Seeing Zhou Yi pretending to be very close to her,
Qiu Yihe, who was standing to the side, immediately rolled her eyes.
She replied with a smile, "No, Elder Wang. It just so happened that I saw Jiang Cheng drinking tea here, so I came over to say hello. I was just about to leave after greeting him, I didn't expect you to come up just now."
Hearing that Jiang Cheng was also there, Wang Houliang's interest seemed to be piqued instantly.
He said "Oh?" while following Qiu Yihe's gaze to look inside the door curtain.
Sure enough, he saw Jiang Cheng sitting at a table inside, leisurely drinking tea.
"Young Master Jiang, you're here too. Happy New Year!" Wang Houliang took the initiative to greet Jiang Cheng.
Inside the private room, Shen An and the other two saw Wang Houliang pull back the curtain and walk in.
They all stood up stiffly.
They called out, "Hello, Director Wang."
Jiang Cheng finally stood up at this point.
"Old Wang, what a coincidence. Happy New Year."
Boom!
Zhou Yi's mind exploded.
Old Wang??
Jiang Cheng called Minister Wang... Old Wang??
His eyes widened, his jaw nearly hit the floor, and the expression on his face looked as if he had been slapped hard.
No wonder Qiu Yihe said those things just now.
So, he might have vastly underestimated Jiang Cheng's status?
Inside the private room, the expressions of Shen An, Fu Yang, and Lü Chengwen were not much better than Zhou Yi's.
Several of them were completely petrified.
The biggest reason for their petrification was, of course, Jiang Cheng's address—'Old Wang'.
Shen An and the others didn't know Wang Houliang.
But seeing Zhou Yi's attitude and the way he called him 'Director Wang', they could guess that Wang Houliang's position was not low.
But for such a person, Jiang Cheng actually called him 'Old Wang'.
The most fatal part was that the other party didn't seem offended at all.
"Haha, it really is a coincidence!" Wang Houliang took the initiative to ask with a face full of smiles, "And these are?"
Seeing this, Jiang Cheng introduced them, "They are my friends: Shen An, Fu Yang, and Lü Chengwen."
After introducing his friends, Jiang Cheng immediately said to Shen An and the others, "This is the second-in-command of the Huaxia Security Bureau, Deputy Director Wang."
Hearing Jiang Cheng's introduction, a hint of gratitude immediately appeared on the faces of Shen An, Fu Yang, and Lü Chengwen.
The three of them stepped forward one by one to shake hands and greet Wang Houliang, their attitudes appearing very respectful.
Wang Houliang acted quite politely, saying with a smile, "Young Master Jiang's friends all look like talented young men, very distinguished indeed."
Hearing this, Jiang Cheng couldn't help but laugh.
He replied half-jokingly, "Old Wang, you really know how to praise people. Just a moment ago, someone was saying we were all idle sons of wealthy merchants. Your sudden praise makes me quite uncomfortable."
Wang Houliang's expression paused for a moment upon hearing this.
Then he said with a chuckle, "Idle? How could that be?? You're being too modest. I saw the launch of the anti-fraud public service video yesterday. You're still doing charity work on New Year's Day. If you're idle, then what am I? Haha."
"Are you saying this because you want to slack off? I wonder how the overseas transportation matter Professor Chen mentioned is progressing?"
Hearing Wang Houliang's flattering words,
Zhou Yi, who was standing to the side, felt even more that his previous provocations and showing off were like dog shit.
"Don't even mention it. Speaking of that, I'm currently trembling with fear."
Wang Houliang was suddenly a bit confused.
"What do you mean by that? Is there anything that could possibly threaten you?"
"Old Wang, are the people receiving your shipments legitimate?"
"Naturally they are legitimate. Why do you ask?"
"Just now, Major Zhou said that twelve smugglers were shot dead last month, and the goods seized were provided by merchants like us. You tell me, the two of us..."
Zhou Yi couldn't take it anymore.
He quickly spoke up.
"So the anti-fraud advertisements that have been airing these past two days were arranged by Young Master Jiang. Young Master Jiang is truly a leader in the business world who cares for the country!"
"These public service ads cover all major national channels; the production costs alone must start at ten million, right? Anyone else would have gone abroad for a vacation on New Year's Day, yet only Young Master Jiang still cares for the people. This kind of vision is something even our Special Operations Brigade's operational deployments should learn from!"
Zhou Yi's words flowed very smoothly.
Those who didn't know better would think he had memorized them in advance.
Among those present, except for Wang Houliang, who was accustomed to such flattery,
the other four were instantly petrified.
Even Jiang Cheng couldn't help but think to himself: that was impressive.
"Major Zhou, have you studied Sichuan Opera face-changing?? No wonder you've been promoted so quickly at such a young age."
"Young Master Jiang, I... I was just joking just now. You are a magnanimous person, please don't take it to heart!"
As he spoke, Zhou Yi stepped forward quickly, reaching out to refill Jiang Cheng's tea, but because he was too flustered, he almost knocked over the tea cup on the table.
Zhou Yi forced a smile, sweat beads rolling down his forehead, which he wiped away haphazardly with his hand.
Even a figure like Wang Houliang was flattering Jiang Cheng in every word.
What reason did he have to put on airs and not apologize to Jiang Cheng?
As the saying goes, apologize for a mistake to someone's face.
It's better than having them remember you and look for a chance to get back at you behind your back.
Seeing Jiang Cheng just carelessly spinning his watch, his gaze sweeping over with an even colder chill,
Zhou Yi's legs couldn't help but go weak, and he could barely stand.
"Young Master Jiang, you see, I'm just clumsy with words and don't know how to speak properly." Zhou Yi bent over, almost curling himself into a ball. "Please don't hold it against me!"
He babbled on, his eyes full of fawning and fear, terrified that Jiang Cheng wouldn't accept his overtures and that he would completely offend this big shot he couldn't afford to provoke.
Zhou Yi's attitude was like a completely different person compared to the arrogant way he had entered.
Seeing this, expressions of contempt couldn't help but appear on the faces of Qiu Yihe and the others.
Wang Houliang's face instantly darkened, his gaze sweeping toward Zhou Yi like a knife.
"Which department are you from??"
Zhou Yi's Adam's apple bobbed up and down, his face turning pale and then flushed; his previous arrogance had vanished without a trace.
He forced a stiff smile that looked worse than crying, his voice carrying a tremor he didn't even notice.
"Director Wang, my name is Zhou Yi, I'm from the Special Combat Zone."
Hearing this, Wang Houliang looked Zhou Yi up and down, and his expression immediately sank.
"Do you have a mission today?"
Zhou Yi understood what Wang Houliang meant.
At this moment, he no longer had the heart to show off like before.
"This... No, I'm on leave these few days."
"On leave? Have you memorized Article 13 of the Internal Affairs Regulations?? Don't the regulations state that you shouldn't wear this uniform as casual clothes? Why are you wearing this while on leave?? What?? Don't you have any civilian clothes?"