Perhaps she was too engrossed in writing, because Ling Ruoke had a dream all night long, in which the mistress and the wife kept arguing and fighting. Not only were the images clear, but even the lines of dialogue were crystal clear, making it seem incredibly realistic.
She woke up with a terrible headache. She rubbed her temples, both amused and exasperated, and muttered to herself, "I'm really possessed."
After working out at the gym, she felt that weak, limp feeling subside. While the images and lines in her mind were still clear, she hurriedly turned on her computer and typed for more than half an hour before stopping.
After breakfast, she took her card and went straight to look at cars. She chose the same dealership as before; they mainly sold Volkswagen Beetles. Following the Colonel's suggestion, she compared light yellow and light green, and finally chose light green.
While choosing a car, a man approached her and started chatting. He said it was his girlfriend's birthday and he wanted to buy her a car as a gift. But being a man, he didn't know what kind of car women liked and asked Ling Ruoke for advice.
Ling Ruoke was wary of strangers, so he gave a few perfunctory replies and walked away. If he really wanted to choose a car his girlfriend liked, he would always find a way to subtly find out. Asking others like that was more likely to be a flirtation than a suggestion.
It has to be said that the Beetle is indeed very appealing to women; its small and cute design is pleasing to the eye. However, it has one major drawback: its interior space is too small. It's fine for a family of three, but it won't be able to accommodate parents or friends.
After some consideration, Ling Ruoke decided to buy it anyway. If it were really a group trip, she could just drive the colonel's flashy Hummer. Anyway, whenever the colonel was home, he would definitely be driving his car. This little Beetle would only be driven by her to work, except, of course, when she had a child, she would also drive the baby.
After a test drive, I definitely got a great feel for it.
Ling Ruoke waved her hand and bought it. She almost made a mistake when signing the bank statement; the card was under the identity of "Hua Ximeng," and she almost signed it as "Ling Ruoke."
I have to thank Cang Wei for taking her ID and bank card back with me when I brought her home. She rarely uses this bank card and hasn't activated any SMS alerts. If I hadn't checked her royalties yesterday, she wouldn't even know how much money was in it.
The formalities are complete, and you can pick up the car around 5 pm that day.
Ling Ruoke figured she'd gotten off work and was driving home. Thinking about how others bought luxury cars to match their outfits, she couldn't help but wonder if she should buy a new outfit for her own car. The thought made her laugh, and in the end, she naturally didn't bother. Many things, once forced, become burdens rather than sources of enjoyment.
When Ling Ruoke went to eat steamed rice at noon, she was surprised to find that she had run into the same man she had met when she bought the car. He was sitting across from her. Perhaps because it was the second time they had met, and they were practically acquaintances, he even started chatting with her.
Ling Ruoke paid no attention to him, only glanced at him, finished her meal in a few bites without expression, and left.
Finally, afternoon arrived, and Ling Ruoke went straight to the car dealership, driving her beloved car to Tan Peishi's house to see her godson.
It's undeniable that children grow up very quickly. One day they were just a wrinkled, red little bundle, and in the blink of an eye they've become chubby, fair-skinned babies. Their little faces are plump, their eyes are big and round, and their little mouths are red—they're incredibly cute. They grab anything they see and put it in their mouths. But they don't have teeth yet; all you can see are their little tongues licking and drooling.
As soon as Ling Ruoke reached out, he grabbed her little finger and pulled it towards her mouth. Afraid of poking him, she had to bend her finger. After several attempts to get the "candy" into her mouth, the little guy pouted and cried.
Ling Ruoke and Tan Peishi exchanged a glance and burst into laughter.
Mrs. Tan dotes on her grandson. As soon as she hears him cry, she immediately comes over to hug him and scolds both his biological mother and godmother.
Ling Ruoke and Tan Peishi sat close together, watching Tan's mother comfort the child and smiling happily.
"Oh, by the way, I just bought a car, a Volkswagen Beetle, light green. Once you're old enough to go out, I'll take you and the baby out for a drive." Ling Ruoke was still a little excited when she mentioned her beloved car.
Tan Peishi reached out and poked her cheek. "Look at you smug. Lele, look at your godmother's smug face, I despise her!"
The little one had been soothed by Grandma and put back in the cradle. Whether by coincidence or understanding her mother's words, she giggled foolishly. She made a fist with her little hand, brought it to her mouth, and licked it with her little tongue. Soon, her little fist was wet.
Ling Ruoke removed his hand and teased him. "You put everything in your mouth, you're such a little glutton!"
With a funny expression on her face, the child watched intently, then giggled. Afraid he'd laugh too hard, Ling Ruoke didn't dare tease him too much. Looking into the child's big, dark, grape-like eyes, he was undeniably adorable. Looking at him, she thought of her little Fu'an again.
Not wanting to cook after coming home alone, Ling Ruoke simply ate dinner before leaving. After showering and writing a short novel, it was soon time for bed.
Two more days passed.
When military and judicial personnel came to her door, showed their credentials, and explained their purpose, Ling Ruoke was somewhat bewildered.
A drug lord in Southwest China? Who's that? What's his connection to her? "Excuse me, I didn't understand. Can I make a phone call?"
"No. Please cooperate with our work." Soldiers are very authoritative when they are serious, let alone the law enforcement department of the military. To put it nicely, they are serious; to put it bluntly, they are like demons.
Ling Ruoke wasn't afraid, nor was she unafraid; she wasn't afraid of the people in front of her, but rather worried about Huo Qingfeng's safety. "I don't understand what you mean. How can I cooperate with your work? You're talking about a Southwest drug lord; I have absolutely no idea what that is! I'm just an ordinary citizen, a law-abiding citizen, and you're talking to me about drug lords? Isn't that... isn't that a bit ridiculous?"
The other person opened the notebook in their hand and looked at her calmly. "Ms. Ling, how about this, we'll ask you a few questions, and you can answer them truthfully."
Ling Ruoke nodded. "Alright then. But before that, let me make one thing clear: he won't mention a single word about the military to me, so you don't need to ask him about that."
Although she was worried, she wasn't afraid of things they hadn't done. Just now, she had figured it out: they meant that Qingfeng was colluding with drug lords in the Southwest! That was roughly the gist of it!
Ling Ruoke found it ridiculous. Her incredibly upright colonel was colluding with drug lords? Looking at the seemingly righteous man in front of her, she wanted to curse him! But she knew that acting impulsively would not help, and she needed to stay calm.
"In early March of this year, you and Huo Qingfeng bought a villa in Lijing Garden in Z City, is that true?"
Ling Ruoke frowned slightly; even this matter had been brought up. "Yes. It's the place where you are right now."
"How much is the villa priced? Do you accept a lump sum payment or installment payments?"
"It cost 1.08 million. We wanted a model home, so it was a bit more expensive than other villas. We bought it with a loan."
"How much was the down payment? Was it from you or Huo Qingfeng?"
“We paid a 50% down payment, and the rest is a loan. We previously bought a three-bedroom apartment in Xingfu Community. We sold that apartment for about 500,000 yuan. With the little bit of salary we’ve saved, we’ve scraped together enough.” Ling Ruoke tried hard to control her emotions.
"Who bought that apartment in Happiness Residential Area? How much did they pay for it?"
"He bought it. I don't know the price at the time, but it certainly wasn't higher than the price we sold it for, that's for sure. He joined the army before he was twenty, without any expenses. You can judge for yourselves whether his salary was enough to buy that apartment in Xingfu Community." In the past two years, housing prices in Z City have also been rising.
"We will naturally investigate that. Did you buy a Volkswagen two days ago?"
"Yes. The price is about 220,000, and the money is mine. It's in the garage, and you can go see it anytime."
"But as far as I know, Miss Ling's total salary in the two years since she came to Z City is less than this amount."
Ling Ruoke smiled faintly, finding these people truly laughable. "Yes. My normal salary isn't enough, but now I run an advertising company with a friend, so my income is more than what I used to earn. I'm also an online writer, and the money I used to buy the car came from my royalties. My novels are published on xxx website; you can check my royalties there."
"Of course we will check that. Miss Ling, do you know how much money is in that bank card?"
"I didn't know before because I had never used that card, there was no SMS notification service, and I never checked the balance at an ATM. To be honest, if I hadn't suddenly started writing a new novel the day before I bought the car, I wouldn't have remembered it at all. That day I checked the website's backend, and it was over 300,000 yuan." When I need money, I always remember the balance on each card clearly. If I don't need money, I don't even think about it.
The other person seemed to chuckle. "What is the reason that, after such a long hiatus, Miss Ling suddenly wants to pick up her pen again to write a novel?"
Mentioning this reason, Ling Ruoke's mood became somewhat low. "Huo Qingfeng used to raise the child of a fallen comrade, which I think you all know. Recently, the child's mother took the child to live in another city, and Huo Qingfeng went back to the army. I had nothing to do in my spare time. Later, I accidentally saw the name of a novel website on the browser homepage, and I remembered that I used to write novels. Now that I have time and don't know how to pass it, I can pick it up again."
They watched her silently for a while without saying a word.
Ling Ruoke was telling the truth and wasn't intimidated by their sharp gazes. She met their eyes directly.
“Ms. Ling, according to the account records, there should be a deposit of more than 10 million yuan in it.”
"Impossible! I only use this card for online writing and publishing fees. It's impossible for more than 10 million to have appeared out of nowhere. You can check the records; apart from the purchase of the car, I've never used it. The accounts that deposit money into the card are all website accounts."
After Ling Ruoke's rebuttal, she suddenly understood. That 10 million was likely planted by someone with ulterior motives. If it weren't for that 10 million, they wouldn't be here today! 10 million? Such a large sum—who would use 10 million to frame a colonel?
"According to the account inquiry records, on March 6th, the same day you bought the villa, the account received a remittance of 5 million yuan; on July 18th, the same day you bought the car, the account received a remittance of 5 million yuan. That adds up to exactly 10 million yuan. How does Ms. Ling explain this?"
Although Ling Ruoke was startled, she wasn't afraid. "I have no explanation, because I had no idea there was an extra 10 million in the card. That's something you should investigate, not me. That card was only used for paying royalties, and the 18th was the first transaction. If needed, I can log into the author's backend, and you can see that what I said is true."
"Thank you for your trouble."
Ling Ruoke then logged into the author's backend and showed them the author's information.
"That's enough. We have a few more questions for Miss Ling."
"Ask away." Ling Ruoke was unusually calm at this moment. She understood that if she said the wrong thing due to nervousness, it could have a huge impact on Qingfeng, and she couldn't panic.
"Miss Ling's full name is Ling Ruoke, so why is this account named Hua Ximeng?"
"This is the name I used in Y City. At that time, I stayed in Y City for a while because of emotional entanglements. I think you have all checked, and I had some emotional disputes with my ex-husband at that time. I didn't want him to find me, so I changed my name. I also started writing novels around that time, so I used the name Hua Ximeng."
The other person stared at her intently, their tone completely flat. If it were the old Ling Ruoke, her legs would probably have gone weak. "What I really want to know is, Miss Ling, how did you manage to change your name so successfully? According to the investigation, your name change was very well-documented, essentially creating a new identity. There must be a powerful figure helping you behind the scenes. Who is that person?"
Ling Ruoke was momentarily at a loss for words. She didn't know how serious the question was, and she didn't want to drag Zhuang Yicheng into it. "Is this question really that important?"
"Very important."
"May I ask, what is the severity of the crime of helping me forge this identity?"
The other party did not give a direct answer. "We cannot answer that. Perhaps Ms. Ling could consult the relevant law enforcement agencies. We just want to know who this person is."
Ling Ruoke hesitated for a long time, still unable to make up her mind. Just then, her phone rang. "May I take this call?" It was an unknown number.
"I'm sorry, please cooperate with the investigation." He then pressed the speakerphone button.
Ling Ruoke glared at them, her resentment rising within her. They hadn't even been convicted yet; did that mean her rights weren't protected?
"Hello?" It was a male voice, somewhat familiar. "Is that alright?"
Ling Ruoke was taken aback before recognizing Zhuang Yicheng's voice. She cursed inwardly, wondering why he had to come at this crucial moment. "I'm here. Mr. Zhuang, is there something you need? I'm busy right now, I'll call you back later. I'll hang up now."
"No! Just tell me the truth about the fake identity. I won't bother you anymore, goodbye."
Ling Ruoke hung up the phone and looked up at the person on the other end. "You all heard it too. My identity was forged with the help of Mr. Zhuang Yicheng."
"Excuse me, I must ask, what is the relationship between Miss Ling and Mr. Zhuang?"
“He is the parent of one of my students. I used to be a teacher at Yucai Elementary School, and his son, Zhuang Yuqi, was my student. Zhuang Yuqi had no mother since he was a child, so he recognized me as his godmother, and that's how I met Mr. Zhuang a few times. Later, in order to escape my ex-husband's harassment and the emotional entanglements at the time, I asked him to help me escape to Y City. That's how it happened.”
Ling Ruoke was in a state of utter confusion; this matter was getting more and more complicated. Fortunately, the other party didn't ask her about her relationship with Zhuang Yicheng again.
"Miss Ling, do you know a man named Black Owl?"
Ling Ruoke shook her head. If she hadn't known Cang Weiwo and Huo Qingfeng, her life would have been incredibly simple. How could she have known drug traffickers? However, she seemed to know arms dealers! Could it be related to Wild Wolf?
They took out several photos and pushed them in front of her. "Miss Ling, would you please take a look and see if you recognize this person?"
Ling Ruoke picked up the photo and examined it carefully, feeling that she seemed to have seen it before. "I think I've seen it before, let me think." She looked at the photo again carefully before finally remembering.
“I’ve met this person before. On the day I bought my car, I was choosing a car and he was next to me. He said he wanted to pick out a car for his girlfriend and asked me to help him. Later, when I was having lunch, I ran into him at a steamed rice restaurant. He was right across from me. He talked to me, but I ignored him.”
They stared at Ling Ruoke silently for a while, as if trying to figure out if she was lying. Then they exchanged glances, nodded to each other, and stood up.
"Ms. Ling, thank you for your cooperation. Please refrain from traveling or business trips recently, and keep your phone accessible. We will contact you at any time if we have any questions. We hope you can cooperate with our investigation."
Ling Ruoke also stood up, secretly relieved. "That's fine. Um, is Huo Qingfeng alright?"
"I'm sorry, we cannot answer that question."
After they left, Ling Ruoke felt completely exhausted. She immediately dialed the colonel's number; the call connected, but no one answered. She tried several times, but the result was the same.
Ling Ruoke walked back to the sofa and sat down, her mind a jumble of thoughts. She took deep breaths, trying to calm herself and clear her head. Just then, the phone rang again. Thinking it was Qingfeng, she picked it up excitedly, only to find it wasn't him. "Hello?"
"Baby, I heard you're in trouble. How are you? Are you alright?" Wild Wolf's voice came from the other end, unusually devoid of his usual roguishness.
Ling Ruoke felt a sense of relief, as if she had finally found family to rely on and a way out. "You're really well-informed. I don't know how to explain it, I still don't understand what's going on. I feel like I'm being shot even when I'm not doing anything, just like they say online."
A low chuckle came from the other end, followed by the question: "Baby, do you trust your man?"
"Of course. He's too upright for his liking; he'd never stoop to such a thing." She didn't need to ask to be certain that the colonel would never do something like that. Actually, her first thought was that Guzheng was behind it all.
Wild Wolf chuckled softly again, his voice magnetic and soothing. "Then don't think about anything, just live your life as usual. Eat well, sleep well, and have fun, that's how you stay healthy. How about I come to Z City to keep you company? It's free, no charge. Sleeping with you is no problem either."
The last two sentences show him back to his usual roguish self.
Ling Ruoke couldn't help but laugh. "I don't need you to keep me company. You should stay with Mo Ran. Sigh, you big bad wolf, I have to go to work now, I'm not talking to you anymore."
"Baby, is this how you treat me? I'm so heartbroken, my poor little heart—"
Ling Ruoke decisively hung up the phone, refusing to listen to his nonsense. However, she understood his intentions. After Wild Wolf's antics, she felt much better. Both Zhuang Yicheng and Wild Wolf cared about her. She just needed to trust the Colonel; he would handle it himself. The more she worried and panicked, the more easily she would fall into someone else's trap.
Ling Ruoke wanted to call Zhuang Yicheng, but after thinking it over, she decided against it. Perhaps someone was monitoring and eavesdropping on her every move, so it was best to avoid trouble.
After washing her face again in the restroom, Ling Ruoke drove to work. The usual sense of enjoyment was nowhere to be found today.
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