The secretary nodded and said, "That young man, named Xu Changzhi, is the son of Xu Canjun. The girl next to him is Xu Canjun's daughter. Also, that girl with makeup seems to be Xu Changzhi's girlfriend; her father must also be an important official from the provincial city. This information came from the police department. Wang Yuanbo has sealed off this news, so no one in the county knows Young Master Xu's identity."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jia'an finally understood why Huang Feiming had been so respectful towards Xu Changzhi. They both knew who Xu Canjun was—an individual they had no right even to look up to. Now that Xu Canjun's son had arrived in Jiuchuan County, no wonder Huang Feiming had come along personally. Probably, not many in the city were aware of this matter either. Huang Feiming had been quite sneaky about it.

However, Chen Jia'an was also very excited. He had gone to great lengths to attend this banquet tonight, originally to meet Huang Feiming. But he hadn't expected the pleasant surprise of discovering Xu Changzhi's identity. How could he let such an excellent opportunity slip by?

"I understand!" Chen Jia'an nodded and said to the secretary, "It's best to keep this matter from others."

The secretary replied, "Don't worry, I found out through a friend at the police department. Not many people know about this, and I've also told that friend not to spread the word, to keep this news under wraps!"

"Very good!" Chen Jia'an smiled with satisfaction and walked into the private room. His mood, however, was drastically different from before because he now knew Xu Changzhi's identity.

Old Fifth Yang was still unaware of Xu Changzhi's identity, but his respect for Xu Changzhi hadn't changed. In the private room, Ye Qing was the calmest of all—he didn't have all these considerations in mind.

When Chen Jia'an entered, he was also very respectful towards Xu Changzhi, which greatly surprised Old Fifth Yang. Could it be that Chen Jia'an had received some news? Old Fifth Yang was shrewd. If Chen Jia'an behaved this way towards Xu Changzhi, he became even more alert.

Xu Changzhi didn't have much to say to the likes of Chen Jia'an or Huang Feiming, and mostly chatted with Ye Qing. Chen Jia'an was no fool, and throughout the meal, he noticed that this vice governor's son was actually quite hard to approach. However, he could also see that Xu Changzhi seemed to have a good relationship with Ye Qing. So, as soon as he stepped out, he immediately called Old Fifth Yang to inquire about Ye Qing's situation.

Old Fifth Yang had a good relationship with Chen Jia'an. Hearing the inquiry about Ye Qing, he knew what Chen Jia'an intended and recounted Ye Qing's relationship with Xu Changzhi. In the end, he couldn't help but ask, "By the way, who exactly is Xu Changzhi? I see Huang Feiming treating him with such respect. Old Chen, clue me in, don't leave me in the dark here."

"My goodness, you've been hosting him all day and you still don't know his identity?" Chen Jia'an exclaimed in surprise.

Old Fifth Yang said, "If I knew, I would have already told you, and I wouldn't be asking you."

"That's true," Chen Jia'an nodded and added, "Let me tell you, you're really lucky this time, getting to host Young Master Xu all by yourself. From what I saw, Huang Feiming would prefer to take Young Master Xu back to Dengyang City and host him there all by himself."

With such words from Chen Jia'an, Old Fifth Yang was even more thrilled, his heart as if being scratched by the claws of several cats, and he urgently asked, "So who is he really? Is he a close relative of a major leader from the city?"

"You, your thinking is always so limited. Could a city leader be that imposing?" Chen Jia'an chided, "Can't you think a bit further and guess someone from the province?"

"The province?" Old Fifth Yang felt as though he might have a heart attack, his heart skipping several beats. He took a deep breath and couldn't help saying, "The province... Which high-ranking official from the province?"

"Can't you guess?" Chen Jia'an sighed, "Apart from the son of Pingnan Province's Executive Vice Governor Xu Canjun, who else could command such respect from Huang Feiming?"

Old Fifth Yang's mind thundered, and he took a long time to recover. He had thought Xu Changzhi was the nephew or relative of some major city leader, which was why Huang Feiming treated him that way. He never expected Xu Changzhi to be the son of a high-ranking official from the province, let alone the son of Executive Vice Governor Xu Canjun. Although not as aware as Chen Jia'an and Huang Feiming, Old Fifth Yang knew Xu Canjun was one of the most powerful people in Pingnan Province.

He never imagined that the person he had been hosting all day was Xu Canjun's son. Such an opportunity, countless people in Pingnan Province would vie for it, yet it had fallen into his lap?

"Young Yang, this is a great opportunity. However, matters must be handled with some tact. I see that Young Master Xu is a bit hard to approach. It's simply luck that you have the chance to host him. But hosting him is one thing; becoming his friend seems quite difficult. However, he seems to have a very good relationship with that Ye Qing," Chen Jia'an paused, "When did you become friends with Ye Qing? If there's a chance later on, have him join us for a meal sometime!"

"Alright, leave it to me!" Old Fifth Yang replied with great joy, "Not to mention anything else, but my relationship with Ye Zi is rock solid. This evening's event was arranged by him personally."

Chen Jia'an was also very pleased and nodded, "That's great! That's great!"

After hanging up the phone, Old Fifth Yang couldn't suppress the ecstatic joy on his face, and he even started humming a tune while sitting on the sofa.

"What's got you so happy?" Lin Mengjie suddenly walked in, her porcelain-white face still showing faint fingerprints. The slap she received from He Biao definitely wasn't light, but seeing He Biao get beaten up by Ye Qing at noon made her feel like she had gotten some retribution, and her mood was much better than before.

Old Fifth Yang clapped his hands excitedly and said, "I'm going to strike it rich!"

"Striking it rich?" Lin Mengjie was puzzled and asked, "There's no problem with the New District development project?"

"It's not about that," Old Fifth Yang leaned back on the sofa, leisurely lit a cigarette, and said, "Compared to my future business, the construction of the New District can only be considered a small appetizer."

"What?" Lin Mengjie was even more astonished, looking at Old Fifth Yang, she asked, "You said the New District construction project alone would be enough for you to live a grand life, what kind of project could be bigger than that?"

Old Fifth Yang laughed heartily and said, "It's not about the scale of the project, but about the network of relationships. You wouldn't understand these things if I told you now, but when the opportunity comes, you will see that what I'm saying is true."

Lin Mengjie frowned slightly and said, "Actually, if this project is completed, it's plenty for a good life. Why bother to take on so many more? Just this New District construction project has already brought so many problems, and taking on a bigger project would probably come with even greater dangers. After all, having enough money should be sufficient. You already have more money than you can spend, so why the desperate hustle?"

Old Fifth Yang said, "I myself can't use it all up, but I want to leave more capital for you!"

"What?" Lin Mengjie paused, surprised and puzzled as she looked at Old Fifth Yang.

Old Fifth Yang's expression changed slightly, and he quickly corrected himself, "I mean, I have so many brothers under me, I want them all to live a better life. You have been working for me directly since you graduated from university. My business has grown so much, and you've contributed half of that success. I want you to have better opportunities. Otherwise, how could I be worthy of you all?"

Lin Mengjie stared at Old Fifth Yang for a while, her puzzled expression not receding. However, she didn't pursue it further and softly said, "Fifth Brother, I have something to discuss with you."

"I've told you, when we're alone, just call me Uncle Yang," Old Fifth Yang waved it off and asked, "What is it?"

Lin Mengjie said, "Yuan Xiaoyu has learned quite a bit from me recently and she is almost ready to be on her own. I want to give her a chance to train and handle a few clubs here. With her capabilities, plus the help of a few veteran employees there, these clubs should have no problems."

Old Fifth Yang said, "This girl is good, eager to learn and hardworking, and she is Ye Qing's sister. She really should have a chance to train. But just giving her one club to manage will suffice, she won't be able to handle too many. Besides, nothing major is happening on our side at the moment, and you're managing these clubs quite well. There's no need to hand them over to someone else right now. When the New District construction project starts, you can then give these clubs to her."

Lin Mengjie said in a low voice, "Uncle Yang, actually... I want to go out and take a look around and come back after a while."

"Going out? Where are you planning to go?" Old Fifth Yang immediately sat up and looked at Lin Mengjie, asking curiously, "What's going on? Do you have something on your mind? Do you want to go out to clear your head, or what? Are you still angry about the He Biao incident? Rest assured, I promised you, He Biao won't get out this time, and I won't let you suffer for nothing!"

"No, it's not that... I'm just..." Lin Mengjie hesitated, her head bowed in silence for a good while before she finally said in a low voice, "Ye previously mentioned that his clubs in Shenchuan City are short on a manager. I... I was thinking that since it's not too busy here, I could head over to Shenchuan City to help Ye manage those clubs. Uncle Yang, you don't have to worry, I'm just going to help him out for a few days. Once things settle down there, I will come right back. I'm not trying to change jobs."

(Here's a recommendation for a friend's book, "The Strongest Ghost Young Master", it's a great read.)