The words spoken left everyone stunned!
So, Han Lang’s single statement meant the Cao family’s patriarch position was up for change?
Just how much face did he have?
Han Lang himself looked bewildered. He quickly explained,
“No, Brother Cao! That’s not what I meant. I just wanted you to have a good talk with Mr. Cao. I didn’t mean…”
Before Han Lang could finish, Old Master Cao interrupted him on the spot.
“Brother Han, you don’t need to say any more! Such a colossal decision-making error warrants removing him as patriarch, and that’s still lenient! Consider it my way of letting off some steam for you!”
Hearing this, Han Lang felt a mix of amusement and exasperation.
What was all this about?
No matter how upset he might have been, he wouldn’t seek revenge on Cao Jian like this.
Thinking this, he was about to speak again when Old Master Cao stopped him once more.
“Alright, Brother Han! This is an internal decision of my Cao family. Are you going to interfere? I know you feel wronged, but aren’t Rong’er and I here specifically to apologize to you? Look, these few bottles of wine are decades of my private collection! For the sake of my old bones, can you forgive me?”
Seeing that Old Master Cao was getting a little upset, Han Lang dared not speak further. He could only address the apology.
“Oh, Brother Cao! If you truly want to apologize, you’ll shorten my lifespan! How about this, I also have a few bottles of good wine at home. While they might not compare to your aged vintage, they taste quite good. Let’s have a couple of drinks together, and consider it a toast to bury the hatchet. As for your wine, please take it back. I can’t accept it!”
Unexpectedly, Old Master Cao refused on the spot.
“No! I’ve brought them here, there’s no reason to take them back! What would others think of my Cao family in the future? We’re drinking these!”
Han Lang was at his wit’s end. When Old Master Cao was being stubborn, he truly had no solution.
“But… you have five or six bottles in total. We can’t finish them between just the two of us in one sitting!”
“Then let’s invite some friends! Old Sun, I haven’t seen him in a while. And that old fellow Tang Haoran. He helped you out so much, shouldn’t you treat him to a drink?”
Han Lang was speechless.
Even if he were to invite Tang Haoran for a drink, he would do it himself. What was this business of presenting gifts borrowed from others?
But seeing Old Master Cao’s stubborn demeanor, he figured nothing he said would change his mind.
So, he replied with resignation.
“Alright, I’ll do as you say, Brother Cao! You sit here for a while. I’ll go invite them all over!”
Just as he was about to get up, Han Kang stopped him.
“Brother, let me go! Old Master Cao rarely visits. You stay here and chat with him more!”
Cao Xuerong quickly chimed in.
“Yes, you two chat. I’ll go pick up people with Han Kang. If we split up, I’ll pick up Old Sun, and he’ll invite Mr. Tang. That way, it will be faster!”
Old Master Cao was overjoyed at this suggestion.
“Good! That’s a great idea! Let’s get everyone here soon so we can drink heartily. Hurry up and go!”
As the two were about to leave, Luo Jiaying, who was left behind, stamped her feet anxiously.
“If you all have something to do, what should I do?”
Seeing this, Han Lang tentatively suggested.
“How about you help me prepare some more fruit?”
“No problem!”
Seeing Luo Jiaying happily agree, Han Kang and Cao Xuerong exchanged a smile and walked out the door.
About half an hour later,
Han Kang was the first to bring Tang Haoran over.
Upon entering, Tang Haoran laughed heartily.
“Haha… Brother Han! As soon as I heard you were inviting me for drinks, I came without even changing my clothes. Look, I’m still wearing my slippers! Haha…”
Looking at the house slippers on Tang Haoran’s left foot, Old Master Cao feigned a look of disdain and teased him.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk… Look at this old fellow, daring to be so slovenly when visiting someone’s home. He’s truly shameless!”
Hearing this, Tang Haoran, instead of getting angry, turned back and teased him with a laugh.
“Haha… Old Cao, stop making fun of me! How about I tell you some stories about the ‘Drunkard Cao’ from back in the day?”
As soon as he heard Tang Haoran was about to bring up old grievances, Old Master Cao immediately panicked and stopped him.
“Stop! Hehe… That’s all the dirt I have, you can’t spill it all!”
“Haha…”
As they were talking, the sound of a car engine was heard from outside.
Soon, Sun Liansheng, along with Liu Xiangdong and Zhang Jianguo, walked in.
Seeing them, Old Master Cao quickly stepped forward with a smile and joked.
“Old Liu? Old Zhang? Why are you here? I didn’t invite you!”
Liu Xiangdong and Zhang Jianguo both gave Old Master Cao a collective glare and said grumpily.
“This isn’t your Cao family’s territory, you can’t control everything, even people’s bowel movements!”
“Exactly! If it weren’t for the fact that your Cao family and the Tang family have contributed so much to Le City’s GDP, I wouldn’t bother coming uninvited!”
Old Master Cao was left speechless by their retort. Pointing at Liu Xiangdong, he turned to Tang Haoran and said.
“Old fellow, look at Old Liu. Not only did he shamelessly invite himself, but he also speaks like that. Shouldn’t we make him drink a few extra cups later?”
Tang Haoran quickly put on a serious face, even deliberately mimicking a Northeastern accent, and agreed.
“Absolutely! He has to penalize himself with three cups before sitting down!”
This made everyone burst into laughter…
“Haha…”
“Haha…”
After teasing each other for a while, they all took their seats.
However, as they looked at the solitary bottles of wine on the table, the atmosphere suddenly became awkward again.
Tang Haoran, being the most straightforward, saw this and couldn’t help but joke again.
“Tsk, tsk… Old Cao, you’re really stingy! You said you were inviting us for drinks, but there isn’t a single dish on the table! Couldn’t you have sent someone to buy a bag of peanuts from a roadside stall?”
Zhang Jianguo, who loved to stir up trouble, seized this opportunity to chime in and mock Old Master Cao.
“Exactly! I should have brought two cucumbers with me earlier. Now we don’t even have smashed cucumber salad!”
“Haha…”
Old Master Cao knew they were joking and didn’t mind, laughing along with them.
However, Han Lang, as the host, felt awkward.
He had indeed overlooked this matter.
Just as he was about to apologize to everyone, Cao Xuerong walked over and said.
“Don’t worry, everyone! On the way out earlier, I hired a chef from Le Hao Hotel on the fly. Since it’s a rare gathering, we should eat something fresh. I estimate they’ll be here soon. I’ll go call and hurry them up!”