A hundred flavors of life

Chapter 1351 Were you a cowherd in your past life? (Please subscribe!)
Although Tan Zongming felt that Hua Shier was a bit petty, he agreed with the saying "a single punch can break the ice," and his attitude changed accordingly.

"Yes, I agree with your point of view. Sometimes it's important to let the outside world know your stance!"

Andy glared at his old friend, annoyed. "Old Tan, whose side are you on?"

"I'm just stating the facts!"

Tan Zongming smiled faintly:
"Actually, when I first entered the business world, I did the same thing. I deliberately attacked a few competitors with ruthless methods to establish a tough image. After that, fewer people tried to trip me up. Over time, many people became afraid of me!"

"You've probably even heard the saying circulating in Shanghai that if Tan Zongming just raises his eyebrows, countless companies in Shanghai will go bankrupt!"

Although Andy was still angry, he couldn't help but smile upon hearing this; "I've heard that saying before!"

Tan Zongming looked at Hua Shier:

"So, while I agree with your point of view and your stance on reporting tax evasion, I will not tolerate you bullying Andy. Can you explain what happened to Andy's brother?"

When he spoke, he exuded the aura of a business tycoon, giving off a feeling that if he wasn't satisfied with the explanation, he would make it impossible for the business tycoon to gain a foothold in Shanghai.

If an ordinary small business owner were faced with this kind of aura, their legs would probably start to tremble, because if they didn't say one right word, they could very well face the crisis of bankruptcy.

Ke Hua Twelve seemed oblivious to the imposing aura of this business tycoon, and scoffed:
"If you want to talk things out properly, then let's have a chat. But if you're threatening me, then what's the point of talking to you? So what if the boss of Shengxuan Group is powerful? If you're not happy, let's have a go at it!"

Andy was afraid the two would fight, and also worried that her situation would cause a conflict between Hua Shier's financial company and Sheng Xuan, so she quickly advised:
"Old Tan, I'll handle this. Don't act impulsively!"

"Forehead!"

Tan Zongming was in a bind. This usually worked well for him, and most people would submit to him, but he didn't expect Hua Shier to be so tough.

If we were to turn against him now, it might go against his original intention of solving the problem.

Tan Zongming touched his nose to hide his embarrassment:

"I acted impulsively just now, but as Andy's classmate and friend, I feel I have a duty to protect my friend. Could you please explain the matter concerning her brother?"

This time, he spoke much more politely, clearly indicating that Tan Zongming did not want to escalate the situation before understanding the truth.

"That's right, that's the right attitude to have when dealing with things!"

Hua Shier acted innocent after getting the benefit, which made Andy roll her eyes at him in annoyance:
"Hurry up and tell me about Xiaoming's matter!"

"Actually, it's very simple. Xiaoming and I met two months ago. At that time, I had just arrived in Shanghai and was traveling around, exploring all the areas around Shanghai!"

"When I went to Daishan for tourism, I bought water at a supermarket next to a welfare home. I saw a young man in the welfare home painting. I watched for a while and felt that he was very talented, so I started to talk to him. As a result, an aunt came over and looked at us with a surprised expression!"

"I felt uncomfortable being stared at by her, so I asked her what was wrong. The auntie told me that she was the director of this welfare home, and that the boy's name was Xiaoming, that he had autism, and that he rarely communicated with anyone except her, and that this was the first time he had ever communicated with a stranger!"

"Afterwards, the auntie director invited me to have lunch at the orphanage. Xiaoming chatted with me the whole time, treating me like family. The auntie asked Xiaoming why, and Xiaoming said that I gave him a sense of closeness!"

Andy's heart skipped a beat. She had actually felt the same way when she was with Hua Twelve. This was the real reason why she couldn't accept physical contact with others, but could accept Hua Twelve.

She could sense a closeness about Hua Shier that wasn't based on mutual attraction between men and women. Spending time together felt like being bathed in a hot spring—comfortable and natural.

What she didn't know was that Hua Shier was an immortal, both in body and spirit, in a state of perfection. No matter where he was, his spirit and body were in harmony with heaven and earth. If he were in the wild, even wild animals would instinctively be close to him.

Just as fish yearn for the sea and fledgling eagles yearn for the sky, it is an instinctive choice.

This instinct is weaker in intelligent beings like humans, as it is affected by thinking and judgment and gradually weakens.

Andy and Xiaoming, both siblings, have mental deficiencies. Therefore, when they approach Hua Shier, who is mentally perfect, the influence they experience is amplified, stimulating their biological instinct to be close to nature and yearn for perfection.

Hua Twelve continued:

“I felt a strong connection with Xiaoming at the time, and I visited him a few more times. Later, I noticed that the conditions at the orphanage were rather poor, so I decided to take out some money to completely renovate the entire orphanage!”

"But the director refused my offer because if the welfare home were to be renovated, it would have to suspend operations, and orphans like Xiaoming, as well as many elderly people living alone, would have nowhere to go during the renovation period!"

Tan Zongming suddenly realized: "So you funded a trip to the U.S. for everyone in the orphanage?"

"Not only that, I also contacted a welfare institution in the Ugly Country to host the director and his entourage. When the director leads the group on a trip there, he can also learn from the advanced experience of welfare institutions there. Meanwhile, Xiaoming and the other elderly people can have a comfortable living environment while they are traveling!"

After Hua Shier finished speaking, Andy's complexion improved considerably, and his gaze towards him softened.

Tan Zongming gave a thumbs up; "You're doing charity with your heart, but I heard from Qu Xiaoxiao that you used Xiaoming to threaten Andy, what's going on here?"

Andy also asked, "Old Wang, how did you know that Xiaoming is my brother? And since you knew Xiaoming was my brother, why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"It was the dean who asked me to find Xiaoming's family. I found a clue after offering a large reward, and that's how I learned that you are Xiaoming's sister!"

Hua Shier gave Andy a disapproving look as he finished speaking:
“I wanted to talk to you about this privately when we went to the resort, but what happened back then, did I even have the chance to talk about it?”

"Afterwards, you sided with Qu Xiaoxiao and Wei Wei, and for a while you didn't give me a friendly look. Why should I tell you?"

After he finished speaking, he ignored Andy and looked at Tan Zongming:
"As for threatening Andy, that was completely untrue. What I said at the time was, 'Andy, you don't want anything to happen to your brother, do you?' Old Tan, doesn't that sound familiar?"

Tan Zongming had initially found the line familiar, but after a moment's thought, he was speechless and quickly denied it:

"How could I be familiar with him? I've never heard of him before. Andy, you saw it, he's slandering me!"

Hua Shier chuckled, and Andy looked at Tan Zongming, who looked guilty: "Old Tan, something's not right with you. Was there a deeper meaning in that sentence?"

Tan Zongming refused to answer and quickly got up to take his leave.

"Since it's a misunderstanding, I won't bother you anymore. Andy, you need to be careful when making friends. I had someone investigate Qu Xiaoxiao, and she's not a good girl!"

Andy even subconsciously tried to explain for his friend: "Xiao Qu is actually a nice person!"

Hua Twelve sneered:
"What's so great about you? They saw you driving a sports car and had someone investigate you. After they found out the car belonged to Lao Tan, they told the neighbors you were Lao Tan's mistress!"

"Sneaking into other people's privacy and spreading rumors—is this something a good person would do?"

Andy's voice weakened: "But she realized her mistake and corrected it, and she apologized later!"

Hua Twelve was amused:
"Was her apology genuine? She only asked you to help her with the GI project after she found out you were a big shot on Wall Street. This is a classic case of using someone and then discarding them. And look at how she treated Qiu Yingying—she seduced Qiu Yingying's boyfriend and then claimed she was helping her see through the scumbag. She justified it all in her own way!"

"Also, did she tell you that the reason she targeted you in the first place was because she hates mistresses the most?"

"Do you know that Dr. Zhao has a girlfriend?!"

In the original storyline, Qu Xiaoxiao suspected that Dr. Zhao had a girlfriend, but thought it didn't matter, as long as he liked her, she could just take her away. Her behavior was that of a mistress who knew she was the other woman. Later, as the story progressed, it was revealed that it was just a misunderstanding and that Dr. Zhao actually did not have a girlfriend.

Hua Shier initially believed this whitewashing, but when dealing with the Qu family and investigating their background, he uncovered more, solving the mystery of Dr. Zhao's girlfriend. The rumors were true; Dr. Zhao did have a girlfriend of seven years, also from a family of officials, who could help him at work. This allowed him to be promoted to associate chief physician at a top-tier hospital at the age of 26, earning a monthly salary of several tens of thousands of yuan.

Contrary to rumors, Zhao Qiping's rumored girlfriend of seven years was ten years older than him, had a family, and was only with him for fun, a mutually beneficial arrangement.

So strictly speaking, both Zhao Qiping and Qu Xiaoxiao were mistresses.

Hua Shier asked Andy, who looked shocked, "Do you still think she's a good person?"

Andy fell silent. Old Tan patted her on the shoulder, then turned to Hua Twelve and said:

"Old Wang, may I call you that? Could you walk me downstairs?"

Hua Shier guessed that this guy had something to say to him, and smiled as he gestured for him to speak.

As the two men stepped outside, Lao Tan's two bodyguards rushed up to them: "Boss, are you alright?"

Tan Zongming shook his head, then followed Hua Shier into the elevator, gesturing for the two bodyguards to take another elevator downstairs.

In the elevator, Old Tan spoke earnestly to Hua Twelve;
"You've researched Andy's past, so you should know her."

Hua Shier knew what he was going to say and interrupted him directly:

"I know, you mean genetics? I don't care about that!"

Tan Zongming breathed a sigh of relief, then let out a long sigh:
"You may not know this, but Andy is the most outstanding woman I've ever met in my life, and the only one who has touched my heart. It's just that my family can't accept her genetic disease, not even if it's possible. You are braver than me!"

He turned to look at Hua Twelve:
"I can sense that we're kindred spirits; we'll treat our enemies with the same ruthlessness as autumn winds sweeping away fallen leaves. So I hope you'll treat Andy well, and I hope we can become friends!"

After he finished speaking, the elevator arrived at the first floor. The elevator doors opened, and Tan Zongming said to Hua Shier:

"That's enough for now, goodbye!"

Hua Shier laughed: "Actually, being friends with me is the wisest choice you've ever made!"

Tan Zongming's words just now contained a hidden threat, and he was unhappy about it, so he had to retaliate.

Hearing the sarcastic tone in his words, Tan Zongming laughed: "We really are alike, neither of us wants to suffer a loss. Let's go!"

After this incident, the rift between Hua Shier and Andy seemed to have thinned considerably, like a thin sheet of paper that could be easily torn apart.

The opportunity to break through the barrier lies with Andy's younger brother, Xiaoming.

The two booked their plane tickets and prepared to travel to the Big Apple in the United States over the weekend.

On the night before her departure, Andy was working in room 2201. She wanted to push the work forward as much as possible before leaving, so that she could have more time to see her brother in the Ugly Country.

Drop drop drop drop.

Andy received an instant messaging notification on her computer from Wei Wei. She opened it and immediately burst into tears.

It was a photo of a young man whose features vaguely resembled his younger brother's when they were children.

Just as she was about to reply, Wei Wei initiated a video call. Once connected, Andy eagerly said:
“It’s my brother. I really want to see him right now, hug him, and tell him how much I’ve missed him all these years. Old Wei, how is he? Is he safe?”

Although she was already inclined to believe Hua Shier's words, since it concerned her younger brother, the most important person in her life, she still wanted to confirm it again from another angle.

Wei Wei laughed;

"Andy, I've accomplished my mission. Xiaoming is currently at a very well-known welfare home in New York. He even goes on trips with the people from the welfare home during the day. He's very safe. When are you coming to New York? I'll take you to see Xiaoming then!"

Andy wiped away her tears and, without suspicion, answered Wei Wei's question about when she was going to New York:
Our flight is tomorrow afternoon.

Wei Wei received the accurate flight information, and he couldn't help but smile.

"Okay, I'll pick you up from the airport. I'll apologize to Lao Wang in person then!"

The following afternoon, Hua Shier and Andy boarded a flight to New York, the United States, at Pudong Airport.

Fifteen hours later, the plane landed at JFK Airport.

As soon as the two stepped out of the airport, they saw someone holding a sign that read Andy's name.

Hua Shier looked at Andy with a half-smile and said, "When we came to New York, did you greet anyone?"

Andy felt a little awkward, after all, she was afraid that the latter would not agree to her idea of ​​acting as a peacemaker between Wei Wei and Hua Shier, so she had not told Hua Shier in advance.

"Yes, he's a friend I had back in the Ugly Country!"

Hua Shier chuckled: "Weren't you supposed to be socially awkward? I didn't expect you to have other friends besides Lao Tan!"

The two pushed their luggage and walked towards the people who were there to pick them up. Andy said:
"I am Andy!"

The person who picked them up was a Black man. Upon hearing this, he took out the photo, glanced at it, and after confirming that it was correct, told the two that the car that was supposed to pick them up was outside and asked them to come out with him.

Andy took Hua Shier's hand and said, "Let's go, my friend will definitely treat us well!"

Two hours later, inside a warehouse at the port terminal.

Andy and Hua Shier were tied to two chairs, surrounded by either black or white people, all with fierce-looking faces, tattooed with dragons and tigers, like the heroes of Liangshan.

Hua Shier exclaimed in amazement: "So many black whirlwinds!"

He turned to Andy and teased him:
"Is this what you call a good hospitality? Andy, were you a cowherd in your past life, leading me into this trap?"

Andy was terrified at this moment, but seeing that he was acting as if nothing had happened, he quickly said:
"Don't worry, Lao Wang, I'm here, you'll be fine!"

Hua Shier was speechless. "You're the reason things are in trouble!"

Those foreigners seemed to be just watching over them, not forbidding the two from talking.

Just then, the sound of brakes came from outside the door, and several cars stopped outside the warehouse.

With a whoosh, the warehouse door opened, and looking out through it, it was already night in New York.

Wei Wei and a burly black man, surrounded by a group of henchmen, walked in. He saw Hua Twelve, who was bound, laughed loudly, and waved, saying:
"Old Wang, are you surprised? Unexpected?"

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