The Abyssal Garden: No Room for the Idle

The car carrying Mr. Nancy and his assistant appeared at the base of the skyscraper when many scions of the wealthy elite had already gathered around.

The powerful, both eager to curry favor and unwilling to lose face, naturally found it more appropriate for their family members to make an appearance on their behalf.

"Respected Mr. Nancy! I apologize, but there are simply too many youths attending the banquet who like and admire you, and so we didn't stop them," the person in charge said respectfully. At this moment, he too had learned to be smart, flattering guests accordingly. Since Mr. Nancy had everything under control and was in a comfortable position for relaxation and with a good mood, naturally a few arrangements could be made, of course without excessive flattery.

Mr. Nancy just gently squinted his eyes and smiled warmly, "Hand me a pen."

His assistant muttered, "You really are in the mood."

As his personal assistant, she could tell that Mr. Nancy was indeed in a good mood and took a pen out of her purse to hand over.

Mr. Nancy picked a few young people he found pleasing and signed autographs for them.

Seeing this scene, the person in charge relaxed a bit.

"Mr. Nancy, Miss Assistant, if you will, many people in the banquet hall are awaiting your arrival."

Mr. Nancy handed the pen back to his assistant, "Alright, tomorrow is expected to be tiring, so let's relax a bit tonight."

Miss Assistant calmly said, "Boss, you can't do anything inappropriate. I'll be keeping an eye on you."

"..." Mr. Nancy felt the assistant's subtly threatening gaze and coughed, "Don't worry, this isn't my first time at such an event."

In the banquet hall, Miss Assistant didn't enter side by side with Mr. Nancy; she waited at the door and, after hearing applause and a welcoming speech from inside, a slight smile appeared on her face.

As always, Mr. Nancy, the boss, attracted everyone's attention upon his arrival.

Miss Assistant then stood a meter behind him.

What followed were familiar scenes of various elites coming forward for greetings and conversation, with Mr. Nancy handling them with ease and an unperturbed, leisurely attitude without a trace of disturbance.

After all,

Mr. Nancy, the boss, had encountered so many powerful entities that he could remain composed even if Mount Tai were to collapse in front of him.

Miss Assistant slightly smiled.

The boss was such an outstanding man.

Suddenly, her eyes moved to a middle-aged man standing at a distance with a wine glass, standing apart from the other elites.

Who was that?

As an exceptional close-proximity assistant, she always did her homework. According to the information on Night City, the man was one of the titans of the three top business conglomerates, Sigong Cheng.

Such a presence...

Seemed to be ostracized?

Miss Assistant sensed that something was off—had something happened in Night City? It seemed there was a mention that two major forces in Illegal Land were annihilated a few days ago.

At this moment, she couldn't afford to investigate the situation, only feeling that the man's expression wasn't great, looking worried and unsettled.

After enough time passed, Mr. Nancy gently coughed.

Miss Assistant understood that this was her signal. She smiled and began to step forward proactively, stopping other elites wishing to approach, "Mr. Nancy is somewhat fatigued, he has yet to eat, please rest for a bit too."

These intercepted elites, merely second and third-tier, sighed softly upon the assistant's intervention and stepped back.

And then,

Sigong Cheng could no longer sit still, knowing that missing this opportunity meant it would be difficult to find another appropriate moment.

At the same time, many watchful eyes of other elites turned towards him.

They sipped their red wine calmly, observing the man who had once held a high position and then purposely severed his own arm.

"Mr. Nancy."

Sigong Cheng, holding his wine glass, walked over slowly, his tone respectful, "I'm Sigong Cheng from Life Group. May I have a drink with you?"

Life Group was currently in a trough due to various maneuvers, significantly reduced and harshly cut back, losing money by the second.

Although there were reasons for his actions, and he had no regrets, it was essential to find any opportunity to change the current situation. If he could gain Mr. Nancy's support, the group might have a chance to catch its breath and possibly gain more traffic and market share, even reaching beyond Night City to trade with other worlds.

This was the precious value of Mr. Nancy.

Mr. Nancy did not speak, nor did he reach out his hand. He was indeed fatigued, having dealt with top-tier elites was enough; he needed to relax and rest.

Miss Assistant paused slightly, then stepped forward and said softly, "I apologize, Mr. Nancy is currently preparing to dine, please wait a moment."

Sigong Cheng opened his mouth but ultimately did not continue, softly saying, "Apologies for the disturbance."

The other elites said nothing; their status required no mockery, yet the corners of many mouths subtly curved up... Life Group's value was still not insignificant, but given the situation, it would soon be devoured completely by them.

At the distant dining table.

Su Qi was leaning on the sofa chair, nibbling on desserts while paying attention to the plethora of data models constructed by the Super Dream Protocol.

"Seems like it'll need all night, but that's just fine."

He also noticed Sigong Cheng returning with a solemn face, "Failed?"

"Hmm... you could say that."

Sigong Cheng shook his head, "Because I didn't even get a chance to speak."

Beings like that simply didn't care about any of Night City's elite; those old rivals had arranged for supervisors to follow closely, showering the other party with flattery, which put them in a good mood and earned some opportunities.

There was nothing he could do.

"That guy is so full of himself? I was just about to ask him for a favor," Su Qi muttered to himself.

"..." Sigong Cheng said helplessly, "You think you two are acquainted? You speak as if it's a given."

But in reality, they were acquainted.

Himself, on the "Love, Death, Robots" show.

Helping to host, changing processes, interacting with the audience!

In the end.

Mr. Nancy gritted his teeth, feeling grateful and reluctant to say goodbye; if that wasn't a connection, what was?

Su Qi yawned and stood up.

"You're really going?" Sigong Cheng was startled, shaking his head lightly, "He's already dining, effectively rejecting other visits. Your going would be futile, and should you displease him, that would cause trouble."

"No big deal," Su Qi picked up a dessert and walked straight over.

"I can share a table with him."

"???"

Su Qi's figure caught the attention of others, and many cast their gazes in his direction.

The president of The Hustlers Chamber of Commerce?

What does he want to do?

"Hm?"

The assistant too heard the footsteps; why was someone disturbing them again?

She turned her head slightly, then... slightly frowned, why did the person seem familiar?

The next moment.

The assistant's eyes trembled even more.

Wait.

Looks really familiar!

Why does he look just like Mr. Nancy's arch-enemy of a lifetime?!

"Mr. Nancy old boss..." the assistant uttered instinctively, feeling an inexplicable danger, she couldn't help but speak up to warn him.

Mr. Nancy slightly raised his eyebrows, cutting his steak, he only felt a strange numbness on his scalp, and before he could react, he saw a figure pull out a chair and sit down directly.

Of all Night City's elite, all upper class, who could be so rude...

The next moment.

The assistant could distinctly feel her boss's body tremble, then his gaze became stiff yet silent as he stared at the young man in front of him.

"Long time no see... Mr. Nancy," Su Qi's smile was innocuous and contained a hint of politeness, "May I sit here?"

Mr. Nancy: "...."

He didn't know how to describe his feelings at that moment.

Sometimes, encounters between people were like Murphy's Law, the less you want them to happen, the greater the chance they will.

He didn't know why he was seeing this face here, and again this smile; in any case, an inexplicable unease couldn't help but rise from the bottom of his heart.

And also...

You've already sat down, why ask such a senseless question!