In the Huaxia Nation, at the Governor''s Office of the Sanctuary Concession District in Blue Sea City—


    In a spacious office, a middle-aged man with a proud demeanor and a robust physique lounged in his chair, carelessly resting his legs on the desk in front of him. He squinted his eyes, staring at a frail middle-aged man standing on the other side of the desk.


    The frail man appeared anxious, bending over and lowering his head, too afraid to meet the gaze of the man sitting in the chair. It seemed the conversation had reached a stalemate, and the two remained silent in the otherwise quiet office.


    Suddenly, the robust man lowered his legs from the desk and abruptly swung his right hand, slamming it down on the desk with a loud "bang." The sturdy wooden table shook violently, nearly collapsing under the force of his blow.


    The frail man seemed startled, his body trembling violently as he buried his head lower. He spoke in a submissive and ingratiating tone, "Governor... Governor, please give me a few more months. I will definitely complete the tasks you assigned to me."


    The man referred to as the Governor became enraged. He stood up sharply from his seat, pointing a finger at the frail man’s face and shouting, "You worthless fool, are you trying to play me for a fool?! You said the same thing six months ago, you said it three months ago, and now you''re saying it again. How did you become mayor if you can''t even handle this? My patience is running out. Do I need to give you a lesson?!"


    "Governor, please calm down and listen to my explanation. The situation is... it''s like this." The mayor, sweating profusely, tried to maintain his composure as he spoke:


    "I have prepared most of the supplies you requested, but I really cannot gather the ten tons of gold you wanted. I have increased efforts and opened many mines as per your request, but since the workers have been working day and night to extract gold, many have fallen seriously ill due to exhaustion, resulting in diminishing efficiency in gold extraction. So..."


    "These are all your problems. I don’t want to hear your excuses!" The Governor snorted coldly, interrupting the mayor:


    "You must understand that if I fail to complete the task assigned to me by His Majesty the Emperor this year, I will be removed from my position as governor. I don’t care what methods you use, you must gather ten tons of gold for me within a month. Bring your entire family here tomorrow. Without my permission, they are not allowed to leave. If you fail to complete the task within a month, I will have your entire family taken away to do hard labor until they die. Do you understand?!"


    The mayor''s face turned pale, beads of sweat rolling down his forehead as he replied in a low voice, "Yes... yes."


    The Governor shouted, "If you understand, why are you still standing here? Get out!"


    Trembling, the mayor lowered his head and exited the office. He appeared dazed, his eyes unfocused, as if in a trance, leaving the Governor''s office and driving back to his home in the concession area.


    "Dad, you''re back?!"


    As soon as the mayor stepped through the door, a soft and clear female voice rang out from the room, and a young woman, about twenty years old, walked out from another room to stand before the mayor.


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    The young woman had an oval face, fair skin, and a delicate appearance. Her figure was slender, and she had smooth, shoulder-length, grayish-brown hair. With a gentle smile on her face, she quickly approached the mayor.


    However, the mayor seemed oblivious to his daughter''s presence, showing no reaction to her words. He hung his head low, looking bewildered and lost, as if he had seen a ghost.


    Noticing her father''s silence, the young woman scrutinized his face. Upon seeing his anxious and restless expression, she seemed to realize something was wrong. Her gentle smile vanished, replaced by a look of concern.


    "What’s wrong, Dad? What happened?" she asked nervously, reaching out to grasp the mayor''s shoulders and shaking him gently.


    The mayor snapped out of his daze, lifting his eyelids to meet his daughter''s gaze. He sighed deeply and said, "No, Nana, nothing happened. You don’t need to worry."


    The girl named Nana looked very serious. Sensing her father''s lie, she pressed on, "What exactly happened? Can you tell me? Maybe I can help."


    The mayor shook his head, feeling very dejected as he replied, "Don''t say anything more. It''s useless. You can''t help me. Just let me be alone for a while. If nothing''s wrong, don''t disturb me."


    After saying this, the mayor ignored Nana and left the living room, retreating to his bedroom, shutting the door, and locking himself inside.


    Although Nana sensed that something bad had happened to her father, she didn’t know what it was, so she didn’t know how to help him. She left the living room and entered another room, where a boy, about seventeen or eighteen years old, was sitting on the bed reading.


    The boy was tall, with black hair, fair skin, and bright, expressive eyes. His appearance was quite handsome. Upon noticing Nana''s presence, he put down the book and looked at her, speaking in an elegant and clear male voice, "Did Uncle Qiao just come back?"


    "Yes, my dad just returned." Nana replied absentmindedly as she sat down beside the boy.


    Seeing Nana''s demeanor, the boy looked a bit puzzled and asked, "Why do you look so worried, Nana? You seem like an old woman."


    Nana was taken aback and then showed a reproachful expression, complaining to the boy, "Rulu, how many times have I told you to call me ''sister''! And don’t make jokes about it."


    "Is it really necessary?" The boy named Rulu smiled faintly. "Nana, you’re not much older than me. Do you need to act so high and mighty? Besides, you''re not my real sister."


    Nana sighed and pinched Rulu''s nose, complaining, "Honestly, Rulu, you used to be so cute and listened to me. Now that you''ve grown up, you’ve become rebellious and bully your sister. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have brought you back from outside. I would have let you wander and suffer forever."


    "Hmph, it’s too late to realize now." Rulu smirked, grabbing Nana''s hand to prevent her from pinching his nose further. "Now you can’t shake me off, Nana. Wherever you go, I will follow you. I will always be with you."


    Although he was teasing Nana, Rulu''s expression was exceptionally gentle, as if he were gazing at his beloved.


    Nana was taken aback again, feeling a bit shy as she withdrew her hand and turned her face away to avoid Rulu''s gaze, murmuring, "If only that were true."


    "What’s wrong?" Rulu''s smile faded. He frowned slightly, looking steadily at Nana''s face.


    Nana whispered, "It''s just that after my dad came back, he has been frowning and looking distressed, as if the sky has fallen. When I asked him what was wrong, he wouldn’t say anything and locked himself in his room, not letting anyone disturb him."


    "I see." Rulu blinked, pondering, and said slowly, "If I remember correctly, Uncle Qiao just went to the Governor''s Office to meet that governor, right?"


    "Yes." Nana affirmed.


    "In that case, things might be a bit troublesome." Rulu rested his chin on his hand, his expression darkening as he spoke almost to himself:


    "As far as I know, this governor has significant power, responsible for managing all of Blue Sea City and the surrounding areas. Although Uncle Qiao is the mayor, he must fully obey the governor''s orders. Most importantly, this governor is from the Sanctuary; you could say he is a lackey of the Sanctuary, responsible for helping the Sanctuary plunder resources from other countries. I think Uncle Qiao must have been bullied by that bastard governor."


    Nana replied, "I think so too. I heard that the previous mayors of Blue Sea City were severely punished for failing to complete the tasks assigned by the governor, and their families mysteriously disappeared. Because of this, Blue Sea City has had countless mayors, and I worry that something similar might happen to my dad."