Wu Shicai's two-day interrogation of Sheng Zhiyuan's family members was not without its rewards; he finally obtained a clue from the Sheng family's steward.
It turns out that Sheng Zhiyuan did indeed invest all his money in the stock market, but he was cautious and knew that he shouldn't put all his eggs in one basket. Different stockbrokers have different perspectives, different information, and different operating methods. Diversifying investments helps ensure the safety of funds.
More importantly, he knew that Wu Shicai was a man whose name reflected his character—a man who would forget righteousness for money—and feared that Wu would eventually be jealous and take away his share. Therefore, he did not entrust all his money to a stockbroker.
Aside from Ji Zhengcheng, whom Wu Shicai knew, Sheng Zhiyuan entrusted most of his funds to another stockbroker for clandestine trading. However, he didn't tell anyone about this person. Unexpectedly, the Shanghai branch suddenly appeared and took Sheng Zhiyuan's life. As a result, the identity of this stockbroker was unknown, and the money became ownerless.
However, the steward knew a little about the situation. Wu Shicai had been in the underworld for so long that he naturally had some tricks up his sleeve. He went to great lengths and finally found out who this person was, but it was too late.
As soon as news of Sheng Zhiyuan's death spread, the agent absconded with the money. Wu Shicai is now searching everywhere for this person, trying to recover his money, which led to the scene that Lai Huaiwu saw when he entered the door.
Wu Shicai looked at him and then asked, "I heard from the repair shop that you brought back all of Wei Hongde's cars?"
Upon hearing this, Lai Huaiwu felt a little nervous. He had gone to the foreign concession to kidnap Wei Hongde, and while gathering information, he learned that Wei Hongde's car was worth nearly ten thousand US dollars. He couldn't resist his greed and simply brought Wei Hongde and the car back together.
Of course, he was also aware that there were some hidden dangers in doing so. Back when he was making a living in the gang, he really wouldn't have dared to be so reckless. But now, with the powerful backing of the 76th Special Agent Headquarters, he was fearless and less cautious in his actions.
Hearing Wu Shicai's questioning, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. He quickly explained, "Captain, that car is very valuable. I've inquired and found out that it's the latest American car that Wei Hongde bought through diplomatic channels. It cost nearly ten thousand US dollars. If we transport it to Beiping and Tianjin, its value will at least double. So I thought about it and figured that since we're going to do it anyway, we might as well bring it back with us."
Upon hearing this, Wu Shicai said with some annoyance, "Wei Hongde's background is not simple. He is very close to the British consul. If I hadn't been forced to do this, I wouldn't have chosen to take action against him. Besides, this car is too conspicuous. If it's not handled properly, it will become a hidden danger."
Lai Huaiwu quickly and cautiously said, "Captain, it was all due to a lack of consideration. I will handle this vehicle with care."
Wu Shicai pondered for a moment. He was also a greedy man to the bone. If he could sell the car smoothly, he would make a profit of 20,000 US dollars, which was no small amount. Among all the merchants in western Shanghai, there were very few who could afford it.
Thinking of this, his tone softened, and he said in a deep voice, "Let it go this time, but don't be too reckless in the future. Send that car out as soon as possible; it can't stay in Shanghai."
Lai Huaiwu felt relieved when he heard Wu Shicai's tone soften, and quickly agreed.
Wu Shicai continued, "There's one more thing. My right eyelid has been twitching these past two days. It's a bad omen. Could it be related to that old man? Tonight, you go collect the money. Once you have it, get rid of Wei Hongde. Make sure everything is clean."
Lai Huaiwu's heart skipped a beat, and he involuntarily looked up at Wu Shicai.
Once the ransom is received, the hostage must be released. This is the usual practice and code of conduct for the Green Gang's kidnapping and extortion. If this code of conduct is broken and the hostage is killed after receiving the money, the news will spread and the hostage's family will know that the hostage is dead regardless of whether they pay the ransom or not. They will not pay the ransom as the kidnappers demand, but will only call the police to arrest the kidnappers. In this way, the kidnappers' source of income will be cut off.
Therefore, in the past few years, the vast majority of kidnapping cases in Shanghai have been resolved by paying ransom. Unless there are unexpected circumstances, such as the hostage strongly resisting or the family not having enough money to pay ransom and thus calling the police, the "killing" of the hostage is very rare.
But today Wu Shicai wanted to kill the hostage, which surprised Lai Huaiwu. However, he still nodded and agreed, "Yes, once I receive the money and confirm that it is correct, I will take action immediately and make sure it is done cleanly."
Wu Shicai knew what Lai Huaiwu was thinking. In fact, he had no choice. Wei Hongde was different from ordinary businessmen. He had too much reputation in Shanghai and had close ties with the British. He couldn't let Wei Hongde's kidnapping case be associated with him in the slightest, otherwise there would be endless trouble. If he wanted to be absolutely sure, he should simply erase all traces, destroy the body, and deny everything to the death.
Wu Shicai gave a few more instructions, then waved his hand to signal Lai Huaiwu to bow and step back, then went down the stairs to the casino lobby on the first floor.
As soon as he appeared, two men lingering around a gambling table in a corner of the casino immediately brightened up, but then continued watching the game as if nothing had happened.
Lai Huaiwu was oblivious. He looked at the bustling casino, shook his head helplessly. Now that he had no money in his pocket, he had no choice but to suppress his gambling addiction and turn around to leave the entrance of the Wanguo Casino.
Once on the street, he hailed a rickshaw, sat down, gave the driver some instructions, and headed west.
Before long, he arrived at the shantytown in western Shanghai, got off the rickshaw, and walked a distance to the gate of a courtyard. He looked around and then pushed the door open.
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