Chapter 107

Appealing to emotions and reasoning with him—this method, even if unthinkable, would work on Tian Xinxi. He Feihu looked at the bankbook in his hand, pondered for a long time, and finally called Iris. Regardless of whether Tian Xinxi was responsible, the fact that the video of the two children being kidnapped appeared on his phone meant he knew something. His stubborn refusal to speak suggested either fear of offending someone or a desire to profit from the situation. Judging from today's events, the latter seemed more likely.

“But what if he tries to lie and profit from this?” Iris knew what Tiger meant as soon as he spoke. He was worried that his savings wouldn’t be enough to persuade him, which was why he came to her for help. “Money isn’t the problem; we can raise as much as he needs. The problem is, how do we know he’s telling the truth? This guy has a long criminal record. What if he tries to drag us out and ask for more money? Wouldn’t that hurt Dingding and Lele?”

Tiger smiled and comforted her, "You forgot, Ah Cheng is in charge of this case now. He's always very quick, and we also have Ah Yuan helping us. If necessary, he can go to Inspector Tam of the CIB."

"Oh right, CIB!" Iris suddenly thought of Zhang Jiguang and Zhong Wei'en. Her thoughts immediately turned to how to explain this to them, so she stopped paying attention to what Tiger was saying and just waited for the conversation to end so she could find a bank to transfer the money.

Actually, writing a check would have been more convenient. Iris had originally planned to just give Tiger a signed blank check, but He Feihu, worried that she would be harassed by Tian Xinxi later, specifically requested that the money be transferred to his account and even sent her an extra text message asking for a loan. This made her feel embarrassed.

Even close brothers should keep clear accounts, let alone this as a safeguard for both parties. Normally, He Feihu wouldn't have considered things so meticulously; if Iris gave him five million, he would have returned every penny without an IOU. But this time, he wasn't sure if he could escape unscathed. Such a large sum feared it would fall entirely into Tian Xinxi's hands, so he needed to make all the necessary preparations beforehand, ensuring Iris had evidence to collect the debt.

Yes, he concealed it from Iris. He did say he would hand over the information to the police, but he also knew in his heart that Tian Xinxi's intentions this time were not simple. For Dingding and Lele's sake, he needed to complete another deal with him in secret. He Feihu was prepared to take risks and even sacrifice himself, because although he no longer had any feelings for Tian Xinxi, deep down he still harbored resentment over accidentally shooting and killing his brother years ago. Dingding and Lele were his salvation; only by saving them could he feel at peace. Therefore, for this purpose, he was willing to give his life.

When Zhuang Zhuoyuan saw the text message notification after training that such a large sum of money had suddenly been transferred from his account, he couldn't help but feel a little panicked. Although Iris usually loved to shop, she would always discuss it with him beforehand if she needed to spend a large amount of money, even if it was just her own allowance. This was the first time such a sudden and silent transfer had happened. He hurriedly called his wife, but the line was busy several times. He checked his schedule and remembered that she had two consecutive classes in the afternoon. Still worried, Zhuang Zhuoyuan called his mother-in-law and Derek. Only after they both said that Iris was alright did he feel relieved.

Seeing his furrowed brows, Zhan Hantao came over to comfort him: "Maybe she's just lending money to a friend. So many people have lost money in the stock market lately, Iris probably has some friends who have been affected too. It's just an emergency, she might not have had time to tell you. Just ask her tonight."

If it were just something like that, then it wouldn't matter whether he told her or not. Zhuang Zhuoyuan was only worried that something might have happened to Iris. Fortunately, his wife was smart and attentive, and she replied to his text message not long after:

"BB, I lent Tiger the money. He said he's going to find Tian Xinxi to exchange information about Dingding and Lele. I'm still in class, I'll tell you the details when I get home tonight."

She was even so thoughtful as to anticipate his next move; a second text message followed immediately:

"You don't need to pick me up tonight, I'll just take a taxi home. You can go check on Tiger and see if there's anything you can help with. If you're going home for dinner, remember to let me know, and I'll ask the kitchen staff to stay out a little later."

There was no need to cook for him separately, as he would be returning late. Zhuang Zhuoyuan replied that a group of brothers would be visiting Tiger, and it was uncertain when they would leave. He might stay behind to chat with Tiger alone, telling Iris not to wait for him and to just take Tangyuan to sleep. The sniper's intuition was also accurate; when Iris mentioned Tiger borrowing money, Zhuang Zhuoyuan had a feeling something was about to happen. He needed to find out Tiger's plan to help him.

His brother's intentions were too obvious; with just a few words, He Feihu knew what Zhuang Zhuoyuan was planning. However, he still wasn't going to tell Zhuang Zhuoyuan the truth, because he didn't want to drag this promising young man down with him. Zhuang Zhuoyuan patiently waited on, until finally only the two of them remained. He Feihu smiled, took a fifty-cent coin from his pocket, and gave it to him: "Do you know what this is?"

This was the first time Zhuang Zhuoyuan had ever seen this legendary coin. He took it and rubbed the bullet hole on it with his fingertips, feeling both admiration and envy: "Every SDU sniper makes a coin as a souvenir before leaving the team. Everyone else makes a one-yuan coin, but you were the most arrogant. You insisted on using a fifty-cent coin, and you still managed to hit it."

"Becoming a Flying Tiger was the most glorious moment of my life." Tiger couldn't help but smile when talking about those years. He patted Zhuang Zhuoyuan on the shoulder, his eyes full of expectation: "How about it? You're almost done training, right? I heard that Iris wants you to make a coin for her as a ring."

Zhuang Zhuoyuan stretched out his hand, pointed to his ring finger, and shook his head helplessly: "It's not just one, it's two, and I have to shoot two in one go. I haven't mastered that yet." Moving targets are really not easy. He joked: "I think I need to hurry up, otherwise if there's one more Tangyuan and one more Erbao, I really won't be able to complete her mission in my entire life."

Tiger stopped drinking: "You guys have it again?"

"Not yet." Zhuang Zhuoyuan quickly denied, as one tangyuan was enough to keep them busy. "But we definitely want to have another child. We agreed to wait until she graduates before having a second one."

Listening to him talk about their life and their plans, He Feihu himself felt happy: "If only life could continue to be this wonderful." Zhuang Zhuoyuan returned the coin to him, but he pushed it back: "This lucky coin is for you and Iris. Actually, I wanted to give it to you, but then I thought you could exchange it with the one you made for Iris."

This coin can't be simply defined by "luck." The sniper was giving away the most important and meaningful item of his life, and at this very moment, Zhuang Zhuoyuan felt even more uneasy. Tiger just smiled: "Don't overthink it. I just feel that no one is more suitable than you to keep this coin safe for me. The tinkling and laughing incident made me realize what the impermanence of life is. Many things are uncertain, and I don't want this thing to be thrown away as trash later. Giving it to you now gives it more of a legacy, isn't that better?"

Zhuang Zhuoyuan's Adam's apple bobbed, and after thinking for a moment, he held the coin in his hand: "Then I'll take it back to Iris to see first, and keep it for you. When I strike out my coin, or when you adopt Dingding Lele, I'll return it to you."

“Okay,” Tiger laughed, “That’s good. Don’t worry, nothing will happen.”

Zhuang Zhuoyuan reiterated, "If anything happens, be sure to tell me."

He Feihu simply said, "A Yuan, you will definitely be the best sniper, even better than me."

Zhuang Zhuoyuan slept very restlessly all night. Iris was also uneasy because he disturbed her, but she still tried to think positively. She told Zhuang Zhuoyuan, "Don't worry, Guangzai and A'en both said they would help us. A'en, who is usually so cool, agreed to help, which means that God is on our side. So even if the process is tortuous, the ending will definitely be happy."

Zhuang Zhuoyuan kissed her cheek: "I hope so."

Zhong Weien's willingness to help Iris wasn't simply based on friendship. Indeed, after returning to the police force, only Zhan Hantao and Iris frequently took the initiative to approach and help her, but Zhong Weien still had reservations about considering them as friends she could completely trust.

The doctor said it was an illness, and Zhong Wei'en herself knew it was a lingering effect from her undercover work. Anyone who has come back from the brink of death would have psychological burdens, especially since she knew she had been betrayed.

But who betrayed her? She desperately wanted to return to the police force so she could use her resources to get to the bottom of the matter. Recently, she found a clue and traced it back to a man named "Jinji." In Wu Zuxing's money laundering case, she suspected Jinji was the mastermind, but Wu Zuxing died a violent death, and the mastermind disappeared without a trace.

Zhong Wei'en was nearly driven to madness, but fortunately, fate smiled upon her. She traced her investigation back to Tian Xinxi through other channels, a man who had previously been in contact with Jin Ji. Just as she was pondering what excuse to use as a smokescreen for her investigation, Iris delivered the perfect solution. Now, she could act more openly, and if necessary, utilize the clues uncovered by Zhang Jiguang. Iris would also continuously provide her with intelligence. All of this would accelerate her progress.

Zhong Wei'en couldn't wait any longer. She couldn't wait to find out if the person who exposed her undercover identity and almost caused her to be drowned in the sea was the one she suspected.