Chapter 33: News of Luosha

"Boss Lu, what do you need me for?"

The floral-shirt-wearing Feizai squeezed into the small coffee shop, causing all the customers inside to fall silent as if they were cicadas in winter.

Even the coffee shop owner trembled slightly.

Feizai raised his arm, which was clearly a circle thicker than Lu Chen's thigh, and walked straight up to Lu Chen.

The moment Feizai entered, Liu Xiaofeng reached his hand into his jacket.

"I just wanted to ask you, someone was tailing me a while back; was it your people? Do you know about it?"

Lu Chen sipped his coffee, cast a glance at Feizai, and then looked out the window with an air of indifference.

On Feizai's chubby face, his features seemed to be all bunched together.

"Tailing?"

Feizai's face seemed to bunch up even more, his eyes rolling upward as if he were struggling to recall something; after a good while, he spoke again.

"Recently... my people have been quite well-behaved. Miss Luosha gave the word a while ago, and I don't think anyone would dare not listen."

Feizai spoke more and more fluently, going from stuttering before to now almost speaking in one breath.

He sat down across from Lu Chen all at once, the chair even letting out a "creak."

His entire person was like a mountain of flesh, piled up in front of Lu Chen.

Although there was no particular smell on Feizai, Lu Chen still felt a sense of greasiness.

"Boss, you don't need to find such excuses to see me."

"My people found that someone named Luo Xinyu is investigating me."

Lu Chen looked at Feizai with sharp eyes.

The cigar in his hand paused slightly, then he took a puff and slowly exhaled the smoke.

It blocked Feizai's direct, piercing gaze.

He crossed his legs and continued: "You wouldn't be trying to tell me that my people are lying to me, would you?"

"Could you have made a mistake? This guy Luo Xinyu has always done things honestly; as for tailing you, I'm afraid he doesn't have the guts!"

A glint of ferocity flashed in Feizai's eyes as he rested his arms on the table and continued.

The table seemed to tremble, and even the calm coffee shook slightly.

"I presume you didn't come to see me for such a trivial matter; as long as you are willing, regardless of whether he tailed you or not, he can pay the price for you."

"Feizai, you're not bad. I really don't like Luo Xinyu."

The corners of Lu Chen's mouth lifted slightly; ignoring Feizai, he tossed him a cigar and took a light puff of his own.

"However, I can also offer you a fortune..."

"You tell me, in the Textile Factory, my territory isn't the largest, and I don't have the most factories, so why did you choose me?"

Feizai took the cigar and began to toast it naturally, though with his obese body, every movement appeared quite clumsy.

"I went to see the Old Master two days ago and heard him mention you. If you have any business, you can instruct me; whatever I can do, I will certainly handle it for you."

"Old Master Wang, I see. It's nothing much."

Lu Chen smiled, a flicker in his eyes, and he picked up his coffee to take a sip.

Old Master Wang?

It seems the big shots have been in contact.

If that's really the case, then things will be easy to handle.

But it's still not certain...

After all, strictly speaking, Lu Chen doesn't even compare to a single hair on their legs...

"However, I heard there's a meeting at the Textile Factory in a few days."

"Ah? You... I can't help you with that."

The fat on Feizai's face trembled, revealing a look of difficulty.

His hand toasting the cigar paused, and after staring at Lu Chen for a while, he whispered an explanation.

"A person like you isn't suited for that kind of place. Besides, the Old Master wouldn't let you get involved in such affairs. If you force me to take you, the subsequent demands from the Old Master probably won't be fulfilled by me, but by you."

"Oh? What's so special about that meeting?"

A flash of surprise crossed Lu Chen's eyes; he really hadn't expected Feizai to be able to say something like that.

Lu Chen was even more curious!

What secret is hidden in this meeting?

Or... is there some unspeakable transaction?

Or... instructions from an even higher level?

Lu Chen couldn't figure it out for a moment, but he knew that what he had originally thought was a simple exchange of interests...

was likely just a facade for the outside world.

"As for the specific situation, I certainly can't tell you; I can only tell you two words: Luosha."

After finishing, Feizai stopped speaking and silently continued to toast the cigar.

Lu Chen smoked his cigar in silence, caught sight of the vigilant Liu Xiaofeng out of the corner of his eye, and nodded slightly at him.

"Fine, that's it for today. Find a teahouse in Central the day after tomorrow and call me."

Lu Chen took one hundred thousand in Hong Kong dollars from his jacket, placed it on the table, pressed it down with his hand, and pushed it toward Feizai.

"I don't need to attend that meeting of yours; I have other things to do when I come over."

He stood up, gave Liu Xiaofeng a look, and walked straight out.

The small-time thugs vaguely surrounding the coffee shop automatically cleared a path for Lu Chen.

Not until he returned to his car did Lu Chen finally let out a sigh of relief.

So many people, it's simply...

"Whew..."

Liu Xiaofeng let out a long breath, only then pulling his hand out from his bosom.

There was a trace of doubt and confusion in his eyes, but he didn't speak, instead silently starting the engine and driving.

It wasn't until they were a long way from Guilan Fang that he finally spoke.

"Boss, aren't you..."

"That place was indeed not a place to talk."

Lu Chen smiled; it was only an initial contact, and since Feizai hadn't refused the Hong Kong dollars, everything still had a chance.

If he had truly refused, then Lu Chen really wouldn't have had any good solutions.

However, between Feizai and Old Wang...

The corners of Lu Chen's mouth curled up slightly; things were getting more and more interesting.

After returning to the Zhuangyuan, Lu Chen looked at the busy workers, a hint of a smile flashing in his eyes.

"Welcome home."

Steward Wang was still standing meticulously in the parking lot, as if he were there whenever Lu Chen returned.

"Steward Wang, you've worked hard. Xiaofeng, go see your mother; I won't be going out today."

Lu Chen turned his head to look at Liu Xiaofeng, who hadn't gotten out of the car yet, and spoke directly.

"Bring a fruit basket for me while you're at it."

Liu Xiaofeng was stunned, nodded slightly, and restarted the car.

"Steward Wang, I wonder if you know the steward of Old Mister Wang Xieshi?"

Lu Chen paused slightly on the garden path, took out a 555 cigarette, and handed it to Steward Wang.

"I know him."

Steward Wang took the cigarette, naturally lit it for Lu Chen, took a puff himself, and then said in a low voice.

"Help me send a gift to him. This is 50,000 Hong Kong dollars; don't be so honest, keep some for yourself."

Lu Chen smiled, took a stack of Hong Kong dollars out of his portable space, and stuffed it into Steward Wang's hand.

He then walked forward to the rocking chair, sat down with the cigarette in his mouth, closed his eyes slightly, and began to bask in the sun.

It wasn't until the Zhuangyuan slowly returned to peace once more that Lu Chen stood up and returned to the study.

A brand-new black telephone, trailing a phone cord, appeared on Lu Chen's desk.