Chapter 180 Concealed Profundity (Part 1)

on of love towards Chen Ling珊 (Note: The name "陳靈珊" was transliterated as "Chen Ling珊", but it should be noted that "珊" is already part of her name in Chinese and doesn't have an equivalent English tr...Chapter 699: Hidden Depths (Part 1)

When Zhang Jing saw Zeng Na and her family, under the gaze of Zeng Na, his eyes flickered slightly but he held back from turning to look at them. In theory, he had once called Zeng Quanming "Uncle Zeng" or simply "Uncle," but now all he could do was pretend not to see them.

Zeng Na clenched her fists tightly; Deng Songqi patted her hand under the table, silently offering comfort. To be clear, Zeng Na wasn't still harboring feelings for Zhang Jing; it was just that his silent demeanor from earlier had hurt her deeply. Back then when they broke up, he had acted exactly like this—silent except to say that they weren't suitable for each other, nearly driving Zeng Na crazy with frustration.

The woman beside Zhang Jing seemed to notice something and glanced over at Zeng Na but quickly looked away again, embodying the attitude of a swan who doesn’t deign to look at others. Her ambiguous smile was disconcerting.

Shortly after, the elders from Zhang Jing's side arrived. Both families had met before, but due to some discomfort, they all acted as if they hadn't seen each other and kept their distance.

The atmosphere froze for a moment.

Sitting down, Zhang Jing greeted several of the elders. His girlfriend Liao Xin whispered to him with a smile, "Why didn’t you greet Zeng Na’s family"

Zhang Jing replied with a bitter smile, "There's no point in greeting them; it would just be awkward."

Liao Xin scrutinized his profile and then said thoughtfully, "Just remember not to play any tricks on me. Otherwise don't blame me for being harsh. We're still considering whether or not we can help with your father’s situation."

Then Liao Xin glanced over and remarked, “It's just a petty official in the Development Planning Commission who has offended many people—what's so great about the Zeng family Besides, it looks like her new boyfriend isn’t all that impressive.” Liao Xin had grown up with smooth sailing; such an upbringing usually leads to arrogance unless one is exceptionally well-mannered. Moreover, Zhang Jing’s father was currently facing accusations and economic issues, which might have touched a nerve with someone powerful, so they needed the help of the Liao family.

Compared to the Liao family's network, the Zhang family seemed insignificant. What’s more important is that the Liao family had connections at both the provincial headquarters and the supervisory board, and whether the Zhang family could get through this crisis depended largely on how the Liao family responded.

Liao Xin couldn’t help but notice Su Cun and Zeng Na’s side. Obviously, Zeng Na's new boyfriend couldn't compare to Zhang Jing, otherwise everyone wouldn't be so solemn—clearly their presence had hit a nerve with them.

This gave her a certain sense of pleasure. If not for her genuine liking of Zhang Jing's looks, someone like him or Ceng Na wouldn't be on par with their Liao family. The Liao family had been developing in the province over the past decade and had deepened their influence in finance and politics; their status was something that nouveau riche families couldn’t compare to.

So she spoke earnestly to Zhang Jing, "My uncle is coming over later. Although he’s in charge of projects at the Provincial Military Region's後勤部is already correctly translated as 'Logistics Department' but for context: "Although he's in charge of logistics-related projects at the Provincial Military Region," he’s frequently invited by Vice President Zhao from our provincial head office to go fishing together. My uncle isn't good with anything except his love for alcohol; he only drinks茅台 (Moutai) brand liquor. You need to get him happy even if you end up vomiting blood today. With that, your dad's issues will be easier to solve. Next, we’ll see how my second uncle goes. He usually handles the supervisory board and is hardly seen, but because of me, he agreed to meet with you. He used to dote on me when I was young; if you follow my arrangements, none of your family’s issues will be a problem."

Zhang Jing silently nodded and endured the somewhat arrogant attitude from this side of the Liao family. Soon after, a Teana sedan bearing a provincial military region license plate stopped outside, and an imposing middle-aged man swaggered in. It was Liao Xin's second uncle.

Along with Zhang Jing’s parents who had come today, everyone put on forced smiles as they stood up.

The situation should have continued like this awkwardly, but after a while, when Liao Jun (Liao Xin's second uncle) got comfortable in his seat, he got up again, holding a bottle of liquor and a white wine glass. At this point, Deng Songqi next to Su Can also looked somewhat unnatural, shifting uncomfortably.

Then, Liao Jun came over and held the shoulder of already standing Deng Songqi with a smile, saying, "Little Deng, you’re here too What a coincidence."

"Uncle Liao," Deng Songqi smiled awkwardly as he introduced them. "This is my girlfriend Ceng Na, and this is her father, Uncle Ceng." He introduced everyone.

Liao Jun then clinked glasses with the still dazed Zeng Quanming and his family. He said that Deng Songqi was a reliable child; his dad was their Vice Chief of Staff, a lieutenant general. He often dealt with Lieutenant General Deng at the Provincial Military Region's Logistics Department and had even heard about interesting stories from when he was young—climbing telegraph poles and rolling around in sand hills, chased by his father afterwards. Although Deng Songqi could be mischievous, overall, he listened well and never troubled his dad. He had graduated from college already; with his connections, it wouldn’t be bad at all for him, and he would definitely treat Ceng Na well.

Now Zeng Quanming, Zeng Zhao Ding, and Ceng Na were all staring dumbfounded at Deng Songqi.

Su Can was also quite surprised, thinking that this kid actually had something up his sleeve.

In the past life, after Deng Songqi missed out on Ceng Na, there was no news of him. Even Su Can didn't know that he had a lieutenant general father at the provincial military region. After failing in their relationship in another timeline, he must have followed his own path. Such a level wasn’t something that middle-aged man Su Can could reach back then.

Deng Songqi was thoroughly embarrassed, staring at Zeng Na who kept shooting him sharp looks and listening to Liao Jun still talking on the other end of the line, he really wanted to tell him to hurry up and leave.

In the end, Liao Jun said, "Next time when you go home to see your dad, invite Uncle Liao too. I haven't visited Mr. Deng in a long while." He naturally knew how to read people's expressions and say what was necessary before turning around to return to his seat.

The moment Liao Jun left, everyone at Su Can’s table had their world turned upside down. Su Can thought that he would be the one to take Deng Songqi by surprise, but it ended up being the other way around.

He had heard about Lieutenant General Deng Kai from the provincial military region before. He didn’t expect it to be better seeing him than hearing about him. With Deng Songqi’s family background, he could have walked a path that others couldn’t even imagine, but he still followed the rules and lived his college life as usual. Perhaps none of his roommates knew his background either; if not for meeting Liao Jun by chance today, no one would know about Deng Songqi's identity. Su Can didn't know how long it would have been before people found out. Compared to many second-generation officials who relied on their family connections to advance themselves, Deng Songqi and his family were indeed worth respecting.

Zeng Zhao Ding’s uncle couldn’t figure out how to bring it up. Zeng Quanming only asked after a while, "Is your father Lieutenant General Deng Kai from the provincial military region" When Deng Songqi confirmed it, Zeng Quanming nodded and his face flushed with shame as he recalled the various criticisms he had made of Deng Songqi before. He wondered if his attitude would improve further after this incident.

Zeng Na was both angry and frustrated at Deng Songqi for hiding his identity; she glared at him twice, then pouted in a huff and ignored him. Deng Songqi kept plastering on a good face beside her but didn’t know what to do either.

Su Can found it amusing as well. The way Liao Jun’s second uncle had come over clearly meant he was trying to curry favor with Deng Songqi, yet now that Deng Songqi was courting Zeng Na instead, serving dishes and talking softly to her, it couldn’t help but make people laugh.

Looking at his aunt-in-law Yin Shufen, who was laughing so hard she had tears streaming down her face, Su Can thought that she had been right about her daughter's judgment after all. Deng Songqi having such a prestigious family background yet being content with staying low-key and ordinary, using his abilities to do what he wanted and achieve his goals and ideals, gradually honing himself and transforming internally—this wasn't something an average person could accomplish. Li Pengyu, who had been accompanying Su Can as the chief executive assistant for SinoSpec on Facebook, was another example of such a person; both were children of military commanders. Although Li Pengyu didn’t hide his background or reject occasional help from family members, overall, he and the present Deng Songqi seemed to be in the same category.

Su Can found himself quite fond of this Deng Songqi. Patting him on the shoulder, when Deng Songqi turned around in his spare time as if knowing what Su Can wanted to say, he replied, "The words you said earlier touched me deeply; reputation and status can change through generations, but the only thing that remains constant is persistent effort."

Just after Liao Jun returned to the table, hearing relatives ask who those people were at the other table, he vaguely said it was the son of Lieutenant General Deng Kai from the provincial military region. Only then did everyone exclaim in realization.

One relative commented, "That military district chief of staff, but apparently he's retired now. The current one should be Ai Longsheng." Speaking this person came from Liao Jun’s side and didn’t place much importance on the other party when comparing their family backgrounds.

"That's not bad either. In a military region, there won't be more than ten lieutenant generals, and Deng Kai is one of them; this rank isn't low...

Zhang Jing's expression was uncertain, looking somewhat discouraged. Instead, Liao Xin curled her lips and with half-lowered eyelids said, "A retired chief of staff So what He might not even place my second uncle in his sights." Seeing how her cousin, Liao Jun, went over to fawn upon the other party, it clearly made her feel out of place and lose face. Although others may see this action as a demonstration of weakness, sometimes human relationships do require such interactions. But after all, that was her former rival's family; she found such displays of subservience extremely uncomfortable.

However, there was nothing to be done about it; until the end of the meal, Zhang Jing didn't speak to him anymore.

After eating, Su Can handed a Qiao Shuxin business card to Deng Songqi. It was an internal card, and calling the number on it wouldn’t go through the secretary's office but directly to his phone. "If you're interested in joining Facebook, give Qiao Shuxin a call; you can work on what you specialize in."

Deng Songqi held the card with joy when he saw the four Chinese characters for 'Facebook' printed on it and nodded before putting it away. Su Can then leaned over to observe Zeng Na's angry back as she left, saying, "My sister loved eating cranberry slices when she was young; buy some and take them to her dormitory along with some nice words, I assure you that will cheer her up."

Deng Songqi nodded. He was then summoned by Zeng Quanming who sighed as if he had come to many realizations, saying, "Young people should prioritize their careers; striving hard is the top priority. As for your relationship with Zeng Na, I shouldn't interfere anymore. In summary, just remember that you must treat her well..."

Su Can felt more at ease and thought this outcome was satisfactory. Since his rebirth, an issue he had viewed as a dead end now seemed to have been resolved.

The phone rang, and when Su Can looked down, he felt even better. Picking up the call, he asked, "Uncle Wang, whenever you're free, let's meet up; I'm leaving soon..."

Wang Bo laughed openly, saying, "You decide."

When he was formulating policies or chairing various meetings big and small, his demeanor would be serious. But when it came to people like Su Can and Lin Luoran, Wang Bo could rarely show such a warm side. Of course, this side of him became increasingly rare as he rose to become the number one in the Provincial Committee.

Su Can thought for a moment and said, "I'll be leaving two days after tomorrow; I assume you know from Lin Luoran and others. How about we meet the day after tomorrow then At Grandma's Kitchen in the Paulownia Grove area—will that work Uncle Wang won't mind it being a small eatery, right"ifficult for her to look in his direction, and when their eyes met, Su Cen was slightly surprised. Xiao Yunyun nodded to him and smiled faintly before turning back to listen to the lecture and write n...