The phone rang before there was any movement on this end.
“Yangzi, it’s Xiao Yu. Where are you?”
“I’m at the artificial lake villa. I was going to call you at noon, but I didn’t expect you to call.”
“What’s up?”
“Brother Hui is getting married the day after tomorrow. Have you notified the relevant departments about the motorcade?”
“I’ve already spoken to them. As long as they drive according to the rules, no one will stop them.
Your motorcade is too long, isn’t it?
Over sixty vehicles. It’ll be inconvenient when passing through traffic lights.”
“It’s to advertise ourselves a bit during the wedding.”
“I’ve told them. Are you coming to my place, or should I come to you? Yezi’s ID card is ready.”
“That fast. Thank you. I’ll be right over.”
Guo Xuyang hung up the phone.
“Xiao Yu has gotten Yezi’s ID card ready. I’m taking Yezi to pick it up now. You rest for a bit.”
“Are you sure you’re going now?” Guo Yiyang pointed to his lower half.
The tent was still pitched and hadn’t been taken down.
“It’s not good to make her wait too long. I’ll come find you when it’s convenient for you.”
Guo Xuyang turned and left her room.
“Yezi, I’m going out with you,” he shouted as he pushed open Yezi’s door and walked inside.
There was no response.
“Yezi? Yezi? Is she asleep?”
Guo Xuyang took two steps inside and saw that no one was on the bed.
Where did she go?
As he was wondering, Yezi returned from outside.
“Yangzi? What are you doing?”
“I came to call you to go out. Where did you go?”
“I went to chat with Iliana. Iliana is close to giving birth,” Yezi said.
“She’s only a few months along. Don’t talk nonsense.”
“Believe it or not. The fetus is a bit large, so she might need a C-section.”
“Come and see her with me,” Guo Xuyang said as he walked out of the room.
The two went to Iliana’s room and found her resting on the bed.
“How are you? Yezi said you’re close to giving birth? Do you feel anything?”
“Don’t listen to her nonsense, nothing of the sort.
I just feel extremely tired and have a strong craving for food.”
“Tell me what you want to eat, and I’ll buy it for you.”
“Kiwis, cherries, and apples.”
“I’ll bring them to you later. You rest for now. I’ll take Yezi out first.”
Guo Xuyang said, then walked out of the villa with Yezi.
“Yezi, when you’re back, take some time to get your driver’s license. You can’t get anywhere without a car these days,” Guo Xuyang said as he drove.
“No problem. Driving isn’t that difficult. I already know how.”
“You know how to drive?”
“Yeah. It’s very simple.
I drove when I was with Xiao Yun and Xia Li that day.
But I didn’t have a license, so I only drove for a short distance.”
“You’re amazing. It took me a week to properly get on the road when I was learning to drive.”
“Don’t you know who I am?”
Yezi was right. She was truly an extraordinary person.
It was almost six o’clock by the time they arrived at Xiao Yu’s office.
“You waited for us specifically? I’m so sorry,” Guo Xuyang said when he saw Xiao Yu still waiting in the room.
“I usually don’t leave early. Here are the ID card and Yezi’s documents.”
Xiao Yu handed over a file bag.
“Thank you! Thank you! I’m very grateful!
Is everything alright back there? We’re going out for a simple meal later.”
“Sure. Have they discussed the wedding gift for Brother Hui’s wedding?”
“Mr. Jiang did mention that. The gift will be standard, comparable to Mr. Wu’s nephew, Wu Bing.
I haven’t consulted Brother Hui about this yet.”
“I recall it’s a hundred thousand each, right?”
“Yes. We’ll discuss this tomorrow when Brother Hui comes over.
Let’s go, we should go for a drink somewhere,” Guo Xuyang said.
“Let’s,” Xiao Yu said, putting on his overcoat and scarf before walking out of the room with him.
“What do you want to eat?” Guo Xuyang asked.
“I want to eat rice noodles.”
“Rice noodles? Then let’s go to Junyuelai. Xia Li’s father makes very authentic rice noodles.”
Guo Xuyang said, then drove the two of them to Junyuelai.
When Liu He saw Guo Xuyang arrive, he hurried downstairs to greet him.
“Manager Guo, you’re here.”
“Yes. Ask Master Xia to make three bowls of rice noodles. And two dishes, I’m going to have a drink with Captain Xiao.”
“Certainly, Manager Guo. I’ll arrange it right away,” Liu He said, hurrying inside.
“The decorations are quite festive,” Xiao Yu said, looking up at the hall.
“Brother Hui’s wedding banquet will be held here the day after tomorrow. I asked Manager Liu to tidy this place up.
And believe it or not, they finished all the renovations this afternoon right after we discussed it.”
The hall was already adorned with colorful streamers and decorated with many small orange lanterns.
“Let’s go, let’s find a place to sit.”
Before the three of them could sit down, several people entered from outside.
It was Chen Qiang and Wang Hu, of all people. It wasn’t clear how these people had gotten together.
“Mr. Guo, haven’t you eaten yet? How many people?” Chen Qiang asked.
“I’m having dinner with friends. You guys carry on with your business.”
“Shall we join you? Mr. Guo.”
“No need. Thank you!” Guo Xuyang said, and found a table with Xiao Yu and Yezi.
Wang Hu harbored an inexplicable fear of Guo Xuyang. Seeing them sit down downstairs, he called out to a few people and they went to a private room on the second floor.
“Qiangzi, do you know him?”
“Yes. He’s my sister’s best friend’s boyfriend.”
“He’s ruthless, much more so than us. It’s best to stay away from him,” Wang Hu said.
“Last time, Jiang Qi took a liking to a woman by his side, and almost beat him to death.
Afterward, they locked up the rest of us.
If it weren’t for the old man stepping in to vouch for us, we would have ended up in jail.”
“I was just thinking about that stunning woman by his side earlier,” Chen Qiang said.
“Forget it. Don’t go looking for trouble,” Wang Hu said, still shaken.
Guo Xuyang was unaware of their whispered conversation above.
The rice noodles had been served.
There was also a plate of boiled peanuts and a dish of jellyfish with cucumber.
These were all made by Old Xia.
When he used to eat in the county town, these two dishes were always ordered.
“Manager Guo, Manager Liu just mentioned you were here.
So I prepared two small dishes for you.
Try them, do they still have the same taste?” Xia Hubai said, standing to the side.
“Master Xia, please sit down. Would you like to have a couple of drinks with us?” Guo Xuyang invited.
“I’m busy right now and can’t sit. Let’s have a good drink some other day.”
“All right, then please go ahead and attend to your business.”
After Xia Hubai left, Guo Xuyang said to Xiao Yu and Yezi, “This is Xia Li’s father.
When I was in the county town before, I often ate at his place. His rice noodles are very authentic.
You two try them quickly, they taste best when hot. They won’t be as good when they cool down.”
Guo Xuyang poured a glass of baijiu for each of them.
“I’m driving, so I can’t drink,” Xiao Yu objected.
“One glass is fine. It’s less than a tael.
Eating these rice noodles without drinking feels like something is missing. You’ll know if you try,” Guo Xuyang persuaded.
“Eating a few bites of rice noodles and taking a sip of liquor is just wonderful. Try it.”