Why are they coming along? Lu Chen didn't want them to come.
Lingling only possessed the supernatural ability of a healer; taking her to treat patients was fine, but going to a dangerous place? Forget it. As for Yunyun, yes, taking her to dangerous places was quite suitable; when she beat someone up, she'd leave them in a terrible state. However, this trip wasn't just about beating people up! She was so heavy-handed; if she beat someone up, that wouldn't be good.
Therefore, Lu Chen had made up his mind not to take these two girls; he would go alone.
However, not wanting to say it outright, Lu Chen vaguely took them back. Taking them back meant taking them back to the rooftop suite. Since yesterday, the two girls had been living in the rooftop suite with Lu Chen. The apartment had two bedrooms and a living room. Shen Tian slept in one room, and the two girls slept in the other. Lu Chen found the sofa in the living room quite comfortable.
Du Haoqi and Guo Xifeng were very comfortable entrusting their younger sister and daughter to Lu Chen. Of course, the main reason for this was that Du Haoling and Guo Fuyun loved following Lu Chen around; they were practically his little shadows.
Their eyes would light up with smiles whenever they knew where Lu Chen was taking them.
Lu Chen brought the two maids with him partly because there was a relatively good training ground nearby; and partly to keep Shen Tian company.
Lu Chen knew that while Shen Tian seemed to have a lot to do in her secluded cultivation in the rooftop suite, she was inevitably lonely at times. Having two maids keep her company was a good thing.
Although Du Haoling and Guo Fuyun both had autism, firstly, they knew that Shen Tian, this beautiful older sister, was someone Lu Chen trusted, which meant they could trust her too; secondly, Shen Tian was a very insightful woman, and she knew exactly how to handle these two girls—after all, she was a former owner of the Gold Coast nightclub, had seen countless people, and knew how to sweet-talk and charm.
Therefore, after only a day or two, the two girls and Shen Tian became quite close.
Du Haoling enjoyed playing the piano with Shen Tian, while Guo Fuyun enjoyed helping her grow vegetables.
When they returned with the two girls, it was already past six o'clock. Standing on the rooftop, looking out, the distant sunset was ablaze with color, like many phoenixes soaring there, a truly magnificent sight.
Du Haoling and Guo Fuyun helped Shen Tian cook in the kitchen, while Lu Chen stood on the edge of the rooftop, lit a cigarette, and watched the sunset, lost in thought.
He was thinking about what had just happened.
It's certain that Du Ling has nothing to do with this embezzlement of compensation funds; he was kept in the dark. However, that guy named Ding Huochang, being the son of the deputy director of the Land and Resources Bureau and also the deputy head of Hongqing Hall, must have considerable influence. Given his former position, he might even be able to do a lot for Du Ling, a key figure in Du Ling's inner circle.
But regardless, those villagers are pitiful enough. They lost their land and didn't receive any compensation. How are they going to live? You, Ding Huochang, are a person, and they are people too! You can have lots of money to enjoy life, but don't take the money they need to survive for your own enjoyment!
Thinking about this, Lu Chen became quite annoyed.
Back when he was a wealthy young master in Jiaying City, although he enjoyed eating, drinking, and having fun, chasing women everywhere, and did some unethical things, he would never do anything like oppressing ordinary people. His motto was: we all live on the same planet, and for the sake of the planet, we should live in harmony!
So, back then, if he saw an ordinary person in trouble, he would give them some money to help them through the difficult times.
This is also why Wan Qian, although she looked down on him as a good-for-nothing rich second-generation, still reluctantly agreed to marry him. She said, "You're not a bad person, at least you know how to help others. Anyway, I'll marry you and teach you a lesson!"
But in the end, Lu Chen couldn't accept Wan Qian's "teaching" and ran away.
He's been gone for over a year. Lu Chen, who was initially extremely worried about Wan Qian and her family finding him, is now basically at ease, even finding it a little strange.
He knows that with the power of his family and Wan Qian's family, even if he escaped thousands of kilometers away, it wouldn't be difficult to find him. Of course, they would never use any media power; they would have to send people to search for him themselves, because this involved the reputation of both families! The marriage was almost finalized, and then the groom suddenly ran away—how embarrassing would that be!
Lu Chen could already guess how they would handle this situation. He figured they'd tell everyone, "Hey Lu Chen, we sent him abroad to study for a few years! He's still young and immature, let him gain experience first, and he can get married when he comes back!"
Thinking this, Lu Chen suddenly paused, slapping his forehead.
Haha, what was he thinking? He was clearly considering how to help the villagers get their compensation back!
Lu Chen originally wanted to call Du Ling to discuss it directly, but then he decided he should first make some contact with Ding Huochang. He'd see his reaction before making a decision.
Meanwhile, at this very moment, in a luxurious villa seventeen or eighteen kilometers away.
A young man, definitely under 1.7 meters tall, with a pointed face and beady eyes, probably around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, was throwing a tantrum.
He grabbed an Apple laptop from the table and smashed it hard against a fat man not far away.
The fat man was Hong Damao. His left hand was wrapped in thick bandages, and dark red blood was seeping out, making him look incredibly pitiful. Seeing the laptop hurtling towards him, he could have dodged it, but gritting his teeth, he decided to let it hit him.
It didn't hurt much, but the laptop, worth tens of thousands of yuan, cracked on the ground.
"What an idiot! Hong Damao, what the hell are you doing? A dozen of you were there, and you couldn't even fight a man and a woman, plus a few useless villagers?"
He yelled angrily, "You're getting more and more pathetic! You didn't even ask what that kid's name was or where he came from. Were you scared out of your wits? You just let yourself be threatened like that? They even stole your gold necklace and ring, and you didn't dare fight back? You still have the nerve to complain to me? Go to hell!"
Hong Damao stammered, looking utterly miserable, "Boss Ding, you have no idea how arrogant that kid is, and how terrifying that girl with him is. She wields a meteor hammer like a martial arts master. I lost a finger! And three of my brothers got their asses violated by her tree branch! They're still in the hospital, writhing in pain..."
"Bullshit!" Boss Ding roared.
Clearly, he was the son of the deputy head of Hong Qingtang, and a deputy director of the Yunzhou City Land and Resources Bureau. "Old Ding, calm down, don't get so angry! He's just some nobody, can't we beat him? We'll meet him tonight, bring the real deal, bring a few guns, and see if he submits!"
A seductive voice rang out.
On the sofa next to them sat a very alluring woman. She was about the same age as Ding Huochang, slender and tall, but her breasts were enormous, almost inflated.
Especially since she was wearing a bright red, off-the-shoulder, tight-fitting short dress, she looked incredibly sexy. Her large, white breasts were almost bursting out, creating a deep valley that any man's eyes would be glued to.
At this moment, she was striking a very provocative pose.
Sitting on the sofa, one of her fair legs was raised and resting on the edge of the sofa, as she bent over to apply black nail polish to her toenails. She was leaning forward, her full breasts pressing against her knees, almost bursting forth. Her legs were definitely open, revealing an extremely alluring sight.
That's exactly what she said.
Ding Huochang narrowed his eyes slightly after hearing her words, nodded, and said in a sinister tone, "That's it, Sister Lu. Tell me the specifics of how to do it! Try to be as discreet as possible. I reckon that kid might have some connections, otherwise he wouldn't dare to be so arrogant. So, we can't let things escalate."
The glamorous woman called Sister Lu smiled seductively, licked her bright purple-red lips, and said:
"Isn't that simple? If we can't do it on our turf, we'll go to the Golden Coast! You know, ever since Bald Qiang took over the Golden Coast, it's become the perfect place for the underworld of Yunzhou City to settle disputes! Find a private room, the guys come, close the door, and we can do whatever we want. Anyway, Bald Qiang will clean up the mess; it's just a matter of spending some money."
"Right, right, right!" Hong Damao, who had completely lost his temper, quickly echoed, "Sister Lu is right, absolutely right! We'll go to Bald Qiang's place, call that kid over, and take care of him!"
Ding Huochang glared at him, then slammed his hand on the table: "Then why the hell aren't you going to arrange it?"
Hong Damao quickly responded, then suddenly heard Sister Lu lazily say, "Damao, come help me dry it!"
As she spoke, she stretched out a long, slender leg towards him.
The black nail polish on her delicate, white toes shimmered.
"Hey, I'm coming!" Hong Damao had completely lost his manly dignity. He quickly hopped over, squatted down beside Sister Lu, and tremblingly cupped her smooth, jade-like leg in his hands, carefully blowing on her toenails.
Clearly, this wasn't the first time he'd done something like this.
Ding Huochang looked at the fat man with disdain.
Sister Lu, on the other hand, seemed to be enjoying herself, leisurely twirling her toes and giggling.
Ding Huochang suddenly strode over, shoved Hong Damao aside, and shouted, "Get out! Get to work!"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Hong Damao scrambled out, closing the door behind him.
Sister Lu revealed a captivating smile, actually raising her one delicate white foot and pressing it against the man's most vulnerable spot.
Instantly, Ding Huochang shuddered. He roughly grabbed Sister Lu's ankle and pulled her up. The alluring woman cried out, her legs lifted, her upper body collapsing onto the sofa.
However, she didn't seem to mind, even giggling smugly.
Ding Huochang took a bite of her rosy-white sole, nibbling for a while until Sister Lu trembled uncontrollably, completely disoriented. Then, the man parted the woman's legs…