It was a Friday evening, and a fine drizzle filled the air outside, the cold wind bringing strands of rain through the crevices of the windows, deepening the chill in the room.
Chen Xu stood in front of the mirror, holding an electric razor to cleanly shave off his beard. After putting the razor away, he glanced at the time—only three minutes left until seven.
He donned a dark blue suit that Xiyun had chosen for him last time, fastened the buttons, and straightened the wrinkles on his sleeves. Picking up his nearly fully charged phone from the desk, he unplugged the charger and slipped the phone into his pocket.
With everything in order, he took the prepared gift, pushed open the door, and headed downstairs where a black Rolls-Royce awaited him. Just as he emerged, a male chauffeur stepped out of the car and came forward with an umbrella to shield him from the rain.
"Thank you," he politely expressed his gratitude and then got into the back seat of the car.
