Chapter 146: Concerning Half a Buttock Becoming a Whole Buttock

"Master???!?!!!" Almost everyone present upon hearing these words was stunned, utterly unable to process what this "Master" business was all about.

Even Cen Anan's large eyes widened into perfect circles, her gaze darting repeatedly back and forth between Xue Tian'ai and Cheng Qiankun... When had her brother-in-law taken on an apprentice, and why hadn't she heard even a whisper of it...

"Tsk..." Xue Tian'ai felt a slight headache coming on. He never expected to run into Cheng Qiankun here. Wasn't Cheng Qiankun a chef? Wasn't he the owner of Lishui Longxuan? Why had he come here today of all days?

The sarcastic spirit deep within Xue Tian'ai's heart surfaced once more.

"Yo, little Cheng, fancy meeting you here again. It really is quite a coincidence, hahaha..." Although Xue Tian'ai felt a bit overwhelmed right now, he still stretched out his hand, waved at Cheng Qiankun, and flashed a brilliant smile on his face!

"I truly didn't expect to see Master here at Mount Ter today!" Cheng Qiankun said, a look of profound adoration returning to his face as he stared at Xue Tian'ai.

"Actually, I didn't expect to run into you here either..." Xue Tian'ai chuckled helplessly, shaking his head before speaking his true thoughts. However, he still wasn't quite used to Cheng Qiankun's form of address: "And seriously, stop calling me Master. I've never really taught you anything..."

"A master is a master; that can never change!" Cheng Qiankun shook his head firmly. Then, noticing the young and pretty Cen Anan who was currently clutching Xue Tian'ai's arm, he let out an appreciative murmur under his breath: "A master is indeed a master..."

Cheng Qiankun had figured it out: whenever his master, Xue Tian'ai, appeared before him, he was bound to be accompanied by beauties... and those beauties were invariably one-in-a-million, peerless stunners. Such romantic luck was truly fiercely enviable...

"Tian'ai, why does he call you Master...?" Unable to suppress the intense curiosity raging in her heart any longer, Cen Anan gently squeezed Xue Tian'ai's arm and asked.

"Ah... about that..." Xue Tian'ai scratched his head, at a loss for how to explain it clearly in the moment...

"Yeah, yeah, Uncle, why is he calling you Master...???"

Hearing this, Xue Tian'ai was slightly startled and quickly turned his head. To his surprise, Tang Fangling and the other girls had drifted over at some point and were now standing directly behind Xue Tian'ai and Cen Anan...

A flicker of mild wonder passed through Xue Tian'ai's heart. Could it be that he was aging lately?

Seeing several young lasses of various charms crowding around Xue Tian'ai's side, Cheng Qiankun's admiration for him deepened even further. It seemed he had still underestimated his master: yesterday, three beauties had dined with his master, and today, five gorgeous maidens had accompanied his master to the underground racing track of Mount Ter...

To have already tangled with three last night, and yet today act as if nothing had happened while hauling in five more young lasses! Could it be that Master possessed some professional recipe for invigorating Yang and nourishing the kidneys??

Cheng Qiankun's thoughts drifted into rather absurd territory; if Xue Tian'ai had any inkling of what was churning inside Cheng Qiankun's head right now, he likely would have delivered a swift lightning punch to him on the spot...

"Ah, let me introduce myself to all you lovely young ladies. My name is Cheng Qiankun, owner and head chef of Lishui Longxuan. Back when I was studying culinary arts in Europe, I was fortunate enough to receive some guidance from Master. Oh, by the way, here are some VIP cards for Lishui Longxuan. You young ladies can just mention my name and eat for free whenever you go..." Sensing Xue Tian'ai's predicament, Cheng Qiankun hurried forward to introduce himself, digging several VIP cards out of his pocket to hand over.

Watching Cheng Qiankun's grand gesture, Xue Tian'ai felt a sharp pang of heartache. Out of these five girls, four of them had absolutely nothing to do with him...

Upon hearing the name Lishui Longxuan, the girls were all struck dumb with astonishment!

Lishui Longxuan was one of the absolute top-tier luxury restaurants in the entire city of Beiyang, renowned for its food quality and sheer extravagance! And now, holding these cards meant they could dine there for free?!!

What was this? Pie falling from the sky?!

"Anan, let me go have a quick word with little Cheng..." Xue Tian'ai gently pulled his arm free, walked over to Cheng Qiankun, wrapped an arm around his shoulders, and lowered his voice. "Don't get any wrong ideas, kid. The one holding my arm is just my sister-in-law, and those girls beside her are merely her classmates... You don't need to make a big fuss over nothing..."

"Master, a sister-in-law is fantastic! Don't they say half of a sister-in-law's backside belongs to the brother-in-law anyway? Just put in a little effort and claim the whole thing..." Cheng Qiankun gave Xue Tian'ai a stealthy thumbs-up.

"!@#￥%&..." Xue Tian'ai was left utterly speechless by Cheng Qiankun's nonsensical remark. However, knowing what kind of character Cheng Qiankun possessed, he helplessly steered the conversation to another topic: "Anyway, aren't you a restaurant owner and chef? What brings you out to a place like this?"

"Hehehehe, this underground racing track actually belongs to me. I just happened to drop by to check on things today; I don't usually hang around here. But I never imagined I'd run into Master here..." Cheng Qiankun gave a silly chuckle.

Xue Tian'ai was speechless once more, while another thought flashed through his mind.

"Right, little Cheng, are those security guards your men too?" Xue Tian'ai gestured slightly toward the guards sprawled across the ground.

"Mhm, yep. I poached those guys right out of the Northeast Military Region retirement pool. Even so, they still couldn't beat Master..." Cheng Qiankun nodded, sounding slightly regretful.

"Ah, well, my apologies. I had no idea they were your men..." Xue Tian'ai offered an apologetic smile...

"I should be the one apologizing, Master! To think you were provoked into anger right here in my own establishment. But how on earth did that stray dog manage to offend you?" Cheng Qiankun quickly waved his hands dismissively and asked.

Xue Tian'ai let out a soft sigh and briefly recounted the incident that had just taken place...

As Xue Tian'ai spoke, the expression on Cheng Qiankun's face grew increasingly dark and unsightly, his fists clenching tighter and tighter...

"Boss Cheng..." At that moment, the first security guard knocked down by Xue Tian'ai finally managed to stagger to his feet, hurrying over to Cheng Qiankun. Still overwhelmed by a lingering limpness throughout his limbs, his footsteps remained unsteady.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me. Go drag that dog over here right now!!!!" Cheng Qiankun waved a hand coldly, glaring toward Lone Dog with eyes brimming with murderous intent!

"Understood!" Though he didn't fully grasp the current situation, his former military life had taught him that obeying superiors was always the top priority!

"Master, leave the rest to me. Don't let yourself get any more upset!" Cheng Qiankun said, his face rigid, an aura of pure fury radiating from his entire body...

"Alright..." Since this was Cheng Qiankun's turf after all, and that mutt appeared to be one of his subordinates, Xue Tian'ai figured it was best to let the master discipline his own dog...

Before long, a terrified Lone Dog was dragged over to the feet of Cheng Qiankun and Xue Tian'ai by the guard...

At this moment, Lone Dog's psyche was on the verge of total collapse. He felt as though he were trapped in an endless, terrifying nightmare tonight: first, his driving skills had been effortlessly crushed by an unknown pretty boy, and then his legs had been broken by that same pretty boy. He had thought his ultimate boss would arrive to rescue him, only to watch his boss address this very same pretty boy as Master!!!!

"Cheng... Boss Cheng... I was wrong... I'll never dare do it again! I had no idea this gentleman was a friend of yours!!!!" Confronting Cheng Qiankun's thunderous expression, Lone Dog was practically scared out of his wits, frantically kowtowing against the ground with loud *thuds*...

"Damn it, you even dared to harass my Master's woman! And you're talking about a next time?"

"Boss Cheng, I was wrong, this puny one deserves to die! I'll never dare do it again!!" Lone Dog had never dreamed that Xue Tian'ai possessed such a terrifying background. Had he known, he wouldn't have dared try anything even if you gave him ten thousand guts...

"There is no next time! Men, break the rest of this dog's legs for me! Confiscate all his possessions! Cancel every single contract with him! And notify all other tracks: if anyone dares to sign him as a racer, they are making an enemy of Cheng Qiankun himself!!!!" Cheng Qiankun roared with chilling severity.

The surrounding onlookers didn't hesitate for a second, swiftly closing in...

Gazing at the burly men enclosing him, Lone Dog's face was painted in hues of utter despair, his entire body trembling uncontrollably with bone-deep terror...

Cheng Qiankun's words were the ultimate nightmare for Lone Dog. Stripping him of everything, banning anyone from ever signing him—this was practically no different from executing him right on the spot!!!

"Boss Cheng... Please... I was wrong, I really won't dare do it again... Boss Cheng..." Lone Dog made one final, desperate struggle, clawing frantically at the ground with his hands while kowtowing and slapping his own face...

"Hmph! Drag him away! You all know what to do! Don't let a barking dog ruin my Master's mood!" Cheng Qiankun let out a cold snort and issued his orders to the guards.

"Yes!" The guards nodded heavily, grabbed Lone Dog, and dragged him away toward the dark shadows of the corner...

"Boss Cheng!! Boss Cheng...! Boss Cheng...!" Lone Dog's fingers dug desperately into the concrete, but the two guards showed not an ounce of mercy, dragging him away until he vanished completely from Xue Tian'ai's sight...

"Master, I'm so sorry that a mangy dog like that disturbed your evening..." Cheng Qiankun's expression instantly shifted, completely shedding the imposing aura of a boss...

"Forget it, it's no big deal. It's not your fault anyway..." Xue Tian'ai shook his head, unwilling to dwell on the subject any longer. He pulled out his phone, checked the time, and said, "Since it's all settled and it's getting late, I'll be heading back first..."

"Hehehehehehe..." Cheng Qiankun cast an ambiguous glance toward Cen Anan and the other girls who were chatting softly nearby, a lewd grin spreading across the corner of his mouth. "I understand, I understand. I originally wanted to invite Master to dinner, but it seems Master has much more delectable fare waiting for him. I won't keep you any longer... Hehehe..."

Seeing Cheng Qiankun's expression, Xue Tian'ai could only sigh inwardly. Too lazy to offer any further explanations, he simply patted Cheng Qiankun lightly on the shoulder, waved goodbye, and walked back toward Cen Anan and the girls.

The moment Xue Tian'ai approached, Cen Anan lunged straight into his arms like a little kitten.

Watching the harmonious and heartwarming scene over at Xue Tian'ai's side, Cheng Qiankun smiled faintly. Then, turning around, he cast a sorrowful gaze toward the towering twelve-story building on Mount Ter...

"When will she ever flash such a joyful and happy smile...?" With a soft sigh, Cheng Qiankun cast one last lingering look back at Xue Tian'ai before turning and walking resolutely toward the building...

ps: Recommending a good book by my good friend, Sumaijiu. An urban supernatural tale, exploring the depths of the human heart, mixed with weird crime and supernatural suspense—guaranteed to satisfy your craving for the bizarre!!!