At that thought.
Major Hugh Hu strode forward a few steps and circled around to stand in front of Evan Lin.
The moment his gaze landed on Evan Lin's face—sitting atop Hugh Hu's back—his whole body jolted, eyes filled with shock and delight.
"It's you!"
Major Hu's eyes widened as he blurted out instinctively.
"Bro! You know him? Did he piss you off too?" Hugh Hu's face changed at those words, then he started cursing again. "You've got guts, kid! You even dare mess with my big brother! Do you have any idea who you're messing with?"
"I'm telling you, you're finished today—done for, you hear me!"
Hugh Hu shouted at the top of his lungs, still writhing on the floor.
Linda Guan, Quentin Yu, and the others heard Hugh Hu's words and looked at Evan Lin with even colder eyes.
Charles Chen and Lucy Lu had gone completely pale; they couldn't even imagine what would happen to Evan Lin after he left Easy Breeze Restaurant today.
"Quit your yapping! You're lucky you didn't get beaten to death! All day long, you do nothing but cause trouble for me! Even if he didn't deal with you today, I'd have to take care of you sooner or later! Lie down and shut up!"
Major Hugh Hu glared fiercely and shouted at Hugh Hu.
His voice was loud and sudden, making Hugh Hu, who was lying on the floor, tremble all over. Nervously, Hugh Hu looked at Major Hu and swallowed hard. "Bro... are you sure you're not making a mistake? I'm literally... being ridden by him right now!"
Bang!
As soon as Hugh Hu finished talking, everyone saw Major Hugh Hu stride forward and kick Hugh Hu hard in the thigh. With a cold face, he glared at the grimacing Hugh Hu. "I told you to shut up!"
That finally shut Hugh Hu up for good. He clamped his mouth shut, eyes wide with terror and confusion as he stared at Major Hu.
In the Hu family, Major Hugh Hu almost never lost his temper—even when Hugh Hu made plenty of mistakes, he would at most say a few words. But never, until today, had he actually laid hands on him like this.
"Major Hu, what's going on? Bro Hu—he's the victim here!" Quentin Yu stammered, his tone uneasy.
"Quentin Yu, right? What business do you have here? Get lost!" Major Hugh Hu turned and roared at him. "If I ever see you eating with Hugh Hu again, you'll regret it!"
"I'm leaving! I'm leaving! Major Hu, please don't be mad—just calm down!" Quentin Yu was scared out of his wits; after Major Hu's shout, he had zero trace of his usual Chamber of Commerce president swagger, looking more like a beaten dog.
He hunched over and dragged Helen Qi out of the room. Helen's face flickered through a dozen complicated expressions; she honestly had no idea what was going on anymore.
Charles Chen and Lucy Lu exchanged a glance, seeing shock and confusion reflected in each other's eyes.
"You two..." Major Hugh Hu turned, looking at Charles Chen and Lucy Lu with a hint of coldness in his eyes.
Evan Lin, sitting cross-legged on the chair, spoke up calmly: "They're my uncle and aunt."
As soon as Evan said that, Linda Guan saw Major Hugh Hu—who'd looked like a raging lion just a moment ago—instantly squeeze out a gentle smile.
He looked at Charles Chen and Lucy Lu and said, "Don't be afraid. It's like this—I'm here because I have a few things to discuss with this young man. If you don't have anything urgent, maybe you could wait outside?"
"Or I could have someone arrange a new dining room for you. Oh, right—Charles Chen, you're the person in charge of the newly opened Wansheng Properties (Capitalview), aren't you?"
Major Hugh Hu beamed at Charles Chen with an almost motherly look, which completely caught Charles off guard. He hurried to his feet and nodded repeatedly, "Yes, yes, that's me."
A regular major from the Jinnan Military District wouldn't make Charles Chen this nervous, but add in the Hu family's background and it's a whole different story. If things really got serious, even Wansheng Wang himself might not be able to help.
"Very good, very good. I've heard of your company—great reputation. And since you've opened a business in Jinnan, that means you're contributing to the local economy. I even heard Old Zhou mention you before, said you were preparing to bid for a shantytown redevelopment project?"
Major Hugh Hu looked at Charles Chen.
Charles Chen nodded nervously. "Yes, but it hasn't been approved yet. There's no final decision..."
Unable to read Major Hugh Hu's mood, Charles's voice was especially hesitant.
"No final decision, huh?" Major Hugh Hu nodded, pulled out his phone, and dialed a number. "Hey, Old Zhou, what's up with that shantytown redevelopment bid? Any companies you're leaning toward? If not, let me recommend one—Wansheng Properties (Capitalview), the new company from Seacrest. I think they're solid, great reputation, and strong capital."
"Yeah, the person in charge is Charles Chen."
"Alright, you two can work out the details privately. If you need anything from me, just say the word!"
Snap.
In less than thirty seconds, Major Hugh Hu hung up, stuffed his phone back in his pocket, and looked at the still-stunned Charles Chen with a beaming smile. "Now it's settled. Consider this my apology for what my brother did earlier."
"Uh..." Charles Chen's face went from blank to overjoyed. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"
Lucy Lu also stood up, feeling as if she'd gone from hell straight to heaven in an instant.
"No need for thanks, but let me say this up front—if your company cuts corners or uses shoddy materials, don't blame me for being ruthless. When I handle things, I don't go easy."
Major Hugh Hu chuckled and waved his hand.
"We won't, absolutely not! I guarantee the project will be done with top quality and on schedule! I swear we won't skimp a single cent!" Charles Chen was so excited he could barely speak.
Watching this scene, Linda Guan's mood, which had just started to lighten, instantly turned stormy.
She stood there, at a loss, feeling like the whole situation was utterly absurd.
How did the Hu family suddenly switch sides and back Charles Chen and his group?
Before coming here, Linda Guan had thoroughly researched Charles Chen and Lucy Lu's backgrounds, and with Xuan Ling's files, she'd made sure her plan was airtight: hit them where it hurt, choke Charles's lifeline, and use his company to force them into convincing Evan Lin to accept their conditions.
But she never expected things to turn out like this.
Linda just couldn't figure it out—with Charles Chen and Lucy Lu's backgrounds, there was no way they could reach someone at Major Hu's level.
There was only one explanation: that kid!
Linda Guan's gaze shifted, locking onto Evan Lin as he sat in the chair. She clenched her delicate fists.
Just what is going on?!