Wang Peng returned to the detention center and, with Feng Dali's arrangement, met Zhang Jinzhu for the second time.
He was no longer as arrogant as he was when they first met. His mental state had deteriorated significantly, his eyes were bloodshot, and he had a few more gray hairs on his head.
"Boss Wang, give me a cigarette." Zhang Jinzhu forced a smile.
“I left you a whole pack of Black Pagoda Mountain cigarettes last time, and you’ve already finished them all in just one day?” Wang Peng pulled out another pack.
They took out a cigarette and put it in his mouth. Seeing that it was inconvenient for him to wear handcuffs, they lit it for him with a lighter.
Zhang Jinzhu took a deep drag and exhaled a large smoke ring.
After finishing his cigarette, he gave a bitter smile. "Zhou Shun didn't order me to do this, but it's true that he was involved in me burning down your shop."
Wang Peng didn't quite understand, so he shook his head and waited for him to continue.
Zhang Jinzhu said, "He was kind to me, but you caused him to go to jail. I wanted to avenge him, so I burned down your shop."
“That’s not human language, Lao Zhang,” Wang Peng said. “Even if you kill me, it won’t stop him from going to jail.”
"I didn't think that much about it at the time," Zhang Jinzhu shook his head and continued smoking.
After he finished his cigarette, Wang Peng lit another one for him and threw the cigarette butt into the ashtray.
Zhang Jinzhu said, "One day, an old man asked me to come and fix his lock. His house was very big. After I finished fixing the lock, he gave me a pack of Black Pagoda Mountain cigarettes."
"The next day, my son was suddenly promoted to homeroom teacher and earned an extra fifty yuan a month."
“My daughter-in-law has taken on a part-time job. Every night at eight o’clock, she goes to the Ronghua Supermarket main store to clean the toilets. She works for two hours every day and gets three hundred yuan a month.”
"Later I learned that the old man's name was Ma Ronghua, the owner of Ronghua Supermarket."
At this point, Zhang Jinzhu shook his head and looked at Wang Peng with a half-smile.
Wang Peng breathed a sigh of relief. This matter was indeed related to Ma Ronghua. Could it be that Old Ma was the mastermind?
The room was filled with smoke, but he had gotten used to the smell and no longer covered his nose with his hand.
He took two bottles of Coke out of his bag, opened one, and handed it to Zhang Jinzhu.
"Thanks, boss." Zhang Jinzhu finished his cola in one gulp, letting out three burps in a row.
"That evening, I packed up my stall and went home. Boss Ma drove me to dinner at Xinglan Hotel. I ate delicacies and drank Wuliangye liquor."
"I have never eaten such good food and wine in my life."
"After we had eaten and drunk our fill, he took me to a sauna, where I had sex with a young and beautiful woman. She was very pretty."
"I've never been with such a good woman in my entire life."
At this point, a smile appeared on Zhang Jinzhu's lips as he reminisced about the scene.
“I got drunk, and the next morning, Mr. Ma came to me again and put 50,000 yuan on the table.”
“There’s no such thing as a free lunch, a free woman, or a free penny. I know he wants me to do something big.”
“Burning down your shop is a big deal for him. He knows Zhou Shun was kind to me, so he came to me.”
After saying this, Zhang Jinzhu shut his mouth and stared intently at the cigarettes on the table.
Wang Zhenhua lit another one for him and then took another one out of his pocket.
The iron gate immediately opened, and the prison guard asked in a deep voice, "Comrade, what did you give him?"
"Cigarettes," Wang Zhenhua said.
"This is against regulations; you can't give it to a criminal suspect..."
A voice came through his walkie-talkie, "Make an exception, you can go out first."
"Received." The prison guard replied on the walkie-talkie, then turned and walked out of the visiting room.
Wang Peng sat down again. "Fifty thousand yuan is too little. If I were Ma Ronghua, I would give you one hundred thousand."
"Hehe." Zhang Jinzhu laughed, "You are not him, and he is not you. If he were you, he wouldn't be without business, and he certainly wouldn't spend 50,000 yuan to hire someone to commit a crime just because his business was stolen."
At this point, Zhang Jinzhu stared at Wang Peng, "You won't retaliate against my son, will you?"
Wang Peng nodded. "Every wrong has its perpetrator, and every debt has its debtor. I have my bottom line."
“That’s what I think too, but I don’t dare to gamble.” Zhang Jinzhu smiled bitterly. “People lose their minds when they are furious, and I’m afraid you will lose yours.”
Wang Peng took out his phone to make a call, but found there was no signal.
The iron gate opened again, and a prison guard said, "There's a loudspeaker here. The higher-ups have already sent people to arrest Ma Ronghua."
"Thank you." Wang Peng nodded to the prison guard and put his phone in his pocket.
"You're welcome." The prison guard hesitated for a moment, then whispered, "Mr. Wang, I heard you're planning to rebuild your brotherhood?"
Wang Peng was taken aback, then smiled and said, "It's in the planning stages, and the renovations will begin tomorrow."
The prison guard smiled slightly, turned around, and closed the iron gate.
Zhang Jinzhu shook his head. "You're a business expert. Everyone wants Brother Supermarket to be located in the provincial capital."
"Actually, I'd like to too." Zhang Jinzhu smiled wryly. "There really aren't any genuine supermarkets, except for your brother."
"Thank you for the compliment," Wang Peng said. "Tell the police everything you need to say and try to redeem yourself through good deeds."
Zhang Jinzhu smiled bitterly, "The losses I caused were too great, I have to eat peanuts. Murder and arson have always been serious crimes."
Wang Peng shut his mouth. Old Zhang burned over a million in one fire; it would be too unfair if he didn't get shot.
“Hehe.” Zhang Jinzhu suddenly laughed, “Boss Wang, go to the execution ground and watch me be shot, so I can vent my last breath.”
"His last breath?" Wang Peng shook his head.
When the supermarket was first burned down, he was indeed furious, but he managed to remain calm in less than three days.
"Hehe, you're pretty funny." Wang Peng opened the second bottle of Coke and handed it to him.
Zhang Jinzhu finished his cola in one gulp. "You have to come. You have to see me die with your own eyes. That's all I can do."
At this point, he whispered, "Please don't make things difficult for my children and grandchildren, okay?"
Wang Peng shook his head. "I'll say it again, I never intended to make things difficult for them, so don't worry."
Zhang Jinzhu smiled slightly, "Thank you, Boss Wang. I have no more worries. I'll be your servant in my next life."
Wang Peng left the lighter behind, saying, "I don't want cattle or horses, I want brothers. You'll never understand."
After saying this, he left the meeting room, ending the meeting.
After leaving the oppressive detention center, his cell phone finally got a signal, and he called Li Mingzhu.
"Wife, Zhang Jinzhu has spoken up. Ma Ronghua gave him 50,000 yuan to burn his brother."
"Good heavens, only 50,000 yuan? Is that enough to send a beggar away?" Li Mingzhu laughed on the phone.
"Fifty thousand yuan is quite a sum," Wang Peng said with a smile. "Zhang Jinzhu invited us to watch her execution. Are you interested?"
"Honey, I'm interested, but I can't go. I'm afraid it will scare our son."
Li Mingzhu chuckled and said, "Honey, are you feeling restless right now?"
"Feeling suffocated?" Wang Peng shook his head. "Where do you feel suffocated?"
Li Mingzhu said, "I'm pregnant and can't satisfy your physical needs. You don't have to hold back; go find Hu Qing to take care of them."
"Holy crap, are you crazy?" Wang Peng said, laughing and crying at the same time. "There are many ways to satisfy physiological needs, you don't need to find a woman."
“I’m serious,” Li Mingzhu said. “She invested 500,000 yuan in our family, so of course I have to give her what she wants, which is 500,000 yuan.”
"Li Mingzhu, are you really going crazy?" Wang Peng laughed in exasperation.
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