Rulu got off the car and walked towards the hotel, directly entering through the open door.

  As soon as Rulu stepped inside, a middle-aged man in his forties appeared in the lobby, wearing a courteous smile. He said to Rulu, "I'm sorry, but our hotel is currently undergoing renovations and is temporarily closed for business. You cannot check in at this time."

  Rulu looked around and said, "But your hotel is open, isn't it? Why can't I stay here?"

  "Well, the power system in this establishment has encountered some issues and is undergoing emergency repairs. If you must stay here, you can come back tomorrow. By then, everything should be fixed."

  "That's fine." Rulu casually replied while observing the hotel, "I'm not here to check in; I'm here to find someone."

  "Find someone?" The man was taken aback. He scrutinized Rulu and, after confirming he didn't recognize him, said, "Who are you looking for, and why did you come here to find him?"

  "His last name is Huang. He's a man in his thirties with curly hair. He asked me to come here to find him."

  A flicker of caution appeared in the middle-aged man's eyes as he said, "May I ask your name, and where did you hear about this man named Huang?"

  "Don't ask so much. If he's here, just take me to see him, and I will explain everything then."

  "I'm sorry, but there is no man named Huang here. If you insist on finding him, you can leave a message, and if I encounter him later, I can pass it on."

  Rulu said, "That's not acceptable. I don't have time to waste. Just tell me if he is here or not."

  The smile on the middle-aged man's face vanished. He spoke with a hint of impatience, "I'm sorry, but the person you are looking for is not here. You should leave, guest."

  "Alright." Rulu sighed and turned around. Just then, he noticed a shadow moving in a concealed corner of the hotel. Outside the main entrance, five or six unfamiliar figures in gray clothes had appeared, glancing at him intentionally or unintentionally, their waistlines bulging, suggesting they were hiding weapons.

  "Oh, such tight security. It seems Captain Guan might really be here." Seeing this, Rulu turned back, his eyes glinting with a strange light. He looked at the middle-aged man and said in an authoritative tone, "Take me to see the man named Huang immediately. No, to be precise, the man named Guan."

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  "You..." The middle-aged man's brows furrowed, clearly about to lose his temper, but just as he was about to speak, his stern expression softened. He said, "I see, you are looking for Captain Guan, right? Captain Guan is here, but he's currently attending to an important guest. He told us not to disturb him unless it's urgent."

  "An important guest? Who is that?" Rulu asked again.

  "I'm not sure, but this person is of significant status. Captain Guan and many other rebel leaders are in a meeting with this guest in a private room, discussing something very important."

  "I see. Take me to see them."

  "Alright, please follow me." The middle-aged man agreed and led Rulu down the corridor into the hotel. He brought Rulu to a room on the first floor, pulled back the curtains in the corner, and forcefully grabbed a lever on the wall behind the curtain.

  It seemed there was a mechanism on the lever. With a grinding noise, a gap opened in the wall, widening until it formed a hidden door for a single person to pass through. Behind the hidden door was a spiral staircase leading downward, the destination unknown.

  "Please go in; Captain Guan and the others are right inside," the middle-aged man stood at the entrance of the hidden door. Rulu entered, and the hidden door automatically closed behind him with a grinding sound.

  Rulu walked down the spiral staircase, reaching a black iron door at the bottom. A guard armed with a rifle stood in front of the door. Upon noticing Rulu's arrival, the guard immediately raised his rifle and said, "Who goes there? State your name."

  "Be quiet and stand there quietly as if I were never here," Rulu commanded, looking directly into the guard's eyes. The guard froze, then lowered his rifle and stood aside, saying nothing.

  Rulu approached the iron door and gently pushed it open. Peering through the gap, he saw a spacious and bright stone chamber behind the door. Inside the chamber was a long conference table, with about twenty people seated at it and dozens more standing around.

  Rulu took a look at the people present and noticed that they were dressed differently, most of them men in their thirties and forties, with fierce looks and armed with guns and other weapons, clearly not easy to deal with.

  "It seems that most of the people here are members of the rebel organization. I wonder what they are discussing?" Rulu continued to observe the stone chamber and found Captain Guan sitting at the conference table. Kallen, A-Bing, and others were standing not far behind Captain Guan. At that moment, everyone's attention was focused on an elderly man in his fifties, with gray hair and a commanding presence, sitting at the head of the table.

  Despite his gray hair, the old man appeared vigorous, his eyes shining with spirit and authority. He spoke in a loud voice, "Leaders of the rebels, my colleagues, the new governor of Blue Sea City, Prince Su Wen, has launched a large-scale extermination operation against us, killing many of our compatriots and demanding that we hand over the assassin. Otherwise, he will execute the five hundred captured prisoners within five days. I would like to hear your opinions on this matter."

  A bald, muscular man with a scar on his face responded in a rough voice, "What else can we say? We have confirmed repeatedly that no one planned that assassination; there simply is no assassin. I think that bastard governor is looking for an excuse to deal with us."