Free Web NovelChapter 178: Chapter 176: One Wit in the Red
Lin Ruoxi read quickly, her beautiful eyes scanning the pages as the light in them gradually faded.
The young woman had thought she had relatives. Though she didn’t know why Xue Rui had driven them away, she had actually been quite happy, as if there was a corner of the world where someone still remembered her.
But these relatives had come for money, not to reunite with their kin.
Flipping to the last page, she saw they had even guaranteed they would never come looking for her, and had sealed the promise with red thumbprints.
At this thought, the corners of the young woman’s mouth turned down slightly.
Xue Rui watched the expression change on Lin Ruoxi’s face, then crumpled the written guarantee and tossed it into the trash.
"Don’t think about this stuff," Xue Rui said, patting Lin Ruoxi’s head.
Even if Lin Ruoxi saw these relatives’ true intentions now, as long as they shamelessly came back to play the victim and fish for sympathy, she would still end up being deceived.
It’s said that people learn from a single lesson, but it was hard for Lin Ruoxi to grow through hardship. She would only be worn down by life until she was a shadow of her former self, which was what her grandmother had worried about most.
This girl... she held beautiful expectations for everything in the world and would never harbor ill intentions toward anyone. Even if she herself was riddled with a thousand wounds, she would still be willing to believe the other person one last time.
So, he had used his unique position in the young woman’s heart to set many rules for Lin Ruoxi, such as reporting any issues to him first or listening to Yu Minlan’s opinion.
Whenever it was something involving him, Lin Ruoxi would wait for him to resolve it.
Xue Rui smiled helplessly. Lin Ruoxi couldn’t live without protection, and he had no intention of letting this foolish girl out on her own.
’Is this girl too foolish, or is the world just too filthy?’
"Mm, I’ll listen to you," Lin Ruoxi said, her mood instantly brightening as she felt the touch of Xue Rui’s large palm on her head.
The people from Hua Village watched with doting smiles, thinking to themselves that the two of them were a perfect match.
Between the two of them, they had five hundred schemes, but Xue Rui alone had five hundred and one, while Lin Ruoxi was in the negative by one.
Not long after they entered, the dishes Xue Rui had ordered in advance began to arrive. They were basically all hearty main courses, with none of the frilly side dishes.
He could tell these young men were the manual labor type from the village, so it was best to skip the fancy business-style cuisine.
"You’ve spent too much, Boss Xue." A young man’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He had just spotted a giant lobster.
"It’s nothing. Thank you all for your hard work today," Xue Rui said with a smile.
"We’re all from the same village. It’s what we should do," someone said.
"Thank you," Lin Ruoxi said, her eyes crinkling with a smile.
Xue Rui thought to himself, ’You silly girl. When you were poor and destitute, why didn’t they step up? They were all afraid of getting into trouble.’
’Now that you’ve made it big, helping you doesn’t risk getting them involved. Instead, they might even get some benefits, so the goodwill around you has naturally increased.’
On the table sat a bottle of Wuliangye and a pot of brewed tea. Xue Rui nudged Lin Ruoxi with his elbow, signaling for her to pour drinks for the villagers.
They had helped Lin Ruoxi today, so it was only appropriate for her to be the one to pour the liquor. He also had her hand out the cigarettes he’d bought.
However, Lin Ruoxi didn’t understand Xue Rui’s meaning. She picked up the teapot, and the young men’s expressions showed a hint of disappointment.
"That’s fine too. You can’t drink and drive. I’ll have them pack up a couple of bottles for you to take back later. Let’s eat first," Xue Rui said with a smile.
The young men exchanged glances and smiled. Taking it back to drink was a good idea. The decor here was too luxurious, making them feel ill at ease. They’d rather drink back in the village.
"Xixi has grown up so much," Village Chief Hua remarked with emotion.
Lin Ruoxi had certainly benefited from her association with Xue Rui. At such a young age, she no longer had to worry about her material needs.
He spoke in a paternal tone, "You must listen to Boss Xue from now on."
Xue Rui chuckled in amusement. This village chief was interesting, popping up now to play the elder.
Lin Ruoxi said weakly, "Village Chief, I’m very obedient."
The table ate and chatted cheerfully. The hardworking young men from the village were simple and honest, mostly discussing which dishes tasted the best.
Xue Rui was chatting with Village Chief Hua when he suddenly saw a familiar face flash past the glass door of the private room.
His old man was staring at him. When their eyes met, Xue Jianfeng even shot him a glare.
Village Chief Hua also noticed the person outside and glanced over, only to be met with a smiling wave from Xue Jianfeng.
"Who is that?" Village Chief Hua asked curiously.
Xue Rui smiled apologetically. "Sorry, please excuse me. He’s looking for me."
After he stepped out, a cold voice greeted him. "It’s not a holiday. What are you doing here?"
Seeing Xue Rui mixing with a group of much older young men, Xue Jianfeng assumed it was nothing good. He pulled him to a corner, preparing to give him a good lecture.
"That’s the village party secretary from Hua Village. They’re not shady people," Xue Rui explained.
Xue Jianfeng scratched his head. How did his son get involved with people like these? He decided to go in later, perhaps bringing a dish as an excuse, to ask around. He was afraid Xue Rui was lying to him.
Just then, a red-faced man stumbled out of a private room to get some air. A cigarette dangled from his lips as he fumbled around his pockets.
Both Xue Jianfeng and Xue Rui saw this, and it was an agonizing sight to watch.
Xue Jianfeng walked over, lit the man’s cigarette, and smoothly pressed the lighter into his hand. "Section Chief Ma, if you need anything at all, just give me a shout."
"It’s nothing," Section Chief Ma said with a smile, patting Xue Jianfeng’s shoulder.
Suddenly, he caught sight of Xue Rui out of the corner of his eye. freёwebnovel.com
Xue Rui recognized the man and quickly turned his head away.
However, the man still called out, "Boss Xue? Come have a drink with us!"
"Section Chief Ma, I have something urgent today. Another day. Definitely another day," Xue Rui said with a smile.
"Alright, we’ll talk another time," Section Chief Ma replied with a very amiable attitude.
He knew Xue Rui had made his money from the cryptocurrency market. They had even chatted a little about the stock market before, and he found that this kid, Xue Rui, had his own unique insights.
Xue Rui nodded with a smile. This man was from the tax department. Xue Rui had met him at the tax office at the beginning of the year... fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm
That day, the people at the tax office couldn’t figure out how to tax cryptocurrency, as he was the first person they’d encountered who had struck it rich this way. The amount was also too large, so a superior had to make the decision...
Ultimately, they called Section Chief Ma over. The income was taxed as a transfer of property, and Section Chief Ma had even said he would set up a green lane for a major taxpayer like him in the future...
Section Chief Ma was about to head back to his room when Xue Jianfeng smilingly grabbed his arm. "Section Chief Ma, you’ve had a lot to drink today. Shall I drive you home later?"
Xue Jianfeng’s expression was strange. He thought Section Chief Ma had been calling *him*, but it turned out to be Xue Rui?
What could Section Chief Ma and his son possibly have to talk about? Skipping school to go to an internet cafe?
"Xiaorui, don’t be in a rush to leave. Come home with me later," Xue Jianfeng said. He was determined to find out today just what kind of trouble Xue Rui had gotten himself into.
"Okay." A muscle in Xue Rui’s eye twitched. His secret about making money was about to be exposed.
Section Chief Ma laughed. "You two look so much alike. Truly, a tiger father doesn’t raise a dog son... You’ve both contributed a lot to the city..."
"Ah, he’s just messing around," Xue Jianfeng said with a laugh.
He remembered over the New Year, Gu Qingshan had mentioned to him that his son was involved in some kind of online gaming business.
Xue Jianfeng figured that if his old friend Gu Qingshan approved of it, it couldn’t be anything shady, so he hadn’t interfered.
He had even been waiting for the day Xue Rui lost all his money and came to him with his head bowed, asking for a handout. How could he possibly be "contributing to the city"?
"How is that just messing around? Xue Rui alone paid over twenty million in taxes. He’s worth more than many companies," Section Chief Ma said with a serious expression.
Xue Rui’s brow furrowed at his words, while Xue Jianfeng just looked utterly bewildered.
The shock in Xue Jianfeng’s heart was beyond words. ’Over twenty million in taxes? That’s far more than me! Does that mean my son earned at least a hundred million last year?’
"You didn’t know?" Section Chief Ma asked, looking puzzled.
"I knew. Of course, I knew," Xue Jianfeng said with a smile, then shot a glare at Xue Rui.
At this point, Xue Rui accepted reality. His dad was bound to find out eventually. He hadn’t intentionally hidden it, but he hadn’t actively disclosed it either. It was a miracle it had been kept under wraps for this long.
"Don’t run!" Xue Jianfeng mouthed threateningly to Xue Rui.
Xue Rui helplessly pointed at the private room, indicating that he still had to wait in there for a while.
Since Village Chief Hua and his group weren’t drinking, they finished their meal relatively quickly. After eating and drinking their fill of tea, they sat in the room, puffing clouds of smoke and chatting idly.
As for Lin Ruoxi, she would walk over and refill the cup of anyone whose tea was running low.
The men soon discovered that their tea was never-ending, and their trips to the restroom became much more frequent...
Xue Rui’s eye twitched as he watched. What on earth was this girl doing?
However, the group wasn’t annoyed by Lin Ruoxi’s actions; they just found the girl to be adorably silly.
Xue Rui pulled Lin Ruoxi aside and whispered, "You can’t fill a teacup too full. It can be taken as a hint that you want the guest to leave. Just fill it about seventy percent."
Lin Ruoxi nodded blankly. She committed this detail to memory.
"Boss Xue, it’s getting dark. We should be heading back," Village Chief Hua said.
Xue Rui signaled for Lin Ruoxi to hand over the cigarettes he’d bought.
Lin Ruoxi brought over a large bag containing cartons of Furongwang cigarettes. Following Xue Rui’s instructions, she gave one carton to each of the young men.
"Hey, we can’t accept this," a young man said, refusing.
Lin Ruoxi paused. ’It’s just like Xue Rui said, isn’t it? They want it but won’t take it, waiting for me to insist.’
Lin Ruoxi didn’t say much, simply pushing the carton of cigarettes into the young man’s arms.
...
Meanwhile, Xue Rui took out a large black bag and slipped the two cartons of soft-pack Zhonghua cigarettes he had prepared into Village Chief Hua’s hands.
"We’re all from the same village..."
After a round of polite refusals, Village Chief Hua accepted the cigarettes with satisfaction.
When they reached the first floor, Xue Rui went to the storeroom and grabbed a few bottles of liquor. He couldn’t pretend to forget what he had promised.
"Boss Xue, we’ll head back to the village now," Village Chief Hua said to Xue Rui from the passenger seat.
Xue Rui waved. "Drive safe."
The men in the car were letting out satisfied burps, and the trunk was packed with many of the hearty leftovers.
"Boss Xue is so generous. I saw the menu in the corner of the room. This meal must have cost five or six thousand if ordered a la carte," someone murmured.
He could brag about this meal in the village for a long time.
"That girl Xixi has gotten smarter under Boss Xue, even knowing to give us cigarettes." A man who was about to open his carton of Furongwang suddenly glanced at the black bag in the village chief’s hands.
"Chief, let us see."
Village Chief Hua laughed and scolded, "What’s there to see?"
"I saw something red. It’s definitely not the same as ours," someone said.
"You brat, you’ve got sharp eyes." Village Chief Hua laughed, then tore open a carton of soft-pack Zhonghua and passed a pack to each person.
