Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"President Ji, please drop me off up ahead," Xia Yinxi put away his phone and said calmly. "My friend's eating nearby."

Ji Yunzhuo glanced at his phone, which was still off, then looked out the window at the rows of office buildings, letting out a knowing chuckle.

The car stopped. Xia Yinxi gave Li Yili a helpless look. "Thanks, President Ji. Sorry for the trouble."

He opened the door and walked off in two strides, taking the faint floral scent with him. Ji Yunzhuo withdrew his gaze, and as the window rolled up, he saw Xia Yinxi making a phone call.

Was he some kind of monster? Scared him into bailing halfway?

Having nothing better to do, Xia Yinxi decided to find Song Baichuan to hang out. The call went through, and it was noisy on the other end. "Hang on! I'm in a fight!"

"Huh?" Xia Yinxi quickly opened a rideshare app. "How many of you are there? Can you win?"

"I sent you the location! Talk later! Have the driver drop you off—don't come alone!"

With a driver, he wouldn't get lost, but it still took over half an hour to get there. As soon as he entered the shooting range, he could hear people shouting. The fight was still going on, and sure enough, it was Song Baichuan.

Song Baichuan had come alone to play, but the other side had five or six people, including two bodyguards, and they had already started fighting. Seeing Song Baichuan losing in a one-on-five fight, with a bruise on his cheek, Xia Yinxi didn't hesitate—he charged over and kicked the guy about to hit Song Baichuan with a stool, sending him flying.

He always sided with his friends over reason; they could sort out right and wrong after the fight.

The burly man and the stool flew several meters. The air went eerily silent for two seconds, and everyone's eyes snapped to Xia Yinxi.

"Let's talk it out, no need for violence." Xia Yinxi had already taken down another guy and was stepping on his back to mediate. "Can't we just sit down and talk things out?"

The guy on the ground struggled hard, and Xia Yinxi kicked him, then turned and kicked another guy trying to sneak attack. Everyone there, including the staff, didn't dare breathe loudly.

Xia Yinxi looked up and kept smiling. "Talk?"

The leader of the other side, staring at his strikingly handsome face that didn't match his actions, involuntarily stepped back half a step.

"This—this place is reserved by our boss. You broke the rules first," a lackey behind the leader said, trying to sound brave.

Xia Yinxi looked at Song Baichuan.

Song Baichuan rolled his eyes. "Does it have your name on it? The staff brought me up, so I can use it. I paid."

Xia Yinxi looked back at the other side.

The leader said, "Then it's the staff's fault..."

"Problem solved?" Xia Yinxi lifted his foot and nudged the guy on the ground. "Go call the staff over and ask."

The guy struggled for a bit, finally got up, and shot Xia Yinxi a wary look, as if making sure he wouldn't suddenly kick him again, before stumbling downstairs.

Soon, the person in charge of the shooting range arrived. Before they were seen, their voice rang out: "Oh my, oh my, stop fighting, stop... Xia Xiaoxi?"

Xia Yinxi was startled. "What are you doing here?"

The newcomer was Li Yili, the one he'd just ditched. Li Yili looked at both sides, quickly chose a side, and moved closer to Xia Yinxi. "What's going on?"

"You're the owner here?"

Li Yili lowered his voice. "I opened it on the down low. Don't tell my brother."

"They said the second floor was reserved, but my friend was brought up by the staff," Xia Yinxi said, patting Song Baichuan. "Was it really reserved?"

Li Yili looked at the venue manager, who quickly explained what happened. The leader of the other side was Zheng Jinfeng, the young master of the Zheng family, notorious all over the northern circle. Usually, when people heard he was there, they'd voluntarily avoid the second floor, making it seem as if Zheng Jinfeng had it reserved.

The staff member who brought Song Baichuan up today was new and didn't know this unspoken rule, so he didn't warn him about Zheng Jinfeng. Song Baichuan himself didn't care enough to notice.

Unexpectedly, Zheng Jinfeng's lackeys deliberately started a fight. Both were rich and powerful young masters, and Song Baichuan wasn't one to have a good temper. A few words of conflict led to a brawl.

Xia Yinxi got the gist and focused on the key point. "So he didn't pay for a full reservation."

The manager glanced cautiously at Zheng Jinfeng and shook his head.

"Then we're in the right." Xia Yinxi waved at Zheng Jinfeng. "You guys, get lost."

"You!" Zheng Jinfeng's face darkened, but he was wary of Li Yili, so he could only utter a useless threat. "Just you wait."

The group left in a hubbub, and Xia Yinxi was baffled. "Wait for what?"

Li Yili laughed out loud. "Forget him. Hey, you know Master Song?"

He and Song Baichuan had only met at a cocktail party, knowing each other's status but not well. He really hadn't expected Xia Yinxi, a delivery guy, to know a young master like Song Baichuan.

Song Baichuan also asked, "You know Master Li?"

Xia Yinxi said, "Achuan is my childhood friend... Li Yili, it's a long story."

"Childhood friend?" If they were childhood friends, how could their statuses be so different?

Ignoring Li Yili's confusion, Song Baichuan asked Xia Yinxi seriously, "Do you have other brothers behind my back?"

Xia Yinxi was caught between laughter and tears. "No, it's really a long story. I don't know where to start."

"Then make it short!"

Xia Yinxi thought for a moment and summed it up concisely. "Not long ago, because he bumped into me, I knocked over his uncle's urn."

Song Baichuan: "?"

Li Yili: "..."

Although that was indeed what happened, it sounded so strange when put that way.

"Master Li's uncle..." Song Baichuan's mind raced, and he was shocked. "Holy crap, that's Ji Yunzhuo's biological father?!"

"Didn't Ji Yunzhuo hunt you down?" Song Baichuan pulled Xia Yinxi over and looked warily at Li Yili. "You're not here to assassinate him for Ji Yunzhuo, are you?"

"...I'm not."

"No, no. President Ji didn't mind. He even helped fix my car."

Song Baichuan assumed these things happened while they were discussing something at Ji Yunzhuo's place, never imagining that Master Xia had once delivered food or that the "car" was just a 1500-yuan electric scooter.

"Then thanks to President Ji and Master Li for letting it slide." Song Baichuan politely extended his hand and shook Li Yili's, who returned the gesture with a nod. "Master Song, you're too kind."

The second floor fell silent for a moment, and Xia Yinxi couldn't help but speak up. "Are you two... playing at being urban elites?"

When had a Bulldog and a Husky ever been so polite?

Song Baichuan: "..."

Li Yili: "..."

"Alright, Donghai, I need to scold you. How dare you pick a fight with all those guys by yourself?" Xia Yinxi patted Song Baichuan. "Don't do that again."

"Who the hell's Donghai?!"

Even as the three of them sat down to eat, Song Baichuan still couldn't believe it.

There weren't many big-name families in Ducheng. The Xias and the Mengs were two, the Songs counted as one, and the Zhengs barely made the cut. There were also the low-key Chengs and Bais, and aside from a few others that were famous but gradually declining, the Ji family was arguably the most powerful.

Unlike other families, the Ji family had political connections, which made certain matters much easier. So, no matter how fierce the competition was in business, everyone had to show the Ji family some respect.

Grandpa Ji was advanced in years and hadn't been active for a long time. His only son was a lost cause, and everyone thought the Ji family would gradually decline. But unexpectedly, Ji Yunzhuo, at a young age, fought his way through the business world and took over Grandpa Ji's responsibilities right after coming of age.

He turned things around and stabilized the Ji family's position, naturally making Ji Yunzhuo the nightmare of every other family's young master.

The Li family, due to their marriage ties with the Ji family, also rode the wave.

Xia Yinxi never went to any banquets or parties, yet he'd already met Ji Yunzhuo and was this close with Li Yili?

"This is delicious." Xia Yinxi poked Song Baichuan to snap him out of it. "What are you thinking about, Donghai?"

"..."

Song Baichuan suddenly felt like he'd been feeding a cat for ages, only for it to go eat someone else's food.

This cheating cat would eat anything!

Li Yili looked at Xia Yinxi in disbelief. It'd only been a few hours since their last meal, and he still had room to eat more.

"Xia Xiaoxi, you backstabber! Do you know how I got out of there?" Li Yili tried to channel his grief into appetite but failed, pushing the dessert in his hand toward Xia Yinxi.

"How did you get out?"

Li Yili gave a dry chuckle. "Using the exact same excuse as you. My brother told me to screw off and go on a business trip tonight."

Song Baichuan didn't get their cryptic conversation and asked, "What escape? What excuse?"

Xia Yinxi gave a quick explanation, leaving out the part about signing as a streamer, just saying he happened to run into Ji Yunzhuo while eating. Song Baichuan shot him a weird look.

"?" Xia Yinxi moved his bowl aside. "This is the last one. If you want some, order it yourself."

Song Baichuan rolled his eyes. "Who's fighting you over a bite of food?"

He was just remembering something from way back.

Although they were childhood friends, he was two years older than Xia Yinxi. Due to some family issues when he was young, he had started school two years late, so he already had memories when Xia Yinxi was still too young to remember much.

Back then, the name Ji Yunzhuo spread through Ducheng's business circle overnight. In fact, he and Xia Yinxi had met this legendary figure when they were very young.

But it seemed Xia Yinxi had completely forgotten... Anyway, it wasn't important, so he wouldn't bring it up.

Xia Yinxi was still buried in his meal, occasionally exchanging a few words with Li Yili, with the main theme being the miserable working life of a rich young master.

Song Baichuan had long taken over his family's business, but his father was still in his prime, so he didn't have to bear too heavy a burden. Li Yili, on the other hand, was constantly being compared and pushed by his father because of his connection to Ji Yunzhuo, who directly sent him to Ming Ji to train under him.

Working with a high-energy workaholic meant double the physical and mental pressure.

Li Yili let out a deep, deep sigh. "Ever since that time at the bar, my brother hasn't let me go out to play. I finally begged him to let me go out, and now, just a few days later, he's annoyed with me again."

"I really don't want to go on a business trip!!"

Xia Yinxi perked up with gossipy ears. "He's imprisoning you?"

Rich people gossip—nice, love it!