Chapter 15 (Revised)

The weather was exceptionally nice over the weekend.

On a sunny summer day, a gentle breeze swept across the green grass, carrying away the morning dew.

Jiang Chen finished his homework on Saturday and sat on the blanket by the window in the lobby building blocks.

It wasn't very hot today. Hu Zhenzhen stood up and looked out at the lakeside park that was part of the residential complex. She was somewhat tempted.

The new parent-child activity also happens to involve going out.

[Xiao Jin, isn't a spring outing considered a fun outdoor activity?]

"I've already checked," Little Golden Egg said, flipping through a blank book. "Please feel free to go on your spring outing."

Having received its affirmation, Hu Zhenzhen excitedly looked down at Jiang Chen and said, "Xiao Chen, do you want to go on a spring outing with Mommy?"

Spring outing.

This is a word that Jiang Chen had only heard on television.

On television, fifth and sixth graders would be led by their teachers out of the school gate to have a picnic under a tree. In Jiang Chen's memory, this was called a spring outing.

Jiang Chen had always thought he wouldn't be able to experience a spring outing until he was in fifth or sixth grade, but he never expected such a pleasant surprise to suddenly appear in front of him.

He was somewhat stunned.

Hu Zhenzhen asked, "What's wrong, Xiao Chen? Don't you want to go?"

Jiang Chen quickly shook his head, "Go."

He remained as sparing with words as ever, but Hu Zhenzhen could tell from the child's expression that he was happy.

"How about Uncle Chen takes you to change into a pair of longer socks? We'll set off once you're down."

"Okay! I'll be right there."

He slipped on his cartoon frog slippers and ran upstairs.

Chen Kai stood behind him, protecting him in case he accidentally fell.

Children are always prone to making mistakes. Jiang Chen didn't fall, but he was running too fast and accidentally blew off his slippers on the last step.

When Hu Zhenzhen saw the frog slipper stick to Chen Kai's cheek, she couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Hahaha, sorry Chen Kai, um, I mean, frogs are quite suitable for you."

Chen Kai took the slippers off his face, and unusually, removed his glasses in front of Hu Zhenzhen, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "I hope you're telling the truth, boss. I'll take it seriously."

Hu Zhenzhen laughed and added, "Even if you like it a lot, there's no suit with a frog printed on it that I'd sell to you."

She hurried to the kitchen and asked the new nanny to make two bento boxes to be delivered to the lakeside park later.

In just a few words, Jiang Chen had already come downstairs.

He looked extremely excited.

Although he didn't even have a big smile on his face, the way he stood at the door with his eyes darting around following Hu Zhenzhen was enough to show how much he was looking forward to going out.

There is a long wooden boardwalk along the lake.

Hu Zhenzhen specially chose a pair of comfortable shoes, took Jiang Chen's hand, and led him out the door.

As luck would have it, they ran into Xu Bo and Quan Shiqian, who had come to find Jiang Chen to hang out, just as they stepped out.

"Auntie, are you going out?"

Xu Bo looked disappointed.

“Yes, I’m taking Jiang Chen to the park by the lake for a spring outing,” Hu Zhenzhen said, glancing at the robots in their hands. “Do you and Shi Qian want to come along?”

These two kids often play with Jiang Chen. If they're properly nurtured, they might become his best friends.

Xu Bo would love to play with pretty older sisters... um, aunties.

“Okay, Auntie, Quan Shiqian and I want to go too.”

Quan Shiqian rolled his eyes, but didn't refute him.

"Xiao Chen, do you want to bring your robot too?" Hu Zhenzhen noticed that the other two children had brought theirs and was already preparing to go back and get it for him.

"Need not."

Jiang Chen spoke calmly.

Xu Bo exclaimed, "Hey!" "Quan Shiqian brought it. Otherwise, I'll lend you his."

After she finished speaking, Hu Zhenzhen watched as the other little boy's mouth suddenly pouted, like a small hook in the kitchen that could hold an oil bottle.

She smiled and said, "It's okay, we haven't gone far yet. Auntie can have someone bring the robot from home."

She was speaking to Quan Shiqian.

The child immediately closed his pouting lips, his ears turning bright red. "Thank you, Auntie."

Jiang Chen tugged at Hu Zhenzhen's sleeve, drawing her attention back to her.

"No need to take it, Mom."

Now it was Xu Bo's turn to be unhappy.

"Don't you want to play Robot Wars? The three of us have only played it three times, and I haven't had enough yet."

In fact, for Jiang Chen, who had never played with peers before, playing robot battles with the two of them was a novel and interesting experience.

He liked it very much.

but……

Jiang Chen glanced at Quan Shiqian and finally spoke.

"We can play, but let's take turns being Dr. Tower One."

"I didn't bring a robot today, so I'll be the one to act as one."

He rarely spoke at such length, but the content of his words made both boys look at him with surprise.

Hu Zhenzhen patted his head, "Our Xiao Chen is such a good boy."

Praising her own child in front of the other two children would inevitably raise suspicions of comparison, so Hu Zhenzhen only said this one sentence.

"Alright, since we don't need to go back to get the robot, let's head towards the park."

With her around, the three little boys all behaved very well.

Hu Zhenzhen noticed that the child named Quan Shiqian approached Jiang Chen several times, as if he wanted to say something but held it back.

As an adult, she could naturally tell the children's emotions at a glance, but in the children's eyes, he seemed to be hiding them quite well.

However, let the children talk to themselves.

True friends are those who share joy, make mistakes, and grow together, aren't they?

The area around the lake is actually quite large, as Hu Zhenzhen calls it a park. In addition to the wooden walkway over the lake, there is also a garden the size of a school playground.

In the middle of the garden, a century-old tree has been preserved.

The area around the ancient tree is covered with grass, and a couple of long tables are placed under its shade for nearby residents to come and enjoy the cool air.

The children were full of energy. After sitting with Hu Zhenzhen for a while, they ran to the lawn to play robot battles.

This was the first time Hu Zhenzhen had ever seen Jiang Chen acting so wildly.

This game is called Robot Wars. It's actually similar to the tag game that Hu Zhenzhen played when she was a child. It's rock-paper-scissors. The winner can move forward two steps. If the person playing Tower 1 touches the person playing the robot, the robot will have one arm removed.

Once all four arms are removed, the game is lost.

Hu Zhenzhen watched for a short while, then heard Chen Kai's phone ring across from her.

He stood up, walked a few steps away, and answered the phone.

A short while later, he returned with a serious expression.

"Boss, the test results from the previous test are in. The propylene glycol level is too high."

The relaxed smile on Hu Zhenzhen's face vanished instantly.

"What about the water quality? Is it up to standard?"

"The water source inspection is currently normal, and the random sampling of food at the school cafeteria windows has not revealed any serious problems."

Hu Zhenzhen took out her phone and searched online, "Isn't propylene glycol not allowed to be added to milk?"

"Yes, boss. If used improperly, this stuff can damage a person's liver and kidney function."

Hu Zhenzhen frowned even more deeply.

"Contact the principal and schedule a meeting for tomorrow morning."

"Find out which company supplies milk to the school; I need all their information."

Chen Kai bowed slightly. "Yes, boss, please rest assured."

Meanwhile, at the top level of the Kowloon Group.

Several directors gathered in Gao Chen's office and began to enjoy tea with great interest.

"Old Li, how's it going? Have you found out how much power this Hu family heir has?"

The young Chairman Wang was the most impatient and asked the question first.

He's already signed it. What if this Mr. Hu isn't actually that important? That would be terrible.

"Don't rush," Old Li slowly put down his teacup, "I have indeed found some information."

“She just moved here from the south this spring, and her only publicly known assets are the Woshan Villa and the Dog Castle project.”

Upon hearing this, Chairman Wang immediately became anxious, "Is this all the assets she has?"

"Look at you, all you do is rush," Old Li criticized him. "The Hu family from the South, the Hu family from the South, it's already been said that they're from the South, so their physical presence is definitely not in S City. What can you find out by investigating them thoroughly?"

Upon hearing this, even Gao Chen couldn't help but glance at him.

"Mr. Li, in your opinion, is Miss Hu's project feasible?"

Old Li glanced at him sideways, "If you weren't at least 50% sure, you wouldn't have encouraged everyone to sign at the board meeting. Why are you asking this now?"

Gao Chen chuckled twice and changed the subject, asking, "So, in your opinion, why did she come to S City?"

Old Li pointed to the project proposal on the table, "The marriage is a pretense; the real purpose is to move."

"This Ms. Hu has been in S City for less than a month, and she has donated a library and bought an entire floor of Wanfu Shopping Mall to prepare for the Dog Castle project. She has spent at least one billion yuan on these alone."

Old Li didn't keep them in suspense any longer, and continued, "But besides these, she also donated all the toilets in the North District to the government."

Building public toilets is no small expense.

Such infrastructure projects are usually undertaken by the government, but due to the economic downturn in S City in recent years, the concept of donation projects has emerged.

Those present mentally calculated how much a public toilet would cost and gasped in shock.

"The toilets alone must have cost over a billion, right? Ms. Hu just donated them like that?" Chairman Wang exclaimed. "I heard she directly raised the child left by her ex-husband. It seems she really likes children. I wonder if she still needs a son."

Gao Chen's lips twitched as he heard this. "Chairman Wang, Miss Hu is only twenty-five. Even if she wanted a godson, I'm afraid you couldn't."

Mr. Wang explained reluctantly, "I wasn't planning on going myself. I was just looking for opportunities for my son."

Well, he really is a father; he even thinks of his son in things like this.

Gao Chen pursed his lips, suppressing a laugh.

While they were joking around, Old Li's phone rang. He answered it and listened for a couple of minutes. It was as if he had drunk a sip of ginseng soup; his complexion became much rosier.

"It seems I was right. This Miss Hu probably wants to transfer the Hu family's assets to S City. If the Hu family really has the rumored immense wealth, the opportunity for development in S City is coming!"

Chairman Wang quickly asked, "Mr. Li, what news have you heard?"

Old Li didn't mince words, "Chairman Feng left so decisively the day before yesterday. When I told Old Feng about it when I got home, the old man beat me with his cane. I didn't even go to the hospital. I heard he's raising funds to join Miss Hu's project."

"Old Master Feng is a shrewd old man; he must have figured something out to react like that."

Old Li downed his tea in one gulp. “Gao Chen is right. This is the best opportunity to build a good relationship with the heir of the Hu family. We can’t let it slip by. The funds must be in place within two days, otherwise the Feng family will probably be happy to cover your share.”

Speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao appears.

He had barely uttered those words when Chairman Feng was already at the office door.

"Old Li, you flatter us. The Feng family never intended to share the work with everyone in the first place."

Chairman Feng walked in with a smile, walked to the opposite side of Gao Chen with a clear purpose, and bowed respectfully. "I was impetuous before and did not know the rules. I would like to ask President Gao to make an appointment for me to meet with President Hu. The Feng family is very interested in this project."

Chairman Feng's walking posture was somewhat strange, which indirectly confirmed the truth of what Old Li had said.

Looking at his attitude now, it's a world of difference from the meeting the day before yesterday.

The people present exchanged glances, and a few quietly left the president's office.

There's no other reason than that if the Feng family snatches this opportunity away because of insufficient cash flow, they'll be furious!

But is the Hu family really as rich as the rumors suggest?