A ripple stirred in Jiang Wuming's heart as the tragic image of Huangfu Weixia and her words surfaced in his mind.
It was only at this moment that he realized the girl who had boldly confessed to him and frequently "harassed" him had, unknowingly, left a deep impression on his heart.
"Thank you for your understanding."
Huangfu Qing, unaware of Jiang Wuming's thoughts, felt relieved upon hearing his words. He thanked Jiang Wuming and then left his residence.
He knew that Huangfu Weixia would surely come to bid farewell to Jiang Wuming, and he didn't want to be seen by his daughter.
However—
What Huangfu Qing didn't expect was that as he left the villa hotel where Jiang Wuming was staying, he was seen by Chu Feng from the neighboring villa hotel.
And before that, Chu Feng had also seen Wei Qianyuan enter Jiang Wuming's villa.
At the time, Chu Feng was surprised by Wei Qianyuan's presence there and vaguely guessed something.
Now, seeing Huangfu Qing emerge from Jiang Wuming's hotel room, Chu Feng directly confirmed his suspicion: the Huangfu family intended to marry Huangfu Weixia to Wei Qianyuan!
This left Chu Feng feeling a mix of emotions.
On one hand, he hoped Jiang Wuming would end up with Chu Weiyang and become his brother-in-law.
On the other hand, he felt that the Huangfu family's arrangement was too cruel for Huangfu Weixia, and he even thought the hypocritical Wei Qianyuan was unworthy of Huangfu Weixia!
"Chu Feng!"
A moment later, Huangfu Weixia's voice sounded from outside the door.
"Da Xiong, why are you here?" Chu Feng asked, surprised to see Huangfu Weixia.
"My father wants me to leave on a private jet, so I came to say goodbye to you," Huangfu Weixia said.
"Is that so."
Chu Feng suddenly understood, then hesitated before saying, "Da Xiong, I just saw Wei Qianyuan. Why is he in Renguo? Could the rumors be true, that you're going to marry Wei Qianyuan?"
"Who knows what he's here for."
Huangfu Weixia looked displeased. She also had this suspicion but hadn't had it confirmed.
"Hmm... Could I have guessed wrong?"
Chu Feng was a bit puzzled. After thinking for a moment, he decided to tell Huangfu Weixia what he had just seen, "Oh right, Da Xiong, I also saw Wei Qianyuan and your father go to Brother Wuming's room one after another just now."
"Why were they looking for Teacher Wuming?"
This time, it was Huangfu Weixia's turn to be surprised. Her eyes widened.
"I don't know," Chu Feng shook his head.
"I'm going to ask Teacher Wuming!"
As Huangfu Weixia spoke, she turned and left Chu Feng's hotel room, walked out of the villa gate, and headed towards the adjacent villa.
However, when Huangfu Weixia arrived at the villa hotel where Jiang Wuming was staying, she couldn't sense Jiang Wuming's aura – no one was in the hotel room!
Huangfu Weixia immediately took out her phone, opened Longxin, and sent a voice call request to Jiang Wuming. It was connected quickly.
"Teacher Wuming, you're not in your hotel room?" Huangfu Weixia asked first.
"I'm at the seaside."
Jiang Wuming held his phone, stopped walking, and replied as he gazed at the distant sea.
After Huangfu Qing left Jiang Wuming's room earlier, Jiang Wuming felt an inexplicable restlessness and decided to take a stroll by the sea.
"Teacher Wuming, I'll come find you," Huangfu Weixia said after thinking.
"I'm going to Director Xia's place later. Classmate Weixia, is there something you need?" Jiang Wuming politely refused and then asked.
"My father wants me to return to the country with him first, and I can't be with you all. I wanted to say goodbye," Huangfu Weixia said.
"It's not like we're never coming back. There's no need for a farewell."
Jiang Wuming gave a wry smile. The words "never coming back" struck a chord, and his smile froze.
"It's still polite to say hello."
Huangfu Weixia first offered an explanation, then hesitated before asking, "By the way, Teacher Wuming, I heard from Chu Feng that my father and Wei Qianyuan went to your room earlier—what were they looking for you for?"
"They just chatted with me for a bit," Jiang Wuming replied vaguely.
"What did they chat about?" Huangfu Weixia was filled with curiosity, and at the same time, a bad premonition arose in her heart.
"Just casual chat."
Jiang Wuming thought about it, but ultimately decided not to tell Huangfu Weixia what Wei Qianyuan and Huangfu Qing had said.
"Is that so..."
Upon hearing this, Huangfu Weixia did not press further but decided to ask her father, Huangfu Qing.
"Classmate Weixia, if there's nothing else, I'll hang up now," Jiang Wuming said.
"Okay, Teacher Wuming, see you in Donghai!"
Huangfu Weixia, remembering that Xia Xueqin had something to discuss with Jiang Wuming, reluctantly ended the call.
Jiang Wuming put away his phone and gazed at the distant sea.
At this moment, half of the setting sun had sunk into the sea. The afterglow scattered across the surface, painting it a fiery red. The sky and water blended perfectly, creating a breathtaking scene.
However, Jiang Wuming had no mood to appreciate the beautiful scenery. Everything Wei Qianyuan and Huangfu Qing had said echoed in his ears like a curse.
Besides that, Wei Qianyuan's commanding demeanor and Huangfu Qing's condescending attitude kept flashing in his mind.
"Huangfu Qing is ungratefully asking me to stay away from Huangfu Weixia, both out of concern that I might affect Huangfu Weixia's engagement with Wei Qianyuan and out of concern that I might implicate Huangfu Weixia or even the entire Huangfu family."
As he watched, Jiang Wuming's mind became clear, and he murmured to himself, "If even the Huangfu family is acting like this, the elders of the Li family must be itching for me to sever ties with Li Lianyi!"
As the words fell, Jiang Wuming took a deep breath, calmed his emotions, picked up his phone, and dialed his second senior brother, Zhu Yong.
"Little junior brother, why are you calling me today?" Zhu Yong's lazy voice answered the phone quickly.
"Second Senior Brother, has Master come out of seclusion?"
Jiang Wuming asked directly.
Earlier, he had remembered the promise he made with Li Lianyi. He had decided that once Heavenly Dragon Daoist emerged from seclusion, he would take Li Lianyi to fulfill their promise upon their return and then settle the matter of their engagement.
"Not yet, what's wrong?" Zhu Yong first answered, then sounded confused.
"I promised someone that I would take them to see Master. Second Senior Brother, if Master emerges from seclusion, please let me know," Jiang Wuming said.
"Okay."
Zhu Yong agreed readily.
Afterward, Jiang Wuming chatted with Zhu Yong for a bit before hanging up and turning back towards the villa hotel.
After hanging up, Zhu Yong immediately went to find Heavenly Dragon Daoist.
Heavenly Dragon Daoist was not in seclusion and had been keeping track of Jiang Wuming's movements.
Heavenly Dragon Daoist had not told Jiang Wuming any of this, nor had he allowed Zhu Yong to tell him!
Meanwhile.
Huangfu Weixia arrived at the parking lot of the ninja hotel and met Huangfu Qing and Wei Qianyuan.
"Dad, I heard you both went to see Teacher Wuming earlier. What were you looking for him for?"
Huangfu Weixia was straightforward. She didn't hide anything and asked directly.
Huh?
Facing Huangfu Weixia's questioning and sensing her displeasure, Huangfu Qing and Wei Qianyuan exchanged a knowing glance. They both concluded that Huangfu Weixia was unaware of the content of their conversation with Jiang Wuming.
Once they were sure of this, Huangfu Qing smiled and said, "Weixia, Qianyan and I went to see Jiang Wuming to express our gratitude, thank him for saving you."
"Just thanking Teacher Wuming?"
Huangfu Weixia stared suspiciously at Huangfu Qing and Wei Qianyuan.
"Yes."
Huangfu Qing and Wei Qianyuan nodded in unison.
"You'd better not lie to me!"
Huangfu Weixia frowned. She didn't dismiss her doubts and concerns but didn't press further.
Hearing this, Huangfu Qing also subtly furrowed his brow.
Reason told him that getting Huangfu Weixia to agree to the engagement with Wei Qianyuan might not be an easy task.
Wei Qianyuan, on the other hand, wore a smile throughout, but his heart was filled with gloom!
...