Dawn, Alliance Builds

The taxi was navigating the early morning streets. I clutched the USB drive tightly in my hand, like it was my last straw. The driver glanced at me through the rearview mirror and asked, "Miss, where are you going?"

I was stunned. Where to go? The world was so vast, and I had nowhere to go.

"Just drive around town," I said.

My phone began vibrating frantically, Gu Yanshen's name flashing on the screen. I turned it off, removed the SIM card, rolled down the window, and let it disappear into the morning breeze. This action gave me a strange sense of relief, like I had finally severed the last thread that held me back.

As the taxi passed the bridge across the river, the sun was rising over the water, casting a golden glow across the water. I asked the driver to stop at the bridgehead and walked alone to the railing. The river flowed, as if it could wash away all the pain and struggle.

"Do you need help?" a gentle voice came from behind.

I turned around and saw an old man jogging in the morning. He looked at me worriedly.

"No," I forced a smile, "Just watching the sunrise."

The old man nodded and said, "Every day's sun is new. No matter how difficult the task is, after a good night's sleep, it's a new day."

This sentence gave me an inexplicable strength. I took out my spare phone, inserted the new SIM card, and dialed the correct number.

Thirty minutes later, Shen Que's car stopped at the bridgehead. He didn't ask anything, just handed me a cup of hot soy milk and said, "Get in the car first."

The car drove to an old neighborhood in the north of the city, a stark contrast to Gu Yanshen's luxurious apartment building. The narrow streets were lined with lush sycamore trees. Breakfast stalls were steaming, and elderly people sat beneath the trees playing chess. This homely atmosphere almost brought me to tears.

Shen Que's apartment is a simple one-bedroom on the fifth floor. Books fill the shelves, news photography hangs on the walls, and a few potted plants grow on the balcony. Everything here reflects the traces of life, a genuine and warm feeling.

"You can stay here," he said. "I'm staying with a friend."

I shook my head. "No, I'll find a place to stay soon."

"Don't think too much about it yet." He handed me a fresh towel. "Go take a hot shower. I'll make some noodles."

Amidst the rushing water, I finally allowed myself to cry. The hot water washed over my body, washing away the grievances and pain that had accumulated over the past three years. When I emerged from the bathroom, my eyes were red, but I felt lighter.

Two steaming bowls of tomato and egg noodles sat on the table. We ate in silence until Chen Que asked, "What are your plans next?"

I pulled out the USB drive. "Here are all the surveillance evidence of Gu Yanshen. And..." I pulled up the photos on my phone. "These are the equity transfer agreements he made my mother sign while she was unconscious."

Shen Que's expression turned serious. "This evidence is enough to apply for a protection order, but we need more to hold him accountable."

"I know." I put down my chopsticks. "That's why I need your help."

We have made a detailed plan. The first step is to ensure my mother's safety. Shen Que contacted his friends in the medical system and confirmed that the nursing home where my mother is staying is indeed invested by Gu Yanshen, but there is no sign of transfer for the time being.

"He might be testing you," Shen Que analyzed, "to see if you really dare to resist."

In the afternoon, Lawyer Li arrived at the apartment. She carefully examined all the evidence, her brow furrowing. "This situation is more complicated than I imagined. Gu Yanshen is very clever. It's difficult to simply invalidate these agreements legally."

"What's the meaning?"

"Your mother did sign these documents at the time. Although she was under the influence of drugs, it's difficult to prove she was completely incapacitated." She pointed to the notary office stamp on the agreement, "and these documents have all been officially notarized."

My heart sank. "So there's nothing I can do?"

"It's not that there's no way, we just need more evidence," said Attorney Li. "We need to find the medical staff who were there to testify, and we also need medical records to prove your mother's condition at the time."

Just then, the doorbell rang. Shen Que looked through the peephole and his expression suddenly changed: "It's Zhou Ling."

I froze. How had he found this place?

Chen Que motioned for us to be quiet, but Zhou Ling's voice came from outside the door: "Madam, I know you are in there. Mr. Gu asked me to pass on a message."

I took a deep breath and opened the door. Zhou Ling was standing at the door, holding a document bag in his hand. He was not wearing a suit today and looked like an ordinary office worker.

"Mr. Gu said," Zhou Ling's tone was surprisingly calm, "If you go back now, he can pretend nothing happened."

I sneered, "And then? Continue to be his canary?"

Zhou Ling was silent for a moment, then suddenly lowered his voice: "In the secret compartment of the second drawer of Mr. Gu's study, there's the debt agreement he signed with your father. The original."

I was stunned. "Why are you telling me this?"

Zhou Ling's eyes flickered: "My sister... once encountered a similar situation." He didn't say much, but his eyes said it all.

After he left, the three of us looked at each other.

"This could be a trap." Shen Que said.

Lawyer Li mused, "But it could also be true. During my research, I discovered that Zhou Ling's sister divorced last year, and her ex-husband was also said to be very controlling."

That night, we decided to split up. Shen Que went to Zhou Ling's sister to verify the situation, while Lawyer Li and I prepared to sneak into Gu Yanshen's study - he was on a business trip in Shanghai tonight, and this was the best opportunity.

At ten o'clock in the evening, I was standing downstairs of that familiar apartment building again. The security guard recognized me and greeted me with a smile: "Mrs. Gu, why are you out so late?"

"Come back to get something." I tried to stay calm.

The apartment was empty, but Gu Yanshen's presence lingered everywhere. I walked straight to the study, my fingers trembling slightly. The second drawer of the desk required a password. I tried entering Gu Yanshen's birthday—error. I tried the last six digits of his phone number—still error.

Just when I was about to give up, I suddenly remembered what he once said: "The most important password should be the number that is least likely to be guessed."

I entered the last six digits of my mother's birthday.

With a "click", the drawer opened.

Sure enough, there was a yellowed agreement in the secret compartment. I flipped through it quickly, my heart beating faster and faster—not only was it the debt agreement, but also the transcript of the conversation between Gu Yanshen and my father. It turned out that my father's business failure was a trap designed by Gu Yanshen!

"Did you find what you were looking for?"

Gu Yanshen's voice suddenly rang out from behind me. I turned around abruptly and saw him standing at the door of the study, holding a cell phone with the surveillance footage of the study displayed on the screen.

"Aren't you in Shanghai?"

"I changed my flight." He approached slowly. "I just wanted to see if my little fish would really swim back to these waters."

I clenched the documents in my hands. "Is this all true? Did you deliberately frame my father?"

"In business, the winners take the cake." He shrugged. "Your father is too trusting."

At that moment, all the mysteries were solved. Why did he appear right after my father's death? Why did my mother obey him so obediently? Why did he choose me? Everything was an elaborate deception.

"Now you know the truth." He smiled. "What are you going to do? Call the police?"

I looked at his smug expression and suddenly laughed too: "No, I want to thank you."

"Thank me?"

"Thank you for showing me how right it was to leave you." I waved the papers in my hand. "Also, thank you for coming here in person to be my witness."

I pressed the stop button on the recording button on my phone, and the entire conversation was recorded.

Gu Yanshen's expression finally changed: "Are you recording?"

"I learned that from you." I put away my phone and papers. "Now, it's my turn to set the rules of the game."

I didn't look back as I left the apartment. As the elevator descended, I sent a message to Shen Que:

"We have the evidence, we can begin."

Walking out of the building, the cool night breeze hit me. I looked up at the starry sky and felt free for the first time.

I am no longer fighting this war alone, and the scales of victory are tilting towards us.

One man's battle ends, a group's war begins