The premiere of "A Glimmer of Hope" was held on the sixth floor of the cinema, and the theater Xiao Liu booked for Feng Zhongliang was in the VIP lounge on the fifth floor.
When the elevator door opened, the staff standing by saluted with a smile. The VIP lounge on the fifth floor was already full of people.
In a short period of time, layers of sweat had already appeared on Xiao Liu's forehead. The moment he stepped out of the elevator and was about to take out a handkerchief to wipe his face, he saw Jiang Zhiyuan standing not far from the elevator door out of the corner of his eye.
Xiao Liu was subconsciously stunned. He instinctively put on a defensive look and blocked Feng Zhongliang behind him.
Among a group of young men and women with lively faces and well-dressed clothes, Jiang Zhiyuan seemed a little out of place.
He was not dressed fashionably. The gray coat he was wearing had been washed so much that the collar and sleeves were fuzzy. From the style and appearance, it was clear that the coat was quite old.
Even though he was unusually tall and handsome, many men and women passing by him couldn't help but show a bit of contempt.
He stood there calmly, blocking out the gazes from all directions from his world with his distant and indifferent expression, as if everything around him had little to do with him.
When he saw Feng Zhongliang and Xiao Liu, he was still leaning against the charger pillar, occupying a corner.
Not far away, a couple was looking at the port of the mobile phone charger and muttering to themselves, but no one dared to come over. It was human nature to seek good and avoid danger, and they could all feel that Jiang Zhiyuan was not someone to be trifled with.
He just looked at Feng Zhongliang, and there was no trace of Xiao Liu in his eyes. After a while, Feng Zhongliang smiled and pushed away Xiao Liu who was blocking his way.
"Old man..."
Xiao Liu was a little anxious, but Feng Zhongliang said calmly:
"Go find a place to kill time and leave me alone."
"How can that be possible?" Xiao Liu was getting anxious. Feng Zhongliang shook his head and walked towards Jiang Zhiyuan with his crutches. There was a distance of five or six meters between them. He didn't want Xiao Liu's support, so it took him more than ten steps to get there.
Xiao Liu followed closely behind him. Feng Zhongliang ignored him and just looked at Jiang Zhiyuan:
"It's been a long time."
Both of them were well aware of each other's existence. Feng Zhongliang knew that Xiao Liu was investigating Jiang Zhiyuan, and Jiang Zhiyuan also knew that people from the Feng family were watching him. The last time they met was when "The Devil" was released.
But in Feng Zhongliang's heart, that meeting didn't count. The two of them bumped into each other but didn't even say a word.
"The last time I spoke to you face to face like this was more than 20 years ago."
Jiang Zhiyuan nodded. When the two men dealt with each other more than 20 years ago, he was still in the prime of his life, but his ambitions were shattered and he was Feng Zhongliang's prisoner.
Feng Zhongliang was also very young that year. He founded Zhongnan Industrial Co., Ltd. and was known as "Uncle Liang" in Hong Kong. He was very domineering.
Now he is old and needs help even to walk.
"Let's find a quiet place to talk."
Both of them are quite old and stand out in the theater.
Most people who can book a movie theater in the VIP lounge on the fifth floor are either rich or noble, and it is inevitable that they will meet someone who knows Feng Zhongliang.
He made this suggestion and told Xiao Liu to have someone open the door of the reserved theater, and he and Jiang Zhiyuan went into the theater first.
This VIP lounge is not big. Feng Zhongliang drove away Xiao Liu, who was worried about him, and then looked at Jiang Zhiyuan.
"Do you smoke?"
Feng Zhongliang took out a box of cigarettes, took out a cigarette and handed it to Jiang Zhiyuan, who naturally reached out to take it.
He was even more silent now than he was twenty years ago. The mark of time left on him was very obvious. The heavy physical work after he was released from prison made his hands covered with calluses. Feng Zhongliang noticed that there was a white and hideous scar on his palm, winding down and almost separating the thumb and four fingers of his left hand.
He took out a box of matches from his pocket, lit it, and then lit the cigarette, taking a deep puff:
"Good smoke."
In the smoke, he saw Feng Zhongliang's gaze and stretched out his left hand so that Feng Zhongliang could see more clearly.
"In the first year I was in prison, someone almost broke my thumb off."
He said this lightly, but from the scars, it can be seen that the situation at that time was much more dangerous than his calm tone at this moment.
"Did they finally stop?"
Feng Zhongliang asked, and Jiang Zhiyuan smiled and nodded:
"Yes."
In fact, Feng Zhongliang knew very well that prison was not as peaceful as he said. If they wanted to tear off his thumb, how could he stop in the end
This incident was recorded in the information Xiao Liu found about Jiang Zhiyuan later.
Someone nearly tore off his thumb, but he used a sharpened toothbrush to poke a hole in the person's throat.
There is a ferocious beast living in Jiang Zhiyuan's heart.
"With your skills, it won't be difficult to find a good job now." Feng Zhongliang saw him take out a crumpled piece of paper from his bag, put the lit matchstick into the paper, and even shook the ashes into it. This action was not because he was too particular and unwilling to throw garbage around. It was clearly a cautious habit that had been engraved in his bones, leaving no trace of clues that he had been here.
He vaguely remembered that when he saw Jiang Zhiyuan in the hall before, this person seemed to be standing casually, but in fact he was standing in a blind spot of the surveillance. Feng Zhongliang speculated that he might not even take the elevator and would take the safety passage to go upstairs instead.
Maybe he went out tonight, but apart from those who have seen him and have an impression of him, I'm afraid there won't be any trace of his presence left.
This should be related to the habit he developed when he failed to kidnap Feng Nan. However, the fact that he has turned this caution into a habit for more than 20 years shows the terrifying side of Jiang Zhiyuan's character.
"When you are released from prison, many people in Hong Kong will extend olive branches to you."
He was quite skilled in martial arts and had been in prison for many years. Many vicious people did not dare to provoke him. He was a black man who could eat well, so naturally he attracted the attention of many wealthy people.
Rich people need bodyguards, and people like Jiang Zhiyuan are really a good choice.
But he refused them all and returned to the imperial capital alone. There were so many jobs available, but he chose the hard work that required hard work but paid little.
Jiang Zhiyuan smiled again and said nothing. Feng Zhongliang said:
"I remember Xiao Liu mentioned that someone offered one million dollars for a black market boxing match in Hong Kong at that time. Would you like to go out and fight Lewis?"
Feng Zhongliang had heard of the black market boxing in Hong Kong, but he was not interested in this so-called "entertainment". However, he could roughly imagine the bloody excitement that attracted a large number of wealthy people to pay money to buy tickets and place bets.
"money?"
Jiang Zhiyuan asked, and Feng Zhongliang watched him slowly shake off the cigarette ash. His eyes followed his hand and fell to his frayed cuffs:
"Yes, money." He said with a smile:
"With money, you can buy cigarettes and clothes, dress yourself up nicely, and no one will care about your past," he paused for a moment:
"When you kidnapped Feng Nan, wasn't it just for money? Why did you refuse?" (To be continued)