To avoid arousing Meng Meiyun's suspicion, Yang Jian hurried back to change his clothes, wash his face, and fix his hair, completely altering his appearance.
He hailed a taxi and went directly to the Liuqiao Village Chess and Card Room. Meng Meiyun's Porsche was already parked by the roadside, and Dai Mengmeng was sitting in the back seat.
After a greeting, Yang Jian prepared to sit in the back as well.
"Yang Jian, sit in the passenger seat."
Meng Meiyun voluntarily opened the passenger door.
"Ah, alright."
Yang Jian didn't hesitate and got into the passenger seat, only to find Meng Meiyun staring at him.
Yang Jian looked himself over. "Big beauty Meng, what's wrong with me? Do I have something on my face? You're looking at me like that, it's making me a bit creeped out."
Dai Mengmeng also nudged Meng Meiyun with a smile. "Meiyun, have you fallen for him? Yang Jian is indeed much more handsome than before, but you're a married woman. Don't get any funny ideas."
Meng Meiyun coughed. "Ahem, Mengmeng, what nonsense are you talking about? Married woman, I'm not married yet. Yang Jian, how's your job? Who do you drive for?"
This was her trying to pry for information. Yang Jian had to play along. "I've officially started working. I drive for a boss in the tobacco business. This line of work is a bit sensitive, so I can't reveal my boss's name."
Bosses involved in smuggling cigarettes are usually very wealthy and mysterious. Yang Jian's excuse made it difficult for Meng Meiyun to press further.
"Yang Jian, I met someone today who looks a lot like you and speaks Mandarin with a Xinhe accent. His name is Yang Wu. Do you know him?"
Meng Meiyun cut to the chase, no longer beating around the bush.
"Yang Wu? Looks a lot like me? I don't know him. I don't have any elders who look a lot like me. Since you know his name, didn't you ask him? Perhaps he's also from Xinhe."
"No, I just heard someone call his name while eating at a restaurant. I'm not crazy to go and strike up a conversation with someone, am I?"
Meng Meiyun said this as she started the car.
"Hey, big beauty Meng, may I ask presumptuously, are you actually married or not?"
Yang Jian began to counter-question, wanting to ascertain her true relationship with Fo Ye. If they were husband and wife, he would have to let Fo Ye off the hook after giving him a minor lesson; he couldn't let this old classmate truly live a widow's life.
If she was just Fo Ye's mistress, then he wouldn't have any psychological burden in crippling Fo Ye.
Meng Meiyun, however, smiled mischievously. "What, do you have feelings for me?"
"Pfft, you're so beautiful, there are plenty of people who have feelings for you. What am I?"
This sentence made both Meng Meiyun and Dai Mengmeng laugh.
Meng Meiyun even slowed down because she was laughing so hard she could barely hold the steering wheel steady. "Yang Jian, how should I interpret that sentence? Why do I feel a hint of sourness? Could you really have feelings for me?"
"If I had feelings for you, would you accept my pursuit, or say you'd be willing to be with me?"
"Whoa, are you confessing or testing me?"
Meng Meiyun laughed even harder.
Dai Mengmeng heavily patted Yang Jian's shoulder from the back. "Yang Jian, Meiyun treats you like a fellow villager and classmate. You can't have improper thoughts. She has a boyfriend."
Yang Jian turned his head and shot her a glare. "I said 'if.' Why are you so nervous? Meng Meiyun hasn't even said anything yet. Maybe she likes me?"
"Hahahaha, Yang Jian, I didn't expect you to be so straightforward. I'll tell you the truth, I do have good feelings for you."
Meng Meiyun laughed without reservation.
Dai Mengmeng was stunned. "Meiyun, you have a boyfriend, how can you like Yang Jian?"
"I do have a boyfriend, but we're already living separate lives under the same roof. If it weren't for business ties that are difficult to untangle quickly, we would have broken up long ago. In fact, I rarely see him, which is no different from breaking up."
"How could this happen? Are you not planning to get married?"
"Marriage? How is that possible? Being with him is just mutual exploitation."
Perhaps sensing she had let something slip, Meng Meiyun suddenly stopped mid-sentence.
Yang Jian, however, had a rough understanding. Their relationship was likely that of lovers, and the wealth she had accumulated in two to three years was all given by Fo Ye.
"Yang Jian, how about it? Why don't we get together?"
Meng Meiyun glanced at the pensive Yang Jian with a smile, thinking he would be very excited.
Yang Jian snapped back to reality and quickly waved his hands. "No, no, no, I was just joking earlier. Dai Mengmeng said you were in a bad mood, so I made a joke to lighten the mood and make you happy. I have a girlfriend back home, she's a middle school teacher."
"It's okay, I was just joking too. Thank you, Yang Jian. I'm feeling much better now."
Meng Meiyun wasn't angry. She had been testing Yang Jian all along to see if he was the one who kidnapped Fo Ye.
From the current situation, Yang Jian's behavior seemed normal, but why did the eyes of the person who kidnapped Fo Ye resemble his so much?
The atmosphere became a bit awkward, and Dai Mengmeng quickly tried to smooth things over. "You scared me! So you were both joking. Yang Jian, you really have a girlfriend? And she's a teacher?"
"Yes, a teacher at Experimental Middle School. She's very beautiful, no less so than Meng Meiyun. It's precisely because of the gap in our statuses that I've come out to make a name for myself. Once I earn money, I'll dare to propose to her family."
Yang Jian said this to maintain a normal classmate relationship with these two female classmates, without any romantic involvement, and to keep a sufficient distance so as not to expose his wanted status.
Moreover, Meng Meiyun's joke earlier might not have been entirely false. Her relationship with Fo Ye was destined to have no future. Finding a poor guy like him to take her off his hands wasn't impossible.
After this statement, both Meng Meiyun and Dai Mengmeng fell silent.
A hint of disappointment flickered across Meng Meiyun's face.
Dai Mengmeng pouted a little angrily. She genuinely had feelings for Yang Jian. Although he wasn't wealthy, he was cheerful and handsome. Now that he was driving for a boss, his salary wouldn't be low. He was also a classmate and fellow villager, making them a good match and fitting her criteria of not marrying far away.
"What's wrong, beautiful ladies? Did my girlfriend's beauty stimulate you? Can't be helped, who told me I'm this handsome? Ah, this annoying good looks, it's trouble wherever I go."
The atmosphere was awkward, so Yang Jian could only joke again.
Meng Meiyun laughed again. "Yang Jian, you're really thick-skinned, to be so narcissistic. Don't flatter yourself, no one has feelings for you. As punishment for teasing me earlier, you'll have to drink three penalty cups later, no excuses."
"No problem. Tonight, you're the boss, you call the shots. I'll drink until my stomach perforates just to make you happy."
Fo Ye was the boss of the Yuzhou Gang. Now that he had been kidnapped, as the woman by his side, she was the boss now, Yang Jian thought to himself.