Chapter 14

But with this one call from Qin Heng, the Shen Family would only think the Jiang Family did not know what was good for them. After all, Boss Xu, who could beat up a wealthy family's heir in Yangcheng, carried far more weight than Jiang Shijie.

If President Shen still wanted to maintain good relations with Xu Jiahao, he would definitely come in person to apologize, pay out of pocket to clean up this mess, and forget about the cooperation the Jiang and Shen Families could have had.

Without Chongning and Jiuzhi to rely on, the Jiang Family could forget about gaining a foothold in Yangcheng ever again.

Although Qin Heng had not subjectively been acting on behalf of the Chi family, Chongning had reaped the benefits and directly prevented the Shen and Jiang Families from joining forces to cause trouble at the source.

Overall, the Chi family had gotten a free advantage.

It felt absolutely fantastic.

"Qin Heng." Chi Ning pointed at the drinks and snacks by the refreshment counter. "Does this count toward your commission?"

"It does." Qin Heng hesitated for a moment.

Had beating someone up in front of Chi Ning just now scared him?

Probably not.

He had been very restrained today. Jiang Shijie's mouth was completely intact, not even the skin had broken.

But Chi Ning was probably rather timid. Would he be scared? What if he got frightened and stopped renewing his membership?

Should he protect Brother Xu's customer relationship?

But comforting someone cost money, didn't it?

Qin Heng glanced at Chi Ning's eyes. Under the dim light, the young man's eyes looked moist. He did not know whether he had cried.

Forget it. Money was meant to be spent.

"What do you want?"

Chi Ning sat in his seat and pointed. "Red-braised-flavor chips, the biggest bag. And a bottle of orange juice, the one with 'freshly squeezed' written on the bottle."

Qin Heng glanced at the prices. The chips were fine, but the orange juice cost thirty Hong Kong dollars. Together, it came to nearly fifty.

So expensive. He would have to sell ten bottles of bayberry juice to earn it back. He was starting to not want to comfort him.

The table Chi Ning booked was always the one closest to the counter, where he could see the prices.

He took out fifty dollars and handed it to Qin Heng, who had brought the items over. "Here. Keep the change for yourself."

One thing was one thing. He was more precise in his dealings than a laboratory scale.

Although he did not like Qin Heng the liar, Qin Heng had helped the Chi family solve a problem. He still had to thank him when thanks were due.

Qin Heng looked at the money, clenched his back teeth, and with difficulty looked away. He pushed the money back. "No need. It's on me."

He took a deep breath and said quickly, "This is compensation from the club for the unpleasant experience you had."

Zhang Qiuwen: "Huh?"

Was that even a thing?

You gave Jiang Shijie psychological trauma. Did you compensate him?

You even called President Shen and told him to pay for the carpet.

Chi Ning did not suspect a thing. He took the chips in one hand and the orange juice in the other, considering how else he could thank Qin Heng.

With a rip, he tore open the chips, leaned back in the lounge area, and looked at the television mounted on the wall in the hall. It was broadcasting the 1999 Y-Country Snooker Grand Prix final.

One of the contestants was Mo Yuanzhou.

As expected of someone involved in the arts, Teacher Mo had far better posture and bearing than his opponent. Even the clothes he wore were more fitting than his opponent's.

Combined with his skill at the table, it was a complete and utter crushing victory.

Chi Ning crunched on his chips, the sound of eating so faint beneath the collision of billiard balls that it could be ignored.

Qin Heng curled his lips.

The Second Young Master Chi was pretty easy to coax. As long as he had something tasty to distract him, he would not be scared anymore.

"Tsk, tsk." Zhang Qiuwen thought, What the hell is this?

He leaned close to Qin Heng and asked, "There's no such rule at the club, right?"

Qin Heng gave him a sidelong glance. "What if Chi Ning gets scared and never tops up Brother Xu's account again? This is customer retention."

Zhang Qiuwen understood and gave him a thumbs-up. "I get it. Small investment, big returns."

-

By the time Xu Jiahao arrived, Chi Ning was already so stuffed from the value-size sharing bag of chips that he was hiccuping, holding the large bottle of freshly squeezed orange juice and taking little sips.

After hearing the whole story, he immediately took out a level ruler to measure the pool table. "Fuck, that scumbag Jiang Shijie sat his ass on my table and knocked it crooked."

Chi Ning licked the seasoning powder from his lips and said, "It's okay. Qin Heng called President Shen and said Jiang Shijie was looking for trouble, told President Shen to handle it as he saw fit. President Shen will definitely come apologize to you soon."

Qin Heng: ...

He had been so polite when he called President Shen. How had it turned into sounding like he was provoking someone after passing through Chi Ning's mouth?

Qin Heng said to Xu Jiahao, "I phrased it a little more tactfully. I recorded the call."

Good thing he had kept something in reserve.

Though it had not been to guard against Chi Ning...

After listening to the recording, Xu Jiahao looked at Chi Ning with much more affection.

The son Chi Baichuan had raised was remarkably naive.

The same meaning had one effect coming from Qin Heng's mouth and another entirely different effect coming from Chi Ning's.

Chi Ning: "..."

What was wrong?

"Nothing." Xu Jiahao wiped his face. "Take whatever you want from the counter. Brother Xu is treating you."

Chi Ning repeatedly waved his hands and pointed at the empty chip bag. "No need. Brother Qin already treated me."

Xu Jiahao let out an amazed sound and looked at Qin Heng curiously. The iron rooster had plucked a feather?

Qin Heng had handled this matter well. He had maneuvered among three forces, struck ruthlessly, and wrapped things up smoothly.

Xu Jiahao patted Qin Heng's shoulder, then gave it a hard squeeze. "Not bad, kid. I heard you're

an orphan

. Want to take me as your godfather? I happen to be thinking of retiring, and no one will be running my businesses. If you come work for me, I'll teach you the rest."

Chi Ning secretly went wow.

Xu Jiahao was definitely no ordinary man. Beating Jiang Shijie could bring such benefits?

As long as it was not illegal, Qin Heng would come out ahead no matter what.

"Boss Xu, you have businesses too?"

Chi Ning leaned sideways against the sofa like a puddle of melted cat. "What does your family do? Do you want to cooperate with my family?"

Xu Jiahao paused.

After all these years in Yangcheng, he had never received such an unserious invitation for cooperation. But coming from Chi Ning, it was understandable. After all, he could even say that President Shen should "handle it as he saw fit."

Xu Jiahao laughed. "I currently do real estate development and gambling. Most of my business is overseas. What, is the Chi family, with its upright values, interested in gambling too?"

Gambling?

What gambling?

Chi Ning guessed, "Selling lottery tickets? That's not impossible. You can make a lot from selling lottery tickets."

Xu Jiahao closed his eyes.

How could there be a young master from a wealthy family who thought gambling meant lottery tickets? Though that was included... but when people heard a boss say that, they would usually think of casinos, right?

Just how had Chi Baichuan raised his son?

So sweet.

For the first time, Xu Jiahao did not dare say exactly what he did. He vaguely replied, "Horse racing, football betting, regular lottery tickets—we do all of it. We also run magic shows."

What magicians played, they played too. Nothing wrong with that.

"Then perhaps we can cooperate on real estate someday." Chi Ning's hair had been mussed up, and his lashes drooped sadly. He sighed with convincing melancholy. "My older brother is a little disappointing. My dad worries so much that he cannot sleep well every day. I do not understand any of this, so I can't help."

Xu Jiahao's thoughts stalled as he looked at the Second Young Master Chi's face under the dim lighting.

The billiards club aimed for a quiet atmosphere. Though it was a single-floor hall, the tables were spaced far apart to ensure customers had private

space

. As long as only the overhead lamps above the tables were on, everywhere else was dim, so customers would not feel uncomfortable.

The lounge area was against the wall and even darker. If one did not pay attention, one would not even notice someone was there. Yet Chi Ning seemed enveloped in a faint halo of light, almost glowing. He reclined on the sofa, listless as an eggplant struck by frost.

Poor thing.

Xu Jiahao felt that the godson he had yet to win over was no longer quite so appealing. Raising a little candy ball who did not understand finance was not impossible. That pitiful look had softened his middle-aged fatherly heart.

Chi Ning's expression stiffened slightly.

It was his first time telling such a blatant lie, and he was a little unpracticed. If the lounge area had not been unlit, he definitely would not have dared say it.

Why was Xu Jiahao not speaking? If he did not respond soon, Chi Ning would not be able to keep acting.

Chi Ning rubbed his fingers together and lowered his head even farther. Only after hiding his face did he say, "It's fine if we don't cooperate. My words don't carry much weight anyway. They don't count."

Xu Jiahao had weathered storms, fought with blades and guns in his youth, and could keep a calm head even when facing death. Yet his mind suddenly short-circuited. "I'll call Mr. Chi another day to discuss it."

"Really?" Chi Ning had not expected his first attempt at sweet-talking someone into something to go so smoothly.

"Really."

Xu Jiahao let go of Qin Heng's shoulder and said dazedly, "Let me know after you've thought it over. You have one week."

He thought, Fuck, if Chi Baichuan and I fight over being his dad, Chi Baichuan won't get upset, will he?

The always refined Chi Baichuan would not curse him out, would he?

Chi Ning let out a sigh of relief.

He got up to wash the greasy hands the chips had left him with. Afterward, he pulled a paper towel from the wall dispenser and hummed as he wiped his hands.

When he threw away the paper towel and turned around, Qin Heng standing behind him gave him a fright. "You... what are you standing behind me for?"

Qin Heng did not answer.

Chi Ning felt extremely pleased with himself for helping his father and brother. Then he remembered that Qin Heng had helped the Chi family get rid of Jiang Shijie, and his mood improved another degree.

Looking at him, he suddenly knew how to rent a place.

He was underage, but Qin Heng was an adult!

"Qin Heng, do you want to move somewhere bigger? I need to rent a place outside, but the property developments won't rent to me because I'm underage."

Qin Heng thought that all he had done was hit Jiang Shijie once and buy him some snacks, and the young master had softened again?

He did not agree. Smiling, he looked Chi Ning over and said softly, "Was that your first time lying just now? You weren't very practiced. I don't know how Brother Xu let you fool him."

Your acting was not even half as convincing as mine.

Chapter 14

Chi Ning's heart gave a heavy thump.

Qin Heng pressed a fist against his lips, lowered his head to look at Chi Ning, and spoke with a hint of laughter in his voice. "Why are you nervous? Afraid I'll expose you?"