Urban Soldier Young Master

At this moment, whether it's Huang Yourong stumbling down the street, filled with anxiety, chain-smoking, surrounded by a cloud of despair, the father and son of the Chang Family, sitting dazed in the study, murmuring to an old photograph, Mu Chongyi, or tossing and turning in bed, Mu Lingshan, or the three generations at the core of the Liang Family…

In this city shrouded in darkness, even as the night grows deeper, they are destined to be sleepless.

However, the instigator of all this is lying on the big bed in a hotel, sound asleep.

Chu Ge slept all the way until past ten in the morning the next day, only then lazily yawning and getting up.

Even with his physical fitness, he felt a bit of back pain upon getting up. From morning till night yesterday, whether he was tormenting others or being tormented by them, he was indeed a bit exhausted.

Naked, he went to the bathroom to wash up. Looking at himself in the mirror, Chu Ge showed a complex smile. Even after so many years, he still couldn't get used to some things.

After washing up, Chu Ge turned on his phone, and almost as soon as the signal appeared, his phone rang.

The number was unfamiliar. Chu Ge casually answered the call, a cautious yet somewhat weary voice came through the receiver.

"Excuse me… Is this Mr. Chu Ge?"

Upon hearing the tone, Chu Ge had a guess in his heart, but he only chuckled lightly and said: "That's me, may I ask who you are?"

"Oh, hello Mr. Chu, I am…"

The other person's voice paused for a moment, seemingly a bit difficult to speak, but after just a second, they continued.

"I am Chang Xin's father, and I'm bold enough to ask if Mr. Chu has time today. I'd like to invite you to a meal with my son."

"Oh, is that so…" Chu Ge pondered slightly. He could clearly feel the opposite breathing change rhythm. Even over the phone, he seemed to see the tension and anxiety on the other side.

"I do have time."

Chu Ge said casually, and Chang Shao'en, who had just subconsciously held his breath, exhaled rapidly.

"But…" Upon hearing these three words, Chang Shao'en's face twitched, his heart wrenched again, and his right hand instinctively gripped the phone tightly.

"I'm just afraid that while dining with you, some unrelated person might pop up and send me into some inexplicable place. I'm not a brave person, I can't handle any scares."

"That won't happen, that won't happen, Mr. Chu, you're joking, I guarantee nothing like that will occur."

"Well then…" Chu Ge deliberately dragged out that one word, and after nearly three seconds, continued with a smile: "Alright, since Mr. Chang says so, if I refused, I'd be the one being ungrateful. Haha, then I'll thank Mr. Chang for his kind invitation."

Chang Shao'en was relieved. In those short few seconds, the pressure in his heart was no less than when he rang the doorbell at No. 6 Courtyard in the Provincial Committee Courtyard yesterday. It wasn't until he hung up the phone that he realized his palm was already slippery with sweat.

The meal was scheduled for noon. Chu Ge didn't ask where to go. At eleven-thirty, Chang Shao'en would come to pick him up downstairs at the West Forest Hotel.

At eleven-thirty, Chu Ge arrived downstairs right on time. As soon as he stepped out of the hotel door, Chang Xin, in the driver's seat of a Passat, straightened up and pointed, "Dad, that's him."

At this time, Chang Shao'en was frowning in thought. Hearing the voice, he quickly looked in the direction Chang Xin was pointing, then checked his watch. Eleven thirty, no more, no less, left him slightly stunned.

He originally thought Chu Ge would deliberately stall for a bit, but didn't expect Chu Ge to be so punctual. He even felt a bit flattered.

With a click, Chang Shao'en opened the car door, just about to get out, when Chang Xin's voice sounded again, "Dad, maybe… I should go."

Chang Shao'en snorted from his nose, "You, don't have the weight for this! Just stand by the car!"

Having said that, Chang Shao'en got out of the car, still thinking quickly, "Why is Chu Ge so punctual in coming downstairs? Isn't this a perfect opportunity to apply pressure on me, to gain more control?"

Chang Shao'en quickly came to a conclusion, perhaps… the man simply disdains to do so!

Thinking this, Chang Shao'en secretly smiled wryly. The pressure not only didn't alleviate at all but intensified. The already heavy heart sank even further.

This young man seems difficult to deal with…

"Mr. Chu, hello, I am Chang Xin's father, the one who called you this morning…"

When he came to Chu Ge's side, Chang Shao'en put on a brave face to greet him, smiling a bit awkwardly, wanting to shake hands yet feeling it inappropriate under such circumstances. As a nearly sixty-year-old senior official, he couldn't remember the last time he was this at a loss.

Chu Ge smiled and extended his hand openly to Chang Shao'en, "Minister Chang, please just call me Chu Ge."

Chang Shao'en's expression froze for a second before he shook hands with Chu Ge. It wasn't that he was surprised Chu Ge could call him Minister Chang; he just never dreamed that Chu Ge's smile would be so amiable, even genuinely sincere.

This friendly attitude was drastically different from what he had expected.

In truth, this wasn't the first time Chu Ge had seen Chang Shao'en. Several years ago, when he came to the provincial capital for business, he had a brief encounter with Chang Shao'en, though Chang Shao'en hadn't realized it.

At that time, it was the college entrance examination period. A student's mother got into an accident while sending her child to the exam. The mother was seriously injured but insisted her child continue with the exam, leaving the child standing there helplessly.

Coincidentally, Chang Shao'en's car passed by. He got out of the car, and disregarding the mother's anxiety and anger, and the onlookers' side-eye, solemnly asked the child a question.

Should you continue to take the exam, or take your mother to the hospital?

He advised the child not to care about what others think or say, but to make their own choice.

Amidst the mother's urging, cries, and even curses, the child hesitated for a long while, clenched their fists tightly, and with a face flushed red, finally shouted out their decision.

"Forget the damn exam! What's more important than my mom?"

At that moment, as the Minister of the State Education Department, Chang Shao'en smiled, extremely gratified. He patted the child's shoulder and said three words, "Well done!"

Chu Ge had witnessed all of this, and the scene remained vivid in his mind to this day. Just for Chang Shao'en being able to say those three words, Chu Ge held him in high admiration.

Later, Chu Ge heard that Chang Shao'en arranged a separate exam session for that child, and his impression of Minister Chang Shao'en deepened.

Although Chu Ge wasn't sure if his understanding was right or wrong, he firmly believed that the student made the most correct choice, and a person like Chang Shao'en was undoubtedly deserving of the title "educator."

In Chu Ge's view, education should never extinguish humanity, but nowadays…

Every year during the college entrance exams, similar incidents occur. Media reports often praise the parents' great love in these situations. Chu Ge does not doubt this love, but he feels profoundly saddened by such phenomena.

Can a child really focus on the exam while their family member is injured?

If not, it is unfair to the examinee. If they can... hehe, wouldn't that be even more lamentable?

Is a student who can disregard the safety of their loved ones, calmly think in the exam room, and write desperately genuinely worthy of praise and admiration?

Perhaps the answer is yes in some sense, but Chu Ge ultimately finds it disagreeable. In his eyes, this is a kind of pathology.

If Chang Shao'en had turned a blind eye to the situation back then or insisted that the child abandon their mother for the exam, Chu Ge would definitely not be treating him with the same attitude as he did now.

After shaking hands with Chang Shao'en, Chu Ge glanced at Chang Xin, standing bashfully by the car, a faint slap mark visible on his face, and a proverb came to his mind.

"If you tend to others' land, you'll let your own fields go to waste."

When they reached the car, Chang Shao'en hesitated slightly, opened the passenger side door for Chu Ge, made a "please" gesture, and once Chu Ge was inside, both he and Chang Xin got in the car.

Throughout the journey, Chang Shao'en wanted to say something about yesterday's events several times, but Chu Ge kept his eyes closed in a false slumber. Hesitating once again, he ultimately remained silent, and as for Chang Xin in the driver's seat, it was needless to say, he was clearly like a cat on a hot tin roof.

Before long, Chang Xin's Passat arrived at their destination, one of the top-ranked Shimao Grand Hotels in the provincial capital.

The last time Chu Ge was here, it was with Qin Ruojing and Tong Yaqi for a leadership training class. Unexpectedly, he found himself back on this trip to the provincial capital.

The three got out of the car, and Chang Shao'en remained half a step behind Chu Ge's side, a clear gesture of accompanying a leader, which Chu Ge, out of respect for Minister Chang, allowed since they were about to discuss matters concerning Chang Xin today.

As soon as he stepped into the hotel lobby, Chu Ge saw a familiar figure approaching, Chen Zhihao.

When their eyes met, Chu Ge couldn't help but find it amusing. The world really is small; just yesterday, he had told Chen Zhihao he hoped they'd never meet again, yet here he was again in the time it took to have a meal.

Seeing Chu Ge being accompanied by the Chang family father and son, Chen Zhihao was momentarily stunned.

As a prominent figure at the top of the provincial capital's social pyramid, he certainly recognized the two beside Chu Ge, but he couldn't fathom how the Chang family father and son ended up with Chu Ge, especially... acting so cautiously?

Although Chen Zhihao felt a mix of emotions at that moment, he couldn't just pretend he hadn't seen them, so he adjusted his composure, wearing a polite smile, and headed towards the three.