Chapter 132

  This uncle's name is Deng Zesheng, and people who respect him call him Uncle Deng. In his youth, he left his hometown in the north to head south, struggling until now for over 60 years, with assets spread across real estate and finance, making him a well-known figure in Hong Kong. He remained unmarried throughout his life, without children, and after driving away his nephews and nieces who were eyeing his inheritance in a fit of anger, he treated Li Yiheng as his own biological son. Li Yiheng was also filial, visiting Hong Kong every year during the Spring Festival to spend the holiday with him, so that the old man wouldn't feel lonely during the festive season.

  This year, Li Yiheng came before, but gave him a call and said that he would bring his current girlfriend over to meet him. The old man had been looking forward to it since then, and when the doorman said Li Yiheng had arrived, he couldn't sit still and personally went to the door with his cane to welcome him.

  In the distance, Li Jin saw an old man with white hair standing by the door. Although he couldn't see his facial features clearly from afar, his aura was warm and kind, which made Li Jin feel a sense of connection to him. Li Jin couldn't help but feel nervous, thinking that even if she had changed her clothes, it wasn't enough, and considering she hadn't prepared anything beforehand, she whispered: "Why don't we go out and buy some gifts later? It's not right to come empty-handed."

  Li Yiheng looked at him tightly, and he himself relaxed, turned his head and smiled: "Don't worry, how could I really come with empty hands? Although Uncle Shi came to Hong Kong decades ago, he has always liked the food in mainland China over the years, especially the local products from his hometown village. Yesterday, I had someone transport a lot of them by air, and they were delivered early, consider it as your gift."

  Li Jin lowered his head: "Oh."

  "Besides..." Li Yi Heng turned sideways, clenching his fist tightly in his palm, "How can this be called empty-handed?"

  Li Jin turned her face and smiled with pursed lips.

  From the garage to the main house, you have to cross a large lawn. They hadn't even reached the door when the old man's hearty laughter came: "Little Heng, you're too slow!"

  Li Jin couldn't help but let out a snort: "Pfft."

  Li Yiheng was also very embarrassed, a big man in his thirties, being called out by his nickname in front of everyone, who could bear it. Fortunately, Li Yiheng's face was thick, and he felt uncomfortable for only three seconds before passing by. Seeing the old man coming up to him, he hurriedly took a few quick steps forward and supported Deng Lao: "Shu Shu, be careful with your feet."

  "Ah, I'm fine, I'm fine." Old Deng said as he stood up with the help of his cane and looked at Li Jin, "Was the journey tiring?"

  Li Jin stood at the bottom of the steps in front of the door and looked up with a smile: "Not tired, Li Yiheng drove me here."

  Deng's Mandarin accent was mixed, but strangely it didn't sound strange at all, instead it was unusually interesting. Old Deng stretched out his hand to him, and Li Jin put his hand on top, following the old man's guidance up the steps. The old man grasped his hand for a long time, looking him up and down, then raised his head and smiled at Li Yiheng: "Good eyesight."

  Li Yiheng remained silent, gazing at Li Jin's smile.

  The old man couldn't stand the wind, and after standing at the door for a while, he was already feeling unbearable. The old butler behind him reminded them to go inside together. Deng Lao held onto Li Jin's hand all along, chatting with him casually. Li Jin wasn't used to strangers holding his hand like this, but Deng Lao's palm was warm and dry, filled with the concern of an elder, making him unable to bear withdrawing his hand.

  Deng Lao's house is very large, comparable to the Li residence in the interior. The interior decoration is standard traditional Chinese style, with a living room full of red wood furniture. On the wall, there was a wooden statue of Damo, and Li Jin recognized it at a glance as being made from Qing dynasty Huanghuali wood. This was a rare item, and he couldn't help but take another look. Deng Lao's eyes were piercing, and he naturally noticed, smiling and asking him: "Take a look at my Damo ancestor?"

  Li Jin nodded and said: "The workmanship and materials are all top-notch, but as for the carvings, I couldn't tell what era they're from."

  Deng Lao pulled him by the hand and sat down on the redwood sofa, patting the side and telling him to sit too, saying: "You guess first."

  Li Jin sat on the side - this red wood long stool was covered with a thick cushion, sitting without feeling hard - the butler brought the statue over, he took it in his hand, looked at it repeatedly for several laps, and then deliberated for a while, saying: "I guess it's from the early Qing period." He thought for a moment, adding, "From the reign of Emperor Renzong of Song during the Jiaqing period?"

  "Haha." Old Deng burst into loud laughter, taking the statue from his hand, and said while stroking it in his palm, "You kid, your personality is too steady, you can obviously see it at a glance, but you've been thinking about it for so long. What do you do for a living?"

  Li Jin knew that someone like Deng Lao couldn't be fooled, but he also didn't want to answer too quickly, making the other person think he was unstable on their first meeting. Unexpectedly, Deng Lao was so calm and composed, which suited Li Jin's taste. So he smiled and relaxed his demeanor, saying: "I'm an artist broker, a talent agent."

  Deng said "oh" and then said, "Right, right, Xiao Heng told me once before, I'm getting old, my memory is not good." He paused for a moment, saying, "I remember you're called Ke... what was it again?"

  A moment of silence.

  Li Jin's smile stiffened for a moment, his heart felt like it had been pinched by someone, and he didn't know how to respond for a while.

  Ke...... what else can it be?

  How can he say that?

  Ke Yuan is in the past tense now, today I am Lai Jin?

  He himself finds it laughable.

  At a loss for words, a warm palm suddenly covered his shoulder, and Li Yi Heng stood behind him, softly laughing: "Shi Shu, his name is Li Jin."

  "Li Jin ah." Old Deng laughed heartily, "My memory... Youngster, don't be angry with this old man of yours."

  "How could it be?" Li Jingan smiled and said.

  Li Yiheng gently pressed down on his shoulder and slightly bowed his head, saying to Old Deng: "Uncle Shi, do you still want me to cook today?"

  Deng said, "Of course, just make your specialty dish. All the ingredients are ready in the kitchen, hurry up and go." Then he pulled Li Jin's hand, "I'll continue chatting with Little Li. Not many young people these days understand these antiques..."

  Li Yiheng smiled and stood up, rolling up his sleeves as he headed towards the kitchen. As someone skilled in interpersonal relationships, Li was not worried that the two would run out of conversation topics. Moreover, he glanced back at the two who were chatting and laughing, and the most crucial test had already passed, so his uncle should no longer pose any difficulties.

  His culinary skills were inherited from his mother, with knife work that was second to none. His movements were practiced and smooth, and the way he rolled up his sleeves and focused on cooking was so captivating it could kill. Every time he was busy in the kitchen, the female servants would sneak a peek from the side, occasionally some bold ones would come over to offer help but actually just chat with him. Although he didn't like it, he wouldn't be rude to the ladies either. As a result, every time Li Yiheng came to the Deng residence, all the women in the house were as excited as if it was New Year's.

  It was quiet this time, and no one watched.

  Li Yiheng thought to himself, probably the butler had informed him that he would be bringing his lover back, so he didn't call for any servants. This was actually quite peaceful, as he worked alone in an orderly fashion, cutting meat and vegetables, taking the pre-prepared sauce and marinating the meat, when suddenly there was someone beside him.

  He raised his head, and Li Jin's face was expressionless, staring at his hand.