Chapter 621 - 284: The Grateful Uncle (Part 3)

"And this cannon happens to protect his ’Moon Reflected in the Second Spring’ chess position, he can’t solve it."

Seeing this, grandpa finally understood how the upcoming chess game would unfold and evolve, and he sighed slightly, looking at Li Younan with a somewhat complex expression.

Jing Chaoyi admired, "Senior, you’re amazing, you’re actually a chess expert, I didn’t know that."

At this moment, the middle-aged man had already stood up, seriously bowed to Li Younan, and said, "Brother, I came here specifically to thank you for saving my life on Mount Everest."

Then he extended his hand, "My name is Gao Tiande, the ’Gao’ in ’high mountain and distant Emperor’, the ’Tiande’ in ’divine benevolence’."

Li Younan smiled and shook hands with Gao Tiande.

It’s undeniable, this middle-aged man before him certainly has an aura different from ordinary people.

Remembering the scene when he saved the man on Mount Everest, at that time, Gao Tiande was lying on the ground embarrassed, which didn’t seem odd to Li Younan. But when Li Younan picked up the oxygen mask for him and helped him put it back on, and when leaving, the man’s words left an impression on Li Younan. He said, "Lifesaving benefactor, I will repay you."

Of course, the reason why this sentence was so memorable wasn’t because Li Younan cared about the so-called repayment.

It was because in that situation, after surviving a disaster, this man made such a promise with an almost calm tone.

Only those who haven’t experienced such a scene won’t understand what’s strange about this.

In fact, from a normal psychological logic perspective, when saved from the brink of life and death, human minds are dominated by instinctive emotions and immediate perceptions, first driven by physiological instincts to confirm survival, the first reaction being "I’m alive," followed by intense physical relaxation, such as trembling, and the brain temporarily blocking complex thoughts, focusing only on the core fact of "safe."

Then, this person’s emotions will explode.

He will develop a fragile dependency, overwhelmed by negative emotions such as fear and dread, even suddenly bursting into tears.

Then, after a brief cognitive blank, simple associations occur, without immediately contemplating complex follow-ups. Instead, the most familiar faces and events come to mind, like the faces of family or loved ones, or the urge to quickly contact them and assure them of safety, along with the simple thought of "never wanting to experience this again."

Thoughts linger between the current safety and the people and things that matter most.

And the middle-aged man’s words... transcend human instincts.

At that moment, Li Younan felt that this man was probably not ordinary.

And now seeing his luxury car and the secretary he brought, Li Younan confirmed this thought again.

As a visitor is a guest, Li Younan doesn’t care about what the middle-aged man says about repayment. After all, the so-called repayment, in Li Younan’s view, is nothing more than giving some material gifts.

Though he’s not a big tycoon, the eight-figure cash at hand allows him to disregard small favors.

However, chatting with this middle-aged man might be quite interesting.

To Li Younan’s surprise, the middle-aged man didn’t let his secretary bring out any expensive gifts.

When Li Younan invited him to the small courtyard by the river, he simply told his secretary calmly, "Xiaoyao, wait for me in the car for a while."

Meanwhile, Liu Li, who brought Gao Tiande over, was already looking at Jing Chaoyi, with flickering eyes, not knowing what they were thinking.

However, Jing Chaoyi raised her head, showed her a sweet smile, stood up, and pulled her aside, saying, "I heard the senior praising you often in videos before. Finally seeing you in person, I brought a gift for you."

"A gift?"

"You’ll like it!"

Watching Liu Li and Jing Chaoyi getting along harmoniously, Li Younan put his mind at ease and went to the small courtyard with the middle-aged man.

"It wasn’t until I returned to base camp that I began to understand you, amazed that you’re so famous."

Gao Tiande laughed after sitting down, "At your age, you’ve done so many amazing things, especially skiing down Mount Everest later on. I watched the entire live broadcast, it was truly exhilarating. If I were born twenty years earlier..."

Li Younan raised his head and blinked, "Would you ski down Mount Everest too?"

"Not really, I might choose to ski down Cold Slope Mountain. Oh, you probably don’t know Cold Slope Mountain; it’s a small mountain in my hometown, with a ski resort on it."

Li Younan paused for a moment, then they both laughed heartily together.

After laughing, Gao Tiande looked at the flowing water, his gaze somewhat distant, and said, "I once considered being independent as a standard for success."

He chuckled, with a hint of self-mockery, "You can see, I’m a core member of the team, also the pillar of the family, everyone needs me, but I don’t need anyone, I’m used to giving orders, used to being relied on, even thinking needing others is a sign of weakness."

Li Younan leaned back comfortably in his chair, without a word.

"But on Mount Everest, when you risked your life to pull me back from the edge of death, it was then that I understood that the previous need was a binding of power and responsibility, whereas the need on Mount Everest was the most pure bond between people."