Lu Mingran: "..."
Boss, just consider this as me giving you a massage.
————————————
Fortunately, Lu Mingran slept on another bed in the room and survived the night unharmed.
He was worried that the handprints might reappear on the back of the person next door at night, and he fell asleep while worrying about it.
Old Yan, however, was not asleep. He was thinking about things related to Xu Lingqiu, and he remembered that he had some connection with this person.
The next morning, Lu Mingran opened her eyes and was reminded by the system.
Today, Lao Yan is going to surround a building in the suburbs.
The novel describes it this way: Xu Lingqiu went to visit one of his clients at the sanatorium, but was stopped at the intersection as soon as he arrived.
It seemed the road was blocked off, and the people there all looked tense, not letting anyone in.
Xu Lingqiu stood aside and watched, and soon he saw a man with white hair.
He recognized this man. Now, the white-haired man stood with his hands behind his back at the entrance of the sanatorium, while someone next to him respectfully asked him something.
Sigh, such a grand display, it's like you're afraid people won't know you have a special identity.
So when Lao Yan woke up, before he could make any arrangements for this matter, Lu Mingran, on behalf of Lao Hu, reminded him that the more mysterious he made things, the more people would want to see it, so it would be better for us to keep a low profile.
“First of all,” Lu Mingran stared at his obviously designer clothes, “we need to dress more casually.”
Old Yan thought about it and felt it made a lot of sense, so he carefully searched for clothes in his suitcase.
At this point, the system became very interested and helped Lu Mingran quote a price, telling him how much the outfit Lao Yan brought was worth.
"See that watch? It costs 100,000."
"Oh, this dress, thirty thousand..."
Lu Mingran couldn't listen anymore.
Dude, you're playing the domineering CEO role!
Why are Lao Yan and Xiao Xu so rich, while he's the poorest?
"Um, Director Yan, do you really not have any other clothes?" Lu Mingran looked at the bed full of clothes with a headache.
Old Yan nodded honestly.
Lu Mingran felt that the nodding gesture deeply hurt him.
"...Fine, let me make a tiny sacrifice."
———————————————————
At 2 PM, Lao Yan and Lu Mingran quietly went out.
He put on the simple jacket and jeans that Lu Mingran had changed out of, and wore a hat to cover his dazzling white hair, making him look much younger and more energetic.
Lu Mingran, on the other hand, was quite different. He wore Lao Yan's crisp clothes and his gait exuded an air of dominance.
On the way, Lao Yan sat to the side with his eyes closed, his profile sharply defined and very handsome. Lu Mingran, on the other hand, sat upright, looking straight ahead—if he were to accidentally scratch his clothes, he simply couldn't afford to pay for it.
The car slowly stopped near the sanatorium in the suburbs, where the person in charge of reception was holding an umbrella and waiting with a solemn expression.
Because there wasn't a large-scale quarantine like in the novel, only one staff member was there to receive them throughout the entire process. Lu Mingran served as Lao Yan's temporary assistant and accompanied him the whole time.
What made Lu Mingran feel suffocated was that as soon as they entered the lobby on the first floor, they saw Xu Lingqiu. Xu Lingqiu was sitting on a row of chairs, chatting with the family members of the elderly person who had the accident. Soon, the family members left, and Xu Lingqiu sat there alone.
What made Lu Mingran feel even more suffocated was that as soon as he saw Xu Lingqiu, Lao Yan took the initiative to walk over and call out to him:
"We meet again."
Since they had only met once, Xu Lingqiu didn't quite recognize the man. So, Lao Yan took off his hat, revealing a head of white hair.
The system told Lu Mingran that Lao Yan was about to set a trap.
The so-called "hook" refers to the ambiguous things Lao Yan said. Many mysterious figures, in order to pique the protagonist's interest, always leave riddles or suspenseful questions for the protagonist to guess and ponder. They deliberately leave things unsaid, only saying half a sentence, even if they could be explained in a single sentence.
As a result, the protagonist became obsessed with the mysterious man, relentlessly pursuing him until he was successfully abducted by him.
Thinking of this, Lu Mingran couldn't help but clench her fists and followed.
Sure enough, Lao Yan started to cast his bait:
"Although we haven't met many times, we do have some history."
Xu Lingqiu stared into Lao Yan's eyes, wondering if he was lying.
Old Yan continued to try and hook the bait:
"Back in 2017, you learned some skills from that witchcraft-using old woman in Z City, didn't you?"
It's just like fortune tellers; who knows if your predictions about the future are accurate? People only take you seriously if you accurately predict the past.
Judging from Xu Lingqiu's suddenly serious expression and the way he tried to recall, Lao Yan's trap had been successfully set. Xu Lingqiu was trying hard to guess what relationship this person had with him, and how he was so resourceful as to know so much about him.
Old Yan was very satisfied with Xu Lingqiu's performance. He planned to leave after saying that, leaving Xu Lingqiu to think about it for three days and three nights.
But Lu Mingran couldn't stand it anymore and promptly interjected:
“That old lady is from one of his associations. She has to report to him even when she buys a steamed bun.”
*Snap.* The first hook broke just like that. Lu Mingran and Lao Yan exchanged glances, meaning that Lao Hu had told me all this.
At this moment, Xu Lingqiu regained her composure.
A vein throbbed on Old Yan's forehead. He took a breath, calmed himself, and continued:
"By the way, when you were little, a monk said you were destined for a seven-year lifespan, and he tricked your father into taking an old hen home and cooking it, didn't he?"
Xu Lingqiu frowned.
Lu Mingran: "Director Yan arrested this monk when he was cracking down on counterfeits one year. The monk gave a very clear account."
Xu Lingqiu let out a breath.
Old Yan: "I know that person gave you something very important before he died."
Xu Lingqiu's pupils contracted.
Lu Mingran: "Because he was a distant relative of that person. After that person died, his family fought fiercely over the inheritance. He went to see a play, and everyone knew that Mr. Song had given the house to you."
Xu Lingqiu's pupils returned to their original state.
...
Finally, Xu Lingqiu and Lao Yan both looked at Lu Mingran.
Lu Mingran smiled and said:
"Is there anything else you want to talk about?"
————————————
As evening fell, the sky was ablaze with colorful clouds.
After Xu Lingqiu finished dealing with his business, he stepped out of the door and saw a person and a dog sitting on the steps, barking at each other in a contest.
The person sitting down noticed someone behind him, turned around, and smiled at him.
Xu Lingqiu laughed too: "Aren't you his assistant? What are you doing sitting here?"
"Because I was fired."
Lu Mingran answered honestly:
"Die from talking too much."
Chapter 40 Want to Rise to the Top Quickly? No Way (4)
Half an hour ago, Lao Yan was indeed angry. Because there were sanatorium staff members present, Lao Yan suppressed his anger and asked Lu Mingran a question in a low voice:
Why do you always side with your elbow?
Lu Mingran pretended not to hear. Actually, he did hear it, and he even answered in his mind:
Why do you think you're the inside and Xu Lingqiu is the outside?
The direction I bent with my elbow was absolutely correct.
————————————
After all this commotion, Xu Lingqiu lost interest in Lao Yan, but he became curious about Lu Mingran.
The timing of this person's appearances is always interesting, and if Xu Lingqiu is not mistaken, Lu Mingran is always helping him.
As the sun set, Lu Mingran turned his head and spoke with a smile. Beside him, the little yellow dog squinted its eyes and nuzzled against him, trying to snuggle into his arms. Xu Lingqiu walked over and petted the dog, then sat down next to Lu Mingran.
"I just heard you call him something like 'Director'..." Xu Lingqiu stroked the dog's head and asked casually, "That sounds impressive."
"Oh, Director Yan, she's a women's federation director from another place."
Xu Lingqiu continued to pat the dog's head.
A women's federation director who also manages fortune tellers and doubles as a fraud-busting monk—your women's work is a bit too colorful and diverse.
Lu Mingran knew her words were untenable, and laughed:
"So what if he's a director with connections? In the end, he's just an ordinary person."
In the novel, after Lao Yan had laid many traps, the phrase "So formidable" began to appear all over the screen.
"I never expected that this person of unknown origin could so quickly recall my past. He is incredibly perceptive."
"This is a past event that I am very reluctant to mention. He was able to directly point out the most vulnerable part of my heart. He was so powerful."
By the end, Lu Mingran wanted to exchange eye drops with the system to completely wash away the phrase "amazingly powerful."
However, it's impossible to win over the protagonist with just these words. In the end, Xu Lingqiu was able to follow Lao Yan because of an exchange of benefits.
They will make a deal over something that happened at the nursing home.
As the storyline goes, Xu Lingqiu was supposed to meet his client today and quickly finalize the matter. Amidst the gratitude of the patient's family, Xu Lingqiu walked out of the ward, then suddenly paused, startled.
He saw a girl in a wheelchair in the corridor. The thin girl had eyes that looked very similar to those of his classmate.