Chapter 14

The night grew deeper, and at some point, it started to rain. The rain awakened many insects and frogs by the Ping River that had already fallen asleep. Their chorus filled the night sky. Are you still young or already aging? The changing times cannot erase your appearance, nor can they mask your indifference. Looking up at you, between the lofty clouds, you don’t allow even a trace of starlight to pass.

The entire world slept like this, waiting for dawn to prick their sleepy eyes.

In the middle of the night, the May air was still a bit chilly. Mingzi took off the only white shirt he was wearing and approached Zina to drape it over her.

“I’m fine, brother. You wear it, or you’ll catch a cold,” Zina said, pushing the shirt back into Mingzi’s arms.

“I’m fine, I’m just feeling stifled. It’s too hot with the shirt on…”

“You put it on, I’m really okay,” Zina interjected, propping her elbows on her legs, resting her chin in her hand, eyes fixed on the wall opposite.

Mingzi looked at Zina, her eyes carrying a hint of fatigue and a burden of pain, and said nothing more. He put the shirt back on and walked out of the corridor.

Yixuan watched as Mingzi turned into another corridor and then glanced at Zina, feeling her heart fill with a chill. Yixuan gently stroked Zina’s hair and said, “Zina, don’t worry. Ye Chen will be fine. Everything will pass, okay?”

Zina looked up at Yixuan, pressed her lips together, and nodded slightly, then returned to her original posture.

“Captain, I’ve copied the footage,” Xiao Li said, entering the meeting room at Shengze College and approaching the fat policeman.

“Quick, let’s see it!” The fat policeman said urgently.

“Okay, just a moment,” Xiao Li replied, taking a laptop out of his bag and opening it on the table. The fat policeman and a few others stared at the screen until the footage showed over a dozen cars parked on Municipal Road 670, near the gate of Shengze College. The fat policeman quickly shouted, “Stop!” and Xiao Yang paused the playback.

“Why can’t we see the license plates on these cars?… Looks like they’re pros,” the fat policeman said, leaning closer to the laptop screen, and then sat back down.

“Wait!” Xiao Yang zoomed in on the footage, but they still couldn’t see the license plates on any of the cars.

“Did any of you catch their license plates?” the fat policeman shouted to the crowd.

The crowd exchanged glances, but no one spoke up in the end.

“Continue playing,” the fat policeman said with a frown.

“Strange… rewind it!” The fat policeman watched the footage with a look of confusion, then suddenly shouted as if he saw something.

“Uncle Xiao… we’re not going to… get caught, are we?” Fu Lei asked from his hospital bed, with a layer of gauze wrapped between his nose and eyebrows, covering both his eyes.

“Don’t worry, you’ll be fine.”

“Third young master, was it the second miss who bought your Audi sports car?” Xiao Se turned to Fu Cheng and asked.

“Yes, she did.”

“That’s good then.”

“Why, Uncle Xiao?”

“The numbers on your license plate are too conspicuous. Someone is bound to remember them.”

“What… what should we do?”

“Since the second miss bought it, just have someone drive it over to her place.”

“Xiao Li, zoom in and look at that little white car across the street!” the fat policeman said, leaning forward to the computer screen.

“Captain, the license plate number is Ling A88888,” Xiao Li reported, though the fat policeman had already noticed it.

“Quickly contact the Department of Transportation, find out who the owner is!” the fat policeman instructed Xiao Li.

Xiao Li got up, left the meeting room to call the Department of Transportation, and then returned to the fat policeman, saying, “Captain, the car belongs to Jin Long.”

“Jin Long?” The fat policeman seemed somewhat familiar with the name.

“That’s Jin Long, the young master of Jin’s Enterprises,” the black-faced police officer behind him responded.

“But… this doesn’t prove anything. He just parked the car for a bit, didn’t do anything wrong. We can’t consider him a suspect, can we?”

“You don’t know anything!” the fat policeman snapped at Xiao Li, clearly in a foul mood. After a moment, he stood up and headed toward the meeting room door.

“All of you, go get some rest!” the fat policeman suddenly turned around and commanded.

The meeting room buzzed with chatter upon hearing this order-no one expected the fat policeman to issue such an absurd command.

“Captain?…” The black-faced police officer quickly approached the fat policeman.

“It’s… it’s for the sake of the kids,” the fat policeman said helplessly, looking at the black-faced officer.

“Let’s go visit the Armed Police Hospital,” the fat policeman continued.

“You fat old fool! I think you’re losing your mind!” Xiao Li muttered after a long while, not knowing how to vent his frustration. Being berated with “You don’t know anything!” over a question had clearly gotten to him.

“Oh dear! Captain Wu, you see, I just returned from a business trip to Greece, and this incident at the college had to happen at this moment. But don’t worry, Captain Wu, I’ll cover all the medical expenses for the injured students myself-not just me, personally!” said a woman in her thirties. She had shoulder-length grape-purple hair that reflected the light in the dark night, making her fair skin stand out even more. Under her thick eyebrows were eyes that sparkled with a lively spirit. She wore a loose white top, maroon leggings, and white high-heeled shoes with thin, sharp heels. At a glance, her long legs were undeniably attractive. In the darkness, it was uncertain if her slender figure was frail.

“Good evening, Madam President. No problem, everything’s fine… rest assured, I’ve taken care of the kids. They’re all at the Armed Police Hospital, and I’m heading over there right now to see them…” The fat policeman’s eyes lit up upon seeing her, slightly losing his composure.

“…Come, let’s take my car…”

“This is…”

“Come on, come on…” Madam President gently tugged the fat policeman, and he couldn’t help but follow.

“Mr. Xing, to the Armed Police Hospital.”

In the night, a red Cadillac drove out of Shengze’s gate, heading straight for the Armed Police Hospital.

“Captain Wu, have you found out who was involved in the fight with our college students?” Madam President asked from the passenger seat, glancing at the fat policeman in the rearview mirror.

“Oh, not yet, but we’re close. However, I feel it’s best not to investigate further. It’s not about shirking responsibility for the kids, but I suspect the people causing the trouble have powerful backing. If we dig deeper, the outcome might be beyond our control,” the fat policeman quickly replied, as if reporting to his superior. Do all men lose their composure around beautiful women?

“Oh… well, Captain Wu, you do whatever you think is best,” Madam President replied with a charming smile, turning her head slightly. The fat policeman nodded with eyes brimming with cheer, before the black-faced police officer sitting next to him elbowed him back to composure.

“Captain Wu, this incident… it hasn’t blown up too much, has it?” Madam President seemed to dread hearing the phrase “blown up.”

“Oh, a student got hit by three shots.”

“What? Three shots? How…”

“It was a shotgun.”

“A shotgun… isn’t that still a gun?”

Upon hearing Madam President’s surprise, the fat policeman said nothing more, and Madam President didn’t ask further questions.

“By the way, Mr. Xing, have you taken care of everything I asked you to?” After a while, Madam President slowly asked Mr. Xing.

“Rest assured, Madam, everything is done.”

“Mr. Xing, please drive a bit faster,” Madam President instructed, and Mr. Xing stepped on the gas pedal.

“Hello, is this Ms. Qu?”

“Ah, Madam President has arrived! Don’t worry, we’ve used the best medication, the best equipment, and the best medical staff for your students, and they are staying in the best ward!” replied a woman on the other end of the call. It seemed she already knew what the caller was going to ask.

“Alright, thank you, Ms. Qu!”

“The student who was hit by the three shots, which ward is he in?”

“Oh, the student named Ye Chen is still in the emergency room in Building A.”

“How is he doing now?”

“He won’t regain consciousness until tomorrow morning, approximately around ten o’clock, maybe a bit later,” responded the person on the other end, showing great respect for the President of Shengze College.

“…Oh, Building A, got it. I’ll hang up now,” Madam President said, momentarily distracted.

“Building A, it’s over there,” the fat policeman pointed towards the illuminated sign labeled “Building A.”

Madam President briskly walked towards Building A.

The sleepy Mingzi, Cai Erman, Zina, and Yixuan turned their heads toward the end of the corridor upon hearing hurried footsteps.

“Madam President?…” Cai Erman, Mingzi, Zina, and Xiang Tengfei exclaimed in unison.

“Where’s Ye Chen? How is he?” Madam President hurriedly asked.

“The doctor said he won’t wake up until tomorrow morning, and we can’t see him yet,” Mingzi stepped forward to answer Madam President.

“Are you all okay?” Madam President looked at Mingzi, then at Cai Erman, Xiang Tengfei, and Zina and Yixuan, who were sitting on a bench.

Zina was startled at first, then stood up and said, “We’re all fine.” As she spoke, Yixuan also stood up with her.

“And who is she?” Madam President asked after carefully observing Yixuan.

“She’s our friend.”

“Oh… Right, I’m their friend, Madam President. Hello!”

“Hello!”

Three stunning beauties standing in such a corridor really made it a sight to behold! One wore a light yellow top, delicate and pretty; another wore red, soft and emotional; the third, in a casual yet elegant white long shirt-what a visual treat for the men present!

Madam President took another look at Yixuan, apparently having never seen such a beautiful woman. She then glanced at Xiang Tengfei with a puzzled expression. As she was about to speak, Cai Erman said, “He’s Xiang Tengfei.”

“Hello, Madam President.”

“Ah!… Well, Xiang Tengfei, you look quite pretty in women’s clothing,” Madam President commented after looking at Yixuan once more. “Alright, let me take you to get something to eat. Waiting here won’t do any good.”

The group followed Madam President out of Building A. She first instructed Mr. Xing to take Yixuan, Zina, Mingzi, Cai Erman, and Xiang Tengfei to Mingdu Grand Hotel, and then return for her, the fat policeman, and the black-faced police officer. By this time, dawn was breaking.

Madam President glanced at her watch; it was already past five in the morning.

During breakfast, she looked at her watch three times, indicating she had other urgent matters to attend to during this visit.

By the time they finished eating, it was 7:05.

Madam President said, “I have to attend an auction at eight o’clock, and it seems I don’t have time to call my assistant. Could one of you come with me to help carry some documents?”

The group exchanged glances but didn’t respond. Madam President looked at Yixuan and said, “Will you come with me?”

“I… Alright,” Yixuan replied. She wanted to visit Ye Chen, but since Madam President had asked, she didn’t want to turn her down and agreed.

“Captain Wu, could you please take them back? I’m really pressed for time,” Madam President said while checking her watch again.

“No problem… no problem at all, don’t worry,” the fat policeman assured her repeatedly.

“Today, the Xiazhe District Government in Hailing City is auctioning Plot No. 3 in Zihu Town, Xingya. The area covers 33,350 square meters, available for developers to construct residential or commercial properties, with a lease term of 70 years. The starting bid is 100 million RMB, with a minimum increment of 5 million RMB. Now I declare the auction for Plot No. 3 in Zihu Town, Xiazhe District, officially open for bidding!” announced the auctioneer at Manniu Auction Hall, where hundreds had gathered to bid on 21 plots of land. Among the bidders were Jin Long, the young master of Jin’s Enterprises, sitting next to the second miss of Juliang Group, Ji Xianting, with Xiao Se from Fuyou Real Estate behind Jin Long. It seemed likely some bidders might collaborate during this auction.