Upon hearing Grand Councilor Witte's words, Ivan's entire body suddenly relaxed. He let out a long, heavy sigh as he sat in his chair; at that moment, Ivan felt as though the very back of his chair had been soaked through with sweat.
The current situation was truly a case of being the meat on someone else's chopping block. Given his present circumstances, even if he didn't believe the promise Councilor Witte had made, what else could he do?
Since they intended to strike at Boris, it meant they had already found the loose ends Boris failed to clean up—and his own shadow, as well as his family's, was undoubtedly among them.
As for Witte, what he had just said to Ivan was, of course, the truth. The current Ursus had no energy to waste on a local "black glove." Which mobile city didn't have someone like him? Furthermore, even if the entire Rostov family were arrested and judged according to the law, so what? Who would care?
If Chernobog could give birth to one Rostov family, it could nurture a second and a third. There were countless fallen noble families in Ursus; missing one like theirs made no difference. If Ivan could truly play a role in this matter, it was better to let him off in exchange for having an honest man manage these illicit affairs. What was wrong with that?
"Fine. I believe your Excellency won't play me for a fool in this matter. I will tell you everything I know right now."
Ivan's expression was like that of a man clutching at a life-saving straw. Wiping the beads of sweat from his forehead, he said:
"I once secretly observed the trucks those drivers used. Those vehicles looked very similar to Ursus military trucks, but after some modifications, they had slight differences from actual military-use trucks..."
Ivan struggled to recall every single detail regarding those trucks and drivers. At this moment, the fragments in his memory became incredibly clear, as if he were watching a recording and narrating it to Witte. Perhaps his intuition had told him that he might have a chance to use this information one day, so he had unconsciously recorded everything in the deepest part of his memory.
"I... I saw trash and shopping receipts they accidentally left behind. They were probably exhausted after finishing a delivery and forgot those things..."
"Continue," Witte said from the other end, maintaining a calm demeanor as he listened to Ivan's account. He wasn't just listening to the narrative; he was also paying attention to whether there were any false elements or if the entire story was fabricated.
This was indeed difficult to distinguish. Even Witte could only rely on intuition and psychological deduction to judge the truth of the statement, but at this moment, he chose to believe.
"That receipt pointed to a supermarket that only exists in the Yan Empire. Furthermore, the food scraps in the trash were also Yan food. The highest probability is that open port!"
Ivan spoke with a bit of trepidation. All of this was merely information he had deduced, but in the next moment, he said with absolute certainty:
"They went to Lungmen! Those things were ultimately sent into Lungmen, but I don't know where they went after that."
After finishing, he tugged at his collar and breathed in the cold air in large gulps. He had said everything he knew. If Witte didn't believe him, there was nothing more he could do.
A silence followed from the other end. Councilor Witte did not speak for a long time. He was intentionally creating a sense of pressure, testing whether Ivan had anything left to hide. However, he was destined to be disappointed this time; Ivan truly knew nothing more. The two fell into a stalemate of silence, waiting for the other to break the ice.
"Thank you, Mr. Ivan. Your contribution to Ursus will be remembered. Please rest assured; we will absolutely not move against your family because of the events of these past years."
Hearing this, Ivan closed his eyes and clasped his hands in prayer. He had truly gambled correctly. Now that he had no value, he didn't need to weave lies, and the other party still claimed to uphold the promise. That meant even after Boris fell, his family would not be liquidated. He simply needed to be more "honest" in the future and not do anything too outrageous.
"Well then, I hope we have the opportunity to cooperate happily in the future, Mr. Ivan. I must take my leave now."
Subsequently, Councilor Witte disconnected the communication. The attendant said nothing; he merely bowed and then vanished into the night.
Ivan picked up a glass beside him and poured himself a drink. Swirling the glass gently with one hand, he stood by the window behind him, gazing into the pitch-black night, his thoughts unknown. Looking at the sky, the moon that should have been visible was now, in Ivan's eyes, like a dark sea hiding countless undercurrents. Surely, the undercurrents within this city were also about to surge.
Having just hung up the communication, Witte turned to discuss the information gained from Ivan with the few people beside him. The members of the delegation had differing opinions.
"How much truth do you think was in that Ivan's mouth just now? I think if fifty percent of his words are trustworthy, that's already good enough," a member who had been listening expressed his opinion. In his view, for a fellow whose hands were stained black, believing even half of what he said was a stretch. Because he had been persecuted by such people and had witnessed these cunning nobles deceive investigators—even attempting assassinations midway—he harbored the deepest hostility toward nobles who built their wealth on shady dealings.
"I, on the other hand, think his words can be believed. I heard from Kashchey that these nobles have been trying to stir up a war with the Yan Empire, and the number of Ursus gangs roaming in Yan is not small. This might be their prepared plan."
Everyone present, being trusted by the Emperor and sent here, naturally knew some secrets that others did not, including the fact that Kashchey had "abandoned the darkness for the light."
His words gained the approval of the group. They also believed that this city was responsible for providing enough weapons for those Ursus gangs and bandits roaming in Yan. The purpose of doing so was naturally to use the hands of these thugs to provoke the Yan people's hatred for Ursus, ultimately forcing Yan to declare war.
However, these things were definitely not given away for free. No one present believed those nobles would run a business at a loss, even if it was to start a war! In their eyes, if you don't have money, why be a bandit or a mobster? You might as well become a human trafficker kidnapping Infected to sell to the City Lord to meet performance quotas; only those with the money to buy had the right to cooperate with them.
"I wonder how things are going on Duke Kashchey's side. Has any news come from him lately?"
"No. Recently, other than sending people to deliver a few sets of women's clothes here, there hasn't been any news at all."
"????"