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墨書 Inktalez
Later, Xiao Dao told me that two days ago, the store was short of women to dance, so Xiao Huang brought his sister to perform. Xiao Dao intended to inform me, but I didn’t hear him that day.
Just after I left that night, Liu Fei came down to watch the new performance and immediately took a liking to Xiao Huang's sister. That very night, Liu Fei ended up with her, and the next day, he nearly beat Xiao Huang to death.
Sigh, what a twist of fate. If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have let you keep an eye on Xiao Huang. I ended up offending a petty person and dragged you into it as well.
I sighed helplessly; who could have predicted such a situation? Some surprises are unavoidable.
It’s not entirely your fault, Dong Ge. You were right; even if I hadn’t offended Xiao Huang, once he gained power, I wouldn’t have fared much better.
Xiao Dao grinned despite his pale complexion. I chuckled in response; it was true, though it shouldn’t be this dire.
Then Xiao Dao asked me what my plans were next and whether I would continue working at Tianchi. I confirmed that I would. After hearing my answer, he fell silent. I knew he probably didn’t want to stay at Tianchi anymore because the current situation was too much for him.
I didn’t say anything further; after all, my negotiations with Xiong Li hadn’t been finalized yet. It was best to wait until those discussions were complete before making any decisions. Although Linna’s speculations made sense, there was no guarantee that I could reach an agreement with Xiong Li.
I stayed in Xiao Dao's hospital room until the afternoon. The doctor said his injuries would require at least half a month of rest. Since I hadn’t become the general manager yet, I couldn’t make any work-related promises to him. After buying him some water, I told him to focus on recovering before heading home.
When I got home, Linna saw me with a bruised face and was predictably upset again.
"Who did this? What happened? What did you do to get beaten up like this?"
Linna looked displeased; her protective demeanor reminded me of my mother. When I got into fights as a kid, she would ask me the same questions when I got home. It made me smile involuntarily.
"You’re still smiling? Did it not hurt? You’re such a mess! Why do you always let people hit you?"
Linna continued her complaints, but her words annoyed me!
"What do you mean by that? What do you mean I'm a mess? Sister, I'm an undercover agent right now! You should know that often I'm forced into these situations!"
I protested. In fact, those waiters who attacked me were not beyond my ability to handle; however, in that situation, fighting back wasn’t an option. If I had retaliated, I could guarantee that I would end up worse off than Xiao Dao! What good would that do?
"Yes, every time you get beaten up is beyond your control."
Linna scoffed at my words, which left me speechless. Did being beaten not make me feel humiliated? But for what reason? Now she was making me feel even more frustrated.
I fell silent; honestly, I was quite irritated and sat down on the sofa beside me while lighting a cigarette. I don’t smoke often but enjoy lighting one when I'm troubled.
I avoided looking at Linna, but she seemed to stay put for a while, glancing at me occasionally before huffing softly and heading to the bathroom.
Taking a deep drag from my cigarette, I knew she cared about me and understood that Linna had a bit of a spoiled temperament—she had never faced hardship before and struggled to control herself when upset. But in situations like this, especially when she felt sorry for me, it made me uncomfortable.
I didn’t try to comfort her; instead, I thought I'd wait until my mood improved before doing so. Eventually, Linna walked over and sat beside me, tugging at my sleeve with both hands.
"Are you angry? I'm sorry."
Linna said, and when I turned to look, I saw her pouting at me. The sight made me want to laugh, but I held it back. Since she didn’t wait for me to comfort her and instead came to tease me, I might as well enjoy it.
Let’s be honest; every girl hopes her man is a hero, not someone who constantly gets beaten up and comes home with bruises.
I turned my head and said gloomily, "I admit, I’m just putting on an act."
"No! What are you talking about? Just because someone gets beaten doesn’t mean they’re not a hero!" Linna immediately retorted. I raised an eyebrow and curiously asked her, "Don’t you think so?"
"Of course not! A hero isn’t defined by how strong they are; a hero is someone who does things for the people around them, even when they know it’s impossible. They give their all! Even if they’re battered and bruised, that’s what makes them a hero." Linna said, her pretty face showing a hint of longing.
I found her reasoning interesting and responded with an "Oh," acknowledging her point. "But doesn’t that describe me? So am I not your hero?"
I couldn’t help but laugh as I looked at Linna. She smiled back at me, her lips curling up as she released the grip of her small hands on my sleeve. "You still have a long way to go."
"What do you mean? How can I get closer?" I continued to ask with a grin. In an instant, our earlier tension melted away into this light-hearted banter. It was hard to resist Linna; my defenses always seemed so low around her.
"Think about it. When I asked you for help back then, I was really pushing you into it. Now that you’re covered in wounds, it proves my point, but who knows if you really gave it your all out there?" Linna said with a raised brow.
I chuckled at that; I had intended to tease her, but she had turned the tables on me so quickly.
"I did give it my all! Tomorrow I'm negotiating with Xiong Li. If the negotiation goes well, just think—I'll be the general manager in no time!" I said cheerfully. Linna nodded in agreement, acknowledging my efforts before asking, "What happened that day? Why did you end up getting beaten like that?"
I recounted the events of the day to Linna. It was purely an accident—an unfortunate episode that didn’t conflict with our goals.
Linna listened quietly; there wasn’t much for her to say since after tomorrow’s negotiation with Xiong Li, if all went well, Liu Fei would have to deal with the consequences of his actions against me.
"I’ll tell you this: if they hit us, we’ll hit back tenfold! Do you understand?" Linna finally managed to say after some thought. Her little temper made me laugh; she really was on my wavelength!
The night passed without much conversation. Perhaps because of my injuries, Linna took great care of me the next day and didn’t torment me with her terrible cooking; instead, she ordered a lot of delicious takeout.
Throughout the day, Xiao Huang called me several times, but I didn’t answer. There was no need to discuss anything until after tomorrow’s meeting with Xiong Li.
The next day, I spent the morning playing with Linna at home. In the afternoon, I checked on my knife and then looked in on Liu Zi’s Xi Qinqin.
When Liu Zi's Xi Qinqin saw me, she was very friendly and kept asking when Liu Zi would come by. I told her he would be here soon—very soon.
I also met the nanny hired by Linna for Liuzi, named Wang Dama. I chatted with Wang Dama, who seemed like a decent and straightforward person. However, she told me that Liuzi's Xi Qinqin still missed her son a lot. She asked me to contact Liuzi if I could and let him know to visit home more often.
What could I say to that? I simply agreed. Liuzi had only just entered; even if he behaved well inside, it would likely take some time before he could be released. I wondered how long I could delay things for Xi Qinqin.
By eight in the evening, I brought two account books to the Happy Community. Arriving at the entrance of Building 11, Unit 3, I pressed the doorbell for Apartment 30.
Without any conversation, the unit door opened, and I went straight up to the third floor. The door to Apartment 30 was also open. Holding the account books, I walked in and saw a bald man in his forties sitting on the sofa with a beautiful woman.
"Come in and close the door behind you," the bald man said. He introduced himself as Xiong Li. After acknowledging him, I turned to close the door and changed my shoes before entering fully. The decor inside was quite impressive—luxurious and grand. Xiong Li gestured for me to sit on the left side of the sofa.
"You know why I'm here. If your proposed price doesn't satisfy me, we'll have to reconsider how you've wasted my time," Xiong Li began with a threatening tone. I chuckled at his demeanor; it seemed he was eager for everyone to know he was involved in the underworld. Even while discussing business, he had to hold onto a woman, which spoke volumes about his character.
"Xiong Laoda, since I've come to you, I assure you there will be a satisfactory price. But before we discuss that, there's something I'd like you to see."
I smiled as I handed him the two account books. Xiong Li didn't hesitate; he took them and flipped through them briefly before frowning.
"Is this Tianchi's account book?" he asked, looking at me with furrowed brows. The accounts were clearly recorded inside, complete with stamps.
"Yes, it's Tianchi's account book," I replied cheerfully. Xiong Li flipped through it again and pulled out some documents stamped with Tianchi's seal, his expression darkening.
"Weren't you here to discuss liquor business? What does this mean?" He raised an eyebrow at me.
I smiled again and said, "That's right; I'm indeed here to discuss business with you. However, I'm here for two deals: one is my liquor, and the other is about myself."
"What do you mean?" Xiong Li continued to press.
I laughed and explained, "Xiong Laoda, Tian Ye Gang's status in Kyoto is well-known. To work under you would be a great honor. I'm actually here to recommend myself; I want to take on the position of General Manager of Tianchi, which has just become available."
"What? You want to be the General Manager of Tianchi? Ha ha!" Upon hearing this, Xiong Li burst into laughter. I grinned back; now it was time to see if Linna's guess about Xiong Li was correct. If it was right, then this General Manager position should be within my reach.
"Ha ha! Brother, look at you! You're all bruised up; what makes you think you deserve to be my General Manager? Tell me why I should let you sit in that position?"
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