Chapter 63: I’m His Father

Chapter 63: I Am His Father

When Zhao Yu went to work again, the Fatty he'd taught a lesson last time avoided him like the plague, not even daring to make eye contact. As soon as he entered the kitchen, he put his arm around Fatty's shoulders and said with a smile, "Nice weather today, huh?"

Fatty's shoulders twitched as he forced a smile: "Yeah, it is." Then he slipped out from under Zhao Yu's arm and ran off.

The Baldy who was in cahoots with him had apparently heard about that night too, and likewise gave Zhao Yu a wide berth. Even before being singled out, his guilty look gave him away.

Everyone was surprised to discover that Cao Xu's attitude toward Zhao Yu had suddenly done a complete 180. He used to bark orders and scowl while chewing people out, but now he was all smiles and affability, even asking Zhao Yu to taste-test his dishes.

These two, master and apprentice, were different every single day, and nobody could figure out what they were thinking.

Che Shijie stepped forward to probe: "Chef Cao's in a good mood today? Something good happen?"

Zhao Yu said, "We caught the rat. My master's in a good mood."

Che Shijie's heart lurched: "Oh? What rat?"

Zhao Yu said, "Nothing much. I promised him that as long as he revealed who put him up to it, I'd let him off the hook. My master agreed too."

Cao Xu stood with his arms crossed, staring sternly at Che Shijie, like he had the word "suspicion" written all over his face.

Che Shijie's heart lurched again: "Who put him up to it? Who was it?"

Zhao Yu said, with meaning, "Better not say. After all, I promised him I wouldn't tell. I gotta keep my word."

Che Shijie nodded, pretending not to care. "Fine, since Chef Cao is handling your affairs, I won't interfere. Just make sure you know your limits, got it?"

"Got it," Zhao Yu said. "Chef Che, we all see each other day in and day out in this kitchen. Better to keep things peaceful, right?"

Che Shijie was sharp and caught the hint immediately. His expression flickered, he nodded, and walked off without a word.

From the moment Cao Xu started barking orders at Zhao Yu, it had all been a setup between the master and his apprentice—making Zhao Yu look isolated and helpless so whoever was pulling strings behind the scenes would be tempted to show their hand. That's how they caught Fatty and Baldy, then used them to reel in the impatient Che Shijie.

Zhao Yu didn't plan on going after Che Shijie. As he'd said, all he wanted was peace.

That was why he didn't hand over the recording he'd made of Fatty to Cao Xu either—afraid Cao Xu might act on impulse and report it. If the two head chefs clashed, with Che Shijie's connections and clout in the kitchen, Cao Xu would probably end up on the losing end.

There was nothing he could do—his master was a straight shooter who only cared about developing new dishes, so Zhao Yu had to protect him in his own way.

The manager hurried into the kitchen and called Cao Xu and Che Shijie aside to talk. Afterwards, he then called Zhao Yu aside and said, "Mr. Gu has a big banquet next week—it's Old Master Gu's birthday celebration, and he's entrusted it to us. Apprentices usually aren't allowed to go, but given your connection with Mr. Gu, I'm hoping you'll come."

Zhao Yu said, "I'm not involved with him anymore. Just stick to the rules—I'm not going."

The manager said, "...If Mr. Gu asks about you, I'll be stuck in a tough spot. I can't afford to piss off a major client. Do me this favor. Besides, this kind of experience is priceless. Chef Cao's heading it up this time—you can just help him out."

With the manager putting it like that, Zhao Yu couldn't really say no.

Prep for the birthday banquet had to start today. A menu needed to be drafted, and some specialty ingredients would take time to be flown in. Since the banquet was being held at the Gu family estate, ingredients had to be delivered and stored on-site. Seafood had to be brought in tanks and killed fresh, and vegetables had to be bought at dawn to be as fresh as possible.

In short, the complexity of this banquet was enough to keep Yatai in total chaos for days beforehand.

In the midst of all the busyness, Zhao Yu did seriously think about his relationship with Zhuang Shubai, but when he was busy, Zhuang Shubai was busy too. The two of them barely had a chance to see each other.

After the dinner rush was over, Zhao Yu was helping Cao Xu organize the menu when the manager came in again and said, "Chef Cao, Chef Che, and Zhao Yu—come out here and bring the menu."

Zhao Yu grabbed the menu notebook he'd just been writing in and followed Cao Xu and Che Shijie out. They walked all the way to the VIP private room, and when the door opened, Gu Hansheng was sitting on the sofa.

The moment Zhao Yu walked in, he accidentally locked eyes with him, then dropped his head and sat as far from him as possible.

The manager said, "Mr. Gu, the menu has been preliminarily drafted. Chef Cao, if you would."

Zhao Yu immediately placed the menu notebook in front of Cao Xu.

Gu Hansheng's gaze shifted from his face to the notebook. A bunch of scrawled characters were scattered across the page—Zhao Yu's handwriting. He'd never practiced his handwriting; every stroke was still that elementary-school style from way back.

"Based on your banquet requirements, we've drafted forty-six main dishes and eighteen desserts, including..."

Cao Xu began introducing the dishes in detail. Gu Hansheng glanced at the page and knew what was on it immediately, then, as he listened to Cao Xu speak, his gaze kept drifting to Zhao Yu's face, seemingly by accident.

It had been a long time since he'd properly looked at Zhao Yu's face. Every meeting had been a fight. That face only ever wore anger, or else was cold and expressionless—not even a hint of pretense.

The lights in the private room made Gu Hansheng's face look somewhat pale. This man, who had everything under control, tapped his fingertips on the table over and over—his habitual gesture when thinking. Except what he was thinking about now wasn't the menu, but Zhao Yu, the riddle he couldn't crack.

Gu Hansheng didn't actually need to come in person to review the menu; he could have left it to his assistant or secretary. But this was a convenient opportunity to see Zhao Yu, and the impulse from deep within had pushed him here. He wanted to see him—this craving flooded every moment he was alone.

After Cao Xu finished introducing the menu, Che Shijie added some supplementary details.

Gu Hansheng listened half-heartedly and just said, "The direction is fine. But the old man has kidney disease, so there are certain dietary restrictions that need special attention."

Cao Xu handed the notebook to Zhao Yu and had him note down the precautions.

Gu Hansheng watched him pick up the pen. His posture wasn't great—he sat all crooked and liked to write at an angle, which explained why his characters were always tilted.

Gu Hansheng thought back to that day in the bathroom, teaching him to write. When their hands had overlapped, Gu Hansheng could feel the calluses on the sides of his fingers, but his nails were trimmed cleanly, and his rounded fingertips had slid across the mirror, leaving a trail of water.

The shower had soaked Zhao Yu's hair, plastering it to his forehead and the nape of his neck, water droplets constantly dripping off—and now, his hair was cut so short, prickly like thorns.

Zhao Yu wrote in the notebook and didn't look up even after he finished. He could feel Gu Hansheng's gaze, coming again and again, as if trying to see through his face.

He didn't want to probe what emotion lay in Gu Hansheng's eyes. Before, he hadn't been able to understand Gu Hansheng; now, he simply didn't want to.

A relationship that only brought more misery the more it was entangled—he'd had enough.

After the discussion in the private room ended, Zhao Yu lowered his head and left. He handed the reorganized, annotated menu to Cao Xu and then clocked out.

It was already very late, and the parking lot at Yatai was silent. As Zhao Yu put on his helmet and swung a leg over his Kaiyue, a Maybach that was nearly indistinguishable from the darkness sat not far away, headlights off. Gu Hansheng sat inside, watching him twist the throttle, the roar of the motorcycle sweeping past his ears like a shadow vanishing in an instant.

Gu Hansheng followed him from a distance until he reached the residential complex. Zhao Yu didn't notice he was being followed—he parked his bike and went upstairs.

The Maybach stayed parked downstairs all night. Gu Hansheng knew which floor he lived on, but he never went up. Instead, he sat in the car and smoked an entire pack of cigarettes.

Gu Hansheng had never known the night could be so long. Nicotine was his tranquilizer, but it couldn't solve any problem. He was a man of results—without results, all the process was meaningless.

But with Zhao Yu, he couldn't get a result. After writing the word "solve," everything he wrote after seemed to be wrong.

As dawn began to lighten the sky, Gu Hansheng was about to drive off when a call came from an unfamiliar number. He hung up, and less than a minute later, it rang again.

This time he answered. A strange man's voice came through: "Is this Boss Gu of Tuotu?"

"It is. Who are you?"

"Hahaha, shit, it really is your number. He wasn't lying to me."

Gu Hansheng said impatiently, "Who are you?"

The man said, "I heard you like Zhao Yu. I'm his dad. I can help you get him. What do you say—want to cooperate?"

Gu Hansheng's gaze turned cold. "Who exactly are you?"

"I'm his father. If you don't believe me, we can meet in person."

"Sounds to me like you're either a scammer or a lunatic."

"Fine then. You're not the only one who wants to sleep with him. If you don't, I'll find someone else."

Gu Hansheng pondered for a moment, then said, "Meet me at noon at the coffee shop on the ground floor of the Tuotu Building."

...

At 11:30, a man walked into the coffee shop on the ground floor of the Tuotu Building. His sleeves were rolled up past his elbows, revealing several scars on his arms. His stubble made him look rough and worn, and his sinister gaze sent chills down your spine.

Years behind bars had changed Zhao Lianfeng. He once had a handsome face in his youth, but all that was left now was the ruthless edge honed by years in prison.

He looked nothing like Zhao Yu. Gu Hansheng took one look from a distance and decided he was just a fraud, then turned and headed upstairs without a second glance.

Gu Hansheng was used to the endless traps his uncle Gu Hui set for him. If this guy hadn't mentioned Zhao Yu's name, he wouldn't have given him a second look.

Zhao Lianfeng waited a full two hours, but Gu Hansheng never showed. Only then did it hit him that he'd been stood up.

He ground his teeth and called Chen Xitong: "Hey, didn't you say that mentioning Zhao Yu would make that Gu guy give me money? I'm downstairs at the Tuotu Building now, and he never showed."

"Did you ask him for money?"

"I haven't even asked for money yet! He said noon, and he's just playing me!"

"It must be because he still doesn't believe you're really his father."

"My boy, you've got money for a private investigator, so looks like Chen Li's come into some money. How about giving your old man a little cash? Where you living?"

"My mom won't give you any money. As long as you keep pestering Gu Hansheng, he'll eventually believe you, and then whatever you want, he'll give it to you."

"Is he really that into Zhao Yu?"

"Yeah, crazy about him. You raised my brother, so isn't it only fair to hit up his boyfriend for some cash?"

After hanging up, Chen Xitong pressed his trembling hand flat and let out a long breath.

When he heard Zhao Lianfeng was coming to find him, his heart nearly jumped out of his chest. He was terrified of Zhao Lianfeng—absolutely terrified.

He sent Zhao Lianfeng to Gu Hansheng not because he really thought Gu would cough up money, but to make Gu resent him.

Liking Zhao Yu was one thing, but if Zhao Lianfeng kept hounding him endlessly because of that affection, even the deepest love would wear thin and turn into nothing but complaints.

If Zhao Lianfeng was that greedy, could Zhao Yu really stay clean? The more Gu Hansheng thought about it, the less he would like Zhao Yu.

Chen Xitong clutched his phone, unable to stop thinking that he'd give Zhao Lianfeng a sum of money to get rid of him in a while. No matter how ruthless Zhao Lianfeng was, he surely couldn't outmatch Gu Hansheng, nor could he do anything to Zhao Yu.

It was just a little bit of sowing discord, causing some trouble for the people who'd abandoned and betrayed him—surely nothing big would come of it.