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Chapter 39: Flawless but missing the warmth of flesh and blood.
The Bentley drove out of the city, the scenery gradually changing, but it was indeed a legitimate destination. The driver finally took them to a winery in the suburbs.
They took the elevator from the underground garage, not using the main entrance. The driver led Chen Wengang through a maze of employee passages and finally into a private room, where they met the employer.
It was indeed Huo Jingsheng who had invited him in this mysterious way.
Huo Jingsheng lacked the peach blossom eyes of his brother Huo Niansheng, and as brothers, their nose and chin contours were somewhat similar.
He couldn’t be considered ugly, but Chen Wengang, who was used to seeing Huo Niansheng, couldn’t help but feel a somewhat rough imitation when looking at his facial features.
Huo Jingsheng wasn’t sure how Chen Wengang evaluated his own appearance. He adjusted his collar, leaned against the sofa back, and gestured toward the opposite seat.
“Please, have a seat.”
Chen Wengang sat across from him. Huo Jingsheng got straight to the point, “We know about the little secret between you and my big brother.”
Chen Wengang smiled, “What secret? I’m not aware of anything.”
Huo Jingsheng was not pleased that he wasn’t intimidated. He continued, “In the past, my big brother was carefree, hanging out with anyone, and the family didn’t restrain him. But now the situation is different. At his age, he should be thinking about marrying and having children. So, the elders sent me to talk to you. It’s a kind of agreement. In the future, if you want to be with him, it’s not impossible, but you can’t break the rules.”
Chen Wengang asked, “What rules are there in the Huo family?”
Huo Jingsheng replied, “I’m here on behalf of the elders to warn you not to mess around or act mischievous. Your relationship must be kept secret, not openly disclosed. If he goes on blind dates, gets engaged, or marries someone, you can’t interfere. And when he has a wife and children, you can’t be jealous. It’s best if you get along well with the lady of the house. If she accepts your presence, that’s good for everyone. If she can’t tolerate it, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it, but I advise you not to be too insensitive.”
Chen Wengang found it amusing, “Are you insulting me on your own, or did your second uncle teach you this?”
Huo Jingsheng, caught off guard, said, “How do you know—”
“It doesn’t matter who it is,” Chen Wengang said. “Unfortunately, my last name is Chen. Just go and talk to your brother about the rules of the Huo family.”
As he stood up to leave, Huo Jingsheng suddenly shouted, “Stop!”
His tone revealed a hint of fear. Today’s performance was indeed arranged by his second uncle. He wanted to surround Huo Niansheng with his own people, primarily through marriage. However, the old man only asked him to handle Chen Wengang’s side, and the specific approach was Huo Jingsheng’s own idea.
He had no real power or means to deal with this situation. Bound by Huo Niansheng, he didn’t dare to kidnap or resort to violence.
What else could he do? He could only try to scare him.
Unfortunately, Huo Jingsheng wasn’t good at this either. Moreover, he looked down on Chen Wengang, treating him like a poor student from a lesser background.
Chen Wengang had been through more negotiation tables than him. The person across from him had already fought and returned home without armor.
After all the preparations, Huo Jingsheng couldn’t retreat at this point. He took a tablet from the coffee table and handed it to Chen Wengang: “Take a look for yourself.”
Chen Wengang took it, and the tablet displayed a real-time monitoring interface.
From this angle, it was clear that it was a privately installed camera. The winery’s surveillance couldn’t be placed where it could pick up conversations.
Looking at him through the air, Huo Jingsheng showed a hint of arrogant disdain on his face, “I know, Huo Niansheng must be sweet-talking and making promises in front of you. If you want to know his true nature behind your back, today’s your chance to find out.”
Chen Wengang glanced at him and asked, “Do you know his true nature better than I do?”
Huo Jingsheng shrugged, “He has stayed here more than once. You can find surprises in the records. I’ll leave it to you.”
With that, he walked briskly toward the door.
Upon pushing open the door of the private room, the driver was unexpectedly still standing guard at the entrance, wary that Chen Wengang might suddenly rush out.
The driver only let Huo Jingsheng out, gave a threatening look inside, and closed the door again.
After waiting for a moment, Chen Wengang went over and pushed it, and as expected, it was locked.
Huo Jingsheng had put in a lot of effort to keep him in this room to watch the surveillance. Chen Wengang opened the software to view the stored footage.
Afraid that he might lack patience to scroll through the timeline, several segments of video for him to watch had already been cut separately.
Chen Wengang sat back on the sofa, enjoying the surprise Huo Jingsheng had prepared for him.
The hidden camera was discreetly installed in the activity area, probably a result of bribing the service staff here.
In reality, there was nothing particularly special. It mainly showed scenes of Huo Niansheng appearing here with different people, wine tasting, chatting, acting on occasion, speaking appropriately when necessary, and even a scene of him playing indoor golf with an obviously arranged girl.
The cyan light reflected on Chen Wengang’s face, and feeling bored, he decided to watch all these videos one by one.
The software issued a reminder, detecting that there was activity in the monitored area.
Switching back to real-time footage, Huo Niansheng and the seemingly unsuspecting Huo Jingsheng appeared in front of the camera.
The two talked for a while, played golf, and then returned to sit. Soon, more people, both men and women, joined them, including He Wanxin.
This could be considered a clash of enemies.
Huo Niansheng and the young master of the Hu family, He Jiajun, didn’t get along, and sparks flew whenever they met. They were well-known rivals in the city. At the last Zheng Charity Auction, Huo Niansheng intentionally overshadowed He Wanxin, He Jiajun’s sister, which was a well-remembered joke among the crowd.
He Wanxin ignored him, idly playing with her fluffy retro curls. Objectively speaking, she was a bold and beautiful woman.
Today, taking advantage of the crowd, Huo Jingsheng clearly had the intention of stirring up trouble. He brought up the matter publicly again, seemingly advising reconciliation but actually fueling the fire.
“As the saying goes, without a fight, there’s no acquaintance. Regarding that incident, Miss He, don’t dwell on it. Dage, show a more gentlemanly demeanor, and apologize. After all, it’s just a thing. In my opinion, it’s not worth truly damaging the relationship. Why not settle it today? What do you think?”
He Wanxin coldly replied, “Please don’t. Aren’t you indirectly criticizing your brother for lacking gentlemanly demeanor?”
Huo Niansheng laughed casually, “Since I’ve already gained the benefits, apologizing doesn’t matter. Miss He, what do you say?”
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, all she cared about was her reputation. He Wanxin smiled superficially and said, “Okay then. I also have some faults.”
Those who knew how to steer the situation intervened to smooth things over, glossing over the enmity. They had gathered at the winery to socialize, and naturally, the focus shifted to wine tasting and chatting.
With the increased alcohol intake, people became light-headed, and thoughts and topics gradually descended.
Huo Jingsheng, intentionally or unintentionally, brought up the incident of Huo Niansheng taking a vacation and even sending out a yacht to please people, a piece of gossip that had already made headlines. Naturally, many people at the gathering were aware of it. In places where men gathered, discussions immediately turned into a series of vulgar inquiries, asking whom he wanted to pursue, whether he had succeeded, and whether it was worth it in terms of satisfaction.
Chen Wengang leaned his head, observing this boring play from behind the scenes.
However, despite the crowd’s clamor, Huo Niansheng never mentioned Chen Wengang throughout the entire episode.
He Wanxin, having consumed quite a bit of red wine, had a flushed face and mocked, “When Young Master Huo makes a move, it’s naturally extraordinary. Just giving away several million worth of things casually makes me envious. If once is not enough, then twice, and if twice is not enough, then maybe three times.”
She tapped the rim of her glass with her long nails, “But aren’t you afraid that in the end, you won’t get what you want, and all the money will be in vain?”
Huo Niansheng threw a sidelong glance and said, “I don’t have much to be afraid of. I talk about romance, not sunk costs. If we talk about pursuing someone at all costs, Miss He should have more experience than me.”
He Wanxin smiled candidly, but her words were ambiguous, “Don’t rush. What’s the conflict between us? When I mentioned these things earlier, it was for your sake, afraid that you might lose both the lady and the soldiers.”
She raised her glass and said, “To be honest, I thank you for getting rid of that annoying person. I haven’t had a chance to thank you properly.”
Huo Niansheng clinked glasses with her, speaking playfully, “There’s no need for that. Matters of love and pleasure, why turn them into a gang rivalry? I pursue beauty; don’t mind my straightforwardness, but you’re not exactly the virtuous and gentle type. If, in the future, you really get together with Zheng Yucheng, why not advise him to have an open marriage? Invite me then; maybe we can have some fun together. Even if it’s a polyamorous relationship, it’s worth a try, don’t you think?”
The group burst into laughter, accusing him of being vulgar, but no one paid attention to who the young man of the Chen family who received the yacht was.
Unconsciously, the clock on the wall was approaching midnight.
Chen Wengang felt tired of watching, and even those people drinking in front of the camera had gradually dispersed.
Huo Jingsheng never returned to grant him freedom of movement. Chen Wengang had a sudden intuition and glanced at the door of the private room.
He went over and twisted the doorknob again. Somehow, the lock had been opened.
As if telling him that the show was over and now he could go wherever he wanted.
Chen Wengang turned off the lights, left the room, and walked down the long corridor like a wandering ghost.
He found the still-operating escalator and descended floor by floor. Along the way, he didn’t encounter He Wanxin or any other guests.
At this time, it seemed that the winery itself had fallen asleep. Chen Wengang, on his first visit to this place, roamed around for a long time but couldn’t find an exit. Most of the staff had also finished work. He wandered through several floors, but found no counters where someone was still on duty.
In the end, Chen Wengang unexpectedly found the location where the camera surveillance had just taken place.
The main light in this area had also been turned off, and with everyone gone, the space felt empty.
Compared to the chaotic and rowdy atmosphere just moments ago, it now seemed serene.
He approached and, behind a green fern, located the concealed pinhole. Using his foot, he kicked the flowerpot, and the leaves blocked its line of sight.
Chen Wengang sat in the spot where Huo Niansheng had sat, and after a while, he fumbled for his phone in the darkness.
Huo Niansheng, with one eye on the information sent by Yu Shanding’s consulting doctor about anxiety disorders and panic disorders, suddenly received a location from Chen Wengang, showing that he was only 200 meters away. He paused for a moment, connecting the dots with Huo Jingsheng’s abnormal behavior. Quickly understanding something, he squinted his eyes and dialed Chen Wengang’s number, saying, “Wengang.”
Chen Wengang asked, “Could you come and pick me up?”
Huo Niansheng replied, “Wait there.”
After a moment, he added, “Don’t be afraid.”
Chen Wengang wasn’t afraid. Huo Jingsheng didn’t even remember to hang his phone call, or perhaps he didn’t dare hang it. Chen Wengang had kept it with him the whole time. If he were truly afraid, he would have called the police already. There were many things he feared, but darkness wasn’t one of them. The darkness was his sanctuary, providing a sense of security.
In less than five minutes, Huo Niansheng descended the stairs again.
When he arrived, Chen Wengang was quietly sitting there, making no movement or sound, resembling a pondering figure, silently contemplating something.
The surroundings were dim, with only a converging beam of light from above illuminating Chen Wengang. His gentle face now appeared like the smooth texture of porcelain or jade, flawless but lacking the warmth of flesh and blood.
Huo Niansheng’s hurried steps slowed down as he walked toward the beam of light.
For some reason, he seemed to remember frequently seeing this silhouette hiding in the darkness.
White and black swallowed all colors, and his inner world always tightly sealed its doors.
Occasionally, a crack would quietly appear, and Huo Niansheng could peek inside, only to see a black and white cage.
Huo Niansheng looked in the direction of the hidden camera, then spoke first, “I’ve noticed that Huo Jingsheng has been sneakily filming me lately, wondering what he’s up to.”
He sat down next to Chen Wengang, teasingly resting his hand on his shoulder, “You’re such a smart person; how did you fall for it?”
Chen Wengang propped his chin, looking at him, “He wants me to see your hidden side. Opportunities like this don’t come often.”
Huo Niansheng smiled and wrapped his other hand around the one placed on his knee, “Is it good-looking?”
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