Chapter 110

When Ke Xingzhou returned home, he could see from a distance that the rooms of the Ke family villa were all dark, with no signs of life, forming a sharp contrast to the brightly lit surroundings.

He exchanged a glance with Nie Chen, both of their expressions turning solemn.

This was a residential area. Could it be that the demon clan dared to commit a crime in such a conspicuous place?

Just as the thought made his heart race, the car turned a corner and drove onto the main path in front of the villa. It was then that they realized the brightly lit area was also the Ke family.

It was just the Ke family's courtyard.

The bright courtyard formed a stark contrast with the villa, which had sunk into darkness. Ke Xingzhou glanced inside, and with his Heavenly Eye, he easily saw the situation inside—the house was completely empty.

However, there were plenty of people in the courtyard. Even the old butler and servants were there, busy greeting the guests who came to offer incense.

But it seemed that there were not just incense customers; a group of elderly men and women were gathered at the entrance, their expressions not very happy, pointing and gesturing at the Ke family house.

As Ke Xingzhou and Nie Chen got out of the car and passed the crowd at the entrance, they overheard the conversation:

"How did such heavy smoke pass the fire inspection?"

"Definitely going to complain. What if they’re big bosses of some company? It doesn’t matter. If it disturbs my life, it’s not acceptable!"

"Why hasn't the property management come yet? If they don’t come, I’ll complain about them too, even to the mayor’s hotline!"

"Yeah, yeah… Let’s complain to old Xiao’s son. Isn’t he working in some group? I heard it’s a state-owned enterprise. He must have connections!"

Since their conversation sounded like they had experience and knew what they were doing, they immediately noticed Ke Xingzhou and Nie Chen walking over. Their expressions instantly turned serious, as if they had been caught eavesdropping on something secret: "Adults are talking, what are kids listening for? Go play somewhere else!"

But as the two men had outstanding auras, a few elderly men and women, who were troubled by their younger generation’s marriage matters, gave them a once-over and asked the age-old question:

"Young man, do you have a partner? Would you like me to introduce one to you? My daughter is beautiful and obedient. I’m sure you’ll like her."

"If you don’t like girls, that’s fine. My grandson likes boys, and either of you would be a good match for him."

Ke Xingzhou: "……"

Nie Chen: "……"

Both of them were confused about what just happened. They walked past the crowd and entered, finding a group of distinguished guests standing in the courtyard.

Ke Xingzhou took a quick glance and noticed that the people here had quite good fortunes; they were clearly either rich or noble.

When they saw him return, the old butler was overjoyed: "Young Master Xingzhou is back!"

As soon as he spoke, everyone in the courtyard turned to look toward the entrance. Among them were people Ke Xingzhou recognized, like Xie An’s parents and Lan Xing, who had connections with the Ke family, as well as some people he didn’t know.A dozen or so entrepreneurs, along with their families, were gathered around the incense burner, creating a fragmented scene that almost made one think they had stumbled into some strange organization.

Ke Xingzhou: "......"

Among them, there were some who recognized Nie Chen, looking at him with curiosity and awe. When they noticed the person beside him, they were utterly shocked: "Mr. Nie, what are you doing here? Did you come to the Xiaoyao Sect to offer incense and pray for blessings too?"

Upon hearing the surname, others turned their attention to him with uncertainty: "Which Mr. Nie? The one from Wanli Group?"

"Hello, Mr. Nie, hello, Mr. Nie. I’m from such-and-such group, the upstream supplier for Wanli Group in a certain sector. Our supply has always been stable, with excellent quality. Do you remember us? Actually, we’ve always wanted to directly supply Wanli Group, but we just haven’t had the opportunity..."

"Long time no see, Mr. Nie. I didn’t expect to see you here with Master Ke. Are you also here to offer incense?"

"......"

Nie Chen maintained a neutral expression as he surveyed the people in the courtyard, his palm still holding the residual warmth from when Ke Xingzhou had been startled and pulled away.

...Anger.

At this moment, the property management team, which the elderly had been waiting for, finally arrived. Immediately, someone rushed up to complain: "Look, look! Such heavy smoke, and so many people making noise—it’s disturbing our normal lives!"

The property manager followed the direction they were pointing, and when he saw the group of powerful-looking entrepreneurs in the courtyard, his momentum immediately faltered.

Then, he noticed the incense burner the residents were talking about.

The incense burner given to the Xiaoyao Sect was indeed large, and it was no longer empty like when it was first delivered.

Thanks to Xie Zhiwen and some other frequent visitors to the Ke family, the incense ash and sticks inside had already accumulated quite a bit.

But no matter how the property manager looked at it, the smoke from this incense burner wasn’t as outrageous as the residents had claimed. It wasn’t spreading everywhere into their houses, but rather swirling around the top of the incense burner, gathering in a mist-like cloud.

However, as soon as he arrived, the elderly seemed to have found their backing and raised their voices: "Today, you must make this family move this incense burner out, or they should take it away themselves!"

"Exactly. This is clearly a residential area! Why do they get to place such a large incense burner in the courtyard? And that huge water tank too!"

The property manager: "......"

Is this jealousy over their antique water tank?

After all, this was a villa area. Families who could afford villas in the city district, even if not wealthy, still had some money and status.

The property manager couldn't offend either side, so he had no choice but to go in and inquire about the situation.

When the butler heard someone complain, he panicked: "How could the fire safety measures be inadequate? We’ve taken all the necessary precautions!"

He said this as he led the property manager inside, and in front of the curious gazes of the entrepreneurs, he pulled out a fire extinguisher from under the incense table in front of the incense burner.

"We've equipped every table and chair with a fire extinguisher to ensure that if anything happens, we can immediately grab one," the butler said, pointing to the large water tank in the courtyard. "Last week, I had someone install a fire alarm system and an automatic fire extinguisher!"

The property manager glanced in the direction he was pointing.

The antique blue and white porcelain water tank, which ordinary families would keep in a collection room and meticulously clean daily, was casually placed outside by the Ke family, exposed to the sun and wind, filled with water.

He thought to himself, what kind of automatic fire extinguisher is this, manually automatic?

Next to the water tank was a "No Smoking" sign, likely just for self-comfort, much like those signs in public places.The property manager was thinking this when he saw the butler stride forward, seemingly pulling a lighter from somewhere. He lit it by the water tank and quickly moved away.

Property Manager: "......?"

He didn’t react right away, just stood there for a moment, when suddenly a sharp “beep beep” sound came from above.

The property manager looked up, and just as he did, water sprayed down from above, drenching him completely like a drowned rat.

Property Manager: "......"

This damn job, he didn’t want to deal with it any longer.

The property manager was furious. Being in property management was already frustrating, especially in a villa community, with constant complaints every day, and now in the middle of winter, he was getting drenched.

But before he could get angry, the butler had already brought him dry clothes and a new towel.

“See, this device is really sensitive! Last time, a gardener was smoking underneath, and it detected him immediately, putting out his cigarette and lighter!” The butler noticed that his expression was still bad, so he cautiously explained, “Don’t worry, the water here is clean. Originally, our sir planned to set up an automatic watering system, but when young master Xingzhou came back, he didn’t get around to it... If you’re still not at ease, you can wash up in the guest bathroom.”

Property Manager: "..........."

The commotion caught the attention of the entrepreneurs in the courtyard, and they all looked over, asking what was going on.

The property manager could only repeat the complaints from the residents at the entrance.

The entrepreneurs immediately exchanged glances.

The elderly had been standing at Ke's door for quite some time, and they thought this was just a normal social situation in the area.

Out of a desire to fit in, they had been doing their best to ignore the elderly, but now it turned out they were waiting for the property management to come and complain?

Seeing the property manager drenched, the entrepreneurs felt that perhaps things had gone a bit too far.

Offering incense in a residential area did pose a fire hazard.

If it were any other time, they would have simply left, as there were other places to offer incense at the Xiaoyao Sect. They had only come to Ke’s place hoping to run into Master Ke.

But today, Mr. Nie was right there, so they didn't want to lose face in front of him.

If they couldn’t handle this small matter, how could they hope to secure future business deals with Wanli Group?

So, the entrepreneurs exchanged glances and decided to argue their case along with the butler.

Lan Xing: "Look at this automatic sprinkler... no, the automatic fire extinguishing device—how powerful is the water pressure? It could drench you thoroughly, putting out any fire instantly!"

Property Manager: "......"

Everyone: "......"

Although the elderly hadn’t come inside, they were all eavesdropping on what was happening. When they saw that the property manager was at a disadvantage and the other side was being unreasonable, they became unhappy.

“Do you have any basic knowledge of fire safety? You can’t have open flames in a residential area. I don’t care what fire safety measures you have!”

“The smoke is unbearable, it’s affecting our normal lives! You must remove it! And that water tank too, take it away!”"They're all dressed up like they're some big shots, and yet they still believe in feudal superstitions! With all the anti-fraud seminars the country’s been holding in recent years, I bet you’ve never attended a single one!"

"You just wait, my son is off work now. I'll have him come and handle you!"

The entrepreneurs: "......"

They hadn’t really attended any anti-fraud seminars, because they weren’t the type to fall for scams. Besides, they were so busy with work that they didn’t have time for such lectures.

Some of what the elderly were saying did make sense, and the entrepreneurs originally shouldn’t have gotten into conflict with them.

But when the elderly started making malicious remarks about the Xiaoyao Sect, some of the followers couldn’t take it anymore.

Lan Xing was the first to speak out, angrily questioning them: "How can you insult my idol!"

Xie An's father, Xie Zhiwen, also stepped forward, glaring at the old man who kept bringing up the water tank: "I recognize you! You’re the one who couldn’t auction the old Ke at the auction, and when you tried to buy it from him afterward, he rejected you, right?"

As soon as this was said, the elderly people who had been standing with the man scattered, looking at him with suspicion.

"How can you be like this?"

"I was wondering why I never saw you around the neighborhood. Turns out you're an outsider!"

"Property management, get the security to kick this old man out!"

The much younger old man: "......"

The scene was chaotic, but no one actually made a move. The property manager was caught in the middle, trying to mediate, his mouth practically dry from speaking, desperate and spinning in circles.

Luckily, at this moment, the children of the elderly arrived.

An old man pulled his son up to the entrepreneurs, proudly declaring: "This is my son! I told you, once he arrives, he’ll handle you! These people have been burning incense and doing rituals in our neighborhood. Your so-called fire safety group can deal with this, right?"

Other elderly people also pulled their children forward, expressing their intent to argue with the entrepreneurs.

But when the children arrived in front of the group, each of them was startled.

Especially the middle-aged man, who had been pulled out by his father to take the lead. Initially, he felt a bit proud when facing the envious and jealous gazes of the residents. However, upon seeing the people in front of him, his expression instantly changed.

"Mr. Lan... Mr. Xie... Mr. Wang... What are you doing here?"

Lan Xing stared at this man for a long time, unable to recall how he knew him.

It was Xie Zhiwen who was more experienced and after a moment, recognized him: "You’re... the boss of the company that supplies fire safety equipment to our company?"

Nowadays, both residential and office spaces were required to be equipped with fire safety equipment, or else they’d be violating fire regulations.

Xie Zhiwen's company had been expanding, and the amount spent annually on fire safety equipment was considerable, so they had a unified procurement process. The supplier was this boss, Mr. Xiao.

But he remembered that Mr. Xiao's company was just a regular fire equipment company. When did it develop into a fire safety group?

Xie Zhiwen looked at Mr. Xiao with confusion, making the latter sweat profusely.

The old man didn’t understand much of their conversation, but he understood one thing: "Didn’t you say you’re working with big corporations, state-owned enterprises? This person is saying you supply fire equipment to them? Is their company a state-owned enterprise?"

Mr. Xiao couldn’t answer a single word and could only wipe his sweat desperately, signaling his father to stop talking.Everyone quickly understood the situation. It seemed that Mr. Xiao’s business wasn’t as big as his father had claimed.

But who doesn’t have a bit of vanity these days? It was probably when Mr. Xiao went home and reported his work to his father that he exaggerated his achievements, which led to this situation.

For a moment, everyone looked at the father and son with complicated expressions, and Mr. Xiao’s father’s face turned red with embarrassment. He wished he could just disappear into the ground.

However, the children of the other elderly people accompanying them weren’t in the mood to gloat.

Because they had recognized familiar faces among the group across from them—

"General... General Manager?"

The entrepreneur who had been called "General Manager" turned around and looked at him. "Xiao Liu, what are you doing here? Didn’t you say your elder at home passed away today and you were going to attend the funeral?"

Old Liu was stunned for a moment, slowly turning to look at his son, already reaching for his slippers: "You ungrateful son! I'm the only one left in the family! Who’s dead?!"

"Ah, ah, ah, Dad! Dad, listen to me explain! I just wanted to ask for leave... Ah! Wrong, wrong, I’ll never do it again!"

Similar situations were playing out with the other elderly people.

What was originally a peaceful and harmonious incense-burning scene suddenly turned into chaos. Amid the flurry of activity, someone suddenly shouted "Call an ambulance," which finally quieted everyone down.

Everyone rushed to identify the source of the voice. When they looked over, they saw that Mr. Xiao’s father had collapsed on the ground, his face a deathly pale color.

Mr. Xiao cried uncontrollably, his fat body trembling: "Dad! Dad, wake up! I’ll never lie to you again! Please, don’t die from anger!"

Everyone was instantly scared. Even the elderly people who had been angry and teasing their own children put down their slippers and canes, worried that they too might become the next Mr. Xiao's father if they got too agitated.

After enduring so many years of hardship, they were just starting to enjoy their lives, and they still wanted to live for a little longer.

Mr. Xiao cried for a long time, but Mr. Xiao’s father didn’t wake up. Someone called an emergency, but they were told that even the nearest hospital would take nearly half an hour to send a vehicle over.

Everyone was frantic, when a young man with good looks walked over. He stared at Mr. Xiao’s father’s face for a while, then grabbed Mr. Xiao by the back of his collar and pulled him away.

"Hey, how can you be so rude?"

Mr. Xiao’s face changed, and he was about to snap, but after the young man left, Mr. Xiao’s father suddenly turned red in the face, took a big gulp of air, and his eyes opened wide.

He coughed violently, his eyes nearly popping out of his head, gasping for air like a broken bellows.

After a long while, his trembling finger pointed at Mr. Xiao: "You... you ungrateful son... you want to kill me?!"

Mr. Xiao: "......"

The residents: "......"

Mr. Xiao was dazed, looking down at his own overweight body, especially his protruding beer belly, which seemed as if he were ten months pregnant. Weakly, he spoke: "Th... thank you, Master Ke, I’m sorry to trouble you."