190: Chapter 187 The Mysterious Man's Invitation

In the end, Li Changsheng still couldn't give the money away. He walked out of the repair shop alleyway and arrived in Chinatown.

For a moment, Li Changsheng couldn't help but feel a bit lost. Where should he go now?

Standing on the busy street, Li Changsheng finally picked up his phone, planning to call Gao Qiang to ask about how things were at home.

Right then, Li Changsheng noticed a man standing quietly in front of him. At first, he thought it was just a passerby looking at the road, but seeing that the man remained standing there, Li Changsheng finally looked up.

He was a middle-aged man with a square face, wearing a light gray trench coat. If not for that square face, his features would have been almost entirely unremarkable, looking just like an ordinary office worker.

However, Li Changsheng noticed the man was wearing a pair of black gloves. Even so, by observing the varying thickness of the gloves, he saw that the man's index finger and the webbing between his thumb and index finger seemed slightly more swollen than other areas.

It was very subtle. If not for his Memory Solidification, which allowed him to clearly remember the general state of the human body, an average person would have found it hard to notice this detail.

Furthermore, no matter how casually he stood—whether his hands were in his pockets or his body was slightly tilted—his torso and legs always remained in a straight line, and his foot stance was very interesting.

A soldier?

Based on these details, Li Changsheng quickly reached a conclusion.

"Something I can help you with?"

Li Changsheng looked up at the man with a smile, putting his phone back in his pocket while slightly shifting his body. This was already a defensive posture; if the other person made even a slight move, his right leg would quickly step out, his center of gravity would shift like mercury, and his elbow would whip out like a lash.

He might not kill the man, but he could certainly make sure he wouldn't be getting up for a long time.

Even pulling a gun would be too late.

"Don't be nervous, Mr. Li. I mean no harm," the man said with a smile, extending his left hand. "Zhou Guoli!"

Looking at the left hand and then at the right hand tucked in the man's pocket, Li Changsheng smiled.

"Mr. Zhou, before you talk about others, I think you should stop being nervous yourself."

Seeing Li Changsheng pointing at his right hand, Zhou Guoli gave an embarrassed smile.

There was indeed something in his pocket, but it wasn't a firearm; it was...

"Don't misunderstand, Mr. Li. This is just something to verify my identity, but it's not convenient to show you here. How about we go somewhere quieter?"

Zhou Guoli simply pulled his right hand out openly; it was empty, clearly indicating he hadn't taken the item out.

Hearing this, Li Changsheng sized the man up and down and nodded as he reached a decision in his mind.

"You decide on the place, Mr. Zhou. Of course, if you don't have anywhere in mind, I can choose."

Li Changsheng smiled; he hadn't eaten yet anyway.

Zhou Guoli thought for a moment and said, "How about this? I know an authentic Xia Country Acupuncture clinic. It was opened by an old doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and now his son runs it. Their skills are quite good. Plus, they provide authentic Chinese food there.

Of course, it's for regular customers only, and I happen to be one!"

—

Regarding this Mr. Zhou, Li Changsheng's assessment was that he was from back home and certainly didn't seem like an ordinary person.

At the very least, he definitely didn't belong to any common organization.

The man's stance indeed exuded a strong military Aura, while also containing some defensive movements from Traditional Martial Arts, especially the way he seemed to slightly turn his body when walking.

"A routine from Traditional Martial Arts Long Fist? Shaolin Hard Qigong or something similar?"

Watching the man's walking posture, Li Changsheng's mind went through various martial arts styles.

Generally speaking, those with deep training in Traditional Martial Arts are mostly influenced in their daily lives by their footwork.

Take Taiji, for example. At first glance, a Taiji master's walk doesn't look any different from an ordinary person's, but if you look closely, you'll find it incredibly steady, exuding an ethereal Aura.

It's somewhat similar to how the old immortals walked in the classic Journey to the West or old mythological Xianxia dramas.

This is because Taiji masters are mostly used to walking in circular patterns, trying their best to create tangential contact or even avoid contact with people they might bump into.

Outwardly, they look like those old immortals; each step forward is like a semi-arc, leisurely and full of rhythm.

Secondly, Baji Quan masters also have their own style of walking: crisp and neat, without the slightest hesitation, and once a step is taken, the next follows quickly.

It very much has the feeling of Baji Quan's wide-open movements and forceful advances.

Muay Thai practitioners might have a slight skip in their step, similar to Boxing footwork, and are highly likely to land on the balls of their feet first.

Taekwondo and Karate practitioners tend to turn their bodies slightly sideways—it's very subtle, and they might not even realize it themselves.

Novices naturally haven't formed such habits, but those who have practiced for years or decades mostly have some subconscious traits.

Similarly, the man in front of him had that slight sideways feeling. The reason Li Changsheng judged it to be Long Fist or Hard Qigong was because of the man's crisp steps.

If it were Taekwondo or Karate, the steps would be relatively more sluggish; while this makes them more rhythmic, a rhythm that is too regular is a huge weakness.

This Mr. Zhou, however, didn't follow a set pattern in his walk, yet it exuded a sense of toughness.

Li Changsheng was also quite suspicious, unsure if this walking style was due to the man's military career or his practice of Hard Qigong or Long Fist.

Soon, the two arrived at an Acupuncture clinic located in the Bay Area.

The storefront was named Huaren Health Inc, with the Chinese name "Huaren Chinese Medicine Clinic" alongside it.

Li Changsheng was quite curious about what kind of person would choose an Acupuncture clinic to talk business.

This Zhou Guoli seemed a bit unusual.

However, once he stepped inside, Li Changsheng understood why this place was chosen for a discussion.

Because this place had actually developed into something similar to Xia Country's drinking table culture.

"Mr. Li, don't be surprised. Here, many Americans actually like to talk business. There are many private rooms for two or four people, and of course, single rooms if you don't want to talk business.

They don't mind the servers being interested in their business because, in their eyes, many of the servers here can't understand what they're saying."

Zhou Guoli explained with a smile, using Xia Country's Mandarin with a slight northern accent.

Li Changsheng listened... Hmm, northern wasn't quite accurate; it was more like the Central Plains region, an accent from around the Henan and Hebei border.

The reason Li Changsheng could distinguish it so clearly was that many people from that area had moved south to Shenzhen for work. In his company, there was a guy from the Central Plains and another from the Northeast. They were very friendly; one often treated him to Hula Soup, and the other often invited him for a bath scrub.

Er... he could handle the Hula Soup, but as a southerner, Li Changsheng really couldn't enjoy the bath scrub. He preferred foot massages.