"I demand you leave Mr. Lu Yun’s pier at once! And you must cease this unreasonable behavior in the future!"
When Shadakang heard this, his smile grew even brighter as he nodded repeatedly. "Hahahaha! Mr. Consul, please, calm down! We will certainly comply with your demands!"
With that, he spun around. The effusive, enthusiastic expression he’d worn moments before vanished instantly. He turned directly to Captain Zheng and barked in a low voice.
"What are you standing there stunned for? Didn’t you hear the consul? All units, withdraw! Leave the pier!"
Hearing these words, Captain Zheng was overjoyed!
He’d been itching to get away from this powder keg, but he couldn’t leave without an order.
"YES, SAND AFFAIRS CHIEF!" Captain Zheng practically roared in response.
He immediately spun around and roared at his men with all his might: "ATTENTION! RIGHT FACE! DOUBLE TIME—MARCH!!!"
At the command, the hundred or so guards swiftly and orderly evacuated the security checkpoint, jogging away from the pier.
As he watched the guards withdraw, Shadakang put his smile back on. He bowed slightly to William Harris, his tone humble. "Mr. Consul, I am so sorry for the inconvenience. This is a result of my own poor management. The fault is all mine!"
"Please, don’t trouble yourself over this! I will rectify this with the utmost severity when I get back!"
Seeing this, William Harris’s expression finally softened. He gave a reserved nod. "Hmph. Sand Affairs Chief, I hope you are a man of your word. We’re leaving."
He said no more and, with his bodyguards, got back into the two white consular cars.
Just before getting in, William Harris rolled down his window again and spoke to Lu Jingwu, who had been standing nearby the whole time. "Mr. General Manager, I’m leaving my cargo in your hands. Please ensure it departs on schedule, as per the contract."
Lu Jingwu replied with a polite smile, "Rest assured, Mr. Consul."
"The Lu Family Trading Company has always honored its commitments. We will definitely deliver your cargo safely to its destination at the agreed-upon time."
"Very good." Harris nodded. The window rose, and the two white consular cars slowly pulled away, leaving Longyuan Bay Pier.
The humble smile on Shadakang’s face faded somewhat. He turned, his gaze falling on Lu Jingwu, and a meaningful smile touched the corners of his mouth.
"Manager Lu, the Lu Family truly lives up to its reputation. To think you could even get the consul from Great Britain involved."
The reason Shadakang had arrived so "promptly" was that Lu Jingwu had leveraged his contacts in the City Affairs Bureau, placing a call directly to Shadakang’s office.
Lu Jingwu’s smile remained unchanged. "Sand Affairs Chief, you flatter me. Compared to you, the Lu Family is just running a small business, trying to make ends meet."
"This incident was so sudden, we had no choice but to trouble both the consul and your honorable self. In fact, the Lu Family owes you our thanks, Sand Affairs Chief, for your keen insight and for upholding justice."
Shadakang’s smile widened at his words. He waved a dismissive hand. "Ah, Manager Lu, you’re far too polite. Maintaining Yun Port City’s business environment and protecting the normal operations of legitimate merchants is simply part of our job."
"If anything like this happens again, just come to me directly. There’s no need to trouble the consul and cause such a commotion."
The two looked at each other and smiled, a tacit understanding between them.
However, the piercing roar of an engine grew louder as it approached. A black Ford sedan tore toward them at a nearly uncontrollable speed.
It screeched to a halt, barely stopping in the open area by the pier’s security checkpoint.
The car door was thrown open. Feng Yuan leaped out. At almost the same moment, Gan Wen Yao rushed out of the office building to stand behind him.
Feng Yuan’s eyes immediately fell on the now-empty security checkpoint. The hundred or so guards who were supposed to be maintaining a tight perimeter were gone—not a single one remained!
He whipped his head around to glare daggers at Gan Wen Yao, who stood behind him.
"Gan Wen Yao! Did I not make it perfectly clear that no one was to abandon their post without my direct order?"
"Where are they? Where are the men I posted here? Where the hell did they all go?"
Gan Wen Yao quickly pointed at Shadakang and stammered out a defense, "Reporting, Commissioner! It was Vice Director Sha! He personally ordered all the guards to withdraw. I couldn’t stop them..."
At these words, Feng Yuan’s gaze locked onto Shadakang and Lu Jingwu.
"Vice Director Sha! You should know perfectly well what mission brought me to Yun Port! Why would you unilaterally withdraw the guards and help these crooked merchants from the Lu Family, who are suspected of smuggling cultural artifacts?"
His words were exceptionally blunt, directly slapping the label of "crooked merchants" on the Lu Family.
And he did it right to the face of Lu Jingwu, the Lu Family’s current general manager, with absolutely no regard for decorum.
Hearing the words "crooked merchants," Yan Lintong, who was standing nearby, flew into a rage. He instantly strode forward, pointed a finger in Feng Yuan’s face, and began to curse.
"You’re full of shit! What proof do you have that our company is smuggling artifacts? You think you can just slander people with baseless accusations? Is it true just because you say so? Who the hell do you think you are?"
Feng Yuan didn’t even bother to glance at Yan Lintong. His gaze remained locked on Shadakang, waiting for his explanation.
Being so publicly and ruthlessly cornered by Feng Yuan, Shadakang was finding it hard to keep his composure.
But he was a long-time politician, after all, and his true thoughts ran deep.
The affable smile on Shadakang’s face slowly faded, replaced by a grave, meaningful tone.
"Comrade, if this situation blows up, it won’t be easy to contain!"
"We here in Yun Port still have to do business with foreigners!!!"
Having said his piece, Shadakang didn’t bother to look at Feng Yuan’s increasingly grim face.
He turned, lightly patted Lu Jingwu’s shoulder, and said in a low voice, "Give my regards to Elder Lu for me!"

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