Chapter 103
Chapter 103
In the afternoon, Song Xiaotian went to investigate the people on the list.
Meng Yifan and I headed back to the office.
Today, a “distinguished guest” had arrived at the shop.
Meng Yifan and I never would have imagined that he would actually track us down here.
When he walked through the door, Meng Yifan and I even pulled out our phones, ready to call Song Xiaotian.
“President Du, are you here to finish us off?”
Meng Yifan’s expression was grim. “Actually, you don’t need to go that far. My shop is already on the verge of bankruptcy.”
“If you want to target someone, target Chen Mo and me. Don’t drag the rest of my staff into this.”
The man who had arrived was none other than Du Ruhai.
A piece of gauze was wrapped around his forehead, likely from the injury he sustained at the Club that night.
Meng Yifan had already sent Xie Peng and the others away, so only the three of us remained in the shop.
Du Ruhai sat down on the sofa as if he owned the place, staring at us with a blank expression that made me feel awkward whether I stood or sat.
After a long silence, he suddenly let out a laugh. “The assets under my name could buy ten thousand shops like yours. Do you have any idea what that means?”
Meng Yifan replied, “President Du certainly has a refined sense of humor, coming all this way just to flaunt his wealth. We’re just poor bastards; we have no concept of billions in assets, nor have we ever seen that kind of money.”
Du Ruhai smiled. “I can give you the opportunity to see it.”
The more I heard, the more uneasy I felt.
What did he want from us?
“President Du, just say it. Why did you come here? What do you want?” Meng Yifan asked directly.
“To make a deal with you.” Du Ruhai stopped beating around the bush. He lit a cigar and said with an air of superiority, “I know your shop is caught up in a lawsuit and is about to go under. But if I, Du Ruhai, want it to live, it will live. I can make it the rising star of the industry by tomorrow. Every other brand would have to bow down to you.”
It was an arrogant claim.
But we knew he wasn’t bluffing.
“Furthermore, I’ve already found out who killed Fang Man. I have evidence proving that he bribed the driver to run her over.”
Du Ruhai smiled. “Are these two chips heavy enough for you?”
To be honest, they were. Either one of them carried immense weight.
Who doesn’t like money? Not to mention, the thing we wanted to know most right now was exactly who had killed Fang Man.
But Meng Yifan didn’t hesitate for a second. He shook his head flatly. “I’m sorry, but our lives are cheap. We can’t afford to climb your high branch. I’m afraid we’d have the money but no life left to spend it.”
I quickly pulled him back. Feeling curious, I asked Du Ruhai, “What do you want us to do? I don’t understand what value we could possibly provide to you.”
“Oh, you certainly can.” Du Ruhai sat up straight and said seriously, “Tell me where she is.”
I understood immediately what he was asking.
But I continued to play dumb. “Who are you talking about?”
He said, “Du Yuwei.”
I shook my head. “You’re asking the wrong person. I don’t know where she is.”
“You’re lying.” Du Ruhai stood up and walked over to me, leaning in to sniff me.
I cursed the pervert in my head. If I weren’t afraid to lay a hand on him, I would have beaten this old geezer to death.
“You have her scent on you. You’ve been in contact with her.”
Du Ruhai stared intently at me. “Even if you don’t know where she is, tell me some clues. My chips will still be valid for you.”
His obsession with Du Yuwei was truly appalling.
I still shook my head. “You think too highly of us. We only ended up in this mess because she haunted us. It’s perfectly normal for me to have her scent on me.”
“Boss Du, you’re so rich, you could have any woman you want. Stop committing so many sins.”
He spoke with deep meaning: “Ever since you started getting help from that girl Yujiao, you’ve become increasingly arrogant. Did you think that just because you have a ghost protecting you, I wouldn’t be able to do anything?”
My heart began to race.
Yujiao was Li Xiumei’s former name.
“So you admit you’re Lv Zhengxian?”
“Suppose I do admit it. What then? What can you possibly do to me?”
Du Ruhai let out a cold laugh. “Even if I stood in a court of law and confessed, which law states how many years someone should be sentenced to for Soul Seizure?”
“Tomorrow, I’m going back to Lvjiagou to visit my relatives in the Lv family. What can you do about that?”
I was left speechless, forced to let him have his moment of arrogance.
After finishing his piece, he patted Meng Yifan on the shoulder. “Find a new line of work, kid.”
Leaving behind those parting threats, he walked away.
Meng Yifan looked at me. “What did he mean by that?”
I sighed. “We’re in deep trouble…”
…
That night.
We met Song Xiaotian at a barbecue stall.
He arrived first and had actually ordered a whole crate of beer.
I thought he was in a bad mood and looking to drown his sorrows because he had been kicked out of the Police Force.
But that didn’t seem to be the case.
“Brother Tian, did you find anything? Did anyone on that list withdraw cash?” Meng Yifan asked.
Song Xiaotian shook his head. “No one withdrew any money.”
I was stunned.
The people on that list were all individuals I had carefully screened; they were the most suspicious ones.
“Could it be that the ten thousand yuan wasn’t a recent withdrawal?”
Even if they hadn’t found a withdrawal record, it didn’t necessarily clear the people on the list of suspicion.
Song Xiaotian smiled. “It’s not something that can be solved in a heartbeat. Don’t worry, we’ll find out sooner or later.”
“Let’s not talk about that today. Let’s just drink, talk about life, and talk about the future.”
I joked, “My life is like a salted fish-not much to talk about. Brother Tian, if you’re feeling down, then we’ll just drink.”
Song Xiaotian sighed. “Yeah, being kicked out… it really doesn’t feel good. Being fired by a bunch of bastards feels like someone pelted me with shit. But like my dad says, life is about experiences. We think things are miserable now, but the future might be even worse. So, this little setback is no big deal.”
“It’s the same for you guys. Everyone is having a hard time, but the future might be even tougher. There might even be things happening that you’ll find even harder to accept. I just hope that when those things happen, you’ll be able to face them bravely.”
Song Xiaotian’s words made both Meng Yifan and me a bit nervous. His tone made it sound as if some major catastrophe was about to strike.
“Brother Tian, you’re not about to die, are you…?” I asked.
“Heh, I won’t die even if you do.” He shook his head, surprisingly not cursing at me. “Forget it, let’s drink.”
That night, the three of us drank until the world spun, polishing off nearly two crates of beer.
Normally, Meng Yifan and I were tired of drinking because we had to do it so often for business socializing, but tonight, the drinking felt cathartic.
Meng Yifan had gotten into a fight with his girlfriend and didn’t want to go home.
Song Xiaotian didn’t have a place to stay for the moment either.
So, the three of us stumbled back to my rental apartment, arms draped over each other’s shoulders.
They took the bedroom, and I slept in the living room.
I was incredibly drunk that night. Usually, when I’m that wasted, not even a bursting bladder can wake me up.
But at some point in the middle of the night, a persistent “drip-drop, drip-drop” sound-like water from a pipe hitting a bucket-kept echoing in my ears until it forced me awake.
I opened my eyes to find a person standing right in front of me, looking down at me.
His face was a pale, grayish-white. Droplets of water from his hair were dripping onto the floor with that rhythmic sound.
I locked eyes with him for a long time before I finally recognized him. It was Wang Shujun, the man who had died long ago.