Chapter 328 - 189: None of Them Are Good People

Chapter 328: Chapter 189: None of Them Are Good People

Everson Street!

A renowned hillside villa district in San Francisco, it offered a panoramic view of the downtown area and a magnificent vista of the bay.

The motorcade pulled to a stop in front of the sole villa on the mountaintop. Su Chen gazed through the car window at the massive house before him and joked with a smile, "Raymond, is this the hotel you were talking about?"

A good-natured grin spread across Raymond’s muscular face. "Heh heh, Boss, I had this bought specially for you. Staying in a hotel would be so inconvenient!"

Su Chen just smiled and said nothing as he stepped out of the car. An IPS security guard was already holding the door open for him.

Bird and Mark, who followed him out of the car, were also taken aback. After all, this was the most affluent part of the entire Bay Area. The people who lived here were all prominent figures in California.

The entire district contained only twenty villas, each separated by over a hundred meters. In a place where land was worth its weight in gold, that alone spoke volumes about how expensive these properties were.

You couldn’t buy a villa here just by having money; you needed the right connections as well.

After a brief moment of awe, the two saw Su Chen and his group already heading into the villa and quickly hurried after them. As they entered the courtyard, two burly men standing by the door shot them a glance. The ferocious glint in the guards’ eyes made both of them walk a little faster.

"Boss, this villa has seven floors in total: four above ground and three below. Each floor is over two hundred square meters and has its own private viewing deck. The roof has an open-air swimming pool and a lounge area, with a panoramic view of the entire Bay Area!"

Raymond started his spiel the moment they stepped inside. If not for his muscular physique and intimidating face, anyone would have mistaken him for a real estate agent, the way he chattered on.

"You’ve gone to a lot of trouble," Su Chen said, nodding in satisfaction. He didn’t ask Raymond how much the villa cost, but he knew it must have been a fortune.

Hearing Su Chen’s praise, Raymond grinned from ear to ear. What Su Chen didn’t know was that Raymond had used money from the IPS Security Company to buy the villa, expensing it to the company. In other words, it was no different than Su Chen having bought it himself.

Su Chen was simply unaware...

Su Chen spent half an hour touring the entire villa, and he had to admit he was impressed.

The four floors above ground were decorated in a minimalist luxury style. While not overly embellished, every piece was placed just right, creating a feeling of both opulence and comfort.

What truly astonished Su Chen, however, were the three subterranean levels. He had originally assumed they would be like the basements in villas back home—simply dug out underground. But when he reached the third and lowest level, he realized he had been far too simplistic in his thinking.

Each of the three "underground" floors had excellent natural lighting, with what could be described as a 180-degree, unobstructed view. After asking Raymond, Su Chen learned that these so-called subterranean levels were created by carving away half the mountaintop. The entire villa was embedded into the peak like a building block.

It was like the "magical 8D city" of Wudu, where you think you’re on the first floor but are actually twenty-something stories up. Viewed from a different angle, this villa was simply a seven-story building.

The indoor pool on the third basement level earned a second glance from Su Chen, as did the home theater on the level above. It was a veritable cinema, complete with thirty seats of the same type found in an airplane’s first-class cabin.

By the time the tour was over, it was noon. Raymond had arranged for a team of professional chefs, and they all thoroughly enjoyed the local specialties of the Bay Area.

With everyone well-fed and refreshed, it was time to get down to business.

Su Chen chose the rooftop lounge area for their meeting. The March weather in the San Francisco Bay Area was pleasant, and with the villa’s proximity to the Pacific Ocean, the occasional sea breeze was cool and refreshing.

The lounge area was roughly fifty square meters, with six or seven sofas that could accommodate a good number of people.

At this moment, the only people in the lounge area besides Su Chen were Mark, the CEO of Longteng Technology; Bird from BlackRock; and Raymond.

Of course, Jiang Hui was also present, serving drinks. As for Chen Fei, he was downstairs with Wang Gang and his two men, trading notes on security techniques with the elite IPS guards.

Su Chen took a sip of his juice, clearing his throat before turning his gaze to Bird and Mark.

"Mark, I’m quite curious. What kind of new technology has Longteng Technology developed to attract the attention of a corporate giant like Morgan?"

A flicker of astonishment crossed Mark’s eyes. He discreetly glanced at Bird out of the corner of his eye. ’So our majority shareholder doesn’t even know what the new technology is.’

He couldn’t help but wonder, ’Why didn’t Bird give Mr. Su the details? Don’t tell me he has his own agenda?’

For a moment, a storm of thoughts raged in Mark’s mind.

Su Chen noticed the change in Mark’s expression. Though he knew there was something fishy going on, he remained perfectly composed, not the least bit hurried.

Even Bird, sitting beside them, simply stared down at his lap, making no effort to prompt the slightly dazed Mark.

After a moment, Mark snapped out of it and looked at Su Chen apologetically. "My apologies, Mr. Su. I was just thinking about something and got distracted."

Su Chen waved his hand nonchalantly. "It’s fine. So, can you tell me about the company’s new technology now?"