133: Chapter 133 Chen Hu reveals the whereabouts of the account book, Qin Yi sets out to deal with Wang Hongtai.

Zhao Lintai did not respond to his pleas. A stern look etched across his brow, he continued to press with a harsh tone: "Chen Hu, my patience has its limits! I will ask you one last time, where exactly have you hidden the ledger of the Jingnan Underground Bank?"

Facing his boss's relentless pressure, Chen Hu knew that the only thing that could save him now was that ledger. His voice trembled, every word dripping with supplication: "Boss, I... if I tell you, can you... can you, for the sake of our past relationship, leave me a way to survive..." At this moment, he had completely lost his previous arrogance and resentment, leaving only pure begging and pleading.

Zhao Lintai looked at Chen Hu's near-begging face, a flicker of disdain and disgust flashing in his eyes. If Chen Hu had remained tight-lipped to the end, Zhao Lintai might have respected him as a man, but now, Zhao Lintai only agreed on the surface, while in his heart, he had already sentenced Chen Hu to death!

He nodded with a calm expression: "Fine. As long as you reveal the whereabouts of the ledger, I can spare your life." As he spoke, he paused slightly, then continued: "However, you cannot stay in the country any longer. Let me see about arranging for you to go abroad to lay low."

Upon hearing this, a complex emotion flashed in Chen Hu's eyes, a mix of relief and fear. But this was his only chance at survival right now. So, he spoke slowly in a slightly trembling voice: "The... the ledger, I hid it in the old house in Jingnan. On... only I know that place..." At this point, his body couldn't help but tremble slightly, and he looked up nervously at Zhao Lintai.

Zhao Lintai also stared at him intently, as if trying to read the truth from his eyes. After a moment, he warned in a deep voice: "Chen Hu, you had better not lie to me! Otherwise, I will make sure you die a very ugly death!"

"I... I wouldn't dare..." Chen Hu stuttered in response, his eyes filled with fear.

Zhao Lintai then turned to A-Mo, who had been standing to the side, and commanded in an authoritative tone: "A-Mo, you'll have to make a trip tonight. Take my car and bring him to Jingnan to retrieve the ledger!"

"Yes, Boss." A-Mo responded respectfully.

Subsequently, Zhao Lintai waved his hand, signaling A-Mo to take Chen Hu away. A-Mo quickly and skillfully bound Chen Hu's hands and feet, gagged him, and shoved him into the car.

Just as A-Mo locked the warehouse door and was about to leave, he took the opportunity to lean close to Zhao Lintai, lowering his voice to a whisper: "Boss, after we get the ledger, how should we handle Chen Hu?"

Zhao Lintai was expressionless, saying indifferently: "You should know that only the dead can keep a secret forever."

Upon hearing this, a cold smirk curled up on A-Mo's lips. He made a throat-slitting gesture with his hand, indicating he understood.

"Remember to make it clean," Zhao Lintai added. "Didn't he say that only he knows that place? I suppose if you hide a corpse there, no one should be able to find it, right?"

"Boss, rest assured." A flash of ruthlessness crossed A-Mo's eyes as he turned and walked toward the driver's seat.

Zhao Lintai sat in the passenger seat. In the back row, Chen Hu was bound so tightly he couldn't move, the tape over his mouth sealing off all his sounds.

The headlights flickered on, cutting through the silence of the night as the car sped off toward Jingnan.

Meanwhile, Qin Yi also arrived at Shenjiang Bay Community by taxi.

At this moment, the security guard on duty at the community entrance was still the same one who had stopped Qin Xiaoyue for registration that afternoon.

When the security guard looked up and saw Qin Yi, the owner of Building 7, his eyes lit up. He immediately stood straight and gave Qin Yi a standard salute, his tone full of respect: "Good evening, Mr. Qin."

Qin Yi nodded slightly in acknowledgment.

But as he walked past, the guard's eyes involuntarily landed on the back of Qin Yi's clothes, and he frowned slightly.

"Mr. Qin, there seems to be... something on your clothes." The guard reminded him cautiously.

Qin Yi stopped, suspiciously inspecting his clothes, but at first glance, he didn't notice anything unusual.

The guard hurriedly walked up and pointed, "Mr. Qin, look here..."

Qin Yi turned his head following the guard's indication and pulled up his clothes to look closely. Sure enough, there was a dark red stain on the hem of his back. He touched it lightly and thought to himself: "This must be the bloodstain I accidentally got on me while fighting with A-Mo. I wonder if it's mine or that kid's..."

Thinking this, Qin Yi looked up and gave the guard an awkward smile, "It's probably ketchup I rubbed against while eating. Thanks for the reminder."

"Hehe, you're welcome, Mr. Qin." The guard smiled and watched Qin Yi enter the community, his face full of confusion. He scratched his head and muttered to himself: "Ketchup? It doesn't look like it..."

Qin Yi didn't pay much attention to the little guard's suspicions. He only thought about going back to Xu Qian's place and taking a shower first, so as not to worry her by letting her see him in this state. He wondered if Xu Qian was asleep yet.

Lost in thought, Qin Yi soon arrived at Building 7 and took the elevator straight to the 32nd floor. When the elevator door opened, Qin Yi arrived at Xu Qian's door, opened it with facial recognition, and stepped inside.

Inside the room, the living room lights were soft. On the TV, a Xuanhuan historical romance drama starring 'Ying Bao' was playing. Xu Qian was wearing a sexy lace nightgown, lying on her side on the sofa with her eyes closed. She looked like she had fallen fast asleep, yet a faint smile still hung on the corners of her lips.

Qin Yi didn't want to disturb her, so he tiptoed into the bedroom. He had originally intended to find some clothes to wear after his shower, but to his surprise, he saw a new set of men's pajamas neatly laid out on the bed. Without needing to ask, it was surely prepared for him by Xu Qian. His heart warmed, he smiled lightly, picked up the pajamas, and walked into the bathroom.

Soon, the sound of running water came from the bathroom. About ten minutes later, Qin Yi walked out wearing the pajamas, feeling refreshed.

He walked to the living room and saw that Xu Qian was still sleeping peacefully. Qin Yi carefully walked to her side, gently turned off the TV, then leaned down and pressed a light kiss on Xu Qian's forehead.

Xu Qian's eyelids fluttered slightly. Qin Yi lowered his voice and said softly in her ear: "Qian Qian, I'm back. Let me carry you to bed."

Upon hearing this, Xu Qian slowly opened her eyes. Seeing Qin Yi in front of her, the corners of her mouth immediately lifted. She reached out and wrapped her arms around his neck, her voice as gentle as water: "Young Master Qin, you're finally back."

Qin Yi smiled dotingly and gently picked up Xu Qian in a bridal carry, his eyes full of tenderness: "Didn't I tell you not to wait for me? If you were sleepy, why didn't you go to bed?"

"I was worried about you." Xu Qian rested her head on Qin Yi's shoulder, a blush appearing on her face: "Are you done with your business? Did it go smoothly?"

"Yeah, it went reasonably well." Qin Yi nodded with a smile, then changed the subject: "Let's not talk about that. It's almost midnight, let me carry you to bed."

"Mm..." Xu Qian responded shyly, snuggling into Qin Yi's arms, and the two returned to the bedroom together.

After gently placing Xu Qian on the bed, Qin Yi didn't get into bed immediately. Xu Qian pulled the quilt to cover her exposed, fair body, looking at him with a slightly blushing face: "Young Master Qin, it's getting late, shall we rest early?"

But to her surprise, Qin Yi asked: "Qian Qian, do you have a computer here?"

"A computer? Yes, in the study. Do you need to use it?" Xu Qian asked in surprise.

"Yeah, I need to transmit something. You go to sleep first, I'll be back when I'm done." As Qin Yi said this, he turned to turn off the bedroom light, but suddenly remembered something: "By the way, does the computer have a password?"

"No password. But my computer is a bit slow, it might not be easy to use." Xu Qian replied.

"It's fine, I'll make do with it for now. I'll buy you a new one later. Alright, you go to sleep first. Good night." Qin Yi said softly.

"Alright then, rest early after you're done." Xu Qian urged.

Qin Yi smiled slightly, gently closed the door, and walked toward the study.

The bedroom door slowly closed. Xu Qian lay on the bed, eyes wide open, staring hollowly through the darkness at the chandelier on the ceiling. An indescribable sense of loss spread in her heart.

She had originally expected that after Qin Yi returned, the two of them could spend a warm and sweet night together, sleeping in each other's arms. However, at this moment, this beautiful vision seemed to be quietly shattering.

Xu Qian tossed and turned on the bed, the pillowcase becoming wrinkled under her unconscious rubbing. Whenever she tried to close her eyes, the image of Qin Yi burying himself in work in the study would involuntarily surface in her mind. On the screen of her old laptop, it seemed to reflect his deep and focused gaze. She couldn't help but start imagining how wonderful it would be if she could snuggle by his side, hand him a cup of hot milk, or just quietly keep him company.

Time ticked away, minute by minute, but Xu Qian's mood became increasingly restless and uneasy.

Finally, unable to suppress the anxiety in her heart, she sat up abruptly from the bed and reached out to turn on the reading lamp by the bedside.

She carefully got out of bed, gently pulled the bedroom door open a crack, and curiously poked her head out, her gaze involuntarily drifting toward the study.

The study door was tightly closed, but a faint sound could be heard coming from inside.

Xu Qian took a deep breath, tiptoed out of the bedroom, and walked into the kitchen.

She opened the refrigerator, took out a bottle of milk, poured it into a cup, and then put it in the microwave to heat up.

Meanwhile, in the study, Qin Yi was sitting at the desk.

That somewhat old-fashioned silver-gray laptop sat quietly on the desk; its thick body made it seem like a product of a different era compared to the thin, versatile laptops popular today.

Qin Yi gently lifted the laptop lid and pressed the power button. The "buzzing" sound of the cooling fan started, and the screen lit up accordingly.

While waiting for the laptop to boot up, Qin Yi took his phone out of his pocket and opened the photo gallery.

He swiped his finger gently across the screen, flipping through the contents of the "Acquisition Letter of Intent" he had photographed in Wang Hongtai's office.

Just then, Xu Qian gently pushed open the study door, carrying the hot milk.

Qin Yi looked up and saw the concern in Xu Qian's eyes, a warmth welling up in his heart.

He placed his phone face down, looked at Xu Qian with eyes full of tenderness, and a smile tugged at the corners of his mouth: "Qianqian, why are you up again?"

Xu Qian smiled and placed the hot milk on the table. She glanced at the laptop screen, which was still booting up, her tone full of concern and tenderness: "You drank tonight, so I heated up a cup of milk for you; it helps with sleep."

"Hmm, thank you," Qin Yi said gratefully, picking up the cup of milk and taking a sip. A warm feeling instantly rippled through his heart.

He put down the cup, looked at Xu Qian's gentle face, reached out to pat her waist, and said softly, "Alright, you don't need to stay here with me. Go get some rest; don't you have to go to work tomorrow?"

"Oh, alright then." Xu Qian had wanted to say she would keep Qin Yi company in the study, but seeing that Qin Yi had just placed his phone face down on the desk, it was clear he didn't want her to see the contents.

Although she felt a bit disappointed, she nodded obediently and turned to walk toward the study door.

Just as she was about to leave, she turned back and urged Qin Yi, "Young Master Qin, don't work too late; get some rest early."

"Hmm, don't worry. I'll be done soon! Good night!" Qin Yi responded with a smile.

"Hmm, good night..." After saying that, Xu Qian walked out of the study and gently closed the door.

She stood outside the door, took a deep breath, tried to calm her inner emotions, and then walked dejectedly toward the bedroom.

The study returned to silence, with only the "buzzing..." of the laptop fan continuing to sound.

Qin Yi picked up his phone again and found the content related to Mayor Qian among the photos he had taken.

Immediately after, he opened the video footage captured by the Miniature Bionic Tracker and began watching it with great interest...

In the video, Wang Hongtai and Secretary Wu returned to Hongtai Construction Company by car.

Just as Wang Hongtai stepped into his office, he received a phone call.

He picked up the receiver and listened, his brows tightly knitted.

Because the speakerphone was off, Qin Yi couldn't hear the content of the call, but he could glean a thing or two from the changes in Wang Hongtai's expression.

Suddenly, a fawning smile appeared on Wang Hongtai's face, and he addressed the other person as "Mayor Qian."

He nodded repeatedly, as if the other person could see his actions, and said respectfully, "Yes, yes, yes, Mayor Qian, you are right to reprimand me. This matter was indeed not well-considered by me, Wang Hongtai."

"Please rest assured, I will contact Boss Zhao right away to facilitate the acquisition cooperation as soon as possible."

After speaking, he paused for a moment, seemingly waiting for the other party's response.

Then, he continued, "Hmm, alright, Mayor Qian. Regarding the company's listing, please put in some extra effort. Right, right, right. Then you go ahead and get busy; once the acquisition matters are settled, I will report back to you."

After the call ended, the smile on Wang Hongtai's face instantly vanished, replaced by a sullen expression.

He raised his fist and slammed it heavily onto his solid wood desk, cursing angrily, "Damn it, this bastard surnamed Qian actually dared to threaten me!"

Secretary Wu stood to the side and nervously reminded him, "Chairman Wang, please, watch your words."

There were employees in the company who were relatives of Mayor Qian; if Chairman Wang's words reached Mayor Qian's ears, there would likely be another round of groveling apologies.

"The hell I have to watch my words in my own company!" Wang Hongtai roared, "Just because he's a mayor, he really thinks he's the boss!

He puts on an air of righteousness, always going on and on about the 'bigger picture,' but in the end, isn't he just afraid of offending the powerful?

Damn it, I've spent so much money over all these years just to raise such a cowardly thing!" His face became increasingly sullen, as if it could drip water.

Secretary Wu sighed helplessly and advised again, "Chairman Wang, a local official is better than a distant superior.

Although Mayor Qian is a bit cowardly and greedy, he has indeed done a lot for us over the years, both openly and covertly.

Besides, this person named Zhao has such a deep background and is clearly here with bad intentions; Mayor Qian is just afraid of offending the people above."

"In my opinion, it would be better to sign the equity acquisition agreement with Wang Ming first. Once the company goes public, we can find another opportunity to recoup our losses."

Upon hearing Secretary Wu's words, Wang Hongtai's angry expression gradually calmed down.

He sighed helplessly, shook his head, and said, "Sigh, as things stand, this is the only way."

"Go to the front desk and get Wang Ming's business card; I will call him myself."

After saying this, he seemed to have exhausted all his strength and slumped into his chair.

Seeing this, Secretary Wu quickly replied, "Alright, Chairman Wang, I'll go get it right now." Saying this, he walked quickly out of the office.

...

Qin Yi watched the video on his phone, a trace of cunning and triumph revealed in his eyes, and a cold smile appeared at the corner of his mouth as he muttered to himself, "Let's see how you go public now!"

Just at this moment, Xu Qian's laptop screen finally reached the desktop.

Watching the icons slowly loading on the screen, Qin Yi shook his head helplessly, a bitter smile hanging on his lips as he complained, "This speed is really slow."

Ever since he acquired the God of Hackers skill that day, he hadn't used it even once. Although it was only Entry-Level, he figured that finding some jump servers to publish Wang Hongtai's dirt on the internet shouldn't be too difficult.

Thinking of this, a flash of cunning light shone in his eyes. He took a deep breath and silently issued a command to the System: "System, activate the God of Hackers skill!"

As soon as he finished speaking, accompanied by a crisp "ding" from the System, Qin Yi instantly felt as if he had entered a brand new Realm.

Qin Yi leaned forward slightly, his eyes fixed on the screen, his fingers resting lightly on the keyboard. As he thought about exposing Wang Hongtai's dirt, his thinking became exceptionally clear, and knowledge about hacking flooded his mind like a tide.

Qin Yi didn't need to think at all; his hands rested on the keyboard, and whatever he thought, his hands followed by typing on the keyboard.

However, Xu Qian's laptop was somewhat sluggish, which made Qin Yi feel a bit irritated.

He frowned, secretly complaining in his heart about this old device. Despite this, his fingers still didn't stop, though the speed slowed down slightly.

...

On the other side, inside the Hongtai Dijing 101 villa, it was completely silent, with only the sound of Wang Hongtai's steady breathing echoing in the room.

Suddenly, the "buzzing" vibration of his phone broke this silence, like an uninvited guest in the dark, making one feel unpleasant.

Wang Hongtai was startled awake from his sleep. He frowned and groggily reached for the phone on the nightstand.

He half-closed his eyes and, with a bit of annoyance at being disturbed, answered the phone: "Who is it?" His voice revealed the irritation of having his sleep interrupted.

On the other end of the line, a man's voice, full of vigor and steady, came through: "Hello, may I ask if this is Mr. Wang Hongtai?"

Wang Hongtai rubbed his eyes, trying to make himself more alert. He replied: "Hmm, yes, who are you?" At this moment, a sense of unease faintly rose in his heart; such late-night calls often meant bad news.

"Hello, I am Police Officer Sun Yizhong from the Jingan Branch, badge number XXXXX." The policeman's voice remained steady, but the next words made Wang Hongtai instantly sober up: "Your son, Wang Hao, got into a conflict with someone at the Nightlife Bar in Jingan District tonight. He is now at the hospital preparing for surgery, and a family member needs to sign. The situation is urgent; please come over as soon as possible."