Chapter 65: Offending Someone

"You've had too much to drink! Don't make a fool of yourself here! Get lost!" He Yuzhu threw out these words without any courtesy, too lazy to tangle with him any further.

Facing Kevin's sudden loss of composure, the guests were stunned for a moment, then began whispering to one another.

Liu Rusi thought to herself: In the past, whenever I saw Mr. Kevin, he always appeared refined and well-spoken; why is he so uncomposed today? Perhaps my judgment was off. It's fortunate that there hasn't been any substantial progress with him!

At this moment, Zhang Hao stepped forward to chime in: "Kevin, we have an old saying in China: 'Pick up the bowl to eat, put down the chopsticks to curse the mother.' That's exactly the kind of person you are! You were just praising the fish and chips, but as soon as you finished eating, you turned your face to find fault. That's very dishonorable!"

He Yuzhu gave a cheeky grin and interjected: "Isn't that just the way people from his country are? They do every kind of killing and looting, then go to church to pray and act as if nothing ever happened!"

This remark was like poking a hornet's nest; Kevin's self-esteem was instantly ignited: "Son of a bitch! You're nothing but a low-class cook, what right do you have to spout such nonsense here?"

The few people present who understood English were momentarily stunned—how could such an elegant gathering start to involve profanity?

He Yuzhu was also thoroughly enraged and retorted: "You, motherfucker! So what if a cook is low-class? Even a cook like me, whom you look down upon, is far more noble than you! Aside from putting on airs and spewing profanity, you actually have no talent at all!"

"You son of a bitch! Aside from cooking, what else can you do? Can you dance? Do you understand music? Do you understand what art is?" Kevin shouted in a state of exasperation.

"The little tricks you're showing off—I know them all!" He Yuzhu said with a sneer, not yielding in the slightest.

Kevin deliberately fiddled with the old guitar at his side, smugly plucking out a monotonous melody, while cursing him in English mixed with profanity as he played.

He Yuzhu was completely provoked. He originally wanted to just beat him up, but out of consideration for Liu Rusi, he couldn't be that crude. So, he decided to change tactics and have a "civilized duel."

Just as Kevin was feeling smug, He Yuzhu suddenly reached out and tapped him lightly on the shoulder. Kevin jumped up from his chair as if he had been electrocuted!

He Yuzhu took the guitar in one smooth motion, his fingertips dancing as the strings vibrated lightly. He spoke calmly: "You really think you're the only one who can play with this piece of junk? Today, I'll let you open your eyes!"

Immediately, he began to play and sing a lighthearted English song with a rustic feel—"Jambalaya":

"Goodbye Joe, he gotta go, me oh my oh

He gotta go-pole the pirogue down the bayou..."

His singing voice was clear and moving, his English pronunciation authentic, and the rhythm as light as a breeze skimming across a lake.

When the song ended, everyone was astonished. All eyes were wide open as they stared at this cook—this level of English was just too fluent!

After a moment of silence, the room erupted into enthusiastic applause.

Kevin's face turned ashen; he snatched back the guitar, rushed out of the hall without looking back, and squatted outside to smoke in silence.

The French ambassador's assistant, Makelong, smiled and said in fluent Chinese: "This Englishman, as you say in Chinese, is a 'hypocrite.' But today, being exposed by a little cook, he has turned into a 'true villain'."

The crowd burst into laughter upon hearing this.

A lady wearing glasses walked over and asked: "Little master, how is your English so good?"

He Yuzhu scratched his head and smiled honestly: "Actually... I only know those few curse words, and I practiced them repeatedly!"

Liu Xiaohua clearly didn't believe him; he walked up and said: "Little brother, you sang really well. Could you write the lyrics down for me?"

"My handwriting is ugly," He Yuzhu shook his head, "How about I sing it again slowly, and you write it down yourself?"

Liu Xiaohua nodded happily.

Outside, Kevin smoked fiercely, his face full of resentment. To think he had fallen into the hands of a little cook today! The more he thought about it, the angrier he became; he threw the guitar on the ground and turned to leave.

Liu Rusi watched Kevin's disheveled back, then looked at the high-spirited He Yuzhu; she felt no guilt, but rather, she was very pleased.

After the banquet ended, many guests asked He Yuzhu for his address before leaving.

He took the opportunity to promote He Ji Restaurant.

Once everyone heard the restaurant was in Qianmen, they all promised to go and try it out another day.

After seeing the guests off, Liu Rusi led Feng Qingbo upstairs.

He Yuzhu was still pondering: Had Feng Qingbo already made contact with Liu Rusi? Or were they both such good actors that they didn't show any flaws? Regardless, he couldn't let his guard down. He had to find his uncle as soon as possible and clarify things.

He secretly resolved: He must build a good relationship with Liu Rusi to extract information. Otherwise, his eldest uncle might disappear without a trace just like in his previous life.

Twenty minutes later, Feng Qingbo came downstairs and left, but Liu Rusi did not come down for a long time.

Pingping returned after seeing off the guests, and only she and He Yuzhu were left in the living room.

"Where did you learn to play the guitar?" Pingping asked curiously.

"I didn't like school, so I always ran to Tianqiao," He Yuzhu said, making up an excuse, "I ran into a master who had returned from the United Kingdom and learned from him."

Half an hour later, Liu Rusi finally came downstairs wearing a silk nightgown. Her chest was half-exposed, her posture languid, and she was full of charm. He Yuzhu was momentarily stunned.

Liu Rusi's eyes flickered as she chuckled: "You little brat, you haven't even grown your hair out yet, and you already know how to stare at women? Why haven't you left yet? Waiting for your wages?"

He Yuzhu's ears turned hot, and he quickly said: "Sister, I, I want to apologize to you first. I was a bit reckless today and offended your guest!"

"Is that all?" Liu Rusi looked at him with a half-smile, "Nothing else?"

"There is more."

"I accept your apology. But you actually helped me this time; if you hadn't caused that scene today, I really wouldn't have seen what kind of person he is!"

"Is he pursuing you?"

"You could say that!"

"That guy is no good, narrow-minded and petty! He's not worthy of you!"

Liu Rusi nodded, "Let's talk about the other matter."

"That Zheng De, what exactly is his background? He sent people to cause trouble at my shop early this morning. I want to kill him!"

Liu Rusi pondered for a moment: "Some things... I shouldn't talk too much about. But seeing as you put in the effort today, I'll tell you: he has a powerful father-in-law. However, he is not in the same faction as us."

"Sister, then I understand. There is one more thing..." He Yuzhu took out a stack of property deeds, "I want to sell these, keeping only one for my own use, and we can split the proceeds fifty-fifty."

Liu Rusi looked through the deeds, raised an eyebrow, and chuckled: "Little brat, I originally thought your Siqiang was truly wronged... Now it seems this matter isn't simple. Where did you get so many properties?"

"I saved a person who was badly injured; he collapsed in the snow and grabbed my leg... He said if I saved him, he would give me a fortune. Out of kindness, I moved him to a deserted courtyard... Later, he really survived and gave me these deeds. I didn't take it seriously at the time..."

After checking carefully, Liu Rusi exclaimed: "These houses of yours are really good! Four in Qianmen, three in Xidan, five in Baizhifang, three in Shichahai... Most are large courtyards with two or three entrances, each worth at least two thousand Big Ocean. Fifteen sets would be thirty thousand."

"Sister, I only want to keep the one in Qianmen near our restaurant for my Siqiang to live in; you can help handle the rest, and we'll split the proceeds equally," He Yuzhu emphasized again.

Liu Rusi walked up to him and gently stroked his hair: "Little brother, I work myself to death for half a year and can't even earn a fraction of this. It really makes me feel ashamed."

"Sister, if you are short on money, take it all! Just leave me one."

A smile rippled in Liu Rusi's eyes: "I actually quite like you; you're quite a man. But this matter of yours is hard to handle—there are still people living in the courtyards, right? And the properties have long been forcibly transferred to others' names."

"Sister, do you mean... there is still a way to handle this?" He Yuzhu pressed.

"Even for me, I would have to resell these houses to someone with a stronger backing, and the price would have to be heavily discounted," Liu Rusi said indifferently.

"Then I will have to trouble you, Sister!"

"Little Brother, with so much money, what do you plan to use it for?" Liu Rusi suddenly asked.

"To get a wife!"

"Oh! You kid, your skin is thicker than a city wall. How old are you?"

"Fifteen!" He Yuzhu deliberately added three years to his age.

"In front of you, I am already old!"

"Sister, you aren't old. Among the people I know, I have never seen a woman as beautiful as you!"

"Your mouth is truly sweet! Come keep me company and talk more often in the future." She paused, then added, "I will keep the land deeds for now and try my best to sell them for you. Go home and wait for news; it will take at least a month."

"I've troubled you," He Yuzhu said, thanking her before taking his leave.

When he walked out of the small western-style house, it was already nearly three-thirty in the afternoon. There was still a fight to be fought. He couldn't help but smile bitterly: why was he so busy just after transmigrating here?

Feng Qingbo's cold eyes appeared repeatedly in his mind, and he pondered inwardly: should he find an opportunity to get rid of him?