Chapter 13 8028?

The living room had quieted down a lot.

Li Zihan, the young master of the Leng Family, fell into deep thought, still standing in the same spot talking to himself.

"None of your damn business? Why does that sound so familiar, like I've heard it somewhere before?"

"What's going on, seriously?"

"Are you that girl who's being kept?"

Although Chen Xin had suppressed the headline news, the internet was still buzzing with the older man-younger woman trope, especially this phrase "None of your damn business!"

Li Zihan had just landed from his flight and naturally had no time to see the now-deleted headline photos, but he had heard of the incident.

He just hadn't expected that the protagonist of the topic would be in his own house.

He was about to go after Li Zishen for an explanation when Nanny Chen came over with a tray of tea.

"Young Master Zihan, would you like some water first?"

"Nanny Chen, that girl, no, I mean... What's her name again?"

"Tang Xiaowan."

"Oh, Tang Xiaowan, which 'Wan' is it? It's not the 'Wan' as in 'to tie one's heart', is it?"

Nanny Chen nodded and casually picked up a cup of tea to hand to Li Zihan.

"Xiao Wan? That's not bad, sounds nice!"

Li Zihan downed the tea in one gulp, not leaving a single chrysanthemum flower, his most hated, all of which went down his throat.

A coughing sound followed immediately.

Nanny Chen hurried to the tea table to grab a tissue, but by the time she turned around, Li Zihan was already nowhere to be seen.

"Ah, this child, hasn't changed a bit!"

...

On the fourth floor, in the study.

Li Zishen sipped his chrysanthemum tea with a smile in his eyes.

Just now, on the first floor, Tang Xiaowan hadn't denied her identity as his sister-in-law in public, and for whatever reason, he felt a sense of pride as if he'd won a battle.

However, when he looked up and saw Bai Long standing properly at his side, his brows immediately knitted together.

A glint of darkness flashed through his bright eyes.

"Is everything clear now?"

"Yes, all the people in Mei Garden were dismissed by Grandma Tang on July 12th, leaving only two bodyguards. On the night Miss Tang was attacked, one bodyguard suffered a severe car accident down the mountain and is still in a coma, while the whereabouts of the other is unknown."

"Why were they dismissed?"

Bai Long: "..."

That's not the point, alright!

"She said she was getting old and wanted to retire in Huang City. They plan to renovate Mei Garden to serve as Miss Tang's dowry."

"Oh, I see."

Bai Long, seeing Li Zishen's somewhat indifferent reaction, emphasized especially, "However, coincidentally, just three days after the dismissal, Grandma Tang had a car accident, and Miss Tang..."

"What?"

"Miss Tang, for some reason, didn't hold a funeral and buried her grandmother directly, placing the grave in the small bamboo forest on the east side of Mei Garden."

Li Zishen stood up and went to the floor-to-ceiling window, a trace of sorrow flashing in his eyes.

He knew about the lack of a funeral.

He speculated that Tang Xiaowan might have done it this way because Grandma Tang's close relatives had passed away, and she had always been a recluse, thus keeping things simple.

On the day of the car accident, he had offered to help at Mei Garden but was rejected by Tang Xiaowan; she also did not invite him to mourn the old lady afterward.

So, you buried Grandma there!

"What were the two bodyguards' names?"

"The injured one is Cheng Shi; I've had someone watch over him there. The doctor says he has a cerebral contusion and it's still uncertain whether he will wake up. The other is called Lin Xiaoxiao."

"You've handled this matter very well."

"Thank you, Brother Shen."

Bai Long paused, then continued, "Regarding the masked person in black mentioned by Miss Tang, we haven't found him, but we did discover a Chinese Medicine Pill. Its components are somewhat similar to the 8028 we developed before, found in the study."

While speaking, Bai Long placed the box containing the pills on the desk.

"Brother Shen, 8028 is not..."

He seemed to have something to say, but seeing Li Zishen wave his hand, he didn't say anything more and directly withdrew.

At this moment, Chen Xin had already been waiting at the first-floor elevator entrance for a long time. When he saw Bai Long coming down, he immediately walked over, "Do you know about Lin Ping's matter?"

Bai Long coldly replied, "Yes."

Seeing the gardener approaching, Chen Xin quickly pulled Bai Long away to a secluded area.

"We all grew up together. Lin Ping already knows he was wrong, so let's not pursue it any further."

"Betrayal is betrayal."

"Spiking the drink was indeed wrong, but it wasn't life-threatening. Let her off this one time, okay?"

"Since Lady Tang is Brother Shen's person, she naturally is also my master, Bai Long. Lin Ping dared to commit an offense against the master; it's unforgivable."

"Bai Long, you..."

"I have other things to deal with, I'll take my leave first."

...

At seven o'clock in the evening, the long-anticipated hot pot dinner organized by Tang Xiaowan began, set up in the gazebo in the back garden.

Every item was personally ordered by her in the restaurant, then packed and brought back by her bodyguards.

There was a wide variety of dishes, at least 20 kinds.

This dinner brought together not just the nonchalant Li Zihan and Li Weilian, and the upright Chen Xin, but even the usually aloof Bai Long had been invited by Tang Xiaowan.

Five men and one woman, just enough to surround a table.

"I'm so happy today, it's the first time so many people have dined with me, thank you all, I'm so thrilled."

The girl's opening remarks astonished everyone.

Li Zishen: The first time? Have her memories returned?

Li Zihan: So easily satisfied?

Bai Long: An orphan like me.

Li Weilian: She seems to be in good health, but what exactly is the cause of her illness?

Chen Xin: What a lovely little sister.

Two servants had already poured the drinks at this point.

Tang Xiaowan continued, "As the host, I'll drink first, brothers please feel free."

She downed a glass of white liquor without hesitation, impressing all the gentlemen present, especially Li Zihan.

He was known to be a lightweight, a one-drink knockout.

"Pretty bold, I'll match you with one."

Tang Xiaowan gave him a look, "Not including you."

"Why not include me?"

As he said this, Li Zihan suddenly sneezed twice, and everyone couldn't help but laugh.

Li Zihan had been naughty since he was a child and resisted authority.

Madam Lai, worried that she couldn't educate him properly, sent her eight-year-old son to Jin City's most strictly managed private school.

Even now, in college, he had to participate in wilderness survival training during the winter and summer vacations, only returning to stay a few days at Madam Lai's residence in Nanjiang Bie Yuan towards the end of the holiday.

Furthermore, Li Zishen was usually busy, so the brothers seldom ate together – it had been a long time since they had shared a meal at the same table.

...

In the backyard of the kitchen.

At this time, Nanny Chen, Uncle Cai, and his apprentice were also enjoying hot pot.

"Miss Tang is really nice!" Uncle Cai sipped his liquor and stealthily glanced at Nanny Chen.

The woman was dressed in a cyan midi-dress with no accessories, her hair meticulously combed, gathered into a simple bun at the back, looking very gentle.

"Yes, who would have thought that she even included us. This hot pot restaurant is so famous, you have to queue up to eat there normally! Master, Nanny Chen, you should eat more, it's really delicious."

As he spoke, Li Shiqi placed some mutton into the bowls of Uncle Cai and Nanny Chen with his chopsticks.

Nanny Chen took a sip of tea: "Xiao Wan is a good girl." After a pause of a few seconds, she continued, "Xiao Li is also good, very filial."

Li Shiqi chuckled, "Of course."