What happened the night before was only known to a handful of people as it had not been spread around for all people to know. After Qin Sheng returned to Thomson Golf Resort, Xue Hao had sent him a simple message of thanks and Qin Sheng did not even reply the message although it did bring a smile to his face.
At the beginning of autumn, Shanghai was usually wet and cloudy. Qin Sheng did not like the rain, especially the autumn rain because it somehow brought with it a melancholy atmosphere. It often made Qin Sheng tired and sleepy. He preferred snowy weather. The kind of snow storm he used to experience in Zhongnan Mountains would never happen in Shanghai. No one else would be fond of the snow in Zhongnana Mountains.
Looking out at the rain from Shangshan Ruoshui gave Qin Sheng the feeling of nostalgia as Ms Cheongsam walked on the pebble path under an umbrella. It was like a beautiful painting of a scene in the era of the Republic of China.
Chen Xiangyang appeared to have been waiting for Qin Sheng all along. He looked to have lost weight. He was wearing a sullen look on his face and had dark circles under his eyes. He waited for Qin Sheng to approach and coldly said to him, “Qin Sheng, I would like to have a word with you.”
Qin Sheng did not turn him down but followed him to a gazebo in the middle of the garden. Chen Xiangyang then offered Qin Sheng a cigarette. Chen Xiangyang had originally come from Sunan and was fond of smoking the Sunan cigarette.
Qin Sheng politely lit the cigarette for the both of them and said, “Is anything the matter, Brother Chen?”
“Nothing really. Being the security manager, I would like to hear if you have any good suggestions for me, since you’ve been here for a while?” Chen Xiangyang had wisely started the conversation with this topic, which sounded amicable.
Qin Sheng did not want to be the one to breach the topic, so he smiled and replied, “Honestly, I’m not knowledgeable in this area, therefore I don’t have any good suggestions. On the other hand, the security of Shangshan Ruoshui had opened my eyes.”
“I guess you are quite adapted to working in Shangshan Ruoshui,” Chen Xiangyang said, nodding his head and wearing a smile simultaneously. From time to time, Chen Xiangyang would scan the surrounding to make sure that no one else was there watching them.
“Brother Chen, I rather enjoy working here. There is nowhere else that offer such attractive remuneration and welfare package as Shangshan Ruoshui.”
“That’s good to know,” Chen Xiangyang said, still smiling. However, he did not know how to bring up the topic of what happened the day before.
Qin Sheng became quiet and the atmosphere turned awkward. Finally, Chen Xiangyang could not hold it any longer and said, “Qin Sheng, let me get to the point. It was Manager Xu who asked me to come speak to you. Last night, he and I were talking about some confidential matters when you passed by. Did you happen to hear anything?”
As he spoke, Chen Xiangyang looked intently at Qin Sheng, trying to figure out if what he was going say was sincere. Qin Sheng was dazed for a moment and acting as if he suddenly remembered something, he said, “Oh, Brother Chen, are you referring to last night when I bumped into you and Manager while I was going to send Master Xue home?”
“Ahem,” Chen Xiangyang replied softly.
Qin Sheng continued, “At that time, Master Xue and I were discussing what we were going to have for dinner because he was going to treat me to a meal. I didn’t hear a thing you two were discussing. You may check with Master Xue if you like.”
“Really? So you didn’t overhear anything?” Chen Xiangyang asked, not totally taken in by what Qin Sheng said.
Qin Sheng firmly repeated, “I really didn’t hear a thing.”
Chen Xiangyang continue to look intently at Qin Sheng for a while, until Qin Sheng became uneasy. Finally, Chen Xiangyang said, “Qin Sheng, I’m not sure what you say is the truth. It’ll be great if you didn’t pick up anything, otherwise, please keep whatever you overheard to yourself. You don’t want to invite any trouble.”
“Why, Brother Chen, do you think I’m lying? I truly didn’t hear anything. At that time, you two were standing so far away,” Qin Sheng tried to explained further.
“Alright, I get it. You may go,” Chen Xiangyang did not want to delve further into this. He waved his hand to dismiss Qin Sheng.
Qin Sheng felt a burden fell from his shoulder and hurried off. In his mind, he thought that if Chen Xiangyang continue to behave like this, he would one day be thrown out of Shangshan Ruoshui. He better keep his distance from Chen Xiangyang to be safe.
Chen Xiangyang had to be talking nonsense when he said Xu Lancheng was the one who sent him to speak to Qin Sheng. Xu Lancheng had even wanted to tell on Chen Xiangyang, so it was impossible for him to want to speak to Qin Sheng. Xu Lancheng must have known that Chen Xiangyang would approach Qin Sheng for questioning.
There was no doubt that both drugs and gambling would ruin a person. Chen Xiangyang had been treated so well in Shangshan Ruoshui, not only could he to enjoy a large human resource network, he was blessed with a good remuneration package. Unfortunately, he chose to tread the wayward path.
After Qin Sheng went to the office and changed into work clothes, he bumped into Ms. An, who was as attractive as always. Qin Sheng thought she must be the dream woman of many men in Shangshan Ruoshui.
“Qin Sheng, you gave me a scare last night. I thought something serious had happened,” Ms. An patted Qin Sheng on his chest and said with an alluring voice.
Instantly, Qin Sheng could feel the hairs on his entire body standing up. “How did Ms. An know about that?” he said.
“It was Manager Xu who told me about it. When we tried calling you, you didn’t pick up the phone. Don’t do this again, ya?”
Qin Sheng chuckled and replied, “Yes, Ms. An. I’ll make sure to come immediately if you call me next time.”
“That’s more like it. Nevertheless, I heard you’re quite capable. You were able to resist eight men single-handedly! I think you are very suitable to be part of our security department. In fact, you can become the security manager straight away,” Ms. An joked.
Qin Sheng chuckled and said, “Are you sure you bear to let me go, Ms. An?”
“Of course I can’t bear to let you go!” Ms. An said, bending forward and exhaled onto Qin Sheng.
Qin Sheng was not match for this seasoned lady, he thought he keep his distance and quickly said, “I’m going to start work now, Ms. An.”
Qin Sheng, feeling embarrassed, quickly got up to go, leaving behind a simpering Ms. An. This is where the young man is different from a young woman.
The following two days were a breeze for Qin Sheng. He continued to be Lyu Yuan’s understudy and was able to pick up everything quickly because of his exceptional capabilities. Ms. An continued to be very generous with her compliments towards him. Qin Sheng’s knowledge on Fengshui coupled with his knowledge in antiques, had enabled him to skillfully design and decorate the interior of Shangshan Ruoshui’s building in a tasteful way. A member who was a professional was especially impressed with Qin Sheng’s design of a set of jade decorations on top of a water feature. Thinking that Shangshan Ruoshuo must have engaged a designer to do this, he inquired about it only to find that Qin Sheng was merely a normal employee there. Needless to say, he was greatly impressed by Qin Sheng’s talent and this high profile success had resulted in people gossiping about him.
Sunday was Qin Sheng’s day off from work. He and the rest helped Han Bing move her belongings back to the Ninth Mile Huarun Wantan. Thereafter, they also packed up their belongings and moved to their new residence. It was a three-room apartment on high floor, located within the Shilin Hauyuan district, along Fuxing East Road. It was a much-desired location and the apartment had a fantastic view. In addition, it was easily accessible to both Ninth Mile Huarun Wantan and Sinan Road. What was even better was that the rent was only 8000RMB. It was all because it belonged to Han Bing’s friend. Despite all these, Qin Sheng thought the rental in Shanghai was still sky-high.
Han Bing happened to be free so she helped Qin Sheng and the rest to clean up the place. Working cooperatively, they managed to tidy up the entire apartment in two hours, after which they went to the supermarket to buy the daily necessities. By the time everything was settled, it was already evening time.
Han Bing had initially planned on going for a celebration meal for their move, but Qin Sheng suggested that he whip up a meal for them all. Han Bing was surprised that Qin Sheng could even cook.
While Han Bing offered to help out, Qin Sheng insisted that she was not to enter the kitchen at all. The three man busied themselves in the kitchen preparing dinner, while Han Bing eventually just sat in on the sofa to watch television.
While in the kitchen, Hao Lei stole a glance at Han Bing who possessed a great figure and dressed in sports clothes, said to Qin Sheng, “Old Qin, isn’t it obvious that Miss Han is very fond of you? Why don’t you just go along, so two of us can enjoy a comfortable life with you?”
All thanks to Qin Sheng for turning this Miss Han, the once willful girl, into someone like a virtuous wife.
Qin Sheng widened his eyes and said, “You rascal, I only sell my skills not my body.”
“You are playing hard to get, not knowing to treasure what has dropped on you. It would be near impossible to find a wife like Miss Han. You should take a look at yourself! You are lucky that she doesn’t look down on you,” Hao Lei was displeased with Qin Sheng’s stupidity.
Chang Baji, not wanting to left out, joined in and said, “Hao Lei is right. Han Bing is a good girl. Honestly, the two of you are quite compatible.”
“Brother Chang, I don’t want to think about this right now. Let’s talk about it some other time,” Qin Sheng shook his head and smiled. Stealing a glance at Han Bing too, Qin Sheng realized that Han Bing grew her hair long since Qin Sheng commented that he liked long hair. However, she did not look very different as it took time for the hair to grow long. Frankly speaking, Qin Sheng did not wish that Han Bing would make changes to herself in order to please others. She already looked gorgeous with shoulder-length hair.
Han Bing could sense someone’s eyes on her and when she turned towards the kitchen, Qin Sheng’s eyes met hers and he smiled at her. Immediately, Han Bing blushed and quickly looked away towards the television.
After an hour, the three men finally finished preparing the food, which consisted six dishes and a soup. In fact, Qin Sheng was the main chef while Chang Baji and Hao Lei were merely helping.
“Wow, did you really prepare all these?” Han Bing exclaimed excitedly as she looked at the delicious looking food on the table.
Hao Lei proudly answered, “Of course, you can come here often for meals, since Qin Sheng is usually quite free after he comes home from work.”
“Am I welcomed here?” Han Bing said, giving Qin Sheng a deliberate look.
Chang Baji cheekily said, “You will be the only girl who is welcomed here, no other girls will be welcomed.”
What Chang Baji really meant to say was, “Be at ease, we will keep an eye on Qin Sheng for you. We will make sure he does not bring any other girls home.”
After the four of them took the seats, Qin Sheng only drank orange juice as he would be driving Han Bing home later on. Han Bing joined Chang Baji and Hao Lei in drinking some beer. She opened the can of beer and toasted the rest saying, “Welcome to your new house. May your days get better. Cheers!”
“Thank you, here’s wishing you to become even more beautiful, cheers!”
“Cheers!”
Everyone was in high spirits at them chatted. Han Bing was getting used to the atmosphere. She treated Qin Sheng’s friends as her own and there was no differentiation of superiors and subordinates among them. Honestly, she did not have many true friends. In fact, after the passing of her father, the number friends around her dwindled. It was then she realized that the cruel reality of human relationships. However, she was not beaten by disappointment but accepted all these without murmuring. She knew that human life was not all plain sailing and it was natural to meet with setbacks in life.
After dinner, Chang Baji and Hao Lei knowingly offered to do the dishes so they could give Qin Sheng time to talk to Han Bing. Qin Sheng really admired the effort the two were putting in to set Han Bing and him up.
Han Bing’s cheeks were flushed after drinking beer, and her eyes were misty. She did not try to hide her gaze at Qin Sheng and the atmosphere turned romantic. Qin Sheng could not take it and left Han Bing to watch the television while he went into the bedroom to set up his bed.
To his surprise, Han Bing followed him into the room and suddenly put her arms around Qin Sheng’s waist and put her face on his back. Could it be the alcohol she drank? Or was she doing this deliberately?
At this moment in time, Qin Sheng was totally stunned.
