The True Purpose of Ledgers, Frenzied Elbow Strikes, Poor Sister Lin...

A five-star restaurant in Dahai City.

Today, two special guests arrived at the restaurant. The kitchen became exceptionally busy, and the food runners' legs were practically smoking from running so fast, yet they still couldn't keep up with the speed at which the kitchen was churning out dishes.

Normally, if there was a sudden demand for so many dishes, it would be time to use a little Mickey Mouse magic... oh wait, no, time to use some modern human wisdom.

They would take out the semi-finished products prepared in advance by the hotel, give them a quick cook, and turn them into freshly made dishes.

It wasn't that this restaurant was shady; most hotels and restaurants adopted this pre-cooked model. The goal was to ensure the taste wouldn't deviate too much, preventing them from ruining their own reputation, while also ensuring customers wouldn't have to wait too long. There were many benefits...

You could say that, but spending the money for a freshly made meal only to be served pre-cooked food is just wrong. If you insist on serving pre-cooked food, the price should reflect that, rather than charging the price of a freshly made dish. After all... I ate one bowl of noodles, but you are making me pay for two. Isn't that just bullying an honest person!

The usual tricks used to fool customers with more money than brains wouldn't work today. They couldn't be used, because their boss was here...

Serving pre-cooked food when the boss was present would quickly teach them a lesson when they get fired the next day just because their left eyelid twitched a few too many times.

This place was a property under the Lin Group, a renowned five-star restaurant in Dahai City, and its annual revenue was quite a considerable figure.

Dahai City was the most prosperous place in the entire Dragon Kingdom. Three-star restaurants were everywhere, and five-star restaurants were as common as stray dogs. Only those at an even higher level had the right to challenge the top players. Unfortunately, the Lin family was still lacking a bit and wasn't qualified to touch that tier.

The number of families in the whole of Dahai City qualified to touch it could be counted on one hand: the Dongfang family, the Du family, the Tang family...

Clang!

Another licked-clean plate was placed on top of a stack of plates piled up like a small mountain on the side, wobbling and on the verge of collapsing.

Click-clack, click-clack. The hurried sound of high heels came from the side. A waitress ran over and was dumbfounded when she saw the sheer number of plates in front of her. After snapping back to reality, she used all her strength to scoop the plates up with both hands.

Good heavens, is this guy really human? How can he eat so much!

The surrounding staff—those serving, running, and carrying dishes—were all looking in shock at Ye Cheng, who was still burying his head and fiercely scarfing down food... He could eat way too freaking much!

Those who didn't know better would think Ye Cheng had just escaped from a refugee camp in northern Myanmar...

"Phew, the taste is just average, munch, munch, munch. Oh right, bring me two more king crabs and ten sea cucumbers, munch, munch, munch... Pack up whatever I can't finish, munch, munch, munch..."

Ye Cheng spoke while chewing the sea cucumber in his mouth, rubbing his bulging stomach that looked like a pregnant woman's, looking incredibly comfortable and content.

Lin Tianxiong: "..."

He had thought Ye Cheng might not hold back, and he had considered that Ye Cheng might have a big appetite, but he never expected Ye Cheng to be able to eat this much... Also, was that stomach for real? Was it really not going to explode?

Ye Cheng had eaten so much that his stomach bulged out. He had no choice but to undo the bottom two buttons of his shirt; otherwise, it would be too tight, and he wouldn't be able to eat more. The latter reason accounted for the majority of his decision.

Originally, Lin Tianxiong wanted to discuss matters with Ye Cheng while eating. However, after the dishes were served, they disappeared before Lin Tianxiong even picked up his chopsticks. By the time he looked over, Ye Cheng was already picking his teeth and even asking him why he wasn't eating.

Did he have something on his mind? Was his appetite bad?

Lin Tianxiong: "..."

After this process repeated a few times, Lin Tianxiong gave up upon realizing he couldn't snatch food faster than Ye Cheng. He took a sip of plain water from his cup, treating it as a way to satisfy his cravings.

Sigh...

Now Ye Cheng was finally done eating, and they could start discussing serious business.

"Little Ye, there's something I want to discuss with you..." Lin Tianxiong opened his mouth, ready to talk business.

"Yes, yes, yes, over here. Oh right, get me two more takeout containers, otherwise the flavors will mix and it won't taste good. And get me two bottles of drinks, yes, yes, yes, the large ones..." Looking anxious, Ye Cheng stood straight up with a toothpick dangling from his mouth, directing the waiters.

Lin Tianxiong: "..."

After a good while, when the packing was finally done, they could finally start talking business!

It wasn't easy. This time, Lin Tianxiong deliberately waited an extra two minutes just to see if Ye Cheng would pull any more stunts. This time, Ye Cheng was actually well-behaved, so Lin Tianxiong finally spoke up to continue the matter he hadn't finished earlier.

"Little Ye, I have something I need to discuss with you."

"No problem, Uncle Lin. Your business is my business. No need to mention small things, I can't help with big things, borrowing money is a no-go, but everything else is on me!" With a toothpick in his mouth, Ye Cheng patted his chest and spoke with absolute confidence.

Lin Tianxiong: "..."

So you're just trying to get something for nothing, talking a big game but not wanting to help at all!

Sigh...

Lin Tianxiong sighed inwardly, not because of Ye Cheng's eating habits or his current unreliability. To put it bluntly, he owed Ye Cheng his life. During the years he was away, if Ye Cheng hadn't protected his daughter, who knows what would have happened to her by now. They might not have even survived to see each other again.

For this, Lin Tianxiong couldn't be more grateful, let alone despise or look down on Ye Cheng. He was certain that Ye Cheng was a hidden dragon in the abyss; soaring into the sky was only a matter of time. Now was the best time for him to place his bets!

It was just a pity. If only Ye Cheng were a little younger. Why didn't he take a stroll through the orphanage back then, pick this kid up, and raise him?

Not only could he have found his daughter earlier, but also...

Wait, that seemed like inviting a wolf into the house!

Lin Tianxiong's internal debate silenced him. Picking him up wasn't right, and not picking him up wasn't right either... If he had picked him up and raised him, he would be his son, and then his daughter...

Lin Tianxiong: "..."

As if he had thought of something terrifying, Lin Tianxiong's old face underwent a series of changes, turning pale then dark. Finally, he sighed and spoke.

"Little Ye, Uncle knows you're a smart person. I..."

"Two million!"

Lin Tianxiong: "???"

"What two million?" A giant question mark appeared above Lin Tianxiong's head as he looked in confusion at Ye Cheng, who was holding up two fingers in front of him.

Chewing on a chicken foot, Ye Cheng puffed out his cheeks and blinked, putting on an innocent look. "Aren't you going to give me a buyout fee, telling me not to contact your daughter anymore or something like that..."

Lin Tianxiong: "???"

"Where did you see all this weird stuff? When did I ever say I was going to give you a buyout fee?"

"Damn, you want me to cooperate without even giving me a buyout fee? You old geezer, you sure have a wild imagination. In your dreams!" Ye Cheng's eyes widened, looking as if he were about to eat someone.

Lin Tianxiong: "..."

Lin Tianxiong really couldn't take it anymore. If they kept talking like this, who knew what kind of ditch this brat in front of him would lead the conversation into. He needed to settle this quickly.

Lin Tianxiong took a deep breath and finished what he had to say all at once.

The general idea was that Ye Cheng couldn't see his daughter right now because she needed to grow, and the family needed a qualified heir. However, as compensation, Ye Cheng would receive a very substantial amount of money...

Ye Cheng narrowed his eyes. "Oh... so that's how it is. I was wondering what it was about. After all that, it's just the classic Dragon King storyline, munch munch munch..."

Lin Tianxiong: "???"

He didn't know why, but he felt like he had been inexplicably dissed by Ye Cheng. How was it the same old storyline? People need motivation to grow, alright? The biggest motivation for his daughter to become stronger and a qualified heir was Ye Cheng. What he was doing made perfect sense!

However, to dispel Ye Cheng's doubts, Lin Tianxiong still made a promise and guarantee to him right then and there.

"When Bai Zhi is capable of taking over the group, I won't interfere with the matters between you two," Lin Tianxiong said calmly.

He was practically spelling it out... If my daughter still likes you in the future, I won't stop you. You two can do whatever you want.

Ye Cheng nodded. "So you still aren't planning to pay the buyout fee, right?"

Lin Tianxiong: "???"

Wait... is the buyout fee the main point here? I'm practically giving you my daughter, and you're asking me for a buyout fee?

For a moment, Lin Tianxiong couldn't tell if Ye Cheng was playing dumb or actually stupid. Look at how his daughter was acting now—she called him brother more times in a day than she called him dad in half a month. With things like this, she definitely wouldn't be able to escape him in the future. Yet... this kid was just fixated on that little bit of buyout money?

Lin Tianxiong had a certain swear word in mind that he didn't know whether he should say or not...

In the end, Lin Tianxiong couldn't out-stubborn Ye Cheng and agreed to give him the buyout fee, and the amount was much larger than the two million Ye Cheng had mentioned. Lin Tianxiong wrote a check, but after thinking about it, he felt something wasn't right. This kid probably didn't use checks; it would be better to just give him a bank card.

After all, ordinary people rarely came into contact with checks... Lin Tianxiong was being very considerate.

Lin Tianxiong pulled out a black card from his wallet, placed it on the table, and pushed it in front of Ye Cheng.

"There's five hundred in here, I'll transfer the rest to you later..."

"Holy crap, you old geezer, you actually have the nerve to offer me five hundred!" Ye Cheng looked indignant!

Lin Tianxiong: "..."

"I meant five hundred... as in five million."

"Uncle Lin, I must have been possessed by a ghost just now, please don't mind me. You are the most handsome old geezer I've ever seen!" Ye Cheng changed his face at the speed of light, his appearance even seeming to become much more handsome, the chiseled kind. He rubbed his smooth chin with one hand, looking exactly like a perfect gentleman.

Lin Tianxiong: "..."

About ten minutes later.

A luxurious black stretch Lincoln was driving on the way back to the Lin Group. Lin Tianxiong sat in the back seat, staring blankly at the black card in his hand...

This card... that kid actually didn't take it?

If the background check was correct, this kid shouldn't have any remarkable identity. He should just be a locally born and raised orphan from an orphanage, right?

How could he resist the massive temptation of millions?

If it were anyone else, Lin Tianxiong could have speculated in the most sinister direction, assuming the other party was scheming for his company. After all, between a few million and hundreds of billions... it was easy to tell which was heavier.

Was he refusing the money to leave a good impression on him?

Others might do that, but Ye Cheng absolutely wouldn't!

Of course, Ye Cheng wasn't entirely without demands. He needed Lin Tianxiong to do him a favor...

Since that day, every three months, the Lin Group would donate a large sum of money and various daily necessities to the orphanage where Ye Cheng grew up.

Fast forward to the present.

This month's donation had just been completed. Lin Tianxiong personally inspected the records and bound them together.

In hindsight, Lin Tianxiong seemed to finally understand what Ye Cheng was up to. Still... he could have just done it himself, it would only mean making a few extra trips, yet he insisted on having Lin Tianxiong do it.

"This kid... is as outstanding as always. Do your best, my daughter, Daddy is rooting for you."

Lin Tianxiong smiled meaningfully, shook his head, and closed the detailed ledger in his hands. He shut it properly and placed it back in its original spot on the bookshelf. If nothing unexpected happened, he had a feeling that a certain little fellow would be coming to look for him in a while, so he had to keep this thing safe.

This matter was a secret between Lin Tianxiong and Ye Cheng; even his own biological daughter, Lin Baizhi, didn't know about it.

To this day, Lin Baizhi still didn't know that her kind old father and the brother she longed for day and night, the one she wanted to... at night, were actually old acquaintances—even closer to him than she was right now.

Poor Sister Lin. Getting shoved two acres away by Da Huang was one thing, but getting shoved aside by her own old father... It really proved the saying: childhood sweethearts are long outdated; they only deserve to listen from outside the door!

...

Meanwhile.

In a remote alleyway in Dahai City.

Buzz, buzz, buzz... Countless buzzing drones surrounded the alleyway. Below them was Da Huang, who had entered a dead end and had nowhere to run.

After hopping a couple of times and realizing it couldn't jump over, Da Huang decisively chose to yield. It obediently dropped Ye Cheng's clothes from its mouth, and then revealed a sneaky and wretched smile, its face full of fawning grins.

It was hard to imagine actually seeing a flattering expression on a dog.

Nice flattery, next time flatter a bit earlier. As for now... go say that to my tranquilizer gas!

Clank, clank, clank... The drones dropped small metal canisters one after another. Tranquilizer gas was released rapidly. In no time, the cornered Da Huang inhaled the gas, its mouth went crooked, its eyes crossed, its legs kicked out... and it passed out stiff as a board.

Originally, they were going to use tranquilizer darts, but considering it might leave a psychological shadow on the dog, and the darts were relatively aggressive, it would be hard to report back if it got hurt. After all, their Boss Lin had explicitly stated that they were not allowed to use violent means to harm this shit-yellow mutt...

Well... is there a possibility, Miss, that our current methods are actually already quite violent?

Sigh, only wage slaves understand the bitterness of wage slaves. Since the boss above had spoken, they naturally had to follow orders. Thus, the more expensive and strictly controlled tranquilizer gas grenades in the Dragon Kingdom made their appearance... It was hard to imagine that they were actually used to deal with a dog.

However... this dog was no ordinary dog either. The drone swarm had almost run out of battery chasing it before finally catching up. It truly was the Red Hare among dogs.

Buzz, buzz, buzz.

The drone swarm hoisted up the packaged super fat dog and headed in Lin Baizhi's direction. As for the clothes Da Huang had dropped from its mouth, they were completely ignored by everyone.

A short while later...

Waiting in place and excitedly rubbing her hands together, Lin Baizhi saw the drones bring back only a shit-yellow fat dog. At a speed visible to the naked eye, the expression on her face stiffened.

Poor Sister Lin let out a sharp, piercing shriek once again.

"Ahhh! Where are my clothes!!!"