Age of Legends

Chapter 167: So Embarrassing

Shen Nuoyi returned to Rongcheng with Han Zhouxuan on the 22nd.

She was picked up by her parents at the airport. Han Zhouxuan has a good relationship with her and her parents know each other, so they will probably be inseparable for the rest of time.

Sitting in Shen Nuoyi's father's car, Han Zhouxuan was still talking to them about the fun things during the trip. Shen Nuoyi was happy to be free. Looking at the expressions of his parents, it seemed that Han Zhouxuan was his dream son, who could always liven up the atmosphere and get along well with the elders at any time.

However, Shen Nuoyi's parents were used to it. Knowing their daughter's personality, they were not so noisy. Instead, they seemed steady. But it seemed that because of this, she and Han Zhouxuan complemented each other's personalities and could get along well with each other.

Shen Nuo took the time to check her phone. Since she and Zhang Chen said goodnight to each other that day, they had been in constant contact, and Zhang Chen always asked her where she was going today. She told him about her whereabouts, but she was with Han Zhouxuan after all, so she didn't have the opportunity to have a deep chat with Zhang Chen.

Looking at Zhang Chen's message on the phone, it also said "Return to Fuzhou safely tomorrow."

Shen Nuo immediately pressed the button and sent a message to Zhang Chen, "Just got off the plane and arrived in Rongcheng!"

She actually felt a little guilty towards Zhang Chen, and also felt awkward about how to respond. It was as if the two of them were in a cold war. The way they were now was probably a cold war with a soft nail.

She was very clear that she was not in Rongcheng on his birthday, and she forgot to bring her cell phone when she was traveling. She and Han Zhouxuan played outside without any care and did not return home until the evening. It was indeed her negligence.

But when it comes to admitting his mistake clearly, Shen Nuoyi seems unable to do such a thing.

In fact, she was bombarded by the messages Han Zhouxuan sent her that day, and her mind was distracted to the point of forgetting a lot of things. Even when she found that her cell phone was not with her in the morning, she deliberately thought about borrowing a cell phone to call Zhang Chen during dinner.

Ever since Han Zhouxuan told her about Pei Yan in the afternoon, she has been out of her mind. During lunch, she listened to Han Zhouxuan talking about the past, and then returned to the hotel where she was staying.

I realized that the day was almost over.

It seems that no one would believe that she, who has good grades and a good brain, actually forgot about this. Sometimes Shen Nuoyi would feel that she was stupid and would often mess up some simple things. However, this kind of thing was considered a low-level mistake by others, but she made it on purpose, so Shen Nuoyi also offended others.

But...sometimes I have such a pig brain...

This is how Shen Nuoyi cursed himself inwardly at that time.

But if you ask her to publicly admit her mistake, whether it is because of her self-esteem or her shamelessness as a girl, she still cannot say "I'm wrong".

The unhappiness in Zhang Chen's tone and some of the words in the message he sent to Zhang Chen that day, coupled with the triangle relationship between Pei Yan, Han Zhouxuan and her that was about to change, also made Shen Nuoyi fall into a low-pressure and depressed mood, making her seem to have no interest in doing anything.

At this time, the more they restrained the cold war between Zhang Chen and her, the more they felt like they were pulling each other and were unwilling to give in.

This seems to be determined by the relationship between the two people.

If they were just friends, Shen Nuoyi would probably have apologized directly and said "I'm sorry, I was wrong, I was wrong!". However, it was precisely because the relationship between them was more than friends but less than lovers that made such words seem like a thorn in his throat and he couldn't say them easily.

Is it because in this kind of relationship, whoever gives in first will be asked to get more?
Or maybe it’s because the two people in this kind of relationship don’t want to bear too much of the burden of a relationship like this, so they maintain “boundaries”.

But the current "border" may be broken at any time...

So the anxiety and vigilance brought about...

And caution and reserve?
……

Just as Shen Nuo sent the text message and listened to Han Zhouxuan chatting with her parents in the car, after a long interval that seemed like a year, her cell phone suddenly vibrated, making her heart tighten.

Shen Nuo looked at the lit screen, and with a posture that the three people in the car didn't pay much attention to her, she casually picked up her phone, opened the text message box, and opened Zhang Chen's text message.

It was one: "Just arrive safely!"

?

Looking at this message, Shen Nuo kept the screen of his phone on and waited for a while.

There was no second half of the message.

So that’s all?
Zhang Chen...

You are so cold!
……

……

In fact, Zhang Chen did not do so on purpose. He was actually in Zhonghai at that time. The story began on the day after the birthday party. The day after his 18th birthday, Zhang Chen and Wang Shuowei went to Zhao Tao's Internet cafe.

The Internet cafe business was good, so Zhao Tao received them. Wang Shuowei owned 5% of the shares of Zhao Tao's Internet cafe, and because of Zhao Tao's gangster status, the Internet cafe had a constant stream of business. But many of the people who came were gangsters, with tattoos of dragons, tigers and leopards, and they looked ferocious and vicious, and there were also many hooligans.

Of course, no one dared to cause trouble in Zhao Tao's place. Firstly, times had changed. Anyone could see that the millennium had arrived, the social economy was about to take off, and everything was about money.

What is the new generation of scoundrels now? To engage in economic construction, it is different from the past where you only needed to be loyal and dare to fight. Now if you don’t have much money, people in society will look down on you. Those who rely on squeezing some money from middle school students to buy cigarettes and alcohol to make a living are called beggars. Without any foundation, do you dare to say that you are the big brother?
Zhao Tao is one of the big brothers in Rongcheng who have begun to transform themselves, and he is quite successful. People like Xiong Lao Da who are involved in prostitution, gambling and drugs are considered to be the third class, and have gradually lost the soil for survival in society and can only be reduced to the sidelines. It is said that the underworld of Rongcheng began to change with the fall of Xiong Lao Da, a top black hand figure of the era.

Moreover, the rumors on the street were vivid that Boss Xiong was defeated by Zhao Tao, and at the hands of a powerful man close to Zhao Tao.

As we all know, Zhao Tao's gang has never been a gang in the traditional sense, with a clear hierarchy.

Zhao Tao has Bu Ruijie, Hong Yao, Qian Junyi and other strong men around him, and they all call each other brothers. It is said by outsiders that Zhao Tao is their big brother. But they are actually cooperative and independent individuals, and they never call Zhao Tao big brother. In the past, what they did and what they fought with each other were actually discussed together, and they also had to formulate tactics, express their own opinions, and select the best ones. It was quite democratic.

Everyone is on an equal footing, and they are only brought together because of Zhao Tao.

Who was Xiong Da at the beginning of the millennium? He was Sun Chao, the brother of Dong Chao, who was known as “Brother Dong Chao, Luo Yue in the West, Ma Cheng in the South and Shuang Bing in the North”, and he was trapped in a pig cage and assassinated Zhao Tao, and sent all the tough brothers around him to the hospital. Not only that, he was looking for Luo Yue everywhere in the west and took over the business of Ma Cheng Railway Station. The “Shuang Bing” in the north was suppressed and could not raise their heads.

He was a desperate criminal who came from the ancient times and claimed to unify the underground world of Rongcheng.

It is said that the aggressive ones are afraid of those who are not afraid of death, and everyone also avoids Big Bear.

It is said that Xiong Da was killed in the street in Zhao Tao's revenge. But the legend is a bit distorted. Zhao Tao was injured at the time, and the generals around him were disabled or hospitalized. So who killed Xiong Da?

Or is it that Zhao Tao actually has a hidden trump card and hidden power behind him...

This matter cannot be verified anymore. Afterwards, when people in the underworld asked Zhao Tao about it, he just smiled and said nothing, seeming unfathomable.

With the momentum of Xiongda, Zhao Tao's Internet cafe business was booming in the millennium.

But Zhao Tao in the office also had a bitter face when facing Zhang Chen and Wang Shuowei, pointing at those people outside who were surfing the Internet on the machines and the social people who were wandering outside the Internet cafe, "Look, what kind of people are hanging around here all day? They have loud voices, low quality, and they act and talk in a hurry, making people who normally come to surf the Internet scared!"

His Internet cafe was originally converted from an old factory. It has two floors and an old industrial style, but it is full of grandeur. Otherwise, Zhang Chen would have said that Zhao Tao has a very advanced aesthetic sense. Little did he know that this decoration style became very popular in later generations and once led the trend.

The Internet cafes converted from old factories are also very attractive, especially for many gangsters in this area, who have chosen this place as their base. They also have a desire to admire Zhao Tao, the big brother, and the prices of Internet cafes have started to drop, so these young people can afford to go online. Therefore, people from the society gather here, and even those who don't go online gather in groups outside the factory Internet cafes, smoking and drinking.

"Look at the group outside, gathering at the door like this, who would think this is a decent place, but they are open for business, and you can't go out to chase them away. If you go out, they will come up to greet you the first time, and you can't be so embarrassed to scold them, right?" Zhao Tao has always been soft-hearted, and he is never afraid of anyone who is rude to him. But sometimes he just can't lose face, and if someone is polite to him, he really can't get angry.

However, Zhao Tao did not tell Bu Ruijie or the lazy Hong Yao about this matter. Instead, he closed the door in the office and complained to Zhang Chen and Wang Shuowei.

However, Wang Shuowei has also gotten used to this side of his cousin. Others are afraid of him, but in fact, Wang Shuowei remembers that when he was a child, his cousin told him ghost stories every day, which scared him so much that he dared not go to the toilet by himself. He also said that he was sick and his stomach would hurt if you called him grandpa. Then Wang Shuowei kept calling him grandpa, which made Zhao Tao hold his stomach and laugh until he rolled over.

Of course, there are many differences when Zhao Tao complains to them now. At least he tells them about the bottlenecks and difficulties in his career development. It is impossible for him to say these to Wang Shuowei alone.

Zhang Chen also looked out and said, "Actually, there's nothing to be ashamed of. Just go out and tell them nicely that I'm open for business. It's like you guys are arguing with people to fight in the old factory. No one else dares to come. I believe they will give you face."

Zhao Tao pondered for a moment, and just as Zhang Chen said, he went out and talked nicely to the group of young men who surrounded him, making them almost cry. This is the big brother, and he is talking to you in a friendly manner, begging you to stop being so conspicuous. Who dares not to be sensible at this time! ?
As a result, everyone immediately scattered, some went in to take care of the business, and some left. On the way, they met some young men coming this way, and they shouted at them, "Don't stand at the door of Brother Zhao's Internet Cafe, you are just standing there like a door god! Are you delaying other people's business? What, you want to go online? What's the big deal if you have a few bucks! Come and use the computer together with your brothers!"

Then they walked back arm in arm.

After walking around outside, Zhao Tao returned to the office, closed the door and said to Zhang Chen with a smile, "It really works!"

Zhang Chen laughed again. Actually, it was not that Zhao Tao didn't understand this principle. He was just being framed. He couldn't speak because of his eldest brother's face.

In fact, I used to be a gangster. Everyone knows that if you don’t have money to enter an entertainment venue, you can just kill time outside and use it as your base camp where you can socialize.

Now, whether I run a game hall or an Internet cafe, I can't bring myself to chase people away.

To put it bluntly, it means that you would suffer in the end if you were too proud.

I don't know how Zhang Chen persuaded him, but he immediately conveyed his meaning. I'm afraid that in the future, this group of young people will not only not gather outside and affect the appearance, but will also spontaneously help Zhao Tao to maintain order, so that people will not go out to play and not gather outside in a group to create pressure on others.

"But the problem still exists... These are all old customers and acquaintances. With my status, no normal person would want to come here to play." Zhao Tao sighed again.

It is easy to deal with the people who gather outside, but it cannot change the fact that there are many gangsters in the Internet cafe. You can't tell people not to come to the Internet cafe! They are all customers. In this way, ordinary people dare not come, not to mention that Zhao Tao now has the rumor that Xiong Da planted him in his hands, and his reputation is unparalleled. This reputation has brought him traffic from the underworld society, but also brought him a bad social reputation, resulting in serious people not daring to come to the Internet cafe he opened.

"There's really no way to go on like this." Zhang Chen added, "Then I wonder if Brother Zhao has ever thought about the future of logistics business?"

"logistics?"

Zhao Tao's Internet cafe business would not last long. In fact, Zhang Chen knew that Zhao Tao would make his fortune in real estate in the future. However, real estate was actually involved in many violent incidents in the past, and this path was not safe. Moreover, Zhang Chen did not want a huge demolition gang to take root in Rongcheng in the future.

In this case, it would be better to direct his energy in other directions.

So I explained to Zhao Tao in detail the future prospects of the express logistics industry.

As expected, Zhao Tao's business sense was so sharp that his eyes lit up when Zhang Chen said this.

Zhang Chen also said that first-tier cities are already doing it, so we can go and do some research. Zhao Tao and Zhang Chen hit it off immediately, so Zhao Tao insisted on taking Zhang Chen with him to go to Huicheng and Zhonghai for research.

Zhang Chen had no choice but to go with him, so in fact, Zhang Chen accompanied Zhao Tao on the research for the next few days. On the day Shen Nuo returned to Rongcheng, Zhang Chen and Zhao Tao were still in the Zhonghai Hotel, collecting information about the visit to Yuantong Company.

So Zhang Chen was out these days and he just asked Shen Nuoyi about her situation.

……

After sending Han Zhouxuan back to her home, Shen Nuoyi and her parents returned to their home in the TV station community. She sorted out her things and gave her parents the gifts they brought back. She looked at the box containing the Xiangfei bamboo fan and the text message from Zhang Chen on her phone. She sighed and said to her mother, "Mom, Han Zhouxuan's things are still with me. I asked her to come and get them. Go out and give them to her."

"Hey, are you in such a hurry? Can't you give it to her tomorrow? It's so late now."

"It's only nine o'clock. It's urgent. I'll go out and give it to her!"

"Why don't you ask your dad to send it to her?"

"No need, I'll ask her to take a taxi over!"

After taking Zhang Chen's gift and going out, Shen Nuoyi waved and stopped a taxi at the gate of the community. After the starting fare increased by two meters, he arrived at Nanguan Community.

The red brick wall of Nanguan Community reveals the lights of some residential buildings in the factory area inside, and rows of Ligustrum lucidum are planted on the street next to it.

Shen Nuoyi got out of the taxi, holding her pocket, and was a little hesitant for a moment. She even wanted to turn around and leave. She felt a little stupid for coming to the outside of Zhang Chen's community like this.

At this time, Nanguang Community gave her a strange and timid feeling. It seemed that Zhang Chen or his family would come out from the gate in the next moment and look at her standing here, looking a little dusty.

But come all come.

Shen Nuoyi picked up the phone and tapped the buttons with his slender, tender fingers. Finally, after thinking for a while, he pressed the send button: "What are you doing? Are you home now?"

Zhang Chen was now lying in the Zhonghai Vienna Hotel and saw Shen Nuoyi's message.

"I'm away. I went to Zhonghai for a few days to travel with friends. Why, you want to come over now? To give me a gift?"

Shen Nuoyi's face was full of question marks.

Long live!
I made a wasted trip... And Zhang Chen... When did you go to Zhonghai? Why is there no sign of you?
But she remained calm, "No, a car just passed by and I thought I brought you a gift, so I asked if you wanted to come out and get it."

That's right.

Zhang Chen replied: "Or I can ask my mother to come out and get it."

"No, I'll give it to you when you come back. Our cars are gone."

After sending the text message, Shen Nuo put his phone back in his pocket and looked at the street scene around him helplessly.

There is no Zhang Chen in the Nanguan community here.

So it's empty.

She did not wave to stop the taxi, but instead walked home for more than 20 minutes carrying her bag, enjoying the street view of Rongcheng along the way.

As a result, when I got home, my mother scolded me for being out for nearly forty minutes.

In the hot shower at night, Shen Nuoyi raised her straight nose in the mist.

His nose wrinkled.

It’s really... embarrassing.

(End of this chapter)