Chapter 656: Chapter 627: Sudden Incident
Xu Chunliang said, "I’ve never met your daughter, and I don’t even know if I can cure her. Since you mentioned Hua Zhuyue, I’ll promise to do my best. As for the consultation fee, forget it. I’ve never really cared much about money."
Ji Buyao looked at Xu Chunliang, nodded, and said, "Thank you!" His gaze returned to the fish tank, staring at the sharks swimming back and forth, he whispered, "Do you know? Sharks don’t get cancer."
Recalling how he had just mentioned that his wife died of cancer ten years ago, Xu Chunliang thought, no wonder he keeps so many sharks; perhaps he envies these ancient and fierce creatures. Could it be that Ji Buyao is trying to discover a cancer cure from them?
Ji Buyao said, "In fact, human life is the most fragile in this world."
Xu Chunliang smiled lightly and said, "You can’t generalize. The strong remain strong, and the weak remain weak."
Ji Buyao said, "The strong remain strong?" He nodded, "Yes, in this world, no one has sympathy for the weak."
He handed Xu Chunliang a pre-prepared photo, "My daughter."
Xu Chunliang took the photo and saw a short-haired girl in a school uniform, looking about thirteen or fourteen years old, pure and lovely, with large, lively eyes.
Xu Chunliang said, "Your daughter is still a middle school student?"
Ji Buyao said, "Her name is Ji Jiajia, she is fifteen this year, and she has been studying abroad. Three months ago, she suddenly learned about her illness and was greatly shocked, so... she chose to leave school."
Xu Chunliang said, "Are you letting her wander around outside?"
Ji Buyao sighed and said, "I’ve sent people to find her, but this child doesn’t want to come back."
Xu Chunliang keenly sensed something and whispered, "Is there a conflict between you and your daughter?"
Ji Buyao nodded and said, "She believes that all the tragedies in our family were caused by me, so she resists me a lot as her father."
Xu Chunliang thought to himself, physical illnesses can be treated, but psychological issues are hard to resolve.
Ji Buyao said, "My daughter is smart and clever, but she’s too stubborn. Once she sets her mind on something, not even ten oxen can pull her back."
Xu Chunliang said, "It’s the age of blossoming youth, the best time in life. Suddenly finding out she has a terminal illness would definitely be hard to accept."
Ji Buyao said, "You see me now, and because of my health, I’ve already decided to retire. Sooner or later, everything will have to be handed over to my daughter, but she has her own issues..." He sighed deeply, his expression rather desolate.
Xu Chunliang could empathize with his feelings. Ji Buyao, as the Sect Leader of the Orchid Sect, owns such a large company like Blue Star Entertainment, with a net worth easily estimated in the billions. Although he possesses wealth and status that people envy, he is actually plagued by family separation and bodily ailments. It would be bearable if it were just him, but his daughter also suffers from a terminal illness.
This was the first meeting between Xu Chunliang and Ji Buyao. Though Xu Chunliang didn’t know much about Ji Buyao, he felt sympathy for his situation but refrained from saying much. For Hua Zhuyue’s sake, agreeing to help diagnose his daughter’s illness was already doing him a big favor.
Ji Buyao said, "I’ll have a word with He Dong and let the Sun Family know not to trouble you anymore."
Xu Chunliang originally didn’t even fear the Sun Family. It was already generous enough that he didn’t actively seek them out. If Sun Weidong dared to cause trouble for him again, he certainly wouldn’t settle it as simply as sending a few people to support him as Huang Daxian did last time.
Ji Buyao said, "Want to watch the fish being fed?"
Before Xu Chunliang could answer, Ji Buyao pressed a button. The giant fish tank was highly automated, equipped with the latest technology feeding system. Medium-sized sea fish were released into the tank, and dozens of sharks simultaneously began to move, each opening their bloodthirsty mouths, starting their feast.
Ji Buyao said softly, "It’s always been the law of the jungle. Do you find the way sharks hunt their prey to be beautiful?"
Xu Chunliang looked at the fierce sharks in the tank; he didn’t see any beauty in this bloody hunt.
Ji Buyao’s eyes shone with a fervent light, "I wonder what it feels like to die in the jaws of a shark?"
Xu Chunliang spent about an hour with Ji Buyao, and when he left, Ji Buyao gave him a VIP card. With this card, he could enjoy free services at any nightclub or bar under Blue Star Group. Currently, only Ji Buyao had the authority to issue such a card, even Hua Zhuyue didn’t have it.
Hua Zhuyue had been waiting outside for Xu Chunliang. When she saw him come out, she greeted him, "Was the conversation smooth?"
Xu Chunliang smiled, "I’ll talk about it after we leave."
The two left Blue Star Building. It was raining outside, and Hua Zhuyue drove Xu Chunliang to the Beijing Office.
Xu Chunliang told Hua Zhuyue the reason Ji Buyao wanted to meet him.
Hua Zhuyue was taken aback upon hearing this. She had never mentioned Xu Chunliang’s medical skills to Ji Buyao, and Ji Buyao had never brought up the matter before inviting Xu Chunliang over tonight. She felt it necessary to explain to Xu Chunliang.
Xu Chunliang laughed, "Sister Hua, there’s no need to explain. I understand you, you’re a very discreet person."
Hua Zhuyue glanced at him and said, "How do you know?"
Xu Chunliang said, "Even the fact that President Ji’s legs are disabled, you didn’t mention to me."
Hua Zhuyue said, "Very few people outside know about this matter. Ever since he had both legs amputated, he has become reclusive, and he’s not as concerned about Blue Star’s business as he used to be. Now that I think about it, his temperament really has changed a lot over the years."
Xu Chunliang asked, "Have you ever met his daughter, Ji Jiajia?"
Hua Zhuyue replied, "I met her when she was little, a pretty well-behaved girl, but she has always been studying overseas. I don’t know much about her, and I didn’t know she was ill."
Xu Chunliang said, "I always thought he treated you like a daughter. From the looks of it, he has a lot of things he’s keeping from you."
Hua Zhuyue laughed and said, "Although I’m the Vice President of Blue Star Group, I’m mainly responsible for the business in the East China Region. Blue Star Group is primarily divided into two major divisions, one is the Greater China Region, and the other is overseas. Even within the Greater China Region, I’m just an executor—the major policies are still formulated by President Ji."
Xu Chunliang said, "He gave me a somewhat downcast feeling."
Hua Zhuyue said, "President Ji had deep feelings for his wife. Since her passing, he has had a drastic change in personality. Blue Star’s slow development in recent years is related to his lack of enthusiasm, otherwise, there wouldn’t be a chance for He Dong."
Recalling the events of the evening, Xu Chunliang couldn’t help but find Ji Buyao’s behavior peculiar.
Returning to the Dongzhou Restaurant, he happened to encounter Zhou Deming bringing Zhen Chun back after they had spent the entire day out.
Seeing Xu Chunliang, both of them appeared somewhat embarrassed. Zhen Chun greeted him as cousin and hurried into the hotel with her head down.
Zhou Deming explained to Xu Chunliang that he had accompanied Zhen Chun to the Global Theme Park today.
Seeing Zhou Deming’s smug expression, Xu Chunliang knew things were going smoothly between him and Zhen Chun, so he patted Zhou Deming’s shoulder and said, "I’ve been busy these two days; you should spend more time with my cousin."
Zhou Deming nodded repeatedly.
Hua Zhuyue said, "I should head back as well, President Ji asked me to return, he has things to discuss with me."
Xu Chunliang reminded her to take care of her health.
Standing beside Xu Chunliang, Zhou Deming watched Hua Zhuyue leave, then said, "You sure have a lot of friends."
Xu Chunliang turned to Zhou Deming, who quickly explained, "Bro, I didn’t mean anything by it, just that your social skills are impressive. Even my grandmother tells me to learn from you."
Xu Chunliang replied grumpily, "Don’t call me bro, you don’t need to learn from me, you’ve already won over my cousin."
Zhou Deming’s face turned red, "No, we’ve just started."
Xu Chunliang said, "Aren’t you heading back? Or are you planning to hang around my room tonight?"
Zhou Deming said, "I’m planning to head back to school."
Just then, Zhen Chun came running out with an umbrella for Zhou Deming and handed him a bag, which contained a gift she brought back for him from Xiangjiang.
Seeing this, Xu Chunliang felt a bit jealous and envious. Girls tend to gravitate outwards, and Zhen Chun was no exception; she had quickly put her cousin on the sidelines.
Since Xu Chunliang was there, Zhou Deming didn’t stay long. He hailed a car and left quickly, telling Zhen Chun to rest well and that he’d come to pick her up in the morning before he left.
Seeing the two of them part so reluctantly, Xu Chunliang couldn’t help but ask, "Zhou Deming, don’t you have class tomorrow?"
Zhou Deming laughed and said, "I took a leave, bro, I’m leaving now, I’m leaving now."
Zhen Chun stood at the door, waving goodbye to him with reluctance.
Xu Chunliang said, "Go inside, it’s windy and rainy out here."
Zhen Chun linked arms with him and walked into the lobby, whispering to him to keep her visit to the Capital City a secret from her mom, as she planned to take a flight back tomorrow night.
Xu Chunliang told her not to be in such a hurry, to enjoy herself since she was here. It was her first time in the Capital City, and it was a good chance to appreciate the vast landscapes of the country and strengthen her patriotic education. It would be best to see the flag-raising ceremony and enhance her national pride.
Zhen Chun’s face was flushed, she had already planned with Zhou Deming to see the flag-raising the next morning.
Xu Chunliang never expected that his meeting with Ji Buyao tonight would be the last one.
At four in the morning, a rapid knocking at the door jolted Xu Chunliang awake. Peeking through the peephole, he saw two stern-looking police officers.
Xu Chunliang had been visited by the police at the Dongzhou Restaurant before, and this time was no exception.
He opened the door and invited them in. After showing their identification, the officers gave him some shocking news: Ji Buyao was missing, and his wheelchair had been found in a fish tank. Since Xu Chunliang had met with Ji Buyao last night, the police came to inquire about the situation.
