Chapter 95
Staying at home meant busy making tangyuan (sweet rice balls), but stepping outside felt like the whole world had countless side quests. What Iris least expected was that Tiger didn't call the police to arrest that bastard Tian Xinxi. Knowing he was still wandering the streets, Iris felt the veins on her forehead about to bulge.
"Derek, we have backups of those files, right? We sent a copy to the police station, but Tiger couldn't bring himself to do it, so he asked me to do it. I really don't know what kind of spell Tian Xinxi cast on Tiger!"
Their disgust for Tian Xinxi was almost on par with that for Ding Youtian, the local tyrant from Su Wenqiang's hometown. Zhuang Zhuoyuan also thought Tiger's handling of the situation was inappropriate; putting everything else aside, his primary concern was He Feihu's safety. Tian Xinxi had no moral compass, and if pushed too far, he might very well send someone to attack Tiger. However, He Feihu insisted, and they could only respect his decision.
“Wife,” Zhuang Zhuoyuan advised Iris, “let’s wait a little longer. Tiger wants to give Dingding and Lele some time to adjust. He’s afraid they’ll be scared if they suddenly go to the orphanage. Once they’ve adjusted, he’ll report Tian Xinxi.”
Even though she compromised for the sake of the two children, Iris was still annoyed: "I'm just worried that that scoundrel will resort to dirty tricks. As the saying goes, it's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark."
For now, we can only take precautions.
No one knows what the future holds. He Feihu thought he needed to raise more money for Dingding and Lele to rely on in the future. Given the current situation of the two children, he had to consider the worst-case scenario. Therefore, he returned to the life of a bounty hunter, armed with a gun and rubber bullets. Ben had seen him in several operations. While it was good that the suspect had been caught, sending a middle-aged man with a "toy gun" to hunt down a suspect was far too dangerous. He specifically called Zhuang Zhuoyuan, hoping Zhuang could persuade his senior not to risk his life for the bounty again.
When questioned by Fei Hu's gang, He Fei Hu didn't tell the truth. He kept telling everyone to relax, saying he was just itching to make some extra money to supplement the bar's income. Iris, with money and connections, immediately wanted to lead a team to renovate upon hearing the news. But she knew that if she did, Tiger would inevitably be unhappy. Even if he understood her motives, he would still have reservations. Zhuang Zhuoyuan would then be caught in the middle, pleasing neither side. Iris didn't want her husband to be in a difficult position.
Fortunately, Zhuang Zhuoyuan had his own method. He had thought of some additional reasons, and knowing that Tiger was unwilling to speak up, he followed Tiger's public reasons and arranged for the whole group of brothers to secretly help Tiger repair the faulty machines and areas in the bar at Cafe Tiger on the weekend, to help him in any way they could.
Men's friendship is simple, and everything is understood without words. Tiger joked that he was incredibly lucky to have such good brothers and wanted to cook a meal for them himself. Of course, Zhuang Zhuoyuan was also involved in the kitchen. The two went downstairs to buy groceries together, and Zhuang Zhuoyuan texted Iris and Jennie to let them know. He Feihu thought he was making plans with his wife, so he asked, "Is Iris coming? If she is, remind her later so I can cook a couple more of her favorite dishes."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan shook his head with a smile: "She went to do field research. She was heavily pregnant last semester and missed several activities. She has to make up the credits this semester."
"Ah, is that so?" He Feihu had heard about Iris's schooling once or twice, and happened to know that she had passed her make-up exams at the beginning of the semester. He gave her a thumbs up, but then asked, "Since you two are both away from home, and the child is still so young, will you be able to manage?"
“Heh,” Zhuang Zhuoyuan chuckled softly, then sighed again. This seemed to be a problem that all modern parents had to face. “Everyone has to do things, there’s no way around it. Our family is a little better off. My mother-in-law has been taking care of things, and we also have a housekeeper to help out. I put Tangyuan to sleep every night, while Iris adjusts her schedule flexibly to try to spend more time with the baby.”
He Feihu patted Zhuang Zhuoyuan on the shoulder and sighed, "Raising children is not easy!" Now that he has brought Dingding and Lele home, he understands the hardships of being a parent even more. But seeing the children's smiles, he feels that it's all worth it.
With Zhuang Zhuoyuan handling Tiger's matter, Iris, not wanting to explode one day and expose Tian Xinxi's secrets, temporarily focused her attention on Su Wenqiang. She heard from Zhuang Zhuoyuan that Wenqiang's assessment results weren't ideal; in a previous training session, she was the only member who failed to climb out of the tunnel within the allotted time. Bo Sir, in charge of training, publicly criticized her and privately told Zhan Hantao about his concerns regarding Wenqiang's graduation.
Her career was already tough enough; her love life couldn't be any more difficult. Iris couldn't just improvise and bring Larine and Xie Jiaxing together, so she secretly planned to confront Yu Xueli. But when she called, well, he had no idea his relationship was in trouble. Iris asked him what he was doing, and Yu Xueli casually replied that he was watching a Japanese sports show called "Running Army," and even gave it a recommendation! She was so angry she rolled her eyes.
Since the other party was so clueless, Iris didn't hold back and bluntly told Yu Xueli about Su Wenqiang's visit. She threatened him that if Yu Xueli didn't treat Su Wenqiang well, she would use her pool of high-quality men to give him a demonstration in turn. As for the partner, it was 100% Su Wenqiang.
Yu Xueli felt a headache coming on.
Larine, who had just finished a business deal, was also quite busy lately. Her useless brother Jacob was obsessed with a Japanese actress and insisted on dragging her to participate in some sports program so he could get up close and personal with his goddess.
Larine had just finished venting to her best friend when Iris received a notification that Zhuang Zhuoyuan was going on a business trip. This trip would last at least four days, and Iris suspected they were going to some deserted island for training again. But when she inquired, she found out it wasn't everyone going; only a few were. The mission hadn't even started yet, and Zhuang Zhuoyuan couldn't reveal too much, leaving Iris looking worried. However, less than two hours after her husband left, Larine texted her, saying she had met Zhuang Zhuoyuan, Yu Xueli, Su Wenqiang, and another man at the show's location.
Well, now all secrecy is useless. Iris simply asked Derek to get the software from Topaz and hacked into the server of the popular show called "Running Army." She had considerable confidence in her company's technology. If she were unfortunately discovered, she could simply claim she was a curious person who had heard Yu Xueli's recommendation and rushed to the scene to catch up on the latest episode. Anyway, she didn't know the details of their mission, and as long as she didn't disturb the four of them, secretly checking on her husband wouldn't cause any major problems. Now that Liang Rifeng wasn't around, no one would arrest her for a reprimand.
According to host Zhang Tao, this program tests both the contestants' physical abilities and their intelligence. In other words, besides physical strength, contestants must also have the wisdom to solve various challenges set by the program team. Only the team that completes all the challenges in the shortest time will win the $100,000 prize.
Applause gradually broke out in the hall where the recording crew was gathered. Although the camera zoomed in on a wide shot, obscuring Zhuang Zhuoyuan's expression, Iris still caught a peep of "Wow!" from Zhuang Sheng, the atmosphere-maker from their family. She grinned, hugged her cushion, and whispered in her mother's ear, "We can do this for our party this year too."
Jennie gently cupped Iris's chin and nodded in agreement. Besides following Zhuang Zhuoyuan, her attention was also particularly drawn to Larine and Jacob. She'd recently developed a fondness for humorous things, and she had a feeling the show's laughs would definitely come from those two.
Iris is just worried that the war between Larine, Yu Xueli, and Su Wenqiang might fully unfold after this show. But looking at it from another perspective, it's better for the three of them to face the problem sooner rather than later, when it drags on unresolved.
At the same time, she was worried that Larine and Jacob might be another target for protection in Operation Flying Tigers. But looking at them, neither of them seemed like they were going to be kidnapped. After all, given the experience from last time, if a similar case were to occur, the Flying Tigers could use more secure methods to protect them, and there was no need to send someone on such a secret mission.
With a sigh of relief, Iris could finally relax and watch TV. Zhang Tao had already announced the start of the first game; each team could collect the necessary supplies from the table and go upstairs to choose their resting room. Iris slowed down the camera and noticed that her husband and his teammate Su Wenqiang had taken flashlights, ropes, clothes hangers, pliers, wrenches, and notebooks. This pile of stuff was quite useful, and Iris was curious about what kind of game the production team had designed to provide such equipment for the guests. She started a discussion with Jennie: "Could it be that my husband and his friends are going to climb through the window tonight?"
Jennie didn't have time to reply right now; she was looking for footage of the Shu siblings. Sure enough! She patted Iris's hand: "Honey, look, Jacob's got a ton of chips, and Larine's still picking out perfume and shower gel." Iris couldn't help but facepalm; these two siblings were just too outrageous.
However, this was just the beginning; the Shu siblings' ability to cause trouble never disappoints.
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