Chapter 4: Going Home

  "It's spring now, our son has come down from the mountain."

  A woman's voice came from the receiver, sobbing with joy, "My poor son, he left me at two years and five months old, it's been twenty years since then, finally you can come back."

  "Xiao Fei, don't cry first, what's going on, tell me about it."

  Xu Zhengchun was overjoyed and excited, his voice trembling with emotion.

  "It's just spring, I just received a call from the old man, he said his son called him and said that his son didn't have any money on him and had to borrow someone else's phone to make the call..."

  On the other end of the phone, Yuan Fangfei briefly and concisely explained the situation, and finally said, "I think since you're in Changqiu City today, why don't you go pick up your son?"

  "Alright, I'll go right away, tell Grandpa for me."

  Xu Zhengchun spoke loudly into the microphone, "Right, you quickly go to Old Master's courtyard and keep an eye on him, Old Master's body can't withstand great joy or sorrow."

  "Zhengchun, your second brother is back home?"

  Gu Changqiu saw Xu Zhengchun hang up the phone and quickly stood up, "Congratulations, congratulations, this is indeed a double happiness!"

  "Chang Qiu, my son has come down from the mountain, but he didn't bring any money with him. I have to hurry to Wusong County to pick him up. Another day when you arrive in Beijing, we'll have a good chat."

  Xu Zhengchun smiled and got up to leave, "I'll go tell General Manager Chang... that I'm taking a leave of absence."

  "Alright, your second brother is back home, we'll have to go congratulate him when the time comes. Since Director Chang is here today, I won't be able to accompany you on this trip." Gu Changqiu stood up and saw Xu Zhengchun out the door, "Director Chang should be done talking with Secretary Ma by now."

  Xu Zhengchun nodded and quickly walked out of the room after opening the door.

  The bus drove slowly, and Xu turned his head to look out the window. His emotions were surging, as it had been twenty years since he last saw his family, and he didn't know how they were doing. Although every two years, his master would bring back photos of his family to the mountain, but that was just a photo after all. Now, he could finally see real people, and the feeling was absolutely different.

  Although Zhao Yong tried his best to stay awake, the bumpy ride still made him feel drowsy. At first, he could barely hold on, but later he slowly leaned his head against the chair and fell asleep. The man in a suit sitting diagonally across from him seemed tired too, with his head leaning against the chair, swaying back and forth. It was clear that both of them were extremely exhausted.

  Master, why did you come down the mountain this time? Last time when Master returned to the mountain, he said that he still needed to bathe in the Heavenly Pool for a few more years. However, it's only been two months and he changed his mind?

  Xu Yi had never quite understood the reasoning behind this, but he was very clear in his mind that with his current Daoist cultivation, he was at most 60% of his master's level. As for those miscellaneous skills like astrology, divination, Feng Shui, and medicine, he had learned a bit of everything, but among them, he took the greatest pride in his medical skills.

  The bus suddenly shook violently, and Zhao Yong's eyes snapped open. A sharp glint flashed in his eyes as he gazed at the man in a suit sitting diagonally across from him. He felt a sense of relief wash over him, and he lifted his head to look forward, a faint smile spreading across his face. "Xu Yi, we'll be arriving in Wusong County soon."

  Xu Yi smiled and nodded, without saying a word. He tilted his chin forward slightly, causing Zhao Yong to pause for a moment before quickly looking up to see that the man in the suit had already stood up. Just then, the bus suddenly slowed down and turned left.

  The man in the suit stepped forward and grasped the door handle with his left hand, twisting it swiftly. The car door flashed open a crack, and his figure vanished quickly.

  The whole process took no more than three seconds, Xu was stunned, but Zhao Yong reacted in an instant, suddenly standing up and shouting "Stop the car, stop the car."

  The driver was also stunned, didn't understand the situation, and subconsciously stepped on the brakes. The minibus stopped by the side of the road. Zhao Yong jumped out of the car in a flash, and a voice came from his ear, "Zhao Yong, four o'clock direction."

  Zhao Yong quickly turned his head and indeed saw the back of the man in the suit, immediately taking off after him. Xu let out a sigh and took off after them as well. This guy named Zhao Yong should be a good person, and he even helped buy train tickets; now that something has come up with his work, it's only natural to lend a hand.

  Xu Yib pulled his leg and chased after him, catching up to Zhao Yong in just a few steps. Just as the man in the suit was about to turn around and walk into the roadside vegetable market, Xu Yib suddenly hesitated, quickly bent down to grab a brick from the side of the road, and threw it over.

  The brick flew by with a whoosh, and the man in the suit happened to turn around to observe the situation. The brick seemed to have grown eyes as it rolled heavily in mid-air and smashed onto his head, and blood instantly spurted out.

  Zhao Yong was stunned, damn it, this kid's technique is too accurate, he doesn't even care if he accidentally hits innocent bystanders. Of course, now isn't the time to think about these things, first catch this little devil and then talk. He took three steps in two strides and rushed over, just as the man in the suit was dazedly getting up, someone pounced on him, pinning him heavily to the ground.

  "Move aside, move aside, police are handling the case."

  Xu shouted loudly.

  The crowd of onlookers quickly parted to make way, and at this moment, the man in the suit seemed to explode, letting out a loud roar, throwing Zhao Yong off his body, jumping up from the ground and taking off in a sprint.

  Xu Yile was delighted, and with one kick, a small stone flew over like lightning, heavily hitting the knee of the man in the suit. He stumbled and fell to the ground. Zhao Yong quickly pounced on him, pinning his knee against the back of the man's leg, grabbing his right hand and pulling it backward with force.

  With a "click", the man in the suit's right hand fell down, and then Zhao Yong grabbed his left arm again, finally pulling out a pair of handcuffs from his pocket to cuff the man.

  "Brother, good work, thank you, have a cigarette, I'll make a call."

  Zhao Yong pulled out a pack of cigarettes and tossed it to Xu Yi, then took out his phone and dialed a number. After chatting for a bit, he hung up the phone and walked over to Xu Yi's side. "Brother, our car will be here soon. Where do you want to go? I'll give you a ride."

  "Zhao Ge, thank you, no need, I've already called home and they're coming to pick me up?"

  Xu Yituo blew a smoke ring, raised his head and took a look at the front, feeling a little nervous. There was only his photo at home, they wouldn't be unable to find him, would they?

  As the two men spoke, a business car slowly came to a stop. Several young people got out of the car and walked over to drag the blood-stained man in the suit into the vehicle. One of them, dressed in a suit and tie, approached Zhao Yong and gave him a thumbs up. "Old Zhao, not bad, your skills are still sharp. Your move was quite ruthless."

  "Wherever, wherever, it's all thanks to Brother Xu's credit! Little brother really threw a great stone!" Zhao Yong laughed and told the young people about what had just happened, making them burst out laughing.

  Three people were talking, when a black Audi with a Beijing license plate suddenly rushed over, the car hadn't even stopped steadily, the door was pushed open from inside, and a middle-aged man got out of the car, holding a photo in his hand, nervously sizing up each person.

  Xu Yi's heart skipped a beat as he looked at the familiar figure, and tears suddenly burst forth. As expected, it was his father Xu Zhengchun who had personally come to Wusong County to pick him up.

  "What's wrong, Brother Xu?"

  Zhao Yongzheng wanted to invite Xu Yi onto their vehicle, but upon discovering Xu Yi's abnormality, he couldn't help but pause for a moment.

  Just then, Xu Zhengchun also found Xu Yi, and with a look of wild joy, he rushed over, "Son, son, I'm your dad, I'm your dad!"

  Xu Yi's tears gushed out like a spring, and he let Xu Zhengchun tightly hold him in his arms.

  "Son, let Dad take a look, how's your body? Has your illness been cured?"

  After a moment, Xu Zhengchun grasped Xu Yi's shoulders with both hands and looked him up and down. The flesh and blood that had been separated for twenty years finally met today, and Xu Zhengchun's excitement was beyond words.

  "Dad, I'm fine now, my illness has been completely cured a few years ago."

  Xu Yi looked at the man in front of her, who was both familiar and strange, furrowed her brow, how could Father's complexion be so bad? This wasn't due to fatigue from overwork, but rather a change in his facial expression caused by a lack of vital energy.

  Xu Yi had more than once calculated the fortunes of his family members while learning divination and other techniques. His father's fortune should have been quite good, and if nothing unexpected happened, he would have made further progress in his official career. How could such a change occur just two months later?

  What's the story behind this?

  "Alright then, let's go home."

  Xu Zhengchun was overjoyed and pulled Xu Yi's hand, taking big strides towards the Audi. Zhao Yong was stunned, gazing blankly at Xu Yi's back. He had just witnessed this scene, and naturally he was happy for Xu Yi's reunion with his father. If it weren't for Xu Yi's quick action today, who knows if that spy would have escaped?

  But somehow, Xu Yi's dad seems a bit familiar, as if I've seen him somewhere before.

  "Xiao Cheng, Xu Yi's dad seems a bit familiar."

  Zhao Yong stuffed a cigarette into his mouth and took a puff, slowly walking towards the business car. Little Cheng was taken aback, "Xu Yi, who is Xu Yi?"

  Zhao Yong suddenly remembered that he had just spoken for the sake of speaking and hadn't introduced Xiao Cheng to Xu Yi, "Xu Yi is that little brother from just now, it was him who helped me catch the person, otherwise today might have ended in disaster."

  "Old Zhao, just take a look at that car and you'll know. A big Audi with a government license plate in the capital city, who else could it be? At least a deputy minister level, right?" Little Cheng watched as the big Audi sped away, chuckling, "Old Zhao, you've really hit the jackpot this time, actually making friends with someone so well-connected."

  Zhao Yong was stunned. The people from the National Security Bureau naturally understood these basic facts about Beijing, and when he thought of Xu Yi's surname, his heart skipped a beat. "No way, could it be that this kid Xu Yi really came from a wealthy and influential family?"

  "Lao Zhao, didn't you see that car coming straight over here looking for someone?"

  Xiao Cheng smiled and said, "Others have used their means to monitor your mobile phone location, and found you by tracing the map. With such means, can their identity be simple?"