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Chapter 13: Being the Cook

He broke out in a cold sweat, feeling as if he was trapped inside an oven, his fat body seemingly melting away, his eyes darting around constantly as he tried to figure out how to escape this predicament.

He pulled out his phone and tried to act calm as he attempted to dial numbers for the relevant authorities, but at this moment, the entire Qingquan Village had its signal blocked.

Chen Feng bared his teeth. “Boss Gao? Weren’t you here to teach me a lesson?”

His wicked smile chilled Gao Hongqiang to the bone, while Little Linglong looked at her father with wide, innocent eyes, taking everything very seriously.

Chen Feng slowly walked up to Gao Hongqiang, murderous intent flashing in his eyes. Gao Hongqiang felt as if he stood before mountains of corpses and seas of blood, as if teetering on the edge of an abyss, and stumbled backward in terror, nearly falling to the ground.

“What do you want?” He didn’t even notice that his voice was trembling.

“Let’s settle this one-on-one. Since you’re here with such a big scene already, ending things anticlimactically would be boring!” Chen Feng’s expression was filled with mockery. To him, Gao Hongqiang was nothing more than an ant thrashing beneath an elephant’s foot.

Absolutely insignificant!

He looked down at his daughter and chuckled softly. “Linglong, today Daddy will teach you what to do when bad people come knocking.”

“When you lack strength, you run as far as you can and make sure he can’t catch you.”

Even though Little Linglong was still a bit confused, whatever her dad said must be right, so she nodded her little head with all her might, making her look absolutely adorable.

As for the villagers, once the crisis ended, they started ridiculing Gao Hongqiang’s group, as the local bully finally met someone more formidable.

“I envy Chen Feng so much. He has such a good wife, and even when she’s earning money outside, she doesn’t forget to hire so many awesome bodyguards for her husband.”

“Ha, Gao Hongqiang, you bastard, you owe me 160,000 yuan in construction fees and nearly ruined my family! Do you have any idea who this family’s wife is? She’s the chairman of the Lu Group!”

“Yeah, just because you’ve got a billion or so in assets, don’t think you’re invincible. In Lu Caiwei’s eyes, you’re nothing but trash.”

Nangong Xian and Lian Yu both looked at their chief, struggling to keep from laughing. As for Chen Feng, the corners of his mouth couldn’t help but curl up, and he sighed faintly. Fine—there was no escaping the fact that everyone knew he was a “kept man.”

Chen Feng gently held his daughter’s soft little hand and smiled. “When they have the strength to crush us, they get truly vicious. So, what should we do when faced with such bad people?”

“Cut the weeds and dig up the roots so that he can never turn things around.”

“Otherwise, disaster will never end.”

As he spoke, he slapped Gao Hongqiang, sending him spinning through the air. He landed hard, his already fat and vicious face swelling even more, blood pouring from his nose and mouth.

Gao Hongqiang had never suffered such humiliation and wrong before. For a moment, a ferocious look flashed in his eyes.

He scrambled up and lunged at Chen Feng like a wild boar gone mad.

Chen Feng carelessly flicked his foot and sent him flying over six meters away. Then he laughed and said, “Linglong, remember this—even when your enemy is cornered, beware of a desperate dog biting back.”

“So, you must show no mercy to your enemies.”

Seeing the confusion in Linglong’s eyes, the little one didn’t quite understand why this man was a bad guy. Chen Feng gently explained, “He brought those men in black vests and tried to make sure you never see Daddy, Grandpa, Grandma, Mommy, Little Silly, or the owl ever again.”

“If that happened, you wouldn’t get to eat meat or popsicles anymore. Wouldn’t that be pitiful?”

After hearing she might never see the people she loved or eat her favorite meat again, the little dumpling suddenly understood what it meant to be a bad person.

She clenched her tiny fists angrily and shouted with all her childish might, “Papa, hit him~!”

Seeing that Gao Hongqiang still tried to get up, Nangong Xian walked over and stomped his head, then quietly said into his ear, “Did our chief tell you to get up?”

“Boss Gao, you endangered national security. You are now under arrest.”

“You even tried to harm the top chief of the Dragon Nation’s special forces. In your next life, don’t be so arrogant, okay?”

Chen Feng walked over, looking at Gao Hongqiang’s bloodshot eyes and heaving chest with a faint smile. Nangong Xian stepped back two paces, while Chen Feng’s boot pressed directly against Gao Hongqiang’s face.

“Boss Gao, you can answer your phone now.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Gao Hongqiang’s phone rang. He awkwardly pulled it out and put it to his ear.

An icy cold voice spoke from the other end, “Gao Hongqiang, this is the Dragon Nation Security Bureau. You are being formally arrested for smuggling, organized crime, and running illegal activities. The evidence is irrefutable.”

“All personnel and companies associated with you will be investigated starting now. The Hongqiang Group is sealed off, and all assets of its subsidiaries are frozen.”

“Your son and daughter will be dismissed from their positions in state entities and will never be employed again.”

The call wasn’t even finished before a flood of messages and calls started coming through. As he read the official notices from various departments, his vision went black, his mood plummeted to rock bottom, and only two words echoed in his mind: “It’s over.”

This was truly cutting weeds and digging up roots, leaving not a sliver of hope.

In despair and terror, he looked at Chen Feng. The viciousness of the former underworld boss was gone without a trace.

Was this really the so-called “kept man”?

The chief of a special department, someone who could destroy him with just a few words.

He hid really damn deep!

One police car after another arrived, sirens blaring. Nangong Xian went out to negotiate. When the officers saw his credentials, they were shaken to the core, just as they tried to salute, he stopped them. “Alright, just take these guys away. Don’t bother the chief.”

The officer nodded. “Understood, leader.”

When he saw the battered and bruised Gao Hongqiang, he couldn’t help but shake his head and sigh. “Boss Gao, I never thought the day would come for me to send you in myself.”

“And your backers have already been taken by the provincial task force.”

“Anyone connected to you has been taken in for questioning. You’re finished.”

With handcuffs snapped on, Gao Hongqiang felt his whole life had become a farce. He swaggered in, but left like a stray dog.

“Weren’t you tough before? Why not keep it up?” Old Grandpa Fu puffed on his cigarette nearby, thoroughly satisfied.

Zhang Daqiang also enjoyed kicking someone when he was down. “Gao Hongqiang, how does it feel to be cuffed now, garbage?”

The police officer in charge looked at the excited crowd and called out loudly, “Gao Hongqiang will face justice. We will not wrong a single good person, nor let a bad one get away.”

The fat man was also cuffed and shoved onto the police car, looking dejectedly at Gao Hongqiang.

At least he didn’t have to fear for his life, but as for Boss Gao, there was probably nothing left for him but a one-way ticket to the afterlife.

An ambulance arrived at this moment, taking all the thugs with broken arms and legs to the hospital. As for the dead Sheng Yun and the so-called Master Ling, they were taken straight to the crematorium.

With sirens blaring, police took Gao Hongqiang and his cohorts out of Qingquan Village.

The villagers were absolutely ecstatic. This arrogant Hongqiang Group actually fell in their little village.

“Dachang, having a daughter-in-law like Little Wei is like winning the lottery.”

“Yeah, yeah, and so many bodyguards too. We’re in a completely different league now.”

“If it weren’t for Boss Lu, you’d have been in real trouble today.”

“Right, that bastard Gao Hongqiang is insane! He nearly had your house demolished. Absolutely heartless.”

“Qinghua, ask your daughter-in-law if she has any single girlfriends. Introduce one to my kid!”

“I’m so jealous of Brother Feng, truly.”

“That Chen Feng kid quietly landed himself a rich wife—he never has to work hard again for the rest of his life.”

“I wish I could be a kept man too. Carrying bricks at construction sites is exhausting.”

Everyone’s envy and jealousy was written all over their faces, though there was no shortage of sour remarks—just human nature, after all.

The villagers weren’t familiar with Chen Feng, and even those who had seen him before found it hard to start a conversation. But his parents were surrounded by acquaintances, chatting excitedly.

Auntie Zhang was especially curious. “Qinghua, what is going on here?”

“Why did Gao Hongqiang come looking for trouble for no reason?”

Yi Qinghua angrily pointed at Chen Feng. “Him! Always sticking his nose into things. That fat cicada buyer and his group were actually poachers who were after baby pandas and clouded leopard cubs.”

“My son caught them, so the fat one made calls for help. The real mastermind was Gao Hongqiang. He was sucking up to foreigners, wanting to send these protected animals overseas. Only then would those people do business with him. When he couldn’t get the baby panda, Boss Gao snapped and brought people to deal with my son.”

Now, everyone understood the reason. They all started cursing out loud—they knew baby pandas were endangered animals now, with even fewer clouded leopards.

Poaching and sending them abroad was illegal through and through.

“Bah! That bastard’s a traitor!” Zhang Daqiang swore angrily.

“We support Chen Feng! He did the right thing. If there are baby pandas, we all feed and care for them. Who could bear to let them be caught?” An elderly granny gave a thumbs up.

Old Grandpa Fu also patted Chen Feng’s shoulder. “Good work, Feng! Everyone’s responsible for protecting animals.”

Little Linglong stayed in her daddy’s arms, watching the villagers and grandparents getting all worked up at their courtyard gate, eyes wide.

Chen Feng teased her. “See? When we do the right thing, everyone will praise us.”

“So, we shouldn’t be afraid when we run into bad people in the future.”

“If we can’t beat them, we can always run~”

The villagers burst into laughter at his words.

As for Nangong Xian and Lian Yu, at some point, they had disappeared, making a few villagers even more curious.

But what they didn’t know was that everyone was under tight surveillance; if anyone made a suspicious move, they would be knocked out at once by micro-drone darts.

Not until evening did the excited villagers finally head home in groups, while Yi Qinghua and Chen Dachang were so worn out from entertaining them that they collapsed in their chairs.

“My son, you’re cooking tonight~” Yi Qinghua called out feebly.

Chen Feng, who was playing with his daughter by the fish pond, replied with a laugh, “Okay, my dearest mom~”

When Little Linglong heard, she chimed in too, “Papa cooks lunch~”

“Eat yummy stuff!!”

Chen Feng raised his eyebrows. “Good girl, Daddy will teach you to cook tonight~ From now on, it’s your job to take care of the elders!”

The sunset hung over the mountain, painting the sky with brilliant and lasting colors. The curling smoke from the kitchen rose amid the bamboo forest, bringing the idyllic scenery to life.

In the kitchen, Chen Feng tied on his apron and moved like lightning; his kitchen knife flashed with a cold gleam as, in moments, all the vegetables were swept into the basin.

Little Linglong sat obediently by the stove, relishing every moment of watching her daddy make dinner.

Her beautiful eyes didn’t even want to blink.

Chen Feng weighed a piece of pork belly, placed it on the chopping board, picked up his knives, and started chopping rapidly. With his rhythmic movements, the pork quickly transformed into fine mince.

Yi Qinghua and Chen Dachang, hearing the sounds from the kitchen, came in out of curiosity.

When they saw Chen Feng looking like a master chef, they glanced at each other in amazement.

“My son must have been a cook, or at least worked in logistics! He looks more professional than any hotel chef.” Yi Qinghua looked at the minced meat on the board, “He did a better job than the pros in town.”

“Are you making meatballs tonight?”

Chen Dachang shot his wife a sidelong glance. “Why ask when you know the answer?”

Little Linglong was overjoyed, shouting, “Yummy!”

He stirred in eggs, added cornstarch, chopped scallions and ginger, mixed everything into the meat, boiled water, and squeezed the meatballs into the pot. Each one bobbed around in the boiling water like a tiny ping-pong ball.

Once the meatballs were almost cooked, he tossed in lettuce leaves and soon a delicious aroma filled the room.

The little foodie sitting by the stove was already smacking her lips.

Meanwhile, Chen Feng whipped up sweet and sour cabbage in another pan. The tangy scent made a bead of drool glisten at the corner of Little Linglong’s mouth.

When Chen Feng noticed, he snapped a photo of his daughter and posted it online: “My cooking has the little one drooling!”

He dished out the food and set the table.

There were only two dishes, but the little one’s eyes lit up as she ate, especially loving her dad’s meatballs—tender, juicy, and simply delicious.

After she was full, the little one staggered off to chase the baby panda, while Chen Feng lounged in a chair, legs crossed, smiling as he watched them.

The owl on the tree hooted, then fluttered down to the ground.

At that point, Little Silly lifted her paw and tried to act fierce, while the owl spread its wings, making Linglong giggle and hug their necks, saying in her babyish voice, “Good friends~”

With her hair tied up high, still wearing a diaper, that little dumpling looked absolutely adorable in her seriousness.

Chen Feng clapped his hands and said, “Baby, let’s go inside.”

“After we wash up, it’s time for cartoons, and then it’s off to bed.”

When she heard about cartoons, Little Linglong was thrilled. She struggled to keep her balance, waving her little arms and legs as she dove into Daddy’s warm embrace.

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