Courtship Rite

Old Friend

As he stepped off the Lan Corp jet, Meng Yao glanced up at the overcast sky. The gloomy weather matched his mood. Even though he had time to kill before his appointment, he had no interest in visiting his old neighborhood. As far as he knew, most of his old friends were still stuck there. Only Hu Ning had made it out. He still lived in Yunping, but he now owned one of the hottest nightclubs in the city. Meng Yao had gone further. After his mother had died, he'd gotten a scholarship to an elite secondary school. He'd lost track of his old friends but hadn't considered it much of a loss, especially after he'd been taken under Mingjue's wing.

At the time, Meng Yao hadn't realized how lucky he'd been. He hadn't known about beaus. He hadn't known what Mingjue had been protecting him from, but by the time he'd graduated, he fully understood the debt he owned Mingjue. After university, he'd gone to work for the man, fully expecting to devote his life to promoting Nie Industries. It'd been a shock when he'd been sent to work for Xichen. Mingjue had billed it as a promotion, but Xichen had once, drunkenly, claimed he'd won Meng Yao in a game of poker. Meng Yao had never been sure if he'd been joking.

When the driver pulled up to the nightclub, mid-afternoon, a few minutes before their appointment, Meng Yao was taken aback to see Hu Ning waiting outside the door. He'd expected to be led to the man's office. Hu Ning bowed as Meng Yao approached. "I'm honored that you've chosen to visit my humble club."

When Hu Ning rose, Meng Yao could see something wary in his eyes. Ah, he should have expected this. Of course, Hu Ning would have done his research. There wasn't much information about Meng Yao online, but it wouldn't be difficult to connect him to Lan Corp.

Hu Ning opened the door. "Please," he said as he gestured for Meng Yao to enter. Hu Ning led the way, not to his office, but to a small, comfortable back room. "Can I offer you anything? Drink? Food?"

"Mineral water," Meng Yao replied, mostly to give the man something to provide.

"Ah, yes, you never were much of a drinker." Once they were settled, Hu Ning nodded to his man who left them alone.

"I know I'm visiting on short notice," Meng Yao said. "I hope you don't mind. I'm in town on business and found myself feeling nostalgic." He pulled out a red envelope. "I hear your nephew will be starting university in the fall. Congratulations. I hope you won't mind passing along this small gift."

"Thank you. I didn't expect such a gift from an old friend." Hu Ning bowed again, and Meng Yao found himself resenting the man. They'd been close once, almost like brothers. When had Hu Ning become such a fawning toady? Meng Yao knew the answer. Right after he'd learned that Meng Yao worked for the Lan.

"It's nothing, just a small token, much less than he deserves I'm sure." Meng Yao took a sip of his water. "I do have a small favor to ask."

"Of course. Anything. Anything."

Hu Ning obviously knew Meng Yao represented Lan interests, but not everyone needed to know. Meng Yao decided to say he'd come at Zixuan's request. It wasn't even a lie and could be used as a cover story to keep knowledge of Lan involvement to a minimum. "I'm here on behalf of my brother."

"You father did take you in? That's good."

"Mm," Meng Yao agreed. "His wife is pregnant, and her brother, Wei Ying, has gone missing. There's concern that her distress might harm the baby. I don't mean to suggest that you have any direct knowledge of the situation, but you do have many connections in the city. Perhaps you've heard something?"

"Wei Ying you say? If I remember correctly, there was an eye asking after a Wei Ying. Nobody had a contract on him, at least as far as I'm aware, but I could ask around."

"Actually," Meng Yao said, I'm more concerned that any future investigators not be misled by vague rumors. There's already been too much time and money wasted on one unremarkable young man."

Meng Yao paused to give Hu Ning a moment to process, certain the man would come to the correct conclusion.

"At the moment," Meng Yao continued, "we are interested in a bartender at The Flying Turtle, name of Su She. He claims to have seen someone matching Wei Ying's description, but of course I'm certain he was mistaken."

Hu Ning nodded. "The Su family moved in after your time. Su She is ambitious but not all that bright. I'll see that he's taken care of."

"It would be unfortunate if he were to go missing too quickly. It might draw attention back to Wei Ying's disappearance. If you could confirm with Su She that he was mistaken, you would have my gratitude. You could let him know that Lan Corp would be willing to offer him employment, not right away of course, but after any investigation had died down. We're an expanding company, and there's plenty of room for advancement."

Xichen would be furious Meng Yao had decided to let Su She live. Xichen might even send an enforcer to clean up the loose end, but Meng Yao would do his best to talk him out of it. Once Su She understood the extent of his mistake, and that it had almost gotten him killed, he'd be devoted to the man who had saved him. Meng Yao did appreciate ambitious men. With the right incentive, they could be extremely loyal.