Rebirth 1977 Great Era

Chapter 1114 Spying on someone in the middle of the night: Really rich or just pretending to be wealthy? (Bonus chapter for monthly votes: 3K chapters)

At 10 p.m., the gathering at Fang Yan's house ended. Many people had drunk alcohol, so Fang Yan arranged for them to rest at home. However, the third and fourth senior brothers said that they had to attend a meeting the next morning, and since it was relatively far away, they still planned to go back. But there were no buses running at that time.

So Lao Hu asked his bodyguard Lao Cui to drive them back.

As for the others, after washing up in their local dialect, they were arranged to stay in their accommodations.

"Is it alright for Master and Grandpa Xie to sleep together?" Zhu Lin asked Fang Yan as soon as he came out of the study.

"No problem, don't worry," Fang Yan said to his wife.

The two got along quite well, so they were arranged to be together.

After everyone else had finished making arrangements, Fang Yan went to wash up. Before he even entered the bathroom, he heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it? Is it Old Cui who's back?" Zhu Lin asked Fang Yan from the side.

"It won't be that fast, I'll go check." Fang Yan said to Zhu Lin, then went to the front yard. At this moment, her brother-in-law had already come out of the house. He was also there to see who was knocking on the door so late.

"Who is it!" Fang Yan stood by the wall, using it to shield himself, and called out towards the door.

Although the courtyard house is located in the center of the capital, it's still best to be careful. If someone comes and shoots at you from behind, they can easily take two shots through the door, and no one can withstand that.

"Open the door, cousin! I'm here!" He Shujie's voice rang out from outside the door.

"I'll go open the door," brother-in-law Zhao Yuanchao said to Fang Yan.

When the door opened, the eldest cousin, He Shujie, was standing alone outside. He smiled at Fang Yan and said:

"Hey, I knew you guys weren't asleep yet, so I came over to give you a heads-up."

"You just finished eating?" Fang Yan asked He Shujie.

"No, I finished eating an hour ago. I went home first and then rode my bike here."

Fang Yan said to him:
"You've worked hard, please come inside."

"Okay, okay!" He Shujie nodded repeatedly.

He led him into the main hall, and Fang Yan told Zhu Lin to go and rest first, while he and his brother-in-law could entertain him here.

"Here, have some water." Fang Yan poured He Shujie a cup of tea.

He Shujie stood up, smiled, took the gift with both hands, took a sip, and said with a smile:
"Hehe, thanks, cousin. I ate quite a lot today, and my mouth was really dry."

After finishing his drink, he smacked his lips:
"Tsk tsk, excellent tea!"

"Take some back with you later," Fang Yan said to him.

He Shujie immediately beamed with joy:

"Oh, that's great!"

Fang Yan smiled. This guy wouldn't come without a bribe. Fang Yan said to him:
"Alright, cousin, don't be so polite. It's getting late, and your wife is waiting for you to go home. Let's get down to business!"

"Okay, sure." He Shujie nodded to Fang Yan.

Then he licked his lips and said with a chuckle:

“Brother, you didn’t see that scene! When we went back and told them that your family has military leaders, Fourth Grandfather’s face fell halfway down on the spot! His son, He Jingwei, was even more ruthless!”

He sipped his tea and imitated He Jingwei's stern face.

"He kept muttering to himself with a dark face. Although I couldn't understand or hear what he was saying, I knew it wasn't anything nice. The women in his family even covered their mouths with handkerchiefs and laughed. I guess they were annoyed that your second uncle didn't even recognize sea cucumbers. Later, when ordering food, he even taught his son to take some of the cheapest Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor). Later, your fourth grandfather couldn't stand it anymore and scolded them!"

At this point, He Shujie spat and said:

“They clearly look down on us, and they think it's a loss that they invited us instead of you.”

Fang Yan frowned and asked:
"They were being so obvious? Didn't your great-uncle stop them?"

He Shujie leaned closer, his eyes sparkling, and said:
“Stop him! Fourth Grandfather coughed several times, and He Jingwei shut up at that moment.”

But his son and daughter-in-law were completely unruly! Later, He Jingwei even cursed at people in English behind their backs, saying something I couldn't understand, but those few words were definitely not nice.

"Later, when they saw that we ordered a lot of food, they couldn't stand it anymore."

"I think Fourth Grandfather is trying to play the good cop and act like a kind elder, but He Jingwei is the one who is really anxious."

"I feel like he's the one who's paying for this dinner, and he's more anxious than anyone else that he couldn't invite you."

"On the contrary, Fourth Grandfather and the others didn't seem to be in a hurry."

"Judging from my guess, it seems like he's afraid of not being able to deliver on his promises to anyone! He should be the one returning to the country with a mission, while the old man seems to be his assistant."

"I noticed when it was time to pay the bill that He Jingwei was paying, but my fourth grandfather didn't pay any attention to it."

"That must have broken his heart... But my second uncle's family is really greedy; they even packed two bottles of Moutai when they left..."

“Our family just cleaned up the leftovers and packed up some snacks; we weren’t as greedy as him.”

I'm speechless at the dialect. It's like the crow dislikes the pig for being black, isn't it?
However, on the other hand, his information revealed a crucial point: He You might not be the mastermind, but rather He Jingwei. He Shujie wiped his mouth and added another key piece of information:
“During the meal, when He Jingwei and his wife were whispering to each other, I heard them mention ‘secret prescription’ several times! It was exactly the same word I overheard at the restaurant during the day! This family came for the family’s ancestral recipe that you have!”

Fang Yan smiled and said to He Shujie:
"As expected... we still have to rely on you, cousin!"

He Shujie rubbed his hands together and smiled at Fang Yan:

"Hehe, I knew those guys were up to no good. I knew they were going to harm you, so as your cousin, I had to keep an eye on them for you!"

"There's no one else in the family who can take care of things."

"Speaking of which, the funniest thing was my second uncle! They'd been looking down on him for a while, and he still stupidly patted He Jingwei on the shoulder and said, 'Brother, don't just chat, order another squirrel fish!' Hahaha, you wouldn't believe how green He Jingwei's face turned, but he had to bite the bullet and order the food out of politeness... Hey! I took the opportunity to order an extra plate of sea cucumber! Anyway, they treated us like 'poor relatives,' so we just ate as much as we could and made sure we got our money's worth!"

Fang Yan was amused by his antics, and could already imagine how terrifying their eating habits must have been.

However, the fact that a single meal could make He Jingwei feel so bad suggests that they might not be doing very well abroad.

Fang Yan stroked his chin and asked his older cousin:
"Do you think they look rich, or are they just stingy despite being rich?"

Upon hearing the question in dialect, "Are you rich or stingy?", He Shujie's eyes lit up instantly. He leaned forward, pressing his body against the table, and began to trace lines on the surface with his fingers dipped in tea, looking just like a strategist conducting a sand table simulation of enemy positions.
“Brother, I know this all too well! That whole family—I think they’re just putting on an act; their ‘respectability’ is all made of paper!”

"You didn't see how He Jingwei's hands were shaking when he took out his wallet! As he stared at the number on the bill, his jaw was clenched so tightly that it was grinding, and his nostrils were flared! The waiter was standing by waiting, and he counted the bills three times before handing them over. After handing them over, he kept staring at the change, as if he was afraid of giving an extra penny!"

"He drinks Moutai with gusto, but his face turns dark the moment he hears that his second uncle wants to add more dishes! Why? Moutai is for showing off to us, while Erguotou is for 'poor relatives'! Does this behavior make him seem really wealthy? I don't believe it."

Fang Yan touched his chin after hearing him say that:

"Well, that makes sense..."

Of course, Fang Yan didn't completely believe it either, since it was only He Shujie's side of the story and should only be used as a reference.

He Shujie was speaking enthusiastically at this moment, and he said:

"Hey, let me tell you, that string of pearls around his wife's neck looks shiny and impressive from afar, but if you look closely—wow! The pearls are uneven in size, and several are yellowish and spotted! I've seen real South Sea pearls before! That string of hers is probably a bunch of defective clearance items, just to fool laymen!"

"You've even seen genuine South Sea pearls?" Fang Yan looked at his cousin in surprise.

"Of course, you don't know, but your grandfather, who was also your maternal grandfather, used to have quite a few of those things, but he hid them all away and they haven't been found yet. I'm older than you, so I've seen them and remember them."

Fang Yan suddenly realized that the old man had been hiding something.

However, given his exceptional medical skills, it's not unusual for him to receive such gifts.

"Alright, let's stop talking about the old man and continue talking about He Jingwei," Fang Yan said to He Shujie.

He Shujie nodded:
"Okay, let me think about it..."

The more detailed the information about the dialect, the better, as it makes it seem like it's worth the money.

"That's it!" he exclaimed, slapping his thigh.

"He Jingwei's son's suit looks crisp, but the loose threads on the cuffs haven't been trimmed properly! And the tie clip is gold-plated, with the edges worn off! Do you think a really rich person would let their son wear something like that?"

"Moreover, the old man didn't touch the wallet at all! He Jingwei made all the decisions about ordering food and drinks, and even the waiters only asked him to pay the bill. What does that mean? He paid for it! The old man was just a figurehead!"

“I saw it clearly. He Jingwei secretly checked his watch seven or eight times during the meal! Especially when he heard your second uncle packing up Moutai, he almost ground his back teeth to powder! This isn’t a treat; it’s like they’re ripping him off!”

"He's not just afraid of spending money... he's even more afraid of failing the mission and not being able to explain himself to his superiors. If he spends the money but gets nothing done, he'll be in a bad situation!"

"So, cousin!" He Shujie slapped his thigh, spittle flying everywhere:

"This family is like donkey dung... all show and no substance!"

"The money the old man used to show off when he came back was definitely 'activity funds' from the UK. He Jingwei held onto this money, wanting to act rich and get close to them, but also being stingy and afraid of overspending! And what was the result?"

He winked and made faces with schadenfreude:

"We spent a lot of money, but we still couldn't get the right person to come!"

"They even let us, their 'poor relatives,' fleece them several times over! I bet He Jingwei won't be able to sleep tonight because he's heartbroken!"

He Shujie, with a smug look on his face, said to Fang Yan:

"But don't worry, cousin!" He smacked his lips on his teacup, a shrewd, mercenary smile spreading across his face.
"The more they agonize over the expense, the more I'll eat! I'm already a 'poor relative,' so I might as well eat my fill! I devoured three servings of sea cucumber alone! I even packed some chicken slices with egg white and a box of dim sum before leaving, enough for my wife and kids to treat themselves to two nice meals tomorrow!"

Although not a professional, the analysis is not wrong. From now on, we can have people keep a close eye on He Jingwei.

Fang Yan then told He Shujie to wait there while he went to the bedroom, took two US dollars, and stuffed them into He Shujie's hand without a second thought. He also gave him a tin of tea.

He Shujie was overjoyed to see the money, knowing that his cousin wouldn't let him work for nothing.

"Brother, I'll let you know as soon as I hear any news next time!" He Shujie said to Fang Yan with a solicitous expression.

PS: I currently owe everyone 28000 words after finishing this chapter.

That's all for today, please come early tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)