Like all urban hero movies, the sound of police sirens only came from afar after everything was over.
Chu Ge turned around in his beat-up Haval, thinking that the police's late arrival might be due to a tacit agreement with Zhong Yi. Otherwise, the police had been secretly watching them at the hospital, but not at the other location; it was highly likely intentional to facilitate their operation.
When he saw the leader, Chu Ge became even more certain of his guess.
Because the leader was none other than Gu Ruoyan.
"President Gu, how come it's you?" Chu Ge asked in surprise, "Aren't you a high-ranking official in Beijing?"
"I often need to travel to different places. I just arrived in Shanghai a couple of days ago… This was just a coincidence." Gu Ruoyan looked at the shattered windshield and the scratched driver's headrest of the Haval, her eyes filled with a deeper meaning: "Were you attacked outside?"
Chu Ge chuckled: "Yes, a vicious thug. Luckily, I ran fast. Domestic products are really good."
Zhong Yi twitched his cheek.
"Damn it, my car..." Gu Ruoyan gave Chu Ge a deep look, but didn't ask further. She simply extended her hand in a handshake gesture: "This matter might involve some overseas affairs, and it might be related to some cases that have been investigated in the capital, so I'm temporarily taking over..." It felt a bit like using connections. He wondered if Gu Ruoyan would have any connection between his battles abroad and the potential burning of the dead, but judging from her expression, she probably wouldn't delve into it.
Is this what they call having connections in high places? Chu Ge looked down at her outstretched hand, his expression conflicted.
He had a feeling the factory was filled with the pungent smell of pickled cabbage, even more astonishing than the sonic tornado from before.
Anyone else standing here wouldn't cause this problem, but this person is Gu Ruoyan, the only woman in Qiu Wuji's mind who could be even remotely connected to Chu Ge, and then she even helped Chu Ge get things done through connections without any further investigation…
Even if Chu Ge and Gu Ruoyan themselves didn't see any connection whatsoever, it was obvious that the connections were made through their parents…
Chu Ge forced a smile and shook her hand: "Um, Zhong Ge is mainly handling things here, I'm just assisting him, why are you bothering me so much? You should be coordinating with Zhong Ge…" The handshake was light and brief, appearing to others as just normal politeness, but heaven knows that inside this guy it felt like he was walking through a mountain of knives.
Gu Ruoyan didn't think too much about it, simply saying, "Mr. Zhong had been in contact with us about this matter, but at the last minute he ditched us..."
She paused, a mocking smile appearing on her face, "In Mr. Zhong's eyes, the police are useful when they can help protect people, but become an obstacle when they might hinder his murder plans."
Zhong Yi smiled slightly, tacitly accepting this assessment, and didn't argue with her, simply saying, "We didn't kill anyone; ultimately, we were trying to save someone."
Gu Ruoyan didn't expose Zhong Yi's clear intention to kill, obviously because he didn't believe that normal procedures could put Mi Xiaolin or whoever was behind her in jail, so he chose to use his own methods. However, it also ended in failure; Mi Xiaolin wasn't saved, and they didn't even know where the person behind her was—the other party hadn't even shown up.
Arguing about this was pointless at this moment. Gu Ruoyan said in a low voice, "There's no need to argue about what happened before. Now that things have come to this, I hope everyone can cooperate with me." Zhong Yi glanced at Chu Ge and chuckled, "Since Chu Ge is here, of course we'll cooperate fully."
His meaning was clearly related to Chu Ge's mother, but this made Gu Ruoyan and Chu Ge both feel uncomfortable. They said in unison, "What relationship do I have with him (her)?"
A grinding sound came from inside the factory, each word clearly enunciated: "The person is awake. How long are you going to be all lovey-dovey outside?!"
Chu Ge shuddered and dashed into the factory.
Gu Ruoyan felt like she was covered in bullet holes for no reason. She rolled her eyes helplessly and followed him inside.
Inside, she saw Du Lianfeng and Qi Chengtian slumped against a sand pile, their eyes slightly cloudy and dazed. Looking at Qiu Wuji's stern face, they were initially confused, but quickly their confusion turned to fear.
"They're scared now." Qiu Wuji's tone was cool. "Ming's memories have returned, everything is normal. Chu Ge, can we go now?"
Chu Ge: "..."
"Still reluctant to leave?" Qiu Wuji said, "When the police are interrogating a case, are we allowed to sit in? This relationship is really good..."
Chu Ge rubbed her forehead: "Why so much nonsense? Why do you care who's interrogating them? Can't we interrogate them ourselves first?"
Qiu Wuji snorted: "Their souls were all reconstructed by me. I even know their childhood memories of wetting their pants. Do we still need to interrogate them?"
Chu Ge winked at her.
Qiu Wuji paused, then shut her mouth.
She knew that Chu Ge was hinting not to reveal too much about her abilities to Gu Ruoyan and the others. This ability to search souls and reconstruct spirits was a bit unbelievable; revealing more would be pointless. Qiu Wuji felt a pang of regret. Why was he being so jealous? He hoped Gu Ruoyan hadn't heard him clearly, or if she had, he could just take it as bragging…
Thinking this, he felt a surge of joy. Chu Ge's favoritism was obvious! Hehe.
Gu Ruoyan, unaware of his twisted jealousy, glanced at Du Qi and the other man, a hint of surprise in her eyes. Her mind-reading ability clearly detected the fear and admiration in their hearts. In their eyes, this woman was practically a goddess, the kind who could make them kneel with a mere hum.
Was it really that bad? Was this woman really that powerful?
Gu Ruoyan subtly glanced at Qiu Wuji, who was puffing out his cheeks, clearly regretting his actions.
He was adorable no matter how you looked at him.
She coughed twice, regaining her composure, and asked Du Lianfeng, "You should know the current situation, right?"
Du Lianfeng sighed, "Yes, we know. During our vegetative state, we actually had perception... or rather, we had hearing. We heard everything that happened."
"So what do you think?"
Du Lianfeng was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "As long as we can get that bitch Mi Xiaolin and that bastard Lei Jiangyong shot, I'd be willing to die with them."
"If you can be witnesses, you won't die," Gu Ruoyan said. "Let's hear the details. Yes, right here, so some people don't get hung up on who should interrogate them." Chu Ge awkwardly turned his head away.
Qiu Wuji remained expressionless.
Qi Chengtian sighed softly, "Actually, Zhong Yi knows quite a bit about what happened before. It was just a group of people with special abilities who formed an organization, using their unique abilities to make money through questionable means, gradually becoming richer and richer, eventually building a large conglomerate… Zhong Yi used to hang out with us, but later we realized we weren't on the same path and parted ways."
"Actually, everyone's original intentions weren't that lofty; it was just about making money… The so-called search for the source of spiritual energy was simply because spiritual energy is a new form of capital, and we wanted to control it," Du Lianfeng said. "Controlling spiritual energy means controlling the future. Anyone who holds this kind of thinking is absolutely…" "It's not just us, there are many, including the world's top conglomerates."
"The trip to Nanjiang was just one of our initiatives. Before that, we had already acquired many mineral veins and marine resources that appeared to be sources of spiritual energy through cunning and force... Of course, in the end, we found they were nothing special, profitable enough, but not real sources of spiritual energy. Nanjiang is a bit of an exception; it makes us feel that it truly holds many secrets. We went to Nanjiang with high expectations..."
Chu Ge said, "The Nanjiang matter is another matter; let's focus on the immediate issue."
"The immediate issue is the world-class conglomerates I just mentioned." A hint of hostility gradually surfaced on Du Lianfeng's withered face: "The group's..." "We planned to go public that year, and after several rounds of venture capital, the shareholding ratio was different from the initial state. Mi Xiaolin was the representative of foreign capital. At first, we didn't take a little bitch seriously. So what if it's foreign capital? The mountains are high and the emperor is far away. It's easy to play with a little slut like her." Qi Chengtian said, "Sure enough, she didn't have any special skills. All she could do was sleep with people and use that to build up her faction. But we never expected that this old and rotten trick would be so effective. This woman, who was probably riddled with all sorts of diseases, actually slept with so many old brothers. Countless people in the group were secretly hooked up with her. The group's decisions were greatly affected, sometimes..." "We don't even know if this group is our own company or controlled by some foreign capital."
"Our going to Nanjiang also has the intention of establishing our own independent entity, which is, of course, separate." Du Lianfeng added, "Speaking of this, I wonder if any of you recall something... When the Wang family of Nanjiang fell from power due to drug trafficking, Ruan Jian and others who were supplying them didn't know when to leave. Instead, they hid on the coast as if waiting for someone, and were eventually caught by you... What they were waiting for was Mi Xiaolin."
"This group is already a malignant tumor secretly controlled by foreign forces. Their tentacles have reached many places, not just Shanghai, and not just Nanjiang."