"?!" Chen Xiao suddenly looked up.
"Well? Come with me, I'll tell you slowly." Old Master Xiao smiled and pointed to the car by the roadside.
Chapter 258 [The Xiao Family]
Lao Tian, Shi Gaofei, and the others rushed back to K City looking exhausted—since they suspected Chen Xiao might have recovered, and he wasn't in Shanghai... well, it's possible that Chen Xiao had gone back to K City!
But this was just a guess. After a brief discussion, a decision was made: Lao Tian, Shi Gaofei, Xiao Qing, and Fatty would return to K City to find Chen Xiao.
Meanwhile, Zhu Rong, Gong Gong, and the rest of the group stayed in Shanghai to continue the search, focusing their efforts on a thorough search of the hospital.
But fate is just so unpredictable.
Just as Lao Tian and Shi Gaofei walked out of the train station, exhausted, Lao Tian still assigned Fatty to carry the luggage that had been shipped.
Almost simultaneously, at the train station entrance, Old Master Xiao wore a smug smile, followed by two young men carrying bags, with Chen Xiao and Zhang Xiaotao trailing behind. They entered the station's ticket gates with the flow of people, then walked onto the platform, and finally stepped into a luxurious compartment of a train.
The train's destination is Lingnan Province, the Xiao family's current ancestral home.
Old Master Xiao made a very subtle move. He tricked Chen Xiao into bringing him back to Lingnan, but he didn't inform Xiao Qing about it at all, and didn't even make a phone call.
While Xiao Qing was painstakingly searching in K City with Lao Tian and the others, Chen Xiao had already set off for her hometown with Old Master Xiao.
In K City, almost the entire legal and illegal worlds were mobilized. The underworld figure known as "Little Red Robe" received a commission from Young Master Xu and deployed almost all of his men. Meanwhile, Officer Xu from the police force was also mobilized to help.
But at this very moment, Chen Xiao had already left K City.
……
……
Lingnan is a border city, bordering both the sea and the border, but the city where the Xiao family is located is a small to medium-sized inland city, more than a hundred kilometers away from the border, and not very conspicuous in this mountainous province.
Chen Xiao arrived here three days later. Along the way, Old Master Xiao had used many methods to convince Chen Xiao that the two were relatives.
The two young men from the Xiao family had no idea what the old man was planning. If it was just a simple matter of recognizing their ancestors, the old man didn't seem to need to make it so mysterious—but now the old man's attitude was as if he had tricked Chen Xiao into coming back.
The city's train station is much smaller than those in major coastal provincial capitals like K City, but it is still clean and tidy.
Upon exiting the station, cars from the Xiao family were already waiting to greet them. It was clear that the Xiao family had a strong foothold in the city, as the cars that came to pick them up were two Mercedes-Benzes, a rarity in the city. Chen Xiao, who had been filled with questions the whole way, got into the car with Old Master Xiao. After the car drove around the city for a while, Chen Xiao noticed that it was rare to see such high-end cars on the streets of the city.
More importantly, it is the imprint left by the Xiao family in this city.
Along the way, they passed through the city's most bustling commercial streets. Old Master Xiao didn't say anything, but two young men spoke up to introduce some things to Chen Xiao. The Xiao family owned businesses on several of the busiest commercial streets, most of which were martial arts schools disguised as fitness centers.
With the progress of the times, the era of simply opening a martial arts school and teaching students is gone forever. The Xiao family's fitness centers have formed a chain and have introduced many advanced fitness center leisure concepts. In this day and age, ordinary people don't have much of a martial spirit. Most people just want to exercise in their spare time. Therefore, in addition to teaching martial arts, these Xiao family fitness centers also offer some programs such as aerobics, yoga, and aerobic cycling.
However, the only combat sport is Wushu; there are no other martial arts like Karate or Taekwondo.
Chen Xiao roughly counted, and found that the Xiao family owned as many as six gyms in this small city, occupying all the bustling areas in the city's east, west, south, and north.
Given the local city's population and economic foundation, such a scale would essentially allow it to form a monopoly in this industry.
"We've already opened four branches in the provincial capital, and more in the surrounding cities. Basically, it's all Xiao family territory. Outside gyms simply can't gain a foothold." A young man from the Xiao family said with a smug look on his face.
Chen Xiao simply hummed in response.
He also realized that the car was deliberately taking a detour, deliberately driving around the city and visiting every business. He wondered what Old Master Xiao meant by making such an arrangement.
Is it trying to tell me: Kid, you've hooked up with a rich relative?
Chen Xiao found it somewhat amusing, but kept his questions to himself.
Once the car finally started moving into the city, Old Master Xiao, who had been silent the whole way, suddenly spoke softly: "These family businesses are all intended for Xiao Qing to manage in the future. Let her wander around outside for two years now. After she gets married, she should settle down and come back to manage the business properly."
Xiao Qing?
Upon hearing the name, Chen Xiao frowned slightly. The name seemed unfamiliar to him, yet he also felt a strange sense of familiarity with it.
The old man spoke casually, but the two young men beside him had strange expressions and couldn't help but give Chen Xiao a deep look.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Xiaotao, who was standing nearby, instinctively felt a sense of vigilance and quickly moved closer to Chen Xiao, looking at the old man with wary eyes.
The car quickly left the city and arrived at the foot of a mountain on the outskirts of the city.
Lingnan is mountainous, which is not unusual, but the Xiao family is indeed wealthy!
The mountain is shaped like a concave shape when viewed from above, and a quaint old mansion is located in this concave area. It is surrounded by hillsides on three sides, while one side is leveled into a forest. A two-lane road is paved through the forest. Following the road, you can see the old master Xiao's house!
With its red walls, green tiles, flying eaves, and bracket sets, it resembles the grand mansion of an ancient official's family.
When the Xiao family patriarch returned, before the car even reached the gate, he saw the entire family already waiting at the entrance, standing in several rows.
Standing in the front row were some of the older people, mostly in their forties or fifties, while those in the back row were younger. They were arranged according to age and seniority, each with a serious expression, not daring to breathe loudly, and standing there obediently with their hands hanging down.
After the old man got out of the car, everyone immediately bowed.
Seeing this scene, Chen Xiao couldn't help but sigh: Such a grand display, could it be an ancient emperor!
As soon as the old man got out of the car, his maid and servants brought him tea and towels. After washing up, the old man stood next to Chen Xiao, holding a dragon-headed cane, pointed to the gate, and smiled slightly, "Kid, come home with your grandpa."
Before the group returned, the family received news from the old man that they had found a bloodline that had been scattered outside. Chen Xiao's mother's surname was Xiao, and she was a member of the Xiao family in the past.
Chen Xiao's identity was known to all the branches of the family before he even returned. As for the marriage between Chen Xiao and Xiao Qing, it was arranged by the old man many years ago, and everyone knew that.
Xiao Qing holds a very special position in the family and is greatly favored by the old man. He has said many times that he will take over the family business in the future, but now he has brought Chen Xiao back. This is Xiao Qing's real fiancé and the future son-in-law of the Xiao family. Wouldn't that be equivalent to the status of a prince consort?
In the future, Xiao Qing, a girl, will have to listen to her husband no matter what her personality is like, so wouldn't this boy who was picked up from outside be able to rise to the top in one step?