Chapter 185 - 184: Uninvited Guest

"All right, don’t just stand there. Sit down and let’s talk."

Vermilion Bird looked at the two men catching up, her eyes sparkling.

Five years. They had waited a full five years.

When everyone thought Ye Xuan was dead, only she and the Old Chief firmly believed he was still alive. The position of the Cyan Dragon Chief had also been kept open for him all this time. Fortunately, these five years of waiting had not been in vain.

"You brat, still causing trouble for me in Jianghai City."

The Old Chief glared at Ye Xuan in exasperation. Although his words were reproachful, there wasn’t the slightest hint of resentment in his tone.

Ye Xuan gave a faint smile. He knew what the Old Chief was referring to.

It was just the Xiao family, after all.

"It’s just the Xiao family. It’s nothing," he said nonchalantly while refilling the Old Chief’s glass.

"No drinking! Have you forgotten what Professor Zhang said?"

Seeing the Old Chief raise the glass to his lips, Vermilion Bird’s face instantly darkened. She snatched the glass right out of his hand.

"You girl!"

The Old Chief’s eyes bulged with anger. He stared eagerly at the glass in Vermilion Bird’s hand, swallowing hard unconsciously.

"What’s wrong? Can’t drink?" Ye Xuan looked at Vermilion Bird in confusion.

He remembered that the Old Chief’s favorite thing was alcohol. In the past, it could be said that he loved drinking as much as his own life. Why couldn’t he drink now?

"You don’t know this, but this guy fell seriously ill two years ago. Professor Zhang said he’s strictly forbidden from touching tobacco or alcohol.

"His diet also needs to be light, which means cutting down on spicy food."

Vermilion Bird shot the Old Chief a warning glare and dumped the alcohol into the trash can.

"You’re wasting God’s given gifts! What a reckless waste!"

Seeing the alcohol thrown away, the Old Chief wore a look of utter heartache. He beat his chest and stomped his feet in lamentation. The very thing he dreamed of drinking had been ruined just like that.

"Even if I dump it, I won’t let you drink it."

Watching him act like an overgrown child, Vermilion Bird’s eyelids twitched. She didn’t have the heart to do this either, but for the sake of the Old Chief’s health, she had to.

"Alright, you old geezer, just behave and listen to Professor Zhang."

Ye Xuan couldn’t help but laugh as he looked at the Old Chief’s aggrieved expression. This old guy used to be reckless and resolute in everything he did. Yet now, he was being managed so strictly that he couldn’t do anything.

"Professor Zhang said to drink less, not to stop drinking entirely.

"Today is such a good day. What’s wrong with letting me have a few glasses?

"I’ll just have one glass. Just one glass to satisfy my craving. I haven’t had a drink in over two years!"

Seeing that Ye Xuan wasn’t on his side either, the Old Chief immediately grew a little frantic. He held up one finger, begging repeatedly. He looked exactly like a child begging for candy.

"No. If you can’t drink, you can’t drink," Vermilion Bird said sternly, looking at this old rascal with a bit of a headache.

Because of this drinking issue, the Old Chief had a huge problem with her. Every time she stopped him from drinking, he would throw a tantrum for half the day.

"You don’t have a say right now. I’m listening to Ye Xuan."

The Old Chief snorted and turned his head away from Vermilion Bird, staring at Ye Xuan with a look of eager expectation. Seeing his pitiful appearance, Ye Xuan felt too embarrassed to refuse.

"Well... old geezer, how about this? I’ll call Professor Zhang. If he says you can drink, then you can drink."

Truly helpless against this old guy, Ye Xuan simply pulled out his trump card. He directly brought up Professor Zhang, who was in charge of developing medicines and treating their injuries.

"Hey, hey, hey! How can you be like this? I never saw you being so close to Old Zhang before. Why are you calling him?"

Seeing Ye Xuan pull out his phone, the Old Chief panicked and grabbed his hand.

"Fine, I won’t drink! You little brats have grown wings. Even my words don’t work anymore!"

Seeing that there was no hope for a drink, the Old Chief angrily threw out this remark out of spite. He crossed his arms over his chest and turned his back to Ye Xuan and the others, refusing to speak.

Ye Xuan and Vermilion Bird exchanged a glance, both sighing in resignation.

"Since Ye Xuan is back today, I’ll let you make an exception this once. But you can only have one glass! Not a drop more!" Vermilion Bird said, taking the initiative to pick up the bottle and fill the Old Chief’s glass.

"Pour a little more! It’s not a full glass yet! Just a little more!"

As soon as the Old Chief heard Vermilion Bird’s words, his eyes immediately lit up. He turned around at once, his eyes fixed on his glass, urging Vermilion Bird to pour more. Even when the liquor was about to overflow the rim, the Old Chief was still not satisfied.

"That’s enough. If I pour any more, it’s going to spill."

Vermilion Bird gave the Old Chief an exasperated look, then put the bottle away.

The Old Chief looked reluctantly at the bottle for a long time. Then he sighed heavily, carefully bent down, and took a small sip of the liquor.

"Ah... This is simply a heavenly delicacy."

He smacked his lips twice, letting out a satisfied sigh.

Ye Xuan chuckled inwardly.

"Old geezer, come on, let me offer you a toast."

After saying this, Ye Xuan raised his glass, clinked it against the Old Chief’s, and downed it in one gulp.

"I’m not downing mine with you. I’ll just take a sip."

Seeing him drink it all so boldly, the Old Chief was incredibly envious. He looked at the liquor in his own hands, drinking it carefully. He only had this one glass. Once he finished it, it would be gone, so naturally, he had to savor it.

"Tsk, Old Chief, you’re hosting a welcome banquet for the Cyan Dragon Chief. Why didn’t you invite us along?"

At this moment, several uninvited guests suddenly arrived.

The originally joyful atmosphere instantly turned cold. The members of the Four Palaces all stood up in unison, looking at these men with guarded expressions.

"Jiang Kun, Jiang Ping, what are you doing here?" the Old Chief asked with a dark face as he looked at the two leading men.

Vermilion Bird’s hands instantly balled into fists; she was itching to rush forward and punch them right then and there. Ye Xuan discreetly held her back, then gently shook his head, signaling for her not to be impulsive.

"What else could we be doing here? We came to welcome the Cyan Dragon Chief, of course."

Jiang Kun said this as he walked inside. The people trailing behind him all wore gloating expressions.

The members of the Four Palaces immediately crowded around, confronting them.

"Old Chief, what is the meaning of this? Are we not welcome?" Jiang Kun asked, looking at the crowd with a fake smile.

"Deputy Jiang, this is a private dinner for our Four Palaces. We did not invite you. Please leave immediately." Before the Old Chief could speak, one of the members of the Four Palaces took a step forward and spoke bluntly.

SLAP!

With a crisp sound, a man behind Jiang Kun suddenly struck out, slapping the Four Palaces member across the face.

"When Deputy Jiang speaks, is it your place to interrupt?"

Seeing their companion get hit, the rest of the Four Palaces members were infuriated.

In an instant, the atmosphere dropped to the freezing point. Vermilion Bird ground her teeth, her arm muscles tensing up, her eyes filled with rage. Ye Xuan had to use seventy percent of his strength just to barely hold her back.

"Jiang Kun, I didn’t expect that after five years apart, you actually got a promotion. Deputy Jiang. Tsk, tsk. What a show of authority."

Ye Xuan looked up, meeting Jiang Kun’s eyes, and said with a faint, mocking smile.