Chapter 141

Her innocence was vindicated and her name was restored.

Looking out from a distance, the sea surface is covered with overlapping waves, one after another, crashing against the seawall with a resolute determination to never turn back, splashing up scattered droplets of water.

The gloomy sky echoed the dark brown sea, mirroring Cheng Sangluo's increasingly depressed mood.

Seeing that her expression was becoming increasingly dazed, Shu Wan simply raised her hand and flicked her forehead, pretending to be angry, and said: "You dare to be distracted when we're talking about serious business? Is this how you treat someone when you need their help?"

Her force wasn't great, but it had the effect of knocking, quickly bringing the absent-minded person back to their senses.

Cheng Sangluo awkwardly scratched the back of her head a few times and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I've never been very good at talking, and I don't have any negotiation skills. Please forgive me."

Shu Wan tilted her head and looked at her honest and simple appearance, and finally couldn't help but laugh: "Hey, let me teach you a basic negotiation skill. When negotiating with anyone, don't easily reveal your weaknesses. Although it may seem like you are very sincere, it makes it easy for the other party to seize your weaknesses, and you will only suffer losses in the end."

Cheng Sangluo touched his nose sheepishly and had to admit, "It seems I still have a lot to learn."

"It's more than just a lot; you're not even scratching the surface." Shu Wan pointed out her shortcomings sharply, but she was genuinely trying to teach her. She used an analogy: "If doing business is like leveling up in a game, you're not even good enough to leave the beginner's area. You need to understand one thing: cooperation is for mutual benefit, not for one party to drag the other down. You've proposed this plan to me, hoping I can provide material assistance. But like I said, what can I possibly get in return from you?"

Cheng Sangluo was speechless for a moment when asked the question. She could only keep pursing her lips, as if she was seriously organizing her thoughts, but she seemed unable to come up with any specific solutions. After all, the idea of ​​doing business was something that had only recently come to her mind, and if she were to explain it in detail, she really couldn't do it in a short time.

Seeing that she was hesitant to speak, Shu Wan probably understood that such an idea didn't even have a plan yet, so she added, "Hey, you absolutely mustn't just do things on a whim, and don't talk about rewarding me after it's done. Tell me first, what kind of business do you want to do?"

"Open supermarkets." Cheng Sangluo's answer was quick and concise. Perhaps feeling that she was not specific enough, she turned to the side and gestured randomly: "I want to open fresh food supermarkets, outside every residential complex in Zhouhai that I can name."

Shu Wan's hair, loose and disheveled by the wind, was tidied as she smiled and sighed, "Such big talk! You're already thinking about opening a chain right away. Let me ask you a few questions, and you'll have to think about them carefully before you answer. Do you know how many fresh food supermarkets there are in Zhouhai right now? Have you ever done market research, or are you even capable of doing it? Can you prepare a compelling business plan that can convince me? How much do you know about the fresh food supply chain and sales models? And what investment budget do you want to get from me?"

These questions were undoubtedly blind spots in Cheng Sangluo's knowledge, and even listening to them was very difficult. She didn't understand how it worked at all, and she didn't even know where to start asking questions. Everything was just a preliminary idea that hadn't taken shape yet, and the prospect of realizing such an idea became more and more distant with each question.

Seeing that she kept shaking her head and her expression gradually became embarrassed, Shu Wan had no choice but to soften her tone: "Relax, I'm just listing out the things you need to learn and understand. You don't need to rush to answer. I hope you can think about it seriously in the next few days. Let me ask you another question: When you decided to bring up this idea to me, what do you think is the most likely point that will move me?"

Cheng Sangluo changed her sitting posture to face Shu Wan and explained with a serious expression: "There are countless residential buildings in the old and new cities of Zhouhai. Apart from those mature and centrally located communities, there are actually many places where the supporting facilities are not yet in place. Fresh food supermarkets can provide more convenient services, so that residents do not have to travel a long way to shopping malls and farmers' markets on weekdays. This was my original idea."

Shu Wan considered it for a moment, then nodded and said, "Hmm, that sounds quite reasonable. Please continue."

"I plan to visit all the residential communities during this period, and after excluding those with mature supporting facilities, I will select two of the most promising large-scale developments for pilot projects. It will indeed require a lot of money for the initial setup and promotion. But have you ever thought about a fresh food supermarket that is positioned as a supporting facility in most residential communities? The scale doesn't have to be large, but it must be there. From the perspective of homeowners, it not only solves the supply and demand problem, but can also become one of the factors for rising housing prices. In the future, is it possible for such a supermarket to become a well-known and ubiquitous presence in every community, with high value and development potential?" Cheng Sangluo suddenly began to talk incessantly, her eyes shining with hope as she looked forward to the future, as if the beautiful vision she envisioned was within easy reach.

Shu Wan listened attentively and extracted the core points from the long speech: "The positioning and development of the supporting buildings, so that's where your selling point is hidden. It does sound somewhat attractive for investment, but unfortunately it's not enough to convince me. You should think of other ways to persuade me."

Hearing this response, Cheng Sangluo seemed a little disappointed, feeling that she had been a bit too ambitious. So she changed her mind and said, "What if I said I wanted to borrow 200,000 yuan from you to open a convenience store and live an ordinary life? Once I've earned enough money, I'll pay you back with interest. Do you think that's okay?"

"A convenience store?" Shu Wan raised her eyebrows, her tone full of disappointment: "I always talk about investments worth tens or hundreds of millions. You're telling me you want to borrow 200,000 to open a convenience store? You might as well sleep with me a few times and please me. If you make me happy, I'd rather have a million of your money for fun than 200,000. Wouldn't that be simpler and easier?"

Shu Wan was probably offended by Cheng Sangluo's change of plans, which is why she spoke with a hint of anger and sarcasm. Although her words were crude, they were not unreasonable. For her, 200,000 yuan was nothing more than opening a few more bottles of fine aged wine. Why make such a fuss and use the name of investment?

Cheng Sangluo blushed deeply, even instinctively pulling her cotton coat tighter around herself, as if afraid the beautiful woman before her would beat her up and eat her alive. She stammered, "I...I was just making a suggestion...I have no intention of crossing any lines with you...Don't even think about taking advantage of me...This is a matter of principle..."

"Heh..." Shu Wan smiled, her brow unfurrowing. She found Cheng Sangluo's shy and evasive demeanor quite adorable and couldn't help but pat her forehead. "You need to be like you were eating just now—greedy and fierce—to generate more desire and ambition. I need to see your business plan within ten days. If you can't write it, ask around and learn. I'm only giving you this one chance. If your plan is exceptional, I'll invest in it personally. A budget of under ten million is more than enough for pilot projects in two communities. If it loses money, I'll just sell you back to Lin Jin. That amount is nothing to her."

Sure enough, this woman was just as meticulous as Lin Jin, and had even already thought of ways to compensate Cheng Sangluo after her failure.

When Cheng Sangluo heard her agree, she grinned foolishly and said incredulously, "Really? You're really willing to give someone like me a chance?"

"For investors, any promising investment is worth paying attention to, regardless of its size." Shu Wan nodded calmly, her smile appearing particularly sly. "However, to put it bluntly, half of my agreement to yours stems from my liking and admiration for you, and the other half from the fact that your relationship with Lin Jin is currently one of separation, not divorce. With her status as the boss of Senyao Group endorsing this cooperation, I'm not at a disadvantage. Even if she doesn't know about our cooperation, I believe her unwavering commitment to you is the best source of confidence, so why not?"

Cheng Sangluo stared blankly at Shu Wan, her eyes, which had been sparkling with excitement, gradually dimmed. She muttered in a shushing voice, "In the end... we still relied on her existence... What kind of mess is this..."

*

In the conference room of the Zhouhai City Criminal Investigation Center.

Ji Nanxing stood in front of the projection screen, explaining the important evidence he had recently collected: "These two sets of numbers in Xu Songheng's notebook were deciphered by Cheng Sangluo. When combined, they form a precise set of latitude and longitude coordinates, which coincidentally are located in Zhouhai South Village."

To confirm whether this method of cracking the code was correct, Cheng Sangluo and I went there that day. The bad news was that we couldn't find any trace of Lin Sheng's hideout, but the good news was that we seized a batch of guns and ammunition that hadn't yet entered the market.

This batch of goods happens to match the model of the guns seized at an arms deal several years ago, which suggests that Lin Sheng was also involved in arms trafficking back then.

Speaking of the arms case, I have to mention Cheng Sangluo here. Some of you may not be familiar with her case, so I'll give a brief summary: A few years ago, Cheng Sangluo was discharged from the special forces battalion. On the day of her discharge, she bumped into Xu Songheng and his group on her way home.

That night, Xu Songheng's men lost a pack of guns and were beaten half to death. Cheng Sangluo, unaware of the situation, rushed into the scene to rescue them.

After the affair was exposed, Lin Sheng and Xu Songheng spent a lot of money to bribe witnesses to fabricate testimonies and also falsified the entire chain of evidence. As a result, Cheng Sangluo was framed for intentional homicide and sentenced to five years in prison. However, due to good behavior in prison, her sentence was reduced by two years.

She was released from prison this summer and, through a series of coincidences, found me, hoping I could help her overturn her conviction.

During this period, Cheng Sangluo has been actively cooperating with my investigation into the cases of Lin Sheng and Xu Songheng. She not only helped us wipe out the underground casino, but also recently provided new evidence to overturn the verdict.

She was an outstanding special forces soldier who saved many people, completed many difficult missions, and earned many military merits during her service. We cannot allow such a person to bear an unwarranted stain on her life.

Lin Sheng's case involves multiple crimes, and Cheng Sangluo's false accusation is also part of the arms case. After Lin Sheng is successfully apprehended, I will submit the evidence for overturning the case to the prosecution, reopen the old trial according to Cheng Sangluo's request, reveal the truth to the public, and restore her long-overdue innocence.

As he spoke, Ji Nanxing looked at several colleagues sitting on one side of the conference table and continued to explain: "Someone told me that Lin Sheng is not only suspected of multiple criminal cases, but is also very likely involved in private placement of listed funds and insider trading in the stock market. So I asked my colleagues from the Economic Investigation Department to work together on the case."

Sitting at the head of the conference table, Director Zheng held a teacup, his gaze fixed on the picture on the screen, his brow furrowing unconsciously.

The arms case caused a huge uproar in Zhouhai and even across the country. The criminal investigation team spent many years investigating the case, with some officers going undercover and others sacrificing their lives. In the end, they also cooperated deeply with the neighboring city of Zehai before finally cracking this major case after a long and arduous process.

Unexpectedly, after a few years of peaceful life, this old case was brought up again.

"This Lin Sheng is truly audacious, managing to live peacefully right under our noses for so long, kidnapping, murder, and even getting involved in an arms case..." Director Zheng rambled on, blowing on his tea to cool off, then cleared his throat and instructed, "Ahem, everyone and everything related to him, regardless of their identity or background, must be thoroughly investigated. Review all the city's surveillance footage; not a single clue can be missed. I won't issue any pledges; you all know what I'm doing. There's only a little over a month left until the New Year, and I don't want someone with multiple offenses to remain until next year. Meeting adjourned."

[Author's Note]

1. My pre-order novel, "The Sinful Lover," is available for collection.