It was past eleven o'clock in the evening and the Chen family villa was very quiet.
Except for a few scattered lights, the rest was dark.
The middle-aged man disappeared from the surveillance range and went around the blind corner of the garden to the garage. The garage was pitch black, and the sensor light in the corner did not light up. The man raised his eyes to the surveillance camera in front of him on the left, avoided the camera's shooting range, and walked into a place in the corner where a black commercial vehicle was parked.
Lao Lin walked to the back of the commercial vehicle, completely hidden in the surveillance camera's range. He squatted down, took out the small flashlight he always carried with him, and using the vehicle's model as cover, dragged out a pre-prepared toolbox from under the vehicle.
The light shone into the toolbox, and the reflected light and shadow illuminated his pale and indifferent face.
After a round of inspection, he took out the jack and pliers and put them on the rear tire.
In the silent villa, no one noticed the action in the corner of the garage. The driver, Lao Lin, seemed to have simulated it countless times. He knew the structure of the car in front of him clearly and knew what he would do next. He did not hesitate at all and loosened some parts bit by bit with great patience.
Time passed minute by minute, and in less than half an hour, he had come out from under the car.
He stood beside the car, wiping the engine oil in his hands one stroke after another. Tomorrow, the car will leave the garage and drive on the road, heading to Chen Group as usual. The person sitting in the car is Chen Jianhong, and the driver is his colleague Lao Liu. There may be another assistant of Chen Jianhong in the car. If it is early, Chen Shiming may also get in the car...
At that time, with a bang, flames will appear.
Click—the incandescent light in the dark garage suddenly lit up.
All the lights seemed to be prepared in advance, illuminating all the blind spots at this moment, illuminating the middle-aged man standing near the commercial vehicle and wiping the engine oil from the palms of his hands.
Lao Lin's body trembled, and his eyes looked sharply towards the power switch.
The boy in pajamas still had his hand on the switch, looking at him with a smile on his face, "Uncle Lin, why are you still in the garage so late?"
Lao Lin was stunned for a moment, then paused and said, "I suddenly remembered that the car was not locked during the day, so I came to take a look."
"You got all the phone oil from locking the car?" Chen Qizhao laughed and walked over from the switch. Seeing the toolbox next to the car, he kicked it casually. "This is the first time I know that you need a toolbox to lock a car."
"The tire is flat." Lao Lin stared at Chen Qizhao and said something very normal: "Just changed to a spare tire."
"Just changed a tire? Why does it feel like a lot of things were changed?" Chen Qizhao squatted down as if nothing had happened and glanced at the traces around the car. "Oh, by the way, Uncle Lin, you may not know."
Lao Lin looked at him, "What?"
Chen Qizhao stood up straight and glanced at the tool rack in front of the commercial vehicle. "Go and take the third tool box over there and have a look."
Lao Lin glanced at the car, followed Chen Qizhao's instructions, walked over and took down the toolbox. When he took it, he saw a small surveillance camera placed in a blind spot behind the toolbox, and its field of view was facing the entire garage. Lao Lin's expression changed slightly, and he looked suddenly at Chen Qizhao who was standing beside the car.
Chen Qizhao understood everything and continued, "I forgot to tell you that my brother added a surveillance camera to the garage a few days ago. He couldn't find a good place to put it, so he placed it on the tool rack."
Lao Lin's hand trembled slightly, and when he looked back, he suddenly found several people standing at the garage door.
There were Chen Shiming, Chen Jianhong, and several bodyguards on duty in the villa. They were standing at the door and looking over here, as if they had been prepared.
He took a few steps back, his face no longer as calm as before, and looked at the group of people with cold eyes.
"This business car is unlocked, and its parking position has been moved from the original third parking space to the sixth parking space on the inside." Chen Shiming came in from the door with two bodyguards. "And the sixth parking space is exactly the blind spot of the garage's original surveillance. As long as it is close to the wall and covered by other cars, it is difficult for surveillance cameras to clearly capture that position at night, and it is difficult for the security guards in the monitoring room to detect that someone has entered the garage."
"Not only that, you also used other time to tamper with the sensor light in the garage." Chen Shiming continued: "Because the footsteps will trigger the sensor light. If it lights up, the monitoring room will definitely notice the problem and come over to check."
Chen Shiming paused for a moment: "Uncle Lin, can you tell me now, what you just did in the garage, was it really just changing a spare tire?"
Lao Lin was silent for a while, then suddenly laughed and said, "Aren't there surveillance cameras recording everything? What did I change, what was recorded inside, and you're still asking me? Are you mocking me for not knowing my own limitations?"
Chen Jianhong stood in the distance, looking at the driver who had worked at home for more than ten years. How many decades can a person have in his life? Among the family drivers, Lao Lin is the most experienced one and was once the one Chen Jianhong trusted the most. But now all the evidence is in front of him, which undoubtedly tells him that the driver has betrayed him.
This absurd situation was unbelievable to him, from his assistant Jiang Yuze to his good friend Lin Shizhong, and finally to the driver for his daily trips.
Chen Jianhong didn't understand, so he asked, "Did you replace the aromatherapy in the car a while ago?"
Lao Lin didn't say anything.
Two bodyguards had already entered the garage, one on the left and one on the right, trying to capture him. They relaxed their pace and gradually approached.
At this time, one of the bodyguards' feet accidentally touched the galaxy on the ground.
Lao Lin's gaze paused, and suddenly, as if he had gone mad, he pushed the person away at a very fast speed.
He locked his sights on the vehicle and rushed straight to the driver's seat of the business car, opening the door.
Chen Shiming's eyes changed slightly, "Stop him!"
There was a sudden commotion in the garage. The bodyguard who reacted rushed forward to pry open the car door, while another bodyguard stood aside and tried to pull the driver's hands off the steering wheel.
Lao Lin had half of his body sitting in the driver's seat, his hands tightly gripping the steering wheel. When he was about to turn the key with his other hand to start the car, he suddenly found that the key that should have been inserted in the keyhole was missing. He stared blankly, and looked up at the front of the car. Chen Qizhao's fingers turned, and the key circled on his fingers, and finally held it firmly in his palm.
"Come down!"
"The police have been called! You'd better not struggle!"
"Lao Lin, stop being crazy and come down!"
"Lao Lin, you have worked in the Chen family for so many years, why did you do this?"
Lao Lin sneered: "What do you know! You know nothing!"
More and more people gathered around, and the servants who were awakened by the noise ran over. The bodyguard grabbed Lao Lin, dragged him out of the driver's seat, and pressed him to the ground. The noisy sound filled the entire garage. Chen Qizhao lowered his head slightly to glance at Lao Lin who was pressed to the ground, then threw the key in his hand to Chen Shiming.
Chen Shiming was still frightened. If the car keys were in the car just now, once Lao Lin really started the car, the scene in the garage would be difficult to resolve. But he didn't expect Lao Lin to take action so quickly. After all, suspicion is just suspicion. Even though he could tell from one-sided evidence that Lao Lin might have mental problems, he didn't expect Lao Lin to be unable to restrain himself and tamper with the car so quickly.
His eyes darkened slightly. Was it Lao Lin who took the initiative to do this, or was it someone behind the scenes who asked him to do this?
Chen Qizhao: "Do you care about the reason?"
Chen Shiming tilted his head, "You don't care?"
"I did care, but caring is meaningless." Chen Qizhao said, "If someone is determined to kill you, and you still care about his difficulties, you are a saint. Don't be too merciful, and don't pity others."
He smiled: "When he steps on the accelerator on the road, or when he puts aromatherapy in the car... he may not care about you."
Chen Shiming frowned: "That's not what I meant."
Chen Qizhao didn't say anything. He yawned and looked sideways at the brightly lit villa: "I think Mom is awake. I'll go to bed first."
The police arrived very quickly and took Lao Lin away that day.
Afterwards, the technical team inspected the vehicle and found that the tires, brakes, and oil pipes had been tampered with. If such a car is driven on the road, it is very dangerous and the slightest carelessness can lead to a major accident, or even death. The police found that Lao Lin had serious psychological problems and his mental condition was very abnormal, but he was still rational and knew very well what he wanted to do or what he was doing.
Chen Shiming went to the police station twice afterwards, but Lao Lin's interrogation was not very smooth.
"The psychiatrist said that this condition has existed for several years. We retrieved all his registered accident records and found that he had four minor accidents in five years, most of which occurred near the sidewalk." The police said: "According to the information you provided, his relatives died in a major accident many years ago. This incident is probably the fuse for his current condition. But as an employer, why didn't you notice his condition for so many years?"
"He usually behaved very normally... We didn't expect this to happen." Chen Shiming said: "We gave him a six-month break and asked him to undergo a psychological evaluation afterwards. The doctor gave him a qualified result."
"He has serious antisocial tendencies." Police: "If that's what you said, then that's strange. He has such a strong hatred for your family. We will check the files again."
When Chen Shiming told Chen Jianhong the result, the latter looked calm, with all the investigation data on the aromatherapy incident during this period accumulated in front of him.
"Basically, Uncle Lin's mental state was still good in the years after the car accident, but the police found a record of multiple calls from a strange phone number on his mobile phone, with calls as frequent as once a week. They retrieved some of the call time and found that the first call with Uncle Lin was five years ago."
Chen Shiming frowned and said, "But unfortunately they couldn't find out who the number holder was. The number was bought on the black market, so there was no way to check it. After Uncle Lin's accident, there was no call record for this number. But one thing we can be sure of is that Uncle Lin often stayed near the Panshan intersection during the time when he frequently communicated with this phone number. A small number of merchants nearby had some impression of him."
"His mental state may have gradually worsened in the past few years. And I learned some things from the housekeeper. Uncle Lin once asked him about some things about the car accident that year, but it has been so long that most people's memories are vague. I pieced together some clues from them."
Chen Shiming noticed Chen Jianhong's mood and continued, "Before the incident with Aunt Fu, Mom asked Aunt Fu to go to the flower shop to buy some flowers when she was free. The time point happened to be before the car accident. According to the store information at the Panshan intersection, there was indeed a flower shop diagonally opposite the sidewalk."
Chen Jianhong asked, "Do you suspect that someone is making a fuss about this?"
Chen Shiming: "It's not suspicion, it's certainty. Someone has been cleaning up the car accidents caused by Uncle Chen for years, and has been talking to him frequently... Many things are unsubstantiated, but if Uncle Lin's mental state is problematic, he is likely to believe their words."
Inside the Lin Group, Lin Shizhong threw the document in his subordinate's face with a gloomy expression. The paper scattered all over the floor. He sneered and said, "What's going on with Chen? Can't you do anything without Jiang Yuze? I didn't put you in this position to tell me that this thing can't be done at the critical moment."
"Boss Lin, this matter is indeed a bit problematic... Chen Shiming has evidence from somewhere, and he is now targeting our departments. We dare not show our heads at all, or he may catch us at any time." The elite man looked a little bad. "Brother Jiang is not here, so we can't deal with the previous arrangements. We may need time to reduce Chen Shiming's suspicion of us... and he has been preparing for a shareholders' meeting recently, and it seems that he wants to make trouble for several projects we are working on. We really have no way to deal with it."
"I don't care if you have any solution or not. Just solve this matter as soon as possible. If you bring trouble to the Lin family..." Lin Shizhong's tone turned cold, "You don't need me to tell you the result."
The elite man looked bleak, "We'll try our best."
The office suddenly became quiet. Lin Shizhong sneered and swept the documents on the desk all over the floor.
The overall plan had been planned for so many years and could have been completed in two years, but we ended up losing Jiang Yuze and getting in trouble with Chen Shiming, and half of the game was ruined. If he leaves it to these rubbish again, his years of hard work will be destroyed sooner or later. He has carefully planned for several years and prepared such an ending for the Chen family, but in the end, things get worse and worse.
He sat in his office chair and pondered for a moment, then finally called another person.
As soon as the phone was picked up, the voice from the other end came through.
"You said someone had dealt with Jiang Yuze's computer, so why is Chen Shiming able to act so accurately against my deployment now?" Lin Shizhong asked directly: "He should not have the information in his hands, so he can't act so quickly."
"I did have someone deal with the computer, and I guarantee that Jiang Yuze's information has not reached Chen Shiming." The person on the phone said, "Jiang Yuze's information has not been delivered, but it does not mean that Chen Shiming did not know the information through other means. You have not resolved the issue in the conference room yet."
"There is someone behind Chen Shiming. He found out about the driver I arranged. I originally planned to use that lunatic to put aromatherapy in Chen Jianhong's car, but that lunatic made trouble for me all the time. I finally had two years of peace and quiet, but suddenly I was targeted by Chen Shiming."
The person on the phone said, "Chen Jianhong found an excuse to stop his work. I didn't think he could stay, so I wanted him to take advantage of the opportunity to make a big move. Who could have thought that he would lose control and take action directly? As a result, he was caught red-handed and is now in the police station."
Lin Shizhong frowned, "Aren't you afraid that Chen Shiming will find you?"
"You can't find out. I did this secretly. Besides, that lunatic has been trying to report it to the newspaper for a long time." The person on the phone said, "As for the matter, you might as well check one person."
Lin Shizhong asked: "Who?"
The person on the phone said, "Chen Qizhao."
In the interrogation room, through the glass, Lao Lin looked down at the handcuffs on his hands, his cloudy eyes staring at the light source. The police were questioning him, but he remained calm and said nothing. However, when the police mentioned the flower shop, his face immediately changed and he said excitedly: "What do you know? You know nothing!"
The police officer in charge of the interrogation frowned slightly: "Your wife may have gone to the flower shop. How can you make an inference without any factual evidence?"
"She just went to the flower shop..." Lao Lin's expression was sinister. "Yes, she might have gone to the flower shop, but I asked many people and asked people to check, and they all told me that she wanted to buy something at that time. Then when I asked them again, they all said they didn't remember. She is a living person, how come no one remembers her?!"
"Do you have a wife? Do you have children?" Lao Lin laughed and said, "You are just like those damned people on the sidewalk. They are all laughing in front of me. What are you laughing at? What's so funny? Just go to hell."
Lao Lin's mental state was obviously not right. He spoke all kinds of vicious words crazily, listing the various crimes of the Chen family and his colleagues. From Zhang Yazhi of the Chen family to other servants, he did not let any of them go. He was like a person who had been holding back for a long time and had nowhere to release it. He abandoned his previous honest and dull appearance and insulted others with vulgar words, like a madman out of control.
"That person told me to be patient, saying there was a way to make the Chen family lose everything, as long as I could be patient." Old Lin stared at the police and said incoherently: "I was patient, but they made some kind of aromatherapy and told me to be patient for a few more years... Every day when I drive on the road, I want to take Chen Jianhong with me to die."
He seemed like a contradiction, mentioning Shinobu while talking about revenge.
The police took notes, recording bits of information from his incoherent speech.
"Let's all die..." Lao Lin smiled. He looked like a madman who had lost his mind and wanted to drag everyone down with him. "Oh, you are checking that phone number, right? Then check it out. That person is also a madman. Catch him."
The policeman said: "But you still listened to him and put incense and tampered with the car."
"Yes, the man who called deserves to die. Why should I endure it? Chen Jianhong should have died a long time ago." Lao Lin suddenly stopped, "Yes... they all deserve to die. Aren't you investigating?"
The policeman stopped, noticed something, and asked, "Do you know any clues about the strange phone calls?"
"Yes." Lao Lin suddenly paused, glanced at the police, and then said, "Do you want it?"
When the survey data was compiled into a file and sent to Chen Qizhao, he was in the school dormitory.
Yan Kailin was playing games beside him, chattering along with other people's voices. Chen Qizhao curled up in bed, clicking on the files and browsing through them quickly. The information from Chen Shiming's investigation, the clues from the police, and the things he had asked people to check earlier, all came together to piece together a fragmented truth that took two lifetimes to piece together.
In fact, when the call was made to Lao Lin, the seeds of doubt had already been planted in the other party's heart. It was only the passage of time, the forgetfulness of others, and the misleading of people with ulterior motives that caused the seeds to grow rapidly, and finally became the fuse that triggered hatred and resentment.
In his previous life, Old Lin could endure longer. He was able to endure until the end and take Chen Shiming to ram the truck. He wanted to completely control the speed to create a tragedy. The steering wheel in the car was not for self-rescue, but to ram the truck more accurately. Chen Qizhao didn’t know how crazy Old Lin had been at that stage in his previous life…but Chen Shiming was able to survive the car accident, perhaps he was really lucky.
The person who instigated Lao Lin was most likely Lin Shizhong, but given his shrewdness, he would not choose to let Lao Lin take action at that stage.
The reason why Lao Lin was so impatient to start was probably because when he was practicing driving that afternoon, the thrill of climbing at high speed made him unwilling to endure some waiting.
Chen Qizhao sneered. It turned out that such a person was the starting point of all the tragedies of the Chen family in the previous life.
"Brother, what are you laughing at?" Yan Kailin took off his headphones. "Are you watching something funny?"
"No, I just saw a joke." Chen Qizhao said calmly: "It's about a madman who lost control and took revenge on everyone."
Yan Kailin glanced at it with disdain, "What kind of dark joke is this? It sounds creepy. What a madman says is ugly."
Chen Qizhao looked at him, "Why?"
"Crazy, don't mess with crazy people. Who knows what they are thinking." Yan Kailin shuddered. "I saw a news report last time, saying that a man with mental problems was provoked by his roommate and killed him. There is nothing wrong with this society. You can't easily provoke crazy people. Once provoked, they can do anything."
After he finished speaking, he noticed Chen Qizhao's expression and said, "Ah? Brother, didn't you see the news?"
Chen Qizhao: "That's right, madmen can't be easily stimulated."
Some people, once provoked, will willingly walk into a trap.
Some people, when provoked, want to drag everyone to death.
Chen Qizhao crossed out the page and saw that there was a compressed package attached to the email.
Lin Shizhong is not afraid of getting into trouble if he wants to use a madman as a pawn.
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