Chapter 597: You Can’t Play Without a Brain!
Translator: Dragon Boat Translation | Editor: Dragon Boat Translation
Taking a deep breath, Jiang Li looked at Zhou Chao with excitent.
Zhou Chao, who hadn’t had hotpot in a long ti, was thoroughly satisfied with his culinary indulgence today.
After leaving the hotpot restaurant, Zhou Chao didn’t imdiately take Jiang Li ho. Instead, he decided to visit his childhood friend to catch up on recent developnts. He had noticed sothing was amiss with Lei Mingtang during their last confrontation over stock market speculations.
“Aren’t you going to call Third Aunt and let her know you’re back?” Jiang Li hugged Zhou Chao’s arm and asked.
“No rush. We can call her later and grab a al together,” Zhou Chao replied casually.
Jiang Li nodded and followed Zhou Chao into the car.
The studio where Lei Mingtang worked wasn’t far from where Zhou Chao had dinner, just about a five or six-minute drive. Soon, the two cars arrived steadily at the studio’s entrance.
As Zhou Chao looked through the glass and saw the studio, which seed even more deserted than before, his brow furrowed, and he strode in.
Upon entering the studio, Zhou Chao spotted a young woman in her twenties sitting at the front desk, engrossed in playing a ga on her phone. She muttered to herself, “Co on, Wild King, I’ve lost several rounds already!”
Seeing this, Zhou Chao couldn’t help but feel a bit impatient. He lightly tapped on the desk.
The young woman, still imrsed in her ga, looked up only when Zhou Chao stood before her, and hurriedly put down her phone.
“Sorry, do you need sothing?” The young woman asked apologetically.
“Is Lei Mingtang in the studio?” Zhou Chao inquired.
Upon hearing Lei Mingtang’s na, the receptionist’s eyes flickered, and she glanced at the several black-clad bodyguards behind Zhou Chao, her voice tinged with nervousness. “May I ask who you are?”
“I’m his friend,” Zhou Chao replied softly, though he was starting to feel impatient.
The receptionist glanced discreetly at the office area, her eyes betraying her anxiety.
“I’m sorry, but the boss isn’t here. Could you co back tomorrow?” The girl’s voice this ti was much louder than before as if she were informing soone that soone was looking for him.
Seeing this, Zhou Chao beca increasingly certain that sothing was wrong with his childhood friend. With a smile at the receptionist, he said, “I’m a good friend of your boss. If you don’t believe , just ask him to co out.”
The receptionist remained skeptical of Zhou Chao’s words and beca a bit agitated. “I already told you our boss isn’t here. If you keep bothering us, I’ll have to call the police.”
Perhaps hearing the receptionist’s impatient tone, faint sounds could be heard from the office. Shortly after, Lei Mingtang’s loud voice rang out, “What do you want? I’ve already compensated you! Why are you still bothering ?”
Before Zhou Chao could see him, Lei Mingtang’s voice preceded his appearance as he stord out of the office, wielding a baseball bat aggressively.
Upon seeing Zhou Chao standing at the reception, Lei Mingtang’s initially fierce expression softened, and he dropped the bat to the ground.
With a smile on his face, Lei Mingtang jogged up to Zhou Chao and Jiang Li. “Bro Chao, sis-in-law, why didn’t you let know you were back? When did you get back? You didn’t even give a call.”
“Boss, is this really your friend?” the receptionist interjected unexpectedly.
Zhou Chao chuckled. “Didn’t I tell you earlier? I’m your boss’s friend.”
“Sorry, I thought you were…”
Before the receptionist could finish her sentence, Lei Mingtang silenced her with a stern look. “Xiao Chen, playing gas during work again? I might have to dock your pay!”
“Alright, let’s head to your office. It’s not good to keep blocking the entrance to your studio,” Zhou Chao lightly patted Lei Mingtang’s shoulder and led Jiang Li towards the office.
Lei Mingtang gave the receptionist a displeased glare and glanced at the bodyguards sitting on the sofa. Then, he gestured to Xiao Chen and said, “Get these handso gentlen so water and bring so fruits too.”
“Got it, boss,” Xiao Chen replied with a slight grimace.
With a nod, Lei Mingtang briskly walked towards his office. As he entered, he saw Zhou Chao sitting at the tea table, brewing tea.
“Brother Chao, you’re back! You could’ve called, and I would’ve arranged sothing for you, given you a warm welco,” Lei Mingtang said with a smile.
“I just arrived in Fuzhou at noon. I had lunch with your sister-in-law and ca straight here,” Zhou Chao replied as he poured a cup of tea and handed it to Lei Mingtang.
Jiang Li, sitting beside them, automatically poured herself a cup of tea and drank silently. She had gathered from the receptionist’s words that Lei Mingtang was dealing with so issues.
“Why did you suddenly co back to Fuzhou? Is sothing wrong?” Lei Mingtang inquired.
“It’s nothing major. It’s my grandfather’s 80th birthday the day after tomorrow, so I ca back to pay a visit,” Zhou Chao explained, pausing for a mont before fixing his gaze on Lei Mingtang.
Feeling uncomfortable under Zhou Chao’s gaze, Lei Mingtang said, “Bro Chao, why are you looking at like that? You’re making feel awkward!”
“Co on, tell what’s going on. It hasn’t been long, but it seems like your studio is about to collapse!” Zhou Chao pressed.
Hearing Zhou Chao’s words, Lei Mingtang’s expression beca even more despondent. He took several sips of tea, hesitated for a mont, and looked at Zhou Chao. Despite opening his mouth a few tis, he couldn’t bring himself to speak.
Frowning slightly, Zhou Chao said, “Can’t say it? Should I call your wife and ask what’s going on?”
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