Gao Jianfei wondered, "Xiaoxiao isn't asleep yet?"
Entering the courtyard and then the living room on the ground floor of the two-story house, Xiaoxiao and Yan Kui were both awake, sitting around the eight-immortal table, staring at each other. Their expressions were gloomy, their brows furrowed, as if they had encountered some trouble.
When Gao Jianfei walked in, both Xiaoxiao and Yan Kui saw him. Yan Kui didn't say anything, but Xiaoxiao looked up at Gao Jianfei and asked, "Um, why didn't you go home last night?"
Gao Jianfei casually replied, "The company is having overtime, working all night."
"Oh," Xiaoxiao nodded, "Are you hungry now? I'll go cook you a bowl of noodles!"
Before Gao Jianfei could answer, Yan Kui quickly said, "Then, Xiaoxiao, cook another bowl. Your dad is hungry too."
Xiaoxiao nodded obediently, then ran to the kitchen to get busy.
"Xiao Gao, come here, I have something to tell you." Yan Kui gestured for Gao Jianfei to sit down next to him.
"Hmm?" Gao Jianfei became increasingly puzzled. Yan Kui's expression today was very strange!
After several days of contact, Gao Jianfei had actually figured out Yan Kui's personality. He was a carefree, opportunistic, sleazy, cowardly, and timid guy. You could rarely find a serious or earnest expression on his face!
But at this moment... he was very serious and solemn, and even the muscles on his face were slightly stiff!
"Something happened?" Gao Jianfei asked instinctively as he walked over and sat down.
"Well then, Xiao Gao, listen up. Tomorrow afternoon, after you get off work, you don't need to go home, and don't come back to sleep tonight either. Just find a hotel to stay in for the night, okay?" Yan Kui said, frowning.
Gao Jianfei was taken aback.
Yan Kui added, "If you go home the day after tomorrow and don't see me and Xiaoxiao, then... then you should rent another place on your own."
"You're moving?" Gao Jianfei was completely confused.
Yan Kui looked somewhat annoyed. "Alright, Xiao Gao, stop asking so many questions. Anyway, don't go home tomorrow."
"Something really has happened!" Although Gao Jianfei didn't ask any more questions, he was very certain in his heart.
A little while later, Xiaoxiao cooked three bowls of noodles, one for each person. After finishing the noodles, Yan Kui sighed, his gaze slowly sweeping across the living room ceiling. After half a minute, he sighed again, then stood up, patted his bottom, and went back to his bedroom.
"Xiaoxiao, what's wrong? What happened?" Gao Jianfei quickly asked in a low voice.
Xiaoxiao bit her lip, wanting to say something, but ultimately didn't. Then, her expression became extremely serious. "From now on, I might not have the chance to have you teach me to read anymore. Anyway, don't come back tomorrow... and don't ask any questions. Dad said there are some things that are inconvenient to tell outsiders, and he doesn't want to implicate outsiders. Okay, go and rest, I'm going to sleep too!" After saying that, Xiaoxiao quickly cleared the table, washed the dishes, and went back to her room to sleep.
Gao Jianfei was truly baffled by Yan Kui and Xiao Xiao's strange behavior tonight! He sat there for a few minutes, unable to figure it out, so he could only take a hot shower and go back to his room to sleep.
"Hmm, it seems Xiaoxiao and Yan Kui are really in trouble," Gao Jianfei thought before going to bed. "Although I haven't known them for long, we've lived under the same roof, and Xiaoxiao has been really good to me, getting up early every morning to prepare breakfast for me and making me late-night snacks. Hmm, I'll sneak back after get off work tomorrow and see what's going on! If I can help, I will try my best to help them!"
With this thought in mind, Gao Jianfei felt at ease and closed his eyes to fall asleep.
The next morning, the alarm rang promptly at 6:30. Gao Jianfei got up, ran downstairs, and Xiaoxiao had already cooked a bowl of noodles for him. She obediently placed the noodles on the table and waved to Gao Jianfei, saying, "Come and have breakfast."
As Gao Jianfei ate his noodles, Xiaoxiao whispered in his ear, "Um... I was wrong to call you scum before. How about I call you Brother Fei instead?"
“Uh…” Gao Jianfei paused, “Anyway, it’s up to you. Just don’t call me scum.”
"Well, Brother Fei, thank you for going to all the trouble to teach me to read." Xiaoxiao stood up, smiled at Gao Jianfei, and said, "You go to work after you finish your noodles. I'm going back to my room to sleep a little longer!"
"Ugh, why does this feel like a life-or-death situation? Really?" Gao Jianfei really wanted to call out to Xiaoxiao and ask her what was going on, but he held back. "Anyway, I'll find out the truth when I quietly go home after get off work this afternoon. No rush, no rush."
After finishing his noodles, Gao Jianfei wiped his mouth and ran out to wait for the minibus...
Lake City.
In the old town of Hushi, there is a very large teahouse.
Early in the morning, a group of people were having morning tea in this teahouse.
Inside the teahouse, old-fashioned tables and long wooden benches were set up. At this moment, five old men sat at each of the five tables, each holding a covered teacup and savoring their tea. They were dressed in short-sleeved Tang suits of various colors, and their expressions were very relaxed.
Behind these five old men stood dozens of burly men dressed in black shirts.
In addition, dozens of such burly men were scattered throughout the large teahouse. None of them sat down; they all stood upright, their backs ramrod straight, like javelins.
At that moment, respectful greetings and calls rang out from outside the teahouse…
"Brother Yaohui!"
"Brother Yaohui!"
...
Chen Yaohui, wearing a white shirt with a dark black floral pattern, walked into the teahouse. As soon as he entered, the thugs outside closed the wooden door.
"Second Master, Third Master, Fifth Master, Sixth Master, Eighth Master." Chen Yaohui walked up to the group of elderly men drinking tea and stood in front of them, bowing respectfully.
One of the elderly men put down his covered bowl and coughed a few times. Soon after, a man in black behind him, holding a spittoon, bent down and carefully brought the spittoon to the old man. The old man spat into the spittoon, and another man next to him immediately handed him a white silk handkerchief.
The old man wiped his mouth with a silk handkerchief, then said with a smile, "Yaohui, do you know why we old men called you here so early today?"
Chen Yaohui said respectfully, "Second Master, Yaohui doesn't know. However, Yaohui guesses it's related to the attack on Young Master Feng last time."
The "Second Master" sighed heavily. "Yaohui, you were promoted by me. We old men had already discussed handing over all the gang's affairs to you by the end of this year. Cough cough, but unexpectedly, such a big thing happened at the crucial moment... Young Master Feng is no joke. This time, he was almost killed. Yaohui, you have to give us old men an explanation for this, right?"
The other old man beside him sighed, “Yaohui, if Dongxing doesn’t handle this matter well and doesn’t satisfy Young Master Feng, the consequences… will be absolutely unbearable for us! So, Yaohui, you must personally give Young Master Feng an explanation tomorrow. Speaking of which, the gang has been nurturing you all these years. Now that the gang is in trouble, Yaohui, you should show some sincerity, right?”
Chen Yaohui lowered his head, a twitch at the corner of his eye. "Gentlemen, please rest assured, I will explain to Young Master Feng tomorrow. If Young Master Feng refuses to give me a chance to explain, then I... will pay with my life! In short, if sacrificing myself can protect Dongxing, then I, Chen Yaohui, will not even flinch!"
Upon hearing this, the five old men all nodded slightly.
At this moment, another old man suddenly said to Chen Yaohui, "Yaohui, I heard that yesterday you offended Old Zhan for the sake of an outsider. What happened? Old Zhan is a friend of my fifth and sixth brothers, you know that. Yaohui, you don't even give us old folks this much face?" Although the old man was smiling, his expression was not good.
Chen Yaohui said directly, "Fifth Master, Sixth Master, I will find an opportunity to host a banquet and personally apologize to Boss Zhan for this matter."
"Alright, Fifth Brother, Sixth Brother, Yaohui knows what he's doing, so don't blame him." The "Second Master" who spoke first said in a conciliatory tone, then waved his hand at Chen Yaohui, "Alright, Yaohui, go back to work. Remember, be early tomorrow."
"Yes, gentlemen, rest assured, I'll be there on time tomorrow." Chen Yaohui turned and walked out of the teahouse. Suddenly, a dark cloud settled over his face, the muscles around his eyes twitched incessantly, and his gaze was filled with murderous intent!
After Chen Yaohui left, the old men exchanged glances. Second Master sighed, "Yaohui has done a lot for the gang over the years. Now, to sacrifice him is something I really can't bear."
"Second Brother, the current situation is very dangerous. It could easily lead to the destruction of Dongxing. What does sacrificing Chen Yaohui matter? There are still many capable young people in the gang. Of course, the premise is that Young Master Feng is willing to give us a chance to atone for our sins by executing Yaohui. Otherwise, it's all just empty talk!" Fifth Master sneered, then clapped his hands.
From a small room behind the teahouse, two mature and sexy young women emerged gracefully. They were none other than Sally, the manager of the Emperor Casino, and Fifi, the manager of the Emperor Nightclub!
The two beautiful young women stood trembling with fear in front of the old men, not daring to utter a sound.
Fifth Master took a sip of tea. "I heard that last night Yaohui offended Old Zhan because of a stranger. What happened?"
Feifei didn't dare to hide anything and said directly, "Gentlemen, last night Brother Yaohui took a young man to a nightclub for entertainment. Then, that young man took a fancy to a woman, and coincidentally, this woman was also the one Boss Zhan had his eye on. After that... after that, Brother Yaohui offended Boss Zhan because of that young man."
Sally quickly reported, "Gentlemen, that young man used to gamble at the casino. He's quite skilled at it. He played a small game in the lobby and won several hundred thousand."
"Looks like Yaohui's taking a good liking to that new face." Fifth Master chuckled sinisterly. "The incident with Young Master Feng last time was clearly sabotaged by someone. There's a traitor within our gang! Besides the five of us old men, the only others who knew about Young Master Feng's negotiations with Dongxing were Yaohui! To put it bluntly, the five of us old geezers have risked our lives for the gang. I think we're all innocent. As for Yaohui..."
Second Master said with displeasure, "Fifth Brother, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want! What evidence do you have to prove that Yaohui did it? Besides, Yaohui has already promised to sacrifice himself tomorrow night to protect Dongxing. If he really did it, do you think he would throw his life away for nothing?"
"Second Brother, we all know that Yaohui was promoted by you. You treat him like your own son, but some things can't be based on personal feelings." Fifth Master slammed the covered bowl in his hand heavily on the table.
Immediately, Sixth Master and Eighth Master echoed, "Second Brother, we also suspect that Yaohui did it."
Third Master stepped in to mediate, saying, "Alright, everyone, stop with the unfounded suspicions. How about we investigate that young man Yaohui brought to the venue yesterday?"
Second Master snorted and said, "Alright, then let's investigate!"
Chapter Fifty-Seven: Yan Family Wing Chun!
Chapter Fifty-Seven: Yan Family Wing Chun!
Gao Jianfei arrived at Alice's planning department with some worry.
The unusual behavior of Xiaoxiao and her father last night and this morning made Gao Jianfei extremely uneasy! Gao Jianfei is a very sentimental person. He remembers those who are good to him and will definitely repay them when he has the chance; as for those like Zeng Jian, who have caused great harm to his family and relatives, then... what are the consequences?
Well, we'll see.
This morning, the first person to arrive at work was quite unexpected for Gao Jianfei. It was Zhang Liang, that bastard!
Moreover, he not only arrived early but also took over Gao Jianfei's work... He had a bandage wrapped around his head and diligently fetched a basin of water, wiping the air conditioner and the table. Zhang Liang had already washed everyone's cups and neatly arranged them, each cup gleaming.
"Ah! Brother Jianfei!" Zhang Liang stopped what he was doing as soon as he saw Gao Jianfei walk into the office. "Good morning, Brother Jianfei. Have you had breakfast? If not, I'll drive over and buy some for you right away. Just give me a word. Also, starting today, I'll come to work half an hour earlier every day to get everything ready! Brother Jianfei, you can come in a little later!"
His attitude was extremely obsequious.
Gao Jianfei felt a little out of place. He walked to the desk he shared with Qin Leshi and found that his cup had been wiped clean, even the tea stains. Fresh tea leaves had already been brewed. The cup was warm, and the aroma of tea was enticing. Gao Jianfei smelled it and found the tea to have a very unique fragrance.
Zhang Liang hurried over, wiped Gao Jianfei's chair with his hand, and said with a fawning smile, "Brother Jianfei, please sit down, please sit down. This is my old man's Tieguanyin tea. I got some for you to try first. If you like it, I'll get you a few pounds tomorrow!"
Gao Jianfei couldn't help but touch his forehead, then said half-jokingly, "Hey, Zhang Liang, you didn't poison me, did you?"
"Uh... Brother Jianfei, please don't make such a joke! Well, Brother Jianfei, to be honest, I, Zhang Liang, am a very pragmatic person. I didn't know your background before, so I tried to suppress you in every way, but now..." Zhang Liang said sincerely, "Brother Jianfei, I, Zhang Liang, am not stupid. Even Secretary Song and Director Dong are scared like quails in front of you. What am I in front of you? So please don't think too much about it. I would never dare to retaliate against you. I'm too busy trying to please you!"
Gao Jianfei chuckled to himself... Zhang Liang is a real scoundrel!
Gao Jianfei didn't really take Zhang Liang's little affair to heart. Anyway, there was no need to get close to such a petty person. Let him do whatever he wanted; he could just give him a perfunctory response.
Soon, the beautiful women in the planning department started coming to work one after another.
Gao Jianfei noticed that two beautiful women had their eyes on him as soon as they entered the office this morning.
Qin Leshi looked at Gao Jianfei with a somewhat resentful gaze, and even had a stern face. When Gao Jianfei looked at her, she would deliberately turn her face away.
Chen Xian remained outwardly silent, though no longer as aloof as before, she still maintained a considerable degree of reserve. However, occasionally, she would cast an almost tender, affectionate glance at Gao Jianfei. Gao Jianfei couldn't help but think of what had happened between him and Chen Xian the previous night. In fact, these were secrets that neither Gao Jianfei nor Chen Xian could speak of, so now, in the office, when Gao Jianfei sometimes noticed the unintentional, affectionate gazes Chen Xian cast at him, he felt a secret, unspoken connection stirring within him!
It's quite subtle.
In the afternoon, Qin Leshi, who hadn't spoken to Gao Jianfei until now, finally couldn't hold back any longer. She whispered to him, "Did you have a good time with your girlfriend last night?" Her expression and demeanor were very ordinary and casual, like a friendly exchange. But her eyes held an undisguised hint of inquiry and probing.
"Huh?" Gao Jianfei was stunned for a moment. "Miss Qin... what girlfriend? What did you say?"
Qin Leshi bit her lower lip, trying to hold back, but finally couldn't help herself, "Didn't you get a phone call yesterday, asking your girlfriend to dinner? Saying... meet on Ziyou Road."
"Oh!" Gao Jianfei suddenly realized, "What girlfriend? I don't have a girlfriend! I've only been at the flower market for less than a month! It's a guy I met up with... Uh, by the way, Miss Qin, why are you asking these questions? I can see you're very interested in this. Sigh, are women really that curious?"
Hearing Gao Jianfei's answer, Qin Leshi felt a sense of relief! Her face flushed, and she turned her back, saying, "I was just asking."
Of course, Gao Jianfei was completely oblivious to these minor details. He wasn't good at analyzing women's inner feelings, and he had never been in a relationship, so there were many things he didn't understand. Moreover, he was currently preoccupied with two things: one was rushing home after get off work to see what trouble Xiaoxiao and her father had encountered; the other was that he would be able to see Huang Feihong's ghost that night, and Gao Jianfei would definitely stay up all night studying Huang Feihong's martial arts and medical skills.
Just before he was about to leave work in the afternoon, Gao Jianfei received a text message. When he opened it, he was surprised to find that it was from Chen Xian... "Jianfei, I heard that a hot pot restaurant opened on Hongqi Road. Can I invite you to eat there together?"
Gao Jianfei glanced at the text message and couldn't help but look up at Chen Xian's desk. She was organizing a document, but it was clearly just for show. When she caught Gao Jianfei looking at her out of the corner of her eye, she raised her head slightly, a gentle smile appearing on her lips.
Gao Jianfei turned his gaze away and sent Chen Xian a text message... "I'm sorry, Ms. Chen, I have something to do tonight and don't have time. How about another day?"
Just half a minute later, Chen Xian sent another text message... "Hmm... okay then! But from now on, when you're alone with me or talking to me alone, don't call me Miss Chen anymore, just call me Xiao Xian."
“Okay, no problem.” Gao Jianfei immediately sent a text message.
For Gao Jianfei, the entire workday felt strange. Finally, the workday ended, and Gao Jianfei rushed out of the office and hurried to the bus stop.
Hurry back to Yuehua Village!
After changing buses once and taking a forty-minute drive, Gao Jianfei finally made it back to Yuehua Village. He checked the time; it was a little past six, the sun still high in the sky. But as he reached the village entrance, Gao Jianfei noticed… Yuehua Village seemed much quieter than usual today!