Jiang Xue covered her pretty face, utterly bewildered.
Tears welled up in her eyes, and she couldn't believe it. Today, she and her mother had each received two slaps from Chen Jie.
Her face burned, and resentment towards Chen Jie filled her heart.
After delivering the slaps, Chen Jie realized he might have gone too far. In all his years of missions, no one dared to provoke him without facing dire consequences. Yet, he had forgotten this was a family matter, and by disciplining Jiang Xue, he had overstepped his bounds.
He turned to Jiang Long with an apologetic expression. "Uncle Jiang, I'm sorry. I couldn't help myself just now..."
"Hahaha... Good, well done! Marvelous! Absolutely brilliant!"
Jiang Long wasn't angry at all; instead, he was delighted. "This girl has never respected her old man since she was little, and she's even more arrogant outside. Chen Jie, you've done me a favor by teaching her a lesson! If she ever misbehaves in the future, feel free to discipline her on my behalf! Preferably, bring both mother and daughter into line!"
Chen Jie's face stiffened. From Jiang Long's tone, it seemed he considered Chen Jie to be something of a family member to Jiang Xue.
"Come, Chen Jie, sit down and let's have a good chat. How have you been all these years?" Jiang Long said, pulling Chen Jie to the sofa. He ignored Wu Li and her daughter, who were on the verge of collapsing.
Chen Jie glanced around and saw that the Green Wisp Ghost Hand had somehow slipped away unnoticed. He didn't pay it much mind. "I've spent most of these years abroad handling some business, so I haven't had much time to return," he said vaguely to Jiang Long.
"What are your plans now?" Jiang Long asked.
"Uncle, I haven't returned with any other purpose than to avenge the fire that destroyed my Chen family back then," Chen Jie said coldly.
Jiang Long immediately became tense. "What? That's not a good idea. From what I know, the incident with your Chen family involved some of the top wealthy families in Yandu. Don't be rash! Your Chen family finally has descendants; you can't let the Chen family bloodline end with you!"
Chen Jie felt Jiang Long's concern and gave him a grateful look. "Don't worry, Uncle. I won't do anything foolish without a hundred percent certainty. I'll establish a foothold in Pingcheng first, and then take it step by step!"
Chen Jie clenched his fist.
He had a general understanding of his Chen family's enemies. They were indeed in high positions, but with his current strength, he could easily eliminate them. However, that would be too boring. Chen Jie wanted to make these people despair step by step, and then push them into an abyss!
Jiang Long smiled with satisfaction. He suddenly looked at Jiang Xue and said meaningfully, "Chen Jie, Uncle owes a debt to your Chen family from a long time ago, and now you've saved my life. I have no way to repay you, so how about you consider my daughter?"
Chen Jie froze and subconsciously looked at Jiang Xue, who was not far away.
Her voluptuous hip line, slender legs, and S-shaped curves—apart from her spoiled nature, she was full of youthful hormones.
"Dad, you want me to marry this country bumpkin?" Jiang Xue said with disgust, glaring at Chen Jie. "Who do you think I, Jiang Xue, am? Everyone dotes on me, and I'm the center of attention! How could I possibly agree to marry trash like this?"
Jiang Long's face fell. "If you don't agree, I'll cut off all your living expenses!"
Jiang Xue's face immediately showed a look of grievance and unwillingness. All her expenses were covered by her parents; if she were truly penniless, how could she maintain her glamorous appearance?
Wu Li fumed, "Jiang Long, if you marry our daughter to this country bumpkin, I'll die right in front of you!"
Jiang Long retorted unceremoniously, "Then go ahead and die now!"
"You..." Wu Li pointed at Jiang Long indignantly, then glared at Chen Jie. "You penniless bum, don't even think about my daughter. No matter what kind of toad you are, you're not worthy!"
Chen Jie's gaze sharpened. Fortunately, he hadn't had any such intentions in the first place. He politely declined Jiang Long. "Uncle, as you can see, forcing a marriage is not good. I think we should forget about it. Besides, I have no plans to get married for now."
The mother and daughter were instantly relieved. This little scoundrel actually had some self-awareness.
Jiang Long looked regretful. "Is that so! But Chen Jie, can you promise me one thing?"
"What is it?" Chen Jie asked.
"As you can see, I've been negligent in disciplining them, which has made my daughter so spoiled and willful. Can you stay at our house for a while and help me discipline them? Don't worry, I won't force anything between you and my daughter!" Jiang Long said. He still hadn't given up on matchmaking Chen Jie and Jiang Xue. However, he had been surprised by how Chen Jie handled Jiang Xue earlier. Given Jiang Xue's temper, she was bound to get into trouble outside eventually. Since Chen Jie could discipline her, he genuinely hoped Chen Jie could help her become more restrained.
"What!"
"No!"
The mother and daughter exclaimed in unison.
Chen Jie smiled. "Alright, Uncle. Since you've asked, I respectfully accept. However, I probably won't be staying too long."
"Good, good, good! Wu Li, go and cook a couple of your best dishes to entertain Chen Jie. I want to have a few drinks with him!" Jiang Long said, repeating "good" three times as he ordered Wu Li.
Wu Li felt worse than if she had eaten a fly. "For me to cook for this country bumpkin? Dream on! I'd rather serve you two plates of shit and two cups of urine!"
"How dare you! Don't force me to get angry!" Jiang Long's face darkened, and he yelled with immense authority.
"Hmph!" Wu Li's face contorted with anger, but in the end, she just huffed and unwillingly ran off. Although Wu Li detested Chen Jie and didn't treat Jiang Long very well, she was still very afraid if he got angry. Eventually, she dutifully served a table laden with a sumptuous lunch. She even personally opened a bottle of twenty-year-old wine for the two of them.
After a few rounds of drinks and a lengthy conversation, Chen Jie learned that Jiang Long wasn't doing too well. Within the entire Jiang family, the old man hadn't abdicated yet, and there was still the eldest son above him. Jiang Long's family, having only a daughter, was not highly regarded by the Jiang family patriarch, Jiang Zailai.
Just then, a loud bang came from outside.
The villa's main door was kicked open with a thud. Immediately after, an angry roar echoed, "Where is Jiang Long!"
Upon hearing this voice, Wu Li and Jiang Xue's expressions clearly tensed. Jiang Long's face also changed. He then said to Chen Jie apologetically, "That's my elder brother's son, Jiang Bei. Wait here and don't come out."
Chen Jie nodded. He didn't want to get involved in their family matters and didn't say anything. He then walked out and saw a young man with his hands in his pockets, looking utterly nonchalant.
"Abei, why are you here?" Jiang Long asked with a strained smile. This spirited young man was his elder brother Jiang Jun's son, and his own nephew, Jiang Bei.
"Old waste, stop playing dumb. You know why I'm here! Of course, it's to have you hand over your daughter, ready to be offered as a plaything to the Zhou family!" Jiang Bei shouted arrogantly.