Tao Fengche: “…”

Liu Tianlei’s words were actually quite interesting.

To ask Tao Fengche if he was scared by the scar, either Liu Tianlei was completely unaware of the Tao family’s hidden businesses, or he believed that Tao Fengche was clueless about everything.

Given Liu Tianlei’s unusual sharpness and quick reactions, Tao Fengche leaned more towards the latter explanation.

In an instant, countless responses flashed through his mind, and he chose the most appropriate one. In less than half a second, Tao Fengche gave a slightly embarrassed smile, as if he was shy about being caught off guard.

“Not scared, just… a bit surprised.”

“Hah!” Liu Tianlei laughed heartily, his demeanor very open, “It’s not a big deal. I’m a heavy drinker, and one time after drinking too much, I wasn’t careful, missed a step while going down the stairs, and fell. That’s how I got this scar.”

“And that’s not all.” He suddenly grinned, showing a tooth that was noticeably whiter, “I even chipped half a tooth when I fell. See, this front tooth is a fake one.”

It was a reasonable explanation. Liu Tianlei’s first impression was that of someone careless, and this seemed like something he would do. Even Director Wang had a look of sudden understanding on his face.

But under the table, hidden by the tablecloth, Tao Fengche’s left hand clenched tightly.

Almost everyone thought that Tao Fengche was a pampered young master, well-protected by Tao Zhixing, completely unaware of the family’s hidden dealings and gray income. Years ago, there was even a joke in the underworld that Tao’s little master might actually be an omega pretending to be an alpha, which would explain why he had never appeared on the scene, hidden away like a precious treasure.

This rumor spread widely, even reaching Tao Zhixing’s ears. But instead of clarifying, Tao Zhixing even helped fuel it, reinforcing Tao Fengche’s image as someone living a life of luxury and ignorance.

Tao Fengche had never understood why Tao Zhixing did this and had even gotten angry about it, thinking it made him seem like a foolish and unmanly idiot. But today, he suddenly understood Tao Zhixing’s intentions.

—It was a perfect disguise. Because people believed he knew nothing, they were careless and let their guard down in front of him.

Just like Liu Tianlei now. His story might fool a true outsider like Director Wang.

The scar on his face was long and even, definitely not something you could get from falling on stairs—it was a wound left by a sharp weapon!

And judging by the depth of the scar, the person wielding the weapon must have struck with great force, enough to split skin and flesh.

As for the location of the scar…

Tao Fengche narrowed his eyes slightly.

It was a slash aimed straight at the temple, meant to kill him. Liu Tianlei had managed to dodge, but not without getting his face cut.

But as the person in charge of a production base, what could Liu Tianlei have done to provoke such a deadly attack?

He was definitely not an ordinary person. Tao Fengche made a mental note. With such a strike, if he were an ordinary person, he’d be long gone by now.

“So that’s how it is.” In a flash of insight, Tao Fengche understood the key to the situation and immediately adopted a knowing expression, then teased, “To get you so drunk Mr. Liu, that must have been some fine wine?”

“Of course, it was vintage!” Liu Tianlei said mysteriously, then signaled to Chen Jun, “Xiao Chen, go down and bring up a bottle of wine from my car’s trunk.”

Chen Jun left to follow orders, and Liu Tianlei began introducing the wine to Tao Fengche: “This is pure grain wine, a special reserve I got from a distillery. It’s hard to come by, and it has a higher alcohol content, but the taste is pure grain. It’s different from other wines. Would you like to try some, young master Tao?”

“Thank you, Mr. Liu, for your kindness, but I’m still underage and really can’t drink,” Tao Fengche politely declined.

The laws of Jiuzhou prohibited underage drinking. If violated, there would be a hefty fine and a record in your file. Since Tao Fengche used the law as an excuse, Liu Tianlei couldn’t insist, and instead turned to Director Wang.

“Then, Director Wang, how about we have a drink?”

“…”

Director Wang hesitated, frowned slightly, clearly irritated: “I still have work this afternoon, so no alcohol for me.”

It was obvious that his impression of the base manager had hit rock bottom.

Most people would feel awkward after having their invitations repeatedly rejected, but Liu Tianlei didn’t seem to care at all. He nodded casually, “Alright, I’ll drink alone then. Feel free to have tea; if you want any other drinks, just let Xiao Chen know. Don’t blame me for poor hospitality.”

When Chen Jun returned with the wine, Liu Tianlei really did start drinking alone.

Soon after, all the dishes were served.

Chen Jun hadn’t lied—the cafeteria chef’s skills were excellent. But Tao Fengche, preoccupied with his thoughts, found the food tasteless and wasn’t in the mood for conversation. Liu Tianlei, unsure of his personality, assumed he was just a quiet person and started chatting with Director Wang, leaving Tao Fengche alone.

Given that Liu Tianlei had disrespected Director Wang earlier and made an outrageous proposal, they should have been on bad terms. Initially, Director Wang did seem uninterested in engaging with him.

But within a few words, Liu Tianlei managed to lighten Director Wang’s mood. Soon, they were chatting away as if nothing had happened.

Tao Fengche glanced over, even more convinced of his suspicions—Liu Tianlei was definitely not a technical worker.

Sitting next to Director Wang, the contrast between their temperaments was stark, not to mention how articulate Liu Tianlei was…

Tao Fengche gave a signal to the bodyguard beside him, who understood and nodded.

With a professional in charge, Tao Fengche relaxed a bit. After the meal, he thought Liu Tianlei would accompany them to the workshop, but to his surprise, Mr. Liu stood up and excused himself.

“Young master Tao, Director Wang, the thing is, I’m not a technician. I can handle the production line, but when it comes to chemical formulas and R&D, I’m clueless.” Liu Tianlei scratched his head, smiling somewhat sheepishly, the scar on his face looking less intimidating.

“I happen to have some business to attend to this afternoon, so I won’t be accompanying you. But Xiao Chen and our base’s senior engineers, they’re all cultured people! I’ve arranged for you to visit the lab, and they’ll show you around. We’ll fully cooperate with your work!”

His words were sincere. After the meal, Director Wang even seemed ready to become sworn brothers with him, immediately agreeing, saying, “No problem, Mr. Liu, you go ahead. Next time you’re free, visit the research institute, and I’ll treat you to a meal.”

“Of course, with Mr. Wang around, I’ll definitely come to mooch a meal!” Liu Tianlei clasped his hands in a gesture of respect and left.

As Tao Fengche’s group descended the stairs, he noticed that the bulletproof-wheeled Range Rover was gone.

It was indeed Liu Tianlei’s car.

···

Liu Tianlei kept his word.

In the base, Tao Fengche and his team encountered virtually no obstacles, with every door open to them. As soon as Director Wang entered the laboratory, he stared at the instruments for a while before suddenly getting hands-on with the equipment. He then began chatting with several senior engineers, and soon, they were fiercely debating academic issues, with Wang himself looking radiant.

The content of their discussion was far beyond Tao Fengche’s level of understanding, leaving him completely lost. In the end, he could only follow behind them, bored, acting as a tag-along, accompanied by three equally idle bodyguards, each with the same blank and bewildered expressions on their faces.

It wasn’t until a long while later, when Director Wang turned to grab a test tube, that he finally noticed Tao Fengche and his group. Somewhat embarrassed, he suggested they go take a look at the production line.

This was something Tao Fengche was familiar with, so he turned and started to leave with the bodyguards. A young beta, who appeared to be no more than thirty, quickly followed behind them, introducing himself as the QA(Quality Assurance) of the workshop and offering to guide them.

This suited Tao Fengche perfectly.

Young, a beta, and not of high rank… the perfect target for information.

There was still some distance from the lab to the workshop, so Tao Fengche casually chatted with the beta while walking, and the bodyguards occasionally joined in. As the atmosphere gradually became more relaxed, he suddenly spoke up.

“Hey, where did your boss, Mr. Liu, go after lunch? Did he just disappear because he thinks I don’t have any inheritance rights now, so he doesn’t respect me?” He put on an arrogant young master’s demeanor, with an expression full of pride. “Don’t forget, I still hold 25% of the shares in Tao Corporation.”

He was betting that this beta didn’t know that Liu Tianlei had already explained the situation at lunch.

And as it turned out, he was right.

The beta’s face instantly turned pale. He had finally gotten the chance to receive Tao Fengche, and his superiors had specifically warned him not to offend this young master. Now, seeing that Tao Fengche was displeased, and fearing he might lose his job if things went wrong, he hurriedly explained, “It’s not that. President Liu isn’t in a technical role, nor is he responsible for these matters.”

“Oh?” Tao Fengche raised an eyebrow, “So, he studied management? But he doesn’t seem like it.”

Under his gaze, the young beta hesitated for a moment, then slightly shook his head and gave an answer that surprised Tao Fengche.

“No one knows what he studied.”