Chapter 153 - : Sunset Villa
After leaving the equipment department, Thuram returned to his office to video-call Qin Mang. On the projected screen, Qin Mang looked at ease with the black cat in his arms.
“Old Qin, where did you find that kid?” Thuram asked as he loosened his tie. There was not anyone else in the room, so he was not worried about having someone see him dressed sloppily.
“I didn’t really find him; Xia Fei was the one who came to me,” Qin Mang replied, laughing. “How did the thing I asked you to do go?”
Thuram raised the corner of his mouth, “Obviously, the warships weren’t a problem, but I didn’t manage to learn where he learned his techniques from. It’s as if he hadn’t gone all out when he was fighting me.”
Qin Mang let out a hearty laugh, picked up a teacup from the table, and took a sip. “A venerable diamond-rank Adjudicator, master of combat, yet you’ve failed to figure out the skills behind a young man. If he didn’t go all out, you should’ve forced him to do so.”
Qin Mang’s jesting made Thuram feel uncomfortable, yet he did not refute it. “You think I didn’t want to? I was actually being quite serious against him, but he’d rather take a few hits than show his cards. I was afraid that I’d hurt him, so I went easy on him.
“But really, why do you think Xia Fei had other cards hidden in his sleeve other than improvements to his speed and body?”
Qin Mang set down the teacup, stroking the chubby Old Black. “I felt that his temperament was completely different when he came back. If I’m right, it’s probably because he made a huge leap in his self-cultivation. I refuse to believe that he could be so confident in himself if it’s just an improvement in his speed ability. I think that he likely made a shocking improvement in some other aspect. Did he ever panic going up against a master in combat like you?”
Phantom was left speechless. Xia Fei was right; if he cared about what others thought, he would never have become a librarian who was looked down on by his peers, nor would he acquaint himself with Qin Mang.
Xia Fei got where he was now because of his hard work and his unique insights to everything. He never chose the path usually traveled by, instead picking the seldom traversed, difficult path through the woods time and again.
Phantom suddenly saw the rebel inside Xia Fei. After all, he had nothing to be afraid of since he started off as a poor bicycle delivery boy.
“Worse comes to worst, I’ll just go back to being a delivery boy, so what?” That was what kept Xia Fei going; someone unafraid of failure was naturally unafraid of anything. This was something that many who lived comfortable lives did not possess.
The more comfortable their lives were, the more afraid they were of failure and suffering. Xia Fei, on the other hand, did not care a single bit about any of these. Xia Fei was still smoking the cheapest cigarettes and eating the five dollar bowls of fried paste noodles despite already being worth billions. The worst thing that could happen to him was to return to his previous life and continue living by Hongtashan cigarettes and eating fried paste noodles.
Venal-24 was the technology hub of the Alliance. There were huge projected screens on the streets for advertisements, with shops selling high-tech products left and right. Apparently, there were over eight percent of technology companies and their headquarters on this planet, a place where all the tech elites gathered, so any normal Andy on the streets may just be an incredible programmer.
Xia Fei then boarded a hovercar and headed toward Sunset Villa.
The hovercar passed the bustling city on its way to the incredibly scenic countryside, and soon a mountain and a lake was within sight.
Half Moon Mountain was not tall and Half Moon Lake was not large, yet both were right next to each other, their beauties complementing the other.
There was a set of automatic escalators at the bottom of the mountain that led to the top. There was a huge green building halfway up the mountain and at the peak, where one could probably enjoy viewing the lake at the foot of the mountain from it. There was an even larger, rectangular building at the foot of the mountain, though there was not anything special about it. If Avril actually lived here, it would probably be in the building halfway up the mountain or the one on the peak.
An alloy fence surrounded Half Moon Mountain and Half Moon Lake, so the taxi could only follow the perimeter. However, tourists could be seen from time to time standing outside of the fence, taking photos of the beautiful Half Moon Lake with their cameras in their hands.
The Jian Family had never tried to stop these people, allowing them to sightsee and take photos of the scenery from outside the fence. Evidently, this family got along fine with the public.
The taxi stopped right at the front door. After paying, Xia Fei walked toward the heavily guarded gate.
There were two, burly men in suits outside, quietly watching over the tightly shut alloy gate.
The two men were shocked to see Xia Fei walking toward them, and they quickly intercepted him.
“Sir, this is private property. Do you have any business here?” a crew-cut man asked politely.
Xia Fei stopped in his tracks and replied with a smile, “I’m here for Avril.”
The other man with blond hair furrowed his eyebrows. “You’re here for our young mistress? May I ask if you have an appointment?”
Xia Fei shook his head, thinking, ‘Who would’ve thought that Avril was actually the lady of the Jian family? No wonder she’s always avoided my questions every time I would bring it up.’
“Nope. Could you two please let her know that Xia Fei is here?” Xia Fei requested cheerfully. He had fully expected Avril’s background, so he managed to remain calm.
“Sorry,” the crew-cut bodyguard said, “visitors are handled by Butler Pang; we’re just the security. If you want to meet the young mistress, please book an appointment with Butler Pang. There’s not much we can do.”