Everyone in K City knows that the place used to be an industrial site. Although the factories have moved away, who knows if there is any industrial pollution left on the land? Although the government has repeatedly denied the rumors and assured that there is no pollution problem on that land... these days, no one believes what the news broadcast says.
Therefore, this area in the southwest suburbs has become a well-known deserted area in K City... but it is still deserted. Although beautiful new buildings have been built one after another, at night, most of those buildings are pitch black, with only a few lights on in the occasional household.
The prices of new apartments here have been dropping again and again. Although they are about 30% cheaper than apartments in the city center, there is still little demand. There is a famous joke circulating in K City: if someone gets their driver's license and goes to the southwest suburbs to practice driving at night, they can drive however they want without worrying about hitting anyone, because at night, even if you throw a grenade on the street, it won't hit anyone.
When Chen Xiao arrived here from the city, the subway car was deserted. After exiting the subway station, he looked around and didn't see a single car pass by on the road for a full two minutes.
The address in his hand wasn't hard to find; Chen Xiao walked for fifteen minutes and found his destination.
Clearly, this is another unfinished "commercial district." When the real estate company started developing it, newspapers touted it daily as a large commercial area, but nothing ever came of it. The surrounding buildings look beautiful, but there's hardly anyone around. Even now, before sunset, it all looks deserted and quiet.
This place is a "pedestrian commercial street." Unfortunately, despite being a long street, seven or eight hundred meters long, Chen Xiao could see almost nothing in operation. Most of the shops were empty, creating a desolate atmosphere.
After walking half a block, Chen Xiao only saw two shops still open: a wine shop and, surprisingly, a cigar shop… This made Chen Xiao chuckle. Who would buy luxury items like wine and cigars in a place like this?
What surprised Chen Xiao even more was that there was a car wash and repair shop at the intersection—opening a car wash on a commercial pedestrian street? It must be that the shops here are ridiculously cheap!
As Chen Xiao passed by, he was surprised to see that the car dealership was still open. A middle-aged man in work clothes, covered in black engine oil grime, was holding a pair of pliers. He looked at Chen Xiao, who was walking past the door, with a curious look on his face and a strange, amused smile on his lips.
Chen Xiao walked to the end of the street and finally found the address.
This is actually a coffee shop? Just one glance at the name was enough to amaze Chen Xiao: Bacchus.
Hmm... Could it be that the owner of this store has a grudge against Starbucks?
However—this coffee shop's business has reached an extremely low point. Normally, a shop with business this bad should be on the verge of closing down and going bankrupt.
But this coffee shop actually had a couplet hanging on its door!
It was already inappropriate for a coffee shop to have couplets hanging there, but what was even more outrageous was the content of these couplets!
First line: If you want coffee under 200 yuan, go somewhere else!
Second line: Anyone deemed a beauty by the shop owner will have their meal free!
Horizontal scroll: Come if you want, don't come if you don't!
Chen Xiao: "…………"
Staring blankly at the arrogant couplet for a while, Chen Xiao sighed and gently pushed open the door. Amidst the tinkling of wind chimes, Chen Xiao walked into the deserted shop. Looking around, there wasn't a single customer in the large coffee shop.
Behind the counter, an old man in a floral shirt, with a wooden pipe dangling from his mouth and silver-white hair, was engrossed in reading a thread-bound book, his eyes half-closed.
Chen Xiao walked up to him and stood there for a full five seconds. The old man didn't even notice that someone was in front of him. His narrowed old eyes gleamed, as if he were completely absorbed in watching him.
Chen Xiao couldn't help but glance at the book, but couldn't see the title, only a passage:
"...Then Granny Wang laughed and said, 'Master Ximen has a good eye. This young lady's surname before marriage was Pan, and her given name was Jinlian. She was from a wealthy family, but she was unlucky and followed Wu Da...'"
Chen Xiao couldn't help but smile and greeted him politely, "Grandpa, are you reading 'Water Margin'?"
The old man then raised his head, as if only now noticing Chen Xiao. His face was righteous and awe-inspiring, and he smiled arrogantly, replying with three words:
"Jin Ping Mei!"
Chen Xiao: "..."
Chapter Twenty-Three: The Butler's Job
Upon closer inspection, this old man was somewhat different from ordinary old men. His skin appeared slightly more delicate, unlike the dull complexion of other elderly people, instead possessing a full, lustrous sheen.
His face showed a hint of displeasure, as if someone owed him millions.
Chen Xiao immediately recognized the old man's voice; it was the same voice he had heard in both previous phone calls. The old man seemed to have an eccentric personality. After speaking coldly, he lowered his head to continue reading, calmly finishing a chapter before carefully taking out a thin ivory bookmark from his pocket and inserting it into the page of the chapter he was reading. Only then did he close the book and look up at Chen Xiao directly.
"You're Chen Xiao?" The old man snorted, his voice dry but making no attempt to hide his displeasure. "Hmph, just a little brat. Do those guys think I'm a nanny? Why are they sending just anyone to me!"
Although he was very impolite, Chen Xiao wasn't annoyed—the old man's hair was all white, and he was old enough to be his grandfather, so it wasn't shameful for him to call him a "little brat."
The old man and the young man stared at each other for a long time. The old man's eyes grew brighter and brighter, as if he wanted to read something from Chen Xiao's eyes. However, after staring at Chen Xiao for a while, Chen Xiao's gaze did not flinch or back down.
"Hmph, kid, looks like you're quite stubborn." The old man's voice softened slightly. "Alright, find yourself a place to sit down." With that, he casually pointed into the shop.
Chen Xiao didn't refuse and directly found a sofa closest to the counter to sit down.
The old man pulled out two cans of beer from under the counter, picked them up, and sat down in front of Chen Xiao. He was wearing a floral shirt, but his body was as thin as a bamboo pole. The oversized shirt swayed as if it would be blown away by the wind at any moment.
"Drink up, don't be shy." The old man opened a can of beer and handed it to Chen Xiao. "I don't like being interrupted when I'm speaking, so if you want to ask anything, just hold back. My time is precious. You can only ask questions after I've finished speaking and given you permission, understand?"
Chen Xiao took a sip of beer and nodded—although this place was strange in every way, and the old man didn't seem like a normal person either. However, since it was the base of that supernatural organization "Service Society," Chen Xiao had already prepared himself mentally.
“My surname is Edward,” the old man said, stating his name.
"Edward?" Chen Xiao couldn't help but interject.
*Smack!*
The old man sat on the opposite sofa and flicked his finger at Chen Xiao—Chen Xiao had only just finished saying that short sentence when he felt a hard knock on his head! His forehead immediately burned with pain, and when he touched it, he found a lump had swelled up!
Even though the old man's fingers were still so far away, the pain from being hit on the forehead was unmistakable.
"Damn! Finger flicking technique?!" Chen Xiao couldn't help but widen his eyes, staring at the old man's thick, short fingers.
"I told you I don't like people interrupting when I'm speaking! How can young people be so forgetful!" The old man said with a gloomy face. "Also, not Edward! It's Ai Dehua! Ai as in artemisia, De as in virtue, Hua as in China! Remember that. If you call my name randomly again, I'll knock your front teeth out."
The old man spoke with a clear hint of disdain and impatience, and his eyes were full of arrogance and haughtiness, as if he was already giving Chen Xiao a great deal of face by simply sitting there and talking to him.
Although Chen Xiao was in a lot of pain, he endured it considering the other party's identity and age.