A steady drizzle.
There are not many people in this Western restaurant with melodious music, maybe because it rained today.
Huo Xiao and Liu Siye sat in a quiet corner.
Both parties had a tacit understanding that they did not bring anyone with them. Huo Xiao leaned on the back of the chair with his legs crossed and kept shaking the wine glass in his hand. He smiled as if there was nothing in his hand and said, "Fourth Master is really an elegant person. In such a place, , I rarely come here.”
He was not familiar with Shanghai, so the place was naturally chosen by Mr. Liu.
Mr. Liu laughed heartily and said, "How could a rough guy like me know this? Lao Qi recommended this place to me. When I tasted it, oh dear, it is indeed very good."
Huo Xiao smiled: "Master Qi certainly has good taste."
Fourth Master Liu nodded meaningfully: "Isn't that right? If you are like the old roughnecks like us, then why are you studying abroad?"
Huo Xiao smiled, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.
"It's rare to have such an opportunity to sit together with Fourth Master Liu. It's kind of fate. Speaking of which, I've been in Shanghai for so long and I rarely interact with people. It's very inappropriate to think about it." Huo Xiao had something in his words.
Liu Siye said cheerfully: "That's wrong to say. I don't think so. If anyone dares to let the famous Xiao Ye come to visit me, I'm afraid he will be restless. As long as you say a word, I think many people will take the initiative to come. . How dare I trouble you?"
Huo Xiao sneered and then said, "Fourth Master really knows how to talk."
Fourth Master Liu took a sip of the wine in his glass: "The truth, it's just the truth."
Huo Xiao laughed and said: "What's famous or not, it's just a face given by the brothers. Besides, everyone always looks at the Huo family."
When it comes to the Huo family, the two people's eyes look a bit wrong.
Fourth Master Liu chuckled and stopped answering.
Huo Xiao also quickly changed the subject. He said: "Actually, I also have some business to discuss in Shanghai this time. If I am busy with things here, I will go back to Peiping earlier. Although Shanghai Beach is good, it is not It suits me very well.”
He cut the steak on the plate and said: "This Western thing is really not suitable for me."
Mr. Liu raised his eyes and said: "That's true. Peiping is Peiping and Shanghai is Shanghai. After all, our habits are different. My hometown was in the north when I was young. When I first came to Shanghai, I was not used to everything. After living here for thirty or forty years, I am still a little bit I can’t change my little habits. But gradually I started to feel better.”
Huo Xiao smiled and nodded.
The two fell into silence for a while, and Fourth Master Liu spoke first: "Speaking of my hometown in the north, Xiaoye's hometown is Peiping, right?"
Huo Xiao: "Exactly."
He fiddled with the wine glass in his hand: "When I was a boy, I lived in a famous slum south of the Imperial City."
He drank the wine in one gulp, then took another glass and continued to drink.
Fourth Master Liu had a profound meaning: "I have a hard-earned background, just like me, Liu. When I was a boy, I worked hard on my own, which is different from today's young people. Today's young people are much more particular about their background. Ours At that time... oh, how many times have I narrowly escaped death? It's all tears."
He laughed loudly and then said: "I really can't speak, but sometimes people with good backgrounds don't understand the feelings of people like us who come from poor backgrounds."
Huo Xiao nodded, a rare nod that seemed to be concerned, and he said: "That's true."
He shook the cup, put it down, smiled, and looked at Mr. Liu: "That's why people who come from a bitter background understand that it is best to have many things in their own hands."
There was something in his words, and Mr. Liu understood it immediately. He smiled and said, "There is some truth in it, but not everything goes as expected. I, the old man, am not a capable person, and I have been able to reach this point." To have a place in Shanghai depends on everyone's respect, and even more on the support of the big brother. It's good to have it in your hands, but you have to clearly understand your position."
Huo Xiao nodded and smiled: "That's true, but no one dislikes the money."
Fourth Master Liu narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at Huo Xiao.
Huo Xiao laughed, drank all the wine in the glass, and poured another glass for himself.
"And... Since Hongmen is no longer there, and since they have been completely separated, there is no need for all the business to be entangled, right? When doing business, you have to pay attention to making money. Are you right? You may not want to find a better partner for cooperation. need."
He raised his fingers, dipped his fingers into the wine in the glass, and wrote a few words on the table.
Fourth Master Liu looked over and saw a series of numbers.
He raised his eyes and looked at Huo Xiao.
Huo Xiao smiled and stood up: "It seems that my memory is so bad, but I forgot that there is another urgent matter to deal with."
He nodded slightly: "I'll leave first. Fourth Master Liu... think about it."
Then he went to the counter to pay the bill and left.
The numbers on the table dried quickly.
Fourth Master Liu was speechless. He stared at the numbers on the table and fell into deep thought.
In less than a moment, he stood up and went out.
The attendant at the door quickly opened the car door and said: "Fourth Master."
Mr. Liu Si had a tigerish face and said coldly: "Go to Bai Mansion."
The car quickly drove out. Mr. Liu put away his smile and kept a cold face, which was not the way he looked in front of others.
The car quickly arrived at Bai Mansion, which was the residence of Mr. Bai.
Since the disbandment of Hongmen, Mr. Bai has basically stayed behind closed doors and has rarely had contact with outsiders. Only a few people from Hongmen will come to visit, and most of the others who ask to see him disappear.
Fourth Master Liu hurried in and asked, "Where is the second brother?"
The attendant immediately said: "Second Master is listening to a play in the study."
Fourth Master Liu said: "Go and inform your Second Master that I have something important to do."
Not long after, Fourth Master Liu was invited in.
Mr. Bai glanced at him and said slowly: "Why are you so eager? You look like your butt is on fire."
He was making ideas along with the record and seemed to be in good condition.
Fourth Master Liu said seriously: "Second brother, something happened."
Mr. Bai squinted his eyes slightly, hummed for a moment, still thinking about the idea, and seemed to be still intoxicated in the play.
Fourth Master Liu: "Huo Xiao knows that we secretly stocked up a batch of goods at Pier 8 behind everyone's back."
Mr. Bai suddenly opened his eyes and said, "Huo Xiao knows?"
He stared at Mr. Liu like an eagle: "How do you know? He is looking for you?"
Fourth Master Liu immediately started talking like this, and finally said: "He wrote down the registration number of the warehouse where we store the goods, so it must be very clear. I think he means to get a share of the pie."
Fourth Master Liu frowned slightly: "I don't know if Old Seven knows about this."
Mr. Bai stared at him and asked, "Didn't you go see Lao Qi today? How did he react?"
Fourth Master Liu shook his head: "No, I'm not sure whether Lao Qi really doesn't know or is pretending. But whether Huo Xiao knows or not has nothing to do with Lao Qi. From my point of view, Huo Xiao may not be willing to tell Lao Qi."
Mr. Bai stood up and turned off the record. He came to the window. It was still raining outside the window, but the rain was much lighter.
He opened the window and turned back to light his pipe.
"Duanmu Jing'an still betrayed us."
He looked out the window and affirmed: "Otherwise, he would not have known this."
Mr. Liu Si said: "Duanmu Jing'an is really not a good partner to work with. He is conceited and incompetent. I originally thought that he was pulling the Zhou family and Qi family to use him as a shield, but I thought he was calm-minded. , thinking that it really felt like the waves behind the Yangtze River pushed the waves ahead. But I didn’t know that he was stupid enough to catch Tang Jiao. I told him repeatedly not to act rashly, even if Duanmu Jingyu came, it wouldn’t matter, he was just a brainless idiot. He He refused to listen, and even did such a thing without telling us. Now it’s better, all the hard work has been wasted. If I had known about it, I wouldn’t have lent it to him. Now it’s better, but there are more safety risks. Lao Qi’s If a person dies in vain, he must be suspicious.”
Mr. Liu became angry when he mentioned this. He said angrily: "We have been planning for so long, and it seems that we have to do it all over again. A good shield can kill two birds with one stone, but it was wasted. Where can we find such a suitable person again." "
Thinking of this, he became extremely angry and sat on the sofa, feeling a little anxious.
Fourth Master Liu always had a smile in front of outsiders, which was not the case now at all.
But privately it's completely different.
He didn't smile at all and kept complaining.
Mr. Bai kept listening to him in silence for a long time, and finally said: "Duanmu Jing'an cannot live, he must die."
Liu Siye naturally understands this truth, but... "I can't get in Huo Xiao's side at all. If it's Lao Qi's side, it's still possible, but Huo Xiao didn't hand over the person."
People on your own are always easy to manipulate.
But this is not the case for outsiders.
Mr. Bai sneered: "If you can't kill him, just do business with him. Huo Xiao is not a kind person. He will come to talk to you. He must not want to hand this person over to Lao Qi."
After a pause, he said: "It depends on what he wants. He wants to get involved in Shanghai's business. It's not impossible."
Fourth Master Liu was startled, and he immediately said: "But second brother, Duanmu Jingyu, we didn't let him join. If it is Huo Xiao, it will be even more difficult to control. If we form a partnership, we may get into trouble."
And multiple people share the pie, why would they do this
Fourth Master Liu was unwilling.
"Look, can we replace it with something else? For example... "
Fourth Master Liu fell silent.
Mr. Bai looked at him: "What?"
Mr. Liu immediately said: "I saw Huo Xiao taking Tang Jiao to the hospital today. I wonder if he is interested in Tang Jiao. Do you want us to tie up Tang Jiao and give him to him?"
Second Master Bai stared at Fourth Master Liu.
He was horrified by the sight, and after a while, he said: "I, this is also a suggestion."
Mr. Bai said coldly: "Don't say such a stupid suggestion in the future. Have you forgotten what kind of loss Duanmu Jing'an suffered? Don't give me any ideas about tying up women. If you have any brains, you shouldn't I think so. Not to mention whether it is useful or not, I just feel that Tang Jiao is weird. And do you know that she and Huo Xiao had no relationship in the first place? What if she and Huo Xiao colluded to deliberately plot against Lao Qi? "
As soon as these words came out, Fourth Master Liu was taken aback.
"No, no, that's not the case, is it?"
Mr. Bai exhaled slightly and said: "Nothing in this world is completely impossible, so... shut up. Be smarter when doing things."
He looked at the scene outside the window and said, "Huo Xiao has made it clear that he wants to compete with Lao Qi for the Huo family. Who knows what tricks he can use?"
Fourth Master Liu fell silent and thought about it carefully, it seemed to make sense.
The two fell silent for a while.
After a while, Fourth Master Liu struggled to speak: "So, second brother, look, how do we talk to Huo Xiao? Do we really give up part of the business to let him join?"
Mr. Bai sneered and said slowly: "Join? He thinks too well. Talk to him and see what he wants. I told you, no matter what the relationship is, there is nothing that cannot be discussed. Huo Xiao is also very powerful. Ordinary people.”
Fourth Master Liu pondered for a moment and said: "That guy..."
Mr. Bai said: "Don't move. If you move now, do you think Lao Qi won't notice? We must not break up with Lao Qi now, let alone antagonize him."
He said meaningfully: "No matter what time, we can't have something like the minister Gu Ming kill the prince. It's not that we can't afford to shame this person, but we can't give other people a chance. Fourth brother, use your brain when doing things. .”
Fourth Master Liu sighed deeply and said: "Okay, I will talk to Huo Xiao again. This little red guy, he is crazy. Second brother, you don't know, he is not polite at all when he talks to me. It's really not good. Knowing what he relies on, he really thinks of himself as the prince of the Huo family!"
Mr. Bai was smoking his pipe and said calmly: "A mad dog raised by the Huo family, how gentle do you think he can be?"
He knocked on his pipe and said, "Deal with it as soon as possible."