Chapter 51
Chapter 51
“Brother Tian, I can’t go to prison.”
“If I go to prison, Du Ruhai will definitely have me killed!”
At this moment, I was already at a loss.
With Du Ruhai’s power, I would surely die if I ended up in jail, and no one would even seek justice for me.
That place was no place for a human being.
Song Xiaotian was also in a difficult position; his capabilities were limited after all.
“Look over there.”
He suddenly pointed ahead. “They’re checking IDs over there. I suspect the police are looking for you. Du Ruhai already knows you went to Qindao.”
I looked over and saw a large crowd of people lining up to have their IDs checked.
“Brother Tian, am I definitely going to prison…?”
“Damn it!”
Song Xiaotian shook his head. “If we hadn’t spent these last two days together, I really wouldn’t be able to help you. But now, I can’t just watch you get arrested. Let me think of something. I’ll get you out of here first, and we’ll figure out the rest later.”
With that, he took out his phone and made a call.
Once the call connected, he said to the person on the other end, “Xiao Hai, I’m on the third floor of the airport. I haven’t left yet. Bring two sets of your work uniforms and come find me.”
About ten minutes later, a young man in his twenties walked toward us.
He was carrying a black bag.
“Brother Tian!”
The newcomer was Xiao Hai. He walked over and pulled us to a secluded spot before asking, “What’s going on? I brought the uniforms, but what are you planning to do?”
Song Xiaotian said to him, “Find a way to get me and my friend out of the airport. The police are checking IDs, and my friend can’t be caught by them.”
Xiao Hai glanced at me, looking somewhat startled.
He surely assumed I had committed a crime if I was afraid of a police ID check.
Song Xiaotian quickly added, “My friend hasn’t done anything wrong. He’s not a bad person.”
Xiao Hai replied, “No need to explain. I trust you, Brother Tian. I’d be more than happy to help you. Hurry to the restroom and change. I’ll take you out through the staff passage in a bit.”
He handed us the black bag.
We hurried to find a restroom.
“Brother Tian, why is this Xiao Hai willing to help us? Isn’t he afraid of getting dragged into this?” I couldn’t help but ask Song Xiaotian.
Song Xiaotian said, “His family’s home was forcibly demolished years ago, and the whole family was beaten. His father couldn’t take the injustice, picked up a brick, and accidentally killed someone. I was the one who handled that case.”
I froze for a moment. “Then shouldn’t he hate you…?”
Song Xiaotian replied, “I secretly wiped the fingerprints off the brick. His father didn’t go to prison…”
“Holy crap! That’s incredible!”
Once we reached the restroom, the two of us quickly changed our clothes.
I was incredibly nervous, fearing that I would be caught by the police before I could even make it out of the airport.
Fortunately, with Xiao Hai’s help and the fact that the police weren’t checking IDs at the staff passage-nor would they suspect anyone in an airport work uniform-we made it through.
Song Xiaotian and I successfully walked out of the airport terminal and then went to a restroom outside to change back into our own clothes.
“Brother, thank you so much.”
I shook Xiao Hai’s hand, feeling deeply grateful. “I’m not a bad person, and I haven’t done anything wrong. If anything happens in the future, I definitely won’t name you.”
Xiao Hai was a cheerful young man. He grinned and said, “A friend of Brother Tian couldn’t be a bad person. It’s fine. Good luck. I need to get back to work so no one gets suspicious.”
Song Xiaotian said, “Get back to it. Thanks, Xiao Hai.”
After Xiao Hai left, Song Xiaotian made another call, asking someone to come pick us up.
I asked him where we were going now. He said we were going to a safe place to hide so the police wouldn’t find us.
For the time being, getting Meng Yifan out was off the table; I had to make sure I didn’t end up behind bars myself first.
I had assumed the safe place he mentioned would be his home or a rented apartment, but I never expected it to be a massive nightclub.
As soon as we walked in, a crowd of people started greeting him as Brother Tian.
Anyone who saw Song Xiaotian addressed him as “Brother” with the utmost respect.
I was completely stunned.
“Go back to whatever you were doing. Don’t worry about us.”
Song Xiaotian dismissed the crowd and led me to a room inside the club.
The room wasn’t large, containing only a bunk bed. It looked like a staff dormitory and was very well soundproofed.
Once we were inside, I couldn’t help but ask Song Xiaotian what his deal was with this place.
I had been to this nightclub before. It was quite famous, and rumor had it that the owner was a big shot in the underworld who carried a lot of weight locally.
“I have a fifty percent stake in this place.”
Song Xiaotian pulled out a cigarette and took a couple of puffs. “The owner and I are sworn brothers.”
I was shocked.
He owned more than half of this club… and here I was, actually feeling sorry for him because he’d been kicked off the Police Force and had no income…
The man was way richer than me. I was the one who deserved pity.
After resting for a bit, I started getting restless.
Seventh Master had already sold me out, and the police were looking for me. My options moving forward were to either become a fugitive or turn myself in… I couldn’t hide here forever.
“Brother Tian, what should I do?”
“Maybe I should just turn myself in. I only stole two Ashes Urns; it’s not like they’d give me a heavy sentence, right? If I hire a good lawyer, maybe I can get a suspended sentence…”
Song Xiaotian laughed when he heard that.
“As long as you committed the act of theft, a suspended sentence is out of the question. Besides, once you’re in prison, Du Ruhai has plenty of ways to deal with you.”
I gnashed my teeth in rage, cursing Seventh Master’s entire ancestry.
I never would have dreamed that he would betray me.
He had given me the impression of a decent, kind-hearted elder.
I had trusted him so damn much, and in return, he’d handed me a brutal life lesson.
Trust between people was so goddamn fragile.
“You’re still too naive. That Old Man has no relation to you or your friend. The fact that he was not only eager to help but even accompanied you on a dangerous mission was a red flag in itself.”
Song Xiaotian kept his cigarette in his mouth as he analyzed Seventh Master’s behavior for me. “Since your visit to the villa that night was a last-minute decision, why were there so many security guards lying in wait? There had to be a mole among the three of you who leaked the information in advance.”
“Then there’s the fact that he was arrested and released the very next day. In a case like this, unless someone was protecting him, there’s no way he would’ve gotten out that fast. And whoever protected him must be someone with immense local influence.”
“If you ask me, he was Du Ruhai’s man from the start. That Old Man is definitely in league with Du Ruhai.”
Listening to Song Xiaotian’s analysis, my blood began to boil.
I couldn’t figure out before why those guards seemed to be waiting there in an organized ambush. I had suspected Seventh Master at the time, but I quickly dismissed the thought because I felt he would never betray us.
Goddammit, how could I be so gullible!
“No wonder I always felt like he’d been to that villa before; he was so familiar with the layout,” I said. “It’s because he knows Du Ruhai and has been to his house more than once!”
Song Xiaotian chuckled and patted my shoulder. “Then congratulations. You and your friend were played by that Old Man from the very beginning. He’s been messing with you all along.”