Chapter 130: Someone Has Come to Cause Trouble

Ruan Mianmian was momentarily stunned, as if she were looking at that carefree little boy from long ago. Although she had seen Jiang Ce in his childhood, the boy she knew then was already a poor orphan, his heart filled with darkness and devoid of any sunlight.

Jiang Ce took her hand and continued walking inside. Ruan Mianmian suddenly realized that although the place appeared to have been desolate for a long time, the further they went, the more she could see traces of the people who had once lived there.

After walking for some distance, Ruan Mianmian finally saw the long-dried well. A half-meter-high fence surrounded it, but it was dilapidated and covered in layers of dust, clearly having been abandoned for ages.

"Do you know where this is?" Jiang Ce suddenly turned and asked.

Ruan Mianmian frowned and smiled. "How would I know?"

Jiang Ce shifted his gaze away from her and silently looked toward a house diagonally across from them. Its entrance was grand and elegant, looking cleaner than the surrounding buildings, yet it was the most severely damaged of them all. Ruan Mianmian followed his gaze and could vaguely see that half of the courtyard wall had collapsed, as if it had been deliberately pushed over, making it look out of place among the tidy courtyards nearby.

"Shall we go in and take a look?" Jiang Ce suddenly pulled her toward the gate.

Ruan Mianmian felt a stir in her heart. She tightened her grip on Jiang Ce's fingers and asked tentatively, "Jiang Ce, is this your home?"

"Yes." Jiang Ce nodded slightly. His expression was unreadable; his voice sounded calm and carefree, as if he were casually remarking on how nice the weather was today. It was a calmness that made one's heart ache.

When they reached the doorway, Ruan Mianmian suddenly stopped. Jiang Ce looked back at her and asked, "What's wrong?"

"Do we really have to go in?" In truth, she was afraid that seeing these scenes would stir up painful memories of his dark childhood and affect him.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Ce simply curled his lips into a gentle smile and asked in return, "Why? Don't you want to see the place where I grew up?"

This reason was too powerful to refuse. After a moment, Ruan Mianmian nodded. "Okay." She held his hand, and with her other hand, she tucked it into the crook of his arm, as if to offer him strength. Jiang Ce watched her silently, his eyes filled with tenderness.

After pushing the door open, Ruan Mianmian stood at the entrance and quietly surveyed everything inside the courtyard. It was surprisingly clean, as if someone lived there and cleaned it regularly. Ruan Mianmian was a bit surprised. "Did you clean this up in advance?"

Jiang Ce nodded. "Yes."

Hearing this, Ruan Mianmian couldn't help but glance at him. It was likely more than just a quick cleanup; it seemed as if Jiang Ce had long ago sent people to maintain the place. When she entered the house, this suspicion was confirmed. The furnishings were neat and tidy, contrasting sharply with the decay outside; the room was filled with a rich sense of life. If she didn't know that the place had been vacant for a long time, she would have suspected that someone still lived there.

"Sit down." Jiang Ce led her inside and pulled over a bamboo chair. It was clear that the chair had seen many years.

*Creak—*

As Ruan Mianmian sat down, the wooden chair gave a soft tremor. The sound wasn't abrupt; it felt like the chime that signals the opening of a long-sealed treasure. Jiang Ce stood quietly by her side, his gaze serene and filled with warmth.

"This was my favorite thing when I was a kid. It was essential for cooling off under the locust tree in the summer. It's so comfortable."

"It really is nice." Ruan Mianmian leaned back, and the chair began to rock gently. The years felt distant, the moment tranquil; the scene before her was truly beautiful.

Just then, Jiang Ce's phone rang abruptly. Ruan Mianmian opened her eyes instantly, only to see Jiang Ce walking toward the door with his phone in hand. She stretched her neck to peek; Jiang Ce held the phone to his ear, his expression looking grim, as if a tricky problem had arisen. Sure enough, when he walked back into the room, his face was cold and severe.

"What's wrong?" Ruan Mianmian rose slowly and asked with concern.

"Someone is causing trouble."

"Causing trouble? What kind of trouble?" Ruan Mianmian didn't quite understand.

"Stay here and don't move. A'Kuan will be here soon. I have to go handle some things." Jiang Ce seemed anxious; he didn't even have time to explain further before he turned to head outside.

Ruan Mianmian suddenly stood up and grabbed him. "What exactly happened? You should at least tell me."

"Be good." Jiang Ce didn't have time for a lengthy explanation. He lightly stroked her cheek, his fingers lingering for a moment as if testing the texture.

"Boss."

A'Kuan's voice sounded at the door. Jiang Ce pulled his hand away abruptly and walked out. Before leaving, he urged her again, "Wait for me here."

Ruan Mianmian followed a few steps, but she saw Jiang Ce's figure vanish rapidly through the gate. A'Kuan hurried forward to block her path. "Brother Ruan, since the boss told you to wait here, don't go joining the commotion. You might get hurt." A'Kuan said with a playful grin.

But Ruan Mianmian couldn't smile at all; she sensed something off in his words. She asked, "Is there danger?"

"It's nothing, nothing at all. Just some small-time troublemakers. The boss can handle them."

Ruan Mianmian felt a surge of panic. "But he’s all alone! No, we have to go help him." With that, she prepared to head outside.

A'Kuan quickly held her back, laughing, "Brother Ruan, don't be so naive. How could the boss be alone?"

"Oh? He isn't?"

"Of course not!" A'Kuan explained, "There's a groundbreaking ceremony going on at the front street today, and there are tons of people there. We came through the back street just so you could have some peace and quiet, so don't you worry."

"So that's how it is." Ruan Mianmian sighed in relief, but her heart immediately tightened again. "Wait, a groundbreaking ceremony? Is the work at Crescent Town starting?"

A'Kuan didn't know why she was suddenly so agitated, but he nodded. "Yeah."

Ruan Mianmian's face turned cold. She had just heard Jiang Ce say someone was causing trouble. She remembered that in the book, the people who caused trouble at the Crescent Town groundbreaking ceremony were arranged by Jiang Ce himself. So where did this new group of troublemakers come from?

Could it be that the plot had changed? Was it possible that Jian Yanzhi, unable to see the prize slip through his fingers, had intentionally retaliated by organizing these people to cause a scene?

Seeing her uneasy expression, A'Kuan asked, "Brother Ruan, what's wrong?"

"We have to go to the site and see."

A'Kuan tried to block her again. "Brother Ruan, did my words just go in one ear and out the other? The boss doesn't want you there, so just stay put."

Ruan Mianmian wore a stern look and said firmly, "I must know who exactly is causing this trouble!"