After Yun Ye finished his report, he stood up and looked at Leng Chuanjin, whose face was serious.
He nodded at him. "You've worked hard. I've pretty much got the general idea."
"Then, Young Master Leng, what should we do next..."
"Since the other side is willing to show their fox tail to us, we'll grant their wish."
"Inform Li Xiao to keep a close eye on the developments of Leng Qiuhua's company, especially any changes in personnel and finance."
Li Xiao, like Yun Ye, used to be a trusted assistant beside Leng Chuanjin. But after the previous incidents of the theft of the Wuguling Treasure and being chased, he had to assign Li Xiao to Leng Qiuhua's side as his eyes and ears.
After Leng Qiuhua secretly transferred a small portion of the funds last time, he had quieted down again and continued to be that idle president.
No one knew what he was up to.
Originally, they thought he was just a useless person who couldn't stir up much trouble. But these two times he had caused such a stir that Leng Chuanjin had to devote more energy to guard against him.
Although he could easily kick Leng Qiuhua out of the family on account of the previous incidents, the Leng family was the leader among the four great families. There were countless pairs of eyes watching from outside.
Once they got the chance, they would take advantage of the situation. Even if they could only bite off a piece of the Leng family, it would be a great gain for them.
If the news spread that there was discord within the Leng family, there would only be more troubles.
So he could only bide his time for the moment.
He rubbed his temples wearily and glanced at the wall clock. It was almost time to get off work.
He had been leaving work on time these days, lest the sleep pattern that Xia Sanghuan had finally helped him adjust would be disrupted again.
Thinking of that little girl, his mind drifted for a moment.
He had left early this morning and hadn't had the chance to say hello to her.
He wondered how she was now and whether she had eaten well today.
...
After a day of research, Xia Sanghuan rubbed her sore waist and sighed.
She and Professor He had made a final attempt with the remaining residues today, but the result was the same as before.
It seemed that she had to go back and ask Leng Chuanjin for help.
The data they had in hand now had been almost thoroughly analyzed by the two of them.
But there were still some unclear points.
She couldn't help thinking of her master's bookcase filled with ancient books.
She had actually rummaged through all the books in the bookcase, but some of them she had just skimmed through and failed to grasp the essence.
Before she could finish learning all this knowledge, her master had left without saying goodbye one day.
She had gone to learn from her master as usual that day. But when she got there, she found that her master wasn't there. So she sat there and waited, but her master still hadn't come back even when it got dark.
She had thought that her master had gone up the mountain to pick herbs. After all, there had been times before when he had disappeared for three days to pick herbs, which had worried Xia Sanghuan a great deal.
It was only a few days later that she realized that her master was really gone.
She wanted to look for him, but she was just a child. Her master's whereabouts were always erratic. Where could she look for him?
Moreover, her master had always stayed deep in the forest and never interacted with outsiders. Even if she went to the village to ask someone to look for her master, she probably wouldn't be able to find him.
So she could only go to her master's residence every day, hoping to meet her master again one day.
Unfortunately, she didn't wait for the chance of reunion. Instead, she waited for her biological father who had been looking for her for eighteen years.
After saying goodbye to Professor He at the college gate, she got on the bus home.
After returning to the Leng family, Leng Chuanjin wasn't there as usual, and Leng Wanqing was still sitting on the sofa watching TV as usual.
When Wang Fu saw her coming back, he quickly greeted her.
"Miss Xia, you're back so early tonight."
"Just wait a moment. I'll ask the kitchen to cook right away."
Since she usually had dinner at school, the butler was used to not leaving dinner for her.
She quickly waved her hand. "No need, Uncle Wang. Just heat up the leftovers."
But how could the Leng family let their guest eat leftovers?
Before long, a sumptuous meal was served on the table.
Leng Wanqing rolled her eyes while sitting on the sofa and murmured, "Such a hassle. She doesn't even call before coming home for dinner."
Xia Sanghuan didn't bother to argue with her, but she remembered her words.
She had really troubled the butler and the kitchen this time. In the future, she should call in advance if she was going to come home for dinner.
After dinner, while the servants were clearing the table, she casually asked,
"Has Brother Chuanjin come back yet?"
Wang Fu replied, "Not yet, Miss Xia. The young master has been coming home very late these days."
Hearing what the butler said, she could only nod.
Leng Wanqing, who had been sitting on the sofa, went back to her room after receiving a video call. For a moment, the whole house was left with only Xia Sanghuan and a few silent servants.
The big house seemed extremely empty.
Xia Sanghuan sat on the sofa boredly. She wasn't very interested in the TV drama on TV.
She didn't expect that she would be so bored after leaving Qingshanpo.
In the countryside, at this time, she would go to check the fences of the cowshed and the pigsty, drive the chickens back to their coops,
and sometimes even mend some old clothes under the kerosene lamp.
She stared blankly at the TV and thought she should find something to do.
Fortunately, Leng Chuanjin came back before long.
It might be colder outside than when she had come back. The man at the door stamped his feet on the carpet, and his breath still had a little white mist.
It had only been a day since they last saw each other, but she felt as if a century had passed.
She couldn't help standing up and walking over.
"Second Brother, you're back."
The stiff and tense expression on Leng Chuanjin's face relaxed when he saw her. Even the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
"Yeah, I'm back."
Wang Fu on the side took his young master's coat and immediately went to tell the servants to prepare some hot tea.
For some reason, he always felt that he should stay away from these two people and give them some private space.
Xia Sanghuan didn't forget her plan with Professor He. She accompanied Leng Chuanjin to sit on the sofa and even poured him a cup of hot tea.
Seeing her being so obsequious, he raised his eyebrows amusingly.
"What's up, Huanhuan? Do you have something to ask Second Brother for?"
Being hit right on the mark, she felt a bit embarrassed.
Although it wasn't embarrassing to ask him for help with personnel, somehow she felt as if he had found out about something she wasn't good at.
In front of the person she liked, she always didn't want to expose her shortcomings.
She sat down beside him and asked seriously,
"Second Brother, if someone suddenly joins our project with Professor He, do you think it will be inappropriate?"
Looking at her serious little face, Leng Chuanjin thought that she and He Jianyu had arranged a new person without his consent.