KN | Chapter 37

Dragonfly on the Palm

“…Yes.” Chen Wan did not know whether he had asked that on purpose. He felt a little embarrassed, but there was still a quiet sense of happiness in his heart.

Mind the boundaries, Chen Wan warned himself silently.

The Da Hong Pao cigarette was already reduced to a short stub. Zhao Shengge pressed it out, and suddenly a hand reached out in front of him, palm facing up.

“?”

Chen Wan said naturally, “Give it to me, I’ll throw it away.” There was no trash can outside, and holding it the whole time was inconvenient.

“…”

Zhao Shengge often found himself surprised by Chen Wan’s instinct for service. How did he manage to do so many things so naturally and without the slightest self-consciousness?

Although the cigarette butt was already almost cool by the end, Zhao Shengge still gave a faintly helpless sigh and lightly brushed his hand aside, saying, “No need.”

Chen Wan felt a small jolt in his heart. It was as if a dragonfly had skimmed across his palm, before he could catch it, it had already flown away.

On the way back, the two of them walked separately again.

Chen Wan stayed behind to make a phone call.

Before coming out, Song Qingmiao had called him once, and he had not returned it yet.

“Baby, has the doctor made rounds yet?”

She was not asking out of concern for Chen Wan’s condition. She simply had something she wanted to say.

“Is it convenient for you to talk now?”

Chen Wan pressed his lips together. He did not say that he had already been discharged for several days and was currently attending a recovery celebration party. He only said, “It’s convenient. Go ahead.”

Song Qingmiao lowered her voice, revealing a major piece of confidential business information.

“Two days ago, Rongxin’s scattered shares were bought up. Xie Jiajian said that those small shareholders from Fangyang have been contacting him. Baby, how much cash can you take out right now—”

“You went to see Xie Jiajian again?”

Song Qingmiao froze for a moment, as if she had not expected Chen Wan to focus on this point, and even question her about it. Embarrassment turned into anger.

“Chen Wan, I am your mother. Do I need to report to you and get your approval for whoever I meet? Do you even understand respecting your elders?”

Chen Wan pressed his lips into a thin line. He wanted to ask whether she respected herself at all, but he held it back. He took a deep breath, his tone easing, both persuasion and warning.

“You’re seeking gain from a tiger, playing with fire and burning yourself. Xie Jiajian is not upright. He’s all honeyed words and false intentions. You won’t be able to outplay him.”

Song Qingmiao dismissed it. “Fine, I won’t ask him for help. Then you help me acquire Rongxin’s shares.”

Chen Wan could not understand it at all. “Why are you so fixated on Rongxin?” He took a hard drag of his cigarette, forcing the air out of his lungs. “If you want something else, I can help you. This, no.”

Unable to get money from her son, Song Qingmiao lashed out with a few sharp insults before hanging up in anger.

Chen Wan felt uneasy. He arranged for people to secretly keep a close watch on her accounts and on Xie Jiajian’s movements.

After adjusting his mood for a while, he walked back.

Another round of tea had already been served. Jiang Ying was talking about a “red-headed” project bidding he had heard about from a clan uncle.

He asked Zhao Shengge, “Minglong has no intention? The Li family and the Qin family are both holding back, waiting for you to make a move. They’re preparing for a price war, and they injected foreign capital very early. Now that the exchange rate is rising, they are determined to win.”

Zhao Shengge looked up at Chen Wan, who had just pushed the door open and walked in, and said calmly, “No rush.”

He did not like to act rashly. He preferred to let the prey come to him on its own.

If the other party did not know how to come, he could lay out the road and steps for them, guiding them bit by bit, hand in hand.

But if the other party was unwilling to come…

Zhao Shengge leaned back against the chair, turned his wristwatch, and his gaze grew faintly regretful and obscure.

If they did not know how, he could teach them. But if they were unwilling to come, then he would have to use his own methods.

You had better be willing.

When Chen Wan sat down beside him, he noticed Zhao Shengge was looking at him. Chen Wan smiled slightly and refilled Zhao Shengge’s teacup.

Zhao Shengge also returned a courteous smile.

You had better be willing, Zhao Shengge repeated in his heart.

At the end, Zhuo Zhixuan left in Chen Wan’s car.

Everyone had been drinking, so the driver was the one behind the wheel.

Zhuo Zhixuan said, “The people who rammed your car have already been caught.”

“Is that so?”

“Mm. They were arrested on a visa-free island.”

Chen Wan nodded. “That’s good.” That way, he would not have to constantly worry about Zhao Shengge’s safety.

Zhuo Zhixuan fell silent for a few seconds, then suddenly turned his head.

“I heard Zhao Shengge took them directly from the police.”

At present, no one knew the specifics. Whether they were still alive, how they were being dealt with, no one knew anything.

Chen Wan still only nodded, not paying much attention. For him, as long as they were caught, that was enough.

“…”
Seeing his lack of reaction, Zhuo Zhixuan said bluntly, “Chen Wan, I think something’s off.”

“What?”

“Even if he’s had ties with the police for many years, just taking people away like that…”

“That’s not in line with the rules.”

“He rarely makes a move personally. These people aren’t worth it. Going through so much trouble over a few obvious hired gunmen is no different from alerting the enemy,” Zhuo Zhixuan looked at him quietly. “He has no reason to do this, unless—”

Chen Wan was busy looking at his phone.

Zhao Shengge had been sitting next to him tonight, and he had been reluctant to waste even a moment on his phone. Now a backlog of work messages had piled up.

From partners, subordinates, collaborators, one after another waiting for his reply.

Zhuo Zhixuan did not get a response from him, so he finished the sentence himself.

“Unless it’s to vent anger for you.”

Chen Wan replied to messages rapidly with his head lowered, and said, “No.”

“…Aren’t you being a bit preconceived? I’m serious.”

He felt that something about Zhao Shengge was off, and not just this matter. But he could not pinpoint exactly what. Zhao Shengge had never been someone easy to read.

Zhuo Zhixuan did not know about the twists and turns between the two in private. In public, Zhao Shengge and Chen Wan were more polite and distant than anyone else.

Even tonight, when Chen Wan served soup and lit cigarettes for him, he was respectful to the point that it seemed like he was dealing with an unfamiliar superior.

Even when they went out to talk on the terrace, they went out and came back separately. Chen Wan deliberately lagged half a step behind Zhao Shengge.

Others might not even notice that they had gone out together, let alone think anything further.

Zhuo Zhixuan only felt that after that day in the hospital room, Zhao Shengge had become a bit more human. At least now Chen Wan could speak to him directly.

Zhuo Zhixuan kept urging him with his gaze. Only then did Chen Wan put down his phone and explain.

“He’s looking for Hong Qi’s whereabouts and leverage. That’s very important for the offshore oil project Minglong is taking over. Baihetang has a massive network behind it. It involves many people and a lot of confidential business information.”

Zhuo Zhixuan looked at him suspiciously. “How do you know?”

Chen Wan briefly told him about Zhao Shengge suggesting he participate in the bidding, and summarized:

“Zhao Shengge attaches great importance to this project. Any clue is important. Since those gunmen could track Miss Xu’s movements, it means they have an insider. These hired gunmen are all hardened types. They’ve been in and out of detention countless times. If the police interrogate them, they can’t use torture. There’s no way to pry their mouths open.”

But with Zhao Shengge’s methods, he would always be able to extract seven or eight parts out of ten.

Unexpectedly, Zhuo Zhixuan’s eyes widened even further. Countless thoughts surged through his mind, but in the end they condensed into a single sentence.

“Chen Wan, are you really not going to try?”

“Try wh—” Chen Wan reacted, and without hesitation said, “No.”

Zhuo Zhixuan said, “He trusts you. At the very least, he doesn’t dislike you.”

Chen Wan nodded, picked up his phone again, and returned to work.

“So don’t let down his trust.”

The more trust one receives, the more one must restrain oneself.

“…”

Zhuo Zhixuan was almost driven to frustration by his rigidity. “No, I just think, now that you can talk to him…”

Chen Wan was quiet for a moment, then shook his head.

“I’ve already gotten far more than I originally expected.”

But none of it was something he should have had.

It felt like something stolen.

He had never imagined that he would one day have the chance to become Zhao Shengge’s partner.

And Zhao Shengge was not someone he could afford to risk.

Chen Wan said it to Zhuo Zhixuan, but also as a warning to himself.

“Not provoking him is better for him.”

They were worlds apart, separated by an unbridgeable gulf. Zhao Shengge belonged to a world with its own standards and a bright, celebrated path.

Chen Wan was covered in mud. He had struggled up the ladder step by step, not so that Zhao Shengge would be dragged down into stains and trouble.

Zhuo Zhixuan did not know what to say. Still unwilling to let go of his intuition, he simply asked, “What if he comes after you himself?”

“…”
“You don’t have to comfort me like that, do you?”

Chen Wan rubbed the bridge of his nose with a helpless laugh, clearly not taking such fanciful words seriously. He patted his friend on the shoulder.

“If something that good really happens, I’ll be the first to treat you to a drink.”

“…”

Chen Wan was a very democratic partner. As soon as he returned, he gathered his senior partner and technical team to hold a meeting about the offshore oil project collaboration.

Everyone was excited when they heard the news.

Chen Wan smiled wryly. “It’s indeed an opportunity, but the challenge is also very real. If we go ahead with it, when the overtime comes, you’re not allowed to curse me.”

“We won’t, boss. This is Minglong.”

Being involved in a project of this scale was no different from gilding one’s resume.

The bids Minglong released this time were aimed at high-end, specialized small companies. Large enterprises were harder to control, while small companies or lab-style teams had simpler structures and personnel relationships. Minglong wanted to keep a tight grip on technological control.

Kexiang met the bidding requirements, but if Zhao Shengge had not brought it up, Chen Wan would not have gone for it.

But since Zhao Shengge suggested it, it meant he truly needed someone reliable and trustworthy right now.

Chen Wan was willing to do anything Zhao Shengge needed.

There would never be anyone in this world more loyal to Zhao Shengge than him.

As long as Chen Wan decided to do something, he would accomplish it by any means necessary.

That number, which he knew by heart so well he could recite it in reverse, was still never dialed.

Chen Wan became so busy that he once again disappeared from the young masters’ gatherings for quite a long time.

Zhao Shengge did not call to ask. He did not ask Tan Youming, nor Zhuo Zhixuan.

He knew in his heart that Chen Wan had already accepted his proposal.

Zhao Shengge’s suggestion that Chen Wan try bidding was not entirely out of personal motives.

The project carried enormous benefits and involved too many connections. Compared to capital, technology, reserves, and experience, what Zhao Shengge valued more was loyalty.

He trusted Chen Wan’s character. But when he said he would not interfere, he meant it.

If Kexiang could not pass the third-party evaluation team, Zhao Shengge would not show favoritism. What should happen would happen.

There would always be other opportunities to collaborate in the future.