Chapter 3: 3 More Friends, More Paths (Revised)

3 More Friends, More Paths (Revised)

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard this flight; our plane is about to land at Nan Cheng International Airport. The plane is now descending, so please......

The announcement rang out, Tushan Jiu put away the small tray table she was propping her arms on, and stretched.

Finally we're here; sitting on the plane isn't very comfortable, my head feels dizzy, my ears feel stuffed, it's awful.

Zhang Xuefeng beside her was still there.

With a clang, the plane landed.

Zhang Xuefeng immediately took out his phone and long-pressed the power button to turn it on.

As soon as the phone turned on, it buzzed continuously.

He lowered his head to look, and the first message that caught his eye was from their team captain.

【Little Zhang, Lin Fenglan has been caught! This time you'll achieve great merit!】

Zhang Xuefeng looked up at Tushan Jiu.

Because the matter was too mysterious and time was urgent, he didn't explain the situation in detail to the captain at that time.

But now he has something to worry about.

He couldn't possibly take all the credit himself, but how should he write this report?

The informant said she figured it out?

Tushan Jiu had no idea of his predicament at the moment; she shouldered her small bag and pushed forward.

Someone was waiting to pick her up at the exit, and she couldn't keep them waiting too long.

At the same time.

Among the crowd at the exit stood two boys who stood out like cranes among chickens.

They looked about seventy percent alike, their heights were similar, estimated at around 1.85 meters.

Tall and handsome, they naturally attracted a lot of attention.

The two were scanning left and right at the exit.

Before coming, Xie Jingzhou and Xie Jingting had asked their eldest brother about Tushan Jiu's appearance.

But Xie Shiyu said he also didn't know what she looks like now.

However, he also said she would naturally recognize them, so just wait there after they arrive.

So the two of them were completely in the dark.

Xie Jingting couldn't be bothered to take off his sunglasses, and impatiently glanced at his watch.

"How long has this delay been? I have a meeting later; this isn't just wasting time!"

Xie Jingzhou shrugged: "Just now I called and asked; Yun Shi's air traffic control had military activity, causing a delay of over forty minutes. Judging by the time, she should arrive soon—be patient, she's our sister-in-law."

Xie Jingting pouted dismissively: "Sister-in-law? I haven't acknowledged her. What era is this? I just don't get it—Grandpa isn't an antique, so why is he so insistent about my eldest brother's marriage? Moreover, that old man only showed up once back then and never appeared again; who knows if the woman who suddenly called demanding payment is real."

Since childhood, the person he admired most has been his eldest brother, Xie Shiyu.

Who knows where this sister-in-law came from, but she's the reason his eldest brother has been mocked for years—he really dislikes her.

Xie Jingzhou glanced at him; being from the same womb, he naturally knew where his brother's dissatisfaction lay.

"Do their values follow their looks? Are you learning that too?"

"Isn't that the case? Since I can remember, people have been saying behind closed doors that the head of the Xie Clan Group has a fiancée who's a country bumpkin from some mountain ditch. I'm not saying anyone from the mountains is necessarily a bumpkin; I just feel sorry for my eldest brother for not being able to love freely and find someone he likes."

Xie Jingzhou couldn't be bothered to argue with him, ignored Xie Jingting's nagging, and focused his gaze on the exit.

Just then, a girl dressed in white robes, with a gentle and tranquil appearance that gave a sense of serene time, pushed out two large suitcases from the exit, like a fairy who had strayed into the mortal world.

Xie Jingzhou saw her, and Xie Jingting naturally saw her too.

As soon as Tushan Jiu came out, she saw the two brothers.

Because they were really too conspicuous.

Tushan Jiu walked toward them.

The two watched as Tushan Jiu walked toward them, but Xie Jingting wasn't moved just because she was pretty.

Tushan Jiu stood firm in front of the two.

Before she even spoke, she heard Xie Jingting say, as usual, "Sorry, I don't use WeChat, I don't add strangers."

Tushan Jiu stared for a moment, then politely smiled and said, "Hello, Third Brother, I'm Tushan Jiu, your eldest brother's fiancée."

Xie Jingting: "......."

Beside him, Xie Jingzhou rarely saw his brother make such an embarrassed face, and couldn't help but his shoulders shook with laughter.

Hearing the movement, Tushan Jiu looked at him, raised her hand and greeted, "Hello, Second Brother."

Xie Jingzhou also waved at her, saying, "Sister-in-law, my eldest brother has an international meeting set for yesterday, really can't get away, so he sent us to pick you up; let's go, the car is parked in the parking lot."

Beside him, Xie Jingting looked utterly dispirited because his face hurt right now.

Tushan Jiu nodded; she knew this, as he had told her yesterday when she messaged him.

Moreover, her arrival was sudden, so it's normal that he had something to do and couldn't come pick her up.

If it weren't for Grandpa coming up yesterday to earnestly tell her to go down the mountain, she really wouldn't have thought of coming so soon; she had long known Xie Shiyu's phone number, but she had never contacted him.

Just as she was about to move, Tushan Jiu suddenly remembered something and slapped her forehead hard: "Look at my memory, I almost forgot!"

Xie Jingzhou and Xie Jingting were somewhat puzzled by her action.

She said to the brothers, "Wait a moment, I need to collect a debt, I'll be right back."

Collect a debt?

What debt to collect?

Collect from whom?

Where to go to collect the debt?

Xie Jingting and Xie Jingzhou exchanged a glance, full of confusion.

Only Tushan Jiu didn't leave; she just turned to look at the exit, as if waiting for someone.

Soon after, a man came out from the exit.

After seeing Tushan Jiu, he walked over toward them.

Xie Jingzhou glanced at that man twice, feeling he looked very familiar.

After a moment, he suddenly realized, this isn't the second son of the Zhang Family in Nan Cheng who refused to take over the family business and insisted on becoming a policeman to fulfill his dream, is it?

I heard he's been over in Yun Shi all this time; how did he come back to Nan Cheng?

Back then, the Zhang Family opposed his becoming a policeman, even using connections to repeatedly block him.

And this guy was also very stubborn, dead-set on his principles, left home without looking back, even saying he would never return to Nan Cheng.

I never expected that after so many years, I would see him again in Nan Cheng.

By seniority, they should all call him "uncle".

Xie Jingting also recognized him.

The two of them prepared to step forward and say hello.

But before they could speak, they saw Tushan Jiu extend a hand toward Zhang Xuefeng.

"The prophecy has already been fulfilled; the fee is one dollar, pay up."

Zhang Xuefeng froze; just as he was making a quick call to a colleague, the person vanished, and he chased after him to ask how much the knife-on-credit fee was.

He had imagined three or five hundred, one or two ten thousand, but never thought she would only want one dollar!

Tushan Jiu knew what he was thinking without even looking.

"This is my duty as a citizen; I'm a law-abiding good person. But rules are rules: for the knife-on-credit person's knife, once the deal is done, I cannot refuse this fee, otherwise you cannot bear the consequences."

As for how much to collect, that depends on the person.

Of course, most importantly, it depends on Tushan Jiu.

"I don't have cash; how about we add each other as friends? That way, if you need to take a statement later, I can contact you easily, okay?"

Unconsciously, Zhang Xuefeng used the word "you" (polite form).

Xie Jingting was dumbfounded, alternately looking at Tushan Jiu and then at Zhang Xuefeng.

Xie Jingzhou was also somewhat at a loss, looking bewildered.

Tushan Jiu didn't refuse either, since he was about to return to Nan Cheng anyway.

Grandpa used to say, "Many debts, oh wait, I meant many friends, many paths."

"Okay, 151....."

After reporting her phone number, she didn't forget to remind him to transfer the money—no more, just one dollar will do.

After saying that, she turned to the two hazy twins behind her and said, "Second brother, third brother, the bill's settled; we can go."