137: Chapter 137 Chen Hu is killed, and the scandals surrounding Hongtai Construction begin to unfold.

Chen Mo put away his phone, his face as dark as a gathering storm cloud as he paced back toward the main house with a cold, grim expression.

A cold light flickered in his eyes, his heart filled with fury; the moment he stepped inside, his gaze shot toward Chen Hu like an ice blade.

Chen Hu was standing there at a loss. Feeling Chen Mo's piercing gaze, he involuntarily took a step back, his instinct urging him to flee.

But Chen Mo gave him no chance to run. With a quick stride forward, he suddenly raised his foot and kicked Chen Hu viciously.

Chen Hu lost his balance and fell heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. He twisted his body, his face showing a mixture of terror and pain.

Chen Mo looked down at him, eyes narrowing as he stared at Chen Hu. Every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth: "Chen Hu, I'll give you one last chance. Speak! Who else knows about this house? Who could have stolen the things hidden here?"

Chen Hu struggled to sit up, looking panicked, his eyes flickering with fear and confusion. He tried desperately to search his mind for potential suspects, but after a long while, he still shook his head helplessly, his voice trembling: "I really don't know..."

"You don't know? Fine, then you can go die!" Chen Mo said, making a move to strike.

Chen Hu swallowed hard, continuing in a state of panic: "Wait, wait. I remember, that day, after Lawyer Wang Ming met with me and told me to close the Underground Bank immediately, he posted my bail. After the police released me, I went straight to the Underground Bank, took the ledgers and gold bars from the safe, and came here."

"Were there any suspicious vehicles following you on the way?" Chen Mo pressed.

"There shouldn't have been." Chen Hu shook his head and continued, "After I put the things away, I left. There was only that one key to the door, and as you saw when we arrived, the lock was perfectly fine. The stone slab on top of the key hadn't been moved by anyone either..."

At this point, Chen Hu's eyes suddenly lit up, and he said urgently: "Unless someone climbed over the wall!" but then he shook his head again, a look of hesitation on his face, "But there's protective glass on the walls; an ordinary person couldn't climb in. Even if they did, they couldn't have easily found that hidden compartment..."

Listening to Chen Hu's explanation, Chen Mo's brow furrowed. He thought to himself that while climbing the wall might be difficult for an ordinary person, it wasn't impossible for someone agile. Besides, if all else failed, it wasn't impossible to use a ladder to climb in when no one was around.

Thinking of this, he stared intently into Chen Hu's eyes and followed up: "In other words, only Wang Ming knew your whereabouts that day?"

"Yes," reminded by Chen Mo, Chen Hu nodded firmly as if catching a life-saving straw. He said with a solemn expression, "Other than him, I can't think of anyone else who knew what I was going to do that day..." He suddenly paused, his expression becoming tense again, "Wait! There is one other suspicious person—the son of the Huajian Steel boss, named... what was it... oh right, Qin Yi! He's the one who broke my arm!"

"Qin Yi?" A flash of coldness appeared in Chen Mo's eyes. He said coldly, "With his skills, this courtyard wall indeed wouldn't keep him out. You mean he followed you here?"

"It's just a guess," Chen Hu explained hurriedly. "In those ledgers, there are records about Huajian Steel. That kid might have wanted to avenge his father, so he stole the ledgers and the gold bars from me!"

Chen Mo pondered for a moment, weighing the possibilities of these two people. He felt that both seemed suspicious.

He gave Chen Hu a cold glance, a sneer curling at the corner of his mouth: "I'll believe you for once." After saying that, he turned and strode out of the room, dialing Zhao Lintai's number again.

Zhao Lintai's steady voice soon came from the other end: "A-Mo, any new discoveries?"

"Boss, there are some new leads." Chen Mo glanced at Chen Hu, who was looking at him in a panic from inside the main house, and reported in a low voice, "Chen Hu says there are two highly suspicious people: one is Wang Ming, and the other is that kid surnamed Qin."

"Wang Ming?" Zhao Lintai's voice held a hint of doubt. "Is there any evidence?"

Chen Mo shook his head, his voice tinged with helplessness: "There's no direct evidence, but Chen Hu said that only Wang Ming knew his whereabouts that day."

Zhao Lintai fell into deep thought on the other end, his brow furrowed. After a moment, he asked in confusion: "But what would he take the ledgers for? Could he even distance himself from the matters recorded in there?"

Chen Mo lightly rubbed his chin, responding thoughtfully: "Perhaps he was tempted by those nearly one hundred gold bars, and the ledgers were just a bonus. Or, he took the ledgers so he could make a clean getaway later? After all, he's a lawyer; he's best at finding loopholes in the law."

Zhao Lintai sighed. These were all just Chen Mo's guesses. At the moment, Wang Ming still had utility for him. Without solid evidence, he couldn't directly confront Wang Ming.

Thus, he changed the subject and asked, "What about Qin Yi?"

"Chen Hu said the ledgers recorded matters regarding Huajian Steel, as well as some details of how Qin Jianye was set up back then." As he spoke, Chen Mo's gaze suddenly became sharp. "It's possible he secretly followed Chen Hu and took the opportunity to steal the ledgers. Boss, I think Chen Hu's analysis makes some sense. With Qin Yi's skills, following Chen Hu without being noticed, then climbing over the courtyard wall without leaving a trace to take the ledgers and gold bars shouldn't be difficult." He paused for a moment, seemingly organizing his thoughts, then continued, "Should we have someone look into this Qin Yi to confirm if he's been here?"

Zhao Lintai went silent on the other end, silently weighing the pros and cons. After a moment, he said decisively: "Don't alert the enemy yet! I've checked with Jingnan; there's no movement there for now. The ledgers most likely haven't fallen into the hands of the police. Dispose of Chen Hu first, then come back as soon as possible. I'll arrange for someone to send you away to hide for a while."

"Boss, I need to go into hiding too? That seems unnecessary, doesn't it?" Chen Mo's brow furrowed, clearly showing some incomprehension and resistance to Zhao Lintai's request.

"How is it unnecessary? You were already exposed in that conflict at the Nightlife Bar last night. If the police find out your background, do you think you'll still be safe?" Zhao Lintai's tone brooked no argument as he continued, "Listen to me, go to South Korea or Japan for a while. Once the heat dies down, you can come back!"

Chen Mo sighed. Since the boss had already decided, he no longer insisted, only asking with some concern: "Then what about your safety, Boss?"

"Don't worry about me, I have my own arrangements." Zhao Lintai's voice was full of confidence. "It's decided then. Handle Chen Hu cleanly, and don't leave any loose ends!"

"Yes, Boss, I understand!" Chen Mo hung up the phone and walked back into the main house with a grim face.

As soon as Chen Hu saw Chen Mo's figure, his eyes immediately filled with deep fear. He backed away repeatedly, his legs feeling as heavy as lead. His face was pale, his voice trembling, almost crying as he kowtowed to Chen Mo and begged for mercy: "Big brother, please spare my life. I-I really have money. We can talk. I'll give you as much as you want, just please let me go, okay?"

Cold light glinted in Chen Mo's eyes, a cruel smile hanging on his lips, as if he were watching a clown struggling in its death throes: "Chen Hu, sometimes being too smart isn't a good thing." After saying that, he slowly walked up to Chen Hu and suddenly stomped hard on Chen Hu's lower leg.

With a crisp 'crack' of a bone breaking, Chen Hu's scream echoed through the entire room.

Chen Mo expressionlessly moved behind Chen Hu, his hand tightly gripping his neck, whispering coldly into Chen Hu's ear: "Shhh, shut your mouth, relax, don't be nervous. It'll be over soon!"

After saying that, before Chen Hu could respond, another 'crack' sounded, and Chen Hu's neck was snapped by Chen Mo. Chen Mo let go, and Chen Hu's body slumped to the ground like a pile of mud.

There wasn't the slightest hint of pity or emotion on Chen Mo's face. It was as if killing someone was as simple and natural to him as crushing an ant.

Afterward, he walked out of the main house indifferently, glanced around the quiet courtyard, and headed toward a nearby room. The good thing about houses in the village was that they had all sorts of tools. He found a pickaxe and a shovel in that room, walked to a large tree in the courtyard, and began to dig.

Layers of soil were turned over, and after ten minutes, a pit nearly two meters deep appeared under the tree.

Chen Mo easily jumped out of the pit, patted the dirt off his hands, and entered the main house again. He dragged the lifeless Chen Hu out like a sack of grain and threw him into the pit without mercy. Then he began using the shovel to fill the soil back in until Chen Hu's body was completely covered.

Another ten minutes passed. The pit was leveled by Chen Mo, who then used dead branches and leaves to cover the digging site. He returned the tools to their original place and carefully covered the hidden compartment in the main house with the bluestone bricks again. Everything was tidied up as if nothing had ever happened here.

By now, the sun had just risen. The village was still very quiet, with nothing but the sounds of insects and birds, and the occasional truck passing by on the nearby national highway.

Chen Mo walked out of Chen Hu's old house as if nothing was wrong, locked the door, and casually tucked the key into his pocket. Then he got into his car and quickly drove away from this place of trouble.

Passing over a stone bridge, Chen Mo stopped the car and rolled down the window.

He took a deep breath of the fresh country air and casually tossed the house key into the river.

The key traced an arc in the air and then disappeared into the rushing river water, just like Chen Hu's life, completely vanishing from this world.

...

Meanwhile, after a night of frantic spreading, Qin Yi's exposé post had caught the attention of countless netizens. They flooded the post with comments, a variety of voices intertwining. At the same time, some indignant netizens, eager for drama, didn't forget to tag official accounts and internet influencers, hoping to draw even wider attention.

This sudden surge of online public opinion quickly received high attention from relevant departments. The Shanghai Online Public Opinion Center, upon learning the news, immediately reported the situation to higher-level leadership.

In the bedroom of a luxurious detached villa in Shanghai, a middle-aged man in his fifties was currently naked, embracing a beautiful woman as they slept soundly in bed.

Suddenly, the phone on the nightstand emitted a sharp, buzzing vibration, breaking the morning silence and disturbing their dreams.

The beautiful woman in his arms was awakened by the sudden noise. She pursed her lips in dissatisfaction, broke free from the man's embrace, turned over with her eyes closed, and complained: "Old Qian, your phone is ringing, it's so annoying. Who's looking for you so early in the morning!"

This middle-aged man was none other than Vice Mayor Qian. And the beautiful woman lying beside him was the owner of the teahouse from that day—the mistress of this Vice Mayor Qian.

Vice Mayor Qian heard the commotion and opened his eyes groggily, propping himself up on the bed. He turned on the bedside lamp, put on his glasses, and only then picked up the phone to check. When he saw the name on the caller ID, a hint of displeasure also appeared on his face.

"Secretary Wang, what's so important that you're calling this early?" Vice Mayor Qian answered the phone, his tone carrying some dissatisfaction.

On the other end, Secretary Wang's voice sounded urgent and anxious: "Mayor Qian, something big has happened! Hongtai Construction has been exposed!"

Hearing this, Vice Mayor Qian instantly woke up, his sleepiness completely gone. He pressed urgently: "What exactly is going on? Speak quickly!" As he spoke, he rolled out of bed, grabbed his bathrobe, put it on, and headed out of the bedroom.

"It's like this. Last night, or rather, early this morning, an exposé post about Hongtai Construction suddenly appeared online. The post describes in detail Hongtai Construction's bid-rigging, collusive bidding, and bribery of officials in project tenders, and it even includes a large number of photos as evidence," Secretary Wang explained urgently.

Vice Mayor Qian's heart sank. He asked hurriedly: "Does the post involve anything about me? Are those Materials that were couriered to my office that day in there?"

"There is some involvement, but all information related to you has been blurred out, so people who don't know the situation shouldn't be able to tell it's referring to you," Secretary Wang replied.

Vice Mayor Qian breathed a slight sigh of relief, but the tension in his heart didn't fully dissipate. He frowned and continued to ask: "Do we know who made the post?"

"The cyber police at the Online Public Opinion Center are doing their best to track it down, but the poster is very cunning. They used multiple layers of proxies to hide their identity, and the IP address shows they're abroad," Secretary Wang explained.

"Has the post been taken down?" Vice Mayor Qian pressed further.

"Not yet. The posts appeared almost simultaneously on major portals and short video platforms. Moreover, because it was posted late at night, many people have already shared it by now. The relevant departments in the city should have noticed it too..."

Vice Mayor Qian took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. After a moment of reflection, he asked: "What is Wang Hongtai's reaction right now?"

"Uh... Wang Hongtai is currently in the hospital," Secretary Wang said with some hesitation. "Something happened to his son last night, and he's still in a coma, so..."

"What's the situation? How can it be such a coincidence?" Vice Mayor Qian frowned, an ominous feeling rising in his heart. "Could someone be deliberately targeting Wang Hongtai?"

"This... it's hard to say at the moment," Secretary Wang answered. "However, since the parts about you in the post were blurred, it suggests the poster's goal might not be to target you. Could it be a business competitor of Wang Hongtai trying to use this opportunity to stop Hongtai Construction from going public?"

Vice Mayor Qian went silent for a moment before saying slowly: "Stop him from going public? That might be a possible motive. Wang Hongtai raised a lot of capital for the IPO and signed a gambling agreement. Once the IPO fails, control of Hongtai Construction will change hands..." He paused here and continued: "Alright, let's not talk about this over the phone. Come to my place immediately. If the relevant departments have noticed this, they might seek me out for a talk soon. We need to quickly figure out a countermeasure!"

"Yes, sir. I'll head over right away!" Secretary Wang replied.

After hanging up the phone, Vice Mayor Qian fell into deep thought, a shadow passing over his face and deep concern showing in his eyes.

His mistress lying in bed also noticed his abnormality, but she didn't ask any questions, only silently turning over and continuing to pretend to sleep.

The room fell into silence again, with only the sound of Vice Mayor Qian's breathing echoing softly.