Light Fortress-Chapter 56 - 54 Dinner Party
56: Chapter 54: Dinner Party
56 -54: Dinner Party
Old Cheng Hotpot Restaurant.
This was an old hotpot place tucked away in a secluded alley of the Qinghe District, very popular and usually required reservations in advance.
The second floor had an outdoor terrace where the evening breeze wafted the delicious scent of simmering broth.
Tonight, the terrace on the second floor had been booked by three young people.
“It smells so good——”p>
Zhong Wei took a deep breath and swallowed, “Where is that pot fragrance coming from?
It smells amazing.
I’m about to cry from the craving.
How much longer until Xiao Gu arrives?”
Senior Sister Luo tapped him with her still-wrapped chopsticks, warning, “Just wait patiently.
No one is allowed to start eating until Xiao Gu gets here.”
Soon after.
The hotpot was served, a large chunk of butter melting over a thin layer of tea, slowly stewed on a low flame.
The butter melted completely, releasing the slow and enticing aroma of Sichuan peppercorns bubbling away.
“No wonder Teacher found this hotpot place…” Zhong Wei gazed at the spicy red oil hotpot and remarked, “It’s so well hidden, it must be delicious.
I won’t touch the food, but can I taste the broth first?”
Senior Sister Luo glared at him.
Zhong Wei sheepishly withdrew the spoon.
Clearing his throat, Zhong Wei changed the subject and spoke earnestly, “Speaking of which…
Xiao Gu has really taken us by surprise.
Those people in the evaluation group are tough characters, they don’t seem like the type to go easy on anyone.
How did he pass the evaluation?”
Dressed in casual, comfortable clothes, Nan Jin sat at the edge of the terrace, an arm resting on the railing.
She looked out over the street corner beyond the alley and said softly, “I think, Gu Shen is hiding something up his sleeve.
Dream interpretation…
it might well be his specialty.
Do you remember Han Dang’s final expression?”
The brother and sister caught each other’s eye.
At Gu Shen’s apartment, when the locked box was opened, Han Dang’s expression was one of utter astonishment and shock.
“You mean, it’s very possible…
at the welfare institute, Han Dang had already clashed with Gu Shen,” Zhong Wei narrowed his eyes, finding the matter increasingly interesting, “And Han Dang, the Old Fox, got duped by Gu Shen.”
“Interesting…”
Luo Er also became intrigued, murmuring, “No wonder Han Dang wanted to snatch the locked box at the apartment…
He thought there was crucial evidence inside.
Turns out, he was completely deceived by Gu Shen.”
“Han Dang’s ability is called ‘Truth Domain’, he can create a powerful spiritual domain, forcibly dragging people into ‘Dreams’, where no one can lie to him.”
Zhong Wei spoke rapidly, “So he pulled Gu Shen into a dream, thinking he had found clues within the ‘Truth Domain’, but in reality, the clues were entirely fabricated.”
“Impressive…” Brother Zhong muttered, “So, the real situation is that Gu Shen found a loophole in Han Dang’s dream?
It’s incredible…”
“What the truth is, we can’t know, and it’s not important anymore…
The evaluation is over.”
“What’s certain is that Xiao Gu is not as simple as we thought.”
Senior Sister Luo shook her head with a smile, “We all underestimated him previously, but he managed to get an ‘S-rating’ and even broke several records at the Judgement Institute.”
She thought back to what Gu Shen had said to her at the training grounds.
The young man had done it.
It hadn’t been easy, but it was remarkable.
“Here they come.”
Nan Jin spoke softly and at the same time pulled up the duckbill cap that was next to her on the table, pressing it firmly onto her head.
Zhong Wei was initially puzzled by Nan Jin’s action of donning the cap, but then he understood why.
The roar of an engine echoed in his ears.
An extremely eye-catching, jet-black convertible supercar drifted around the corner, followed by a sharp braking that left two streaks of tire marks on the ground.
Everyone’s gaze was drawn to one point.
“Ah ha—”p>
“Sorry to keep you waiting!”
Cigar in mouth, the old man sprayed a large puff of smoke upward under the watchful eyes of those around him, warmly greeting his disciples on the second-floor terrace.
Mr.
Shu had changed into a flamboyant white tuxedo, looking like a high-profile guest ready for a state dinner, whereas Gu Shen was covering his face tightly, unwilling to be exposed under the public gaze.
This old man, does he have some kind of social awesomeness syndrome?
Who dresses like this…
to eat hotpot!
…
…
“You guys, why the long faces?
Afraid of being seen?”
“Relax, the second floor is already booked.” Zhou Jiren said as he climbed up to the rooftop and saw his three disciples each wearing hats and crouching, he couldn’t help but laugh, “After eating hotpot, I still have to meet a friend, so it’s better to be a bit more formal in dress.
Otherwise, I wouldn’t mind being a simple citizen in a tank top and shorts.”
Gu Shen, who was following behind, reached the rooftop and let out a long sigh of relief.
The ordeal of the journey was finally over.
Gu Shen couldn’t count how many people had been giving him strange looks, filled with surprise, envy, jealousy, disdain and the like.
He felt something was wrong the moment he got into that sports car…
He only regretted that he was too young, his skin was too thin, and he hadn’t had the experience of spending day and night with a certain old fellow.
If he had to do it over, he would choose to wear a thick mask.
Mr.
Shu took off his coat and sat down, flicking the ashes from his cigarette, he hinted, “Everyone must be feeling impatient, right?
Gu Shen’s review should have finished earlier, but he was pulled aside by Cui Zhongcheng for a private chat lasting two hours.”
Zhong Wei cast a meaningful look at Gu Shen and said with a smile, “Oh?
Cui Zhongcheng is quite the formidable figure.
What did you two talk about?
Come clean!”
“Actually, we just walked around Da Teng Academy a few times.” Gu Shen also took off his coat and said helplessly, “The review is over…
He asked me what I wanted.”
“You got an ‘S grade,’ that’s why you had this meeting.
Everyone’s opinion of Cui Zhongcheng is pretty consistent: he’s an efficient but heartlessly strict machine.
He talked to you simply because you have value.” Senior Sister Luo asked, “What demands did you make?”
So this was everyone’s impression of Mr.
Xiao Cui?
Gu Shen was a bit surprised.
He could indeed feel the high efficiency in getting things done.
But heartlessly strict…
he never got that feeling, on the contrary, there were qualities about Mr.
Xiao Cui that made him feel warmth and even a faint sense of identification.
“My demands weren’t much…” Gu Shen said as he counted on his fingers, “Just some assurances for the kids at the welfare institute.
And to keep the matter about my grandma hidden from the public.”
The people at the table exchanged looks.
A brief silence.
“…”
Zhong Wei asked, “That’s it?
Just these?”
“Should there be more?”
Gu Shen was somewhat bewildered, “Oh, right…
I also asked him to thoroughly investigate the fire incident.”
“Those demands, they are hardly demands at all.
Didn’t you propose any…
more substantial conditions?” Zhong Wei quickly said, “Like, a high-level access to Deep Sea, top-tier breathing techniques, or selecting Extraordinary Sealed Objects?”
“This…” Gu Shen was stupefied, “Is that an option?”
Too young.
Poverty had limited his imagination.
During his conversation with Cui Zhongcheng, he hadn’t contemplated in that direction at all.
Compared to what Brother Zhong had mentioned, his own demands were indeed trivial and mundane, no wonder the look in Cui Zhongcheng’s eyes then was so…
memorable.
As an S-grade, fulfilling his demands was truly too simple.
“Ah ha—” Mr.
Shu laughed and patted Gu Shen on the shoulder, “I think Xiao Gu made good choices!
Zhao Xilai and Cui Zhongcheng are not good guys; there’s no need to take those kinds of advantages from them!”
When Cui Zhongcheng was mentioned, Nan Jin had been silent all the while.
She stood quietly by the rooftop, letting the wind blow as her gaze swept across the night sky gradually enveloping in darkness.
“Alright, alright.
The review is behind us now.”
The old fox raised his glass with a smile and said, “Let’s raise our glasses tonight to celebrate the Judgement Institute’s new S-grade talent!”
