eurekapd Chapter 2083 I bet they won't!
Chapter 2083 I bet they won't!
Twenty minutes ago, in the main house in the backyard.
This room belongs to Li Xiangnan and his wife, and four elderly people are sitting inside at the moment.
Jiang Huaiyuan, Yu Haoran, Song Qiankun, and Qin Zongheng.
Song Cijiu had just invited the four old men in, and with an apologetic smile on his face, he said, "Please make yourselves at home and have a seat here for a while. There are some matters to attend to in the central courtyard, and Xiang Nan and I were afraid of disturbing you!"
Jiang Huaiyuan waved his hand and said in a loud voice, "Cijiu, what are you talking about? What kind of situation haven't we old guys seen? It's just those few cats and dogs from the Ten Families in Yanjing. If things really get out of hand, one phone call from my Jiang family and they'll all be kicked out!"
The old man was powerful and influential, and his family members spoke with a gentle and refined manner, yet he possessed a certain confidence.
Qin Zongheng sat in the armchair, gently blew on the tea leaves in his teacup, and said with a smile, "Old Jiang, calm down, now is not the time for you to make your move!"
He was a few years younger than Jiang Huaiyuan, but his temperament was completely different.
Master Jiang was a great Confucian scholar; anyone who met him could feel his scholarly aura and composure.
Qin Zongheng, on the other hand, exuded the aura of a warrior on the battlefield; in other words, he was a military general.
These two men, one scholarly and the other martial, one calm and the other active, present a striking contrast.
The Jiang family is powerful, but Old Master Qin is an even more unfathomable figure in Yanjing.
“Zongheng is right,” Song Qiankun said, sitting at the chessboard by the window, fiddling with a Go set, his spirits high. “Since the Li family kid dared to hold this full moon banquet and even managed to lure in ten families from Yanjing, he must have his own plans! We old folks can just watch!”
Yu Haoran sat opposite Song Qiankun, holding a black chess piece in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed: "Qiankun, that's true, but ten families joining forces is quite a force! Xiang Nan is still young, what if..."
"What if what?" Song Qiankun placed a white piece and laughed. "Brother-in-law, have you forgotten what kind of person Brother Zhongmo was back in Yanjing? How bad could his grandson be?"
Yu Haoran was taken aback by these words.
Yes, Li Dequan!
Back then, Li Shengshou was more than just a doctor.
Jiang Huaiyuan was still muttering to himself, "I just feel so frustrated! Damn it, the younger generation is making a scene, and we have to hide inside..."
"It's not about hiding!" Qin Zongheng put down his teacup and said meaningfully, "It's about making room for the younger generation. Old Jiang, think about it, if a few of us old guys went out now and stood there, would the Ten Families still dare to cause trouble?"
"Of course I wouldn't dare!" Jiang Huaiyuan said matter-of-factly.
"So they stopped causing trouble!" Qin Zongheng's smile deepened. "If they don't cause trouble, how will we know what they're really up to? If they don't cause trouble, how will we get them to show their true colors?"
Jiang Huaiyuan blinked, then suddenly understood: "You mean... Xiang Nan did it on purpose?"
"Otherwise what?" Song Qiankun placed another piece. "Do you think he's really afraid of the ten families causing trouble? He's afraid they won't cause trouble at all!"
Yu Haoran put down the black piece in his hand and sighed, "The younger generation is truly formidable!"
Just then, footsteps came from outside the door.
Through the paper window, you can see a group of people coming in through the moon gate and walking towards the opposite side room.
Leading the group was a tall and elegant woman in a dark blue suit skirt, followed by seven or eight people of all ages, each with a solemn expression.
"They're here!" Qin Zongheng glanced up, then lowered his head to drink his tea. "That girl from the Ye family is leading the team herself; quite a grand affair!"
Jiang Huaiyuan stood up, walked to the window, and looked out through the crack. "Is that Ye Ruyan? Ye Guangcai's daughter? She does look a bit like her father when he was young!"
"She's even more ruthless than her father!" Yu Haoran said calmly. "Ye Guangcai at least showed some consideration in his actions, but this girl... she doesn't care about family!"
Song Qiankun was still playing chess, not even looking up: "No matter how ruthless she is, she's still a girl. In Yanjing, ruthlessness alone is useless; you have to know the rules!"
Just then, Ye Ruyan's voice came from outside. Although it was hard to hear what she was saying, the domineering tone in her voice could be felt even through the window.
Jiang Huaiyuan frowned again: "They're going to knock on the door of the side room? That's bad, there's no one there! Huanying isn't in there!"
Qin Zongheng smiled and said, "Believe it or not, she can't open this door!"
"Oh?" Jiang Huaiyuan turned around. "Are you so sure?"
“It’s not me who’s certain, it’s Xiang Nan who’s certain!” Qin Zongheng pointed out the window. “Look, Xiang Nan has been following behind them the whole time, looking perfectly normal! If he were really worried about Huan Ying being disturbed, he would have stopped her long ago! Since he didn’t, it means…”
Before the words were finished, a third thud of a cane hitting the door came from outside.
"Boom!!!"
The sound was so deep that it made the paper windows tremble slightly.
Jiang Huaiyuan was startled and looked out the window.
The chess piece in Yu Haoran's hand fell onto the chessboard with a thud.
Even Song Qiankun, who had remained calm throughout, raised his head, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
Only Qin Zongheng continued to drink his tea with a smile, as if he had expected it all along.
“That footsteps, that cane…” Jiang Huaiyuan murmured, “Is it… Du Xingyue?”
Outside the window, that imposing figure had already appeared at the Moon Gate.
Silver hair, Zhongshan suit, and a sandalwood cane.
Who else could it be but Du Xingyue?
"Good lad!" Jiang Huaiyuan slapped his thigh, a smile finally appearing on his face. "No wonder he was so calm! It turns out he invited Du Bancheng!"
Qin Zongheng put down his teacup and said slowly, "Old Jiang, don't you think about who Brother Zhongmo was on good terms with back when he was in Yanjing?"
Jiang Huaiyuan was taken aback, then suddenly realized: "You mean... Du Xingyue and Brother Zhongmo..."
"A life-or-death friendship!" Song Qiankun lowered his head to look at the chessboard again. "Back then, Zhongmo saved Old Du's life on the battlefield. Later, when Old Du needed to establish himself in Yanjing, Zhongmo came here to help him. He also helped find Huanying and did things for the Li family! It's just that in recent years, Old Du has retired, and the two families have had less contact, so the younger generation doesn't know about it!"
Yu Haoran picked up the fallen chess piece, shook his head and smiled wryly: "We old folks have completely forgotten about this!"
“It’s not that I forgot!” Qin Zongheng said, “It’s that I never even thought of it! Who could have predicted that Xiang Nan would remember this matter and even manage to persuade the retired Du Bancheng to come out of seclusion!”
Outside the window, Du Xingyue had already begun to make trouble.
Every word was sharp and incisive.
Jiang Huaiyuan watched with great delight: "That's great! Old Du is still the same Old Du as before! Look at the face of that girl from the Ye family, she looks like she's swallowed a fly!"
Yu Haoran also smiled: "That old fox Yan Qinghe's legs are shaking!"
Song Qiankun placed a piece and said calmly, "Ten families joining forces? In front of Du Bancheng, ten families joining forces are nothing more than ten grasshoppers!"
Just then, they heard from outside that Du Xingyue had given them two directions.
Kneeling in public to apologize, being fined three jars of wine, or being blacklisted by the industry.
Jiang Huaiyuan slapped his thigh with glee: "Serves them right, that was so damn satisfying, let them be so arrogant!"
Qin Zongheng frowned slightly: "Old Du's move... was a bit too heavy!"
"What's so heavy about it?" Jiang Huaiyuan said dismissively. "You have to be ruthless when dealing with shameless people like this!"
“It’s not that dealing with them is the priority,” Qin Zongheng said, looking out the window, “it’s that we’re afraid they’ll resort to desperate measures!”
As expected, the situation outside reached a stalemate.
The ten representatives were caught in a dilemma, and Du Xingyue began to count them.
"One...two..."
Jiang Huaiyuan clenched his fists and whispered, "Admit defeat! Admit defeat now! What's a little kowtow? It's better than an industry blacklist!"
Yu Haoran sighed: "I'm afraid they won't be able to swallow their pride!"
Song Qiankun suddenly laughed, "Do you think they'll do it?"
"They'll definitely back down!" Jiang Huaiyuan said decisively. "In front of Du Bancheng, would they dare not back down?"
Qin Zongheng and Yu Haoran nodded in agreement.
Song Qiankun shook his head: "I bet they won't!"
"Why?" Jiang Huaiyuan asked, puzzled.
“Because…” Before Song Qiankun could finish speaking, a strong voice suddenly came from outside.
"Please calm down, Elder Du!"
The four words were like a pebble thrown into a calm lake.
The four old men inside all looked up at the window.
Outside the moon gate, a tall, slender figure slowly walked in.
He wore a dark blue wool Zhongshan suit and carried three brocade boxes.
Jiang Huaiyuan's pupils suddenly contracted.
Yu Haoran's chess piece fell onto the chessboard once again.
For the first time, the smile on Qin Zongheng's face disappeared.
Song Qiankun slowly stood up, walked to the bedside, squinted at the patient for a long time, and then slowly uttered a few words: "How could it be him?"
Deathly silence. The room was deathly silent.
The four elderly men, who had dominated Yanjing for half a century, were all silent at this moment, looking at the old man outside the window!
He bowed to Du Xingyue, nodded to Li Xiangnan, and shook his head and sighed at the representatives of the ten families.
Every step was taken with such ease, and every word was spoken with such grace.
But the four old men inside the house knew.
The real trouble is here.
Jiang Huaiyuan took a deep breath, his voice a little hoarse: "Why is this old bastard here?"
Qin Zongheng sat down again, picked up his teacup, but found his hand suddenly trembling. "The ten families' coup was a ruse; the real killing move... is here!"
Yu Haoran looked out the window, his brows furrowed: "What did he bring?"
Song Qiankun remained silent for a long time before finally saying, "No matter what they brought..."
"This game is going to be tough to win today!"
Outside the window, the person had already stopped, a smile on his face. His gaze swept over the people in the backyard, and finally, seemingly intentionally or unintentionally, he glanced at the main house.
Just one glance, through the thin paper of a window.
The four old men simultaneously felt a chill run down their spines.