Liu Bang nodded thoughtfully: "It seems I value taste more."
I:"……"
Once in the car, I turned to Zhao Bailian and said, "Little Zhao, you've done a great job today." I suddenly realized the two fools weren't as affectionate as before, so I asked Jing Ke, "What's wrong with you two?"
Ersha said, as if he were sulking, "It's all his fault for not coming!"
I could only shake my head and smile wryly at this nonsensical answer. As for why Zhao Bailian possessed such excellent martial arts skills, that was obviously beyond my comprehension. However, after thinking about it, it seemed that Zhao Bailian didn't actually know any martial arts; he could simply sense what moves his opponent was about to make. This reminded me of his often-repeated phrase: "There's a murderous aura!"
Yes, I suspect he might be able to sense the murderous intent emanating from others, thus avoiding actions detrimental to him. But why that is difficult to explain scientifically. There's a saying, isn't there? That fools are the closest to God (in this book, it should be changed to Buddha)...
Now, what I'm thinking about most is who would spend 100,000 yuan to hire a bunch of unreliable thugs to deal with me? If he really considered me an enemy, he should know that a dozen thugs wouldn't cause me much trouble. Perhaps he's doing this to remind me that he knows me well; I have many friends, so why is he only targeting Liu Bang?
So, he was really just making a malicious joke: toads don't bite, they just disgust you.
Chapter Forty: In the midst of laughter and conversation, Yucai School vanished into thin air.
After we got home, Xiang Yu and Li Shishi also returned. The five of them met and greeted each other warmly. Here is their conversation:
"Brother Xiang, how are things going with Zhang Bing?"
"Hehe, that's good. What have you been busy with lately?"
"Busy doing nothing, walking the runway, working as a freelance model, and participating in an audition in a few days."
...
"Brother Ying, you've gained weight again. Do you know how to conjure 30 lives now?"
"Hehe, you silly girl, if you don't have money, go ask Qiangzi. Look at your clothes, they're showing all your flesh, what kind of woman are you?"
“Oh dear, this is called a crop top, but I really regret buying it. It’s not fashionable at all this year—retro is all the rage now.” Li Shishi whispered to me, “Cousin, what about the clothes I brought? I want to alter them before wearing them again.”
I lowered my voice and said, "They're all gone." I glanced at Baozi in the bedroom, gestured for them to come closer, and asked, "Has anyone been in trouble lately?"
After hearing about the burglary at their home and the story of the Liangshan heroes, they exchanged glances and shook their heads. Xiang Yu said, "I'll go see Zhang Shun tomorrow."
I asked, "Do you feel like you're being followed?"
Xiang Yu said, "I don't know. Even if someone is following us, so what?"
Li Shishi suddenly covered her mouth and said, "Oh dear, no wonder I've felt like someone's been secretly watching me these past few days."
I glanced at her slender, white waist and chuckled a few times. Li Shishi: "Yes, yes, that's it..." She immediately realized, blushed, and fell silent.
Qin Shi Huang looked around warily. I knew that as an emperor, he lacked a sense of security in this environment, so I shouted, "Little Zhao, there's a murderous aura!"
Zhao Bai looked up blankly and glanced around, then gave me a disdainful look before continuing with his own business.
I said to Qin Shi Huang, "It seems we are safe for the time being."
At this moment, Liu Bang dashed to the bedroom door, leaned against the doorframe, and said to Baozi with a grin, "You've been doing well lately?"
...
The next morning I was woken up by a phone call. A kind and polite voice said, "Is this Director Xiao? This is Li He. Would it be convenient for you to come to the school? Our people are already waiting for you there."
I mumbled, rubbing the sleep from my eyes, "Li He, who is that?"
The other person said awkwardly, "I..."
"Oh—I remember now. You're Director Li from the Ministry of Construction." I was a little embarrassed, because we'd only met a couple of days ago. I just thought the expansion of Yucai School was completely hopeless, and he might be cursing me behind my back for being so arrogant, so I selectively forgot about it.
I asked, "Is there something you need, Director Li?"
Li He regained his composure and said, "After careful consideration, we have decided to agree to your request. The chairman of our martial arts association is right; martial arts talents need to be cultivated from a young age."
I stared in disbelief and said, "You guys are all..." Luckily, I was fully awake by then and rationally omitted the rest of the words, "Okay, I'm coming over now."
To be honest, I'm not really in the mood for this right now. The heroes aren't leaving for now, but even if the school is built tomorrow, who among them will have the heart to teach the children? In the shadows, our enemies are watching us intently. It's only because I, Xiaoqiang, have this hardened heart—I've been a thug, handed out flyers, pulled out advertisements, and done sales back in the day. My rich life experiences have given me a strong heart; anyone else would be losing sleep. Wasn't Wu Zixu brave? He worried himself sick trying to sneak into the city without paying the fare.
Fortunately, it seems from Li He's tone that the school expansion project has been downplayed, otherwise he wouldn't have gone to the site in person. It's hard to imagine anyone willing to invest hundreds of millions in a Hope Primary School; I'd be content if he could just build me a small building. When 300 leaves, Yan Jingsheng will be free anyway, so I can recruit a few out-of-school children and put them there, thus fulfilling Old Zhang's wish.
I drove to the school. Before I even entered the gate, I saw a black Volkswagen Santana parked there, and a middle-aged engineer with a protruding belly was standing by the car door. I got out of the car and shook hands with him. He introduced himself briefly, saying, "My surname is Cui. You must be Director Xiao?"
I said, "You can just call me Xiaoqiang."
Without any pretense, Engineer Cui unfolded a colorful blueprint that resembled a treasure map, pointing and saying, "Look, this is our blueprint..."
I quickly said, "Don't make me look at this, it makes my eyes dizzy. Just tell me what you want to say."
Engineer Cui said "okay," quickly put away the drawings, and pointed to the piece of land where we were standing, saying, "This will be a paved square in the future. You'll pass through here and then enter the school gate." He briefly added the locations of the flower beds and lawn, got into the car, and when he turned around and saw me still standing there dumbfounded, he rolled down the window and said to me, "Follow our car."
I quickly got in my car and followed them. I was just a little puzzled; this guy was driving a beat-up Santana and his attitude was even more aggressive than Patton's.
I followed their car through the gate and stopped shortly after. Before us stood the teaching buildings and the dormitories where the students lived. Engineer Cui didn't even glance at these buildings; instead, he stretched out his hand, pointing to the vast campus in the distance, and said with barely concealed passion, "This is our future new campus—we'll build seven dormitory buildings on that land first, and then, about 500 meters away opposite them, four completely modern main buildings. Our initial plan is to separate the teaching and living areas, with at least one large training ground between each main building, also 500 meters apart. In the buffer zone between the teaching and living areas, we'll transplant some ancient trees, so that students walking back and forth will feel that ancient grandeur..."
I quickly stopped him: "Please wait a moment, may I see your identification?"
I interrupted Mr. Cui, who was speaking enthusiastically, and he asked unhappily, "What certificate? A work ID?"
I said, "Whether it's a work ID or a medical record, it's fine, so I can adjust my attitude towards you accordingly."
Engineer Cui asked in astonishment, "You don't believe me?"
I asked him, "Xiao Ming's mother has three children. The eldest son is called Da Mao, the second son is called Er Mao, and what is the name of the third son?"