Chapter 51: Unpredictable Storms

After a while, Fang Jian entered, and Zhao Shengge and Xu Zhiying stopped talking.

Fang Jian disliked dealing with people in the world of fame and fortune. Although Chen Wan was also a businessman, he wasn’t flashy or greedy. When working, he even had a scholarly demeanor, and his personality was steady. He really had the makings of a good researcher. Fang Jian had even asked Chen Wan several times if he wanted to pursue a master's or doctoral degree under his guidance, but Chen Wan politely declined each time.

Chen Wan was the kind of person who easily inspired others to confide in him and share their thoughts. Fang Jian found himself sharing many of his ideas with Chen Wan, treating him with more kindness than he did his own graduate students.

When they got off the boat, Li Shenghui had sent someone to pick them up. Chen Wan wasn’t all that surprised, as he had previously speculated that Zhao Shengge might have reached some agreement with the other party before their departure.

The people who came to pick them up were very polite, and Zhao Shengge’s people seemed relaxed. However, Chen Wan could still clearly sense the tension in every move between them.

The sea was calm on the surface, but beneath it, the undercurrents were turbulent. It was just the calm before the storm.

Upon arriving at the estate, Li Shenghui himself came to greet them, and Zhao Shengge shook hands with him.

Chen Wan, tucked away in a corner of the group, was able to observe this local big shot on Ting Island directly. Li Shenghui was in his early forties, not tall but sturdy, with the typical dark skin of the local Du Li fishermen. He had a simple, warm smile.

They all had a meal together, and the mood was pretty lively. After the meal, Li Shenghui offered everyone rooms to rest in but invited Zhao Shengge to taste the unique tea from their local tropical tea plantation alone.

This "alone" seemed quite significant.

The tea room was in another villa, a few minutes away by sightseeing car. Chen Wan’s hand instinctively went to the Rose Beretta at his waist.

He wanted to follow, but he couldn’t. This was meant to be a private conversation, and even the bodyguards could only wait outside the door.

Zhao Shengge glanced at him and then left with the others.

Chen Wan was taken back to their rest room. He was still on edge, unable to appreciate the pastoral scenery or enjoy the luxurious private hot spring. He was fully alert, listening intently to his surroundings, ready to rush to Zhao Shengge at the first sign of trouble.

But the entire estate was unusually peaceful, with even the occasional lazy meow of a cat and the distant, slow crashing of waves against the shore.

As evening approached, the cicadas’ buzz grew louder. Chen Wan couldn’t stay put any longer and went to the garden closest to the tea room. The servants passing by asked if he needed anything, but he simply said he was out for a stroll.

He wandered around the garden for a while. The sun had gone down, and Zhao Shengge still hadn’t emerged from the secluded tea room.

It was taking an unusually long time.

From a distance, it seemed there were still people guarding the door. Chen Wan once again touched the small but formidable Beretta hanging at his waist.

His palm was slick with sweat.

Even though he knew there were many hidden gunmen around, and Zhao Shengge himself was a master of such situations, and Li Shenghui had no reason to sabotage his own interests, Chen Wan still couldn’t relax. He couldn’t stand the thought of Zhao Shengge getting hurt.

Half an hour.

Chen Wan’s eyes turned cold.

At most half an hour. If Zhao Shengge hadn’t come out of the tea room by then, he would go in directly to check.

When Zhao Shengge and Li Shenghui walked out of the tea room chatting, a tall and straight figure stood under the Bauhinia tree, his demeanor as elegant as jade, his slender neck glowing white in the twilight.

His expression, however, was hidden in the shade of the tree, unclear even as he stood in the golden sunset, exuding a cold and shadowy aura.

"Chen Wan."

Chen Wan looked up and met Zhao Shengge’s deep, dark eyes.

Even though they had only been apart for a few hours, it felt like an eternity.

In that fleeting yet lingering gaze, Chen Wan quickly and meticulously examined Zhao Shengge's eyes, face, and body... Only after confirming that Zhao Shengge was unharmed did Chen Wan smile faintly and greet him.

No one could tell the cold, murderous intent that had been hidden in those beautiful eyes just moments before—if Zhao Shengge had come out a few minutes later...

Li Shenghui also smiled and said in his heavily accented Mandarin, "Mr. Chen, were you waiting here for Mr. Zhao?"

Chen Wan smiled, and the evening glow in the sky seemed to brighten a bit: "I came to admire Mr. Li's backyard garden."

Li Shenghui gave him a meaningful look for a few seconds, then suddenly said, "Mr. Chen, have we met before? I felt you looked familiar at noon."

Chen Wan's smile remained unchanged, calm and composed: "It’s not surprising if Mr. Li has seen me before. Haishi is a small place."

Li Shenghui was about to say something more, but Zhao Shengge subtly stepped forward, blocking his view of Chen Wan, and said, "Let’s head inside. The sun is too strong."

Li Shenghui invited their group to dinner. The afternoon talks seemed to have been quite productive, as the atmosphere in the evening was noticeably more relaxed than when they first got off the ship. The mood was right, and even Xu Zhiying had a few drinks with Li Shenghui, though Dr. Fang, who believed alcohol harmed the brain, abstained.

However, Xu Zhiying only drank red wine. The stronger drinks were taken care of by Zhao Shengge and Chen Wan, sparing the ladies.

The next day, Xu Zhiying stayed at the manor to play mahjong with Mrs. Li Shenghui and a few of his concubines.

Fang Jian was preparing to begin his seabed monitoring, while Chen Wan and Zhao Shengge needed to go together to discuss the unresolved issues from the previous plan.

Their research vessel and unmanned submersibles hadn’t arrived yet, so Li Shenghui sent people to escort them into the sea, accompanied by local indigenous guides to better understand the surrounding environment.

It was overcast today, with strong winds and waves, making it ideal for collecting pressure data for risk assessment and measuring thresholds.

In the open ocean, where there was no shelter, the waves were even more turbulent. However, the offshore oil pipeline project covered a vast area, and the boat needed to patrol hundreds of square nautical miles. Indoor signal transmission had some inaccuracies, so they had to observe and collect data in real-time on the deck.

Students and staff were all outfitted with professional protective gear.

Zhao Shengge was looking at the color screen on the detection instrument, listening to Fang Jian explain where to bore through the ridge or fill in the trench, as well as the timeline and budget.

Deeper into the sea, the wind grew stronger. This wasn’t a professional research vessel, and it had a shallow draft. A high wave hit, causing the cabin to shake and sway violently.

The UV umbrella was knocked over, and instinctively, both Chen Wan and Zhao Shengge grabbed each other at the same time—

Chen Wan, with his considerable strength, instinctively pulled Zhao Shengge behind him, causing Zhao Shengge some pain.

Zhao Shengge, meanwhile, pulled Chen Wan close, pinning him between himself and the mast, not allowing the waves to sweep Chen Wan away.

The sudden storm lasted for a minute or two, and the entire ship was in chaos. Everyone exposed on the deck instinctively huddled together in small groups to withstand the risk. Zhao Shengge and Chen Wan stayed tightly close, like two trees standing firm and entwined in the heart of the storm, their trunks side by side, branches and leaves intertwined.

When the strong wind passed, Chen Wan realized that Zhao Shengge had surrounded him like a wall, shielding him from the unpredictable force of the waves in those few minutes.

Zhao Shengge's hands were strong and unyielding, like iron chains binding Chen Wan, who in turn had gripped Zhao Shengge's clothes tightly, wrinkling them.

"..."

They looked at each other for a moment, and Chen Wan was the first to let go, glancing into the distance and blinking as he said, "The wind is so strong."

But Zhao Shengge didn't step back. Instead, he slightly lowered his head, quietly gazing at him, and said in a low voice, "Yes, stay close."

Chen Wan nodded, thinking to himself, I won't leave your side for a single step.

They continued their work. After Fang Jian collected some data, he took the students back to the cabin to rest. Seeing Chen Wan truly sticking close, Zhao Shengge said, "Chen Wan."

"Go and rest for a while."

"It's nothing," Chen Wan still felt uneasy on someone else's territory. He wanted to be absolutely certain that Zhao Shengge was safe, ideally always within sight, never straying far. He didn't want to stray too far from Zhao Shengge until they safely returned to Haishi. He said, "I don't feel tired."

Zhao Shengge leaned against the mast, the deep blue sea spread out before him, the sea breeze fluttering his shirt. He stared at Chen Wan for a while, then suddenly asked, "What were you trying to do yesterday?"

Chen Wan, who had been looking at the sea, slowly turned his head, as if he hadn't caught the question, "Hmm?"

Zhao Shengge's eyes were dark and calm, his tone gentle, "Yesterday afternoon, outside the tea room, what were you trying to do?"

Chen Wan answered calmly and naturally, "I was taking a walk in the garden."

In the distance, the sea was rolling with waves, as if a new storm was approaching.

Zhao Shengge looked at him quietly, asked softly, "Is that so?"

Chen Wan's gaze was frank, clear as the open sea, without any secrets. He said yes.

Zhao Shengge believed him, nodded, and said okay, not asking further. He only said, "Chen Wan, can you protect yourself?"

Chen Wan was internally startled, the cold metal of the Beretta at his waist a constant reminder. He smiled slightly and answered Zhao Shengge, "Yes."

As the sky darkened, the yacht headed back. There were no arrangements for the evening. Li Shenghui was very sincere, the hospitality was impeccable, and many local specialties were prepared. The four of them enjoyed a relatively relaxed dinner together.

Fang Jian enthusiastically reported the achievements and gains of the past two days to the two clients and gave a speech on how to upgrade the offshore oil platform trestle bridge and the pipeline floating construction procedure system.

During this, only Chen Wan responded enthusiastically and actively, acting as a translator and commentator at the right time, keeping the dinner atmosphere lively.

After a long day, the dinner ended, and everyone returned to their rooms to rest.

Chen Wan called Song Qingmiao, but it still went unanswered.

Since their last discussion about Rongxin's shares had ended on a sour note, Chen Wan had sent messages and made calls to Song Qingmiao, but she had never responded.

Chen Wan still sent money to his mother on time and secretly monitored her spending, fearing she might have gone astray or suffered grievances in the Chen family.

The investigators said the fund flow was normal, meaning Song Qingmiao genuinely didn't want to talk to him anymore. Although he had long stopped expecting much from his mother, he still felt a little disheartened. Chen Wan decided to go for a walk, not planning to go far.

The villa had a rooftop garden. As he passed by, he heard the sound of water, someone was swimming.

The blue water sparkled, the man's tall figure, his abs hidden beneath the pool water, water droplets sliding down his cold, dark eyebrows. Standing motionless in the moonlight, he exuded an overwhelming aura.

Chen Wan was somewhat intimidated. He wasn't sure if he could continue watching without crossing the line, so he quietly turned to slip away, but a few drops of water splashed onto his pants.

A casual voice came from behind.

"Where are you going?"