Panzi and Leizi had once boasted to Li Zhiyuan that they could imagine some celebrities naked even if they were dressed.
Now, Li Zhiyuan, looking at the lively Ding Dalin and Secretary Jin before him, had nothing in his mind but images of their skinned, blood-red, throbbing bodies.
In summer, in the early morning, under the bright sunshine, he suddenly felt cold enough to shudder.
Ding Dalin bent down with a benevolent smile and asked in confusion, "What’s wrong? Don’t you recognize me anymore?"
Li Sanjiang laughed, "How could that be? The kid was just talking about you, saying that..."
Li Zhiyuan felt a chill down his spine right away.
But by then, Li Sanjiang’s words were already on his lips, and nothing could stop them.
"...he praised you for giving him such a big red envelope last time, saying how good of a grandpa you are."
"Oh, really? Hahaha," Ding Dalin laughed heartily.
Li Zhiyuan felt a bit dizzy, overwhelmed by the sensation of narrowly escaping danger.
Li Sanjiang patted Li Zhiyuan on the head: "My kid here, he remembers anyone who’s kind to him, not like the other kids who forget everything as soon as you turn around, not recognizing who you are."
Ding Dalin nodded, "That’s how people are."
"Exactly, some kids are just like wolves with white eyes, never getting familiar no matter how much you raise them."
"Ding Hou," Ding Dalin stood up straight, shifting his gaze from the boy to Li Sanjiang, "Come on, let’s sit at my place, have lunch there at noon."
"How could I impose?"
"What’s there to impose? There was a lot of food left over from the feast yesterday, don’t disdain it, help me finish it."
There would always be leftovers after a feast, which could spoil if left for too long, so if a family didn’t have enough mouths to eat them promptly, they would host a small feast the next day, inviting only close relatives.
These feasts were not very elaborate – cold dishes piled up, hot dishes reheated. The presentation might not be appealing, but the food and wine were still good.
Li Sanjiang: "We don’t have to go so early for lunch."
Li Zhiyuan finally managed his expression and ensured his voice wouldn’t tremble when speaking. Just as he was about to start speaking to find an excuse for his grandmaster to decline the invitation, he met Secretary Jin’s gaze.
She was smiling, but her eyes conveyed a hollow and cold feeling.
Ordinary people would find it difficult to notice, but Li Zhiyuan had the habit of observing and imitating others, and after reading "Yin Yang Face Reading," his observation of micro-expressions had become even more meticulous and in-depth.
The mental defenses he had just erected collapsed again at this moment.
She didn’t speak, and it might be his own imagination, but he felt as if he saw a silent warning.
Was it aimed at him? Or at the Grandmaster?
at anyone who might see through their guise.
"I want to lease some responsibility fields, I’ll pay the rent in one lump sum, but it needs to be registered under your name."
"A dozen or so acres."
Ding Dalin cursed with a laugh, "Oh, you think I won’t live that long, don’t you?"
"Thirty years, how could anyone live that long? At our age, if we live another thirty years, our skin will be all cracked."
"Heh, we’re both old, it’s not like we’re young people who care about appearance, if the skin cracks, it cracks, patching and mending is still usable."
Li Zhiyuan’s heart skipped a beat.
He was now really afraid that his grandmaster would accidentally blurt out something that would truly flay someone.
Although he knew his grandmaster had Luck on his side, Grandma Liu had also mentioned that Luck also depended on the situation and what one encountered. If he encountered really tough nuts, Luck wouldn’t be of much use.
The incident at Big Beard’s house last night was beyond Li Zhiyuan’s imagination in its frightfulness.
What he was experiencing now was pushing last night’s events to an even more eerie and terrifying level.
Faced with such a situation, Li Zhiyuan felt that the Grandmaster’s Luck... definitely wouldn’t hold up.
"Alright, let’s go." Li Sanjiang rubbed his chin and looked down at Li Zhiyuan standing by his side, "It’s a good opportunity to get my will written up."
"Oh, Sanjiang Hou, you an old bachelor with no wife or children, whom do you plan to leave it to?"
"I might not have children, but I’ve got a great-grandson, haven’t I? Whatever I leave behind is of course for our Little Yuanhou."
Ding Dalin once again bent down towards the boy.
Li Zhiyuan had a strong aversion and resistance to this gesture, but still managed a shy smile.
This expression was really effective for a child, whether dealing with people... or ghosts.
"Little Yuanhou, look at that, your Grandmaster really cherishes you. When you grow up, you must treat your Grandmaster well."
Ding Dalin straightened his back, pausing for a moment.
Secretary Jin extended her hand to support him.
Li Zhiyuan noticed that Secretary Jin’s right hand was placed at the back of Ding Dalin’s neck while her left hand was at the side of his lower waist. She wasn’t just touching, she was grabbing firmly with tensed fingers.
As if forcibly pressing something that was fissuring back together.
"What’s wrong, Lin Hou?"
"This old waist isn’t any good."
"Less rolling around in bed at night."
"Sanjiang Hou, you old thing, let’s go, come to my house."
Saying that, Ding Dalin reached out his hand towards Li Sanjiang.
Li Sanjiang took the initiative to accept, now supporting him.
The two elders, thus conversing, leaned on each other and walked forward.
"Shall we go, little brother?" Secretary Jin placed her hand on the boy’s shoulder.