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墨書 Inktalez
As I was still debating where to eat, Hu Yao quickly voiced his suggestion: Hunan Restaurant! How could we not indulge in Hunan cuisine by the lake? It’s one of the most satisfying options among the Eight Great Cuisines.
His proposal received agreement from both me and Lin Mu Xi. I had almost forgotten that whenever I mentioned going out to eat, this guy would always find a way to trick himself into spending more. But when we arrived at our destination, I realized I shouldn’t have judged it with preconceived notions.
This was a small street-side eatery, not very big, yet it was bustling with diners chatting and enjoying their meals, filled with a lively atmosphere. The cleanliness and hygiene of a restaurant are paramount when evaluating its quality. Despite being a small shop, their kitchen was completely open for all to see, showcasing the freshest ingredients. In fact, customers could even buy their own ingredients and have them cooked for a small labor fee.
Moreover, if the food wasn’t good, there wouldn’t be so many people dining here. If you want to experience the culinary essence of a city, the street food in these alleys best reflects local characteristics.
“Excuse me, is there any seating available?” I asked the owner as I surveyed the crowded interior. I approached him hoping to find an empty table; I wouldn’t mind paying extra for it.
The owner spoke in a local dialect, and though it was just a normal sentence, it sounded awkward to my ears. I muttered under my breath about queuing up—why was this necessary?
Hu Yao always seemed to find joy in my misfortunes. “Haha! Even the esteemed Zhao Family's Zhao Gongzi has his off days!”
Damn it! I was the one paying for the meal, yet he was standing there laughing at me. A sense of inexplicable competition flared up between us guys: “If you think you’re so great, why don’t you step up?”
In male camaraderie, saying “you’re impressive” can convey more than a thousand words!
“Alright then, let’s see,” I replied.
In the end, Hu Yao went over and within just two minutes waved us over to take our seats.
Childish!
Lin Mu Xi looked at us both, flushed from our petty squabble over something so trivial and genuinely puzzled.
I didn’t care if it was childish; I just wanted to know how this guy managed things. All along the way, I kept pressing Hu Yao for details on how he did it. Even after we were seated, I continued my relentless questioning.
When the owner came over, I realized that I had completely fallen into his trap.
"Call me Brother, and I'll tell you," he said.
"Huh? Is that it? You want me to call you Brother? Why don’t you just go die?"
"Oh come on, don’t act like I’m begging you. You can call me whatever you want."
Under the dual influence of provocation and curiosity, I mumbled "Brother" half-heartedly.
Hu Yao exclaimed loudly and pretended to say, "Actually..."
Before he could finish his sentence, the boss placed three plates of cold dishes in front of us.
"Xiao Yao, it’s been a while since you came to see your uncle. These are your classmates, right? Everyone, take your time eating. If you need more, just let me know."
After the boss finished speaking and left, Lin Mu Xi burst into laughter, her joy blooming like a flower. Even Hu Yao lowered his head and stopped looking at me.
At that moment, I felt like a clown. After all that effort, I had even called him Brother, only to find out the boss was his uncle! How did this guy manage that?
I immediately got up and chased after Hu Yao. The moment he saw me stand up, he bolted for the door.
"You bastard! Hu Yao, stop right there! I’m going to beat you up today!"
"Stop? You think I’ll just stop because you say so?"
We ran for a while, but I never caught up with him. Panting heavily, I returned to my seat. Just as I sat down, Hu Yao appeared out of nowhere and plopped back into his chair.
The food was served, and while we ate, I brought up the question that had been on my mind all day.
"Lin Mu Xi, can you tell me about Wang Ju'en?"
Lin Mu Xi put down her chopsticks and first glanced at Hu Yao, who was busy eating, then turned to me and said, "What I know isn’t much—actually less than what your father has found out. But I hope we can reach an agreement."
When Lin Mu Xi mentioned an agreement, I immediately tensed up. I knew she had ulterior motives for coming here. If she was talking about an agreement, it meant this matter was beyond my control.
"Agreement? What kind of agreement?"
"It's simple yet complicated. Just listen to me finish explaining."
Taking a deep breath, Lin Mu Xi began to speak confidently. "Actually, from the very beginning, I knew who you were and who your father is. This information didn’t come from my own investigation; it was shared by a shareholder of my father's when he came over for dinner. You’re the only one in our school named Zhao Lun, so finding you wasn’t hard. As for that shareholder, I heard he’s now working for a multinational company."
"It was because of him that my father's business started struggling when I first entered high school."
As she spoke about this part of her past, I noticed a coldness in Lin Mu Xi's expression.
"My father still had some connections back then and sought help from them. But unexpectedly, that man sabotaged us! Even with some assistance, there was no improvement at all. Just a few months ago, we were preparing to declare bankruptcy and sell off assets to pay debts. It was at that moment that Wang Ju'en approached us. But I always felt she wanted more than just this; everything after that is recorded on that voice recorder."
I had never imagined that Lin Mu Xi's family had suffered betrayal from a shareholder leading them to the brink of bankruptcy. This confirmed everything I had seen outside the restaurant; it turned out all of it was a facade—she was just trying to protect her family's business. She wasn’t wrong; if I were in her position, perhaps I would have made the same choice.
I did feel some sympathy for Lin Mu Xi, but it was limited to sympathy alone; the past was already behind us. This was also the first time I realized that appearances could be deceiving.
"So what exactly is this agreement you're talking about?"
Lin Mu Xi took a sip of water and said, "I’ll continue to stay undercover with Wang Ju'en for as long as she wants. During that time, I will share everything I know with you, and all you need to do is invest one hundred million in my family's mall."
"What? One hundred million?" Hu Yao exclaimed, unable to hold back any longer. She had been on the verge of interrupting but had restrained herself until Lin Mu Xi mentioned the investment amount.
I hadn’t followed through on my earlier thought of kicking Hu Yao out the moment she spoke. One hundred million was far beyond what I could manage. Even with the ten thousand I had just gotten from Old Zhao, I barely had enough.
This was no longer something I could decide.
"I can't agree to Lin Mu Xi's proposal," I said firmly. "Sister! This is beyond my authority."
Lin Mu Xi, undeterred by the interruption, continued, "I haven’t finished yet. I know this doesn’t seem beneficial to you at first glance. However, there’s an additional condition: if you invest in my family’s mall, then I can take charge. You will hold ten percent of our mall's shares for a period of time. After that, we will return your investment of one hundred million plus an additional fifty thousand in interest. In return, you will need to relinquish all your shares back to us, and during this time, we will use your father's name to promote our mall."
I fell silent, my mind racing.
Lin Mu Xi's true intention was to use her current trust with Wang Ju'en as a spy. She didn’t want to see her family’s business slowly consumed by Wang Ju'en.
Then she would release her hold and seek refuge with Old Zhao, borrowing one hundred million and eventually repaying one hundred five million.
From a business perspective, this didn’t seem like a bad investment. The problem was that Old Zhao wasn’t a businessman!
But how do we know you’re not playing us?
Hu Yao’s words struck me like a bolt of lightning. I got caught up in her reasoning and didn’t consider whether Lin Mu Xi could actually provide useful information about Wang Ju'en.
"Rest assured," Lin Mu Xi said with a smirk. "If I truly wanted her help, I wouldn’t be coming to you. Perhaps she wants to deal with Zhao Lun while simultaneously swallowing up my family’s assets."
I couldn’t just stand by and watch my father’s hard work be taken away by someone else. And if you held ten percent of my family’s shares, even if I wanted to sabotage things, you could easily discard the shares without any loss.
These matters were beyond my current realm of influence; I had no say in them.
I understood now that this was not something I could decide on my own. "I’ll go back and inform my father," I said. "I’ll get back to you as soon as possible."
With that settled, it only required Old Zhao's nod of approval. Whether or not he agreed didn’t matter much to me; even without Lin Mu Xi’s help, I believed I could handle Wang Ju'en!
When it came time to pay the bill, the owner didn’t charge us since we were classmates of Hu Yao. However, I still scanned his QR code before heading our separate ways.
There was quite a bit to cover in this chapter; combining it into one felt more appropriate than splitting it into two. This is my first attempt at writing this type of novel, and I'm aware there are many areas where I may have fallen short or made mistakes. I appreciate any guidance from the readers.
Thank you all!
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