Chapter 158 Towel

Seeing Jian's suddenly ugly expression, Yang Chen felt somewhat helpless, but he didn't know how to comfort her. He forced a smile and said, "Why are you like this? Getting married isn't illegal, as they say, 'men should marry at the right age, and women should marry when they're of age.' That's what people in Yanxia country say."

Jian lowered her head and wiped the corner of her eye before lifting it with a forced smile, "Yeah, I should congratulate you. Our Queen Persephone should be a very beautiful woman, right?"

"She is beautiful, but she doesn't know she has such a peculiar title. I also hope she never finds out in her lifetime," Yang Chen said.

Jian bit her lip, "That means you really love her."

"Rather than love, it's more like a responsibility between husband and wife. I don't want anything impure to tarnish her pure soul," Yang Chen replied.

"It seems you really enjoy your life now," Jian said somewhat regretfully. "I think many people will be disappointed. Many of them are hoping you'll return someday."

Yang Chen shook his head, "I never said I would leave everyone. It's just that I need a relatively relaxed environment now. You know my situation best; you should understand."

Jian asked worriedly, "Is the condition still recurring?"

"It occasionally gets a bit difficult to control, but as long as I don't overuse my extraordinary abilities, I'm quite healthy," Yang Chen replied.

"I'm sorry, I've always said I would help you get rid of this burden, but..."

"You've already tried your best. I think besides you, there's no one else in this world who could suppress my condition to this extent," Yang Chen comforted with a smile. "By the way, how did you find time to come to Hong Kong? Catherine can't do without you."

"Hmph," Jian's face lit up with a mischievous expression at the mention of Catherine. "That old woman just wants to slack off and leave everything for me to handle. This time I gave her a taste of her own medicine, threw all the tasks back at her, and decided to go on a round-the-world trip. I came to Hong Kong because one of my students, Xiao Li, is here. He has been inviting me to see his new achievements, so I decided to visit when I had some free time."

"Ah, I see," Yang Chen said thoughtfully.

Jian chuckled, her figure swaying with alluring waves beneath the snug cheongsam. "Our beloved King, do you really think that under your explicit instruction not to seek out your whereabouts, any of us would have the courage to come find you? I bet many people, even if they happen to bump into you by chance, would flee as soon as possible before you notice, just to avoid arousing your suspicion."

Yang Chen's expression was slightly embarrassed. "Don't think like that. I'm not that scary. Actually, I'm quite happy to see you."

"Really?" Jian asked with delight. "Can I visit you at the Zhonghai next time? I have another student, Green, who is there. Oh yes, he and Xiao Li are working on the same project."

Yang Chen remembered the business at hand. "I'm currently working for Yulei International, which means that Li Guangxun's research results should be utilized to the fullest extent. Green is currently working for another competitor. Since you're their teacher, can you help me coordinate so that they both work for our side? It'd save me from possibly having to poach them next time."

Jian pondered with her chin resting on her hand and said, "If it's a command from the King, I can make Green and Xiao Li work together. Most of their achievements today are credited to me, so I can definitely make this happen. But if it's considered a favor, I can't do it. Betraying an employer is a disgrace for an expert in this industry, unless Green volunteers, otherwise it would be me as his teacher doing him wrong."

Yang Chen nodded in agreement. "You make a valid point. Let's leave it at that. If anything, you could provide Li Guangxun with more guidance to expedite his research; that should suffice."

"There's actually another way," Jian said casually. "If you're interested in developing new eco-friendly materials, I can offer many unpublished technologies that are more than capable of helping your company become one of the leading enterprises in the world."

Yang Chen knew that this young woman wasn't lying. Bearing the title of "genius girl" since childhood, she had always walked quietly on the cutting edge of research in various industries worldwide. Whatever she didn't bother to research herself, whatever she did research often led to significant breakthroughs. Many of these achievements were either discarded or destroyed by her. In her words, she didn't want the pace of progress in this world to become too rapid, leading to an increasingly widening social class gap caused by technological advancement.

After catching up for a while, Jian suddenly remembered something and asked, "Yang Chen, how long will you be staying in Hong Kong?"

"Probably about three days," he replied.

"Three days?" Jian pondered for a moment. "Three days it is then. I want to make something for you; it might be of some help to you."

Yang Chen didn't know what Jian intended to make, but since she didn't say, he didn't ask either.

Unbeknownst to them, their conversation had already lasted for more than half an hour. When they returned to the main entrance of the research institute, Li Muhua, Li Guangxun, Mo Qianni, and others were already waiting.

Seeing Yang Chen and Jian walking back while chatting and laughing, Mo Qianni felt increasingly uncomfortable, but out of politeness, she still managed to smile at Jian.

Jian had already noticed Mo Qianni standing next to Yang Chen. From her Western perspective, Mo Qianni's beauty wasn't particularly striking. This was mainly because Jian had seen too many beautiful women in her life. However, compared to others, she found Mo Qianni's gentle and intellectual demeanor, characteristic of Eastern women, more intriguing.

Jian, who was very perceptive, immediately noticed the jealousy in Mo Qianni's eyes and quickly understood the situation. She gave Yang Chen a playful smile.

"Teacher, you're finally here! Let's head to the restaurant," Li Guangxun said with a broad smile as he stepped forward to invite Jian into the car.

Jian's delicately arched eyebrows furrowed slightly. "Xiao Li, since you're working on an important project, you should stay at the research institute until it's completed. I'll come back to check your progress after dinner."

Li Guangxun let out an "ah" in disappointment, but upon hearing that Jian would check his research again, his spirits were immediately lifted. The thought of not being able to dine with his esteemed teacher vanished, and he eagerly ran back to the research institute.

Li Muhua kindly suggested, "Miss Jian, actually, my uncle has been working very hard these past few months. Taking a break occasionally would do him good."

"Sorry, when it comes to academics and education, I never listen to others' opinions," Jian replied politely and got into the car.

Li Muhua was left speechless and could only manage a forced smile as he directed everyone to depart, knowing full well that this was not someone he could afford to offend, even though he was quite upset inside.

The restaurant Li Muhua chose to host Jian was a renowned Western restaurant in Kowloon's Hong Kong, located near the azure sea.

The entire restaurant was designed based on a Western Gothic church, but the overall structure was elongated. The towering spires and ornate stone columns were well-utilized throughout the venue.

The mottled floral stained-glass windows exuded a somber and solemn atmosphere, but when the bright sunlight penetrated the windows and streamed into the restaurant, the quaint Eastern-style surroundings complemented each other, creating a delightful harmony.

Arriving at the reserved table overlooking the sea, everyone sat down and quickly ordered a full set of Western dishes. During the wait for the waiter to serve the food, Li Muhua, as the host, despite feeling a bit hesitant, plucked up the courage to ask, "I wonder how Miss Jian and Mr. Yang got to know each other. Could it be that you two have collaborated before?"

This question also puzzled the others present, especially Mo Qianni. She found it hard to imagine Yang Chen being associated with such a woman, considering the stark contrast in their demeanor, speech, and behavior.

"We only met a few times overseas. Mr. Yang helped me out a bit, so we got acquainted," Jian said in a vague manner.

Everyone suddenly understood. They figured the "help" Yang provided must have been some mundane assistance. However, Li Muhua couldn't help but speculate that perhaps Yang Chen had helped Jian get rid of someone, considering how terrifying he perceived Yang Chen's martial prowess to be.

As they exchanged small talk, when the waiter began serving the dishes, Yang Chen, who had been lounging lazily, suddenly felt something amiss.

Seated to his right was a hefty man named Lu Tao. He was the first one to be served. Already holding his utensils, Lu Tao eagerly eyed the plate of main course brought by the waiter, ready to indulge himself. The waiter carried the large plate with one hand while a white towel hung from the other, smiling politely as he approached.

Yang Chen stood up abruptly, blocking the waiter's path halfway between him and Lu Tao.

"What's wrong, Mr. Yang?" Lu Tao asked in confusion, feeling quite hungry as he hadn't even had breakfast yet.

The others also wore puzzled expressions, except for Jian, who seemed to have a hint of realization as she slowly rose from her seat.

With a smile, the waiter asked Yang Chen, "Sir, may I help you with something?"

Yang Chen pointed at the white towel in the waiter's right hand. "I need your towel."

The waiter politely smiled, "There's a towel on your seat for guests to use."

"I want that one," Yang Chen said with a smirk.

The waiter initially appeared puzzled, but eventually nodded and extended the hand holding the towel towards Yang Chen. "Sir, please take it."

"Thank you."

As Yang Chen finished speaking, he swiftly made a move, his palm striking the waiter's right forearm holding the towel!

"Bang..."

Almost simultaneously, a gunshot rang out from where the waiter's right hand held the towel!

The white towel was shredded to pieces, revealing a revolver firmly gripped in the waiter's right hand. The bullet that was meant to hit Yang Chen's chest moments ago ended up piercing the ceiling due to Yang Chen's timely strike!

"Screams echoed through the restaurant as guests scrambled to escape, some running in panic, others seeking refuge under tables or in corners. After all, gunfire was too terrifying for ordinary people!

As chaos erupted throughout the hall, the waiter, who had failed to hit Yang Chen, retreated a step with a menacing expression, his gaze intent on targeting Yang Chen once more!

But Yang Chen wouldn't give him the chance. Before he could aim, Yang Chen had unconsciously moved behind him and struck him on the back of his neck, rendering the waiter unconscious on the ground.

"What's going on?!" Li Muhua shouted in shock and anger. He hadn't brought many bodyguards, and they were all outside the restaurant. Fatty Lu Tao had already cowered under the table in fear.

Mo Qianni's face was pale as she instinctively ran to Yang Chen's side. Yang Chen shielded her with his body and warned the others, "Be careful. This attack was too simple; there might be accomplices."

Before Yang Chen could finish, a middle-aged, slightly chubby couple who had just disentangled themselves suddenly stood up. Each held a Colt revolver, their eyes filled with murderous intent as they aimed at Yang Chen and Li Muhua respectively!