "I can see you. I'll make this brief."

"Something happened to your sect."

The smile on Qin Jinghao's face froze instantly.

The comforts of the mortal world had blurred his memories of his sect.

His current glory had also made him almost forget the hardships of learning martial arts on the mountain.

Of course, this wasn't Qin Jinghao forgetting his roots. It was because Xiao Jingbai, who had come down the mountain with him, was dead - killed by Qin Jinghao's own hand. They'd walked different paths: he joined 749, while Jingbai insisted on diving into the criminal underworld.

He didn't dare imagine how heartbroken his master would be learning of Jingbai's death. He didn't dare face the reality that the only family who'd come down the mountain with him was just gone.

So he subconsciously chose to forget and blur those memories.

But with Lu Ding's single sentence, Qin Jinghao was instantly thrown back to the homeland where he'd grown up.

In that moment, he could barely string words together.

"Gra... Grand Duke Lu... you're in the Baoji Kingdom, aren't you? How could you possibly know about my sect, hahahaha... they..."

Lu Ding sighed: "Sigh..."

"Make some room. I'm coming over. I'll bring you here to see the information, and you'll understand."

Qin Jinghao woodenly shuffled to the side.

Through the video call, Lu Ding used a [Celestial Shift] to appear in Qin Jinghao's room. Another [Celestial Shift], before Qin Jinghao could even react, directly brought him back to Elder Shui's office in Hanjing.

Qin Jinghao stared at the unfamiliar surroundings, still disoriented.

Lu Ding took the tablet from Secretary Qiu and handed it to him.

"Take a look..."

Qin Jinghao held the tablet, reading word by word, his hands beginning to tremble, until his entire body - his neck, his forehead - was bulging with veins, his eyes bloodshot.

He slowly lowered the tablet.

Looked around.

Finding nothing to smash.

Qin Jinghao dropped to his knees with a thud, furiously kowtowing to Lu Ding, each blow smashing heavily against the floor: "Grand Duke Lu, I want revenge! I NEED revenge!!! Please, Grand Duke Lu, I want revenge!!!!"

"Jingbai's gone, Master's gone, the sect's gone. Everything's gone, everything's gone, Grand Duke Lu..."

"I have nothing left..."

"I didn't get to eat the rice cake Master made for me this year..."

"I hadn't figured out how to tell Master about Jingbai..."

"I hadn't returned in glory to show Master how well I'm doing now..."

"I hadn't made those disciples I hate envy me..."

"I hadn't gone back in triumph, and now my home is gone, Grand Duke Lu... there's nothing left... I'm an orphan again..."

Those words "I'm an orphan again" struck a chord deep within Lu Ding.

Back when he'd left the orphanage to enter society, he'd felt the same way.

Seeing Qin Jinghao's Inner Demons stirring violently, Lu Ding crouched down. He didn't say "don't cry" or "men don't bleed or weep."

He said only one thing: "I'll take you to get revenge."