"Old Wen Tou! Long time no see!" Manager Shi said with a hearty laugh as he shook hands with Vincent. "Sorry to trouble you again."
"Not at all! I'm so glad you could come," Old Wen Tou replied with a chuckle. "Your son has grown taller again, and look at those muscles, so beautiful. You teach him very well!"
"Haha, this kid can eat, sleep, and is strong, just like me." Manager Shi beamed at his friend's praise of his son.
Shi Xingwu, the subject of the compliment, also chuckled, a rare moment of shyness for the simple-minded boy.
"Let's have some tea first. I just got a new tea set, come and take a look," Old Wen Tou said as he led Manager Shi inside.
"Sure," Manager Shi said, not one to stand on ceremony. "It looks different around here than it used to. Did you build this pavilion recently?"
"Yes, and we redid that area too. Looks good, right?" Old Wen Tou chatted casually with Manager Shi as they walked further in.
"Mhm, really nice!"
The younger disciples followed behind. Xia Qingyu and Li Xiaozhong walked at the back, chatting softly. "Old Wen Tou... isn't Chinese... I thought..."
"His name is Vincent, my dad calls him Old Wen Tou," Shi Xingwu explained quietly, pointing to Vincent. "According to my dad, they became sworn brothers after a fight, known each other for decades."
Xia Qingyu and Li Xiaozhong followed Shi Xingwu's gaze.
Vincent had short silver hair, and his blue eyes always looked at people with a gentle warmth. The light gray suit he wore made him look scholarly and refined. He was smiling heartily now, appearing to be in a very good mood.
"He's very rich," Shi Xingwu continued. "This place seems to be his own property, not his home though. I haven't been to his house, but my dad says it's incredibly luxurious and decadent."
"This place is quite decadent too..." Xia Qingyu couldn't help but comment as she looked around.
"Mhm," Li Xiaozhong nodded.
As the three of them were talking quietly, they saw someone approach Vincent and whisper something to him.
"Mhm, let them in," Vincent replied, then turned back to Manager Shi with a smile. "The son of an old friend of mine is coming. He's the same age as your son and is very interested in Chinese culture. He's half Chinese and is coming to join the fun today, wanting to see Chinese martial arts."
"Oh?" Manager Shi's interest was piqued. He chuckled, "The more people, the better. It'll be lively."
While they were talking, a young man and woman walked over, their arms linked intimately.
Shi Xingwu froze at the first glance. "Good heavens... is this changing them daily?"
Hearing Shi Xingwu's remark, Li Xiaozhong and Xia Qingyu followed his gaze and immediately saw Tarik, linked arm in arm with a girl as beautiful as a doll.
"This... Nie Qingkong, with his thick eyebrows and big eyes, has also been corrupted?" Shi Xingwu exclaimed, pounding his chest. "Damn it! I want to be corrupted too!"
Shi Xingwu's usual exaggerated behavior immediately caught Tarik's attention.
When Tarik saw Shi Xingwu, he paused. Following Shi Xingwu's gaze to Xia Qingyu, Tarik's expression became particularly interesting.
Xifu also saw Xia Qingyu and immediately recognized that this girl had appeared in the restaurant's surveillance video yesterday. Just as she was about to assert her claim, Tarik pushed her hand away and walked directly towards Vincent, greeting him with a smile.
Xifu's expression changed as she was pushed away, but she couldn't make a scene at that moment.
She knew very well that her adoptive father might turn a blind eye to small squabbles in private, and might even indulge her a bit because she was his daughter.
However, if she were to truly mess up Tarik's important matters, she would definitely not get away with it.
Therefore, Xifu immediately adjusted her expression and stayed obediently by Tarik's side. There were many ways to assert her claim.
She had other methods.
"Tarik, this is Manager Shi, whom I mentioned to you. His son is the same age as you. I believe you will become friends, hehe." Vincent introduced them with a smile.
"Eh? This young man looks familiar..." Manager Shi felt he had seen Tarik somewhere before.
"Dad, he was in our class before, then he transferred out," Shi Xingwu immediately reminded him. "I told you about him, Nie Qingkong."
"Oh! I remember," Manager Shi nodded. "He's the one who pushed Xiaozhong, the perennial runner-up, down to become the new second place? Right?"
"Dad..." Shi Xingwu blushed with embarrassment as his father repeated what he had said earlier.
He had said that to help Manager Shi identify his friend, as a memorable personal characteristic.
Why did his dad have to bring it up in front of his friends?
It was so embarrassing!
Li Xiaozhong and Tarik just exchanged a look and didn't pay it much mind.
Some ridiculous things, as long as they came from Shi Xingwu, became quite reasonable and free of malice.
This kid's brain was naturally a bit slow. If he ever sold himself, they wouldn't be surprised.
"Old Wen Tou, you don't need to worry about it. They are already friends, hahaha." Manager Shi and Vincent were having a pleasant conversation, and the group headed towards the tea room.
Once seated in the tea room, the two elders seemed to have endless topics to discuss, while the disciples looked around curiously.
Tarik wanted to sit next to Xia Qingyu, but Xifu beat him to it, sitting between them.
After sitting down, Xifu deliberately smiled at Xia Qingyu. Xia Qingyu blinked and returned a polite, faint smile.
She was relieved not to have to sit next to Nie Qingkong.
Seeing Li Xiaozhong take a seat on Xia Qingyu's other side, Nie Qingkong could only clench his fist by his side and slowly sit down.
Shi Xingwu casually sat down next to Nie Qingkong.
Having grown up with Tarik, Xifu was most familiar with his every move. Seeing him like this, her heart skipped a beat, and she immediately turned to look at Xia Qingyu.
Could it be that Tarik's affection wasn't for Miss Lei's family, but for this Chinese woman?
Xia Qingyu noticed Xifu's gaze and before she could react, she received a very unfriendly glare from Xifu.
"???" Xia Qingyu was a bit confused. One moment she was smiling at her, the next she was glaring at her. Was this girl alright?
While Xia Qingyu was stunned, Tarik had already sized her up from head to toe several times.
"Nie Qingkong, yesterday you said that encounter with Siri sister was a coincidence. What about this?" Shi Xingwu said, looking at Xifu. "Is this also a chance encounter? A coincidence? Have you been corrupted? Confess!"