“Former Chairman, I envy you. You have such a loving family, so many friends and outstanding off-spring such as Zenxin and Chen An. My life can’t compare. ”
Qin Hua stood in the middle of the courtyard while surrounded by guests and hosts alike. He moved his wine cup in the air as he said vehemently.
“You think too highly of me. My son Zhexin requires much of your guidance; his future is in your hands.”
Chen Huaian said. Despite his words, a proud smile broke over his face.
Despite the calm facade that Great Uncle and his son tried to put on, Great Auntie was already on the brink of jumping up and down and shouting out in excitement.
Having received approval from Qin Hua, no one would dare to think lightly of her husband and son. Just look at people’s expressions around her! Second Auntie’s eyes were filled to the brim with envy which further boosted Great Auntie’s self-esteem.
After Qin Hua’s arrival, Elderly Man Wei and Chen Fan were quickly forgotten by everyone.
They sat with other tycoons from Jiang Bei as anger started to brew inside of their minds.
Wei Ziqin was the first to complain: “Qin Hua is such a dick! Grandpa is older than him, yet he didn’t dial down his pompous attitude a tad bit.”
“Such is the way of a successful and ambitious young man.” Elderly Man Wei said.
Qin Hua had achieved high attainment at the young age of fifty. He had more potential than even Elderly Man Wei’s son, Wei Changsong. A retired former official such as Elderly Man Wei couldn’t compare. Therefore, it was understandable that everyone chose to woo Qin Hua instead of him.
“Mr. Chen, Mrs. Chen. Please be rest assured that your son will be as successful as Qin Hua if not more so.”
Seeing the nervous look on Chen Gexin and his wife’s faces, Elderly Man Wei decided to offer some solace.
Chen Gexin and his wife managed a smile as they thanked Elderly Man Wei’s comforting words.
Chen Ning didn’t leave with the crowd to speak to Qin Hua; instead, she remained at the table. Hearing Elderly Man Wei’s reassurance to Chen Fan’s parents, she gave Chen Fan a cold glare. She believed the old man’s words about how resourceful his son Chen Fan was, after all, he was able to attract half of the tycoons in Jiang Bei and even Elderly Man Wei.
However, she would not believe that Chen Fan could surpass Qin Hua in the future.
“He? Surpass Qin Hua?”
Second Auntie snorted.
Chen Fan sat quietly in his chair and looked at the development airily. It was as if he didn’t think Qin Hua was so much of a big deal from the outset.
An Ya looked deeply at Chen Fan. She had always believed in her brother, despite how irrational her belief might sound.
Suddenly, a wave of surprised gasps and exclamations drifted into the courtyard.
The noise was getting louder by the second and eventually drowned out all the other noise. Suddenly, the noise disappeared altogether, as a silence fell over the entire courtyard.
“What is going on?”
When Qin Hua noticed the rise and fall of the noise, he was in the middle of boasting about his plan for the future of the city. Having been disturbed by the strange noise, he furrowed his brows in displeasure.
“Boss, I will go check it out.”
Secretary Zhang had noticed the annoyance on his boss’s face. So he volunteered to investigate. Seeing his secretary was on his way toward the gate, Qin Hua continued.
“It’s probably nothing. Where was I, Ah- I was talking about building rehab center at the Chen family village—”
His speech was once again cut short by the sight of Secretary Zhang.
“What’s is it now?”
Qin Hua asked.
Secretary Zhang’s face was as pale as a piece of paper. The message he carried seemed to be so heavy that it almost slowed down his pace. Nonetheless, he managed to plaster on a smile.
“Boss… Li Muchen is here.”
He spoke under his breath.
“Who is Li Muchen? Haven’t you seen that I am—”
Qin Hua waved a hand of dismissal annoyingly.
However, even as he turned his head toward his audiences, words evaporated from his mouth as realization dawned upon him.
Everyone looked toward the entrance of the courtyard and they saw a white-haired old man striding across the threshold and was on his way into the courtyard. The old man’s eyebrows were locked in a permanent frown and his back was as straight as a bamboo. His stride carried a great measure of confidence and power.
Everyone’s eyes were fixed on his face, trying to discern his identity.
As a matter of fact, many had already recognized him.
“Li Muchen!”
“Li Muchen! What brings you here?”
Qin Hua tried to put on a smile, but it looked worse than crying. He wished he could slap himself in the face there and then for being so conceited. Compared to Li Muchen, his political clout was peanuts.
“Hi.”
Li Muchen nodded slightly and letting his vision skip over Qin Hua. That’s all that Qin Hua was worth to him, a slight nod.
Qin Hua’s face crumpled as embarrassment gleamed in his eyes. However powerful Li Muchen was, he shouldn’t have given him the cold shoulder. However, what he saw next made him quickly forget about his discomfort and filled his heart with disbelief.
He saw a middle age man trail behind Li Muchen as the latter walked past him.
Under everyone’s fearful watch, more people filed into the courtyard. Each and every one of them looked like a force to be reckoned with.
Qin Hua knew only one of them, who he met a few times during meetings. Qin Hua remembered the man being a haughty big wig, however, there and then, he was among the people who stood in the back row obediently.
“Gosh. More than half of the officers in the military headquarters are here. What is going on?”
Those who had recognized one or two people among the new wave of guests couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen.
Li Muchen stood at the center of the courtyard and didn’t speak a word. Silence had fallen into the entire Chen village.
Li Muchen scanned the crowded courtyard and finally found what he was looking for. Then he sauntered on without a word.
“Is he going toward Lord Wei?”
He was heading toward the direction of Elderly Man Wei, and the well-known connection between Elderly Man Wei and Li Muchen made everyone arrive at the same conclusion.
However, the development quickly took a dramatic turn.
Li Muchen walked over to Chen Fan and spoke to him with a broad smile.
“Mr. Chen, we have finally met! I have been looking forward to this for a while!”
Chen Fan finally rose from his seat and replied slowly: “Thank you.”
His demeanor made him look like he was greeting an old friend.
However, Li Muchen didn’t mind Chen Fan’s casual reply. He held on to Chen Fan’s arm and started talking joyously.
The development shocked everyone, Qin Hua, Chen Huaian, Chen Zhenxin, Chen An, Chen Gexin and his wife… Even all the guests were rendered speechless by the turn of events.
Everyone could only stare, leaving Chen Fan and Li Muchen the only two people who were talking.
Their voices echoed in the quiet courtyard despite the huge crowd inside.
No one could believe it: a seventeen year old boy sitting side by side with a prestigious old veteran in his sixties. Yet, they acted as if they were equal.
“How is this possible! That is Li Muchen!”
A lot of the guests exclaimed in their mind.
“Chen Fan and Li Muchen?”
Chen An was stupefied by what he saw. He conceded that he had never really known his cousin.
Suddenly, a powerful wave of helplessness came over him.
“How many years will it take for me to converse with Li Muchen as his equal? twenty? thirty? or never?”
The more Chen An thought about it the more despair filled up his heart.
Chen Fan’s Great Uncle and other relatives could only gape. For a while, they thought their eyes had tricked them so they outright blocked the sight in their brain.
Despite their denial, the scene was real, Li Muchen, and the people who came with Li Muchen were not their imagination.
“So he really was a powerful man. So powerful that he could afford to be so arrogant before anyone in the Chen Family.”
“Everything he claimed about himself was real?”
“And… the joke was on me!”
Chen Ning was suddenly amused by the thought.
She wondered if she looked like a clown before her powerful cousin.
Even Elderly Man Wei heaved a sigh of resignation as he lamented: “It appears that I have underestimated how desperate Li Muchen is, and how much leverage Chen Fan has over all of us.”
He gave Chen Fan a long glance and felt lucky that Chen Fan had accepted his apology. After today’s meeting with Li Muchen, no one, not even the Wei family, would be able to rival Chen Fan’s position.
Wei Ziqin was stunned by the development.
Wei Fu had reminded her of the power of a Transcendent Master on numerous occasions; however, it wasn’t until right now, that she started to comprehend the clout of Chen Fan.
“So this is what a Transcendent Master looks like.”
“He was equivalent to the legendary warrior general that had helped the emperor found his empire.”
Thus it was, the Transcendent Masters were mighty powerful warriors. Chen Fan was able to garner so much respect at such a young age, it would be hard to imagine what seasoned commanders such as Ye Nantian were capable of.
Wei Ziqin marveled in her mind.
Chen Gexin, Wang Xiaoyun, and An Ya looked proudly at Chen Fan. He was their son, brother and best friend.
Everyone felt happy about Chen Fan’s achievement.
Xu Ao, in particular, was elated by what he saw as businessman’s opportunistic nature glinted in his eyes.
If Master Chen really was Lu Munchen’s equal, who in the Hu Dong Province would be able to challenge him then?
Greetings over, Li Muchen put on a serious look and said somberly: “Mr. Chen, may I speak with you in private?”
“Very well.” Chen Fan knew he was finally going to get to the point.
The two walked side by side toward the exit, a large crowd tailing behind.
As people got out of their way, a path was created in the crowd. People looked to Chen Fan with complicated emotions. There was shock, disbelief, and confusion, but fewer and fewer gazes held envy and indignation by the second.
When a person had surpassed the mundane life, ordinary people could only look up at them without a smidgen of jealousy.
Even after Chen Fan and Li Muchen had left with their companions, the courtyard in the Chen family estate was still quiet as everyone tried to make sense of what had just happened.
After a while, Great-Great uncle finally stood up and announced with tears in his eyes.
“The Chen family finally produced a truly worthy heir! We are going to take off!”