Bailie gritted his teeth and said, “Young Master Ji really knows how to paint a grand picture. No one can say for sure what the future holds, and I, Bailie, don’t want to speak unpleasant truths, but until Young Master Ji inherits QingSheng, these words are just empty talk to me.”
“However, life relies on bold gambles, and I believe Fu Chi would not introduce a good-for-nothing young master who only knows how to eat and wait for death to do business with me. So, lower it by ten percent.”
Ji Chen said nonchalantly, “Fifty percent.”
Bailie took a deep breath, “Lower it by fifteen percent.”
“Fifty percent,” Ji Chen remained unmoved.
“Lower it by twenty percent! It is impossible to go any lower!”
“Fifty percent.”
Bailie completely broke down. He stubbed out his cigarette, stood up angrily, and shouted, “Do you even know how to negotiate business? There is no one who stubbornly refuses to lower the price like this. I have been lowering it step by step over here, should you not show a little sincerity too?”
“Let me tell you, even if your background is larger than the sky, you cannot bully people like this. At most, a thirty percent reduction. Take it or leave it. If it were not for clashing with the Lin family and urgently needing to appease morale, I would not take this kind of disrespect from you. I…”
“Thirty percent, deal.”
The ignited gunpowder turned into a dud. Bailie’s expression turned weird as he looked at Fu Chi and asked, “Did I just say thirty percent?”
Fu Chi curled his lips, his voice raspy, “You did.”
“Damn it, why did I just say thirty percent!” Bailie covered his face, collapsed to the side, and fell into self-isolation.
Ji Chen calmly stated, “Once the price is set, you can communicate the remaining details with the Liuguang vice president over the phone. As a token of sincerity for our first business venture, the full payment will be credited the day the raw stones are dispatched.”
“Just tell the Liuguang vice president that it is my decision. I imagine you are in great need of this right now.”
Bailie instantly swept away his previous dejection, a sharp gleam hidden deep within his eyes.
“You really are an interesting person. No wonder Fu Chi let me do business with you. Tell me… was that mark on Fu Chi’s neck from you choking him?”
As soon as these words dropped, the living room fell into absolute silence.
Zhou Qing recalled the scene she had witnessed on the airplane and felt inexplicably guilty, as if she had discovered some secret that should not have been uncovered.
Beishang acted as if he had not heard a thing, using an alcohol wipe to clean his fingers one by one. Cheng Cong’s peach-blossom eyes were filled with intrigue as he stared relentlessly back and forth between the two principals, guessing at the passionate events that had transpired the night before.
Ji Chen did not answer. He pulled out a card and pushed it across the table toward Bailie.
“What we just did was business, but now we are making friends. There is ten million on this card. My friends and I would like to soak in the famous Golden Horn hot springs, so I will have to trouble Mr. Bailie to arrange for someone to host us.”
“Additionally… my younger sister here gets airsick, so we plan to take the high-speed rail back. There is no need to take a private jet; eyesores are annoying to look at. I will pack up my own people myself, but as for things that are a bit further away… how should those be handled?”
Bailie did not take the card right away. He lit another cigarette and said, “Young Master Ji, my surname is Bai, and I do not dabble in other colors.”
Ji Chen chuckled lightly, “Mr. Bailie naturally has the surname Bai, but when traveling outside, one relies on friends for help. Otherwise, if an accident happens and someone suffers broken bones, it might look a bit unsightly.”
Bailie paused for a moment before bursting into laughter, “Young Master Ji is just my type. I have made this friendship with you. I will make sure your time at the Golden Horn hot springs is thoroughly enjoyable.”
“You guys can play around during the day first, and someone will take you to the best hot spring resort shortly. Tonight, we will drink until we drop. I will head back now to make the arrangements.”
Bailie left, taking the card with him.
Zhou Qing widened her eyes and looked at Ji Chen as if she were seeing him for the first time, her eyes filled with utter disbelief—a gaze that was impossible to ignore.
Ji Chen said with a half-smile, “Keep staring and your eyeballs are going to pop out. Ten million to treat you to a hot spring, you should feel grateful. When you get back to Beijing, talk less about me in front of your older brother, lest disaster come from your own mouth.”
Zhou Qing held back her words for a long time, and finally felt the urge to cry again. She stammered, “You are not a good person.”
“What yardstick do you use to define a good person? Those words of yours are worth less than nothing. Bailie said his surname is Bai, but if that card had a hundred million or a billion on it, do you suppose he would still care about his surname being Bai?”
“Crybaby, stop offering opinions. Go soak in the hot spring for a bit later; you have been crying all the way here, so you need to replenish your fluids. When you have time, go suck up a bit more to the future hospital director; hospitals have workplace unspoken rules too.”
Zhou Qing’s face turned beet red. She stood up and lunged forward, “Ji Chen!”
Ji Chen stood up and dodged out of the way, a playful smirk on his face as he said, “Did your mind wander into the gutter? The unspoken rules I am talking about are about workplace performance ratings, where did your thoughts go? I really could not tell, the crybaby knows quite a lot, huh?”
Chasing each other around the sofa for a few laps, seeing that she could not catch Ji Chen, Zhou Qing wiped away a tear and pulled a palm-length metal rod from the back waistband of her jeans.
With a few clack clack sounds triggered by a press, the rod extended into the length of a Ruyi Jingu Bang.
Ji Chen dropped his playful teasing in a second and stood obediently behind Fu Chi, “I am not messing with you anymore. Save some stamina to go soak in the hot spring later. Did you not get in touch with your older brother? Are you not in a hurry to go back?”
Zhou Qing still had a burst of unvented frustration, but felt it might be inappropriate to throw punches now.
With a sour face, she sat down and said, “I got in touch. My brother is worried about me going back alone, so he told me to go with you. Do less joking around with me next time, I will take it seriously.”
“Ahem… what kind of thing is that you are holding?” Ji Chen asked casually.
“Oh, this? A weapon I made myself. My suitcase is full of them. I suspected the Ji family made my brother disappear, and since I am just a girl, of course I had to take precautions when getting close to you. But I do not need it now, so I only brought one for self-defense.”
Ji Chen wore a dreamy look, “You… made this yourself?”
“Yeah, my brother loved making all sorts of things since he was a kid, and I got influenced by him and like tinkering too. Pretty awesome, right? My brother is way more awesome than me; the things he makes now are used in military weapons.”
Amidst Zhou Qing’s triumphant and smug smile, Ji Chen decided he should interact less with Zhou Qing in the future, as it was too easy to invite bloodshed.
“Ahem…” Fu Chi rubbed his neck, coughing uncomfortably a few times.
Beishang walked closer, took a look, and commented, “That is a pretty heavy grip. You should just soak in the hot spring to disperse the bruising—you brought this on yourself.”
Cheng Cong glanced at Ji Chen, his peach-blossom eyes narrowing as he said, “He is willing, why do you care so much, busybody.”
Beishang frowned and gave Fu Chi a look, but ultimately retreated to the side. Ji Chen was clearly not someone to be trifled with, and as a friend, he hoped Fu Chi would not dig his own grave.
Fu Chi reached back, grabbed Ji Chen’s wrist, pulled him close to sit beside him, and asked in a gentle voice, “Still angry?”
Ji Chen did not speak, nor did he show any displeasure, and he did not even pull his hand away from Fu Chi’s grip.
Fu Chi’s eyes darkened, “Are you planning to make a move against me once we are back in Beijing?”
Ji Chen still said nothing, but this was undoubtedly an admission. The relaxed atmosphere instantly vanished, the living room grew heavy and stifled, and even Cheng Cong found it hard to keep smiling.
After a moment of silence, Fu Chi said, “If you want to make a move, go ahead. As long as you are not angry anymore, that is fine. I was in the wrong, but I will never regret this wrong.”
Ji Chen laughed out of sheer anger, “Splendid. If you had admitted fault, I might have hesitated for three seconds before making a move. This way is just right—at least you have the guts to own your actions. If you have got the nerve to do it, you have got to swallow the consequences. The car is here, let us go soak in the hot spring and enjoy ourselves properly before returning to Beijing.”
True to its reputation as the best hot spring resort in the Golden Horn, it featured individual private hot spring pools separated by delicate wooden fences. If you spoke loudly enough, your voice could carry across them, and the surrounding decor was exquisite, instantly putting one in a good mood.
Beishang was a germaphobe and naturally found soaking alone very comforting, but Cheng Cong insisted that being by himself was boring and forcefully squeezed into Beishang’s pool, turning the place upside down.
As for Zhou Qing, being a girl, she naturally wanted to soak by herself, happily hugging her hot spring robe as she went inside.
The moment Ji Chen changed into his clothes and stepped into the water, the door was opened, and a shirtless Fu Chi brazenly walked right in and climbed into the water as well.