Chapter 083: A Brilliant Stratagem

This story is purely fictional.

At the Dahai Police Station, in Wu Zhengzhe’s office, he was troubled, struggling to make a decision.

He wanted to arrest Lu Jiahui, but because of Ma Shengwei, he didn’t dare to act rashly. He knew that if Ma Shengwei found out he had already uncovered the truth of the case, there was no telling what tricks Ma Shengwei might pull to suppress it. Especially since this was a case the Provincial Department was paying close attention to—Ma Shengwei could not cover the sky with one hand, but it was by no means easy to solve the case smoothly either.

What was most pressing for Wu Zhengzhe now was to clarify the relationship between Lu Jiahui and Ma Shengwei. He wanted to know exactly what kind of connection there was between the Lu Jiahui, whom Ma Shengwei had been sheltering, and the bureau chief.

From the investigation, it appeared that Lu Jiahui’s company, Duhao Financial Services, had entered a rapid development track in recent years, standing out among its peers.

However, the company's funding had always come from HZ Entertainment, and Lu Jiahui, as the legal representative, held fifty-one percent of the shares.

It was understood that Lu Jiahui wielded the greatest power in Duhao, serving as chairman. Among the other shareholders, one named Gao Yating was the head of HZ Entertainment.

Zhengzhe called Chi Zhaoming, but Chi said he was driving and couldn’t take the call, so Zhengzhe had to give up. He had hoped to get some useful information through the promotional materials Chi had prepared for Duhao last time.

After checking the contact list, Dujuan found nothing suspicious in the call records.

“Where is your bank card? Give it to me—I want to go to the bank to check whether it was really spent on work expenses as you say. I’ll need your ID too, or the staff won’t let me look up the details,” Dujuan demanded of Chi Zhaoming, referring to the card he used for spending.

Chi Zhaoming realized things were getting serious. The problem was, he didn’t just have one bank card; all his cards from several banks were hidden under a book in his office bookshelf.

“The card is in my office drawer,” he replied weakly, still hiding the truth.

“Then after we pick up Xiyu, we’ll take him home for dinner, and then the two of us will go to your office and get the card, and then head to the bank to check the transactions,” Dujuan said.

From afar they saw Xiyu leaving the school gates. Dujuan made a gesture to pause the discussion.

Xiyu got into the car, noticing his parents’ expressions were different from usual. “What’s wrong? You didn’t even react when I got in the car,” he asked.

“We were just discussing something. Did you notice anything different?” Dujuan replied.

“Of course. Don’t I know you two? Before, whenever you saw me, you’d ask all sorts of questions. Today, not only did you not greet me, but your faces look totally different from usual. You can’t fool me,” Xiyu declared confidently.

“Yes, your dad and I had a bit of an argument earlier. It’s not about you—just focus on your studies, all right? Don’t worry about anything else, understand?” Dujuan said as Xiyu opened a bottle of water and took a drink.

“Slow down, don’t choke,” Dujuan said with concern.

Chi Zhaoming drove them home. “Go have dinner, and after eating, do your homework,” Dujuan instructed Xiyu.

“Be careful on the road, and come back after you’re done. Don’t fight over little things,” Xiyu reminded his parents.

“Got it. Nothing can escape you—you really are a clever one,” Dujuan said, patting Xiyu’s shoulder.

Once Dujuan was back in the car, Chi Zhaoming started it up again and drove to the office.

When they arrived at the parking lot in front of the office building, Chi Zhaoming parked but left the engine running as he prepared to get out.

“Turn off the car. I want to go to the office with you,” Dujuan said.

Hearing this, Chi Zhaoming felt as if the end of the world had come. He didn’t want Dujuan to see how many credit cards he actually had, but now there was no way to avoid it.

“The TV station usually forbids outsiders from entering. If you come to my office, colleagues might gossip,” he tried to protest.

“Outsiders? Am I an outsider? I’m your wife—what’s wrong with visiting your office? It’s not like I’m a mistress or something. What are you trying to hide?” Dujuan retorted.

Dujuan followed Chi Zhaoming into the office. When they passed the security guard, no one stopped her.

“Didn’t you say outsiders aren’t allowed in? The guard didn’t stop me at all. Clearly, you just didn’t want me to come. So—you must be hiding something from me,” she said.

Chi Zhaoming, already feeling guilty, was even more nervous. He had no idea how this would end.

Once inside, Chi Zhaoming pretended not to remember where the card was, searching every drawer.

He searched for a long time, finding nothing. Scratching his head, he tried to look as if he were racking his brain to remember where the card was.

“You can’t even keep track of your own bank card? I don’t buy it,” Dujuan said skeptically.

She glanced at his bookshelf and noticed a book lying flat, as if something was tucked beneath it. The book looked uneven.

Dujuan opened the bookshelf and picked up the book.

Underneath it, she found several bank cards.

She was stunned by the sight. Instead of the one card Chi Zhaoming claimed to have, there were eight bank cards, covering nearly every bank in Dahai.

Fear crept in—how much money might have been spent from these cards? Were they all maxed out? She was reminded of a colleague’s husband who had spent hundreds of thousands on a mistress not long ago. “Could the same kind of story happen to me?” she wondered.

With his secret exposed, beads of sweat rolled down Chi Zhaoming’s forehead. Dujuan was speechless, trembling with anger.

“So many cards! Tell me the truth—how much have you spent, and where did it go?”

Under Dujuan’s questioning, Chi Zhaoming had no choice but to confess that he had been gambling on illegal soccer games.

Hearing this, Dujuan was stunned. It felt as if she’d been hit hard on the head—her scalp tingled, her head seemed to swell. Overwhelmed, she fled the TV station building in a frenzy.

Before Chi Zhaoming could react, Dujuan had run out, hailed a cab, and disappeared into the dusk.

Chi Zhaoming returned home, but Dujuan was nowhere to be found. He sat in the empty house in silence. Xiyu was already asleep.

Lu Jiahui was momentarily stunned, thinking of the disappointment his eldest brother and sister-in-law must have felt, married for thirty years without a child.

What Lu Jiahui hadn’t expected was that his brother’s child from another relationship was already an eighteen-year-old daughter.

Though he felt a little lost, he was also genuinely happy for his brother—at least Xiao Yi was family, a true heir.

Lu Jiahui knew that Xiao Yi had feelings for Dai Yunjie, so he decided to help his niece. Dai Yunjie and Gao Yating had been fighting for days, with Dai Yunjie staying at the Zhizhen Hotel instead of being inseparable with Gao Yating as before.

Jiahui learned the reason from Leng Junfeng: apparently, Gao Yating had spent the night out with the head office’s Will. He thought that maybe now was the best opportunity for his niece.

For several days, Jiahui lingered outside the Zhizhen Hotel’s bar, hoping to see Xiao Yi, but she never appeared.

Disappointed, Jiahui decided to go inside and drown his sorrows.

As he entered, a faint fragrance wafted past—he recognized it as Xiao Yi’s signature scent.

He turned his head and confirmed his hunch: Xiao Yi had just slipped past him.

As if meeting an old acquaintance, Jiahui patted Xiao Yi on the shoulder—something he’d never done before.

Xiao Yi turned and saw the persistent Lu Jiahui.

“Are we really that close? Close enough for you to pat my shoulder?” she asked angrily.

“I may not be close to you, but I know you very well. We may not be familiar now, but that doesn’t mean we won’t be in the future,” Jiahui replied with a smile.

“Go away. Go amuse yourself elsewhere,” Xiao Yi snapped.

“I know you misunderstand me. I used to like you, but not anymore. You’re about to become my niece—didn’t your father tell you?” said Jiahui.

“What do you mean, your niece? Did I agree to that? Even if I did, I’d only be your god-niece, got it? There’s a big difference,” Xiao Yi retorted, knowing this Lu Jiahui was her father’s superior’s younger brother.

“That doesn’t matter. What matters is, I can help you achieve your wish. I want you to be happy, and I’ll do everything I can for that,” Jiahui vowed.

“Ridiculous. How could you possibly help me?” Xiao Yi scoffed.

“Of course I can. I can help you win the one you love, faster than you can imagine,” Jiahui said, a little too confidently.

“Ridiculous! If you’re so great, why haven’t you caught a girl yourself? Only a fool would believe you,” Xiao Yi replied.

“How about we go inside, have a drink, and I’ll show you?” Jiahui suggested.

“Fine. Let’s see what you’re capable of, my so-called god-uncle,” Xiao Yi said, making a gesture for him to go first.

(To be continued)