Wang Zhuo’s question gave Xu Meng quite a start.

She blinked her eyes, which bore a slight resemblance to Xu Chu’s, and asked back in confusion, “My grandfather is Xu Xinli. You know him?”

Wang Zhuo smiled and nodded. “So, that means you should call Xu Chu’s grandfather Third Grand-Uncle. You and Xu Chu aren't direct-line cousins.”

“You know quite a lot,” Xu Meng admitted, nodding repeatedly in surprise.

“We need to reach a cooperative agreement with your family, so some preliminary research was necessary,” Wang Zhuo stated calmly. “Xu Chu only has one paternal uncle, and his daughters have all emigrated abroad. I thus guessed you were from her Second Grand-Uncle’s line, and I was correct.”

This immediately piqued Xu Meng’s curiosity. Wang Zhuo paused, then smiled warmly at her. “I’ve met your grandfathers. They came to see me together and even provided me with some assistance.”

I didn't come here to discuss this... Xu Meng felt a sense of exasperation, wondering how this man could speak so erratically.

“You should go abroad for a change of scenery,” Wang Zhuo said abruptly, glancing at her. “I’m not joking; this is the best course of action for both you and your relatives.”

“Huh?” Xu Meng laughed, genuinely annoyed. “What are you talking about? I don’t understand at all!”

“Teacher Xu,” Wang Zhuo shook his head with a faint smile. “After everything that’s happened, do you think you can return to your job at the school? Or have you already decided to fight this to the bitter end—‘let the heavens collapse after I’m dead’?”

Xu Meng was stunned. Wang Zhuo continued, “It’s just a man who has a wife and doesn’t really love you. With your qualifications, do you really think you can’t find someone better? Or are you too proud to swallow this slight and insist on making a spectacular show of getting even? Or perhaps you feel life is meaningless and you’re just looking for an easy end?”

Xu Meng wanted to argue but found herself speechless. Every word Wang Zhuo spoke was incisive, hitting the core of her feelings. His occasional glance seemed to see everything, penetrating the depths of her heart.

“He’s just an irresponsible man; what is there to be so attached to? Especially when he has such a domineering and exclusionary wife?” Wang Zhuo sneered when he saw her silence. “As for your stubborn pride, stepping back opens a vast horizon. A much more spectacular life awaits you. Once you establish a new world for yourself, all this will be nothing but smoke and mirrors.”

After a long silence, Xu Meng finally offered a bitter smile. “Your tongue can really bring the dead back to life.”

“Talking without doing is just posturing,” Wang Zhuo smiled faintly. “I’m developing some overseas ventures recently and urgently need talent like you. Of course, you could interpret that as me coveting your beauty and trying to build a relationship. If you've made up your mind, just let me know. There are over two hundred countries on Earth, and I have several operations; you can pretty much pick and choose.”

Xu Meng couldn't help but laugh. “You have quite the big mouth!”

“Whether my mouth is big or not, you can ask Xu Chu to find out,” Wang Zhuo declared proudly, lifting his chin. “There are some expired documents in the room; it’s not much of a secret. You can look if you’re curious.”

This little man is too arrogant! Xu Meng grunted with annoyance and asked, “Do you have any further instructions? If not, I’m going to find Xu Chu’s documents!”

Wang Zhuo sized her up, teasingly smiling. “Instructions aren't exactly the right word; I just want to advise you. You have your prime years ahead of you, and men who admire you are queuing up. Give them a chance, and you’ll find there are plenty of good men out there.”

...

To be lectured by a younger man! Xu Meng huffed out of the cockpit and, after searching downstairs for a while, went upstairs to find Xu Chu.

Wang Zhuo drove the car into a quiet, deserted alleyway, estimating that this evening, only the occasional wandering feral cat would pass by; there would be no other guests.

Then, he called Yuanye.

“Wang Zhuo, don't stand on ceremony with me; I’m unworthy of such praise! I’ve already scared those people off. The gang that started the fight should be thanking heaven they aren't being sued right now!”

“Me? Of course, I’m fine! Anyone who’s unhappy can file a complaint with me. As you know, my direct superior’s superior is my uncle. Even if he reports it to the Jiangzhou Political and Legal Affairs Commission, it won’t do anything to me.”

Yuanye’s attitude was remarkably bold. Anyone who didn't know better would think he was a steadfast, righteous buddy of Wang Zhuo’s!

Although Wang Zhuo was assertive, he also knew the rules of conduct. Hearing this, he chuckled and said, “Alright, I’ll treat you to a meal another day, Director Yuan, and we’ll catch up properly!”

“I’d be delighted to accept your kind invitation!” Yuanye was ecstatic and tactfully added, “Then let’s leave it at that for now. I have to go assist in the investigation of a homicide case and have administrative work to handle. I’ll hang up if there’s nothing else, okay?”

“A murder case?” Wang Zhuo’s curiosity was immediately piqued. He glanced at He Ye, busy in the kitchen, and Xu Chu and Xu Meng reading materials in the study. Since he had nothing urgent, he casually asked, “What’s the situation? Can you tell me about it?”

Such case details were naturally confidential, explicitly required by police discipline. But when Wang Zhuo made the request, what did discipline matter?

So, Yuanye recounted the entire case, which turned out to be a major one: a family of three brutally murdered, the female victim having been sexually assaulted before death, the male owner having a history of drug use, and the little girl only six years old.

After concluding his narration, Yuanye complained, “Under normal circumstances, for a case like this, we just need to find a suspect and compare their DNA, and we’d have a result. But that bastard was wearing a condom, damn it.”

Wang Zhuo was generally interested in crime documentary programs. Since he was idle anyway, he asked with a smile, “Did you check the nearby dumpsters and roadside grass patches to see if you could find that balloon?”

“Why wouldn’t we look? We searched everywhere,” Yuanye replied with a dry laugh. “That little punk has excellent counter-surveillance skills; he must have carried it away with him. Where are we supposed to find it now?”

After hanging up, Wang Zhuo switched off the car lights and shook his head as he left the driver’s seat. In this day and age, the media produced too many special investigative programs for newspaper sales and TV ratings. While satisfying the public’s appetite for the sensational, these shows also inadvertently prepped criminals, honing their exceptional anti-surveillance abilities and making cases harder to solve.

He walked into the kitchen. He Ye’s three dishes and one soup were nearly finished. Wang Zhuo sniffed the aroma of the food and grinned with satisfaction.

“I was right, your cooking skills are amazing.”

He Ye turned with a smile. “How did you guess?”

“To conquer a man, you must first satisfy his stomach,” Wang Zhuo chuckled knowingly. “Others might not understand this principle, but you wouldn't?”

He Ye smiled sheepishly. Wang Zhuo truly saw through her. As the saying goes, know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated. Having seen through her, wasn't he already certain to win her over?

“Keep up the good work; I’ll go see what the others are doing,” Wang Zhuo said cheerfully, playfully pinching He Ye’s rear before walking out.

He Ye’s legs went weak from the touch. She shot him an irritated glance over her shoulder, swallowed involuntarily, and then turned back to continue stir-frying.

Meanwhile, Xu Chu and Xu Meng were already stunned by those “outdated” files.

There were several documents concerning the Taoyuan Copper Mine, some reports on Wang Chao Wuliang, and the previous fiscal year's performance summary for the Shengshi Wangchao Jewelry Store.

These documents were enough for them to gain some comprehension of Wang Zhuo’s net worth. Furthermore, Xu Chu quietly revealed to her older cousin that Wang Zhuo had promised them forty percent of the shares in the nascent beauty chain he was about to establish, projected to yield over a hundred million in profit in the first fiscal year—a truly staggering sum!

As a university lecturer and a native of Jiangzhou, Xu Meng was quite familiar with Wang Chao Wuliang, which had developed from this region. She had even considered that if Wang Chao Wuliang ever went public, she would absolutely buy shares the moment they launched.

Because Wang Chao Wuliang’s overseas market was so vast—the prospects were limitless!

“He really said you could choose freely among his projects and regions?!” Xu Chu was pleasantly surprised, exclaiming, “Sis, ask him for the authorization for the new products in the US; that’s an even better market than the domestic one!”

“Silly Chu Chu,” Xu Meng shook her head. “Wang Chao Wuliang is the invincible one. Forget the US; even France or Germany would be an incredible market.”

Xu Chu giggled playfully. “He’s really good to you, isn’t he? Giving you such a huge gift right after meeting you. People whose butts he’s touched definitely get better treatment.”

When Wang Zhuo had held Xu Meng’s arm to guide her back to the car, he had indeed touched her backside. Although, if he hadn't pressed there to steady her, she might have tumbled to the ground, the fact remained that he had touched her.

Normally, Xu Chu wouldn’t engage in such risqué banter with her cousin. But Wang Zhuo had just said that her cousin was leaning toward self-destruction. Therefore, Xu Chu felt it necessary to liven up the atmosphere, at least to cheer up her cousin and dispel that notion.

“So what if he touched it?” Xu Meng snorted. In Xu Meng’s eyes, Xu Chu was just a little girl, not a worthy opponent on the same level. “It’s you I’m curious about—your relationship with him is probably not just limited to touching, is it? Hurry up and confess, how intimate are you two—down to skin-to-skin?” Before Xu Chu could answer, Wang Zhuo knocked twice and walked into the room.

Xu Meng glanced at him and continued to press her cousin: “Answer my question!”

“I need to use the restroom,” Xu Chu mumbled, completely embarrassed, and beat a hasty retreat!

“Dinner is ready,” Wang Zhuo said, smiling, beckoning Xu Meng toward the dining area with a wave of his hand.

“You heard my question, didn’t you?” Xu Meng asked with a sly smile.

“I heard it,” Wang Zhuo chuckled, shrugging. “The answer is between B and NEB.”

Dinner was very calm. Aside from a few occasional remarks about the food, everyone tacitly avoided mentioning any intimate matters.

What exactly was between B and the relationship? This question temporarily occupied Xu Meng’s thoughts. By the time she suddenly thought she had the answer, a sudden realization dawning on her, it was already close to midnight.

He’s truly wicked! Xu Meng felt both angry and amused. She listened to the quiet surroundings, got up from the sofa, and headed towards the restroom.

69 Zhong A