Chapter 110 — Family Banquet [Begging for Guaranteed Monthly Tickets, Second Bonus Update]

"Sleep... can replenish it?" Wei Zhao was stunned, almost unable to believe his ears.

"Child, you're overcomplicating things... Sleep naturally replenishes. Why do ordinary people sleep? Is it because they have nothing better to do? Isn't it to restore the body's energy? So the same goes for you... Although you cultivate the Xuanyuan Dragon-Riding Art, fundamentally you are still a human being, unchanged in essence..." Jiao Yazi gazed at Wei Zhao with pity. "Don't make things more complicated than they are. It's actually a simple truth -- even a child would understand..."

"Uh... I see." Wei Zhao's face reddened slightly. What Elder Jiao said was not unreasonable; he had simply overcomplicated matters himself.

"That's exactly it." Elder Jiao nodded. "Get some sleep. Looking at you, it seems you haven't slept in ages... Poor child, how pitiful..."

That night, Wei Zhao fell into a deep and total slumber -- the sweetest sleep he had known since emerging from the cave... So sleep truly could restore one's strength. When Wei Zhao woke, he felt refreshed and clear-headed, stretched lazily, and went to the washroom to freshen up.

Dressed in the casual clothes he had bought yesterday, Wei Zhao stepped out of his room. The living room was empty -- Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu were probably still asleep. General Weiwu faithfully guarded the foot of the stairs leading to the second floor. Though Wei Zhao was a little curious about what a girl's room looked like, peeping was out of the question. If he were going to look, he ought to do it openly and aboveboard, wasn't that right?

Wei Zhao pushed open the villa door and stepped out into the yard. The villa compound was very quiet on a weekend morning -- gone were the usual streams of traffic, with only the occasional car passing by.

"Heh--" Wei Zhao had stood at the gate for only a short while before Uncle Qing's Bentley came gliding up and stopped before the villa.

"Mr. Lin, you're out here?" Uncle Qing spotted Wei Zhao at the gate and nodded at him with a smile.

"Uncle Qing, this early?" Wei Zhao checked the time. "Yaoyao and Xiaoshu probably aren't up yet, are they?"

"Not early at all -- they should be getting ready. Mr. Lin, won't you change into something more formal?" Uncle Qing looked Wei Zhao up and down, taking in his casual attire, and asked.

"Me? Something more formal? For what?" Wei Zhao blinked, somewhat bewildered, and looked at Uncle Qing.

"Mr. Lin, don't you know? Every Sunday, Mr. Gu holds a family banquet. Previously it was Miss Gu, Xiaoshu, and I who attended, but this time Mr. Gu specifically instructed me to make sure you come as well." Uncle Qing explained.

"A family banquet?" Wei Zhao had not expected the Gu Pengzhan household to have such a custom, but since he had been invited, he naturally would not refuse. "All right -- though I don't own anything formal. This outfit is the one I bought yesterday, and beyond that, all I have is my school uniform..."

"Ha ha." Uncle Qing couldn't help but laugh. "That'll do as well. It is a family banquet after all, so it hardly matters. Mr. Lin, please get in the car -- I'll go fetch Miss Gu and the others..."

"Oh... right." Wei Zhao nodded, opened the car door, and settled into the passenger seat.

Watching Uncle Qing disappear into the villa, Wei Zhao narrowed his eyes slightly... To be honest, this assignment was the most laid-back one Wei Zhao had ever had -- and also the most baffling.

The old man at home had talked him into taking on this job -- one whose commission, if successful, could feed him for a lifetime... But even now, Wei Zhao still had no idea what the mission actually was.

Escorting the young lady around all day? Serving as her bodyguard, her nanny, her study companion, her shield? That might have some difficulty to it, but surely it didn't require someone like him -- a killer and operative with an ultra-S-class profile -- to do it, did it?

Besides, Wei Zhao was no fool. He would never believe that simply doing these things would earn him a commission that could last a lifetime. What a joke -- unless Gu Pengzhan had water in his brain.

As it stood, Gu Pengzhan was clearly a shrewd man with a clear head -- and that was precisely what gave Wei Zhao pause.

If the old man at home hadn't strongly recommended the job and vouched for it, Wei Zhao would have suspected some conspiracy was afoot. Still, he knew that for all the old man's eccentricities, he would never do him harm... That was an important reason Wei Zhao felt secure staying here. Otherwise, even though the young lady was a beauty, Xiaoshu was charming too, and there was an intriguing commoner The Blossom Guardian besides -- Wei Zhao wouldn't have had the time to fool around here. What a disaster it would be if he played himself into an early grave.

Not long after Uncle Qing went inside, Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu emerged. Their outfits today differed from yesterday's -- where yesterday's look had been youthful and eye-catching, today's was far more refined and ladylike, with the air of a socialite.

Uncle Qing opened the car doors for Gu Mengyao and Shen Yushu, and only after they had climbed inside did he return to the driver's seat.

Gu Mengyao spotted Wei Zhao in the passenger seat and was genuinely surprised -- she had not expected her father to invite him to today's family banquet. Gu Mengyao was in fact a very clever girl; she merely tended to be rendered silly by Wei Zhao's provocations.

Since Wei Zhao could be sitting here, it must have been her father's arrangement; Uncle Qing would never have taken it upon himself to invite Wei Zhao along.

Though this Wei Zhao was not quite as detestable as he had first seemed, and was in fact reasonably suited to serving as her follower, was her father truly so at ease letting a grown man live in his house for the long term?

Uncle Qing started the car, and it rolled slowly out of the villa district, heading toward the city center.

"Mr. Gu's family dinners are always held at the Pengzhan International Hotel in the city center, which is also one of Mr. Gu's company properties." Since this was Wei Zhao's first time attending the Gu family dinner, Uncle Qing explained a little more.

"Who else will be there in a while? Are there any rules?" Though Wei Zhao was used to his freedom, he was, after all, attending his employer's family dinner, and it would not do to be too unruly.

"In the past, apart from me, Miss Gu, and Xiaoshu, there was only Mr. Gu." Uncle Qing said, "As for rules, there aren't any. A family dinner is a relaxed occasion, without too many formalities."

"Don't eat so much that you make a fool of yourself," Gu Mengyao said teasingly, recalling Wei Zhao's appetite.

"Heh heh..." Uncle Qing naturally knew there was a little friction between Gu Mengyao and Wei Zhao, and smiled slightly. "Mr. Gu dislikes extravagance and waste; it would be best if Mr. Lin can finish it all."

"Uncle Qing!" Hearing this, Gu Mengyao grew a little displeased and began to whine coquettishly. "Why are you arguing against me?"

Gu Mengyao had only spoken offhandedly; she knew what sort of person her father was, and Uncle Qing really was not wrong. A moment ago she had merely been needling Wei Zhao without thinking much of it, and now that Uncle Qing had called her out, she felt somewhat embarrassed.

"Miss Gu, an old man like me can't go around behind Mr. Gu's back fabricating tales about his habits; I can only speak the truth." Uncle Qing laughed.

Gu Mengyao pursed her lips but could not refute him... She could not even understand herself — why did she so enjoy getting angry with Wei Zhao? She knew perfectly well that this fellow was infuriating, yet she insisted on quarreling with him...