As he left the cockpit, William reminded, "If you can't calm down, let's just rest for half a day."
"Understood, boss. I swear I'll never gamble with my life again," Gene said. After putting on his headset and speaking with the control tower for a few minutes, the plane slowly accelerated and, after about twenty minutes, took off into the sky.
Walking out of the cockpit and passing through the flight attendant area, William noticed the head attendant, her hair hanging down, looking extremely tense. "Could you make me a cup of coffee, please?" he asked.
The visibly frightened attendant was so shocked by William's voice that her mouth hung open in disbelief, stammering, "You, you, you..."
Fortunately, the other attendant still had her wits about her. She quickly unbuckled her seatbelt and smiled. "Of course, Mr. Devonshire. Please return to your seat, and I'll bring it to you shortly."
"Alright." William returned to his seat, buckled his seatbelt, and began to think. The more he pondered it, the more the head attendant seemed familiar. He hadn't noticed earlier because he had been preoccupied with flying the plane, but now that things had settled down, something felt off.
Anyone that he vaguely recognized was either someone he knew in this world or someone from the movies he had watched. Who was this strikingly beautiful Eurasian girl? She was tall, with a stunning face, though her figure was a bit underdeveloped, and she still looked somewhat youthful.
The more he thought about it, the more certain William became—there was something suspicious about this head attendant. No one with such good looks would be working a job that paid only $5,000 a month as a flight attendant.
He quietly instructed Sunday, "Look into this girl's background. See if you can find anything."
"Understood, sir."
A few minutes later, Sunday reported back. "Sir, I've found some information. This flight attendant's name is Charlene, Chinese name Xia Lin. She was born in Hawaii and holds US citizenship. According to the airline's records, she's only been employed for less than a week. Unlike the other attendant, who went through three rounds of selection, Charlene was personally assigned to this flight by Bombardier's HR manager."
"Heh, interesting. Either someone paid a lot of money or they have some powerful connections—or perhaps someone has leverage over her. Where's the photo? Why haven't I received it yet?"
"Please hold on, sir. There's some signal interference at the airport, but it will arrive shortly."
A few seconds later, a clear photo of Charlene appeared on William's phone. The moment he saw her full face, it clicked—he knew why she seemed familiar. Damn it, Charlene!
"Check for any missing person reports in Hong Kong from a few years ago, specifically for a 13 or 14-year-old girl named Cheng Haiyao who was skilled in martial arts."
"Understood, sir." The plane was now flying smoothly when the attendant from earlier approached with a bright smile, carrying a cup of coffee. "Here's your coffee, Mr. Devonshire."
Glancing at the name tag on her chest, William responded, "Thank you, Kate." Taking the cup, he examined Kate's appearance and uniform. She was a stunning blonde, which made William's paranoia flare up again. Was this girl also sent by some organization to get close to him?
Once Kate left, looking a bit disappointed that she hadn't had more interaction with William, he cast a detection spell on the coffee, ensuring it wasn't poisoned, before finally relaxing and taking a sip.
Half an hour later, Sunday reported back. "Sir, six years ago in Hong Kong, there was indeed a missing person report for a 13-year-old girl named Cheng Haiyao."
"Alright, looks like that old hag M is still causing trouble, even after death. She just can't leave me alone. Order some materials for the production of suicide drones and notify Barney and the team that there's a job coming up. Tell them to stay put and wait for my instructions."
"Understood, sir. Orders have been sent."
"Any news on that assassin organization's island I asked you to investigate?"
"Apologies, sir. My capabilities are limited to areas with internet connectivity. Unfortunately, 90% of the habitable islands in Southeast Asia lack any network access."
"Well, if you can't find it, you can't find it. But it looks like someone's walking right into my hands, haha."
Seven hours later, the plane landed at London Airport. Before disembarking, William asked Sunday, "Did you leak the news of my return?"
"Yes, sir. There are now over 40 reporters and more than a thousand Chelsea fans waiting outside the airport."
"Fans?" William asked, surprised. "What are the fans doing at the airport? Protesting my takeover of Chelsea?"
"No, quite the opposite. They're here to welcome you—or rather, your money. Many of the signs they're holding say things like 'Welcome home, Chelsea's rich man.'"
"F**k, they're treating me like a walking wallet," William chuckled. As the plane door opened and he stood up to leave, he suddenly thought of something. Turning to Charlene, the mixed-race girl now going by Xia Lin, he beckoned her with a finger. "Come with me."
Without waiting for her response, William walked off the plane, confident that the beautiful assassin would follow him. And sure enough, after a brief moment of surprise, Charlene trailed behind him.
Upon stepping off the plane, William spotted Abigail and a group of people waiting on the tarmac to greet him. Walking up to her, he hugged her and gave her a few kisses on the cheek. "Miss me, Abigail?"
"Good evening, boss. You're going to be late for the dinner with Baron Daniel Kabore," Abigail said, though she gave in to William's persistence and quickly kissed him on the lips before punching him lightly in the chest. "You jerk! You left me hanging for over two months. If it weren't for the fact that you remembered to let me handle the antique acquisitions, I would never forgive you."
"So, have you forgiven me now?"
Before William could enjoy the moment with Abigail, he was interrupted by a voice speaking Mandarin. "Hello, Mr. Devonshire. I'm Lai Jianguo from the Chinese National Museum. I'm sorry to interrupt, but I heard from Miss Abigail that you're fluent in Chinese, so I'm sure you understand the importance of the matter at hand. We don't have time to waste."
Letting go of Abigail, William turned to Professor Lai with a smile and shook his hand. "Hello, Professor. I understand how important those items are, but there are many things I need to consider. You must realize that the other party bringing out such valuable items suddenly must have ulterior motives. So, please, you and your team of experts should be patient. We know who holds the items, and I guarantee that I'll get them. I swear on the Devonshire family name and my Chinese surname that those ancient books will be mine."
Hearing William's confident tone, with a hint of menace, Professor Lai and the other four experts felt a chill. It became clear that the reports they'd seen before coming were accurate—William was not only extremely intelligent but also ruthless when necessary.
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