The familiar little Hongbin Tower building was clearly visible from a distance.
But when they drew near, everyone instinctively stopped.
Hongbin Tower was still Hongbin Tower, but the huge sign hanging above the entrance had changed.
The gilded words "Hongbin Tower" were still bold and sweeping, just as imposing as ever, but two slightly smaller characters had appeared in the upper-left corner of the sign like a patch-Kexin.
Kexin Hongbin Tower.
Wang Xiaoliang leaned toward Zhou Qiang and asked in a low voice, "Brother Qiang, it still hurts, doesn't it?"
After all, Zhou Qiang had built this place from the ground up, yet now he had handed it over to someone else, and even its name bore someone else's surname.
Zhou Qiang showed little expression. He simply looked calmly at the new sign, shook his head, and smiled faintly.
"Why should it hurt?" he asked back.
Wang Xiaoliang was taken aback.
Zhou Qiang looked away and strode toward the entrance ahead of the others.
"I should thank it. It taught me a lesson I won't forget."
At first glance, nothing in the lobby had changed.
The familiar decor, the elegant potted plants, the soothing music, the aroma of food and alcohol filling the air.
Yet everything had changed.
In the past, whenever guests entered, the hostess would immediately bow at ninety degrees and deliver their signature greeting in her sweetest voice: "Welcome to Hongbin Tower. We hope you enjoy your meal!"
Then she would approach them. "Do you have a reservation, sir?"
Now, however, the server at the entrance merely tugged at the stiff corners of her mouth and squeezed out a brief greeting.
"Welcome."
Wang Xiaoliang felt that Hongbin Tower really was no longer the Hongbin Tower it had once been.
A building, an office, a home.
Once the