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Chapter 109: Chapter 100 Zhang Dongqing’s Call for Help (please subscribe and recommend!)_1
Tang Qing offered to cook? Had he misheard?
Qin Yu looked at Tang Qing with a hint of confusion in his eyes. The previous times when his friends and colleagues had visited, Tang Qing never took such an initiative. The sudden shift in behavior and logic took him by surprise, but since Tang Qing had said it publically, it would be inappropriate for him to refuse. So, he said, "Okay, your aunt and sisters aren’t home yet, you can go and buy groceries first. Do you have money on you?"
While saying this, Qin Yu handed over his wallet. He knew Tang Qing had money, but it was Tang Qing’s money. He himself was the one hosting the party, and while Tang Qing going to buy groceries was quite commendable, it would be unreasonable to expect him to also pay for them.
"No need, Uncle, I have money, then I ...I’ll go buy groceries." Tang Qing said, preparing to leave. Initially, he hadn’t grasped his uncle’s real meaning, but once he did, he had already spoken. Even though his initial response was a bit stiff, he decided to let it go as it wasn’t a big deal.
Qin Yu did not fuss either. He could give Tang Qing money when he got back. He added, "Also, your uncles just brought a lot of hairy crabs and lobsters, so you don’t have to buy these."
Liu Qian, being a billionaire mogul, wouldn’t possibly visit empty-handed, and neither could he bring just ordinary gifts. He bought these foods as Tang Qing did fruits before, completely oblivious to their actual value, always choosing the biggest ones. These items alone were enough for a couple of meals for their entire family. If it wasn’t for Zhang Dongqing and Zheng Xiu advising him, he wouldn’t have accepted such expensive gifts. Eventually, they decided to cook them for the dinner to avoid feeling uneasy about accepting them.
"Got it, Uncle. I’ll go now. You all continue talking." Tang Qing didn’t even greet the three before he left, taking his backpack and heading out like he was fleeing. It was indeed awkward, pretending to not know these people well with whom he was already familiar.
Once he got downstairs, he noticed two familiar cars. He hadn’t noticed them when he came home. He didn’t have an obsessive compulsion to identify the car models. One was Zhang Dongqing’s Santana, the other was Liu Qian’s Mercedes-Benz. Besides, he didn’t know the specific model and it wasn’t a car type he liked either. From the driver’s seat in Liu Qian’s car, he noticed Monkey.
Seeing someone familiar, he couldn’t just ignore him, especially when Monkey nodded and smiled at him.
With this personality, Monkey was fit to be a bodyguard, thought Tang Qing. He wondered who would win in a fight between Sun Chao and Monkey. He subconsciously felt that Monkey would possess more combative skills, given Liu Qian wouldn’t hire an ordinary soldier. Monkey didn’t seem any less intimidating than Han Bing. Even though Monkey had been working as a bodyguard and Sun Chao had retired and worked on his farm, in terms of preserving and training their skills, they were incomparable. However, Sun Chao could possibly win against Monkey once he had his full strength back.
Approaching him, Tang Qing greeted with a smile, "Hey Monkey, why didn’t you greet me earlier? It was super awkward when I went up. They just suddenly appeared without any heads up."
"Our cars have been parked here all along, it’s just that your alertness seemed a bit lacking," replied Monkey, stepping out of the car.
Tang Qing did not dwell on this issue when he heard this. He realized it was indeed his fault for missing two conspicuous cars parked at the entrance. Of course he could only blame his own negligence. This was a wake-up call for him. Even though the country was generally safe, danger was unavoidable. If he remained lackadaisical about his environment, it could potentially lead to a serious problem.
"That is indeed the case, thanks Monkey, I’m headed to buy groceries." said Tang Qing cheerfully after readjusting his mindset.
"Hmm, I’m looking forward to the dishes you’ll cook." Monkey replied.
Though he only mentioned buying groceries, Monkey knew he was going to cook. Tang Qing wasn’t surprised. The bosses wouldn’t be this negligent as to not keep their bodyguards informed. So how would the bodyguards protect their bosses at the ground level? At this point, Tang Qing also noticed the earpiece in Monkey’s ear.
A wiretap?
Well, it could not be considered eavesdropping. It was called ’protection.’ That Monkey hadn’t alarmed him while entering, was truly surprising. He had previously wondered why the bodyguard who was forever trailing behind Liu Qian wasn’t present. It turned out he was monitoring his boss’s safety in real-time, which made sense.
Tang Qing went to the vegetable market and randomly bought some meat. More of his purchases were vegetables, knowing that Liu Qian preferred a vegetarian diet. He was done with eating meat, and Zhang Dongqing and Zheng Xiu also preferred lighter fare, along with a few side dishes for the wine.
When he returned home, his aunt and two sisters were back. All these strangers made his elder cousin shy and she went to her room to quietly do her homework. His aunt, on the other hand, was in the kitchen cleaning the hairy crabs brought by Liu Qian. Normal families didn’t have specific ways to cook these, steaming them was enough.
After an hour, Tang Qing and his aunt were finally done cooking, and Monkey had come upstairs too.
"Everyone, let’s have a drink. Firstly, to thank Mr. Liu for his generosity, and secondly, to celebrate our newfound friendship. Let’s keep in touch."
"It’s nothing. As long as we do not bother you."
"Yes, we are all friends."
"Feel free to reach out if there is anything."
Although Qin Yu was mystified by their excessive enthusiasm, even for war comrades, especially Liu Qian, the wealthy businessman, he didn’t bother to wonder about it. He also didn’t credit the fact that these people were just riding on Tang Qing’s coattails.
After Qin Yu, as the host, finished his piece and toasted the wine, they all started eating. Liu Qian also proposed a toast, "Let’s have another drink. Next time, your whole family can come to my place. I’ll have my chef prepare delicious food for you."
"Haha, no problem," Qin Yugang laughed, although he verbally agreed, in his heart he didn’t want to go. Accepting favors makes you indebted. It’s one thing to act like brothers at the dinner table, but privately, it’s better to be cautious about relationships that become too deeply involved.
"Little Tang, come visit your uncle whenever you’re free," Liu Qian turned and winked at Tang Qing, grinning.
"Hehe, I will," Tang Qing responded with a forced smile.
During dinner, Liu Qian and others took turns ’teasing’ Tang Qing, making his life a misery. As they were elders, he didn’t dare to be disrespectful and could only obediently ’take it in’.
After dinner, Liu Qian and Zheng Xiu chatted with their uncle in the living room while Zhang Dongqing gave Tang Qing a look. Tang Qing immediately understood and took Zhang Dongqing downstairs to buy cigarettes.
"Little Tang, do you ... have money? Recently, the factory’s business has increased dramatically. I’m planning to expand it a bit, but the bank’s procedures are too slow," Zhang Dongqing paused halfway down the stairs to mention.
Tang Qing, knowing this was coming, immediately asked, "How much do you need, uncle?"
"Not much, I have about a million here, but I still need about 1.5 million, which should last for a little over two months," Zhang Dongqing said.
Tang Qing made his decision in less than a second: "No problem, I’ll check tomorrow, maybe at noon, I’ll give you the money."
Although this time he would definitely have to put up five hundred thousand, as for others he might be unwilling, but Zhang Dongqing was an elder he recognized and would help to the best of his ability. The system would make quick money once it opened the third level of Euros, and what was five hundred thousand or even five million to him? It meant nothing. Thinking about his monthly income of billions or even tens of billions from currency exchange in the future, what was the difference between hundreds of thousands and hundreds?
Zhang Dongqing was overjoyed: "Thank you so much, Little Tang, you’re really doing me a big favor."
His comrade-in-arms had just been promoted a few days ago and had some decision-making power over orders, so he was thinking of pulling him up. He didn’t dare to think about the bank’s loan, the process was too complicated and took too long. He needed the money right away, and Tang Qing was obviously the first choice.
"What’s there to thank, it’s what I should do. But is 1.5 million enough? If not, I can lend more," Tang Qing laughed.
Since Zhang Dongqing had previously said that he could use the favor that Liu Qian owed him to help himself, Tang Qing considered Zhang Dongqing someone worth helping with all his might. Would Zhang Dongqing not be able to borrow money from Liu Qian? Not to mention borrowing, that favor could exchange a few million for Zhang Dongqing. How could Tang Qing disappoint him since he was willing to help him in the first place.
"It’s enough, it’s enough, adding that to my own money, it’s completely enough. So, it’s settled, tomorrow at the usual place. Will it be in cash this time?" Zhang Dongqing asked, almost hoping to bring a banknote counter for the 1.5 million.
"Let’s do a bank transfer. The cash is too much, and you’d be too lazy to count," said Tang Qing.
After their conversation, the two went back to their uncle’s house. Zhang Dongqing, of course, couldn’t tell Liu Qian about this. Only Zheng Xiu knew. Seeing Zhang Dongqing return with a look of joy meant that everything had gone smoothly, and Zheng Xiu was happy for Zhang Dongqing.
Although Liu Qian, who was thoughtful and meticulous, suspected that the two did not go out to buy cigarettes, or even ask too much. After many years of ups and downs, he had experienced all kinds of strange things. If he was curious about everything and wanted to know everything clearly, then he wouldn’t have time to work. His ability to control his curiosity had been honed over many years; knowing too much was not always a good thing. If something was inconvenient for the other party to say and he asked, it would make everyone feel awkward; there was no need to kill a good conversation.
When it was time to leave, Zheng Xiu and Zhang Dongqing had nothing much to do, but Liu Qian insisted on giving Tang Qing and his two sisters red envelopes. In the end, amidst Tang Qing’s tears and laughter, he reluctantly accepted. The persuasiveness of business people’s gift-giving is incredibly strong, it can make you feel as if you’ve made a huge mistake if you don’t accept their gifts.
Goodness, there was five thousand in each red packet, which even surprised Qin Yugang. He even had the feeling of accepting a bribe, but seeing that Liu Qian had left and he didn’t know Liu Qian’s address, he didn’t say anything. This kind of person cared about their face, showing up at their house to return the money was somewhat humiliating.
Besides, Liu Qian was not on the same level as him. It can’t strictly be considered bribery, for example, if a provincial governor gives a two thousand red packet to a county mayor’s child, it is considered a kind gesture. But if a county mayor gives the governor’s child a two thousand red packet, it may be considered as bribery.
After they left, Qin Yugang sat on the sofa and smoked.
Today’s events were all too strange. The enthusiasm and focus of Liu Qian and the others made it impossible for him to figure out what was going on. At first, he thought they were interested in him, but he always felt there was more to it, they seemed more interested in Tang Qing. Understanding this left Qin Yugang puzzled, but since he couldn’t figure it out, he did not bother thinking about it, as long as none of it was for ill intentions. 𝑛𝘰𝑣𝑝𝑢𝑏.𝘤𝑜𝘮
PS: The second Chapter is late, please bear with me.
We’re already a hundred Chapters into Banking System. To be honest, it hasn’t been easy. Although subscription results can only be laughed off, I won’t give up. The main basic plots are almost all laid out, and the talons of the system are gradually showing themselves. This is a genre I particularly love, and I’ve always wanted to read but have never seen it in other novels, or only scattered about. Therefore, due to a book drought, I decided to write this book, letting my imagination run wild, trying to accomplish some things that are impossible in reality, and fulfill my humble dream as an author.
I originally wanted to write a single Chapter with my thoughts, but thinking about it, I only have a few things to say. I hope you all don’t think I’m nagging, of course, the PS content will not be charged, please rest assured. There are many ways to make up the word count, I haven’t gotten so bored as to use author’s notes to do so.
Lastly, I would like to ask again for original subscriptions to motivate me to write. To this day, each Chapter hovers around a hundred subscriptions, it’s heartbreaking.
