Ye Hao paused for a moment, then suddenly realized—Fang Ni… isn't she the daughter of his former leader Fang Zhongtian? He hadn't expected Elder Fang to value him so much!
Even though he often provided information about foreign mercenaries entering Huaxia, he hadn't thought Elder Fang valued him that much! It was already past one o'clock in the night, and Elder Fang had let his daughter come out to pick up such a stranger as him. Just Elder Fang's trust alone was enough to make Ye Hao feel respect for him. And Ye Hao also highly respected this former leader; at least during the past three years as a mercenary, Elder Fang supported him discreetly many times.
"Yes! Fang Ni, I am Ye Hao, just back from Bangui, in such a rush, I didn't bring any gifts..." Ye Hao responded to Fang Ni, feeling a bit embarrassed. After all, his past life was spent mingling with a group of men, always dealing with men even when he went out for training. Now, talking to a beautiful woman truly made him feel awkward.
"Haha, I can't believe the legendary..." Fang Ni whispered softly in Ye Hao's ear, "Big Boss, is this really you?" Fang Ni finished speaking and laughed giggly.
She hadn't expected Ye Hao to be shy. His voice even had a trembling tone when speaking with her, showing how nervous or embarrassed Ye Hao was inside. However, her tone carried a bit of disdain, as if the widely reputed mercenary Boss was nothing special.
Although Fang Ni had some disdain, she didn't embarrass Ye Hao too much! After all, he was someone her father entrusted her to welcome properly.
"Haha… It's all about the same, I haven't returned to the city for too long, or rather, I haven't entered the city yet, so I feel a bit out of place." Ye Hao smiled awkwardly!
"Alright! Stop talking, let's take you to a hotel or a base? Or home?" Fang Ni felt that Ye Hao wasn't special at all, just wanted to send him off easily! As for his future, that would depend on arrangements by her father or Team A individuals.
"I don't have a home…" When asked about a home, Ye Hao felt empty and disappointed, and his gaze instantly transformed into a look of loneliness and slight sadness. Even though he quickly masked it, Fang Ni still noticed.
Fang Ni, seeing Ye Hao's slightly forlorn eyes, began to sympathize with him a bit, thinking he truly is a bitter person! Training for the country from a young age, having no home and no family... Perhaps that's really hard to bear, right? Alas! Surely she should help him to the end, to prevent him from getting lost as a man in the bustling city of Beijing.
"Sorry…" Fang Ni apologized, wanting to comfort Ye Hao, but she noticed him quickly wiping away the previous forlornness from his face, so she hesitated to bring it up again.
"Haha! It's okay, but you don't need to pick me up anymore. I'll find a place myself, and report to the base tomorrow!" Ye Hao smiled, and then looked deeply at Fang Ni and said, "You are my warmest encounter through all these travels! Thank you." Finishing this, Ye Hao shouldered his backpack and left the airport alone.
Fang Ni watched Ye Hao's slightly lonely departing back and his words before leaving, and felt a tinge of sourness in her heart! It was as if sympathizing with Ye Hao, and also reflecting on Ye Hao's fate.
She had her father's love! Had colleagues to laugh together! Although the work was also quite tense! But no matter how tense, it's not as exhausting as a man standing on the front lines with his own flesh, right?
Her heart had formed another impression of Ye Hao, thinking that such people should be given more love in Huaxia. This impression shattered when she absentmindedly walked out of the airport—
"Scoundrel, I warn you again, stop following me or I'll be rude!" Lin Ruyu folded her arms fiercely looking at Ye Hao, but whether she was really that confident or just pretending, only Lin Ruyu knew.
"Ugh! Is the whole airport yours? I was just planning to—" Ye Hao tried to explain, but the fierce Lin Ruyu interrupted him directly and said angrily:
"Stop! I don't want to hear it, anyway, all our encounters in Bangui, whether good or bad, I forgot them. I hope you won't pester me." Lin Ruyu waved her hand, eyes glaring big at Ye Hao.
The coming Fang Ni was stunned seeing this; wasn't the young man with a lonely back just a moment ago the same person? This seemed like someone who had sneakily pursued a girl abroad and was now chasing after her in Huaxia—indeed, despicable, shameless without bounds...
"Right... On the plane, it's already clear that we have no relationship. But for your help in Bangui, we're grateful at heart, yet really don't want to see you again, stop pestering us." Su Qing also chimed in! Her face blushed again instantly, recalling Ye Hao's melodious sounds on the plane.
This made Fang Ni standing not far more determined that Ye Hao was treading on two sisters' ground, and that they had recognized Ye Hao, refusing to acknowledge him further. But unexpectedly, Ye Hao was still clinging to them... Thinking of this, Fang Ni looked at Ye Hao with disgust as if he had done some universally outrageous thing to her.
"Fine! Ungrateful..." Ye Hao shrugged helplessly, indifferent to their accusations of him pestering them! However, this remark made Fang Ni even angrier—as if this was the caliber of the country's top warrior? Using gratitude to gain benefits? Truly intolerable...
"Yes, you did help us, but we absolutely don't want to be associated with you anymore." Lin Ruyu looked at Ye Hao as if he wanted to haggle over it and pulled from her backpack a stack of blank checks, and hastily wrote a set of numbers on it. She handed it to Ye Hao saying, "Here's 100,000! This is your reward for helping us. Thank you much for your care in Bangui, but let's have no further relations..."
"Haha!" Ye Hao laughed seeing this, was about to casually tear the check when Fang Ni suddenly rushed over.
"I didn't expect you to be such a philanderer! And to think I came to pick you up in the middle of the night. Your behavior really disgusts me! If it weren't for these two ladies' reminder, I would still be in the dark, purposely showing a desolate figure to gain my sympathy, are you?" Fang Ni angrily stared at Ye Hao.
Ye Hao was dumbfounded, what does this have to do with you?
"What on earth are you talking about? How am I a philanderer? What did I do to disgust you?" Ye Hao looked at her speechlessly.
"Oh... you still won't admit it, look at yourself, returning favors for grudges, is this your character? Even if you have done good for others, they don't want to be entangled with you anymore, yet you still cling to them! Aren't you embarrassed? Do you appreciate me coming to pick you up at midnight?" Fang Ni angrily spoke without choosing her words carefully.
"Hehe... turns out you have a little lover? You aren't Qianqian, are you?" Lin Ruyu said something seemingly out of nowhere, leaving Fang Ni puzzled.
"Who is Qianqian?" Fang Ni asked Lin Ruyu.
"Hehe! Looks like you really aren't Qianqian! This man here, even in his dreams on the plane, was calling out for Qianqian, the sound... ugh!" Lin Ruyu exaggeratedly made a retching gesture.
"What does this mean?" Fang Ni felt bewildered, where did this Qianqian suddenly come from?
"Alright! Stop talking," Ye Hao, seeing them going on endlessly, shouted impatiently, then turned to Lin Ruyu and said, "Let me explain to you again! On the plane, it was indeed my fault, but it wasn't intentional, nor was it what you think! And about your hundred-thousand-dollar check, though it's a lot, I have no intention of repayment with ulterior motives! As for coming here, I'm looking for a place to live! I'm not one of those little rich girls like you, who have lots of money to casually stay in luxurious places! If there's nothing else, I'll leave." Ye Hao threw the check back to Lin Ruyu.
Then he strode away from the three women surrounding him!
The three women were left a little stunned in place! They all wondered if they had misunderstood him?
After a brief silence, Fang Ni snorted heavily and said, "Still pretending, but I won't be fooled by you again." Having said that, she glanced at Lin Ruyu and Su Qing intentionally or unintentionally!
Lin Ruyu and Su Qing were also a bit puzzled looking at Ye Hao leave, could we have really misunderstood him? Was he not planning to pester us?
Looking again at Ye Hao's back, they saw only one person, one bag, walking on a path with no company! A sense of sourness filled their hearts! Thinking back to Ye Hao saying he wasn't wealthy, didn't have much money, and needed a place to live, it made them feel even more that what they said earlier might have been a little too hurtful.
"Yuyu, why do I feel so sour, could he really not be here to entangle us?" Su Qing asked a bit dejectedly.
"Ah! Let's not talk about him, at least we saved a hundred thousand!" Lin Ruyu felt the same as Su Qing, only she was pretending to be stronger.
"Let's go..." Lin Ruyu said and then she and Su Qing boarded a luxurious Lincoln and disappeared from the bustling airport area.
Fang Ni drove back home and slammed the door hard, the sound was so piercing in the deep night past 1 a.m.
"What's going on?" Fang Zhongtian came out in his pajamas and asked.
"It's still about you! Telling me to pick up that so-called good kid, what a complete scoundrel, a hooligan scoundrel." Fang Ni said through gritted teeth! Just thinking about others asking Ye Hao not to pester them anymore, and his persistent demeanor made her fume.
"What did that lad Ye Hao do to you?" Fang Zhongtian asked, a bit uncertain! Although he had interacted with Ye Hao during his training, in terms of understanding, it wasn't really much.
"Hmph! That kid was flirting with two women in Bangui, then after getting off the plane, when others asked him not to pester them, he returned favors for grudges, two-timing." Fang Ni got angrier as she spoke.
"This... are you sure?" Fang Zhongtian looked at his daughter in doubt.