Fang Xin’s answer directly silenced Chu Tianhong for several seconds.
Chu Tianhong never dreamed there would be such an answer.
Normally, with his status and position, there would be plenty of people wanting to be his godson, but Fang Xin cleverly refused in such a manner.
Fang Xin perfectly chose an obtuse angle between choosing A and choosing B.
Chu Xinyao understood Fang Xin extremely well.
From the moment Chu Tianhong finished speaking, Chu Xinyao had observed Fang Xin’s subtle expression.
Fang Xin had a micro-expression of wanting to laugh at what he was about to say, and Chu Xinyao knew he would definitely say something astonishing.
As expected.
Fang Xin did not disappoint her.
Under the table, Chu Xinyao’s knee gently bumped Fang Xin’s knee, signaling him not to speak carelessly.
Upon hearing Fang Xin’s reply, Wang Chuqing couldn’t help but smile, “Xiao Fang, don’t mind your Uncle Chu, eat your food. Xinyao said you like shrimp, so Auntie specially made it for you. These shrimp were air-freighted from Linhai City this afternoon!”
After taking a bite, Fang Xin repeatedly praised Wang Chuqing’s excellent cooking skills.
Chu Tianhong glanced at Fang Xin and also smiled.
A hint of imperceptible coldness flashed in his eyes.
The reason he showed favor to Fang Xin was merely to put on a show for his daughter: first, to tell his daughter that he highly valued her friend; second, to tell his daughter that this boy could only be his godson, but they couldn’t get too close.
For someone like Chu Tianhong, his daughter was destined to be a stepping stone for his power through marriage. Fang Xin, being in the Ninth Division, even with the strong support of the Ninth Division, given the relationship between the Ninth Division and the Church, he would never allow his daughter and Fang Xin to have a romantic relationship.
Chu Xinyao naturally understood Chu Tianhong’s unspoken meaning earlier. She picked up a shrimp and, in front of Chu Tianhong, peeled it for Fang Xin.
“Xiao Fang! Here you go!”
Chu Tianhong’s gaze visibly turned gloomy. Although he was usually busy with work and didn’t pay enough attention to his daughter, she was still his own flesh and blood.
How could he tolerate this? It was like a punk riding his noisy motorcycle onto the dining table, revving the engine, and shouting, “Old man, I’m taking your daughter!” while his daughter shouted back, “Dad, you don’t understand him!” There was no difference.
“Xinyao, eat your own food, and mind your table manners!”
Chu Xinyao wiped her hands, merely giving a faint “Mm” with her mouth, but her hands still picked up more food for Fang Xin.
“Oh, I forgot to mention, Dad, Mom, Xiao Fang also brought you gifts!”
As she spoke, Chu Xinyao waved, “Aunt Qin, could you please bring over the gifts!”
The maid immediately retrieved the gifts.
After opening the gifts, Chu Tianhong and Wang Chuqing exchanged glances. Both were shrewd individuals; they could tell at a glance that these gifts were bought by Chu Xinyao.
Chu Xinyao couldn’t possibly have thought her parents wouldn’t notice, but she deliberately used this method to express her stance to them.
“Dad, Mom, do you like them?”
Wang Chuqing smiled, “I love them!”
As she spoke, she gave Chu Tianhong another look. Chu Tianhong’s mouth twitched, and he forced a smile, feeling a sense of powerlessness, as if his cotton jacket was leaking wind.
Midway through the dinner.
Wang Chuqing brought the conversation back to the main topic of the evening, “Xiao Fang, we invited you to dinner today, first, because we wanted to meet you, but most importantly, we wanted to thank you for saving our Xinyao before!”
“You’re too kind, it was just a small effort!”
“For you, it might be a small effort, but for us, it’s a huge kindness. You know, Xinyao is our only daughter; she is our life.”
Fang Xin returned a very official smile. If he hadn’t grown up with Chu Xinyao, he might have actually believed it.
Wang Chuqing motioned to the maid, who immediately came over with a tray.
On the tray was a Space Ring. “Xiao Fang, we didn’t know what you liked, so we asked Xinyao. We heard your main Talent is Strength-based, so we’re giving you two treasured artifacts! Consider it a small token of our appreciation for saving our Xinyao!”
The Space Ring flashed, and on the tray lay a pair of black gloves, whose grade looked to be at least ten.
In addition, two fruits were also placed on the tray.
One was ice-blue, and the other was fiery-red.
“These two fruits can greatly enhance both your spiritual power and your Strength Talent! If you are stuck at the peak of your current realm, with these two fruits, you can break through the shackles and advance a level!”
After Wang Chuqing finished her introduction, she had someone bring the tray over.
Besides the gloves and fruits, there were also many gold bars in the ring that hadn’t been taken out. The quantity of gold bars was considerable, their value at least over a hundred million.
One had to admit, rich people were indeed different; they were generous with their gifts. Fang Xin never expected to receive so much right off the bat.
“Uncle, Auntie, this is too valuable! I only helped out before because it was convenient! You’re making me very uncomfortable with this!”
“Xiao Fang, I just said, for you it was a small effort, but for us, it’s a huge kindness. You cannot refuse this, otherwise we will feel bad, and besides…”
“Alright! Thank you, Uncle and Auntie!” Fang Xin readily accepted everything.
Wang Chuqing’s mouth twitched. She thought Fang Xin would politely decline a bit more, but he just accepted it directly.
Dinner lasted for over two hours. Afterwards, Chu Tianhong, just as Chu Xinyao had forewarned, outlined a future for Fang Xin. Fang Xin responded with a smiling, “Yes, yes, yes” attitude.
Fang Xin already had a strong prejudice against people from the Church, and coupled with the attitude of Chu Xinyao’s parents towards Chu Xinyao over the years, which Fang Xin had witnessed, his first impression was not very good.
Moreover, Fang Xin’s keen perception sent back feedback: although the couple smiled warmly at Fang Xin, he always felt uncomfortable, sensing an unknown side behind their smiles.
After dinner, Chu Xinyao saw Fang Xin out.
Chu Tianhong sat on the sofa, while Wang Chuqing sat beside him, cracking melon seeds. After a long while, Wang Chuqing said, “Xinyao cannot be with him!”
“I know,” Chu Tianhong smiled.
Wang Chuqing glanced at Chu Tianhong, “But you can’t kill him, otherwise Xinyao might develop a lifelong complex, and we can’t have Xinyao resent us.”
“I know,” Chu Tianhong replied the same way as before.
Seeing Wang Chuqing’s questioning expression, Chu Tianhong explained, “On his way back, he will be intercepted and ambushed by people disguised as the Eternal Night Army, and then beaten into a cripple. At the critical moment, my people will save his life! This will both repay him for saving Xinyao and make Xinyao feel that we genuinely care about her friend!”
As the two talked, Chu Xinyao walked in from outside.
Wang Chuqing immediately smiled, “Xinyao, is Xiao Fang gone back?”
“Mm!”
“That child is very good, clever! And quite handsome!”
“Dad, what do you think?” Chu Xinyao looked at Chu Tianhong, who was handling documents.
Chu Tianhong smiled, “I also think he’s quite good! After all, he’s in the top ten of the Dragon-Tiger Rankings. For such a person to emerge in Lan City, he will surely be recorded in the local gazette in the future.”
The car drove slowly through the night.
Fang Xin sat in the back, turning his head to look out the window. Whether it was an illusion or not, he felt a prickling sensation on his back.
The car gradually headed towards the residential area.
By now, it was late, and there weren’t many people on the road.
Outside the residential area, several cars were parked, with several people inside. One young man in white clothes tilted his head, looking in Fang Xin’s direction, and grinned ferociously. He said to the people behind him, “Remember, from now on, we are members of the Eternal Night Army! We’ll beat him into a cripple later, then pretend to fight with the people who come to help him, and then leave!”
“Brother Dong, so many of us against one small fry, and even you, an eleventh-level expert, are coming. This is like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut!”
Zhai Dong said coldly, “The Eternal Night Army is also targeting this kid now, wanting to either snatch him or destroy him. Those with too low a realm aren’t qualified to come, after all, this kid was recruited into the Ninth Division by that white-haired guy!
Moreover, the Pope was furious about that white-haired guy’s previous outburst, and this kid was the root cause of that incident. If we can cripple this kid, our Dean Chu will have earned a merit with His Holiness the Pope!
Also, all of you, remember this: don’t let anything slip later! This is a critical moment in the competition for the highest regional Person in charge, if the Ninth Division finds out we were involved, that white-haired guy will definitely not let us off! Our Dean will also be implicated!”
“Don’t worry, Brother Dong! Beating him half to death is easy!”
Fang Xin got out of the car and instinctively turned his head to look.
On the rooftop.
Fang Qingdi stood with his hands behind his back.
His eyes filled with intense killing intent.