Chapter 130: A Passing Acquaintance

“Mr. Wen, have we met somewhere before?”

Because it was the middle of the night, everyone walked rather slowly on the way down the mountain. After hesitating for a moment, Tang Long could not help asking.

With a smile, Wen Nuan Chun replied, “Is this how you usually strike up conversations with women, Boss Tang? Don’t you think it’s rather old-fashioned?”

Jiang Xiuzhi rolled her eyes. She, too, thought Tang Long was merely making conversation and deliberately trying to chat up Wen Nuan Chun. Only Zhang Xiu’e glanced at him strangely. By rights, this fellow should not have behaved like that in front of her.

“Misunderstanding!” Tang Long was not offended. Shaking his head with a smile, he said, “Although Miss Wen is exceptionally beautiful, you’re not necessarily my type. And I certainly wouldn’t openly hit on you in front of our Party Secretary Xiu’e. You’re reading too much into it!”

“…”

Wen Nuan Chun was rendered speechless. Zhang Xiu’e, on the other hand, smiled. He might have been as blunt as a steel pipe, but that was precisely what she liked about him. He said whatever was on his mind. Besides, how was she inferior to Wen Nuan Chun?

Curious, Wen Nuan Chun asked, “Boss Tang, you and Sister Xiu’e still…”

“Of course. We’ve got a thing going. What of it?” Tang Long interrupted before she could finish, openly admitting it without the slightest embarrassment.

Blushing, Zhang Xiu’e hurriedly said, “Who has a thing with you? Stop ruining my reputation!”

She did not want their relationship displayed before everyone. Even if everybody already knew, she was unwilling to admit it for the time being.

Tang Long chuckled and shrugged without arguing.

With Wen Nuan Chun’s intelligence, how could she fail to see what was going on between the two of them?

“Then I really did misunderstand,” Wen Nuan Chun said with a smile. After thinking for a moment, she shook her head. “I don’t remember whether I’ve met you before either, Boss Tang. Do I look familiar to you?”

Tang Long’s brows moved slightly. “Yes, there’s a faint sense of familiarity, but I can’t remember where we might have encountered each other.”

“Is that so?”

Wen Nuan Chun smiled. “I studied in Peach County for two years when I was in middle school. Perhaps we met back then.”

His middle-school years?

Memories stirred in Tang Long’s mind, and suddenly a scene came back to him. He blurted out instinctively, “The county Mathematics Olympiad?”

When he was in middle school, he had represented East River Township Middle School at a county-level Mathematics Olympiad competition. If he remembered correctly… there had been a girl there.

“It was you!”

Tang Long remembered at last. He had wondered why Wen Nuan Chun seemed so familiar. It turned out that they really had crossed paths before; it had simply been so long ago that his memories had become blurred.

Wen Nuan Chun merely smiled in silence. Whether she had just remembered or had known all along, no one could say.

“You knew each other before?” Zhang Xiu’e asked in surprise.

Tang Long smiled. “We happened to meet more than ten years ago. At most, we were together for two hours, and we barely exchanged a few words.”

“During those two hours, you pulled my braid seven times,” Wen Nuan Chun murmured with a smile.

“…”

Tang Long rubbed his nose. This was awkward—especially in front of Zhang Xiu’e. It was practically giving her ammunition to torment him.

Sure enough, Zhang Xiu’e’s hand reached out from behind and viciously pinched him on the buttocks, making it clear that Secretary Xiu’e was jealous.

“Heh-heh. I was young and reckless!” Tang Long said with an embarrassed laugh, quickly steering the conversation elsewhere. There was no way he could continue discussing it.

Tang Long really had been a mischievous child. Wen Nuan Chun was beautiful now, but as a little girl she had looked even more like a doll, with her hair tied in a ponytail.

Though their encounter had been brief, Wen Nuan Chun still remembered it vividly. That meant she had not forgotten either. In fact, the moment she saw Tang Long’s profile, she had already recognized that mischievous boy.

“Tang Long, after the village is closed off, what should we do if visitors from outside refuse to listen and insist on coming anyway?” Jiang Xiuzhi asked from nearby, easing the awkward atmosphere.

Tang Long smiled. “If they want to come, let them. Although everything around Fishhead Village is technically our territory now, we can’t drive away everyone who shows up. They can bring their own food and tents. If they want to play, let them play.”

After a brief pause, he continued, “Still, the number of visitors from other provinces should gradually decline.”

At that moment, the online buzz surrounding the Little Moon Girl, Fishhead Village, and Ghost King Cave was rapidly dying down. Without the support of public attention, very few people from outside the nearby counties and cities would continue coming all this way simply to join in the excitement.

The Little Moon Girl’s popularity had been sustained through Yao Handong’s connections. Now that Yao Handong was leaving, the favors had already been used. Without that support, the traffic could not remain strong forever.

The once-famous Little Moon Girl would eventually streak across the night sky like a meteor and vanish. Of course, Tang Long believed that this would only be temporary. As long as their Little Moon Girl wanted to become famous again in the future, there would be plenty of opportunities.

When they returned to Fishhead Village, Tang Long greeted the villagers standing watch for the night. Then, smiling, he asked Wen Nuan Chun, “President Wen, would you like to spend the night in Fishhead Village?”

It was already past midnight, but the Flowerfishhead Resort was very close to the village, so returning there would not be difficult.

Wen Nuan Chun politely declined Tang Long’s offer. She got into the car with Jiang Xiuzhi and left.

“That woman is no good,” Tang Long muttered after Wen Nuan Chun had gone.

“Hmph!”

Pouting, Zhang Xiu’e said, “I think you’re the one who’s no good!”

She turned and walked away, yawning as she went. She was tired too.

“Wait, listen to me! I really only thought she looked familiar. I never imagined we had met when we were children!”

Tang Long hurried after her and followed Zhang Xiu’e into the tent.

On the road back to the city, Wen Nuan Chun frowned. “What do you think of Fishhead Village’s monster economy?”

Jiang Xiuzhi hesitated before saying, “That thing is enormous. If the government finds out about it, do you think they’ll allow us to keep it? If the relevant authorities refuse, then whether they kill it or take it away, our several billion in investment will be nothing more than money thrown into the water.”

From Jiang Xiuzhi’s words, it was clear that she was not particularly optimistic about investing in Fishhead Village. There were simply too many variables.

The Black-Scaled Flood Dragon was undeniably docile, and it could attract huge numbers of tourists. But what about government policy?

Would those special departments really allow a creature capable of causing such a sensation to remain exposed to the public? If they chose not to interfere, then everything would be fine, and Fishhead Village would become a goose that laid golden eggs. But if they prohibited it, what would they do then?

There were simply too many uncertainties. The investment involved amounted to a billion dollars. Put bluntly, it was unstable.

“Yes.”

Jiang Xiuzhi’s words made Wen Nuan Chun frown as well. This was not something either of them could control.

“It’s a billion dollars, Nuan Chun. You really need to think this through,” Jiang Xiuzhi said softly after another moment of hesitation.

Wen Nuan Chun gave a bitter smile. She had just agreed to provide Fishhead Village with a billion dollars, and now that she thought about it, she had indeed acted impulsively. Although it was not a gift but a loan, if the Black-Scaled Flood Dragon were taken away, what could Fishhead Village possibly use to repay them?

“I’ve already agreed. It’s probably too late to change my mind now. Let’s leave the loan as it is for the time being.” After a pause, she continued, “All we can do is take a gamble and choose to trust Tang Long and the others. If we win, everyone will be happy.”

Jiang Xiuzhi smiled bitterly. “And if we lose?”

Wen Nuan Chun smiled. “Then we’ll capture that fellow Tang Long and make him our slave. We’ll have him work day and night to repay the debt.”

At a time like this, she still had the heart to joke? That was a billion dollars. Many people went their entire lives without ever seeing a billion, or even ten million.

Thinking of something, Jiang Xiuzhi asked curiously, “Nuan Chun, did you really meet Tang Long when you were a child?”

“We only met once,” Wen Nuan Chun replied with a smile.

Jiang Xiuzhi clicked her tongue. “One brief encounter could make you remember him for more than ten years? Be honest. You didn’t fall in love with him at first sight when you were young, did you?”

Wen Nuan Chun blushed and shot her a look. “Don’t be ridiculous. We were so young back then. What did we know about love at first sight?”

“You didn’t understand it then, but what about now?” Jiang Xiuzhi teased with a laugh.

Wen Nuan Chun ignored her. As for why Tang Long had left such a deep impression on her, she could not really explain it herself. Perhaps no other boy had ever dared to pull her braid—let alone do it again and again. That was probably why she remembered him so clearly.

Back in the tent at Fishhead Village, Zhang Xiu’e blushed as she tried to push Tang Long outside.

“Get out. I’m going to rest!”

Tang Long grinned shamelessly. “Perfect. I need to rest too. Let’s do it together. There’s room for two people in your tent anyway.”

Zhao Xiaoyue was not there tonight, and Shanxiu had disappeared as well. Most likely, Xu Shiyun and the others had dragged her away, which meant this was a rare opportunity.

Blushing, Zhang Xiu’e said, “Stop fooling around and leave. What if Zhao Xiaoyue and Shanxiu come back and catch us? How am I supposed to face anyone afterward?”

As if people would not know what was happening just because they did not catch them in the act!

Tang Long laughed and stretched out inside the tent. “It’s already this late. If Zhao Xiaoyue and Shanxiu haven’t come back by now, do you really think they will? Relax. At worst, I’ll get up early tomorrow.”

“You shameless scoundrel!”

Zhang Xiu’e’s face was scarlet. She was just about to say more when Tang Long pulled her toward him and silenced her with a kiss.

Outside the tent, Shanxiu rolled her eyes. Turning away as she walked, she muttered, “What a pair of shameless lovers!”

She had only wanted to come back and sleep. Instead, she had found the place occupied.

“Oh, honestly… Can’t you just go to sleep properly? Do you have any idea what time it is?” Zhang Xiu’e’s delicate face was flushed bright red.

The Black-Scaled Flood Dragon, lying at the rear of the mountain, had not chosen to return to Ghost King Cave. It lay beneath the moonlight, bathing in its glow. It did not know how many years it had been since it last enjoyed such an experience.

For so long, it had feared that the moment it appeared, humans would discover its whereabouts. With a body of such enormous size, hiding its tracks was extraordinarily difficult.

But now, everything was different.

It had someone powerful backing it.

What a wonderful feeling.