Out of consideration for her husband's face, Hu Xiaotong mustered a dry smile and said, "Hu, good to see you."
"Good, good!"
Zhang Kehu stroked his chin with a lecherous grin, "Wan, you're a lucky man! If I could marry a wife like your sister-in-law, I definitely wouldn't have ended up in jail; I would just die in bed, haha..."
Feeling harassed like that to her face, Hu Xiaotong was about to lose her temper, but Wan Xingping just laughed it off and said, "Hu is really a man of temperament, crude words but sound logic."
Zhang Kehu's laughter grew even louder, his hefty pectorals quivering under his tank top, making Hu Xiaotong feel nauseous. She snapped, "Are you leaving or not? If not, I'm going first."
Having said that, she turned and got into the car.
"Women have big tempers; don't mind her, Hu. Let's leave it here for today, and we'll get in touch later. I owe you a drink, brother."
After exchanging a few more pleasantries with Zhang Kehu, Wan Xingping finally got into the car, and Hu Xiaotong immediately sped away.
"Wan Xingping!"
After turning the corner, Hu Xiaotong exploded, "What the hell are you doing? You get out of jail and you're still making friends with the dregs of society? He was taking advantage of your wife right in front of you and you even laughed. Are you even a man?"
"You don't know shit!"
Wan Xingping scoffed, "It's just a couple of teasing words, neither painful nor itchy. Do you know who that man is?"
"Who? Your biological father?"
"Shut the fuck up!"
Wan Xingping, about to strike, saw Hu Xiaotong turn her face fiercely, her expression full of rage and without a hint of fear.
A moment later, Wan Xingping ultimately lowered his hand, exhaling as he said, "Zhang Kehu works for Bai Xuechao from the north of the city.
Last night, chatting in the cell, I found out he even knows Xiao Ming. After some careful questioning, I learned that somehow Xiao Ming has enchanted Bai Xuechao, almost completely under Xiao's control.
This has a lot of people really dissatisfied, but they're just holding their rage back for now, afraid to speak up because of Bai Xuechao's power."
Hu Xiaotong calmed down and asked, "What are you planning to do?"
A vindictive gleam passed through Wan Xingping's eyes as he hissed, "We've been back in the country for over a year, and Daxing Shipping's business has been running for almost half a year.
We're almost out of money, and just when we're about to reap the benefits, Xiao Ming ruins it. Can you swallow that?
Hmph! Back in the day, I let him go soft, just cheated him out of his money. I never expected him to be ungrateful and dare to provoke me.
This time, I'm going to make sure he's dead!"
Hu Xiaotong's heart skipped a beat, "You're going to incite those thugs to go against Xiao Ming? Xingping, think this through, those lowlifes aren't so easily controlled by you."
"Long hair, short wit! Do I need to control them?"
Wan Xingping sneered, "Their discontent for Bai Xuechao and Xiao Ming is like kindling already laid out. All I have to do is light it at the right time."
Meanwhile, Zhang Kehu had also gotten into a Volkswagen Touareg. The obscene and arrogant expression from before was long gone, and his ugly face was the picture of fawning submission.
"Qiang, as you ordered, the kid took the bait. He's very respectful calling me 'Hu, Hu'!"
In the backseat of the Touareg sat an even uglier man, biting on a cigarette, Liu Jianqiang, a faithful lackey of Bai Xuechao.
"Mm, you did well. Continue to stay in character, be as high-handed with that kid as you usually are, and don't be shy about taking any advantage that comes your way — that's your due. But remember this, any big screw-ups must be reported in time, and you must follow orders, got it?"
"Understood, understood," Zhang Kehu nodded repeatedly, "You can count on me to get the job done right, Qiang. But as for your great-nephew, that'll take a bit more of your effort."
"Look at how low you stoop. Mr. Xiao deals in big business; he's not going to screw you over for something so small," Liu Jianqiang said irritably, "Don't worry, your son's schooling has already been arranged.
Lucky for me, my great nephew isn't like you, he's actually got decent grades, a promising student. Otherwise, aside from an expensive private school, there wouldn't have been any other choice."
Whenever Zhang Kehu mentioned his son, he couldn't help but straighten his back, his face beaming with pride.
Among the brothers he rolled with, only his son loved to study. Although he had failed to get into the city's key high school, he had missed the mark by only two points.
Because of this, despite his tough appearance, he had long considered leaving the underworld for his child's sake. When Bai mentioned going legit, he was all for it, waving both hands in support.
Last night, Mr. Xiao promised that as long as he took on this job, whether successful or not, his son would be able to attend the key provincial school—Canghai Middle School.
What else was there to say?
For his kid's future, be it conning an idiot or risking his own life, nothing mattered!
After opening an account at the securities company, Xiao Ming headed to Ruiye Holdings and began stock trading on his office computer.
He really was "trading", just like any short-term solo investor, watchfully eyeing the candlestick chart, ready to execute buy and sell orders at any moment.
But unlike those solo investors, each stock he bought was at its lowest price point and sold at its peak, without exception, with unerring precision.
And he wasn't picking just three stocks; he targeted eighteen.
Around noon, there was a knock at the door, and Yun Shi Yu walked in carrying a lunch box.
"Wow, did the sun rise from the west today? It's rare to see you so busy at the company without giving us a heads-up. What mischief are you plotting now?"
She came behind Xiao Ming and was immediately stunned: "You... You're trading stocks?"
Xiao Ming clicked the mouse to sell a stock that had just risen by 2.4% and then replied, "Yep. I made a bet with Sir Duan last night.
If my stock profits today are higher than his second son's, he will sell me a 34% share in his new company. Otherwise, I will no longer be Ruiye's largest shareholder."
"Oh."
"Oh?" Xiao Ming looked up in surprise. "Just an 'oh'? I was ready for you to grab me by the collar."
"Are you a masochist?"
Giving him a look, the girl sat down on the desk with her lunch box.
"I've come to understand that the bulk of the company is yours anyway, so if anyone loses money, it'll be you who loses the most. Instead of arguing with you and then being persuaded by you, I might as well let you do whatever you want.
Besides, you're the kind that doesn't play by the book. The more inconceivable the decision, the more likely it could be beneficial for the company.
But that being said, as one of the shareholders of the company, I might not interfere with you, but don't you feel a bit embarrassed not giving any explanation at all?"
"Not in the slightest," Xiao Ming nodded without hesitation.
Yun Shi Yu was taken aback, then laughed, placing the lunch box in front of him.
"This is a bento made by the head chef at my restaurant, and it's too much for me. If you don't mind, help me finish it."
Xiao Ming didn't stand on ceremony, opened the lid, and immediately a rich aroma of meat wafted out.
Inside, half of it was rice and the other half was succulent braised pork with layers of fat and lean meat in a thick, rich sauce.
He couldn't help but glance at the girl's stomach in surprise.
"What are you looking at?" asked Yun Shi Yu.
Xiao Ming smiled, "Nothing much, just feeling a bit astonished that a girl who packs big portions of meat in her lunch doesn't gain any weight at all. It seems terribly unfair for all those women out there struggling with diets!"
For some reason, Yun Shi Yu's face turned red and she thrust chopsticks into his hand.
"What's all this nonsense. Just shut your mouth and eat!"
As her words fell, the office door was suddenly pushed open and Jiang Xue entered, holding a thermal bucket in her hand.