Volume 4: Hidden Struggles, Chapter 125: Encountering the Water People

Zhou Kunwei was clearly shaken by Chu Tiancheng’s imposing presence, his body trembling slightly before he forced himself to respond, “Mr. Chu, I’m here to discuss serious matters with you…”
Before he could finish, Chu Tiancheng regained his composure and said calmly, “Good, let’s talk about serious matters. Regarding the funds that our Chu Group owes Fudu City—oh, I mean, your Tianxing Group now. Actually, you need not worry. Our Chu Group will not default on this debt. We still have some sense of business ethics and credibility. Moreover, fundamentally speaking, our Chu family is also eager to repay you as soon as possible. But…”
He then changed tone and continued, “It’s very difficult! You see, not only does our Chu Group need to allocate huge amounts of capital to deal with the trade confrontation with your Tianxing Group last night, but every family has its own difficulties! Our Chu Group is also facing financial strain recently. Take the Binjiang New City project for example—not only has your group invested over 20 billion yuan, but our Chu Group has also lost over 30 billion yuan in principal and interest. The government has provided some funds in installments, and we’ve repaid some to Fudu City as well, but much of the money is still stuck there and unusable!”
“Unusable? If it’s unusable, let’s meet in court! There’s a written contract—get ready to receive a letter from our Tianxing Group’s lawyers by tomorrow!” Zhou Kunwei threatened angrily.
Chu Tiancheng looked at him disdainfully, thinking that if Zhou Tianxing himself had come, he wouldn’t have said such foolish things. But considering his own status and age, that Zhou Tianxing was too shameless to come here and be humiliated.
With that in mind, Chu Tiancheng remained calm and said kindly, “No problem. Our Chu Group is ready at any time. But out of courtesy, I must remind you that this project is a major government initiative. It’s a project that helps millions of people and benefits the country and its people. The government still lacks some funds, which our Chu Group has advanced. Some of the funds that have been allocated have also been borrowed by the government for infrastructure projects or poverty alleviation efforts. Think about it—how dare we businessmen keep asking the government for money? Money taken from the people should be used for the people. Even if our Chu Group suffers losses, what’s there to worry about?”

He paused for a moment, looking at Zhou Kunwei, who had become disheartened. Chu Tiancheng continued, “But the funds remain yours. Since you’re short of money now, it’s only logical for you to take legal action. To be honest, we also want to use this lawsuit to transfer some of our claims against the government directly to you. That way, you can rightfully ‘settle accounts’ with the government. First, it avoids going through us at Chu Ye’s company—no need to avoid suspicion. Second, thank you so much. This really relieves a significant amount of pressure on our Chu family. Thank you…”
Zhou Kunwei was completely speechless, though he had expected this outcome. But hearing it in person was still unpleasant!
Zhou Kunwei, like a deflated balloon, was utterly drained of energy, his expression numb. Yet he still held on hope and said, “In business, there are no permanent enemies or friends—only permanent interests! This time, our Tianxing Group has adjusted our strategy and would like to know Mr. Chu’s thoughts on whether there’s a possibility of cooperation between our two companies. If such a possibility exists, please share any ideas you have. We’ll consider any conditions carefully! We’re coming with great sincerity. With Mr. Chu’s wisdom and courage, I believe you understand the reasoning…”
After listening, Chu Tiancheng pretended to be deep in thought. After a long while, as Chu Tianyu yawned repeatedly and Zhou Kunwei was on the verge of exploding with frustration, Chu Tiancheng finally said slowly, “Well, I can’t answer this question for now. After our Chu family has discussed it in detail, we’ll let you know…”
With that, he glanced toward the door, clearly signaling it was time to send them away.
After waiting so long for such an outcome, even if Zhou Kunwei was stupid, he knew he had been played by Chu Tiancheng. But at least things had taken a turn, and he could report back to his father. Suppressing his anger and curses, he stood up with a smile, bowed respectfully, and said, “Then we’ll await your good news!”
The moment Zhou Kunwei left the room, Chu Tiancheng and Chu Tianyu burst into hearty laughter. Chu Tiancheng said triumphantly, “Third brother, this is all yourmerit! Haha, seeing his face—how can one word describe it? ‘Delighted’! Haha…”
Chu Tianyu also laughed and asked, “What do you plan to do about them, eldest brother?”
Chu Tiancheng looked at the blue sky and white clouds outside the window and said slowly, “It’s not urgent. I can’t make the decision either. I need to report to my grandfather and the board of directors first before deciding on the next steps. But it’s better to owe money to oneself than to others…”

Chu Tianyu felt a stir in his heart and said, “Brother, do you mean to acquire Tianxing Group…?”
“Exactly!”
…
After bidding farewell to his brother, Chu Tianyu stepped out of the Chu family building and saw a stretched Lincoln parked at the entrance. Xue Ning’er inside was waving at him.
Before Chu Tianyu could react, the car door opened, and Xue Ning’er jumped out, walking up to him in a few steps. “Brother Chu, I’m the younger sister of Senior Sister Feifei, her little sister too. Hehe, just call me Ning’er!”
Chu Tianyu was completely confused—sisters and younger sisters? It all made no sense to him. Before he could ask further, Xue Ning’er grabbed him and pulled him into the car without hesitation, chattering nonstop as they drove.
She basically said she had been waiting for him for a long time, finally managed to see him, wanted to talk to him alone at the party but couldn’t find him, then there was that incident, and after everything settled, she still couldn’t track him down. She also complained and ended by saying, “Brother Chu, you owe me so much. How are you going to make it up to me?”
Just a few seconds after getting into the car, Chu Tianyu found himself suddenly blamed for a bunch of things and even had to compensate her! Moreover, Xue Ning’er’s way of speaking reminded him of the term used for those who spam threads on online forums—“water users”!
“Ning, Ning’er, I’m sorry to interrupt, but can I say a few words?” Facing her endless stream of questions, Chu Tianyu finally managed to interject carefully.
“Go ahead, no one’s blocking your mouth. Hehe, Brother Chu is really humorous. No wonder the senior sisters always laugh when they talk about you…”
Chu Tianyu was sweating! What was going on here? He quickly changed the subject and said in one breath, “Let me make it simple. First, why isn’t Feifei here? I can’t reach her, and she hasn’t contacted me either. What’s her situation now? Second, where are we going? I’m done. Please go ahead!”
After saying that, Chu Tianyu let out a sigh and made a “please go ahead” gesture at Xue Ning’er.
Seeing Chu Tianyu’s amusing manner and his “tall and impressive” image, which had long been ingrained from the senior sisters’ descriptions, Xue Ning’er covered her mouth and laughed again. “I’ll answer your second question first. We’re going to see Grandma. Once you meet her, you’ll naturally know the answer to the first question!”

Ugh, this is like saying nothing at all. It seems this little girl is even better at talking nonsense than she is at singing! With that thought, Chu Tianyu suddenly had a badpremonition—usually, girls who like to talk nonsense tend to be gossipy…
Sure enough!
“By the way, Brother Chu, how did you come up with the idea of disguising yourself as an old, unsophisticated mountain hiker?”
“Nonsense. Are there any mountain hikers who dress in suits and tie?” Chu Tianyu thought to himself.
“And are the Tiancai and Di Bao brothers really your uncles? How did you happen to meet them so coincidentally?”
“Do uncles really have to be real or fake? You already called it a coincidence, so of course it’s a coincidence. Why ask?” Chu Tianyu thought helplessly.
“Oh, and also, the senior sisters said the meat-filled bread and fresh meat soup you made are absolutely delicious. Did you attend some cooking class before? Where? How much was the tuition?”
“And how did you catch those little animals?” “Don’t you think they’re cute?” “Maybe they have parents and siblings. What will happen to their loved ones if you eat them?” “What if it’s a mother who just gave birth? What about her baby?”
“…” Chu Tianyu finally rolled his eyes!
Fortunately, it wasn’t until he met the two aunts that Chu Tianyu was freed from Xue Ning’er’s endless barrage of questions.
It was indeed Aunt Yun Dong. Aunt Dong also thanked Chu Tianyu for the spiritual medicine he had asked Xue Feifei to bring back last time. Then the conversation got to the point.
It turned out that after returning, Xue Feifei recounted the whole story to her master and the aunts, including what had happened with Chu Tianyu.
After hearing this, they were amazed by Xue Feifei’s experiences and became even more curious about Chu Tianyu, as described by Feifei. Especially when they detected the surge in Feifei’s martial skills, which far surpassed that of any of them, they believed Feifei’s words completely and marveled even more at the power of the Dragon Breath and the ingenuity of nature.
This made Feifei’s master very happy, and he took out the legendary secret treasure from the Tianyin Sect, the “Heavenly Melody Scripture,” which, according to legend, could only be mastered by the sect’s founder. He wanted Xue Feifei to seize the opportunity to enhance the martial arts of the Tianyin Sect, which is why he asked her to put aside everything and enter seclusion for cultivation…
To prevent Feifei from getting distracted, they took the chance when Xue Ning’er went out for training to send a message to Chu Tianyu. Xue Ning’er was an orphan who grew up with Xue Feifei, so she shared the same surname. She was both Feifei’s junior sister and her cousin!

After understanding the situation, Chu Tianyu felt relieved. Then, as if frightened by something, he hurriedly took his leave, ruthlessly putting out the enthusiastic welcome flames prepared for someone else, and slipped away on his own.