Chapter 392: An Unexpected Guest
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Zhang Zian had been waiting a while, but Lu Yiyun still did not start drawing him. He did not know if all professional-level artists had to deliberate for such a long time before the actual creation happened, but he was getting a bit impatient.
Just then, through the window, he saw a person standing outside the door, with his head rising and lowering from time to time, as if confirming something. Because of the temperature difference indoors and outdoors, there was a misty condensation on the glass door, and Zhang Zian couldn’t see the man clearly. He thought the man was about to ask for directions, so he informed Lu Yiyun, got up and went to help him.
Before he could walk out, the man outside the door had rubbed his soles on the mat and walked into the shop.
At first glance, Zhang Zian was shocked, for the man was a middle-aged foreign gentleman wearing an upscale woolen trench coat, a business suit, a silk tie, and a pair of metal-framed glasses. His brown hair had been combed meticulously, and he was carrying a Rimova briefcase made of metal with a combination lock on it.
Zhang Zian’s first instinct was that this foreigner must have come to the wrong place. His destination must be Embassy Street, but an unscrupulous taxi driver had taken him to Zhonghua Road... judging from his attire, this foreigner apparently should be an elite from Wall Street or Lujiazui.
Patting the snowflakes off his shoulders, the man looked around at the interior of the shop. His eyes stayed on the face of Lu Yiyun a moment, and finally fell on Zhang Zian.
Although unlikely, Zhang Zian still looked at Lu Yiyun, as if asking if the man was looking for her.
Lu Yiyun shook her head vigorously. She lowered her head, and peeped at the guest through the corners of her eyes.
Zhang Zian coughed and intended to ask Richard to come downstairs to greet the guest, but the he heard the man speak in rudimentary, yet comprehensible Chinese, "Hello, may I ask if this is the Amazing Fate Pet Shop?"
"Um... yes, who are you looking for?" Zhang Zian was surprised—a foreigner who could speak Chinese? He either had been living in China for some time, or he was truly an elite.
The man smiled courteously. He put down his briefcase, and pulled out a business card from his pocket.
"My name is Roger Adams, and I work for Baker & Murphy Associates. I'm looking for Zhang Zian, whose English name is Jeff Zhang."
Zhang Zian took over the business card. Unfortunately, all the words on it were written in English. He repeatedly flipped it and observed it, and he got increasingly excited!
"So, you are a lawyer?" he asked in a quavering voice.
"Yes," Adams nodded.
Holy s**t! A lawyer is really looking for me?!
Zhang Zian was bursting with joy! Had his dream finally come true? One of his relatives who he had never met before passed away abroad, and because the relative had no other immediate family members, he had left Zhang Zian, a distant relative far away in China, a European-style old castle by the sea and a large amount of property. From now on, he would be transformed into a tall, rich, and handsome guy, a winner that all the beautiful girls in the world craved for!
He patted his chest and said, "I am Zhang Zian, and my English name is Jeff Zhang. Trust me, I’m the person you are looking for. By the way, where is the old castle? England? Ireland? Spain? I do not mind where it is at all!"
Adams was confused, "What castle?"
"You know, I had a relative who passed away abroad, and now you are executing his will, am I right? These are plots in television dramas and novels that I used to think were contrived and dramatic, but now I do believe in them!"
Zhang Zian rubbed his hands together excitedly, wondering in which bank he would deposit his hundreds of millions of pounds or dollars in cash? Would the bank send a long-legged gorgeous commissioner to serve him?
"Um..." Adams stared at him rather surprised. "How did you know that, Mr. Zhang?"
Huh?
Zhang Zian was really shocked. He was joking around just now, but looking at the elite lawyer’s serious look, it seemed that the lawyer was not joking.
He thought carefully. His parents did not seem to have any relatives living abroad. And the probability that a relative who he had never met before would leave him a huge amount of legacy was smaller than winning the lottery...
"Am I really going to inherit a legacy?" he confirmed with the lawyer.
He glanced at the elves in the shop, except Richard, who was still asleep upstairs and Galaxy, who was playing hide-and-seek. Old Time Tea, Fina, Snowy Lionet and Famous were all focused on him, as if they had vaguely felt that today would be an extraordinary day.
Zhang Zian had mixed feelings in his heart. He was pleased with the windfall, but was anxious about the heritage of his dubious background. He was also curious and looking forward to the amount of the heritage, as well as worrying about whether the sudden legacy would completely change his and the elves’ lives…
Even Lu Yiyun was staring at him and Adams. She wondered that if Zhang Zian inherited a large sum of money, would this pet shop be closed forever?
Adams said cautiously, "Before answering this question, let me first look at Mr. Zhang's valid ID, driver's license or passport. I need to confirm Mr. Zhang's identity before I can further elaborate on this matter."
"No problem. Here." Zhang Zian took out his wallet, found his ID card and driver's license and handed it to him. "Do you need me to show you my passport?"
Adams took the ID card and driver's license, and carefully compared the photos with Zhang Zian's face, then handed them back to him and said, "If you don’t mind."
"Wait a minute." Zhang Zian gestered to Lu Yiyun, asking her to keep an eye on this person. After all, anyone could print business cards — what if this man was pretending to be an elite but turned out to be a thief?
Lu Yiyun’s bitter expression showed that she was not ready to handle this responsibility.
Zhang Zian quickly went upstairs, went to his bedroom, and tried to find his passport in the drawers of the bedside table.
Richard was awakened by his movement. It jumped out from his coat and looked at him sleepily, "Quack! What are you looking for? Condoms? I’ve searched your room, but didn’t find any—besides, you don’t need condoms."
Zhang Zian answered without looking at it, "What the f**k, I’m not looking for condoms… and what do you mean I don’t need condoms? Let me tell you, if I want to use them, I can find someone at any minute!"
Richard combed its chest feathers and said disdainfully, "A stubborn pimp!"
While they were speaking, Zhang Zian found his passport.
"Why the passport? Are you going abroad again? Where? Ethiopia or Azerbaijan?" Richard fluttered its wings and flew onto his shoulder, staring at the passport in his hand.
"Why would I go to those remote and sparsely populated places?!" Zhang Zian angrily said, "There is a U.S. attorney downstairs. It seems that I have inherited a legacy and he must see my ID card, driver’s license, and passport…it’s really troublesome."
"Quack? Legacy? No kidding... who could you inherit a legacy from?" Richard didn’t believe him.
Even Zhang Zian himself was not certain whether the man downstairs was playing a prank on him or not...
Zhang Zian came downstairs with Richard.
Adams had taken his coat off and placed it on the rack. He was standing there still, with his eyes observing the furnishings and pets. Seeing that Zhang Zian came downstairs with a grey parrot standing on his shoulder, he couldn’t help but smile.
"Here, my passport." Zhang Zian handed him the passport.
Adams opened the passport, glancing roughly at his photos, and focused on his times of entry and exit to the United States, confirming that Zhang Zian was the person he was looking for.
When Adams was flipping through the passport, Galaxy stopped chasing the American Shorthair and turned to him, "Meow, Zian, don’t be sad."
Zhang Zian was stunned.
"Thanks," Adams handed the passport back to him.
Adams had identified Zhang Zian. He took a deep breath and said, "Mr. Zhang, do you know Catherine Donna Ryan?"
The image of the American old lady that he met at the CFA competition immediately came to Zhang Zian.
"What happened?" His heart tensed up.
Adams solemnly said, "I am sorry to inform you that Catherine Donna Ryan has died a few days ago and I am the executor of her will."