Chapter 247 — Tian Long's Invitation

"Uncle Tian, then what is it you'd like to know?" Yang Ce felt that secretly betraying Tian Yan was not something a friend ought to do, so he would only answer selectively whatever Tian Long asked. It would have been best to have a word with Tian Yan beforehand, of course, but there was no time for that now.

"How about this, Yang Ce—it's nearly noon, let your uncle treat you to lunch. We can talk while we eat!" Step by step, Tian Long was drawing Yang Ce into the trap he had set.

"Lunch? Uncle Tian, you're in Songjiang?" Yang Ce asked, startled.

"No, I'm in Donghai. How about this—grab a taxi and come to Donghai. Your uncle will reimburse your fare! It's quick, you'll be here in an hour." Tian Long said, "I can't leave the people here, so I'm afraid I'll have to put you to the trouble of coming over."

"Me? Go over? To Donghai?" Yang Ce found Tian Long's suggestion rather odd. He could not shake the feeling that Tian Long was making far too much of this—surely anything could be explained clearly over the phone, yet he insisted on meeting face to face. Moreover, if Tian Long were in Songjiang, that would be one thing; after all, going out for a meal together would be easy enough. But the problem now was that Tian Long was in Donghai, and for Yang Ce to meet him for a meal and a chat, he would have to drive for an hour!

"Yang Ce, if you have other things to do, then never mind—we can talk another day." Tian Long's voice sounded rather regretful.

"It's no problem for me to go…" After all, this was the first time Tian Long had ever asked a favor of him, and as the younger man, Yang Ce really could not refuse. In truth, what tempted Yang Ce most was the trip to Donghai itself.

Yang Puqi had not been able to reach Sun Jie, and Yang Shuoxuan thought of going to see Sun Jie and finding out how she was doing. So Yang Ce simply agreed: "Uncle Tian, I'll drive over myself. You name the place."

"The Chunyuan Grand Hotel in Donghai, then. Once you get there, just tell the lobby manager that you're looking for me." Tian Long was secretly delighted that Yang Ce had agreed.

"All right, Uncle Tian. See you in a bit." Yang Ce answered and hung up.

Yet Yang Juehuan's heart was full of doubt. Tian Long had sought him out so suddenly, all to inquire about Tian Yan's affairs, and wanted him to travel a thousand li to Donghai—no matter how he looked at it, it did not quite add up. But Yang Jiyan could think of no other reason. Doubtful as he was, he could only press the doubt down inside.

Before setting out for Donghai, Yang Ce decided to call Tian Yan first. School had been in session for quite a while now, and he had not yet set foot on campus, forever busy with matters outside; he did not know whether anything had happened at school.

Zhang Bin had been busy with the jewelry company all this time and probably had no time for school either. If Yang Ce wanted to ask about the situation at school, the only person he could turn to was Tian Yan.

The kid was with Wang Xuerong all day long and had apparently become a member of Yang Ce's class in all but name, so anything about the class could simply be asked of Tian Yan.

On the one hand, he would ask about school; on the other, he would ask whether the kid had gotten into any trouble lately, so that the two of them could get their stories straight before Yang Ce met Tian Long.

"Old Tian, it's me." Yang Ce got Tian Yan on the phone.

"Yang Ce? Give me a moment—I'm in class, I'll step out into the corridor." From the other end came Tian Yan's voice and the sound of the teacher lecturing in the classroom.

Classroom discipline at university was lax to begin with, and toward a young master like Tian Yan, who had clearly come to school just to coast through the days, the teacher simply turned a blind eye, pretending not to notice his usual behavior.