"Tian, hello. Just a little gift, a small token of respect."
"Tian, I know you're close to Boss Chen. This gift is for him. He's a busy man, and we haven't been able to see him, so sorry for the trouble, but could you pass it on?"
The boss of a small base stood before Lin Tian as respectfully as if he were facing his own father.
Lin Tian beamed and accepted everything without hesitation.
Ever since he had taken Chen Luo as his big brother, countless groups had come bearing gifts.
After the gift-givers left Lin Tian's base, one of the underlings said resentfully, "Boss, I just don't get it. We can't even meet Boss Chen, so what's the point of giving him gifts? Isn't that just throwing things away? We don't even have enough to eat ourselves."
The boss smiled calmly. "That's what you don't understand. Whether Boss Chen accepts them is his business. Whether we give them is ours."
"It's better to pay your respects regularly than beg for help at the last minute."
"Giving this gift is really about showing our attitude. If you give one, Boss Chen might not hear about it. But if you don't, he might put you on his little list and find a chance to settle the score."
The boss sighed. "Gift-giving is an art."
Then he sighed again. "Ah, I just don't understand. Why does Boss Chen favor Lin Tian alone, let him be his dog, and publicly declare that provoking Lin Tian means provoking him?"
"Give me a chance, and I'd definitely be a better dog than Lin Tian. I'd keep him perfectly comfortable."
As for the gifts meant for Lin Tian to pass on to Chen Luo, Lin Tian kept every last one.
His trusted underling, Zhou Qiang,