"Da Long, it's rare for you to come. I have some wine here, have a sip to warm yourself up..."
Peng Fei walked to the door and took out an unopened bottle of Erguotou. It turned out to be the same as the one Bai Feng had taken out—a bottle of Red Star Erguotou that cost three yuan and two mao. It seems that this liquor is very popular among the people of Beijing, regardless of their wealth.
Peng Fei, still holding three small bowls in his left hand, placed them on the table. Then, with his right thumb, he nudged the bottle cap open. With a soft "snap," the cap popped off, and Peng Fei's right hand swayed slightly. "Glug...glug..."
He poured the wine into the bowl.
After filling the glass, Peng Fei looked up at Zhuang Rui and said, "Boss Zhuang, this is all the wine I have. If you don't like it, please have some tea..."
Peng Fei spoke softly, and after he finished speaking, he pursed his lips. He had an oval face with fair skin, and he seemed a little shy when he spoke, looking like a college student just entering society.
However, Peng Fei's eyes were very peculiar. Although he was looking at Zhuang Rui, they were completely expressionless, empty and devoid of any meaning, as if there was no air in front of him.
This was also the first time Zhuang Rui had seen Peng Fei's appearance clearly after entering the house. It was completely different from what he had imagined. When Hao Long told Peng Fei's story, Zhuang Rui thought Peng Fei was a burly man with a rugged appearance, but he did not expect Peng Fei to be so handsome.
Zhuang Rui couldn't imagine how this young man in front of him could kill so many drug dealers. In fact, there were many things Zhuang Rui didn't know. Peng Fei had not only dealt with drug dealers, but also clashed with many forces in Thailand and Myanmar, as well as regular troops. He had far more than six lives on his hands. Even Hao Long didn't know much about these things.
"It's cold, let's have a drink!"
Without saying a word, Zhuang Rui picked up the small bowl, tilted his head back, and gulped it down. After swallowing about three ounces of 56-proof Erguotou, Zhuang Rui felt a burning sensation from his throat to his stomach, and his body warmed up as well.
After finishing the wine in his bowl, Zhuang Rui put it down, stood up, and said, "There's wine but no food, Hao Long, you guys drink first. There's some food in the car, I'll go get it..."
"Boss, I'll go get it..."
Hao Long quickly stood up.
"No need, you comrades can continue chatting..."
Zhuang Rui waved his hand, pushed open the door, and walked out. There were some things that Hao Long could say, but it was more appropriate for him to say them himself.
Although Zhuang Rui had only met Peng Fei once and didn't know much about his character, he believed that a young man who could live such a poor life with his sister must have experienced many unknown things. People like him, once they made a choice, would never betray her, just like Peng Fei, who left the army but did not do evil.
Zhuang Rui had some local products in his car that others had given to his grandfather, such as vacuum-packed cooked food like Dezhou braised chicken. These were not the kind sold on the street, but were made with an authentic secret recipe. However, since the old man had bad teeth, Ouyang Wan asked Zhuang Rui to take them back to prepare for Zhang Ma and Hao Long to eat.
Zhuang Rui grabbed a few bags of Dezhou braised chicken, and then noticed a bag of apples, which he also took. However, he didn't rush back. Instead, he started the car, sat inside, and lit a cigarette. He wanted to give the two men more time to talk.
After finishing his cigarette, Zhuang Rui sat for a while, about twenty minutes, before getting out of the car, stamping his foot, and walking into the village.
Upon entering Peng Fei's house, Zhuang Rui saw that Xiao Yaya, who had been sitting on the bed, had red eyes, as if she had just been crying. He wondered what Peng Fei and Hao Long had talked about that had stirred up painful memories for the little girl.
"These are all the bags of cooked food left. Open them and eat. Yaya, here's a chicken leg for you..."
Zhuang Rui put the bag on the table, opened a bag of Dezhou braised chicken, then tore off a chicken leg from the packaging and handed it to the little girl who was lying on the bedside, staring at him with wide eyes.
"Brother...Brother said we can't take other people's things without permission..."
Ya Ya looked at the chicken leg and subconsciously reached out her hand. However, after glancing at Peng Fei, she hesitated for a moment and withdrew her hand. But as she spoke, Zhuang Rui saw her throat move up and down, as if she had swallowed a mouthful of saliva.
Peng Fei, who had stopped talking after Zhuang Rui entered the room, suddenly spoke up. "Ya Ya, eat up, Brother Zhuang isn't an outsider..."
"Oh, thank you, big brother..."
Hearing her brother's words, Xiao Yaya's eyes crinkled into crescent moons with laughter. She reached out her little hand and took the chicken leg Zhuang Rui offered, but instead of biting into it, she licked it off. Then she jumped off the bed, walked to Peng Fei's side, and said, "Brother, you eat first. If you eat, you'll have the energy to work tomorrow..."
"Brother has more, Yaya can eat it herself, brother has something to talk to Brother Zhuang..."
Peng Fei didn't take the chicken leg Ya Ya offered him. Instead, he affectionately rubbed her head, carried her back to bed, and then turned to look at Zhuang Rui.
"Brother Zhuang, I've told Dalong about my family situation. He'll tell you later. If you want me to work for you, no problem. I only have one request: that Ya Ya have a stable learning environment and be able to eat and stay warm. As for the salary, you can give me whatever you want, it doesn't matter how much. As long as you promise to take good care of Ya Ya, I, Peng Fei, will sell my life to you!"
Peng Fei spoke slowly, almost uttering each word slowly and deliberately. His eyes, which had been dull and empty, were now like drawn swords, staring intently at Zhuang Rui, as if trying to discern the sincerity of Zhuang Rui's answer from his eyes.
Peng Fei asked himself if he was a bad person, but he was not a saint either. He adhered to his bottom line, which was not to do evil. However, now that he had the opportunity to make his and his sister's lives better, he would not refuse it.
"Brother, are you leaving again? I don't want you to leave, I want to stay with you, big brother, I don't want your chicken leg anymore..."
Little Yaya was happily eating a chicken leg when she heard Peng Fei's words. She immediately jumped off the bed and shoved the half-eaten chicken leg into Zhuang Rui's hand.
Zhuang Rui handed the chicken leg to the little girl again, smiling as he said, "Don't worry, Ya Ya, your brother will live with you, and he'll live in a very, very big house..."
"real?"
Ya Ya tilted her head and looked at Zhuang Rui very seriously.
"Of course it's true. You can move into the new house today, but you and your brother will still live together..."
At the age of seven or eight, she could already tell whether adults were telling the truth or not. After staring at Zhuang Rui for a while, the little girl nodded and said nothing more.
After settling the little guy down, Zhuang Rui turned to Peng Fei and said, "Hao Long probably already told you about the nature of my work. This is Beijing, not a battlefield. The security work is simple, not as tense as you think. Don't talk about risking your life. I'm hiring security personnel, not assassins. If you don't have much stuff, you can move in today. By the way, what grade is Ya Ya in? I'll have someone help her with the transfer procedures tomorrow..."
Before Peng Fei could reply, the little girl blurted out, "Big brother, can I go to school now?"
"What, isn't Yaya in school?"
Zhuang Rui paused for a moment, then turned to look at Peng Fei.
"Boss, come out for a moment, let me tell you..."
Hao Long stood up, gave Zhuang Rui a wink, pushed open the door and went out. The room was too small, and Hao Long didn't want to reopen old wounds in front of Peng Fei.
"Boss, I just found out too. Here's what happened..."
After walking out the door, Hao Long told Zhuang Rui everything he had just learned.
It turns out that around this time last year, Hao Long's parents in the countryside did not use the chimney when they burned the stove in winter. On a particularly cold afternoon, Hao Long's parents sealed the house tightly, but they did not expect to suffer from carbon monoxide poisoning. By the time Ya Ya came home from school, her parents had already stopped breathing.
When Peng Fei received the news, he was in the middle of a manhunt for drug dealers. Seeing his comrades being brutally murdered and remembering his recently deceased parents, Peng Fei lost control of his emotions and shot the drug dealers dead.
Peng Fei is a strong-willed person. After being forced to leave the army and returning home, he used the more than 10,000 yuan of demobilization pay to settle his parents' funerals. Then he brought back his younger sister, who had been traumatized and had not been able to go to school since, from a relative's house.
Chapter 430 Birthday Banquet
Because Ya Ya would think of the scene of seeing her parents lying in bed after school every time she returned home, and her mental state was very unstable, Peng Fei had no choice but to take his younger sister away from home and first found a job as a security guard at a nightclub.
However, Peng Fei found the chaotic things happening in the nightclub very unbearable. Several times, when he saw people dealing or using drugs, he almost couldn't resist and wanted to break their necks. Later, he simply quit his job, came here, rented a room, and started working as a porter.
Peng Fei's income as a porter was not high, earning only fifty or sixty yuan a day. Renting this dilapidated house cost four or five hundred yuan a month. In addition, Peng Fei wanted to save some money so that Ya Ya could go to school next year. Therefore, the two siblings lived a very hard life. Whenever they bought something delicious, Peng Fei would give it to his sister. In addition, fearing that Ya Ya would fall behind in her studies, Hao Long would spend his evenings tutoring his sister in her elementary school lessons.
After hearing Hao Long's story, Zhuang Rui felt a pang of sadness. Humans are truly fragile; life is far too short for an Earth that has existed for billions of years. This made Zhuang Rui secretly resolve to cherish his current life and every loved one around him.
After Zhuang Rui and Hao Long returned to the house, Peng Fei put down the apple he was peeling for his sister, stood up from the table, and said, "Boss Zhuang, I'll go over tomorrow. I need to quit my job at the freight yard and cancel the lease on this apartment. It's late today anyway. Da Long, give me the address later, and I'll go there myself tomorrow..."
"Huh? Wolf Fang?"
Zhuang Rui didn't pay attention to Peng Fei's words. As soon as he entered the room, he was attracted by the small knife in Peng Fei's hand that was used to peel apples. He was very familiar with that knife. He had often seen Zhou Rui playing with it before. He still couldn't figure out where Zhou Rui hid the knife on his body.
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Peng Fei's expression shifted slightly. With a flick of his wrist, the small knife he had been playing with between his fingers vanished as if by magic. He looked at Zhuang Rui and asked, "How did you know I came from the Wolf Fang unit, Boss Zhuang?"
Peng Fei's unit maintained a high level of secrecy; even Hao Long only knew a little bit about it. Yet Zhuang Rui, upon seeing his small knife, was able to guess his origins, which surprised Peng Fei. Peng Fei's gaze towards Zhuang Rui became serious.
"I have a friend who has a knife that's exactly the same as yours. You two must be from the same place, right?"
Zhuang Rui paused for a moment, then continued, "My friend's name is Zhou Rui..."
"Old squad leader? Boss Zhuang, do you have Squad Leader Zhou's phone number? Could you give it to me?"
Upon hearing Zhuang Rui's words, Peng Fei's usually calm face finally broke into a look of surprise. Zhuang Rui was also taken aback. In a country with over a billion people, how could it be such a coincidence that Peng Fei and Zhou Rui knew each other? And they really were from the same military unit.
"Yes, yes, I'll write it down for you..."
Zhuang Rui left Zhou Rui's phone number on Ya Ya's homework for Peng Fei, then said to Hao Long, "Brother Hao, give the phone to Peng Fei first. You can pick them up in my car tomorrow. After I'm done with this, I'll get Peng Fei a new phone..."
As early as last month, Zhuang Rui bought Hao Long a mobile phone. For Zhuang Rui now, this thing was not worth much money, and it was convenient to keep in touch, because his house was too big. If he called the central courtyard and then went to call someone, he would probably have to wait for several minutes.
"Boss, I can rent a car tomorrow, you have other things to do..."
Hao Long took his phone out of his pocket and handed it to Peng Fei.
"It's alright, there's a car tomorrow."
Everyone in Ouyang Long's group has a car, so they can just hitch a ride. Seeing that things were almost done, Zhuang Rui said to Peng Fei, "That's all for now, we're going back. You can take Ya Ya there tomorrow."
"Thank you, thank you, Boss Zhuang..."
Peng Fei meant what he said sincerely. When Zhuang Rui first arrived, he only saw Zhuang Rui as a rich boss. As long as his sister could settle down, Peng Fei didn't care if he suffered some grievances. He didn't have much respect for Zhuang Rui.
However, after Zhuang Rui came into the house, his attitude towards his sister and his hearty act of drinking that bowl of Erguotou liquor in one gulp made Peng Fei look at him with new eyes. According to Hao Long, this was a big boss with hundreds of millions in assets, but Peng Fei felt that he had no airs at all, which made people unconsciously like him.
When Zhuang Rui revealed that he and Zhou Rui were friends, Peng Fei felt even more respect for him. He knew that his old squad leader was a man who couldn't tolerate any dishonesty, and if Zhuang Rui were a cunning and deceitful person, he would never have become friends with his old squad leader.
Peng Fei asked Zhuang Rui to write down Zhou Rui's phone number, planning to secretly make a call later by connecting a phone line. Unexpectedly, Zhuang Rui directly asked Hao Long to leave the phone behind, which shows that Zhuang Rui is open and honest and is not afraid of him contacting Zhou Rui.
When Zhuang Rui and Hao Long drove back to the courtyard house, it was already past 10 p.m. Zhuang Rui went to Li Sao's place and told her to prepare a room for the next day. The main house in the front yard had been uninhabited for a long time. It had two bedrooms, as well as a separate toilet and bathroom, which would be perfect for Peng Fei and his sister.
After finishing all these tasks, Zhuang Rui took a shower and went to bed. Tomorrow is his grandfather's birthday, and he needs to be in good spirits. But just as he fell asleep, the phone rang again.
"Brother Zhou? Hehe, was it Peng Fei who called you?"
When Zhuang Rui saw the caller ID, he immediately understood. He had originally intended to call Zhou Rui, but it was a bit late, so he didn't. He hadn't expected Zhou Rui to call him instead.
"Yes, Zhuang Rui, thank you so much. That kid was a good soldier. He was promoted to officer in his third year of service. His military skills were much better than mine. I never expected something like this to happen. It's such a pity..."
Zhou Rui's voice was somewhat low on the phone. His former comrade-in-arms, with whom he had shared life and death, was in deep distress over this tragedy. After a moment of silence, he continued, "Zhuang Rui, although I'm not very good with words, I know in my heart that we're living the life we have today all thanks to you and Da Chuan. I don't really have the right to ask you for anything, but please, as your brother Zhou, help my comrade. If you can't accommodate him, he can come to me."
"Brother Zhou, there's no such thing. I finally found someone I can trust, so don't get any ideas. Don't worry, you know what kind of person I, Zhuang Rui, am. I won't mistreat Peng Fei. At least he won't be worse off than you in the future..."
Zhuang Rui was displeased when he heard Zhou Rui's words. "If I send it to you, why would I bother with all that effort?"
Zhou Rui knew Zhuang Rui's character. He realized his mistake after blurting out those words in his haste, so he didn't bring it up again. He chatted with Zhuang Rui for a few minutes about Luo Jiang's jade carving before hanging up. ...
"Why are you kids only arriving now? Xiao Lu, Xiao Jun, you two go outside with your older brother to greet the guests. Xiao Rui, come in and keep an eye on Grandpa and Grandma. Xu Qing, you're pregnant, so don't bother with all this. Go and take the kids to the next room..."
The day after Zhuang Rui and his group arrived at Yuquan Mountain, they were immediately put to work by Ouyang Wan. Ouyang Lei, along with several of his grandchildren, stood at the main gate to greet the guests, while Ouyang Zhenhua and his two brothers sat in the side room. They would only go out to greet people of similar status when they arrived, as they were not young and their bodies could not withstand being outside for long.
Guests started arriving around 10 a.m. Today, those who could come to the door were at least high-ranking officials at the provincial or ministerial level. As for department-level cadres, they had already been visited several days ago. Those with closer ties and within the Ouyang family's sphere of influence might be able to meet the old man. Those with slightly more distant ties could only send invitations and gifts, and did not even have the right to enter the door to meet the old man.
When receiving these people, Ouyang Zhenwu usually accompanied them and they would sit in the house for a while. Most of these people were the old man's former subordinates or people he had mentored. To some extent, they were the foundation of the Ouyang family.
Ouyang Gang was in excellent spirits today. He was wearing an old-fashioned military uniform without shoulder insignia and sat upright in the main room. He had just met some of his old subordinates, which gave him the feeling of being back decades ago, when he was commanding thousands of troops.
After the guests came in, most of them greeted the old man and said some words of blessing before being led out by the staff. There was originally a small auditorium in Yuquan Mountain, which was used as a banquet hall today, and fruit platters were already laid out there.
Those who left the old man's place all sat down in the small auditorium. These people were all familiar with each other, so they chatted peacefully, waiting for the old man to arrive at noon so the birthday banquet could begin.
Ouyang Jun just went over there for a walk and came back saying that if a bomb were to fall there, more than half of the provinces in the country would be paralyzed immediately. His father heard this and was so angry that Ouyang Zhenwu grabbed Ouyang Jun's ear and dragged him into the room to give him a lecture.
Zhuang Rui was the most relaxed today. His task was to chat with the old folks inside and watch his cousins bring their guests in and out, which made him feel quite superior.
There's one problem with being inside: whenever someone comes in and finishes wishing the old man and woman a happy birthday, their eyes always linger on Zhuang Rui for a long time, as if he has a flower growing on his face, making him very uncomfortable.
However, Zhuang Rui has learned a lot today. Everyone who was able to enter today was either a local official or a military general with great power. There were more than 15 people here today. In Zhuang Rui's eyes, they were all people with dignified faces who had long held high positions.
Zhuang Rui just checked and found that more than a dozen generals and countless lieutenant generals and major generals came. However, their treatment was slightly worse, and most of them came in groups of three to five to wish the old man a happy birthday.