111: 111 slapping the face 111: 111 slapping the face When Xia Ye awoke, Xia Yuzheng was sitting in the living room, reviewing a contract while smoking a cigarette.

Only two puffs remained of the cigarette.

Seeing his younger daughter come out, he promptly snuffed out the cigarette.

“Going to see your mom?

Have something to eat before you go, I’ll have Wu Ma make you…” Xia Yuzheng put out his cigarette and was about to get up when Xia Ye stopped him.

“No need, I’ll just eat outside.” Xia Ye’s attitude was fine, but thinking of Wu Ma’s scrunched face made her appetite wane by half.

Xia Yuzheng let out an “oh”, pondered for a moment, then made a move to pull out his wallet, “Do you have pocket money?”

These past few days, he had been so preoccupied, if not with company matters then with the kids’ schooling, that he had forgotten, it had been so long since Little Tiangao returned, yet he hadn’t given her any pocket money.

Did the child have enough money to spend?

Xia Ye curled her lip slightly: “I do.”

Her mother and brothers had given her some long ago.

She quickly got ready and left the house, and through the window, Xia Yuzheng saw that she didn’t get into Wang Dahai’s car but walked straight out of the villa’s gate instead.

Xia Yuzheng felt a bit puzzled, why didn’t his younger daughter like to eat breakfast at home?

Why didn’t she take the car prepared by the family driver?

And, during the conversation with his daughter just now, there seemed to be a bit of alienation.

In the past, when Xia Yourong was around, he had half his attention on his older daughter, but now that she had left, he focused more on the younger one, and only then did he gradually notice these issues.

If you’re to say the younger daughter’s reclusive nature is due to the years she spent away, but…

she’s not at all distant with Xu He.

The mother and daughter were as close as if they hadn’t been apart all these years.

Yet Xia Yuzheng always considered what’s best for his daughters and for the family, when exactly did the younger daughter start to distance herself from him?

Xia Yuzheng furrowed his brows, unable to figure it out for the moment.

He recalled the overwhelming emotion and joy he couldn’t hide when he spotted Little Tiangao at the entrance of the western restaurant on the day she returned.

In contrast, he now felt an empty ache in his heart.

No, the next chance he got, he would have to ask his wife.

Where had he gone wrong?

Why was Little Tiangao disdainful of him???

**

Xia Ye hopped on a shared bicycle and, like a fish in water, navigated freely through the tree-lined boulevards of the residential area and into the bustling business district.

The trip from her home to the Xinguang Business District was actually quite long.

But with the physical strength passed down from her ancestors, it took her only an hour and a half to ride into the business district.

Her fair and slim face was flushed, and fine beads of sweat on her forehead were evaporating the sweet scent from her body.

She didn’t feel tired at all; on the contrary, there was a sense of refreshing ease after stretching her limbs.

A good sleep for her was like waking from a winter’s hibernation; she had to be full of energy.

The business district was lined with towering buildings, closely packed one after another.

The crowd was dense, and the atmosphere was lively.

Many upscale and cute-themed tea cafes had waitresses dressed in Daji cosplay, complete with fox ears, sweetly calling out, “Welcome home, Master~”

Even Xia Ye almost wanted to follow them into the shop upon hearing that.

But then she came to her senses: could she, a genuine person, be lured in by fakes?

Didn’t she have any shame?

With that thought, she coldly turned her head and walked away, and in a hidden alley, she saw a humble snack stall.

Behind the tricycle, a long metal rack held various skewers, just like the ones she saw in Capital City decades ago.

Though small, the stall was clean, and once the freshly changed pot boiled, it emitted a rich spicy scent.

An old man ran the little stall, which didn’t have a WeChat QR code for payments, so cash was the only option.

Xia Ye went to the nearby bank to withdraw money.

Decades ago when Xia Ye visited a bank, there were no ATMs.

In the business district where the customer flow was heavy, Xia Ye took a number and waited behind more than thirty people for a long time before it was finally her turn.

She was already an impatient person, and even though her eyes and brows appeared rather irritated as she sat at the counter, she still began somewhat politely, “Withdraw one hundred.”

“How much did you want to withdraw?” the bank clerk’s voice came through the speaker, unkind and laced with undisguised sarcasm.

There was no service with a smile, and the attitude was arrogant.

Xia Ye chuckled lightly, articulating clearly as she repeated two words, “One hundred.”

She was planning to eat skewers; one hundred was enough for that.

Once the clerk was sure he hadn’t misheard, what little patience he had left vanished instantly, and he curled his thick lips, “Withdraw one hundred at the ATM yourself!

Don’t you see how many people are waiting here?”

Xia Ye happened to be this clerk’s last customer before his lunch break.

He had been tired out all morning and was about to get his break when suddenly, some poor ghost showed up to waste his time—wanting him to withdraw a mere hundred yuan, it was beyond words!

Even though some banks have an unwritten rule to speed up efficiency that customers should use ATMs for withdrawing small amounts, the factual matter is that bank clerks aren’t allowed to refuse customers’ requests for withdrawing change, not to mention one hundred— even one yuan requests must be fulfilled.

That’s their job.

The majority of bank clerks are very patient.

Unfortunately, Xia Ye ran into the exception.

But it wasn’t unfortunate for Xia Ye, rather it was unfortunate for the clerk.

Xia Ye laughed softly, her eyes sharp and piercing as she asked, “I can’t withdraw one hundred?”

The clerk’s tone was blunt, “You cannot.”

He was about to hang up the “Closed for Lunch” sign when he heard Xia Ye say nonchalantly, “Well then, in that case, I’ll withdraw…

eight million.”

The card was her own, and it had some money in it, a tiny commission from her investments for her second brother during this time.

“Eight million?” the clerk let out a derisive laugh, “Okay.”

Her?

She clearly looked like a student who hadn’t even finished high school, and she wanted to withdraw eight million?

Such a bluff!

He operated directly on the computer, opened Xia Ye’s account, and thought to himself that if there wasn’t eight million in it, he could right away call security over.

“Enter the password,” the clerk said with particular disdain.

Xia Ye wasn’t annoyed and entered her password leisurely.

Six zeros.

The clerk opened the account and simultaneously called through the intercom for security, “Secu…”

He didn’t get to finish the word, as his voice abruptly stopped.

His eyes were glued to the screen, unable to move.

The eight million wasn’t even all of it.

The actual balance inside the account…

She spoke again, “Can I make the withdrawal now?”

The clerk came back to his senses, turning his baffled face towards Xia Ye, and with an awkward tone, he said, “Ye-yes, straight away for you.”

The attitude switched a total 180 degrees, as if he had become a different person altogether.

Withdrawing eight million in one go, she definitely wasn’t just any customer.

The manager even ran out from the back, eagerly bringing Xia Ye some tea and speaking in a very cordial manner, “Miss Xia, please have some tea.

Since the amount you’re withdrawing is rather large, it might require you to wait a bit.”

Xia Ye cooperated, “Alright, no problem.”

Back inside the counter, the clerk was sweating profusely as he worked, rallying another employee to help, and after a good while, they finally managed to withdraw the eight million.

The manager smiled extremely ingratiatingly, “Miss Xia, here is your eight million, please check it.”

Xia Ye didn’t verify it but slowly drew out one hundred yuan note, lazily lifted her eyelids, met the clerk’s eyes, and her lips curled into a knowing smile, “That’s fine, deposit the rest back for me.”