Chapter 236: Today’s Main Course——

Chen Ling nodded slightly and stepped inside.

The attendees of the banquet were all familiar faces to Chen Ling: the prosecutor, the defense lawyer, the nine reporters who had sat in the audience on the opposite side that day, and—Chen Ling’s gaze landed on an old man in a gray cotton jacket, short, dark-skinned, and shifty-eyed.

It was Old Man Ding, the "white-eyed wolf" from District Three, the witness.

Old Man Ding stood at the edge of the stage, his narrow eyes fixed on the beautiful woman in the gown playing the violin. His gaze, like an obscene, filthy boning knife, peeled from her exposed fair skin all the way to where the fabric covered her.

He held a red wine glass in one hand, a smile on his lips, seemingly lost in pleasure.

Chen Ling recognized him. He was an ordinary resident from the street adjacent to Frost Street, with no steady job, relying on his wife's factory earnings to support the family. He was the perpetual subject of gossip and criticism among the neighborhood's older women.

Chen Ling recalled saving him when he was trailing a group of refugees, whimpering and looking on the verge of death. At the time, Chen Ling, needing to gather enough spectators, didn't think twice and pulled him onto the train. To his surprise, once Old Man Ding entered Aurora City, he became District Three's sole betrayer.

"Well, isn't she beautiful?" Prosecutor Fang Lichang walked up to Old Man Ding and spoke indifferently.

"Beautiful, beautiful!" Old Man Ding licked his lips. "You don't see such pretty girls in our District Three... Aurora City is great, just like heaven."

Sensing Old Man Ding's blatant lewdness, Fang Lichang instinctively frowned. He now understood why others were reluctant to approach Old Man Ding; being associated with someone like him truly lowered one's standing.

Fang Lichang glanced at him. "Beautiful women are everywhere, but Bach's 'Air on the G String' isn't something you can hear in a rural place like the Seven Districts..."

"You're absolutely right, sir," Old Man Ding said, clapping his hands repeatedly and trying to flatter him awkwardly. "I've never even heard anything like this in District Three; it's so sophisticated!" His gaze, however, showed no intention of leaving those pale, exposed legs.

Fang Lichang took a deep breath, reminding himself that this man was an important witness for the trial, and tried to speak calmly:

"As long as you perform well in court, you'll certainly be well compensated. You can have as many women as you want then..."

"I want her! I want her!!" Old Man Ding immediately became excited, pointing at the beauty on stage. "I want her to... uh, I want her to teach me that tune, I want to learn the violin!"

Fang Lichang's face turned ashen. Without a word, he turned and walked away, truly not wanting to say another syllable to this lecherous pig.

Seeing Fang Lichang leave, Old Man Ding scratched his thinning forehead and resumed staring at the beautiful violinist on stage. Just then, a voice came from behind him.

"Mr. Ding, I'm quite curious."

Old Man Ding looked back and saw a young reporter in a coffee-colored jacket.

"Curious about what?"

"If I'm not mistaken, you wouldn't have been able to enter Aurora City at all if the defendant, Han Meng, hadn't desperately defended the city gate," Chen Ling said slowly. "Don't you feel any remorse now, testifying falsely?"

"Conscience? How much is that worth? Can it help me marry a wife or learn the violin?" Old Man Ding scoffed. "I didn't ask that Han Meng fellow to open the gate for me; he did it on his own. What does it have to do with me?"

In the depths of Chen Ling's eyes, a cold, menacing killing intent flickered.

Immediately, this killing intent transformed into a smile. He looked at Old Man Ding with a gentle smile, as if a spring breeze was caressing his face.

"Understood," he said.

Chen Ling turned and walked away.

"Zhuo Shuqing, have you finished your draft?" a reporter called out to Chen Ling. Several tabloid reporters were gathered together, seemingly engaged in an eager discussion.

"I arrived a bit late today, so I haven't finished it yet."

"The rest of us have already completed our initial drafts and submitted them to the prosecutor for review. You're too slow," another reporter quipped. "Criticizing Spade 6 is a big story. If you miss it, you'll be pounding your bed in frustration all night."

Chen Ling raised an eyebrow, a thought quickly occurring to him. "Speaking of which, have any of you ever seen the real Spade 6?"

At his words, the reporters and the defense lawyer who had been chatting with them all froze.

"How could we possibly have seen him? It's even questionable whether such a person exists within the Twilight Society, isn't it?" a reporter mused. "My guess is that since Heart 6 appeared recently, that person simply chose the Spade 6 card to bluff people. Who could have seen him?"

"I've actually heard some rumors about Spade 6."

"Oh?"

Reporters are, by nature, curious. At Chen Ling's remark, everyone immediately perked up. "What rumors?"

"Legend has it that Spade 6 is ever-changing: sometimes an old man, sometimes a child, sometimes a beautiful woman..."

Catching the words "beautiful woman," Old Man Ding's ears twitched. He immediately turned and sidled closer.

"What beautiful woman?"

Seeing Old Man Ding insert himself into the conversation, everyone's expressions showed some disdain, but they didn't say much. One reporter spoke up, puzzled, "Wait, this sounds a bit like Heart 6, doesn't it? Wasn't it said that he also has the ability to change forms?"

"No, it's different. This Spade 6 seems to have no physical form; he's like a ghost who can possess people," Chen Ling said, lowering his voice. "Rumor has it he's incredibly cruel and holds grudges fiercely... almost everyone who has seen him has been tortured to death."

"A ghost? Is he really that sinister?"

"Aren't all the people from the Twilight Society pretty sinister? This seems mild by comparison..."

"Good point. That self-immolating Heart 6 was even more sinister. I was there at the time, and his smile before he died... it was truly chilling."

The reporters started talking among themselves, one after another. Old Man Ding listened for a while, and when he realized there was no mention of beautiful women, he dejectedly returned to the front of the stage.

Just then, the violin music ended, and Prosecutor Fang Lichang slowly walked onto the stage.

The crowd, understanding the cue, fell silent.

"I've reviewed all of your news drafts, and they are very well-written," Fang Lichang announced.

Fang Lichang's voice echoed through the banquet hall. As he began to speak, seven or eight servers pushed trolleys laden with steaming dishes, covered by silver metal domes, towards the front of the stage. Everyone's eyes immediately lit up.

"...To thank you all for your cooperation, the Polaris Chamber of Commerce and I have specially hosted this banquet. We've invited Aurora City's finest chefs to prepare some top-tier dishes for everyone. Once you've had enough to drink, please feel free to try them..."

"Consider this banquet an early celebration of our success, wishing you all smooth sailing and the fulfillment of your aspirations in Aurora City."

As Fang Lichang finished speaking, he raised his glass high. The attendees below also raised their glasses in unison and then drained their drinks.

After a few glasses of red wine, Fang Lichang's cheeks were flushed. Feeling in excellent spirits, he waved his hand grandly and instructed the servers below:

"Serve the food!"

Bright lights reflected off the metal domes on the food trolleys, their gleaming surfaces mirroring the expectant gazes of the surrounding crowd. As the servers slowly lifted the covers, sounds of swallowed anticipation emanated from all sides.

But the next moment, everyone froze.

On the elegant and pristine plates, there were no delicious dishes to be seen. Instead, there were stacks upon stacks of playing cards...

Today's main course: Spade 6.