GHLCS Chapter110

The pier in Shanghai is very lively.

 

There are many shopping malls here, and all the latest fashions are imported from here. Blond-haired and blue-eyed foreigners are not a novelty.

 

The docks were moving in and out, a new ship docked, and some people dressed as businessmen got off the ship.

 

Even though the leader’s hat partially obscured his face, he still looked imposing. He glanced around the dock and frowned when he saw a few people running away in the corner like arrows.

 

The guy who looked like an assistant beside him asked, “Commander… uh, Boss, what’s wrong?”

 

Duan Yelin said, “An informant has already reported back to the Zhang family regarding our trip to Shanghai.”

 

“What should we do then?”

 

“Let’s rest first and make plans after we find out everything.”

 

Duan Yelin and his group were cautious and stayed away from others until they reached the heart of Shanghai, where they settled in a martial arts school called Yinshui Xuan.

 

Yinshui Xuan was a martial arts school built by Fourth Uncle Qiao in his early years, and now it is managed by his friend Second Brother Shan. Second Brother Shan received a message from Fourth Uncle Qiao, and he agreed to it because loyalty was the most important thing.

 

“Duan Zi[mfn]Zi was something they added behind a person’s name, it means something like a child or to refer to someone young[/mfn], your case is indeed difficult to handle. You can only use your wits to defeat them, not force them. As for the military strength, although the Chief of Staff cannot directly deploy troops, but he can still use some excuses to move troops to hold on for a while. Now we don’t know where the person is being held, which is troublesome.”

 

Duan Yelin understood very well: “Second Brother Shan, I also know a thing or two about the Zhang family. Since they want to kill me, they will definitely mobilize a large number of soldiers. However, no matter how capable they are, they can’t use Shanghai as a battlefield, so they will definitely choose a remote place. I came in a hurry, so they probably won’t have a chance to find a new place. A place they are familiar with would be the best.”

 

“Tell me about it.”

 

“First of all, the Zhang family manor itself is very remote. In addition, the Zhang family has a summer resort in the suburbs, which is Qiyan Mountain Villa, it is also rarely visited. I think these two places must be the top priority.”

 

Second Brother Shan originally thought that Duan Yelin came in a hurry and must be unprepared, but he did not expect that in such a short time, he could come up with such a plan. He could not help but admire him a little.

 

“So when are you going to start?”

 

“Sooner rather than later, the day after tomorrow.”

 

“The day after tomorrow? That’s too soon.”

 

“It has to be the day after tomorrow. Because if it’s one day later, the troops that the Zhang family has transferred from Nanjing will arrive in Shanghai, and then there will really be no chance.”

 

He suddenly felt extremely nervous, as if his throat was being strangled and he couldn’t breathe at all.

 

Time was really tight, and Duan Yelin never loosened his right fist.

 

Shaotang… are you alright?—

 

It was the middle of the night.

 

Zhang Yaochen slept very lightly in bed. As he was old, he couldn’t sleep very deeply.

 

He seemed to have a dream. He dreamed of a beautiful garden, then flames shooting up into the sky, and faint singing could be heard in the middle.

 

“I have a little sister at home. She is smart and admired by everyone. She is an expert at drawing dragons and phoenixes, and she is good at playing the guqin, chess, calligraphy, and painting—”

 

There was nothing wrong with the singing, it was a classic Yue Opera aria, but why did such an originally festive tune become sung in a deep, plaintive, and sad voice?

 

Zhang Yaochen suddenly opened his eyes. The room was pitch dark. He didn’t know what time it was. He felt his mouth dry, so he got up to pour himself a cup of tea.

 

As soon as he walked to the table, he felt that there seemed to be a figure flashing outside the window.

 

He rubbed his eyes and looked carefully. The wind blew up the curtains. Under the moonlight, there was a hole in the window at some point, and there was an eye looking at him.

 

Like an evil ghost!

 

“Ah!” Zhang Yaochen fell to the ground almost instantly, and then the soldiers outside the door rushed in and turned on the lights to illuminate the entire room.

 

“Chief of Staff, what’s going on?”

 

“There’s a ghost… ghost outside the window!”

 

The two soldiers rushed out to take a look. There was nothing but a bright moon. They came back and said, “Maybe the Chief of Staff was just a bit dazed from exhaustion? Or perhaps you had a nightmare?”

 

Zhang Yaochen was still in shock: “Did you guys not hear any singing just now? A woman’s singing?”

 

“Singing?” The soldiers were confused. “No, it was very quiet ah.”

 

At this time, Zhang Yaochen thought that maybe he had a nightmare. He waved his hand to dismiss them.

 

Then that night, Zhang Yaochen did not turn off the lights and sat on the bed until dawn before he could barely sleep for a while.

 

When he woke up the next day, he said to Zhang Xiuming at the meal table, “Tomorrow I will go to Qiyan Villa and stay to bathe and purify myself, as well as recite Buddhist scriptures for a few days.”

 

Qiyan Villa was specifically built by Zhang Yaochen in order to marry Zhang Xiuming and Zhang Yinxi’s mother. The villa was named after their mother’s name, Mu Yingyan. Others said that this was the deep affection between the Chief of Staff and his wife.

 

This villa is full of Zen spirit. Zhang Yaochen would stay there for a few days every month to cleanse his body and mind.

 

Zhang Xiuming didn’t know what his father did last night. He thought about it for a while and then said, “This time when Father goes to Qiyan Villa, please bring one more person with you.”

 

“Is this what you meant by the bait to kill Duan Yelin? You’re planning to do it at Qiyan Villa?”

 

Zhang Xiuming shook his head. “Qiyan Villa is the most important thing for Father and Mother. How dare I mess up that place? Don’t worry, Father. I have a foolproof plan. Please give me a few special orders, and you only need to bring a team of people to protect your own safety. I will take care of the rest.”

 

As his son grows up, he sometimes finds himself becoming more and more confused as a father. Zhang Yaochen doesn’t know whether it is a good or a bad thing that his son has become so scheming.

 

When he was young, he was too obsessed with fame and fortune, so he failed to discipline his two children and left them to his wife. As the saying goes, a loving mother often spoils her children. Both children were taught to the extreme.

 

Forget it, forget it, just let him make a fuss. Anyway, if it could make Duan Yelin die, it would also solve his worry.

 

At this time, Young Master Xu, whom Commander Duan had been thinking about, was being helped by the servants to apply ice cubes to the redness and swelling on his face.

 

He was born fair, so the condition naturally looked serious. After applying the compress for a long time and also applying ointment, he felt a little better.

 

Zhang Xiuming walked in after breakfast. Xu Hang didn’t even raise his eyes. Zhang Xiuming picked up the apple on the table and took a bite: “Do you really want to know where Duan Yelin is? Maybe you will see him soon… well… but maybe it’s just his corpse.”

 

The crisp sound of an apple being bitten into echoed in the air, eerily similar to the chilling crunch demons make when gnawing on bones as they devour people.

 

Not sure if Xu Hang heard what Zhang Xiuming said or not, but he actually said something strange: “That hourglass over there doesn’t contain sand, but human ashes, right?”

 

Following Xu Hang’s finger, Zhang Xiuming nodded and swallowed the apple: “Yeah, what? Do you like it?”

 

Xu Hang suddenly smiled at Zhang Xiuming: “Nothing, I just forgot to tell you that I sprinkled some ‘sand’ from the hourglass on the apple you ate.”

 

The apple fell to the ground with a thud.

 

Zhang Xiuming was stunned for only a second, then he immediately leaned over and scratched his throat to vomit.

 

“Ugh… Cough, cough, cough…”

 

Seeing this, Xu Hang tilted his head and said, “I was lying.”

 

“You!” Zhang Xiuming wiped the water from the corner of his mouth, his anger was self-evident. He picked up Xu Hang and was about to hit him, but when he saw the bruises on his face, he suppressed his anger again and again and then threw Xu Hang to the ground.

 

Watching Zhang Xiuming storm off in anger, Xu Hang couldn’t help but laugh, but it wasn’t the smug grin of someone who’d pulled off a prank. It was the laugh of a loser.

 

“Yelin… you are finally here.”