471: Chapter 464 Xiang Dong Released from Prison 471: Chapter 464 Xiang Dong Released from Prison Seeing that person, Chen Hai couldn’t help but be startled.
To be honest, if he hadn’t spoken out and called himself the boss, Chen Hai would have really mistaken him for an unfamiliar old man and overlooked him.
“Xiang Dong…” Chen Hai inspected the man up and down for a while, then tentatively spoke up to confirm.
“Boss, it’s me!” Seeing that Chen Hai finally recognized him, Xiang Dong’s voice choked up, and he quickly responded.
“It’s good you’re out.
Come on, let’s go inside and chat casually!” With a complex expression on his face, Chen Hai sighed and called him over.
Back in the day, Xiang Dong was in his prime when he followed Chen Hai and could be considered spirited.
Now, he was nearly sixty.
He entered Bitter Kiln ten years ago, and had squatted there for twelve years.
Unlike Tian Mingjian and Bai Xiaohang, when it came to skills, Xiang Dong was quite average.
As Chen Hai, his boss suddenly disappeared, he had no connections or backing, and his own martial prowess was also very limited; in Bitter Kiln all these years, he likely suffered a lot.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have aged into this appearance.
Nodding slightly, Xiang Dong didn’t say much.
He followed closely behind Chen Hai, entered the courtyard, and then somewhat tentatively found a place to sit on the couch.
“There are cigarettes in the TV cabinet, help yourself if you want to smoke.”
“We’re all brothers here.
Make yourself at home, no need to be polite with me.”
“After I came back, I heard from Xiaoyu about the affairs of Heaven and Earth, I know you were sentenced to life!”
“I don’t have many connections in politics or law enforcement, so I didn’t know where you were imprisoned.
Otherwise, I would have visited you sooner!”
“When were you released?
Why didn’t you come to see me earlier?”
Pointing to the few packs of cigarettes on top of the TV cabinet, Chen Hai smiled and called out to Xiang Dong.
His words were not mere courtesy, he had always remembered Xiang Dong,
but after returning from Great Snow Mountain in Hokkaido, he too was clueless, and his relationship with Ye Qingqing was a bit awkward; without connections at the higher levels, he couldn’t speak for Xiang Dong.
He couldn’t just rely on his martial prowess and run to break him out of prison, could he?
This time, after the testing of the Physical Body against the nuclear bomb was completed, he should have gained some respect in the eyes of those high-ranking officials.
He was originally planning to find an opportunity someday to put in a word for Xiang Dong to get him out earlier!
Now it seemed, there was really no need for him to go that extra mile.
“I was indeed sentenced to life for the matter of Heaven and Earth.”
“In Bitter Kiln, after several sentence reductions, following the normal procedure, I would have still needed to squat for another three to five years before getting out.”
“Three days ago, some leader found me and just told me, ‘Your boss is back!”
“Afterward, I was released early and returned to the Capital City.”
“These past few days, I’ve been lingering around this courtyard of yours, fortunately, I was lucky enough to finally see you return!”
…
After hesitating for a moment, Xiang Dong took a pack of cigarettes from the TV cabinet, opened it, took one out, lit it for himself, and took a deep drag.
Amid the curling smoke, he sighed deeply with a melancholic expression and explained to Chen Hai.
Hearing this, Chen Hai immediately understood what was going on.
Xiang Dong’s early release was merely those above showing their goodwill.
“It’s good you’re out.
Do you have any plans now?”
“When I went to Hokkaido back then, you were in a position where you could feed yourself, and your family didn’t starve.”
“In the years before you went in, you must have been doing pretty well.
Did you get married?
Do you have a wife and children?”
Nodding his head, Chen Hai smiled and asked.
“Back then, I indeed had several close female friends.”
“But the moment I got into trouble, they all flew away, fearing any association with me!”
“Heaven and Earth was the business you entrusted to me, boss.
I was useless and couldn’t keep it.”
“Really, in the first few years when Heaven and Earth was developing, there weren’t many messy issues.”
“But later, once numerous powerful and influential scions got involved, that’s when things there slipped out of my control and fundamentally changed.”
“By the time the scandal broke, they had all detached themselves from the situation, whereas I, the puppet manager, bore the brunt of it and was sentenced to life.”
“After spending twelve years inside, I literally lost everything—what plans could I possibly have after getting out?”
“As long as you, Boss, don’t mind my age and are willing to take me in, I will still serve you loyally…”
As Xiang Dong recounted his past experiences, a bitter taste filled his words.
When Chen Hai was around, he seemed leisurely and unconcerned, but with him there, no one dared to mess with his property.
But then suddenly, when Chen Hai disappeared without a trace,
Only then did Xiang Dong, who had always managed the business for him, realize just how difficult it was to conduct business honorably without the ‘big tree’ to shelter him from the wind and rain.
“What I was left with was just a barren land, what Heaven and Earth?”
“As for others getting off scot-free and you taking the blame, the world has always been like this.
No matter how capable you are, can you surpass the efforts of generations of others?”
“Compared to Bai Baoshan and Bai Xiaohang, at least, you’re still alive!”
“If you’ve got nowhere to go and want to work for me, I don’t see why not.”
“With me around, you definitely won’t starve, that’s for sure!”
Chen Hai thought about it and nodded, promising as such.
He had specifically looked up news reports about Heaven and Earth online.
Back then, it had caused quite a stir.
Chen Hai didn’t want to get involved with such shady businesses, and he didn’t mourn their loss one bit.
Seeing Xiang Dong now, so worn and downcast, Chen Hai naturally couldn’t just ignore him.
Truth be told, aside from liking to take shortcuts and dabble in gray areas, Xiang Dong was indeed quite skilled in business!
Although Chen Hai wasn’t lacking money and hadn’t planned on engaging in any business, the company shares he controlled still needed someone to manage them.
Compared to those professional career managers, Xiang Dong might be somewhat lacking in overall capability.
But in Chen Hai’s eyes, Xiang Dong clearly earned his trust more.
“Dong, you’re not getting any younger.”
“Of the three unfilial acts, having no descendants is the worst.
While you still have the energy, you should try.”
“After settling into a stable life, I’m not necessarily saying you must get married, but at least you should have someone to continue your lineage!”
After chatting casually with Xiang Dong, Chen Hai brought up this subject.
He himself didn’t want descendants because he could stay young forever and didn’t want to endure the pain of sending off the younger generation in his old age.
As for his subordinates, naturally, he felt they should live like normal people and didn’t want to see them end their days in solitude.
Like his cousin Sun Jinzhong, back in Myanmar North, with that Zhang Xia, they looked so passionately in love.
Though Chen Hai felt like kicking him, deep down, he still wished them the best!
“A regular woman is fine for fun, but if you’re thinking marriage and kids, you’ve got to find the right one!” Chuckling slyly, Xiang Dong responded.
Once they started talking about women, this guy seemed invigorated, almost looking less aged than before.
They say three years in hardship can turn a sow into Diaochan.
He had spent over a decade inside.
These past few days since getting out, all his thoughts had been on finding Chen Hai, not giving much thought to that sort of thing.
But now, with Chen Hai bringing up marriage and children, even at his age, he felt a stir of eagerness.
“You rascal…”
Seeing Xiang Dong like this, how could Chen Hai not know what was on his mind!
He rolled his eyes in annoyance, but laughingly scolded him.
Laughter and scolding aside, he also knew this was human nature and there was nothing to really speak of.
Just then, the doorbell at the front gate suddenly rang.
“I just got back—now who has found their way here?” Chen Hai frowned and muttered.
He greeted Xiang Dong and then got up to head toward the front door.