Chapter One: The Number After Two Hundred Million

The instant its nib touched the signature line, a second layer of writing surfaced. Beside CONTRACT VALUE: ¥200,000,000 appeared a string of dark-red figures. [19 years, 6 months, 17 days, 4 hours, 12 minutes] It was counting down. Lu Chen released the pen. It rolled across the table, dragging a black streak over the corner of the contract. “What's wrong?” Luo Xiao asked. Lu Chen looked up. Everyone watched him, but nobody looked at the number. Zhao Chi frowned. Legal counsel remained expressionless. Xu Boyan kept smiling. Only Gao Yuan, standing by the door, had turned even paler. “Cramp in my hand,” Lu Chen said. Beneath the figures, tiny characters appeared: