The Rich Man's Life Begins with a Comeback

Chapter 23 Past
"Aheng?"

A surprised voice came from Gu Heng's side.

Gu Heng turned his head upon hearing the sound and looked in the direction from which it came.

"Uncle Fan?"

After Gu Heng clearly saw the source of the voice, he couldn't help but show a hint of surprise and stopped in his tracks.

"Aheng!"

"It really is you!"

After seeing Gu Heng clearly, the other person immediately walked quickly towards Gu Heng.

He approached Gu Heng, looked him up and down carefully, and his surprise grew stronger.

"It's been two years since I last saw you, you've grown into a young man."

"It seems that Ah Heng has had some good fortune in the past two years."

"I told you back then that you'd definitely amount to something, and I was right."

Fan Hong raised his hand and patted Gu Heng on the shoulder, his tone tinged with emotion.

"Uncle Fan, if it weren't for your help back then, I might have either starved to death or frozen to death in Beichun."

Gu Heng looked at the middle-aged man in front of him, who looked weathered and a little old. It was hard to reconcile the image of the once spirited and generous Boss Fan in his mind.

Three years ago, Gu Heng left his hometown and came to Beichun.

He had just turned 16 and only had a few hundred yuan on him.

After failing to find work for several days, he was on the verge of despair when the man in front of him took him in.

When Gu Heng first met Fan Hong, the latter owned four high-end chain restaurants in Beichun, making him a well-known figure in the entire Beichun catering industry. He had a net worth of tens of millions, drove a Range Rover, and lived in a detached villa in Jingyue.

That day, Gu Heng went to Fan Hongkai's restaurant to apply for a waiter job, but was sent away by the restaurant manager because he was too young.

At that time, he only had less than twenty yuan left in his pocket.

After leaving the restaurant, Gu Heng, who was starving, sat on the stone steps next to the restaurant, staring blankly at the sky, and even had a few thoughts of suicide.

It was at that time that Fan Hong appeared.

After learning about Gu Heng's ordeal, the other party not only made an exception and hired Gu Heng into the restaurant, giving him a job washing dishes in the kitchen, but also secretly instructed the manager to allow Gu Heng to stay in the restaurant at night.

Nominally, Gu Heng was in charge of keeping watch, but in reality, the restaurant had extremely good security measures, so there was no need for anyone to keep watch; it was just a pretext.

And so, Gu Heng settled down in Beichun.

With gratitude in his heart for Fan Hong, Gu Heng worked very hard every day, and in addition to his job of washing dishes, he would volunteer to do any other work.

Because Gu Heng lived in the restaurant, he often ran into Fan Hong, who was drunk after entertaining important guests.

As children from similarly impoverished backgrounds, Fan Hong often, after getting drunk, would drink tea to sober up while recounting past events and the life lessons he had learned to Gu Heng.

Over time, Fan Hong also became familiar with Gu Heng.

Unfortunately, fate is unpredictable.

Three years ago, the sudden "disaster" that swept across the country caused Fan Hong, who misjudged the situation, to pay a heavy price.

One restaurant after another went out of business, and Fan Hong went bankrupt.

He sold the house and car, and his wife divorced him, taking the children with her.

In just six months, he went from being a big boss to a heavily indebted defaulter.

Since then, Gu Heng had no news of Fan Hong, but he never expected to run into him again here today.

When Fan Hong heard Gu Heng mention the past, he felt a pang of sadness, but on the surface he pretended to be cheerful: "Let's not talk about what happened back then. Are you here for dinner today?"

"There's a banquet coming up."

Gu Heng nodded, then turned to Fan Hong and asked, "Uncle Fan, what about you? Are you here to eat today too?"

"I work here."

Fan Hong shook his head. After he finished speaking, the hostess next to Gu Heng explained softly to Gu Heng, "Sir, this is General Manager Fan of our Yanronghui."

"Deputy, deputy."

Fan Hong quickly added a couple of sentences, then said with a smile, "After the bankruptcy back then, I applied for a job at Zhencui Group. I've been working at Zhencui Group for many years now, and the last two years have been relatively stable."

As he finished speaking, a barely perceptible hint of worry flashed in Fan Hong's eyes.

As a mid-level manager at Zhencui Group, he has recently heard quite a few rumors.

The entire Zhencui Group is now facing a full acquisition, and the acquisition process is already halfway complete. In just a few more days, the entire Zhencui Group will change hands.

At that time, the entire Zhencui Group will inevitably undergo major changes. Don't be fooled by his current position as the deputy general manager of Yanronghui; who knows what he will be in a couple of days?

Gu Heng was unaware of the worry that flashed in Fan Hong's eyes; his heart was filled with nothing but joy.

He had been worried these past few days about how to manage such a large catering group after he took over Zhencui Group, since he really didn't know much about the catering industry and was basically a novice.

Unexpectedly, Fan Hong ended up working at Zhencui Group.

The other party has been deeply involved in the catering industry for decades and is definitely an expert in the field. Moreover, the other party has worked at Zhencui Group for more than two years and must be very familiar with the internal workings of Zhencui Group.

With the other party's assistance, I will definitely be able to take over the entire Zhencui Group as quickly as possible, and there won't be any more trouble.

"Hey……"

"I've said too much, I've said too much."

Suppressing his worries, Fan Hong asked the hostess next to Gu Heng, "Which private room is my brother in?"

"I'll tell the kitchen to give Ah Heng and your private room two extra dishes. Your Uncle Fan isn't what he used to be, but he still has this little bit of power."

Fan Hong looked at Gu Heng again and said with a smile.

"Mr. Fan, this gentleman is from the Blue and White Porcelain VIP room."

The welcoming girl whispered to Fan Hong.

Fan Hong's laughter stopped abruptly.

He stared at Gu Heng in front of him, his eyes slowly widening.

"Aheng..."

Fan Hong looked at Gu Heng and murmured, "Could you be Director Xia from Juncheng Law Firm, the distinguished guest Mr. Gu who is being invited to the banquet today?"

"it's me."

Gu Heng nodded slightly, and looking at Fan Hong's expression, he gained a new understanding of the influence of Juncheng Law Firm in Beichun.

"Aheng, if it's a blue and white porcelain private room, then let's skip it."

Fan Hong gave a wry smile: "My rank isn't high enough."

If it were an ordinary guest, it would be a favor for Gu Heng if he, as the deputy general manager, gave Gu Heng two complimentary dishes.

But the person sitting in the Qinghua private room right now is Xia Zhenzhong from Juncheng Law Firm. Not to mention that he is now the deputy general manager of Yanronghui, even when he was not down on his luck, he had nothing to do with him.

Given his status, his act of offering him two dishes would only make him a laughingstock.

As a VIP client of Yanronghui, Juncheng Law Firm is frequently hosted by other law firms for business banquets, and Fan Hong has hosted them there several times.

But this was the first time Fan Hong had ever seen such a grand banquet, with even Xia Zhenzhong, the director of the law firm, personally attending.

He had been secretly wondering what kind of person Xia Zhenzhong would treat so seriously, but he never expected it would be Gu Heng.

These past two years...

What exactly did the other person go through?

Fan Hong stared at Gu Heng in front of him, his expression slightly dazed.

He now finds it hard to reconcile the Gu Heng before him with the boy who was so destitute back then that he couldn't even afford to eat.

"Uncle Fan, I'm waiting for your two dishes."

Gu Heng's eyes were sincere and clear: "In my memory, Uncle Fan has never been a person who goes back on his word."

Facing Gu Heng's clear, unadulterated gaze, Fan Hong's lips moved, but he couldn't utter a single word.

"it is good!"

"keep your word!"

"I send!"

Fan Hong nodded emphatically, but his right hand, which was on Gu Heng's shoulder, tightened its grip considerably.

"Uncle Fan, I'll be waiting for you."

Gu Heng raised his hand and patted Fan Hong's hand: "It's almost time, I'll go in first."

"go quickly."

"Don't delay the business."

Fan Hong said softly.

Gu Heng nodded. He knew he would have plenty of time to catch up with Fan Hong in the future, so he didn't say anything more. Led by two welcoming girls, he walked towards the innermost blue-and-white porcelain private room on this floor...

(End of this chapter)