Chapter 8

Translator: Larbre Studio  Editor: Larbre Studio

“If you’ve done it once, then there will be a second or third time, why should I believe you? I already warned you last time, if you dare to seek revenge, then I will not hesitate to cripple your other leg. So many of my brothers are present. If I go back on my word, then won’t my reputation go down the drain in the future?” As he said that, he swept a cold glance across Zhao Zhengxiong.

Bearing the full brunt of Ling Chen’s frosty gaze, Zhao Zhengxiong shivered and grovelled even more desperately. “Boss Chen, I really wouldn’t dare to commit the same mistake again. If there’s a next time, may lightning strike me dead! As long as you release me, I’ll… I’ll…”

Ling Chen revealed a mischievous grin and asked, “What will you do?”

“I’ll do whatever you tell me to do in the future, whether it is to be a horse or a dog!” Zhao Zhengxiong gnashed his teeth and promised Ling Chen. When dealing with people as vicious as Ling Chen, he felt terror rising from the depths of his heart.

“Alright, this is something you promised on your own. I didn’t force you to make this promise.” Ling Chen’s grin widened considerably, and he let out a hearty laughter. “Fine, you can go now. If I need you in the future, I’ll send Jiang Hao to find you.”

Seeing Ling Chen relenting, Zhao Zhengxiong dared not stay any longer and scurried out of the hotel with his underlings.

“Boss Chen, why did you release him?” Jiang Hao unhappily asked.

“If I don’t let him go, could it be you want to keep him here forever?” Ling Chen raised an eyebrow and asked. “I’m a cultured person and I detest violence. Moreover, he already compromised to this extent, wouldn’t I be a fool to kick this gift horse in the mouth?”

He then looked over to Nanrong Hao, who was standing at the side and smilingly said, “Young Master Hao, sorry to keep you waiting for so long. Come, let’s proceed with dinner.”

Returning to the private room, the original dozen people were now reduced to just Ling Chen, Nanrong Hao and Jiang Hao. All the other underlings had been injured to varying extents, and Jiang Hao had sent them to seek medical care. Jiang Hao himself had only dislocated his wrist and was in a significantly better condition compared to his underlings.

The three did not wait too long before the waiters started serving them the dishes they ordered.

“Young Master Nanrong, don’t be so polite! Come eat!” Ling Chen warmly gestured towards Nanrong Hao and also poured himself a cold glass of beer. He gulped down the glass in a single mouthful, and an incomparably relaxed feeling washed over him.

With a few glasses of beer down his belly, Nanrong Hao did not fear Ling Chen as much as before. From what he had seen, Ling Chen was truly being sincere to him and not acting to get into his good books. As the young master of the Nanrong family, he still possessed a discerning eye to see through the character of others.

“Mr Ling…”

“Don’t be so polite! Listening to you address me like that is so strange, you can just call me by my name.”

“Then… I’ll just call you Bro Chen then.” Nanrong Hao’s face was flushed, and he drunkenly slurred, “Bro Chen, your martial arts are so formidable! You must be the disciple of some famous master, can you tell me who he is?” Jiang Hao perked up his ears at the question, extremely curious as well behind the answer to this mystery.

“What famous master? I only picked up a few tricks from the street and I’m just blindly using them.” Ling Chen gave a flippant excuse before levelling a gaze at Nanrong Hao. “Young Master Nanrong, could it be that you’re interested in kung fu as well?”

Nanrong Hao pulled a face. “I am interested, but Uncle Liu says that I do not have the potential and I’m not suited for it.”

“Cheh! I think not having enough potential is just him making an excuse. This Uncle Liu that you’re talking about is the head steward, right? The reason that he didn’t want to teach you must be because he wants to avoid trouble for himself. Think about it. You’re the young master while he’s just a mere steward, he can’t discipline or scold you at all because of his position. If it were me, I wouldn’t teach you as well.”

“Right right right!” Nanrong Hao enthusiastically nodded his head, resembling a chicken busy picking up grains from the ground. “Bro Chen, your words make a lot of sense. Just like I said before, my older sister is a genius, so how could my potential be any worse than hers?” He then passionately stared at Ling Chen. “Bro Chen, since your kung fu is so good, why not teach me some moves?”

Ling Chen froze and pointed towards his nose, wryly saying, “You want me to teach you? Young Master Nanrong, don’t tell me you forgot about everything that happened just because you drank a few glasses of beer. Remember, I am the sworn enemy of your cousin! If you associate with me, I’m sure your cousin would not hesitate to throttle you.”

Hearing Ling Chen bringing up Su Lin, Nanrong Hao felt a cold shudder running down his spine, as though someone had poured a bucket of cold water over him. His hot-blooded passion extinguished immediately in a flash.

Ling Chen noticed the gloomy look on Nanrong Hao’s face and cheerily patted his shoulder. “Don’t worry, so long as I clear up the misunderstanding with your cousin, I’m sure everything will work out.”

“That’s impossible.”

Nanrong Hao secretly cursed. Ling Chen dared to tease his cousin so blatantly. Knowing his cousin’s character, she would never let him off so easily.

At that time, back at Regal Villa No 118, Su Lin angrily stormed into the house, ranting furiously, “That stinking Ling Chen, goddamned bastard. You want to bully this young lady? Fine, I’ll show you!”

“Su Lin, what’s wrong? Who angered you this time?”

Su Lin turned her head and saw Nanrong Wanqing in a pristine white dress, slowly pushing herself towards Su Lin.

“Isn’t it because of that punk Nanrong Hao? I just want to murder him!” Su Lin fumed.

She did not dare to reveal any details about her altercation with Ling Chen. She brought so many people to find trouble with Ling Chen, but not only did she not succeed, she was sent running back with her tail tucked between her legs. If word got out, wouldn’t she become a laughingstock?

“When will both of you grow up?” Nanrong Wanqing shook her head and sighed. “Follow me, Grandpa just woke up, let’s go and see him.”

When they walked upstairs, they pushed open the door of the master bedroom, and the pungent stench of medical herbs swamped them immediately.

At the south side of the master bedroom, there was an old man, who looked to be in his eighties. He was currently lying on a bed.

His head was a snowy blanket of white. His face was gaunt and bony, frighteningly pale from his illness. Deep wrinkles seemed to carve a map of his life on his skin, telling a story of his worries past and present and age spots mottling his wrinkled visage.

This frail elderly man was the pillar of the Nanrong family and the founder of the Hongyu Multinational, Nanrong Yong.

By his bed frame, the head steward Liu Kun took a bowl containing medicinal herbs from Nanrong Yong and gently placed it on the table. He did not say anything after that, just solemnly standing there like a silent guardian.

“Granddad.”

“Grandpa.”

Seeing both his granddaughters walking in, Nanrong Yong’s frail and gaunt face revealed a trace of happiness. However, as his gaze shifted to the wheelchair that Nanrong Wanqing sat on, his eyes swirled with anger, adoration and helplessness.

“Granddad, you really gave us a scare this time! You must watch your health in the future.” Su Lin sat on his bed and admonished him, her eyes brimming with concern.

“No problem.” Nanrong Yong laughed boisterously. “Your grandad has slogged for a good half of my life, what kind of obstacles have I not encountered before? This puny illness can stop dreaming of bringing me down. You two girls came at the right time! You can accompany me on my walk later, these past few days of lying on my bed aimlessly have almost killed me with boredom!”

Nanrong Wanqing crisply replied, “Grandpa, the doctor said that even though the most dangerous phase has passed, you still need to recuperate properly. You should stay in bed for at least one more month.”

However, her words only caused Nanrong Yong to frown unhappily. “That doctor is a quack! My body is as strong as an ox, forget one month, one day is enough already!”

“The doctor said one month, so one month it is, nothing less. Uncle Liu, help me keep an eye on Grandpa, as long as he places even one foot out of bed, I’ll hold you accountable.” Nanrong Wanqing instructed in a firm tone, which brooked no argument

Liu Kun could only smile bitterly. “Yes, Young Miss.”

After chatting with Nanrong Yong for a while, Nanrong Wanqing and Su Lin took their leave to allow their grandfather time to rest.

When the door shut behind them, the warm and amicable expression on Nanrong Yong’s face quickly morphed into a terrifying visage of rage.