152: Chapter 152 Jiang Rumu Climbs the Mountain

"Li, be careful."

"You be careful too."

Li Li held his phone to his ear.

"Also, stop using the Fire Station equipment for weird things. The contract says firefighting."

There was a half-second pause on the other end of the line.

"Of course not."

The answer came too quickly.

It was suspiciously fast.

But Li Li didn't waste any more words and hung up directly.

Monday's announcement arrived earlier than the trending searches.

At nine in the morning, the Tax Bureau and the Municipal Public Security Bureau jointly released a statement.

Jiang Rumu was not involved in tax evasion.

The so-called "30 million in back taxes" was a forged screenshot.

Cases regarding the secret filming videos, rumor-spreading accounts, and purchased traffic accounts have already been opened for investigation.

Three minutes after the announcement was released, Weibo exploded.

[Queen Jiang is innocent! Company, come out and take your beating!]

[Those who were cursing yesterday, don't delete your comments, line up and apologize.]

[The last backbone of the entertainment industry, this time it's truly tough.]

[No tax evasion, but the secret filming and rumors were real.]

[Li Li: Procedure.]

In the Fire Station cafeteria, Shen Jue rushed in holding soy milk, nearly bumping into the doorframe.

"Brother! It's reversed! The official announcement is out!"

Li Li was peeling an egg.

The eggshell fell into the plate, and he didn't even look up.

"I saw it."

Qin Xiaoshan sat down holding a steamed bun.

"Is the Company going to be finished?"

Cheng Songyan passed by the door.

"I don't know if they're finished, but their PR department will definitely need a ventilator first."

Director Pei Zhao was holding his tablet, looking like he was floating on air.

"The fourth episode preview has gone viral. Teacher Jiang's line, 'Do you have a high-definition one?', has now been edited into a classic counterattack moment."

Li Li picked up his phone.

Jiang Rumu had posted on Moments half an hour ago.

In the photo, two Huskies were standing by the mountain trail.

Lu Cheng was carrying a backpack.

Jiang Rumu was wearing a hat, and only her back was captured.

The caption read: Going for a walk, the dogs are happier than the people.

There was no location tag.

The comment section was already getting lively.

Qi Wanyin: Nice hat.

He Manzhou: The dogs are nice too.

Shen Jue: Sis, where are you going for a walk? I want to go too.

Jiang Rumu replied to Shen Jue: Finish running the stairs first.

Li Li opened the photo and zoomed in.

The mountain trail's stone steps.

The color of the railing.

The species of trees in the distance.

He placed his phone on the table.

"Wutong Mountain."

Shen Jue nearly spat out his soy milk.

"Brother, you can tell from this?"

Li Li pulled out a tissue to wipe his hands.

"I've done projects in Pengcheng. This railing is ugly enough to be recognizable."

Director Pei Zhao immediately became nervous.

"Will anyone else be able to tell?"

"No."

Li Li put away his phone.

"Normal people look at the people and dogs first in photos, they don't study the aesthetics of railing construction."

Although he said that, his hand had already opened the chat box with Jiang Rumu.

[Don't take wild trails, it's hot, give the dogs plenty of water. Don't let go of Xiao Chai's leash.]

Jiang Rumu replied very quickly.

[Received, Station Chief Li.]

The next message popped up immediately after.

[Xiao Chai is unconvinced.]

Li Li typed.

[If it's unconvinced, let Xiao Qian suppress it.]

On Wutong Mountain.

Jiang Rumu stuffed her phone back into her bag.

Xiao Chai was pulling on the leash and rushing forward.

Xiao Qian walked beside them with a steady pace, looking back every so often to see if Lu Cheng had fallen behind.

Lu Cheng's backpack was packed with water, a collapsible bowl, wet wipes, dog food, a power bank, iodine, Band-Aids, and sunscreen spray.

After walking for twenty minutes, she began to wonder if sitting in the office every day was a form of suicide.

"Jiang, Sister Jiang."

Jiang Rumu stopped.

"Are you tired?"

Lu Cheng leaned against the railing.

"It's not tiredness."

She paused.

"I'm having a serious reflection on my lifestyle."

Jiang Rumu handed her the water.

"Continue after you're done reflecting."

Lu Cheng took the water.

"Okay."

Taking advantage of them stopping, Xiao Chai spun around in place twice.

Jiang Rumu looked down.

"Don't be impatient."

Xiao Chai let out a howl.

Xiao Qian turned its head to look at it.

Xiao Chai quieted down for half a second before starting to tug on the leash again.

Jiang Rumu patted its head.

"Li Li said not to let go."

Lu Cheng added.

"Teacher Li's exact words were, 'Don't let go of Xiao Chai.'"

Xiao Chai howled again.

Jiang Rumu got a headache from its fussing.

"You understand, don't you? You're being rebellious on purpose, aren't you?"

Xiao Qian walked over and nudged Xiao Chai with its head.

Xiao Chai behaved for three seconds.

Three seconds later, it started bouncing again.

Lu Cheng looked down at her phone.

"The announcement's popularity is still rising. The Company's associated marketing accounts have deleted a lot of content."

Jiang Rumu used a tissue to wipe the water from the corner of Xiao Qian's mouth.

"Did you save all the screenshots?"

"Yes."

"What about Lawyer Han?"

"Sent."

"What about the account with the hotel hidden camera video?"

Lu Cheng capped the water bottle.

"We've locked onto a Company. After tracing the equity, it's related to the Company's former PR supplier."

Jiang Rumu nodded.

"Continue."

Lu Cheng hesitated for a moment.

"Zhou Hui might retaliate."

Jiang Rumu led the dogs upward.

"He has already retaliated, but this time he didn't bite any meat; he just lunged into the announcement."

Lu Cheng pursed her lips.

That sounded very much like Jiang Rumu.

Sharp.

And fierce.

By noon, there were fewer people at the summit.

Heat was rising from the stone steps.

Jiang Rumu found an open space, opened the collapsible bowl, and poured water for the two dogs.

Xiao Qian lowered its head and drank steadily.

Xiao Chai took two sips, lifted its head, and shook off the water, soaking Lu Cheng's pant leg.

Lu Cheng looked down at her wet pants.

"...Thanks."

Jiang Rumu held back her laughter.

"It likes you."

Lu Cheng took a tissue to wipe her pant leg.

"This affection is quite impactful."

After finishing its water, Xiao Chai started digging the ground in place again.

Jiang Rumu looked around.

The open space wasn't large, it was visible from both front and back, and there was a thicket of trees nearby.

In the distance, a man wearing a hat and carrying a large backpack walked past the end of the stone steps without stopping.

Lu Cheng glanced over there.

"Sister Jiang, should we send our location to Teacher Li?"

Jiang Rumu took out her phone.

"Send one."

She sent the real-time location and added another sentence.

[Resting at the summit, will head down in a while.]

Li Li replied instantly.

[Stay safe.]

Jiang Rumu glanced at Xiao Chai, who was still circling.

[Only Xiao Chai isn't very safe, it tangled itself up.]

By this time, Xiao Chai had tangled itself twice, lifted its front paws, and nearly kicked over the collapsible bowl.

Jiang Rumu crouched down to untie the leash.

"Don't move."

Lu Cheng immediately looked up.

"Teacher Li just warned us."

"I know."

Jiang Rumu didn't release the whole leash, only untied the knot that was wrapped around its front legs.

"Xiao Chai, stand still."

Xiao Chai stood still for half a second.

The next second, it lowered its head and darted, the leash slipping out of Jiang Rumu's hand, and it rushed directly into the bushes.

Jiang Rumu reached out to grab it, but failed.

"Xiao Chai!"

Xiao Chai ran a circle around the open space first, then rushed to the trees to sniff.

With a flick of its tail, it dove into the grass.

Jiang Rumu stood up.

"Xiao Chai, come back!"

There was no response, so Jiang Rumu let it play for a bit.

There was no one around, so there wouldn't be any complaints.

Xiao Qian finished the last bit of water and walked over to sit by Jiang Rumu's feet.

Lu Cheng's phone was still on the announcement page.

"The tax announcement is number one on trending. Sister Jiang, that high-definition Weibo post of yours is back up there."

Jiang Rumu was about to look, but suddenly stopped; Xiao Chai hadn't come back yet.

"Xiao Chai?"

No one answered.

She walked a few steps toward the bushes.

"Xiao Chai!"

Lu Cheng immediately put away her phone.

"Xiao Chai? Xiao Chai!"

Jiang Rumu pushed aside the bushes and looked around.

Nothing.

She ran two steps toward the side path.

"Xiao Chai, come back!"

The heat pressed down on the summit.

There was no dog barking in the distance.

Jiang Rumu took out her phone, opened the chat box with Li Li, but then stopped.

Can't panic.

Xiao Chai might just have crawled in to play.

She stuffed her phone back into her bag and crouched down to look at Xiao Qian.

"Xiao Qian, find Xiao Chai."

Xiao Qian stood in place, looking first at Jiang Rumu, then at Lu Cheng.

Then it lowered its head to sniff the ground.

It turned and walked toward the woods.

After walking two steps, it stopped and looked back.

The meaning was clear.

Follow.

Lu Cheng swallowed.

"Can it really find it?"

Jiang Rumu picked up Xiao Chai's leash.

"It can control Xiao Chai."

Lu Cheng hugged her backpack tight.

"Then Xiao Chai is a source of family instability."

Jiang Rumu followed quickly.

"It belongs to the demolition department of the family business."

Xiao Qian didn't take the mountain path.

It went around a rock and entered the edge of the woods.

Jiang Rumu lowered her hat brim and stepped over the dry leaves.

Lu Cheng followed behind, her phone in her hand, the screen already switched to the dialing interface.

"Should we call Teacher Li?"

A faint rustling sound came from the bushes ahead.

Jiang Rumu raised her hand.

"Don't make a sound yet."

Xiao Qian continued to walk inside.

Its speed wasn't fast, but its direction was very precise.

On the other side of the woods.

The man wearing the hat stopped behind a tree.

He set his phone to silent and aimed the camera at Jiang Rumu's back.

A message popped up on the screen in English.

[Confirm she only has her assistant and one dog with her?]

The man lowered his head and typed.

[Another dog ran off, they've entered the woods.]

The other side replied quickly.

[Don't get too close, wait until they leave the main path.]

The man stuffed his phone back into his pocket and followed them.

Up ahead, Xiao Qian suddenly stopped.

Jiang Rumu also stopped.

Lu Cheng nearly bumped into her back.

"Xiao Qian?"

Xiao Qian lowered its head to sniff the ground and dove into the bushes on the right.

The next second, Xiao Chai's short, sharp bark came from ahead.

"Awooo!"

Jiang Rumu immediately grabbed the leash and pushed aside the branches.

She saw her own Husky staring at a 'cat'; Xiao Chai looked very happy, while the 'cat' had already started hissing.

"Xiao Chai!"

A dozen meters away.

The man wearing the hat put down his backpack.

The bag opened.

Inside was a can of liquid.

And a lighter.

He unscrewed the cap and poured the liquid onto the dry leaves.

He also poured it on the only path back.

He pressed the lighter.

As soon as it touched the liquid, it immediately ignited, also setting the dry leaves nearby on fire.

The flames quickly flared up.