The father-in-law extended an invitation, and no matter how busy Fang Ze was, it was only right and polite for him to make the trip.
So, he solemnly accepted the invitation and thanked the female assistant to the bureau director.
After seeing off the female assistant, Fang Ze closed the door, then opened it again. This time, he finally appeared in the hotel corridor.
He walked to the room opposite, knocked on the door, and from inside came the slightly lazy voice of Bai Zhi, "Who is it?"
Hearing Fang Ze's voice, there was a sudden sound of hurried tidying up inside.
A moment later, the door opened. Bai Zhi appeared at the doorway, wearing a coat over a silk nightgown, with two white legs exposed below.
Seeing Fang Ze, she smiled slightly, then stepped aside to let him in, asking, "What brings you here?"
Seeing Bai Zhi just getting up, Fang Ze walked in, curiously asking back, "You didn't just get up, did you?"
As they spoke, he walked into the room, where a small mound had formed under the quilt on the bed.
Fang Ze glanced at Bai Zhi and mouthed the question, "Bai Ling?"
Bai Zhi nodded, covered her mouth to stifle a laugh, and then she walked over and mischievously yanked the quilt away, revealing a sleeping Bai Ling. She was hugging a pink dolphin plush toy, lying on the bed with her butt sticking up high, still asleep.
She was wearing cartoon cotton pajamas, her chubby little face pressed against the dolphin's head, eyes closed, lips pouting.
Suddenly noticing her quilt being taken away in her sleep, she let out a scream, eyes still closed, and threw a set of enthusiastic punches as if fighting off an attacker.
Seeing this, Fang Ze and Bai Zhi couldn't help but laugh until they were bent over with mirth.
After playing around for two or three minutes, the three of them finally stopped.
Bai Zhi tied her hair back, hugged Bai Ling, and looked at Fang Ze, who was sitting on the sofa. She asked, "I remember you said you had no plans today. Is there something you need?"
Fang Ze nodded, then handed over the invitation to Bai Zhi.
Curiously taking the invitation, Bai Zhi glanced at it, her eyes flashing with a hint of surprise.
The little Bai Ling in her arms, seeing this, tried to peek at the invitation, but was pushed back by Bai Zhi.
While pressing down the protesting Bai Ling's head, Bai Zhi curiously asked, "My father? Why is he looking for you?"
Fang Ze spread his hands, "I don't know. But it probably has something to do with the Dahei Jialuo case and Councilor Huang being arrested."
Hearing Fang Ze's words, Bai Zhi thought for a moment, then said thoughtfully, "Our family does have some interactions with the Huang Family. But Councilor Huang himself was a well-connected old good guy. There are too many families connected with him. Our family shouldn't have much to do with him."
"Moreover... my father doesn't like to handle family affairs, nor is he very dedicated to his work. More than a decade ago, he even resigned from the position of Director of the Security Bureau. My grandfather said he was a useless piece of mud."
Wrinkling her brows, she continued, "So theoretically, he couldn't be looking for you to talk about work."
As Bai Zhi said this, Fang Ze had no explanation. But whatever the intention, they would find out when they met. So Fang Ze asked Bai Zhi, "Let's not talk about this first. Does your father have any hobbies? It's my first time meeting him, should I bring something?"
Hearing Fang Ze's words, Bai Zhi's thoughts were indeed diverted. She thought for a moment, then said, "He likes tea. Especially Double-sided Fan Tea."
"This tea got its name because the tea leaves are in two halves, looking like two round fans joined together. When brewed with Tianhu Water, the two pieces of leaves slowly open, looking like little floating fans in the cup, very beautiful."
Speaking of this, Bai Zhi added, "But this tea is quite expensive and hard to buy. Each noble family gets a limited purchase quota every year."
Hearing Bai Zhi's words, Fang Ze's eyes immediately lit up: Isn't this perfect! He lacked everything but purchase quotas! This was a gift tailor-made for him!
With this thought, Fang Ze made a note of the name "Double-sided Fan Tea" in his mind, and after discussing personnel arrangements with Bai Zhi, he left her room.
Back in his room, Fang Ze just closed the door when he made a call to his butler, asking him to buy a portion of Double-sided Fan Tea as a gift.
Hearing Fang Ze's request, the butler hesitated, then said, "Sir, Double-sided Fan Tea is not cheap. It costs over two million Lini per tael."
Hearing the price of the tea, Fang Ze was really surprised.
Two million Lini per tael? Twenty million Lini per jin? Is this tea inlaid with gold or does it make you a deity when you drink it? How could it be sold so expensive!
Thinking this, he couldn't help but ask, "Does this Double-sided Fan Tea have any special properties?"
The butler shook his head, saying, "No, it's purely good-tasting and rare, plus it's exclusively for nobles, so tea lovers are particularly keen on it, driving the price up higher and higher."
Hearing the butler's words, Fang Ze thought of the struggling lower-class people living in the impoverished areas of Qingshan City, for whom earning 600 Lini a month was a great happiness. But the nobles' cup of tea could cost tens of thousands of Lini.
"Truly, the rich feast while the poor suffer."
Although he sighed inwardly, remembering this was his first meeting with Bai Zhi's father, and how Bai Zhi and Lady Jin had been kind and loving to him, Fang Ze gritted his teeth and said, "Then get me a jin first."