CHAPTER 40: CHAPTER 40 CLOUD DRAGON RESIDENCE, GATHERING!

"Hehehe," Elder Tang’s eyes twinkled with laughter as he chuckled dryly again. So, this girl had done a good deed, but still planned to wash her hands clean of it?

"But this matter might not go as we hope. It could even backfire on us. There are already quite a few people in the Chamber trying to make trouble for us..."

Sui Yi had already headed to the kitchen.

"That’s Elder Tang and Mr. Lin’s business, but isn’t the deputy mayor also there..."

Upon hearing this, a sharp light flashed in Elder Tang’s eyes!

Heh, their strategies were actually the same!

This Sui Yi... he had underestimated.

"Eh, tomorrow is Saturday... are you prepared? Don’t disgrace me in front of those people..."

"Hmm... I will read some books later."

Read books? Such a confident reply! Do you think tomorrow is a closed-book exam?

Elder Tang clenched his fists, was this the rhythm of last-minute cramming?

Why had he ever thought of bringing Sui Yi, who knew nothing about antiques and cultural relics, with him?

Zhou Ran would have been more reliable!

-------------------

How much can one read in just one night?

Does "glance and remember ten lines" count?

What if, on top of that, you never forget what you’ve read?

In the room, with the window open, a cool breeze from the sea gently blew in. Five or six thick books lay open or closed on the desk. Sui Yi looked up at the river lanterns on the river outside. Hmm? The people on the pleasure boats had disappeared; it seemed the night had deepened.

"Although my memory isn’t bad, this is all I can manage." Sui Yi closed her eyes, somewhat weary. Indeed, such a profession was not achieved overnight; she could only take things steadily, step by step.

With her special ability, she could thrive without harm, but she did not intend to rely on this inexplicable power.

After all, in this line of work, without substantial knowledge in her belly, survival would be difficult.

She did not intend to be a person with fame but no substance.

Thinking this, Sui Yi took a sip of tea and continued reading.

--------------------------------

While she was reading, Yhan Qingwu sat on the sofa in the living room. She was supposed to be watching the news with her mother, but her eyes glanced at a newspaper on the table.

The clothing pictured seemed familiar.

"First a murder case, then an assassin shot dead, and now your school is in the news again. It seems Nanxun isn’t very peaceful, and it’s distracting you," the woman sitting next to her was quite sensitive, noticing her distraction and commented, reflecting the colorful light from a crystal chandelier.

She looked very young, with a beautifully contoured and stunning face, coffee-colored wavy hair draping over her shoulders, stylish and dignified. She sat there embodying a timeless charm.

Tang Hanyan had always been the envy of other women: beauty, career, family, children—all seemed nearly perfect.

It was because of this perfection that she treaded more carefully to maintain it, not allowing the slightest lapse.

"I’ve distracted mom... to rush over from the Provincial City... But it’s really just a minor matter; it hasn’t affected me," Yhan Qingwu picked up the newspaper, flipping through the pages until she froze.

"The uniform in the picture is from your school. The police have their own explanation, but it has brought fame to your school once again," Tang Hanyan said teasingly, lifting a cup of freshly steeped floral tea.

Her fingers, like Yhan Qingwu’s, were slender and pretty, her knuckles defined and beautiful.

She looked at her daughter, thinking secretly, her daughter would surpass her.

Without doubt.

Yhan Qingwu’s original absorption in the paper was interrupted, and she looked up at her mother.

"Does mom have something to say?"

"Transfer schools... This one isn’t good. It’s your senior year, and I don’t want you to be affected. I’ll take you back to the Provincial City. As for the school, it’s all arranged," she said.

Yhan Qingwu fell silent for a moment.

She wasn’t used to going against her mother’s wishes for this type of situation, even though she originally thought it wasn’t important. However, she was somewhat reluctant in the end.

A mother knows her daughter best, and seeing the slight frown on Tang Hanyan’s forehead, the conversation shifted, "Tomorrow I’m attending an event. It’s for some of the old business families of Nanxun. Come with me."

She never pressured her child to study like other parents, in part because Yhan Qingwu never needed such pressure, but also because of her strong self-reliance and the way of thinking formed from studying abroad in the west in her earlier years.

She trusted in the overall personal capability, not just pale academic grades.

Of course, academic performance can easily reflect a person’s natural talents.

"A business gathering? Mom came back for this?" Yhan Qingwu wasn’t keen on attending such events.

"It’s not about business, but more about the antiques and cultural relics you’re interested in...so, are you going or not?"

-------------------

The next day, Sui Yi, dressed in casual pencil trousers and a knitted sweater, stood there quietly in her skate shoes, while Elder Tang complained non-stop at her side, and Zhou Ran stood there with an embarrassed look on his face.

"Sui Yi, can’t you wear something more formal?" Elder Tang found that after talking to himself for so long, Sui Yi was just looking up at the plaque in front of the clubhouse.

Cloud Dragon Residence.

It’s renowned in Nanxun, and even in Jiangnan District, it has some reputation as a gathering place for some famous entrepreneurs from Nanxun Town.

But she still turned back to look at Elder Tang and said, "I’m Elder Tang’s assistant, no need to stand out too much, just fitting into my role is good enough..."

Elder Tang was somewhat conflicted, not because he cared about that; he just felt that at Sui Yi’s age, she should treat herself better, looking at the clothes she bought for herself...

"Does it look that ugly?" Sui Yi saw Elder Tang was truly struggling and took a step back in her mind.

Ugly? Zhou Ran had already started shaking his head first.

Elder Tang became more conflicted, actually, it wasn’t ugly at all, quite the contrary, it was quite pleasing to the eye. It’s just...

This girl, couldn’t she buy some more formal clothes like dresses?

"Then I’ll go back and change..."

"Change into what?"

"School uniform."

"...."

Elder Tang suddenly lost all fighting spirit, like a defeated rooster.

"Elder Tang..." A greeting brought him back to his senses; he turned his head to see a tall and sturdy man with dark skin and a square face approach with a strong aura.

He quickly covered the distance to them.

Was this man Yu Quan?

A pivotal figure in the Nanxun Chamber of Commerce?

It was said he was the second-in-command.

Worth over a billion.

Elder Tang and Yu Quan exchanged pleasantries and went into the clubhouse, seemingly indifferent to the younger generations like Sui Yi; Zhou Ran, however, was more cordial, following closely behind them...

Sui Yi, indifferent, trailed behind, observing the women in bright red cheongsams moving gracefully along the corridors designed with an ancient charm, where the scent of antiquity wafted through, and the murals on the stone walls and the carved doors and windows exuded a sense of age.

The elegance was without a leak of extravagance; it was like an ancient noble estate where every step seemed to tread on gold.

She felt a little dazed, as if she had walked this path thousands of times in a past life...

"Sui Yi, come quickly..." Although Elder Tang was harsh and tricky, he genuinely cared for Sui Yi, as if afraid she’d get lost.

Sui Yi then quickened her pace to catch up, and before long, she had entered the main hall.

There were quite a few people in the main hall, and many of them were young women in cheongsams. However, it was different from the murky nightclubs—they clearly had a much higher level of taste here.

Just moments ago, Sui Yi had heard a few women conversing fluently in English, their demeanor clean and graceful.

Their elegant movements as they poured and added tea to everyone’s cups were like red sleeves adding fragrance.

As soon as Sui Yi entered, before she even looked toward Elder Tang, a hearty and robust voice came over.

"Hey, you’re Sui Yi, huh?"

A not-so-tall, stocky old man with somewhat sinister features and a loud voice brightened when he saw Sui Yi. He stepped forward, sizing her up and down, and laughed, "Do you know who I am?"

Sui Yi turned to face the man squarely, her gaze flickering as she caught a glimpse of Elder Tang’s expression and the person behind the old man. Her eyes paused for a moment.

But it was just a glance, and she then withdrew her gaze while the man, evidently also slightly astonished, watched her silently for an instant. Seeing her avert her gaze naturally, as if she didn’t recognize him, he just curled his lips, with an unruly smirking twist to the corner of his mouth.

"Sui Yi has met Mr. Lin."

Lin Zhengdao’s eyes popped open, bell-like, and he burst out laughing, "Ha, it’s rare for someone to address me as Teacher, you’ve got a sharp eye~~... Elder Tang, I like this girl; let me take her back with me!"

This comment, innocuous in itself, became suggestive in this tainted world.

Suddenly, many eyes filled with insinuation, even Zhou Ran’s face changed color.