When Wen Jiazhu heard Gu Yaoyang’s refusal, his hand, which was fumbling with the chessboard, froze. His gaze shifted from Gu Yaoyang’s face to Xia Qingtian’s, and after a deep look, he said, “Alright, go ahead. You’re busy.”
Thereafter, Gu Yaoyang took Xia Qingtian away from the Wen family and directly into the flashy red sports car waiting at the entrance.
Upon seeing the sports car, Xia Qingtian surmised that Bai Yuqi had likely been released by the Bai family.
Indeed, as the rear door opened, Bai Yuqi, with dyed golden hair, turned from the driver’s seat and greeted them with a smiling, “Ciao~” in Italian.
“Ciao,” Xia Qingtian said after settling in, “Young Master Bai, has your freedom been regained?”
“Of course,” Bai Yuqi rolled his eyes and replied, “It’s a good thing that troublesome person had some conscience. They came to the Bai family to plead for me today, which is why Old Master Bai allowed me to leave, but I can’t leave that troublesome person’s sight.”
“Drive first,” Gu Yaoyang said, closing the car door and taking out his phone. “I’ve sent you the location. Let’s drive there first.”
“Got it, honestly, treating me like a chauffeur and a laborer…” Bai Yuqi muttered indignantly and aggrievedly as he drove the car out of the Wen family, “Growing up with you, I must have had eight lifetimes of bad luck… Tsk, tsk, tsk…”
Ignoring Bai Yuqi’s incessant grumbling, Xia Qingtian looked at Gu Yaoyang and asked, “Why did you come?”
“Qingyu called me at noon,” Gu Yaoyang replied, putting away his phone. “She was worried about you going to cause trouble at the Lei family by yourself.”
“It’s not causing trouble, I’m seeking justice,” Xia Qingtian corrected Gu Yaoyang’s wording.
“Did Young Master Lei the Third do it?” Gu Yaoyang asked in return.
“Well… not exactly…” Xia Qingtian pursed her lips and said, “When I called Young Master Lei the Third at that time, I was hesitant. But at that moment, I heard Xi Rui… In short, it was a misunderstanding.”
“As soon as Qingyu told me, I knew it was a misunderstanding,” Gu Yaoyang said. “Although Young Master Lei the Third is arrogant and stubborn, he’s not someone who would be cruel or disregard human life. The Lei family has strict management rules for their subordinates, and they wouldn’t do something like that. I also went to the Lei family before coming to the Wen family.”
“You saw Young Master Lei the Third?” Xia Qingtian asked Gu Yaoyang.
“No, he’s been confined by the Lei family head. I’ll probably only see him at the auction three days from now,” Gu Yaoyang said. “Hearing about the auction, I knew you not only outmaneuvered Young Master Lei the Third but also put pressure on Master Lei. Afterwards, I received a call from Erya…”
“Erya called you too?” Xia Qingtian blinked and asked, “What did she say?”
“She said you went to find external help, and you actually bypassed a helper as outstanding as her to find external aid.” Gu Yaoyang omitted Erya’s three hundred words of self-praise and five hundred words of complaints here, summarizing, “I guessed you’d be looking for Wen Jiu or Wen Yao. Both of them are currently out on missions, so your best option would be to cooperate with the Wen family head.”
Xia Qingtian didn’t respond but nodded in her heart. Gu Yaoyang truly understood her.
“Although your route is correct and your choice is the optimal one, you don’t quite understand the situation with the Wen family,” Gu Yaoyang said, looking at Xia Qingtian. “The Wen family will not get involved in the Lei family’s affairs; in fact, they’d actively avoid it.”
“Hmm?” Xia Qingtian was a bit confused by this. “Why?”
“Young Master Lei the Third’s mother passed away many years ago. At that time, Xi Rui could barely walk, and Young Master Lei the Third was also very young,” Gu Yaoyang’s brows furrowed slightly. “When his mother went back to her maiden home to visit relatives, Master Lei should have accompanied her. However, because of a smuggling case at the time, Master Lei was framed by his opponents and affected. He was temporarily unable to leave C City under the supervision of the Wen family, so the matriarch of the Lei family had to go back alone.”
“Did something happen when she went back?” Xia Qingtian asked. “An accident?”
“It wasn’t exactly an accidental accident,” Gu Yaoyang took a deep breath and said. “Young Master Lei the Third’s mother was surnamed Lu, the second daughter of the Lu family.”
“!” Xia Qingtian jolted, then asked in shock, “You mean… the massacre of the Lu family…”
“Yes, that night, the entire Lu family was annihilated,” Gu Yaoyang lowered his eyes slightly. “Including the matriarch of the Lei family who had gone back to visit relatives. Afterwards, Master Lei’s innocence was proven, confirming that his opponents had intentionally framed him, but…”
Gu Yaoyang didn’t finish his sentence, only shaking his head slightly. It was a tragedy that everyone lamented when it was brought up.
“So, Father God, you should have contacted us first before making arrangements,” Bai Yuqi said as he flicked the turn signal. “Even if you didn’t want to ask Gu’s trouble, you could have asked me~ My fee isn’t expensive, and since we’re all so familiar, I could even give you a discount~ Right!”
“That’s true…” Xia Qingtian also felt that she had been too hasty in her move.
“However, the Wen family won’t let people appear at the Lei family’s auction without a solid arrangement, so they will eventually find someone to cooperate with,” Gu Yaoyang gave Xia Qingtian an affirmative look. “Although you might not be their first choice, you should rank in the top five.”
“Their first choice is…” Xia Qingtian looked at Gu Yaoyang, then recalled the Wen family head’s reaction earlier, blinked, and understood, “You?”
“The Wen family head knows I’m mobius,” Gu Yaoyang gave Xia Qingtian a slight smile. “I’ve cooperated with the Wen family many times, and they trust my involvement.”
“I see,” Xia Qingtian clapped her hands, then as if realizing something, she asked, “But, couldn’t we have just discussed it then? Why did you leave in such a hurry?”
“Saving someone,” Gu Yaoyang replied.
“Saving someone?” Before Xia Qingtian could ask who he was saving, she heard the screech of brakes. Immediately after, a figure jumped down from the high wall opposite the road, screamed as they crossed the street, pursued by over a dozen hounds baring their teeth and barking ferociously.
“Get in the car.” As Bai Yuqi opened the car door, the person darted straight into the vehicle and slammed the door shut. With a step on the accelerator, the car shot forward, quickly leaving the pursuers and the pack of dogs far behind.
“Scared me to death!” The person wearing a green fish-head monster mask on the passenger seat gasped and complained, “Is the Tang family sick in the head! Releasing dogs to bite people! I’m terrified of dogs!”
“Erya?” Xia Qingtian recognized the voice and her mouth twitched.
“Mhm? Ah? What? You’ve mistaken me…” The person immediately reached for the mask on their face, then deliberately lowered their voice and said, “I’m not Erya, I’m… I’m from the Miao family, just… just call me Miao Tong!”
“…”