Chapter 147 — The Long-Awaited...

This was exactly what Guo Jianchao wanted—how could he find it tiring? His heart surged with excitement. Sure enough, Brother Yang was going to put him to important use! He said, nearly in tears of gratitude, "Not tiring at all. It's my honor to serve you, Brother Yang. Rest assured, I'll run the company well."

Yang Ce nodded and said, "It's a bit early for declarations of resolve. Work hard and produce some results—that's what matters."

"I understand," Guo Jianchao said again and again.

This time Jing Yu truly saw Yang Juehuan's identity for what it was: Yang Ce was the man behind the scenes for all these Songjiang magnates. Watching Guo Jianchao's delighted expression, she felt a touch of contempt. She had long heard that the boss of the Celestial Paradise was formidable, with powerful backing—but today she rather regretted that Luan Xiaoru had left too early. If she had seen this scene, gone back and embroidered it for others, Jing Yu would have been beside herself with pride.

Still, seeing how low-key Yang Ce was, and how even before Luan Xiaoru he had only said he knew the Celestial Paradise's boss—if Luan Xiaoru had been present, Yang Ce probably would never have let these men sit down and talk about such things.

At that thought, Jing Yu felt a little thrill again. Yang Ce hadn't hidden it from her—a privilege she guessed even his girlfriends hadn't enjoyed.

Hou Lin then spoke of the direction the real estate company should take. Yang Ce merely offered a few brief pointers; most of the problems they would have to solve themselves. After all, he didn't understand these things very well either—everything had to be practiced and figured out by them.

President Niu was still waiting upstairs. They had only come to brief Yan in advance, and then returned upstairs, Guo Jianchao naturally following. With Yang Ce personally selecting him, Guo Jianchao now formally became a member of Yang Ce's vast business empire.

"Eaten your fill? Let's go." Yang Ce glanced at Jing Yu and asked.

"Mm, I'm full." Jing Yu was in excellent spirits and nodded cheerfully. She knew very well that even without Yang Ce saying a word, the next time she came to dine at the Celestial Paradise no one would charge her—the boss of the Celestial Paradise, Guo Jianchao, had seen her, after all.

Seeing Jing Yu's smug look, Yang Ce couldn't resist deflating her: "Don't think that because I didn't deny it, it means I admitted it. I was just saving you some face."

Jing Yu of course knew what Yang Juehuan meant—she wasn't so vain as to think Yang Ce could fall for her in such a short time—but she played dumb: "Deny what? Admit what? What are you talking about?"

Seeing Jing Yu's innocent look, Yang Ce was exasperated. "Nothing. Don't go telling anyone what you saw today."

"Mm, I know." Jing Yu might enjoy a little vanity now and then, but since Yang Ce had asked her to keep quiet, she would not go around spreading the word.

"Let's go. You didn't finish your shopping, did you? Carry on." Yang Yu nodded and walked with Jing Yu toward the elevators.

The elevator doors slid open with a ding, but it was one heading up. Yang Ce was about to say something, yet Jing Yu did not look twice—she simply hopped inside. Yang Ce had no choice but to follow her in. The elevator would have to come back down eventually, and waiting inside was no different from waiting outside.

"Wait for the next one. This car's full." Jing Yu had barely stepped in when an annoyed voice reached her ears, and the next thing she knew, someone in the elevator had shoved her so hard she staggered and crashed straight into Yang Juehuan behind her.

Yang Ce frowned, thinking, What sort of person is this, so rude? Full is full, after all. Still, he did not make much of it. In a hotel there were always plenty of drunks making spectacles of themselves; he could hardly take issue with every one of them. [[Note: the source sentence trails into an incomplete clause; the translation completes the sense.]

But Jing Yu's stubborn streak flared up at once. Nearly shoved off her feet, she was in no mood to let it go. She pried apart the closing elevator doors and shouted at the people inside, "Who was it? Which bastard dared push me? Isn't there room in here? How can you say there's no room?"

"Let it go, Xiaolu. Probably just a drunk." Yang Ce shook his head. No wonder Jing Yu was angry—anyone would be. To be shoved like that for no reason at all.

Jing Yu, however, had no intention of letting it drop. She gave a cold snort. "At the very least he should apologize. What kind of manners is that?"

Yang Ce laughed inwardly. Your own manners were hardly any better than theirs back in the day—but now that you're a white-collar worker, Jing Yu, you've shed a good many of your old bad habits.

"Little girl, what are you squawking about? Squawk again and I'll do you in." The man in the elevator glared and threatened, "Let go of the door and shut it."

"Brother Yang, help!"

Yang Ce frowned and was about to say something when a startled cry came from inside the elevator.

To be continued.

992. So It Was Him

Yang Ce froze for an instant at the cry for help. Brother Yang—was that meant for him? Acting on instinct, he seized the closing elevator doors and peered inside, and there he saw a familiar figure cornered by several burly men.

Shen Hua? Yang Ce's brows knitted at once. Wasn't she Yang Xiaobo's girlfriend? What was she doing here?

"Shen Hua!" Yang Ce called out her name and barged straight into the elevator. The thugs inside were startled to see that Yang Ce knew the girl. The one who had been blocking the doorway so arrogantly swung his fist at Yang Ce, aiming straight for his chest.

"Mind your own business—this is none of your concern!" the thug bellowed as he swung, trying to frighten Yang Ce off.

Yang Ce had darted into the elevator too quickly. He sidestepped the punch with ease and reached Shen Hua's side. "What's going on?"

Shen Hua was being guarded by a buck-toothed thug, who, seeing Yang Ce burst in so suddenly, assumed it was mere chance and thought nothing of it. Before Shen Hua could speak, he barked at Yang Ce, "Kid, learn to stay out of things that don't concern you. This is beyond you. Offend the wrong people and you'll be sorry."

Yang Ce was taken aback. He had a vague sense that these men had not grabbed Shen Hua for their own sake—from their words, it sounded as though they were acting on someone else's behalf.

Yang Ce very much wanted to use his ability to probe their thoughts, but their minds were not tense at present, so he had no way to bring the power to bear. Applying mental pressure to these men was not something that could succeed in a moment or two, and the elevator was in a public place. True, the Celestial Paradise was his—Yang Juehuan's—but he feared that a crowd of onlookers would only complicate matters, and if someone called the police, things would get troublesome indeed.

Yang Xiaobo was his younger brother, and Shen Hua was his girlfriend. Yang Duoran could not possibly stand idly by. Someone meant Shen Hua harm, and what Yang Ce had to do was not merely rescue her—he needed even more to find out just who wanted her taken.

"Brothers, three of you—this person is a friend of mine. Do me a favor and let her go," Yang Ce said after a moment's thought.

"A favor? Who the hell are you? What's your favor worth?" The buck-toothed thug sneered. "If you've got any sense, get out of the way before we have to move you."

Seeing Yang Ce act so spinelessly, the three thugs stopped taking him seriously. They had assumed he was a tough one, only to find a soft egg—they had not even laid a hand on him, and already his tone had gone meek.

"Then, brothers, could you tell me—just what great personage has my friend here offended?" Yang Ce asked, feigning fear.