169: The Boss' Offer (1)

The Boss' Offer (1)

Since Ye Zhong was very attached to Dai Zhiqiang, Boss Ye especially put him beside his grandson. He also seemed to trust Dai Zhiqiang more than his other guardsmen, which consequently made many people bore a grudge towards Dai Zhiqiang. However, no one could go against the boss's decision, so they could only swallow their complaint.0

"Grandpa, it's because your chin is too rough! I don't like it!" Ye Zhong innocently pointed at the feared leader of Ye Groups, but the latter only laughed in amusement. His gaze towards the child was very gentle and doting.

"Hohoho, is that so? Then Grandpa will shave this beard so our Little Zhong won't hate Grandpa anymore."

"No… I didn't say I hate Grandpa. I just hate Grandpa's chin." Ye Zhong said while fiddling with his fingers. His appearance was so adorable that the old man couldn't resist the urge to pick him up and swayed from side to side.

Dai Zhiqiang had seen this view many times but still hadn't fully become accustomed to it yet. It was hard to believe that firm and ruthless Boss Ye could make such a goofy face in front of his grandson. He was like a completely different person.

Ye Zhong grimaced when the old man shoved his face towards him to rub their cheeks together. His short legs dangled around in the air uncomfortably as he tried to push his grandfather's face away from him. "Ah, I don't like Grandpa's beard! I don't want a beard!"

"Hohoho, is that so? Is that so?" Ye Huizhong seemed to enjoy his grandson's struggle and rubbed their cheeks even closer. 

"Aaahhh. Brother Zhi, help me!" 

After trying to push his grandfather away to no avail, the little guy finally resorted to asking for someone else's help. 

"Little Zhong, your grandfather, won't be your grandfather anymore without his beard," Dai Zhiqiang said.

"Huh? Grandpa won't be a grandpa anymore without his beard?" Ye Zhong tilted his head in puzzlement. 

"That's right. So if the beard is gone, he won't be your grandpa anymore."

Ye Zhong's eyes immediately got teary when he heard that. "N-no… I don't want that…."

"If you don't want that, then just accept your fate and let your grandfather spoil you," Dai Zhiqiang said nonchalantly. 

Meanwhile, Boss Ye looked back at him and discreetly gave him a thumb up. The young man could only sigh inwardly. This wasn't the most challenging job in the world, but it did get pretty tiring sometimes.

Ye Huizhong played with his grandson for a while until he finally let him go with a satisfied smile on his face. The little Ye Zhong, who felt tired after being tossed around by his spunky grandfather, was tired, so he quickly fell asleep as soon as his head touched the sofa.

Ye Huizhong took a blanket and covered his grandson with a fatherly smile plastered on his face. However, that expression gradually faded and was replaced with a stern look when he turned to Dai Zhiqiang.

"Let Little Zhong sleep. Come with me," He said in a deep and sharp tone, leaving no room for discussion.

Dai Zhiqiang took the last glance at the sleeping little boy before following his boss outside the room.

The hallway of Ye Wang's building was arranged similarly to those traditional Chinese houses, with lots of dragons and phoenix designs on the wall and pillars. There were also some paintings and Chinese calligraphy hung on the hallway wall. Expensive-looking swords replicas or antique vases were displayed on the wall corner, making the hallway look more like a museum than a group headquarters. 

The windows on this building were all circle-shaped, with some detailed and intricate carving of dragons on the window frame. There was a wide koi pond where little Zhong kept his fishes if you looked outside the window. The lotus flowers were scattered on the pond's surface, presenting an elegant and tranquil view for whoever was seeing it. 

Ye Huizhong led Dai Zhiqiang to a room in a separate building with Chinese calligraphy written on top of the door, which he assumed meant "The player is lost; the watcher is lucid".

When the door was opened, it revealed a simple but spacious room with several bookcases on the side of the wall and a red carpet on the floor. This was the boss room, which supposedly couldn't be entered through regular means, but Dai Zhiqiang had been here several times by now, thanks to his particular connection to the boss.

Ye Huizhong went around the working desk in the deeper part of the room and sat on the chair. Meanwhile, Dai Zhiqiang stood a few steps from the desk with both hands behind him. 

"Is there something you want to talk about to me, Boss?"

Ye Huizhong pulled out a cigar from the desk drawer and lit it up. He let out a huff of smoke before answering, "You know what I'm going to talk about? Have you given the offer I told you the other day some thought?"

As usual, he didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point. Dai Zhiqiang chose his words carefully before replying, "I have always been thankful for all you have done for me and my family, Boss. However, I'm afraid I must refuse that offer."

"Youngsters these days are too stubborn. With your intelligence and skills, you will become more successful if you go abroad and study there. It will be good if you can accompany little Zhong while you are at it. When you are as old as me, you tend to become too suspicious of people, but you are an exception."

"I don't think I deserve such high praise."

"It's up to me whether to think highly of you or not. You don't have a say on that."

Dai Zhiqiang kept his mouth shut and didn't argue more. He wasn't that innocent to believe that Boss Ye would be so charitable to an outsider like him. 

Although he indeed had saved his precious grandson once, that didn't mean he would let his guard down easily towards Dai Zhiqiang and vice versa. 

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