Pan Xing's condition was worse than Liu Yutong had anticipated.
The next day, before meeting with Gao Min, Liu Yutong received the latest update: Pan Xing remained in the ICU with no signs of waking up.
If things continued this way, the prolonged absence of leadership in the Righteous Brotherhood would likely put them at a severe disadvantage when the tournament began.
It might even affect Liu Yutong's plans. Whether Pan Xing agreed to her previous terms or not, the matter would likely end up unresolved.
Signs of internal chaos were already emerging within the Righteous Brotherhood.
Take Jiang Bing, for instance—his actions had grown increasingly bold, clearly eyeing the boss's position and building momentum for his takeover.
Scarface wouldn’t stand idly by. If Jiang Bing rose to power, his own days would be numbered.
Fortunately, Scarface still held some influence within the Azure Dragon Hall, leaving the two factions deadlocked.
At this point, the stance of the White Tiger and Vermilion Bird Hall leaders became crucial.
Whoever secured their support would have a strong chance of temporarily leading the Righteous Brotherhood.
The keyword here was "temporarily"—after all, Pan Xing wasn’t dead yet.
But then again, if someone did take over as acting boss, Pan Xing’s life might truly be in danger.
On top of this, Liu Yutong learned that the Righteous Brotherhood had begun purging suspected traitors.
With two consecutive leaders falling victim to misfortune, it was hard not to suspect an insider’s betrayal.
The question was—which traitor were they after?
The Righteous Brotherhood was practically leaking like a sieve.
Setting aside whether there were other moles, the Ten Thousand Dragons Syndicate had nearly infiltrated an entire hall’s worth of spies.
Most members of the Azure Dragon Hall were informants planted by the Ten Thousand Dragons.
Add undercover cops to the mix, and the organization was a chaotic mess.
No wonder Pan Xing had met such a fate.
Ultimately, it came down to his lack of control over the Righteous Brotherhood.
Liu Yutong met Gao Min at a hot pot restaurant.
When Gao Min noticed Yun Cheng standing behind Liu Yutong, her expression flickered with unspoken words.
Liu Yutong turned to Yun Cheng. "Wait outside for us."
"Understood, Miss." Yun Cheng nodded and left.
The two women took a seat by the window.
Liu Yutong began ordering, the silence between them stretching.
Gao Min, clearly less composed, spoke up as soon as the broth was chosen. "You knew all along, didn’t you?"
Liu Yutong flipped through the menu calmly. "Yes."
"But what does it matter? Everyone sees me as the rightful heir to the Righteous Brotherhood now."
Gao Min’s expression twisted with conflict. She still couldn’t believe she had ties to the syndicate—let alone such deep ones.
What did that make of the honor she’d pursued for over a decade?
"So all these years… the criminal organization I’ve been investigating was founded by my own father?"
Her certainty came from the DNA sample she kept of her father, who had died in the line of duty.
After uncovering unbearable truths within the Righteous Brotherhood, she’d taken a paternity test.
The result had struck like lightning.
Liu Yutong regarded her calmly. "You’re still fortunate, in a way."
"Fortunate?" Gao Min’s voice trembled. "How is this fortunate? The evidence I gathered, the people I put away—they were all my father’s… subordinates?"
Liu Yutong set down the menu. "The Righteous Brotherhood is leaderless now. If you wanted, you could reclaim everything that’s rightfully yours."
Gao Min’s gaze sharpened. "Are you testing me?"
Others might not know her identity, but Liu Yutong certainly did.
Yet, Liu Yutong’s words almost sounded like encouragement.
Liu Yutong suddenly smiled, placing a slice of freshly cooked beef into Gao Min’s bowl. "Try this. The meat looks fresh."
"Pan Xing won’t be waking up anytime soon, after all."
Gao Min’s breath hitched. It felt like Liu Yutong was forcing a choice: remain a police officer or step into the darkness.
But her resolve hardened quickly.
Being an officer was her lifelong pride.
"I won’t betray my principles. No matter who it is, if they break the law, I’ll bring them to justice myself!"
Liu Yutong was pleased with the answer. She genuinely admired Gao Min’s unwavering integrity.
It was time to reveal some truths.
"Actually, you don’t need to struggle over this. At least where your father is concerned, you can hold your head high."
Gao Min frowned. "What do you mean?"
Liu Yutong pulled a sheet of paper and a faded photograph from her bag, sliding them across the table.
"Her name was Jiang Lu. Over twenty years ago, she and your biological father, Liu Lei, the former leader of the Yilian Society, gave birth to you. Later, Liu Lei had to undertake an extremely dangerous mission. Fearing retaliation, he did something Jiang Lu could never forgive—he secretly gave you away to your adoptive father, Officer Gao, who later sacrificed himself in the line of duty. This left Jiang Lu deeply depressed, and she eventually left your biological father."
Liu Yutong was a woman of action. From the moment she noticed the resemblance between herself and Gao Min, she had been investigating. The information she obtained from Jiang Bing only strengthened her suspicions.
Later, she sought out Qi Wei and pressured him to dig up Officer Gao’s old records. One thing became clear: Officer Gao had no children before adopting you, and during his time at the police academy, he had a close friend.
The rest of the details were beyond her reach—classified information. But based on what she had uncovered, she could piece together the truth.
As Gao Min listened to Liu Yutong’s words, her eyes fell upon the photograph of the gentle-faced woman. Suddenly, something wet trailed down her cheeks.
This was the first time in her life she had seen her mother’s face.
She knew Liu Yutong wasn’t lying—the young woman in the photo bore at least a fifty percent resemblance to her.
Speaking of resemblance, Gao Min’s head snapped up as she stared at Liu Yutong.
The contours of Liu Yutong’s face… they mirrored her own by at least thirty or forty percent.
This couldn’t just be a coincidence.
"Who… who are you?" she demanded, her gaze piercing. "What’s your connection to Jiang Lu… to me?"
Liu Yutong met her probing stare, her beautiful eyes steady as she spoke slowly.
"You’ve finally noticed."
"Officer Gao… or should I say, sister—the woman in this photo, Jiang Lu, isn’t just your birth mother."
She paused, then delivered the final blow.
"She’s also mine."
A deafening buzz erupted in Gao Min’s mind.
