A Dish Best Served Cold (The Man In Rage)
Chapter 983 Dead or Alive, I Want Him Found

Li Er and the others kept the news of Ye Fan's death under wraps.

A strange and uneasy peace settled over Jiangdong.

Li Er and the others continued to manage Jiangdong on Ye Fan's behalf and attended to mundane matters in the province.

Qiu Mu-Cheng had called in sick at work. Other than her absence from work, everything else remained unchanged in Jiangdong.

Li Er and the others had privately complained about Ye Fan in the past and pointed out what a comfortable job Ye Fan had had. As the leader of Jiangdong, he had done nothing and had thrown anything to them.

What had made things worse had been his frequent disappearing acts. It had been impossible to find him when they had needed him. He had been utterly irresponsible.

As they recalled the past, Li Er and the others began to realize the wisdom in Mr Chu's actions.

Right now, no one would suspect a thing despite Ye Fan's prolonged absence.

They had grown used to it.

Everyone in Jiangdong knew how this leader of theirs would disappear from time to time. They wouldn't sense anything amiss even if he were to remain out of the public eye for a few months. Mr Chu had done similar things in the past.

As a result, even though something had happened to Ye Fan, there would be no upheaval in Jiangdong as long as they kept that a secret.

But how long could they keep this up?

The worry that Chen Ao and his comrades felt intensified when they thought about that.

They felt as if they were in the eye of the storm.

The calm that surrounded them was a mere illusion and served only to unsettle them further.

"Mr Chu, have you truly abandoned Jiangdong?" Chen Ao sighed secretly as he stood before windows that spanned the full height of his walls at his residence in Jianghai and stared at the vast lands before him.

In the distance, storm clouds had begun to gather.

As undercurrents of change threatened Jiangdong, across the ocean lay New York, shrouded in darkness. It was late, yet at the Chu family residence, the lights in one of their studies remained lit.

A man in his middle age, dressed in refinery and exuding a stern and intimidating air sat quietly in the room.

The look on his face betrayed no emotion as his eyes wandered distractedly over the words on the page. He seemed to be waiting for someone.

A few moments later, a young man pushed the door open and walked in.

It was no other than Chu Qi-Tian, the young man who shared a complicated history with Ye Fan.

"You're here, Qi-Tian. What's the status of the investigation that I've tasked you with? Did you find anything?"

In order to legitimize his right to the position of head of the Chu family, Chu Qi-Tian had changed his name to Chu Tian-Qi recently.

But habit was a stubborn creature. His father continued to call him Chu Qi-Tian when they were alone.

Chu Qi-Tian shook his head upon hearing his father's question.

"Father, I followed your instructions, widened the search area and hired the best divers. But we didn't find his remains," said Chu Qi-Tian softly.

The look on his father's face grew sterner when he heard that.

"So, you didn't manage to find anything then. Could he have survived and escaped?"

"Father, I think you worry too much," laughed Chu Qi-Tian. "No matter how lucky he is, the bastard couldn't have survived. He must have been smashed into pulp. That's why we can't find his body. Invoke the Celestial Cloud is the most powerful offensive martial arts, after all. The bastard was injured when you found him. I wouldn't be surprised if you turned him into dust when you hit him."

Chu Qi-Tian sounded nonchalant as he spoke. He was convinced that his father was just being excessively cautious.

He might not have been present at the fight that day, but after hearing his father recount what had happened, he was certain that Ye Fan had no chances of surviving the encounter.

He had been attacked by a missile, then shot at by dozens of fighter jets.

Chu Qi-Tian's father, Chu Zheng-Liang, had given him the final blow.

The series of attacks had been a flawless ambush. No one who was ranked in the top ten positions in the Sky Ranking could have survived such an ambush.

Their target had only been a young punk who had just made a name for himself. He had stood no chance at all.

"Father, you must have overestimated him. The young punk's just a bastard that belongs to a lowly village woman. He's insignificant and not worth your attention. It was sheer luck that got him where he was." Chu Qi-Tian had had nothing but scorn and disdain for Ye Fan since he had been a child.

Even though Ye Fan had become famous across the globe and had made a name for himself in the Japanese martial arts circle without anyone's help, Chu Qi-Tian would not recognize his talents. Such prejudices were rooted deep in his bones. They could not be changed that easily.

Besides, Ye Fan was dead.

Chu Qi-Tian was the one who had outlasted him.

That knowledge made Chu Qi-Tian more arrogant and obnoxious.

"You think I overestimate him." Chu Zheng-Liang looked up suddenly and stared at the young man with a serious look on his face.

Chu Qi-Tian felt vulnerable and exposed under his father's gaze. He felt an invisible weight burdening his shoulders.

"It seems that you don't. What happened? You watched as he became stronger and more powerful, and turn from a nameless little boy from a small village into a man whose name instils fear and awe across the globe. He nearly wrecked the plans that we have carefully crafted and carried out over ten years. It's been ten years and you couldn't even manage to get rid of a bastard. You needed your father to step in and do your dirty work for you so that you stand a chance at anything."

"Chu Qi-Tian, tell me. What exactly are you proud of? What right do you have to be so arrogant? Let me be honest with you. If you hadn't started off in a better position than he had, the one who had died that day would have been you, Chu Qi-Tian, and not Chu Tian-Fan!"

Chu Zheng-Liang's voice reverberated like thunder in the study. His voice was filled with rage, terrifying Chu Qi-Tian visibly. His son's face paled.

"I'm sorry, Father. I should have known better. I'll keep your words in mind and strive to not disappoint you," apologized Chu Qi-Tian fearfully as he stared at his feet.

Chu Zheng-Liang regained his composure swiftly.

He kept talking.

"Remember, never underestimate your enemy. Arrogance will only bring about one's downfall. Alright, you can leave now. Continue the search at sea. I want him found, dead or alive. You'll bring me his ashes i that's what became of him when he died. A dead body doesn't vanish into thin air just like that," said Chu Zheng-Liang coldly, his words like an icy wind that sent the temperature in the room plummeting sharply.