In Shenzhen.

Du Zhaohui returned from the construction site, spitting repeatedly – his saliva was still black. Not just his mouth, but his nose was in a similar state. Such was the bitter life of a construction site dog… no, a construction site boss. Du Zhaohui wasn’t being dramatic; he’d visited construction sites before, but only for show. Never like now, where he had to monitor everything closely, dealing with dust clouds daily, his former pristine young master image completely gone.

Thankfully, no Hong Kong media had caught him in this pathetic state.

For his meeting with Master Qiu in Fujian Province, Du Zhaohui cleaned himself up.

“Being all mysterious and keeping people in suspense – if he were a woman, wouldn’t he be forcing me to fall in love with him?”

Ah Hua remained silent. When the young master was cursing, no response was needed – just quiet listening would do.

Master Qiu had arranged to meet Du Zhaohui in New City, Fujian. Like Shenzhen, New City was a national special economic zone. While Shenzhen bordered Hong Kong, New City faced Taiwan across the strait – Kinmen Island was visible from New City.

However, in 1986, Shenzhen was developing fastest and attracting the most attention. When people mentioned special economic zones, they almost exclusively meant Shenzhen.

With Shenzhen so close to Hong Kong and travel being convenient now, Du Zhaohui couldn’t understand why Master Qiu insisted on meeting in New City rather than Hong Kong or Shenzhen… it seemed unnecessarily showy.

The only person more showy than Du Zhaohui – damn it, was Xia Xiaolan. It was only for her vase that he was willing to make this trip to New City!

Du Zhaohui felt Xia Xiaolan owed him a huge favor and was quite self-satisfied about it.

Though less prominent than Shenzhen, New City established Gaoqi International Airport in 1983. Du Zhaohui didn’t have to endure seven or eight hours of bumpy travel – he could fly there.

He grumbled throughout the journey.

After spending a day in New City, someone finally approached Du Zhaohui on the afternoon of the 12th, saying Master Qiu invited the young master aboard for seafood.

“…!”

This move was like what he used to do when dating starlets in Hong Kong – romantic yacht dinners with wine. In such an atmosphere, few could escape Du Zhaohui’s charm— Bah! Why was he thinking about these things? How tasteless – was he such a vulgar person?

Dining on cruise ships had been absent from Du Zhaohui’s life for so long that he felt somewhat uncomfortable about it.

Arriving at the dock at the appointed time, Du Zhaohui had just stepped out of his car when a Jeep parked beside him.

Someone climbed out of the driver’s seat with swift movements.

Du Zhaohui thought the movement was quite cool and considered learning it. Such moves only worked when getting out of SUVs – wouldn’t work for sedans or sports cars, the chassis was too low, and would look stupid.

As his gaze moved upward, he saw Zhou Cheng’s handsome face, and Du Zhaohui was dumbstruck.

He wanted to slap himself – he was the real idiot, actually thinking Xia Xiaolan’s boyfriend’s movements were cool and wanting to copy them?!

Wait, what was Xia Xiaolan’s boyfriend doing here?!

Du Zhaohui was full of suspicion, while Zhou Cheng was equally surprised: the world was too small – running into Du Zhaohui here.

Zhou Cheng and Du Zhaohui had crossed paths during Kang Wei’s car accident.

Neither had a good impression of the other.

While Du Zhaohui was confused, Zhou Cheng quickly guessed why Du Zhaohui might be at the dock.

Earlier, Xiaolan had asked Du Zhaohui to help find Grandmother Yu’s vase, and Du Zhaohui had traced it to Master Qiu, the major antique dealer in Hong Kong… Seems Master Qiu had arranged to meet both of them at once.

“Mr. Zhou, what a coincidence.”

Du Zhaohui smiled broadly, his eyes full of probing.

Zhou Cheng nodded: “Indeed it is.”

Ah Hua was also bewildered – what was going on, running into the young master’s love rival here?

One was a Hong Kong elite, the other a mainland professional. If not for Xia Xiaolan, these two would likely never cross paths.

Du Zhaohui wanted to spit at the sight of Zhou Cheng, while Zhou Cheng’s feelings toward Du Zhaohui were equally complex.

Shi Kai had died fighting against the Du family’s smuggling operations. Although Liu Tianquan was managing the Du family’s smuggling business then, the original sin lay with the Du family – Liu Tianquan was just the Du family’s dog!

But blaming everything on Du Zhaohui would likely seem unfair to him.

Du Zhaohui wasn’t a good person, but he’d never had the chance to touch the family’s smuggling business. He’d even secretly undermined the Du family, trying to shed their shadowy enterprises – even so, part of the money Du Zhaohui spent still came from the family’s smuggling profits!

Zhou Cheng’s gaze fell on Du Zhaohui, making the back of his neck go cold.

For a moment, Du Zhaohui sensed Zhou Cheng’s hostility… stronger than hostility, slightly weaker than murderous intent!

This was Du Zhaohui’s sensitivity developed through numerous “accidents,” and Ah Hua quickly moved closer to Du Zhaohui.

Zhou Cheng was too dangerous – Ah Hua had to stay close to Du Zhaohui, fearing he wouldn’t be able to save the young master in time if Zhou Cheng tried to break his neck. Ah Hua genuinely liked the young master and had no intention of changing employers.

“Sorry to keep you both waiting. Master Qiu awaits you on the boat.”

Someone suddenly approached, and Zhou Cheng’s hostility toward Du Zhaohui instantly vanished.

Ah Hua remained vigilant.

Not just of Zhou Cheng, but of the entire dock environment. This person had appeared silently, with quick movements and light steps – another expert!

Zhou Cheng shared Ah Hua’s thoughts. This busy dock with people and boats coming and going must hide many of Master Qiu’s men.

If Master Qiu had ill intentions, could he escape successfully?

Zhou Cheng calculated the danger level.

He was confident he could escape, and Du Zhaohui’s bodyguard was also skilled, but Du Zhaohui himself was weak – likely impossible for him to escape.

“This way, gentlemen.”

The man made an inviting gesture. Du Zhaohui glanced at Zhou Cheng, seemingly mocking his cowardice, and strode forward.

Ah Hua smiled bitterly – the young master didn’t want to lose face in front of his love rival, but this made things difficult for him as a bodyguard.

Zhou Cheng calmly took in the entire dock situation, ensuring he had a clear understanding before following.

Du Zhaohui was heading toward the large ships, but their guide walked toward an area with fewer vessels:

“Young Master Du, it’s this way.”

Du Zhaohui laughed at the sight of the rusty, weather-beaten old boat before him:

“Master Qiu is hosting me for dinner here?”

This was a fishing boat, right?

Yes, a fishing boat!

Large deck for fishing and trawling operations, small cabin with just a wheelhouse.

Far from the yacht Du Zhaohui had imagined – they were going to serve him seafood on this broken fishing boat?

Seeing Zhou Cheng’s unchanged expression, Du Zhaohui didn’t want to show weakness. He snorted softly and boarded the boat.