Chapter 10: Breaking the Deadlock

The next morning, when Ye Yinyin saw Zhou Mo in class, her first reaction was to be startled.

She quickly clutched her bag, sat down in the seat beside Zhou Mo, and whispered, “Momo?”

Wearing a mask, Zhou Mo said softly, “It’s me. Yinyin, could you do me a favor? I want to meet with Han Yu. There’s something I want to ask him.”

Ye Yinyin nodded hastily, grabbing Zhou Mo’s hand and asking with concern, “Momo, did something happen?”

“My mom found out about He Chong and me. She hired people to monitor me.”

Ye Yinyin almost shrieked out loud. “No way!”

“So I haven’t been able to see He Chong lately. Tomorrow afternoon, I’m going to the department studio to paint. Bring Han Yu to the tea room in the department office building, and I’ll wait for him there.”

“What about He Chong? Can’t he just come to school?”

Zhou Mo shook her head. Holding Ye Yinyin’s hand, she walked over to the classroom window and pointed to a man crouching on the lawn across the way, keeping a close eye on the back door of the classroom. “That’s someone my mom hired to watch me. He’s not the only one. There are at least three of them. As long as He Chong enters the same building as me, they’ll report it to my mom right away.”

Ye Yinyin found it utterly absurd. “You’re her daughter! Why is she acting like she’s spying on a secret agent?”

Zhou Mo gave a bitter smile.

The two returned to their seats, and Ye Yinyin asked, “Do you plan to keep going on like this?”

“For now, I’ll just go along with my mom. Once she lowers her guard after a while, I’ll figure out what to do.”

“What about phone calls? Can’t you make those either?”

Zhou Mo fell silent for a moment. “The moment I hear his voice, I’ll start depending on him. But no one can resolve this issue except me.”

Ye Yinyin felt a rush of mixed emotions. “Then do you want me to pass along a message to him?”

Zhou Mo pondered for a moment, then suddenly pulled a sketchbook out of her bag, flipped to a blank page, scribbled down two words, closed the book, and handed it to Ye Yinyin. “Please give this to him.”

A sense of justice surged within Ye Yinyin. She took the sketchbook and tucked it away carefully. “Don’t worry, I’ll definitely help you two.”

A wave of warmth filled Zhou Mo’s heart.

A moment later, she remembered something else and quickly added, “Yinyin, please don’t take the things my mom said to you to heart. That was absolutely not what I meant.”

Ye Yinyin waved her hand. “I never took it to heart. I’m friends with you, not your mom.”

Zhou Mo smiled, then suddenly leaned over and hugged Ye Yinyin.

Ye Yinyin was practically flattered beyond belief. “Oh my, Momo, I can’t handle this much affection!”

After Ye Yinyin passed along the message, Han Yu arrived punctually for the meeting the following afternoon.

The department office’s tea room was quiet and peaceful. Students often came here to study or brainstorm, and today was no exception. Zhou Mo and Han Yu sat in a corner of the tea room, unlikely to be disturbed.

Zhou Mo didn’t have much time, so she cut straight to the chase: “Boss Han, I want to ask you: did He Chong date a wealthy young lady named Qin before?”

“Well…” Han Yu suddenly began hesitating. “Maybe you should ask He Chong about this yourself…”

Zhou Mo shook her head. “I can’t see him right now. I don’t mean anything bad by it, I just want to understand what happened. My mother said He Chong used that relationship as a stepping stone to achieve success later on, but I don’t believe he’s that kind of person.”

Han Yu let out a cold sneer. “These days, those rich people think nothing of openly calling a deer a horse^[1] and turning black into white. Was Old He not ruined badly enough by that woman named Qin back then?”

Zhou Mo froze.

Han Yu glanced at her. “Did you know Old He was in a car accident before?”

“Yes, he told me.”

“Did he ever tell you why the accident happened?”

“He said it was an accident…”

“Of course it wasn’t an accident,” Han Yu interrupted her. “Back then, members of the Qin Family approached He Chong multiple times, warning him never to see Qin Xi again. You know Old He’s personality: once he sets his mind on something, he won’t turn back even if he hits a brick wall. So the Qin Family wanted to teach him a lesson. They bribed someone on his racing team to tamper with his car.”

Zhou Mo gasped.

“After the accident, that young lady of the Qin Family didn’t even show her face, and the relationship just fizzled out into a breakup. A couple of years ago, I think she married a Canadian.” Han Yu spoke with deep indignation. “Old He is an honest, decent man who rarely speaks ill of others behind their backs. If he didn’t tell you about him and Qin Xi, he naturally had his reasons. But I really didn’t expect that just because Old He kept quiet, someone would be so eager to splash mud on him.”

Zhou Mo felt deeply pained listening to this, yet she also felt relieved that she had ultimately chosen to believe in He Chong.

To her, He Chong would always be that uninvited guest who arrived at the funeral in the rain and mist with a bouquet of red roses, striking deep into her heart with a romance that was unreasonably, inconveniently bold.

If believing in him too blindly was a form of naivety, then she was more than willing to pay the price for her naivety.

Han Yu continued, “I’m not saying this to target you, but in truth, I’ve never really approved of you and He Chong. He’s already fallen hard at the hands of a rich girl once, so why suffer through it again? People need to know their own limits. You can’t just pretend the gap between the two of you doesn’t exist and expect it to magically disappear. He Chong even told me before that sometimes he really feels like he’s reaching above his station. He wants to give you the best, but often finds that he has nothing at all to offer.”

Zhou Mo’s eyes welled with tears. “What he’s given me is already the best.”

Han Yu glanced at her, realizing his words had been a bit harsh. Zhou Mo looked haggard, clearly suffering deeply from all of this as well. Since she had taken the initiative to come to him to find out the truth, it proved she was definitely not like Qin Xi. There was no need for him to be so aggressive.

“Old He treats you impeccably, though. He offended Sun Qi, and his uncle’s garment factory ran into trouble, both urgent, burning messes. But he’s never let any of that pressure show in front of you. In that respect, Old He is a bit traditional, or maybe just has a bit of male pride.”

“I understand.” Zhou Mo lowered her head and quickly wiped the corner of her eye. “Is the situation with He Chong’s uncle’s garment factory serious?”

“Whether it can be solved is really hard to say. Almost all the money to open the factory came out of He Chong’s own pocket, and he hasn’t taken a single cent of profit, treating it as a gesture of filial respect to his uncle. Lately, someone’s been causing trouble behind the scenes, making many partners who’ve worked with the factory for years breach their contracts one after another. But the raw materials have already arrived, and the workers have started work. If they keep going, they lose money; if they stop, they still lose money.”

“Can they find someone to take over?”

“If you can think of it, He Chong has naturally thought of it too. But those orders are spread across so many clients that an ordinary person can’t possibly take them on.”

Zhou Mo fell silent.

“Old He is trying to figure out a way,” Han Yu sighed. “Hopefully, things will work themselves out when the time comes.”

As the conversation ended, Han Yu said at last, “He Chong has a tough streak. When he goes all out, he’s willing to risk his very life. But once his heart turns cold, there’s nothing left…”

After seeing Han Yu off, Zhou Mo returned to the wine room. Standing by the window, she replayed what Han Yu had said over and over, unable to calm her mind.

As class drew to a close, she made up her mind and went straight to the office to find Jiang Ye.

Entrusted by Ye Yinyin, Han Yu took Zhou Mo’s sketchbook to Yannan Town to find He Chong.

Lin Xinghe was at school doing his thesis pre-defense, so He Chong was the only one at the auto yard. Wearing a sweater, he had crawled under a car, slowly reinstalling parts onto a vehicle that had been stripped down to a bare shell.

Han Yu crossed his legs as he sat down on the bench opposite him. “At a time like this, you still have the heart to fix cars?”

“What else am I supposed to do, jump off a building?”

The teasing remark stuck in Han Yu’s throat. “How are things going now?”

“How else could they be?”

“Come out first. I have something for you. Actually, Zhou Mo has something for you.”

Stunned, He Chong quickly dropped what he was holding and crawled out from under the car. He pulled off his gloves, went to the sink to wash his hands, and splashed a handful of cold water over his face along the way.

Han Yu pulled the sketchbook from his bag and handed it to him. “Zhou Mo asked Yinyin to pass this on to you.”

He Chong took the sketchbook. Han Yu stood up from the bench and said, “I’m leaving now. Seeing that you haven’t jumped off a building puts my mind at ease.”

After seeing Han Yu off, He Chong sat down at the workbench and opened the sketchbook.

He turned through the pages one by one. The front contained drawings of strangers with various expressions, with a few sketches of Ye Yinyin scattered in between. Further back, the two sketches he had seen before appeared.

As he kept flipping through, He Chong froze. He paused for a moment, then rapidly turned the pages. The sketchbook held drawings of him, more of him, and still more of him… page after page, all of him. And the dates noted at the bottom of the pages were from the very days they hadn’t seen each other.

He had lived alone for many years, tough and unyielding, yet at this very moment, his heart melted like soft cotton.

On the final page, Zhou Mo had written two massive characters in pencil: Wait for me!

When Duan Yongzhou arrived for his visit, a light rain was falling. Amid the mist, the trees were lush and green, sprouting fresh buds. He stood by the roadside, gazing at them entranced for a long while before stepping forward to knock on the door.

Tang Shulan attached great importance to Duan Yongzhou’s visit. She instructed the housekeeper to thoroughly clean the house inside and out, and even took Zhou Rong to buy a whole new outfit, terrified that any oversight might spoil the mood of this perfect prospective son-in-law in her eyes.

She welcomed Duan Yongzhou inside, brought out her finest tea leaves to brew a hot cup, and settled him into a seat before heading upstairs herself to fetch Zhou Mo.

Pushing the door open, she saw Zhou Mo sitting at her desk reading a book. She was wearing the new clothes Tang Shulan had bought her, but her face was completely clean without a trace of makeup. Simple and unadorned, even with a magnifying glass, one couldn’t find a shred of feminine charm on her.

Tang Shulan felt exasperated by her lack of effort, but since Duan Yongzhou had already arrived, she couldn’t let Zhou Mo waste time putting on makeup now.

Tang Shulan led Zhou Mo downstairs, smiling as she said, “Yongzhou, I’m entrusting Zhou Mo to you today. She isn’t very poised and tends to get shy, so please be patient with her. Have fun, both of you. I still have to head to the company today, so I won’t take up any more of your time.”

Duan Yongzhou nodded with a smile. “Rest assured, I will definitely bring Zhou Rong back here before nine o’clock tonight.”

After saying their goodbyes, Duan Yongzhou and Zhou Mo left together.

As soon as the car cleared the villa complex, Zhou Mo opened the window and took several deep breaths, feeling like a bird long caged finally tasting long-lost freedom.

Two days earlier, Zhou Mo had asked her academic advisor, Jiang Ye, to put her in touch with Duan Yongzhou. Duan Yongzhou had gone to the school to meet briefly with Zhou Rong, and the two had reached a preliminary consensus. He then suggested taking her out sometime so they could discuss things in greater detail.

Tang Shulan trusted Duan Yongzhou completely, so she was more than thrilled when he invited Zhou Mo to an artists’ reception.

The reception was held at the gallery. There were not many guests, but everyone present possessed a refined demeanor and articulate speech.

With Duan Yongzhou introducing her, Zhou Mo spoke with several famous painters she had long admired, feeling the outing was more than worth it.

Duan Yongzhou chatted with a few guests about business, but when he turned around, Zhou Mo was nowhere to be found. After walking around, he spotted her by the wall facing the main entrance, standing before an oil painting, staring at it in a daze.

Duan Yongzhou walked over. “Do you know the artist who painted this?”

“When I was seven, I entered a painting competition and took second place. The first-place winner was this person…” Zhou Mo chuckled softly. “I thought I’d already forgotten her name.”

Duan Yongzhou was silent for a moment. “If you want, your paintings can hang here too.”

Zhou Mo reached out, tracing the expressive brushstrokes through the empty air. Though there was reluctance in her heart, it was mostly eclipsed by a sense of calm. She feared painting, yet was destined to spend the rest of her life tied to it.

Zhou Mo smiled faintly.

Duan Yongzhou said, “Then as we agreed, you sign with me, and I’ll partner with He Chong’s garment factory. I’ll do everything in my power to help your achievements in this field reach the very peak.”

Zhou Mo nodded solemnly.

The Duan Family’s core businesses happened to be cosmetics and fashion, making Duan Yongzhou the ideal person to turn the tide in their current predicament. And if she wanted to break free from her family’s control and freely choose her future path, signing with Duan Yongzhou was a road she had to take.

Although it was a bit late, she had finally set off.

Over the following period, He Chong shuttled back and forth between Yannan Town and Luocheng, utterly exhausted by the race car modification plans and the trouble at the garment factory. Lin Xinghe was in the same boat. Besides the car modification plans, he had his university graduation thesis to worry about. Working nonstop on his own, his nerves were stretched to the absolute limit.

That afternoon, as the two of them were discussing technical details at the garage, He Chong noticed Lin Xinghe’s eyelids fighting to stay open. The pencil in Lin Xinghe’s hand slipped free and rolled across the table.

Without waking him, He Chong draped a jacket over his shoulders, stepped outside, and sat on the steps. He lit a cigarette and gradually drifted deep into thought.

At a time like this, Yan Tianyu’s earlier suggestion unexpectedly crossed his mind: starting a studio might not actually be a bad idea, especially in a situation like their current one. He had rich practical experience, while Lin Xinghe possessed deep theoretical knowledge, but relying solely on the two of them was hardly a long-term solution.

Yet he was used to living carefree, a single man with no one else to feed. If he really opened a studio, he would have to take responsibility for others from then on.

A moment later, he let out a self-deprecating laugh. Having offended Sun Qi, whether he could even stay in this industry was another matter entirely.

Taking a long drag on his cigarette, his thoughts shifted from work to Zhou Mo. Ever since he had seen her at the Zhou family home that day, he hadn’t received any direct news from Zhou Rong; all updates came secondhand through Ye Yinyin. Word was that Zhou Mo went straight to class and back home every day, strictly monitored by the Zhou family, and seemed constantly listless. He Chong had wanted to go look for her at school or the Zhou home multiple times, but he feared his reckless actions would only make her situation harder. He didn’t know what she had meant by those two words, “Wait for me,” but since he was currently at a dead end, he figured he might as well trust that his girl had her own plans…

The phone inside the room suddenly rang. He Chong stood up and walked inside. Awakened by the noise, Lin Xinghe rubbed his eyes and muttered, “Brother Chong, did I fall asleep?”

He Chong picked up the phone from the workbench and looked at the screen. It was an unfamiliar number.

“Go upstairs and sleep. You’ll catch a cold sleeping down here.”

“I’m fine,” Lin Xinghe yawned, picking his pencil back up. “I’ll look over it a bit more.”

He Chong answered the call. “Hello.”

“Is this He Chong?”

He Chong froze briefly. The voice and that faintly arrogant tone sounded familiar, though he couldn’t place who it was right away. “May I ask who this is?”

“This is Zhou Sipei.”

He Chong’s heart sank. The inevitable confrontation is finally here, he thought.

“Are you free this evening? There’s something I’d like to discuss with you face-to-face.” Zhou Sipei’s tone was not a request, but a notification.

After agreeing on a time and place with Zhou Sipei, He Chong put on his jacket and hauled Lin Xinghe up from the workbench. “I’m heading into the city. I’ll drop you off at school on the way so you can rest.”

“Brother Chong, I can still…”

“Still what? You’re so sleepy you can’t even speak clearly.”

After getting into the car, Lin Xinghe yawned constantly and fell asleep against the window in no time.

Once in the city center, He Chong dropped Lin Xinghe off at Xicheng Jiaotong University first, then drove to the meeting spot to meet Zhou Sipei.

The venue was an upscale cafe with few patrons. As soon as He Chong stepped inside, he spotted Zhou Sipei sitting by the window, leisurely turning the pages of a magazine while sipping coffee.

He Chong walked straight over and greeted him. Zhou Sipei gave a flat response, closed the financial magazine, and summoned the waiter. In no mood to drink anything, He Chong glanced at the menu and casually ordered an Americano.

Naturally, Zhou Sipei hadn’t invited He Chong out just for coffee. Getting straight to the point, he said, “I hear you’ve run into some difficulties lately.”

He Chong had assumed Zhou Sipei wanted to talk about Zhou Mo. When the expected topic didn’t come up, he was caught off guard.

“The Zhou family has ties with the Sun Family. I can lend you a hand.”

He Chong roughly understood Zhou Sipei’s motive. He smiled faintly and countered, “On the condition that I hand over the villa and the burial plot?”

“And never contact my daughter again,” Zhou Sipei added. “Since you clearly understand my meaning, there’s no need for me to beat around the bush. You’d better think it over.”

“Mr. Zhou, if I had wanted to ride the Zhou family’s coattails, I would have contacted you long ago.”

Zhou Sipei frowned. “Stubborn fool.”

He Chong’s expression remained calm. “I’m notorious for not knowing what’s good for me. I stated my terms long ago: as long as the Gu family agrees, I will hand over the sixty million with both hands.”

“You’d better weigh the Sun family’s influence in Xicheng against your own abilities. You’re throwing an egg against a stone^[2].”

He Chong smiled, choosing not to argue further with Zhou Sipei. Some people spent their lives on smooth paths, commanding wind and rain, while others suffered a harsh fate, struggling at every turn. Yet even if the latter were as lowly as ants, there were principles they would never abandon.

“Mr. Zhou, even in the worst-case scenario, I could give up the villa and the burial plot, but I will never give up on Zhou Mo.”

Zhou Sipei scoffed. “A toad lusting after swan meat^[3].” Unwilling to speak with He Chong any longer, he picked up the bill and stormed off.

The situation at the garment factory showed no sign of improving; instead, it grew steadily worse.

For the first time in three years, He Chong truly took in the full view of the factory grounds.

Rain was falling, dark clouds piling up from the horizon all the way to the tops of the distant woods. Every spring, the rain fell relentlessly, like a heartbroken sixteen-year-old girl weeping tear after tear, turning a sliver of melancholy into a grand, overwhelming spectacle.

Without an umbrella, He Chong walked slowly around the outer perimeter of the factory buildings, his trench coat soaked through and clinging heavily to him. He held a cigarette between his fingers, not taking a single puff, letting the ash flake off continuously along the way.

He still remembered those days three years ago when he worked tirelessly from dawn till dusk, pouring every bit of money he had saved from a full year of designing car modification plans straight into this garment factory. When the factory’s machines roared to life for the very first time, he and his uncle drank together through the night until they were dead drunk.

For the past three years, his life had been peaceful. He was no longer the reckless youth determined to join the military, nor was he the racer living on the edge of life and death. He had become no different from an ordinary man, desiring nothing more than for his uncle and Yi Fei to live good lives. And this year, one more person had joined that humble wish.

He had never thought that at twenty-nine, with his passion completely burned out, he would once again taste the bitterness of being at the end of his rope.

A figure emerged in the rainy mist: He Yifei coming out of the house. He wasn’t holding an umbrella either as he shouted to He Chong, “Brother! Time to eat!”

He Chong grunted in acknowledgment. Squatting at the base of the wall, he finished his cigarette before slowly walking back inside.

Inside, dishes had already been served on the small table, along with a bottle of baijiu^[4].

He Zhengkui urged He Chong to change out of his wet clothes, then poured himself a glass. The rich aroma of the liquor filled the air, and unable to resist taking a small sip first, he sighed, “Not bad!”

The three of them sat around the coal stove, drinking and eating.

After several rounds of drinks, lightheaded from the alcohol, they began opening up and pouring out what was in their hearts.

He Zhengkui spoke first. “If the garment factory goes under, then so be it. We can work hard and make a living doing something else, and we’ll manage just fine. I know you want your uncle to live a good life, but whatever you do, don’t drive yourself into a corner.”

He Yifei chimed in, “I’ve got hands and feet. Whatever I do, I won’t starve.”

He Chong offered a small smile. “I brought this trouble on us, so I definitely have to be the one to solve it. Don’t worry, I already have a plan.”

He Zhengkui said, “What plan? Mortgaging the villas your mother left you, is that your idea of a solution?”

He Chong picked up the liquor bottle, filled his glass, swirled it, and took a sip. Smiling, he said, “The departed are gone, but the living still have to go on. I can’t keep everything safe, so I can only protect the people who need to be protected.”

He Zhengkui reached over to cover He Chong’s glass. “He Chong, listen to your uncle. Don’t touch those two villas. If you do, the Gu family will probably hound you for the rest of your life. We’re not people who can’t handle a hard life. Besides, even if we shut down the factory now, can things get any worse than they used to be? So what if you offended those so-called ‘Four Young Masters of Xicheng’? If we can’t make it in Xicheng, there’s still Nancheng and Dongcheng!”

He Yifei agreed repeatedly, “That’s right, Brother. Those villas are like hot potatoes. Whatever you do, don’t touch them.”

He Chong’s mind was made up.

He wanted to honor He Mi’s dying wish, save his uncle’s factory, see his own career flourish, and build a lasting future with Zhou Mo.

But how could anything in this world be so perfect? A person was bound to make sacrifices to achieve what mattered most.

All three of them were drunk and fell asleep as soon as they lay down.

Woken by thirst in the middle of the night, He Chong got up to get some water. Pushing open the window, he saw that the rain had stopped, so he threw on a jacket, went downstairs, and opened the door.

The moon had crept out from behind the clouds at some point, a stark white streak looking as though it had been drawn with white chalk. But its light was cold, like frost. He Chong lit a cigarette and stood in front of the building, gazing up at the moon for a long time.

Over a lifetime, a person is bound to go through moments that feel like ten thousand arrows piercing the heart^[5]. Outsiders thought he was being rebellious and striking a stone with an egg, but his original motive was simply to fulfill the final wish of someone who had passed away. Was there anything wrong with that?

Tomorrow should be a clear day, he thought. I ought to find time to pick out a good burial plot.

He Chong stood in the moonlight for a long time, smoking half a pack of cigarettes before finally going back inside to sleep.

Early the next morning, He Chong was shaken awake by a violent jolt. Opening his eyes, he saw He Yifei’s face right in front of him. Startled, he asked, “What’s wrong?”

He Yifei handed him his phone. “Your phone’s been ringing non-stop. Hurry up and answer it.”

He Chong glanced at the screen. The call was from Lin Xinghe.

He Chong answered the phone, but before he could even say hello, Lin Xinghe said excitedly, “Brother Chong, I made it!”

He Chong froze for a moment before realizing what he meant, then asked urgently, “Where are you? I’ll come find you right away.”

Only after hanging up did He Chong realize it was just past five in the morning and not yet daylight. He got dressed, splashed cold water on his face, and drove off to meet Lin Xinghe.

He Chong drove fast, pushing right up to the speed limit as he sped all the way into Xicheng.

Lin Xinghe was squatting at the mouth of an alley not far from his home, holding a roll of blueprints. Seeing He Chong’s car appear, he immediately jumped up and waved.

He Chong hastily got out of the car, took the blueprints from Lin Xinghe, and unrolled them to check. “Have you verified everything? Are there any issues?”

“Absolutely none.”

“Good.” He Chong rolled the blueprints back up. “Did you stay up all night again? Go get some rest right away. I’ll take these blueprints to Sun Qi.”

Lin Xinghe had been severely sleep-deprived lately, the dark circles under his eyes making him almost unrecognizable. A faint smile finally appeared on his exhausted face. “I’ll leave everything in your hands, Brother Chong.”

He Chong said, “Go get some sleep. Don’t worry, by the time you wake up, we’ll be dividing up the money.”

Lin Xinghe smiled and waved at He Chong. “Then I’m heading back.”

Carrying the blueprints, He Chong got back into the car and dialed Sun Qi’s number. This was the first time He Chong had reached out to Sun Qi since the blueprint leak.

As expected, Sun Qi didn’t decline the call. Most people share a petty streak of wanting to see others bow their heads and beg for mercy, and Sun Qi was no exception.

Sun Qi said, “Well, look at that. What made Brother Chong think to call me?”

He Chong got straight to the point. “Young Master Sun, regarding the modification plan you entrusted to me earlier, my team and I rushed to make revisions. Building on the previous design, we cut another 0.2 seconds off the zero-to-hundred acceleration time. If you’re interested, I can bring the plan over for you to look at.”

He Chong knew that someone like Sun Qi was obsessed with cars. Hearing numbers like that, there was no way he wouldn’t be tempted.

Sure enough, Sun Qi chuckled and asked, “What do you mean by this, Brother Chong?”

He Chong said in a sincere tone, “I’ve been in this industry for many years, and I know its rules and taboos very well. Ruining my own reputation for petty gains is not my style. The previous modification plan was very likely leaked by someone who left our team, but I don’t have the evidence to prove that to you. Whether you believe me or not, Young Master Sun, I have never sold that modification plan to anyone else.”

Sun Qi fell silent for a moment before saying, “I appreciate your sincerity in improving the plan, so I’ll give you a chance. However, I’m not in Xicheng right now. I’m at the EPL Club in Zhichuan City. Bring the blueprints over and meet me here.”

He Chong had heard of the EPL Club before. It sounded high-end, classy, and mysterious, but in reality, its members were just that same crowd of car-loving rich heirs who held regular private parties.

He Chong didn’t waste any time. He stopped at a gas station first, filled up his tank, and immediately set off toward Zhichuan City.

Four hours later, He Chong arrived in Zhichuan City. Having no time for a proper meal, he bought a hamburger at McDonald’s to quickly choke down some lunch, then headed straight to the club to find Sun Qi.

The place was located inside a private villa compound. A long row of luxury cars was parked in the lot outside, almost all of them worth tens of millions of Yuan. Parked next to them, He Chong’s beat-up Jeep looked completely out of place.

He Chong gave Sun Qi a call. After a ten-minute wait, the compound gate opened, and a stylishly dressed young woman came out. She waved to He Chong and asked with a smile, “Are you Young Master Sun’s guest?”

He Chong followed the young woman through the gate. Just a few steps in, he saw a crowd gathered by the swimming pool, full of scantily clad young women. Even though it was March and the outdoor temperature barely reached ten-plus degrees, they were all shivering from the cold, yet still bunched together to pose and take photos.

He Chong followed the woman into the house. Sun Qi was reclining on a sofa, holding court and chatting loudly with those around him.

The woman signaled for He Chong to stop, then walked over to Sun Qi’s side and leaned down to whisper in his ear. Sun Qi raised his eyes and glanced toward He Chong. Then he waved the woman off and resumed chatting with his group, pretending he hadn’t seen He Chong at all.

He Chong had expected this kind of reception. Having entered society at seventeen or eighteen, he had encountered all sorts of people and witnessed every kind of posturing. None of it surprised him anymore. In fact, once he saw through their motives, he found this staged arrogance rather laughable.

He Chong wasn’t in the least bit anxious. Crossing his arms, he leaned against the wall and waited patiently.

He hadn’t slept well lately, especially the night before. Even standing up, drowsiness weighed on him, and before he knew it, his eyes drifted shut.

After napping for a bit, He Chong was startled awake by a burst of commotion. He opened his eyes to find everyone in the room staring toward the entrance.

A group of people was walking in. The man leading them sported a Mohawk and wore Versace head to toe. Hands shoved into his pants pockets, he glared at Sun Qi with utter disdain.

He Chong recognized the man. His surname was Chen, and he was also one of the Four Young Masters of Xicheng. Coming from nouveau riche origins, he was notoriously arrogant and domineering, and had never gotten along with Sun Qi.

He Chong glanced toward the back of the group and froze. Walking at the very rear was Yan Tianyu, whom he hadn’t seen in ages!

Yan Tianyu saw He Chong too, and his smile instantly froze on his face.

He Chong’s gaze lingered on Yan Tianyu’s face for a moment before turning away with utter coldness.

Deep down, he had still held on to a sliver of hope that the blueprints hadn’t been leaked by Yan Tianyu. But running into him like this today made the truth self-evident.

He was the kind of person who habitually gave people the benefit of the doubt, which had led to him taking a few hits in the past. But at this moment, he didn’t feel much anger in his heart, only a complex mix of emotions.

The arrival of this group caused quite a stir. Everyone knew that Sun Qi and Young Master Chen were like fire and water, their feud an open secret.

Sun Qi glanced sideways at Young Master Chen and sneered, “I thought this club had strict entry screening. How did any stray cat or dog get let in nowadays?”

The host of this year’s party, a wealthy young heir from Zhichuan City, paled at those words.

In truth, the club’s entry criteria were based strictly on assets rather than social standing. Since Young Master Chen met the requirements, he was naturally entitled to join and attend the gathering.

Young Master Chen came from nouveau riche roots and lacked a refined background, but he threw money around lavishly and never missed an occasion for the so-called “upper class.” He went to great lengths to fit in, and what he despised most was being looked down upon by actual “high society.” Yet Sun Qi was someone who truly qualified as part of that genuine upper crust.

Being humiliated to his face, Young Master Chen naturally couldn’t hold back his temper and snapped back, “There are always some dogs who think taking a piss anywhere gives them the right to claim it as their own territory.”

Listening from the sidelines, He Chong found their spat childish and absurd, quickly losing any interest in watching the drama unfold. Stepping back two paces, he crossed his arms and went back to napping.

Before long, another commotion broke out.

Disdaining to associate with the likes of Young Master Chen, Sun Qi decided on the spot to leave the club. Sun Qi held considerable influence in Xicheng, so his departure was naturally a significant loss for the club.

The young heir from Zhichuan City hosting the party panicked, immediately rushing forward to try and talk him into staying. However, Sun Qi was firm in his decision and walked away coolly, leaving without giving Young Master Chen so much as a single glance.

Having come all this way and waited half the day without getting a word in with Sun Qi, He Chong wasn’t about to leave empty-handed. He immediately followed him out.

A group of people trotted behind the Zhichuan City heir, scrambling to persuade him to stay. But Sun Qi climbed into his sports car without looking back, fired up the engine, and left everyone choking on a cloud of exhaust.

He Chong quickly started up his beat-up Jeep, following close behind Sun Qi as they exited the villa complex.

He had no idea where Sun Qi was going, nor did he think calling to ask at a critical moment like this was a wise move. All he could do was bite the bullet and tail him all the way.

He Chong couldn’t help a self-deprecating smile, thinking to himself that coaxing a girlfriend was never this exhausting.

After driving for a while, Sun Qi suddenly seemed to have a stroke of madness, abruptly turning the wheel and heading up into the mountains.

He Chong was already used to the fickle nature of rich people who acted on every whim. He turned his wheel as well, maintaining a steady speed while trailing unhurriedly behind Sun Qi’s car.

He Chong lit a cigarette and rolled down the window. With one hand on the steering wheel and the other resting on the window frame, he took drag after drag.

Rounding a bend, the car ahead driven by Sun Qi suddenly went wild, swerving into a massive S-curve.

He Chong quickly popped the cigarette into his mouth and grabbed the steering wheel with both hands.

The car ahead abandoned its previously smooth, high-speed composure, continuing its S-curve pattern as it began twisting left and right all along the road like a patient suffering from Parkinson’s disease.

Realizing something was wrong, He Chong honked his horn furiously. But instead of stopping, the car ahead began swerving even more erratically.

He Chong tossed his cigarette aside, stuck his head out the window, and shouted, “Young Master Sun, stop!”

Given the distance between them, Sun Qi should have been able to hear his shout clearly. Yet the car didn’t stop, continuing forward at the same speed, wobbling as it went.

A chill ran down He Chong’s spine. Without hesitation, he took decisive action.

He stepped on the gas to close the distance between them, shouting ahead while keeping a close eye on the situation, “Hold tight to the steering wheel! Turn inward!”

The car swerved outward first, then veered back inward just as he had instructed.

Seizing the moment, He Chong didn’t hesitate. He drove past the outer side of Sun Qi’s car, scraping against it as he overtook him, then jerked the steering wheel hard to cut inward.

Sun Qi’s car scraped against He Chong’s, slowed down, and bumped into his vehicle at roughly twenty kilometers per hour before coming to a complete stop.

Fortunately, this was a mountain road and neither of them had been driving very fast. Otherwise, no matter how skilled or bold He Chong was, he wouldn’t have dared to pull off such a stunt.

As soon as the car came to a stop, He Chong unbuckled his seatbelt, jumped out, and hurried around to the back.

He knocked on the window. “Sun Qi?”

In the driver’s seat, Sun Qi was clutching the steering wheel with one hand and pressing against his throat with the other. His face had turned a dark bluish-purple as he gasped desperately for air, unable to exhale a single breath.

He Chong was startled; the situation was far worse than he had imagined.

Sun Qi raised a hand, seemingly trying to open the door, but his whole body spasmed, and he slumped forward uncontrollably.

Deciding instantly, He Chong snatched up a rock from the roadside and smashed the window glass with a loud crack. He reached inside, unlocked the door, and dragged Sun Qi out of the car, laying him flat on the road.

Lying flat seemed to ease Sun Qi’s distress slightly. He raised a finger and pointed toward the back seat. “Med… medicine…”

He Chong spotted a backpack on the back seat. Without wasting time on questions, he unzipped it, rummaged through it, and found an asthma inhaler. This had to be it.

Removing the cap, He Chong pressed the inhaler into Sun Qi’s hand.

Sun Qi opened his mouth and pumped a few sprays, wide-eyed as he waited a moment until his symptoms finally eased a bit.

He reached out to He Chong, who understood and helped him up, resting him against the side of the car.

He Chong called the traffic police. After reporting the location of the accident, he squatted down and kept a close eye on Sun Qi.

Sun Qi rested for a while until his spasms stopped and he was finally able to breathe smoothly again. After another ten minutes or so, his breathing gradually steadied. He looked at He Chong, the terror of his narrow escape still lingering in his eyes. “Thank you.”

Before long, the traffic police arrived. Sun Qi described what had happened: as he was taking a turn, he suddenly realized his brakes had failed. In his panic, an asthma attack hit him at the exact same time, and it was only with He Chong’s help that he managed to stop the car safely.

The traffic police filed a report and advised Sun Qi to have the car inspected to determine what had caused the brake failure.

Since both heavily damaged cars were no longer drivable, they had to be towed away. Sun Qi and He Chong rode down the mountain in the police cruiser, then stood by the roadside, looking at each other.

Sun Qi looked at He Chong with unprecedented sincerity in his voice. “Brother Chong, thank you so much for earlier. If it weren’t for you, I’d be dead by now.”

He Chong smiled. “Don’t thank me just yet. If I hadn’t judged the impact right when overtaking you, we would’ve both gone down together.”

Sun Qi burst out laughing.

“Do you have any friends in Zhichuan City? Can you call someone to pick us up?”

After such a life-and-death ordeal, Sun Qi hadn’t even realized how reliant he had become on He Chong, practically following his every word. As soon as He Chong spoke, he nodded and pulled out his phone to make a call.

The two walked forward a short distance until they found an abandoned bus stop, where they sat on a bench to wait.

He Chong asked him, “Is your asthma alright now?”

“Once I catch my breath, I’m okay for a while.”

“There’s no cure for it, right?”

“No cure. I’ll have to deal with it for the rest of my life, and it gets worse as I get older.”

After a moment, He Chong asked, “About the brakes…”

Sun Qi’s eyes turned cold. “I’ll wait for the inspection results. I doubt this was an accident. This is my favorite car, and I take meticulous care of it.”

He Chong remained silent. This was someone else’s trouble, and he had no desire to get involved, nor did he intend to form a deeper connection with someone like Sun Qi.

They were out in the middle of nowhere, so it would probably take a while for the car to arrive.

Sun Qi glanced at the bag on his back. “Brother Chong, did you bring the plans?”

“I brought them.”

Sun Qi took the blueprints He Chong handed over and unrolled them to scan through quickly, his eyes lighting up with eager anticipation. Suppressing his impatience, he rolled the blueprints back up and asked He Chong, “Did someone really leak them?”

He Chong nodded. “I wasn’t a hundred percent sure at first, but I ran into the guy when I came over today, the young man walking at the very back behind Young Master Chen.”

Sun Qi let out an “Oh,” suddenly slapping his forehead. “I remember him! The guy who came to look at cars at my place last time? The one who seemed reluctant when I told him to modify a Mercedes?”

“Yeah.”

Sun Qi sneered. “Then I definitely need to look into that kid.”

After waiting for about half an hour, Sun Qi’s friend arrived with a car.

Sun Qi was a man who drew clear lines between friends and foes. Since He Chong had decisively stepped in to save his life, he didn’t want to owe him a favor.

On the ride back, he said to He Chong, “I heard about what happened with your garment factory. My family isn’t in that business, so I probably can’t help you operationally. But I heard a piece of news that might be useful to you.”

“Go on.”

“Last year, the Gu family ran into trouble with their capital operations, leaving a huge hole they couldn’t patch up. So they misreported their financial situation and used the Zhou family as an ATM to try and plug it. But far from improving, things actually dragged the Zhou family down too. Now both families are grasshoppers tied to the same string^[6], facing major financial crises. Didn’t you inherit two villas? Sixty million might not sound like a lot, but if you mortgage them to the bank for a loan, you’ll be able to catch your breath.”

He Chong knew that the Gu family was facing a financial crisis, but he hadn’t expected the Zhou family to be so deeply involved as well.

He was no fool; he knew full well that someone was sabotaging the garment factory. But he had never imagined that this was a trap set for him by the Zhou and Gu families working together: the Gu family in the open, the Zhou family in the shadows; one committing the murder, the other holding the lamp^[7].

Sun Qi played host, treating He Chong to dinner in Zhichuan City before having someone drive him back to Xicheng.

When He Chong arrived in Yannan Town, it was already past ten at night.

Exhausted in body and mind after running around all day, all he wanted was to collapse into bed and sleep. But remembering that Lin Xinghe was still waiting for news, he lit a cigarette, forced himself to rally, and called Lin Xinghe.

He didn’t go into detail about what had happened that day, telling him only the final outcome.

Hearing this, Lin Xinghe let out a long sigh of relief. “I can finally get a peaceful night’s sleep tonight.”

He Chong smiled and said, “Get some rest. You don’t need to come by my place for the next few days. Just focus entirely on your graduation thesis.”

He Chong hung up the phone and walked inside. Crossing the yard, he had just reached the front of the building when he suddenly realized something was wrong and stopped in his tracks: Lin Xinghe wasn’t at the yard right now, yet the lights inside the house were on.

Before he could think any further, a sudden commotion broke out ahead. As if acting on a single command, a group of men filed out of the house and surrounded him completely.

The group of seven or eight men were dressed like street thugs, their faces hidden behind masks and their hands clutching weapons like daggers and clubs.

Exchanging glances, they charged straight at He Chong without a word.

Under the moonlight, a dagger flashed with a cold glint, quickly vanishing into the darkness of the night…