Chapter 5: Bullets with Substance (Part 2)

  Long Bao's laptop was always open, connected to the internet through a dedicated mobile phone, keeping an eye on the changes in global stock markets and crude oil futures, while also maintaining contact with Ali and others at the Chang'an Financial Base. Qian Lao and Xue Zong often called to ask about him, and Hai Tao even came from Shandong specifically to visit Long Bao.

  It's night again, and tomorrow is the day of the operation. Haitao sat on a stool reading a book, Shiwei lay on another bed watching "Kangxi Incognito" with great enthusiasm, commenting excitedly. Qiuya was curled up in her blanket, resting her head on Longbiao's chest, watching Longbiao operate his laptop placed on his legs.

  Haitao finished reading all those newspapers and magazines. He didn't like watching TV, he had never watched much of it anyway. Being disturbed by Shi Wei, he said: "Shi Wei, you little brat, just watch TV quietly, why do you have to make so many expressions and talk nonstop?"

  Shi Wei laughed and said, "Good looking, good looking, this film is not bad, it reflects reality! This Kangxi Emperor, apart from being a bit lecherous, can totally be a qualified **."

  Haitao burst out laughing and said: "Idiot."

  Shi Wei learned to speak Shandong dialect, yelling: "You damn donkey egg Haotai! I have no taste? You bastard, your wife has gone back home, what do you watch at night if not TV? Do you want me to roll my eyes and watch Lao Liu and his wife being affectionate? I don't even have a computer to play with, going out to surf the internet is also not allowed by you. If you continue like this, be careful!"

  Qiu Ya involuntarily tightened her grip on Long Bao's hand and stealthily planted a kiss on his cheek.

  Qiu Ya insisted on sleeping with Long Bao today, no matter what she said, she wouldn't go back. Long Bao didn't know the reason either. Only Shi Wei knew that tomorrow, Jing Er might donate blood to Long Bao again, and Qiu Ya felt a bit unbalanced in her heart.

  Long Bo searched for information on various websites and exchanged opinions with Ali, they all felt that the crude oil futures would continue to rise, there was nothing to worry about.

  Look at the time, it's already 11 o'clock in the middle of the night. Long Bao gently put Qiu Ya, who had fallen asleep in his arms, on the pillow and got up to go to the bathroom. As he came out of the bathroom, Shi Wei mysteriously beckoned him over, and Long Bao walked over.

  "Old Six, the doctor said that the hematoma in your brain is still there, it's best to have surgery as soon as possible. Why are you so determined not to do it?" Shi Wei asked in a low voice.

  Long Bao touched his bald head, looked at Hai Tao and Shi Wei, and said: "Let's talk about it later, now is not the time to move. By the way, I asked you, are Liao Ye and Chang Cheng afraid to come to Zhang Han? Didn't the police ask Liao Ye to return immediately? Also, you must guarantee that Wen Li will not contact the police for the time being, and you must do a good job of communicating with her."

  The school security department, entrusted by the police, called Liao Ye and asked him to return to Changhan City as soon as possible to assist in the investigation of Long Bao's injury case. This made Liao Ye somewhat flustered, especially when he heard from his classmates that Long Bao had already been caught, only to realize: things in the world are not necessarily what one wants them to be, and things are not so easy to control.

  What's wrong?

  Chang Cheng felt even more that his confidence was insufficient, Liao Ye's words made sense. Since Long Bao had been caught, he would definitely reveal Liu Guanghua's affairs. And Liu Guanghua, in order to clear himself of the major hidden plot, would certainly tell the police everything about Liao Ye. This is why the police asked Liao Ye to return and cooperate with the investigation!

  Chang Cheng perhaps was too eager to clear himself, so he said to Liao Ye: "Old Liao, my problem is that one box of tape recordings, but it's something that can't be proven. I've never treated you unfairly, you must control yourself during the police investigation and absolutely cannot mention me, you're so eloquent, this time you'll definitely pass smoothly, I'll think of every way to take care of you outside, how about it?"

  Liao Ye cursed in his heart: "Damn it! You want to wipe your butt clean, no way! If I don't hold onto your weak point, how can I be safe? You've already taken the plunge, as long as I'm in trouble, you'll definitely be in trouble too! Liao Ye's expression was one of solemnity and heroic sacrifice, saying: "Zhang Zong, I may not understand anything else, but I know how to write the two characters for 'brotherhood'! You can rest assured about this, no need to say more! However, if I want to turn disaster into fortune, I'll have to rely on your help!"

  He paused and looked thoughtful, saying: "There's one more thing to remind you, Qiu Ya knows some inside information, I don't know if she'll put the blame on us. You'd better be prepared."

  Chang Cheng heard the sound and slapped his own head, regretfully saying: "I'm really a fool!"

  Liao Yekuan comforted him in a loud voice: "Zong, this was just one of your minor mistakes from before when you were being stubborn. It's nothing, you can put pressure on her through her family and she won't dare to speak out of turn. Besides, this doesn't constitute evidence."

  Chang Cheng thought for a moment, then hastily dialed the number. Liao Ye stopped him again, and Chang Cheng suddenly remembered that he had sent Long Bao several emails before, although he hadn't signed his name, but it was his email address! This, this, this...

  Chang Cheng raised his head with difficulty and said to Liao Ye: "Damn it! I've written a few letters to Long Bao!"

  Liao Ye's face suddenly showed a look of surprise, and he slapped his thigh with his hand, stood up and sat down, stood up and sat down again, with a sincere and anxious concern for his comrades overflowing from his expression.

  Chang Cheng was about to regret it, Liao Ye stared at Chang Cheng tightly and said after a long time: "Director Chang, the Zheng family has fallen, and Zheng Xue is also a serious offender. We no longer have the same concerns about the Zheng family as before. A dead tiger can't bite people! Your family background is so strong, you don't need to be afraid of them. Long Bao is just a rural bumpkin farmer. I think, as long as I grit my teeth and refuse to admit it, the police won't be able to do anything to me. You can still go out and work, we'll be fine!"

  Chang Cheng had already been thoroughly convinced by Liao Ye's words, and he hastily said: "Then what do you want me to do, Old Liao?"

  Liao Ye stopped for a long time before saying, "Alright, I'll go back to Changhan City and consult with my friends who understand the law to see if we really broke the law. After figuring out the situation, I'll report to the school security office. You stay in Shanghai and wait for further news from me. Don't worry, no matter what danger I face, I won't betray you as long as you remember my loyalty."

  Liao Ye intentionally emphasized the word "supply" very heavily, and it often sounded harsh to the ears, but he didn't have time to appreciate the context of this word. He was already moved by Liao Ye's sacrificial spirit and regretted listening to Long Bao's provocation and sabotage in the first place. Now it seems that Liao Ye is indeed the best assistant!

  Liao Ye rushed back to Changhan, but he didn't live in the school, instead, he stayed in a guest house of another school. Chang Cheng gave him 20,000 yuan for expenses. After several days of secret investigation, he found out that Wen Li was indeed with Du Ci and others at the hotel, and Long Bao had already been discharged from the hospital to receive treatment. Later, when he saw Zheng Xue's mother in the hospital, he immediately followed her and found out that Zheng Xue was also staying in this hospital!

  This is a super big deal, often can't help it, had to rush back to Chang Han and further discuss with him.

  No matter how the doctor explained to Longbiao the dangers of cerebral hemorrhage, Longbiao was resolute in his refusal to undergo surgery. Even when his grandfather De and Old Money tried to persuade him over the phone, ordering him to do so, their efforts were all in vain due to Longbiao's stubbornness.

  Removing the steel plate was a minor surgery, Qiu Ya worried and worried, but secretly rejoiced that Jing Er would no longer donate blood to her beloved. Two days after the surgery, although the wound still throbbed with pain, Long Bao insisted on going to the toilet to complete his bowel movement, and no one could stop him.

  Long Bao was leaning on the bed eating the nutritious lunch they had brought, Shi Wei looked at Long Bao's wolfing down and started thinking about teasing him again. He called out in a sad tone: "Peasant! Peasants are peasants after all! Old Six, it seems you're still a peasant at heart! I thought that once you became a multimillionaire, you'd change your rough and unrefined eating habits, and be as elegant and refined as me. But look at you, still eating like a pig!"

  Long Bao didn't bother to argue with him, and continued eating his own food. After finishing three or two mouthfuls, he drank the entire bowl of soup. Qiu Ya asked softly, "Are you full? I'll peel an apple for you, okay?"

  Long Bao put down his lunchbox and smiled at Qiu Ya, saying: "I'm full, but eating an apple won't hurt, trouble you a bit."

  Shi Wei's eyes rolled, and he picked up the conversation, scolding loudly: "Eat, eat, eat! All you know is eating! You eat so much, and then you'll have to crap so much! You're fine, enjoying good food! Don't you know that the delicious food will turn into stinky shit after rolling around in your digestive system?! Are you waiting for a beautiful fairy-like girl to help you deal with that smelly waste?! Eat, eat, all you know is eating!"

  Haitao cursed with a smile: "What's wrong with you? Lao Liu is eating, and you just have to mention that?"

  Long Bao looked at Qiu Ya's blushing face and also chuckled: "Boss, this guy is asking for a beating! He won't behave unless he's beaten up!"

  Haitao was about to attack, Shi Wei bent down and escaped. At this moment, the phone rang. Shi Wei took the opportunity to call a halt, listened for a while, and his face changed. After hanging up the phone, he said quickly: "Damn it! My stomach is telling me that Chang Cheng has found Liao Ye's door, and actually went to the hotel to take Wenli away! Haitao, you come with me to see, Qiu Ya and Zhou Jing will accompany Old Six! Let's go!"

  Liao Ye Chang Zheng and Wen Li sat in the coffee shop on the third floor of the hotel, while Du Ci and Jing Er sat at a neighboring table, openly and brazenly monitoring them.

  Chang Chenglie deliberately ignored it, but was embarrassed by Du Ci's presence and didn't know how to talk to Wenli, so he just chatted casually.

  Du Cui deliberately said loudly to Jing Er: "Jing Er, do you know that some people are not only despicable but also shameless? Their skin is so thick that even a flying hair missile can't penetrate it, and their heart is so bad that even dogs won't eat it!"

  Jing'er smiled and said: "Du Ci sister, come have some tea, it can clear your mind, brighten your eyes and wash your ears."

  Chang Cheng's face was a bit unbearable, and Liao Ye's needle-like eyes stared at them. Du Ci glared and said, "What are you looking at?"

  ……

  Shi Weihai arrived quickly and after greeting Du Cijin and the others, he directly sat down at Liao Ye and Chang Cheng's table.

  The surging tide of emotions was overwhelming, and the irrepressible hatred shot out from the bottom of his eyes, mercilessly shrouding their faces.

  Shi Wei exaggeratedly hugged Liao Ye and shouted in a strange voice: "Yo! Isn't this Second Brother? Long time no see, where did you get rich?"

  Liao Ye's heart was somewhat uneasy, and he tried to remove Shi Wei's hand from his shoulder in a very unnatural way. He twisted his body and laughed awkwardly: "Oh, it's Haitao, Shi Wei, you guys, what a coincidence!"

  Shi Wei laughed pervertedly: "Haha, what a coincidence! We're here specifically to find you. It's been so long since we brothers had a heart-to-heart talk, let's have a good chat, shall we?"

  Chang Cheng had a proud look on his face as he stood up and said to Wen Li, "Wen Li, let's go. I've brought you a set of clothes, go try them on."

  Wen Li didn't react, Shi Wei looked at Chang Cheng's awkward stance and chuckled: "What's the hurry? We're all old friends, sit down and chat, what's the big deal? Who here don't you know? If you don't know them, I'll introduce you on the spot! You're in such a rush to leave, are you trying to avoid me? An? Boss Chang? Is it because you've done something wrong and are afraid to see me and Hai Tian? An?"

  Chang Cheng's heart was shaken, his face turned red and white, and after a while he said: "What a joke, what guilty conscience do I have?"

  Shi Wei pressed down on him, using both hands to push his stiff body back onto the stool, saying: "Haha, it's okay, it's okay, let's just chat and have some fun, relax a bit. Haha!"

  Shi Wei called for two cups of coffee and asked the waiter to fill everyone's cup. He raised his cup with a smile and said, "Come on, let's have a drink first, and then talk about serious things!"

  Haitao deliberately didn't clink glasses with Chang Cheng and Liao Ye who were forced to do so, leaving Chang Cheng and Liao Ye extremely embarrassed.

  Shi Wei's expression turned serious, and he said with a sarcastic smile: "There is a Chinese idiom called 'heart harboring evil intentions'. Haha, I don't know what kind of intentions you two are harboring. As for me, I'm harboring evil intentions. I'd like to ask you two, your good friend Zheng Xue is currently hospitalized, do you dare to go visit him? And Liao Ye, your sworn brother and classmate Long Bao, as well as Chang Lao Ban's former rival in love Long Bao, are also hospitalized. Do you dare to go see them?"

  He was often forced into a corner by Shi Wei's words, leaving him almost no room to retreat. He tried his best to calm himself down and said, "I'm busy today, let's talk another day." With that, he stood up and wanted to leave.

  Haitao's iron-like hand immediately locked onto Changcheng's wrist, his eyes widened and he said in a heavy tone: "What are you waiting for? It's better to take advantage of the situation than to wait for an opportunity! Let's go now!"

  Shi Wei also stood up and said in a strange tone: "Yes, Old Chang, you should show some revolutionary brotherly love! Although you are from the upper class, they may be criminals, but after all, they are your class brothers! You can't learn from those heartless opportunists!"

  Under Shi Wei's arrangement, Zheng Xue had already learned about some of the situation from Liu Guanghua. Looking at Liu Guanghua swearing and even taking out the portable CD player given to him by Liao Ye as evidence, Zheng Xue recalled and thought for a moment before believing it.

  Now he watched as Chang Cheng and Liao Ye asked him how he was doing in front of him with false pretenses, the anger in his heart almost uncontrollable! Zheng Xue wasn't a stupid pig without a brain, he tried to express his doubts, forcing a smile: "Really long time no see, you guys are still so elegant and refined! Unfortunately, I only stayed in Shanghai for a few hours and was caught by the police before I could see you!"

  "Alas, it's really fate playing tricks on me! At that time, I was accompanying my father to discuss business with Japanese guests and couldn't leave, so I arranged for Liao Ye to pick you up!"

  Liao Ye's face turned red with embarrassment as he quickly explained: "Zheng Xue, I'm really sorry. The deputy general manager suddenly asked me to do something very important at the time, and after I finished, I rushed over, but didn't see you there. I called your phone, but it was turned off, so I thought you had left!"

  Zheng Xue chuckled and said: "Liao brother, you called me? How come I didn't hear it? I remember the police didn't take away my phone at that time?"

  Liao Ye secretly felt annoyed at his own cleverness and muttered: "Yes, yes, I found you after a long time before making the call."

  Zheng Xue was 99% sure that this was the one they reported to the police, because the police would never turn off their own phone! An open phone has many clues, and at the time, the police asked him about the origin of all the calls made from that mobile phone.

  Chang Cheng is fed up with Liao Ye's stupid words! He remembered that the police had called to ask if Zheng Xue was in contact with him, and he frankly admitted it, telling the police that he would not help criminals, so he pushed away Zheng Xue. How can Liao Ye be so foolish?!

  Zheng Xue called out to greet Hai Tao and Shi Wei after they sat down, then asked: "Chang Ge, Liao Ge, when did you know I was caught? We're the best of brothers, why didn't you come see me? I wrote letters to you, but you didn't even respond?"

  Chang Cheng and Liao Ye exchanged a glance, and Liao Ye, facing Zheng Xue's pressing questions, could only reply: "Hey, you wrote us a letter? How come we didn't receive it? We just found out what happened to you a few days ago. Chang Ge even discussed with me that after finishing our internship, we would come visit you! Was the letter detained by the police or lost on the way?"

  Zheng Xue muttered angrily in his heart: "Damn your mother! Lose your mother's hole! **His mother! Wait for me to ask Wen Li again, and I can confirm whether it was them who designed the trap for me!"

  Liao Ye and Chang Cheng finally bid farewell to Zheng Xue in a polite manner, and Shi Wei dragged them to Long Bao's ward again.

  Long Bao was completely at ease with a warm and enthusiastic welcome, chatting politely, but Qiu Ya had an expression of utter disgust on her face. If Long Bao hadn't previously warned her to behave herself, she would have stabbed them with the small knife in her hand that she used to peel apples!

  After Chang Cheng Lie's words of consolation were finished and he hastily left, Shi Wei began to vent his dissatisfaction towards Long Bao. He looked at Long Bao with disdain, who was still maintaining a smiling expression, and sarcastically said: "How is it? Are you very moved? Ah?! Do you want to continue chatting with them about classmate friendship? Old Six?! I really didn't expect you to be so cowardly! Why didn't you scold them until they were covered in dog blood? I racked my brains and wasted countless brain cells to trick them into coming here, but you just let them off so easily!"

  Long Bao's face was still smiling calmly, Shi Wei was even more furious: "Still smiling, smile your **! I'm going to..."

  Long Bao let out a light sigh and said: "Third Brother, don't be angry. First tell me what's going on with them at Zheng Xue's place? What was Zheng Xue's reaction?"

  Long Wan followed the lawyer's instructions and did not meet or contact anyone related to the case before the trial, so as not to raise suspicions of collusion and undermine judicial fairness. Therefore, even if Liu Guanghua and Wen Li wanted to visit him to express their apologies in person, he politely declined. Even when Zheng Xue wanted to see him that night, he was also refused.

  Although Wanli was extremely unwilling to see this guy who had caused her great harm, she still insisted on meeting with Zheng Xue and told him what Liao Ye had done to her at the time. Zheng Xue finally believed that it was indeed a carefully set trap by Liao Ye.

  Then Zheng Xue and Long Bao had a secret conversation on the computer, and the two reached some consensus, agreeing to conditionally resolve this feud. Zheng Xue agreed to undergo disability assessment, accepting whatever they did with his hands and feet, and also agreed to the arrangement of his confession, on the condition that he would receive 100,000 yuan in compensation for physical and mental damages, with 50,000 paid first, and another 50,000 after the court's judgment on Long Bao.

  Everyone thinks that things are almost done, and they just wait for Zhou to report the results of the business talks. In order to really move Zheng Xue, financial compensation is necessary. Zheng Xue has a weakness for wealth, this is called "targeted treatment"!

  A big-name lawyer immediately arranged for the police to take Zheng Xue's statement again and conduct another forensic examination of his injuries, and Zheng Xue cooperated.

  Just as Liao Ye and Chang were worried about this matter, Zheng Xue came to the door. He said straightforwardly that he had already learned about all of this through various channels, and it was their conspiracy. Zheng Xue was a prisoner anyway, and he didn't care if he broke the jar. If everyone wanted to live a good life, they had to agree to his two demands: First, Chang Cheng Liao Ye had to pay him 100,000 yuan to compensate for the harm caused by this mastermind's frame-up, and he would not take revenge on them. Second, they had to pay another 50,000 yuan to make up for the ingratitude in Shanghai. If they didn't agree, he would immediately report the incident of hiring a thug to beat Long Bao to the police, and also ask the police to investigate their responsibility in this case! He wanted to use this money to wash away his sins. If they didn't give it to him, Zheng Xue didn't care about having one more crime, anyway, he was already in prison!

  Always regretful, but this can't be helped. Zheng Xue is not a dead tiger, it's actually a wolf in sheep's clothing! After much ado, the price was finally negotiated to 100,000.

  Liao Ye-qiang calmly accepted the police's inquiry, and the police didn't mention anything about the recording tape or bribing Liu Guanghua. They only asked him to describe the scene at that time, so he naturally used the excuse of accidentally bumping into them to get away with it.

  Although the testimonies of these witnesses were inconsistent with previous interrogation records, the police still decided to announce the end of the investigation and formally transfer the case to the procuratorate for review and prosecution.

  It was a coincidental day, on March 20, 2003 Beijing time, which was the same day when the US-Iraq war broke out and also the day when Long Zhen's intentional injury case started its trial.