Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

Gao Dazhuang glared at her: "Why are you nodding like that?" He pointed a finger at Cheng Mo, "You two are going too far!"

Cheng Mo gave a French military salute.

"It's not our fault," Xia He said innocently, her voice soft and sweet.

"Think about it, Uncle Gao is an elder after all, and also the regional head of Na Du Tong. My relationship with the young Taoist priest isn't as close as yours with Uncle Gao. We still have to operate in Northeast China, so we can't afford to offend him, right?"

Gao Dazhuang huffed, "Why are you such a coward! Erzhuang is Cheng Mo's junior sister now. You can easily use Erzhuang to control Gao Lian! With that little guy in our hands, what are you afraid of!"

Xia He paused for two seconds, then cautiously asked, "...What if I threaten you with Er Zhuang?"

"Heh." Gao Dazhuang sneered, clenching his fist. "I'll silence Erzhuang first."

Xia He was speechless: "...You're such a good older sister."

"Thank you for your kind offer." Gao Dazhuang cupped his hands in greeting, his expression no longer so unpleasant.

Seeing that she wasn't so angry anymore, Xia He took the opportunity to lean closer and tentatively asked, "Your father is, after all, the regional head. How come you say you haven't eaten since last night? The company wouldn't dare to cut back on your meals, would they?"

It would have been better if she hadn't mentioned it, because as soon as she did, Gao Dazhuang's temper flared up again. He slammed his hand on the table, causing the bowls and chopsticks to bounce. He Yunchong looked at her innocently.

"Wow! You're making me even angrier!" Gao Dazhuang pointed out the window, as if the All-Tong Building was right across the street.

"Their full-time employees were eating meat on the sidelines, while I was given nothing but grass! Celery, scallions, lettuce—what good vegetables could they possibly have this season? And the chef there was definitely doing it on purpose; it was ridiculously salty!"

Xia He's expression was strange as she cautiously asked, "Is your dad exploiting his subordinates too much and deliberately targeting you?"

"It was my damned old man who gave the order!" Gao Dazhuang gritted his teeth, slamming his chopsticks on the table, making the plate clang loudly.

Xia He was shocked: "Huh? Your father is so heartless?"

Gao Dazhuang got even angrier and slammed his chopsticks on the table: "He's so self-righteous, saying that if I can't even endure this hardship, I shouldn't even think about going to the battlefield! What the hell am I supposed to eat! What soldier eats grass before going to the battlefield?!"

Xia He and Cheng Mo exchanged a glance, both of their eyes filled with confusion.

Uncle Gao (Old Gao), what kind of brain circuit is this?

……

Fengtian, the headquarters of Nadutong.

Gao Lian sat in his office, his fingers clattering across the keyboard as he typed a report.

"Achoo! Achoo! Achoo!"

He sneezed three times in a row, causing him to stumble forward and hit his elbow on the keyboard. He selected all the text on the screen, and then, without knowing which key he pressed, the entire paragraph of text disappeared completely.

Gao Lian stared at the blank document and remained silent for five seconds.

"...Who's insulting me?"

He rubbed his nose and started typing again.

"Achoo!"

One of the keycaps on the keyboard flew off.

Gao Lian stared at the bare keyboard and remained silent for two seconds.

"Erzhuang must be missing me."

……

Harbin, departure level of the airport.

Xia Liuqing sat in the passenger seat of the van, rubbing her aching back and grimacing.

"That kid Cheng really went all out..." he muttered. "This should cover the cost of the scratches on his motorcycle."

Barron parked the car, pulled the handbrake, and turned to look at him: "You can't drive this car either, what are you going to do with it?"

Xia Liuqing waved her hand: "I'll wait for those two little guys, let them drive away."

Barron nodded, opened the car door, picked up his bag, waved with his back turned, walked into the airport, and disappeared into the crowd.

Xia Liuqing watched him go inside, then took out her phone, found a number, and dialed it.

"Hey Lao Liu, help me with a car... Yes, it's near Harbin Airport... All the paperwork is in order, don't worry... Okay, come and drive it away, transfer the money to my account."

After hanging up the phone, Xia Liuqing got out of the car, hailed a taxi, and gave the address of Bingcheng city.

It was already dark when the car entered the city. Xia Liuqing found a hotel near the train station and checked in. She took out her phone and sent a text message to Cheng Mo—

"Young Cheng, say goodbye before you leave."

……

Ice City, Old Li's Home-Style Restaurant.

Xia He placed a piece of sweet and sour pork on Gao Dazhuang's plate and said gently, "Don't think about those unhappy things. Eat meat. Let's eat meat to our hearts' content today."

Gao Dazhuang looked at the mountain of meat piled in his bowl, his expression softening slightly, but he still snorted, "What's the point of just eating meat! I want to drink too!"

She turned and shouted at the counter, "Boss, bring us the best wine!"

The proprietress, wearing an apron, came over, took out two bottles of liquor from under the counter, and placed them on the table.

"Yuquan Liquor, a well-established brand in our Harbin, is made from pure grains and won't give you a headache." She glanced at the three people's expressions and added, "Last time, a girl was heartbroken, and this liquor helped her."

Gao Dazhuang became interested: "That amazing?"

The proprietress said in a serious tone, "Wouldn't it be fine if he got drunk?"

Gao Dazhuang: "..."

Xia He chuckled and took the bottle to pour Gao Dazhuang a drink: "Come on, let's drink until we drop tonight!"

"Drink!" Gao Dazhuang picked up his wine glass, clinked it with Xia He's, and took a big gulp.

That's awesome!

She took another sip.

"Okay!" Xia He refilled her cup, being incredibly diligent.

Gao Dazhuang also drank heavily; after three or five cups, his face turned red.

Gao Dazhuang turned his head and saw Cheng Mo and He Yunchong eating their food in silence, their chopsticks never stopping.

She turned her head and saw Cheng Mo and He Yunchong eating their food in silence, their chopsticks never stopping. She grabbed another bottle of wine from the table and filled their glasses.

"Hey guys, have some more!"

He Yunchong looked at the wine glass in front of him with a troubled expression. His lips moved, as if he wanted to say something but dared not.

Gao Dazhuang slammed his chopsticks on the table: "Not drinking means you're disrespecting me!"

He Yunchong gritted his teeth, closed his eyes, picked up the cup, and downed it in one gulp.

The liquor burned as it went down my throat.

He put down his cup and opened his mouth—

thump.

He Yunchong slammed his head on the table and fell face-first to the ground, dropping his chopsticks.

Gao Dazhuang paused for a second, then slammed his hand on the table and laughed, "Good heavens! You talk like a woman, and you can't even drink as well as an old lady!"

She turned to look at Cheng Mo.

Xia He, quick as a flash, grabbed the glass in front of Cheng Mo, downed it in one gulp, slammed the empty glass on the table, and declared with a flourish: "It's all in the wine!"

Gao Dazhuang gave a thumbs up: "Sister, you're too protective of him. He has you completely under his thumb."

Xia He refilled her glass and clinked glasses with her: "Drink!"

"Drink!" Gao Dazhuang grinned and downed the drink in one gulp.

The two of them took turns drinking, and the two bottles of Yuquan wine were quickly emptied.

Gao Dazhuang shook the empty bottle and shouted at the counter, "Boss! Two more bottles, please!"

The proprietress brought over two more bottles, glanced at He Yunchong slumped on the table, then at the two girls with flushed faces, hesitated, and finally put down the bottles and left.

Halfway through the fourth bottle, Gao Dazhuang's speech started to slur: "Let me tell you... my dad, you know... he's... he's that..."

Xia He wasn't much better off; she was swaying even while sitting, but she still managed to reply, "Which one?"

"It's just..." Gao Dazhuang thought for a long time but couldn't come up with anything. He waved his hand and said, "Never mind, let's drink!"

The two clinked glasses and took another big gulp.

Cheng Mo looked at the two drunken women and shook his head.

He got up, paid at the counter, and when he came back, he lifted He Yunchong off the table. The kid was sleeping like a log, not reacting at all.

"Let's go." Cheng Mo pushed the door open with his shoulder.

Xia He swayed as she stood up, grabbed the table for support, and reached out to pull Gao Dazhuang up. Gao Dazhuang also swayed as he stood up, and the two of them, supporting each other, staggered out like two penguins.

As they left the restaurant, a gust of cold wind made them both shiver. The alcohol was taking effect, their steps became more unsteady, and they hugged each other even tighter.

Cheng Mo carried He Yunchong, looked around, and saw a hotel across the street. He raised his chin and said, "Over there."

Three people—or more accurately, one carrying another and two supporting each other—staggered across the road and entered the hotel lobby.

The receptionist's lips twitched at the sight of the commotion, but she still quickly processed the check-in.

Three rooms.

Cheng Mo tossed He Yunchong into one of the rooms. The boy got off the bed, turned over, and continued sleeping.

Cheng Mo came out and, together with Xia He, helped Gao Dazhuang into another room.

Xia He staggered as she helped Gao Dazhuang take off his shoes and covered him with a blanket.

Gao Dazhuang turned over, mumbled something under his breath, and fell fast asleep.

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