Lin Kuang smiled slightly as he looked at Fan Bingbing's flushed cheeks. The girl was truly beautiful, with a hint of allure in her eyes that made men want to do something to her.
"Sure, if Miss Fan doesn't mind, why would I? However, I don't have a cell phone. How about this? You give me your number, and I'll call you after I buy one," Lin Kuang said with a smile. He wasn't pretending; he had just been released from prison and genuinely didn't own a phone.
Hearing his words, Fan Bingbing was momentarily stunned, not expecting him to say that. She found it hard to believe, yet when she looked into his dark, sincere eyes, her distrust inexplicably vanished.
"Okay. And please, don't call me Miss Fan anymore. If Mr. Lin doesn't mind, just call me Bingbing," Fan Bingbing said with a smile, giving him her phone number.
"Then I won't be polite, Bingbing. You can call me Lin Kuang, too. 'Mr. Lin' really doesn't suit me," Lin Kuang replied with a laugh.
Hearing this, Fan Bingbing nodded with a smile. She found talking with Lin Kuang to be a very pleasant experience; she really liked the feeling.
As the two were chatting, Zhao You returned from the restroom. He had reapplied his makeup, looking just as he had when Lin Kuang first saw him, except for his red and obviously swollen eyes.
Seeing this sissy that he found so detestable, Lin Kuang was speechless and turned his head away.
"Bingbing, I'm back! Are you okay? You scared me to death just now! I cried so much my eyes are all red. Look, look! I must look so ugly," Zhao You whined, his tone cringeworthy.
Fan Bingbing glanced at Zhao You, then at Lin Kuang, and couldn't help but feel amused.
"It's okay, Xiao You is always so beautiful. You've even surpassed me," Fan Bingbing said soothingly.
Hearing this, Zhao You shook his head shyly. "Not at all. I know I still fall a tiny bit short compared to you."
Hearing his words, Lin Kuang, who was sitting nearby, nearly gagged. He just couldn't stand this sissy any longer! And so, he endured the rest of the flight until the plane landed at the airport in East Sea. He hurriedly said goodbye to Fan Bingbing and strode away.
In a conspicuous spot outside the airport, a military jeep was parked quietly, as if waiting for someone. The moment he saw that jeep, Lin Kuang's expression changed instantly, his gaze filled with hatred and an indescribable complexity.
Hmph. So you know I'm back? I won't let you find me. Since you pushed all the blame onto me, why should I go back? Lin Kuang thought to himself, then vanished into the crowd.
The jeep outside the airport kept waiting, but Lin Kuang never appeared. After an hour passed with no sign of him, the person inside the car reluctantly placed a call to a bigwig in Yanjing and relayed what had happened.
"Forget it, come on back. The kid doesn't want to return," a middle-aged man on the other end of the line said wearily, a sense of helplessness in his voice. He then murmured to himself, "It's for the best. There isn't much going on recently, so just stay outside and clear your head, Kuang'er. Don't blame us; we had no other choice. I hope time can heal the wounds in your heart. After all, I am your father, and the one who made the decision… was your grandfather!"
Meanwhile, Lin Kuang had gotten into a taxi.
"Take me to this place," he said, pulling a slip of paper from his pocket and showing it to the driver.
The driver glanced at the note, then back at Lin Kuang. "Sir, are you sure? Panhai Lanting is the most exclusive villa community in East Sea. Our taxis aren't allowed inside," the driver said hesitantly. Besides, judging by Lin Kuang's attire, he didn't look like someone who could afford a villa there.
"Then just stop at the entrance. I'll walk in from there," Lin Kuang stated.
"Alright," the driver agreed and began driving toward Panhai Lanting, the most elite villa community in East Sea. The people who lived there all had extraordinary status. The tycoons and various officials of East Sea all owned property there. One could say that Panhai Lanting was the epicenter of wealth and power in the city.
Thirty minutes later, the driver stopped the car at the main entrance of Panhai Lanting.
"Sir, this is as far as I can go. You're on your own from here," the driver said apologetically.
"No problem." Lin Kuang opened the door and got out. He didn't have any RMB on him, only two US dollar bills that Ge Er had tucked into his military ID. Otherwise, he would have been completely penniless.
"Here. One hundred dollars. Keep the change," Lin Kuang said, tossing the bill to the driver before walking toward Panhai Lanting.
The driver took the money and drove off. A hundred US dollars! He couldn't even earn that much in a full day.
"Hey, you! Wait a minute. Where's your access card?" Two security guards quickly moved to block Lin Kuang as he headed for the side gate.
Hearing this, Lin Kuang froze. "Access card? What's that?"
"'An access card is the keycard for residents here. You must have one to enter. If you don't have an access card, you'll have to wait here for your friend to escort you in, or prove that you are the owner of a villa here,' the guard said in a cold tone, his posture suggesting he had military training.
Lin Kuang frowned. He was here at someone's request and only knew the owner's name, not even her phone number.
"I'm here to see Liu Shilin. Could you please help me find her?" After a moment's thought, Lin Kuang gave them the name.
Upon hearing the name Liu Shilin, the expressions of the two guards immediately turned strange, as if the name held some sort of magic.
"Sir, I'm sorry. Many people come trying to see Miss Liu every day. She has given standing orders not to let anyone in without her express permission," one of the guards said flatly.
"Uh, why? But I really need to see her," Lin Kuang asked, extremely puzzled.
"Everyone who comes here looking for Miss Liu is one of her admirers," the other guard explained with a small smile. "She's grown tired of the constant stream of visitors, so now she refuses to see anyone. I take it you're another one of her admirers?"
Lin Kuang shook his head. He was here on a mission to protect Liu Shilin, not as some admirer. From the looks of things, it was clear that getting in through the main entrance wasn't going to work.
As Lin Kuang was pondering his next move, the roar of an engine sounded, and a limited-edition Maserati pulled to a stop beside him.