Xia Shao returned to the living room from the study. Xu Yanshao, Hua Fang and his wife, and Xu Yanying had already arrived. Today they were supposed to gather together to discuss the details of the engagement, but when the three of them heard that Xia Shao said that they were going to postpone the wedding, they were all stunned and very surprised.
Xu Yanshao was the first to react. He smiled kindly and said: "It doesn't matter! Since the old man agrees with this matter, it doesn't matter. We have no objection. Young people, career is the most important thing! And this time I go to England, Only Huaxia Auction in China has been invited, which is naturally a great honor. Our country’s auction industry started much later than European countries. Since Huaxia Group can receive the invitation letter, it means that it is already outstanding in the industry. And this time Auction Summit, our country... Oh! Forget it, let’s go to the Auction Summit and do a good job! Win glory for the country!”
Xu Yanshao naturally knew about the Dunhuang murals at his level. Although he didn't know about the special operation, he knew it was happening. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement just two days ago, but Xu Yanshao did not dare to tell Xia Shao about it. He was afraid that Xia Shao would mistakenly think that he meant to let her buy the murals back. Not to mention that the state did not encourage people to buy lost cultural relics. Even if it was allowed, he didn't know whether Xia Shao would be willing to pay for it. After all, it was Private money and cultural relics must be returned to the state when recovered.
Xu Yanshao was afraid that if Xia Shao didn't want to tell her about the Dunhuang murals, it would cause her misunderstanding and resentment.
Thinking of this, he couldn't help but smile bitterly. A high-ranking member of the Republic was treated as a national leader when he went out. Except for the old man, had he ever spoken so carefully and carefully to others? However, Xia Shao was prejudiced against their couple. No matter how kind he had been in the past six months, her attitude was lukewarm.
Hua Fang knew that she was the one who had done the most things to offend Xia Shao, so in the past six months, when she saw Xia Shao, she did not speak and just sat aside. It was these days that she looked like the daughter-in-law of a big family.
Xu Yanying didn't know about the Dunhuang murals yet. She could only sigh after hearing Xia Shao's decision, "Fortunately it's an engagement, not a wedding. We kept a low profile before and the invitations haven't been sent out yet, otherwise it would be really difficult."
"It happened suddenly, so my aunt had to worry a lot." Xia Shao said apologetically. She was lukewarm towards Xu Yanshao and his wife, but she was very grateful to Xu Yanying from the bottom of her heart. Xu Yanying has been busy these days, preparing a lot of engagement plans. Just wait until the family sees it today, and she and Xu Tianyin will nod. As a result, Xia Shao felt sorry for her when such an emergency happened.
These words made Xu Yanshao and his wife's faces burn. They had been showing kindness to Xia Shao in the past six months, and they had never heard her say such words in a junior manner. Xu Yanying smiled and said, "Why should I bother? As an elder, isn't the marriage of the younger generation just fun at this age? I just like to join in the fun. You have to talk to Tianyin about this matter, this child can't talk. "I can see that he is looking forward to the engagement the most. The postponement will probably have the biggest impact on him. You young couple, if you have anything to say, please talk it over, but don't quarrel."
"Do you think someone with Yin's temper can quarrel with him?"
Xu Yanying was stunned for a moment, and then laughed, "His temperament means that if someone can quarrel with him, he must have some skills." After laughing for a while, Xu Yanying mused again, "Tian Yin has always loved you, as long as you two My relationship is not affected, and the old man is not angry because of this matter, that's the best. The others have nothing to say. Young people should put their career first, but they also have to worry about their families. I heard that there will be some incidents before the Chinese New Year A good day? You should be fine by then, right?"
Although Xia Shao cannot say that she is not busy at the end of the year, it is indeed the only holiday of the year. At that time, she would go home to spend time with her parents, put down all social dinners, and would not participate in anything except the company's year-end dance. If the engagement date is the day before New Year's Eve this year, she will make arrangements for the company and will never delay it again. "At that time, I will arrange things in advance. If anything happens, I won't care."
"That's good." Xu Yanying breathed a sigh of relief and smiled bitterly, "You kid, you are busier than the rest of us. You always feel like you have everything to do."
"A group is like a kingdom. Doesn't it take care of everything every day?" Xu Yanshao added with a smile.
Xia Shao ignored him.
After a while, the old man and Xu Tianyin came out of the study. No one knew what they said. Xia Shao was only told afterwards that when he went to England this time, in addition to Xu Tianyin, there would be three agents assisting him, and the identities of the four people were arranged by Huaxia Group.
Xia Shao made a phone call back to Dongshi that night to inform her parents that the engagement had been postponed until the end of the year. Xia Zhiyuan and Li Juan were also surprised. Li Juan took the call and told Xia Shao, "Xiao Shao, Mom knows it's not easy for you. You have to manage the company, take care of your studies, and also take care of your studies." Stay at home. Mom doesn’t want you to do the best in everything, but I just want to tell you that Tianyin’s kid is nice to you. Although you have reasons for this, you have to talk to him carefully and pay more attention to his feelings. Don’t let it go It’s so uncomfortable for that kid.”
As the saying goes, mother-in-law looks at her son-in-law, and Li Juan now regards Xu Tianyin as her son-in-law.
Xia Zhiyuan spoke for his daughter this time, "Isn't this an urgent matter? Our daughter's company has been invited in China. It is a matter of bringing glory to the country! Why not go? Besides, didn't the old man agree? Then there is nothing to say. Yes. At worst, our family will go to the capital for the New Year this year, settle the engagement, and celebrate the New Year directly in the capital!"
The end of the year is the day before Little New Year's Eve, and it happens to be celebrating the New Year in Beijing. This arrangement is indeed a good one. Xia Shao left these matters to her parents to arrange, and her relatives also asked them to tell them that she was only planning to go to England.
The World Auction Summit opens on August 1, but Xu Tianyin’s team plans to enter the UK in advance to find out where the Dunhuang murals are preserved. Xia Shao arranged for several people to be secretaries and bodyguards. She never had an assistant to the chairman in the company, only two secretaries. There was a female soldier in Xu Tianyin's team, and Xia Shao arranged for her to be a temporary assistant, while the others were arranged to be bodyguards. Regardless of whether she is a master or not, hiring a bodyguard is understandable. After all, no matter how skilled you are, you can't dodge bullets. It's common knowledge that celebrities in the upper class have bodyguards when going out.
However, the time for traveling to the UK should not be too early to avoid arousing suspicion. Xia Shao decided to go to the UK a week early for the purpose of visiting her friend Hu Jiayi who was studying at the University of Cambridge in the UK. This reason couldn't be better, and it was approved as soon as Xia Shao put it forward.
Xia Shao led Xu Tianyin's team first, and the rest of the Huaxia Group was led by Sun Changde and Chen Manguan. A group of ten people gathered in London the day before the auction summit.
…
The weather in London at the end of July is much colder than that in Beijing. At eight o'clock in the evening, we were at Heathrow Airport.
An Oriental woman got off the first class cabin. In an international metropolis like London, Orientals are very common, but when the woman got off the plane, she still attracted a lot of attention.
The woman does not look very old. In the eyes of Westerners, she is only about sixteen or seventeen years old, but she fits all the expectations of Oriental beauties. She was wearing a long white dress and a light pink coat on her upper body. In the exotic neon light, her gait was elegant and leisurely, and her eyebrows were smiling. It was a cool night in London, and the moonlight was almost invisible, but her body seemed to be covered with a faint layer of pearlescent light, and her skin was radiant with jade, giving her a unique quiet and mysterious aura. At first glance, one is reminded of the porcelain from ancient Eastern countries that has been around for thousands of years.
At the airport, many people couldn't help but turn around and stop. Some British men's eyes lit up, and then they walked over boldly, intending to strike up a conversation. But after they took a few steps, they all stopped and looked behind the woman.
Behind the woman, three men in black suits walked down. The leading man was not impressive in appearance, but his eyes were like a lonely, cold and arrogant wolf in the dark night. One glance made several people's throats feel tight and they retreated unconsciously. There is a scar on the man's chin, but it is not ugly, but adds a bit of masculine charm. However, this man is not easy to mess with at first sight.
Behind the man were two men with oriental faces. They were both of average height and inconspicuous in appearance. One of them had fierce eyes, while the other was thin and had a clever look in his eyes. He walked around as soon as he got off the plane. Take aim, look alert.
The first impression these three people give people is just two words - bodyguard!
An oriental beauty who goes out with a bodyguard? What status
Just as the people who were stopping at the airport had doubts on their faces, another woman came down from behind. The woman wears a black ponytail and is dressed in professional attire. She was carrying a trolley suitcase behind her. When she came down, she went straight to Xia Shao and said with a professional smile: "Chairman, the hotel has sent a car and it is already waiting for us outside the airport."
No one could understand what the woman said, but they just felt that her attitude was very respectful. This can't help but make people around her even more interested - this girl seems to have an unusual identity. Who is she
Xia Shao just nodded and smiled, "Okay, let's go."
The group of people walked out of the airport under the attention of everyone at the airport, got into two black Bentley cars, and drove away.
These two cars were sent by the hotel, and it was the Sanhe Group's hotel in the UK that Xia Shao booked. In terms of accommodation, Xia Shao of course paid attention to confidentiality and safety. She said hello to Qi Chen in advance, and naturally someone was waiting outside the airport as soon as she got off the plane.
The person who came to pick him up was also very respectful. After entering the hotel, the manager personally took Xia Shao to the presidential suite and ordered someone to bring dinner. As soon as the waiter left the room, three more Bentley cars came downstairs from the hotel. The people who got off the top were all gangsters. When they entered the hotel, the entire floor was on guard. No one could enter without Xia Shao's permission. .
In the room, no one touched the food that was delivered. The five of them were sitting on the sofa, discussing tomorrow's affairs.
At this moment, the three agents led by Xu Tianyin were sitting on the sofa, with their backs straight and their hands on their knees, as if they were sitting in a military posture.
"Captain, according to our intelligence, the Ladis family keeps the murals very strictly. The current possible locations are at the British Museum and within the family." The person who spoke was a male agent, both in appearance and body. They are all ordinary in shape and are the least distinctive of the three. As an old saying goes, you wouldn’t recognize someone in a crowd.
However, Xia Shao knew that the more "ordinary people" like this, the less noticeable they are and the more suitable they are for intelligence work. All the agents I have seen in movies, TV series or novels are handsome men and beautiful women. In fact, it cannot be said that there are no handsome men and beautiful women, but there are few such people. In reality, the requirement for an agent is to be more like an ordinary person, the better. If there are no characteristics that people can remember at a glance, it will be easier to hide.
Being a secret agent is a dangerous and lonely job, not as glamorous as most people imagine. Most of them are unknown, their work is not known even to their family and friends, and their achievements are not known to the world. They are people who walk in the dark, always needing to hide, always needing to make themselves ordinary. Everyone in the world yearns for success and fame. Their achievements are only in their files, and their names are only in their own hearts. Even if everyone laughs at you for being an ordinary person and laughing at you for doing nothing in your life, you can't be angry and publicize your achievements. Some people keep their honors and achievements deep in their hearts throughout their lives and never mention them to others.
Not known, not respected, lonely, alone, these are the agents.
Xia Shao met these three people once before coming to England and was deeply touched by them. They were all in disguise when they met her, and their real names were kept secret. All she knew was their codenames for this operation.
The agent in charge of intelligence is codenamed Wang Hui. The character Wang sounds like a surname, but in fact the word Wang Hui means big snake. Snakes are creatures that wander in the shadows, so they are a perfect codename for intelligence agents.
"This mural was found first by the Ledtis family, and it is unlikely to be stored in the British Museum. However, the Ledtis family has released news, saying that before the auction, the mural will be put on display in the British Museum. . This news may be true, or it may be just a cover-up. However, the anti-theft system in the British Museum is currently the most advanced in the world. Putting the murals there is indeed safe, so it is not ruled out that the Ledtis family will really do this. . We need to search the museum." Wang Hui continued.
"This matter needs Miss Xia's help to cover up. She claims to be here to meet a friend, so we will go to the town of Cambridge early tomorrow morning to meet Miss Xia's friends. It is currently the university holiday, and we would like to invite Miss Xia Invite a friend to London, let her friend take us on a tour of the British Museum, and we’ll enter as tourists and have a f*cking day!” said another male agent. This man is thin and has clever eyes. He is the only one with a smile on his face among the three at the moment. He gives off a more lively feeling. His code name is Bifang.
The female soldier who was Xia Shao's temporary assistant also nodded and said, "Yes, Miss Xia's mission is to cover and cooperate with us."
This woman looked to be in her mid-twenties, and Xia Shao only knew her codename Yingzhao. At this moment, she had put away the professional smile she had at the airport, her face was serious, her tone of voice was also serious, and she had the iron-blooded temperament of a soldier, but her words were slightly uncomfortable. Xia Shao was indeed on the periphery in this national treasure retrieval operation. After all, she was not an agent. She had no access to the core of the mission. What this woman said was actually not wrong. In this matter, Xia Shao was responsible for covering and cooperating. of. But this operation was special, and even the state needed the assistance of Huaxia Group. Xia Shao didn't like to put on airs, but she wanted to be respected, instead of speaking in a commanding and ostracizing tone just because she was a peripheral. Even if you add the word "please" to these words, it will make people feel much more comfortable.
This is not Xia Shao's fault. She is a Feng Shui master and is very sensitive to a person's aura. She could feel that this woman was indeed hostile to her. However, because she is a secret agent and is good at hiding her aura and controlling her emotions, this feeling is not obvious.
Feeling this, Xia Shao just smiled lightly and didn't care about Yingzhao. He just raised his eyes, raised his eyebrows, and glanced at Xu Tianyin with a deep smile.
Xu Tianyin is the captain of this operation. He has no code name, but Wang Hui, Bi Fang, and Yingzhao respect him very much. Xia Shao once heard Bi Fang call him "boss", so Xia Shao guessed that Xu Tianyin might not only be the captain of this operation, but maybe he should be the leader of the mysterious force. They must have worked together for many years and are very familiar with each other.
Xu Tianyin nodded slightly at Yingzhao's words, but continued: "Our mission is also to protect her safety."
Yingzhao was stunned, his serious face froze slightly, and he glanced at Xia Shao. Xia Shao smiled and picked up the black tea on the table, sipping it lightly and feeling leisurely. Yingzhao couldn't stand her leisurely and sophisticated look, but the soldier's iron-bloodedness and discipline made her nod to Xu Tianyin's order: "Yes! We will be responsible for Miss Xia's safety!"
She can clearly tell the difference between a task and a task.
After the discussion about tomorrow's arrangements, Wang Fei and Bi Fang stood up. Bi Fang smiled and said: "Boss, we won't interrupt. You and Miss Xia have a nice dinner! Hehe." He said as he went to pull Yingzhao winked along the way, as if to say: Come on! What are you doing here? It's not kind to be a lightbulb Hey!
But Yingzhao sat on the sofa and said to Xu Tianyin: "Captain, according to this action plan, I am Miss Xia's temporary assistant and live in the same room with her. You, Wang Hui and Bifang are next door."
Wang Fei and Bifang looked at each other, with sighs in their eyes. Although this is the plan, this floor is already on alert, so there is basically no need to worry about anyone coming. Therefore, the arrangement of the rooms does not need to be so rigid. However, the two of them could also see Yingzhao's thoughts, but the leader had been extremely insensitive to this kind of thing in the past. They have been with his comrades for so many years and have experienced life and death. They naturally know the leader's temperament. When he performs tasks, no one can compare with him, but when it comes to emotions, even children have more experience than him! To be honest, when they saw the video of the leader proposing to a girl on the Internet last year, their jaws almost dropped.
All I can say is that maybe he didn't meet the right person before. Now that he has met him, as a comrade who has exchanged his life, they wish him well. Although it is a pity to recruit Ying, to be honest, those who work in their profession are people who just take orders and leave. In fact, they are not suitable for starting a family. At least when the two of them are looking for their other half, they will not consider traveling with their comrades. In the future, if both of them have tasks, who will take care of the elderly and children at home
Therefore, they support the leader's choice. But Yingzhao seemed to be struggling, so he looked at Xu Tianyin.
Xu Tianyin had no expression on his face and just said: "You go to eat first and come back later."
Yingzhao lowered his eyes, his face still serious, but he obeyed the order and stood up and said: "Yes!"
"Boss, please take your time to eat, don't be in a hurry! We'll wait for you next door. Hehe!" Bi Fang winked with a smile, grabbed Yingzhao, and took her out without saying a word with Wang Fei.
Xia Shao raised his eyes and looked at the backs of the three of them. Wang Hui, Bi Fang, Yingzhao... these are all the names of ancient mythical beasts. It can be seen that the country also places hope on this operation. I hope they can really return the national treasure this time. Everything goes well.
Xia Shao sighed with emotion. When she heard the sound of dishes, she lowered her head and saw that Xu Tianyin had cut the steak and placed it in front of her. Xia Shao looked at someone's attentive service and smiled meaningfully. He tilted his head and reached out to poke someone's chest, "Tell me, when did you get into this love debt again?"
"Hmm." Xu Tianyin raised his head after hearing this. His unfamiliar face, but his eyes were familiar to Xia Shao. His dark eyes were fixed on her.
Xia Shao understood his expression so well that she couldn't help but smile, then raised her forehead and said, "It's nothing."
Daqing, this person has incurred a love debt and didn't even realize it. He still doesn't know what happened
"Yeah." Xia Shao said it was nothing, and Xu Tianyin lowered his head and continued to do his service work. He took out the cream soup, placed the staple food and desserts in front of Xia Shao, and finally took the black tea cup from her hand and poured new tea.
Xia Shao watched him doing these things patiently and meticulously, her eyes gradually became very soft, and she said, "Senior brother, I have wronged you this time."
Xu Tianyin stopped pouring tea, then turned to look over, took a deep look, then hugged Xia Shao gently, buried his face in her neck and rubbed her gently, "It's okay." In addition to saying it was okay, he She wouldn't say anything else to comfort her, but her eyes softened. She couldn't help but hug him tightly, turned her head and whispered in his ear: "No matter what happens at the end of the year, we will definitely get engaged."
"Yes." She exhaled like a blue breath, which made the man's eyes suddenly darken. But after hearing her words, the man closed his eyes again and answered muffledly in the crook of her neck. After answering, he kissed her softly on her neck, like the mark of an oath.
Xia Shao smiled, but found that Xu Tianyin did not let go of her after kissing her. He kissed her neck with some nostalgia, his breath was hot, and his breath gradually became depressed. Xia Shao was already aware of this danger signal, but she didn't stop it. These days, although Xia Shao said he was fine, he knew that he was still feeling a little bored. Even if she doesn't have to come, he has received the mission, and the marriage between the two cannot be finalized. No matter who the reason was, the most distressing thing for him was the fact that he couldn't get engaged.
Letting Xu Tianyin kiss him, Xia Shao turned her head and looked at the man with soft eyes. She gently kissed his ear, trying to comfort and respond to him. Her comfort and response immediately made the man's breathing become heavier, becoming the trigger that ignited everything.
The man pressed the woman into the sofa, covered her with his body, pressed her lips almost roughly, and wanted to plunder her. In the luxurious presidential suite, a suppressed gasp soon came, and it was confusing.
…
The postponement of the engagement really made Xu Tianyin feel depressed. He was a little manic. Although he controlled his strength well and never hurt Xia Shao, it still made her waist feel more sore than before. After just one time, she was so tired that she lay on his back. Asleep on the body. When she woke up, it was already early morning.
When Xia Shao woke up from a daze, she stood up suddenly! She remembered that before Wang Fei and the others left at night, they said that Xu Tianyin wanted to share a room with them that night. It's already early in the morning!
But when Xia Shao stood up suddenly, she was stunned again. Her waist seemed to be pressed by a pair of big palms. When Xia Shao looked down, she saw the man's naked chest. Under the dim wall lamp, to be honest, The view is great.
The disguise on the man's face was not taken off, but his eyes were familiar to her. His eyes were also looking at her chest. At this moment, the two of them were still on the sofa. She was lying on top of him. As she stood up, the seductive beauty of her chest was undoubtedly revealed. The man's eyes became bloodthirsty again in the yellowing light. When Xia Shao saw this, she quickly covered her chest with her hand and pushed the man's chest with her other hand. Her cheeks were slightly red and she said angrily: "Take it easy! It’s almost dawn, we have business to do.”
Xu Tianyin obviously also knew that, he did not let go of Xia Shao, but pressed his big hands on her waist slightly. Amidst her exclamations, he had already hugged her and stood up, walking together to the bathroom.
By the time the two of them came out of the bathroom, it was already dark outside. Only then did the two of them realize that they hadn't eaten last night. Xu Tianyin called the waiter and removed the cold meals last night and replaced them with a sumptuous Chinese breakfast. They didn't go out together until they had finished their breakfast.
Wang Fei, Bi Fang and Yingzhao had already packed up. When Xu Tianyin knocked on the door, the three of them came out. Bi Fang saw the two of them and smiled mischievously, "Boss, did you sleep well last night?"
"Okay." Xu Tianyin nodded.
"Ahem!" Wang Hui couldn't help laughing and coughed, then turned away embarrassedly.
Yingzhao's face turned slightly dark, his eyes darkened, and he said, "We will all stay in this hotel during the days of the auction summit. You don't need to take Miss Xia's luggage, and you can go to Cambridge to meet her friends."
Cambridge, where the University of Cambridge is located, is a small town in England with 100,000 residents. It is only 100 kilometers away from London and takes more than an hour to drive there. Along the way, the scenery is extremely beautiful. It is said that there is a river passing through the town named Jianhe. In BC, ancient Roman soldiers were stationed on the banks of the Sword River and built a bridge on the river, from which Cambridge got its name.
The University of Cambridge is one of the top ten universities in the world. It is the university that has produced the most Nobel Prize winners and is known as the cradle of natural sciences. Studying in such an institution, Hu Jiayi was naturally a little stressed. The Hu family's clothing company has some business in the UK, so some connections allowed Hu Jiayi to study in Cambridge. However, she previously attended a witchcraft school and missed half a semester of university courses. Therefore, she can only be considered as a preparatory student now and can officially enroll at the end of September. .
Therefore, although it is vacation time, Hu Jiayi still stays at school to catch up on her homework. In addition, she also takes time to go to her father's company to learn about the company's affairs.
Naturally, Xia Shao had already told Hu Jiayi that she was coming, so that morning, when two Bentley cars stopped at the school gate, and when Xia Shao got out of the car, a pretty girl with a childlike face pounced on her. Come over.
"Xiao Shao! I miss you so much!"
－－－－－－Digression－－－－－
The update time has been changed, I’m not sure when it will be, but it’s daytime anyway. Recently I was ordered to adjust my rest time and go to bed early at night.
The red envelopes continue to be distributed, and there are almost four or five pages left. I'll let you know when it's finished.
Also: I want to thank those wretched girls who gave me underwear. You have succeeded in breaking the limit of obscenity, I admire you! Kneel down...