221: Chapter 221 The Mysterious Team Members

Chapter 221 Mysterious Team Member

"Mom, Grandpa, Uncle."

Fang Cheng walked over quickly with a bright smile, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

Hearing the sound, Li Biyun turned her head and said with eyes full of concern:

"Chengcheng, you went out to exercise so early. Are you tired? Why do you look a bit thinner?"

"Come, Mom specially got your favorite beef buns for you. Eat more and don't starve yourself."

As she spoke, she pushed the plate full of food in front of Fang Cheng and raised her hand to carefully tidy up her son's slightly messy hair from just taking a bath.

Grandfather Li Zhenhua put down the spoon he was using to drink porridge, and smiled as he looked at his grandson, who was wearing loose clothes yet still didn't look thin and weak:

"Young people have vitality, and they should exercise more. A-Cheng's spirit and Qi look completely different now, and he's definitely more popular with young girls than before."

Hearing everyone discussing Fang Cheng's recent changes, Li Dingjian also raised his head from behind the newspaper and joined in with a few teasing remarks:

"A-Cheng, besides practicing when exercising, the most important thing is eating. The three meals a day of this hotel are all included in the room fee. I know you have a big appetite, so open up your stomach as soon as possible and help your uncle eat back the cost."

Fang Cheng smiled and responded with a few words, his gaze sweeping over the various sumptuous foods spread across the dining table.

There was soft and glutinous cucumber porridge, served with buns, shrimp dumplings, vegetable pancakes, and ham, as well as exquisitely cut small fruit platters that could be used as post-meal desserts.

Then, he unceremoniously picked up a large meat bun and took a big bite.

Instantly, scalding juices overflowed, and the rich aroma of meat filled his mouth, making him incomparably satisfied.

Watching Fang Cheng wolfing down his food, his mother gently patted his back and said softly:

"Eat slower, don't choke, no one is fighting you for it."

Her tone seemed to be scolding, but her eyes were full of affection.

Grandfather Li Zhenhua and Li Dingjian were also watching from the side, smiles appearing at the corners of their mouths.

Inside the hotel restaurant, the seating was arranged in a warm and elegant manner, punctuated by music and green plants.

The family sat around together eating and chatting, enjoying a rare holiday time.

Grandfather Li Zhenhua recalled his experiences of visiting Dongdu when he was young. Those ordinary past events became vivid and interesting in his mouth, eliciting bursts of laughter from everyone.

Li Dingjian was not to be outdone. He took a sip of coffee, cleared his throat, and vividly recounted some of the strange people and bizarre events he had encountered while traveling north and south in the past.

Like an old woman living in seclusion in the deep mountains who looked young and beautiful but was actually over a hundred years old, songs coming from foggy days at sea, and palace reflections that looked like mirages.

It was really eye-opening, just wondering if he was bragging.

Fang Cheng listened quietly, swallowing food in big bites, and occasionally chiming in with a few words.

Amidst the cheerful laughter and chatter, a slightly harsh ringtone suddenly sounded, breaking the coziness of this family gathering.

Fang Cheng's gaze condensed slightly. His own phone was left in his shoulder bag in the room, so it must be his uncle's phone ringing.

Li Dingjian quickly put down his coffee cup and took out a brand-new black cell phone from the leather clutch bag he carried with him.

After a few brief exchanges, his gaze became slightly grave.

He then hung up the phone and looked at everyone with an apologetic face:

"A friend called and said there is a very important matter to discuss with me."

Turning his gaze to Fang Cheng, he urged:

"A-Cheng, after breakfast later, can you take your Mom and Grandpa to visit Lingquan Temple? I really can't get away on my end."

Fang Cheng straightened his body and replied with a smile:

"Uncle, do you think I'm still a child? As big as I am, I can definitely take good care of Mom and Grandpa."

Hearing this, a gratified smile appeared on Li Dingjian's face. He stood up and patted Fang Cheng's shoulder:

"Haha, then I can rest assured. Have a good time. Lingquan Temple is said to have very brisk incense and good scenery. When I rush back in the afternoon, we will go boating on the lake together again."

With that, he drank the coffee on the table in one gulp and stuffed another shrimp dumpling into his mouth.

Then he continued to dial a phone call and walked quickly toward the restaurant entrance.

Watching his uncle's hurried departing figure, Fang Cheng's heart moved slightly.

Judging from the words coming from the phone just now, it seemed to be his uncle's business partner asking him to go out for a get-together, and the tone also carried a hint of urgency.

His uncle didn't seem very willing, and the relationship between the two sides was obviously not that harmonious.

Fang Cheng withdrew his gaze, turned his head to look at his mother and Grandpa, and continued to play the role of a good son and a good grandson.

As for other matters, he temporarily threw them to the back of his mind.

Outside the window, the sunshine was bright, the breeze was warm, and the water droplets splashing from the fountain in the distance were also sparkling and glittering.

Such a fine scenery and beautiful day was undoubtedly the prime weather for sightseeing.

...

Jiangdong District.

The sunlight was blocked by clouds and towering buildings, forming patches of shadows on the streets.

Li Dingjian sat in the backseat of the taxi, holding his cell phone tightly, his brow slightly furrowed.

The light emitted from the screen reflected his slightly grave face, and what was displayed on it was the detailed address of this team gathering.

Not long after the text message came in, the car stopped at the entrance of a narrow alley.

After paying the fare, Li Dingjian reached out to pull his collar, put on a fisherman's hat he bought along the way, and deliberately lowered the brim before stepping out of the car door unhurriedly.

This alley looked old and desolate. Looking up, there were not many figures of passersby in sight.

Most of the shops along the street had their doors tightly closed, and some even pulled down their rolling shutters directly, emitting a sense of desolation, as if it were an area facing demolition soon.

Li Dingjian walked quickly forward along the alley, occasionally glancing at the house numbers on both sides of the street along the way.

The surroundings were quiet, and the walls were covered with dark green moss. Only the car engine sound coming from the highway not far away faintly broke this silence.

It made people feel as if this place was a secret corner hidden deep in a bustling modern metropolis.

After twisting and turning, an inconspicuous iron door appeared before his eyes.

The door was covered with rust. If not for the electronic lock with a faint red light flashing in the corner, the house would have almost merged into the surrounding dilapidated environment.

Li Dingjian stepped forward, took a deep breath of Qi, closed his eyes slightly, and focused.

In an instant, a ring of invisible light waves appeared on his fingertips.

This was his unique "perceptual pulse" ability, which allowed him to produce a subtle resonance with electronic equipment, thereby perceiving its internal structure and password rules.

A moment later, Li Dingjian's fingers moved lightly, tapping rapidly on the electronic lock.

With a "beep" sound, the iron door slowly opened, making a teeth-aching creaking sound.

The light inside the door was dim, and a humid musty smell mixed with the smell of engine oil hit his face.

It looked like a closed processing workshop, leaving behind many Materials and machine tool equipment everywhere.

The door to the office area in front was tightly closed, and a sound of human speech faintly came from inside.

Li Dingjian then stepped over and just raised his hand to knock on the door.

When he heard a rough voice coming from behind the door:

"Crow, why are you dawdling so much! Hurry up and come in, we've been waiting just for you."

Li Dingjian was slightly startled, then the corners of his mouth turned up, and he deliberately raised his volume to reply:

"Dachui, what's wrong with your throat today? Did you secretly binge drink last night and choke your throat?"

There was a brief silence behind the door, followed by a string of silver-bell-like laughter.

Soon, the wooden door was opened, and a young woman appeared smiling brightly.

She had a pretty face, and her eyeballs rolled around, appearing extremely lively, and she said with a grin:

"Crow, you're still as smart as ever, seeing right through me so quickly."

Obviously, the person who had just imitated the strong man's voice and almost achieved a fake-to-real effect was her.

At this time, the true object of the imitation, the strong man named Dachui, stepped forward from behind the woman.

He had a stalwart and robust figure, standing fully 1.9 meters tall. Standing there, he looked like a wall, and the muscles of his sturdy arms bulged, stretching his T-shirt tightly.

Although his face carried a hint of reproach, his eyes revealed pampering as he feigned anger at the young woman:

"Bailing, you're the only one who loves to tease people. Every time you make my voice your target, how can my rough voice be something you can imitate casually, and aren't you afraid of ruining your throat?"

Words said as such, the corners of his mouth revealed an honest smile, clearly not truly Life Qi at Bailing's little joke.

"Every time you two meet, you have to pull this stunt. I'm almost immune to it."

Li Dingjian shrugged helplessly, a smile also hanging on his face.

He understood in his heart that this was a small joke for team members to build tacit understanding, and before actions, everyone often used this to liven up the atmosphere and relieve tension.

Then he raised his eyes and looked at the other two people in the room.

A dark-skinned, lean middle-aged man in camouflage was sitting in the corner, Focus sharpening a dagger.

He appeared somewhat taciturn, without even raising his head. Only that dagger flashed with a cold gleam under the dim yellow light, revealing his restrained and fierce personality.

This was the guy nicknamed "Monkey" in the team, who undertook the tasks of intelligence reconnaissance, sniping, and assassination, and his strength was extraordinary.

On the other side of the table sat a gentle-looking man wearing glasses.

Judging from his appearance, he was not very old, but his hair was somewhat gray, and the years seemed to have left marks on him prematurely.

At this moment, he was lowering his head and carefully reviewing a stack of documents in his hands, his brows tightly furrowed, as if pondering some key information.

Hearing the movement, he slowly raised his head, his gaze projected through his lenses toward Li Dingjian, and he said:

"You are thirty minutes late."

Hearing this, Li Dingjian walked straight forward, pulled over a chair, sat down, and said swaggeringly:

"Why did you guys call me over so impatiently? I'm accompanying my family on holiday and traveling."

As he spoke, he crossed his legs, crossed his arms, his face was full of impatience, yet his eyes revealed a trace of helplessness.

Because the man in front of him was the leader of the entire team, and also the person who called inappropriately earlier and urged himself to rush over to attend the gathering.

Every time he saw him, he was always wearing a gray windbreaker, combing a neat and crisp slicked-back hairstyle, and the gaze behind his glasses was as precise and sharp as a scalpel.

Just like a rigorous and old-fashioned scholar, the team members respectfully call him "Professor".

And Li Dingjian himself, codenamed "Crow", together with Dachui, Bailing, Monkey, and the Professor.

A total of five people formed this "mysterious theft gang" that had turned the Dongdu underworld upside down some time ago and left various forces restless.

"Crow, everyone knows you want to spend more time with your family, but you also understand the current situation. We don't have too much time to delay."

The Professor did not get angry because of Li Dingjian's attitude; he just frowned slightly and explained in a steady tone.

Li Dingjian groped out a pack of Hongtashan from his pocket. The flame of the lighter flickered, he took a deep puff of the cigarette, slowly exhaled a cloud of smoke, and then said:

"This time I really don't plan to do it anymore."

Hearing this, everyone couldn't help being stunned, and the air in the room seemed to freeze instantly.

Dachui's face, which originally carried a silly smile, instantly stiffened, his mouth slightly open, as if he wanted to say something but choked it back.

The smile in Bailing's eyes also faded, replaced by a trace of worry. She subconsciously bit her lip, her gaze wandering back and forth between Li Dingjian and the Professor.

Monkey's hand sharpening the dagger also stopped. He raised his head, a trace of surprise flashing in his eyes, quietly watching this upheaval.

The Professor gently pushed his glasses, his gaze behind the lenses calm and profound, as if he could see through Li Dingjian's thoughts:

"Do you have any opinions against us, feeling that we dragged you into danger?"

Hearing this, Li Dingjian flatly shook his head and denied it:

"I never thought that. On the contrary, I am very grateful that you could look favorably upon a good-for-nothing like me who only knows how to steal chickens and dogs, and chose to let me join this team to participate in operations together."

Pausing slightly in tone, his gaze was then full of sincerity and gratitude, looking straight at the team leader in front of him:

"Especially you, Professor. I am also very grateful that after more than ten years, you could still remember me, come back to find me, and give me a chance to prove myself again, allowing me to reclaim my dignity as a human being once more."

"However, there are some things I always find difficult to face..."

Speaking of this, Li Dingjian's fingers holding the cigarette trembled slightly, and the cigarette ash fell down in a rustle.

"After finishing that job last time, due to some accidents, we had no choice but to split up and flee. But those guys were like sharks smelling blood, biting relentlessly and refusing to let go."

He took a deep breath of Qi, trying to calm himself down, but as soon as he opened his mouth, his words uncontrollably carried a bit of tremor:

"At that time, we were on a fishing boat, and Dachui was right beside me, using his mountain-like stalwart body to block in front of me and shouting at me to run fast."

"But at that time, bullets were like they didn't cost money, pattering toward us. Even if we jumped into the sea, the surrounding seawater was still beaten into splashing water, and the rising foam mixed with blood splashed all over me..."

Li Dingjian's eyes gradually became hollow, as if he were once again placed in that scene of a hail of bullets.

His fingers holding the cigarette tightened subconsciously, his knuckles turning white from exertion, and that cigarette that had been clenched out of shape by him seemed to have become a straw to clutch at.

"A bullet flew past my ear with a swish, and that sharp whistling sound made my eardrums ache with pain."

"At that moment, my whole person was dazed, and my mind was just thinking, why am I here, what on earth am I doing, if I fucking die here, what should my family do?"

At this time, Li Dingjian's emotions could finally no longer be suppressed. He suddenly raised his head and hammered the table hard, shaking the water cups on the table a few times.

The veins on his neck burst out, and he said close to a roar:

"Damn it, besides me, who else in this world will care about my dad, my sister, my nephew? So I swear I must live well and take good care of them!"

Everyone's gazes gathered on Li Dingjian.

For a time, the room seemed to have been pressed with a mute button, falling into a silence.

Only Li Dingjian's own heavy panting sound appeared particularly clear.

A moment later, as if he had exhausted all his strength, he slowly sat down, his chest still heaving violently, but his expression had gradually returned to calm.

"I want to quit."

Li Dingjian swept his firm gaze across every team member in the room, and said word by word:

"And, I think you guys should quit too!"