Chapter 41
Actor Xie Changshi is ready at any time, and the most critical problem now lies with Xu Zhi himself.
Xu Zhi needed to contact Qiu Qian directly, so Chi Bai and the others had to find a way to ensure that Xu Zhi wouldn't fail at the crucial moment. Although Xu Zhi had confessed everything under the pressure of the evil ghost, he would inevitably bear a grudge against them. If he contacted Qiu Qian and revealed their plan, their efforts would be in vain.
"Not necessarily." Yuan Siyu, who had just returned, was chewing on a lollipop. Like a kindergarten teacher handing out candies to the children, she stuffed one into the hands of Rong Jing and the others before continuing, "Xu Zhi has done so many wicked things. I guess he's hoping to get his sentence reduced by using the opportunity of Laqiuqian's involvement."
"Let's try it again later."
Recently, Han Yu seemed to have disappeared suddenly. Even when Xue Cang appeared in front of people, he did not make any movement. Chi Bai originally thought that if he made any movement, he would just call for help to catch him, but the other party did not say a word, and all the information about the pirated Xuantian Temple stopped there.
Now that Qiu Qian has finally arrived, he doesn't want to miss the opportunity.
After all, from the way Han Yu and Qiu Qian acted, he could already feel that this pirated Xuantian Temple was full of insidious and vicious people, and they were not human beings.
Chi Bai re-entered the interrogation room. Xu Zhi seemed to have not yet recovered from the fear of being intimidated, and his body was still shaking unconsciously. After hearing the "thud" sound of Chi Bai's fingers hitting the table, he whimpered in fear.
Chi Bai: "...Are you so scared? What will happen when you die and go to hell? The people in the underworld are very rigid. They will find out what you did when you were a human, and they won't let you go easily even if you become a ghost."
Chi Bai's words were not alarmist.
This is what the elders in their Taoist temple have warned them since they were young.
He said it lightly, but Xu Zhi's face turned even paler.
Xu Zhiben had already believed in metaphysics because of Qiu Qian. Now, after experiencing Chi Bai's attack and seeing the evil ghost with his own eyes, when he heard these words, he began to uncontrollably imagine all kinds of horrible scenes after his death.
I heard that there are eighteen levels of hell, and each level is a means of torture.
He swallowed, his eyes growing more horrified.
After observing him for a long time, Chi Bai raised the corner of his lips and comforted him symbolically: "But you don't have to be so scared. There is still room for maneuver in some things, right?"
Xu Zhi understood what he meant and stopped struggling. Instead, he asked directly, "What do you want me to do?"
Chi Bai looked at him with satisfaction: "You've become smarter."
Xu Zhi didn't say anything, and Chi Bai didn't mind. He pulled a chair and sat down in front of him, then made a request: "Just like how you and Qiu Qian fooled the rich before, fool them again for me."
Xu Zhi had a pretty good brain, and when he heard this, he immediately understood.
Chi Bai and his men wanted to use this method to capture Qiu Qian.
His eyes flickered as he asked, "If this is done, will it benefit me?"
Having already used intimidation and threats once before, it probably wouldn't work if used again now. So when Chi Bai heard this, he wasn't as angry as before. Instead, he nodded gently and said, "As long as we catch Qiu Qian, everything will be fine."
Xu Zhi was silent for a long time.
He knew that although Chi Bai said "everything is easy to talk about", the truth was far from that simple, and it was impossible to simply forgive his crime, but if he was given a lighter sentence, it would probably be possible.
After all, no matter whether it was Wang Shuiyan or the others, although they were all framed by him, no one was killed.
Xu Zhi licked his dry lips as his mind raced. "You tell me, I'll do it."
Chi Bai raised his eyebrows and smiled slightly: "Smart man."
Before Xu Zhi left the police station, Yuan Siyu handed him a fake transfer contract for Shanshui Restaurant.
Xu Zhi sat in the car, took a photo of the contract, sent it to Qiu Qian, and then said: I got it, I will transfer the remaining money to you later.
Qiu Qian received the message, but did not reply until a long time later: How did it get here now?
Xu Zhi had been with Qiu Qian before he went to the hospital to meet Cui Linshan, so Qiu Qian was very clear about the time he left. Several hours had passed since then, so it was normal for the other party to be confused.
Xu Zhi's brows showed calmness. He glanced at Aqiu who was driving and replied with his head down: Wang Shuiyan was sent to the emergency room again, and Cui Linshan fainted.
The excuse is reasonable.
Qiu Qian didn't reply any more.
Xu Zhi thought for a while and then said: I have a new business. I just heard that Yan Yingyao has a way to get close to the president of Xie Group. Since I want to do it, I might as well do it in a big way. Looking across the entire Yancheng, who is richer than Xie Changshi?
There was no reply from the other end, and Xu Zhi couldn't help but frown, wondering if Qiu Qian had noticed something was wrong so quickly. It shouldn't be that bad, right? He and Qiu Qian had known each other for two years, and he was well aware of Qiu Qian's fatal flaw: arrogance.
It was as if he didn't take Rong Jing, the young fortune teller, seriously in his words and deeds.
Otherwise, Xu Zhi would not have fallen so easily into the trap set for him by Chen Rong and Cui Linshan.
...Then why didn’t Qiu Qian reply?
In fact, if Xu Zhi calmed down and recalled carefully, he would find that his usual chats with Qiu Qian were always "you wait for me for a while, I wait for you for a while" before replying. It's just that he feels guilty now, so he feels that the short waiting time is so long.
Just when Xu Zhi was daydreaming, the cell phone in his hand suddenly rang with a shrill sound. The sudden ringing startled Xu Zhi and he quickly looked down.
"It's Qiu Qian." He said to Aqiu.
"Just answer it."
Xu Zhi clicked the answer button and pressed the hands-free button. Qiu Qian's low, hoarse voice quickly reached the ears of the two people in the car: "Xie Changshi? Xu Zhi, your appetite is really getting bigger and bigger."
Xu Zhi was about to answer when Qiu Qian said again, "But it's not impossible. Tonight I'll let the little ghost enter his dream and find out his birth date and horoscope."
Hearing this, Xu Zhi's racing heart finally calmed down, and he hummed, "Okay. We don't get to meet top-tier wealthy families like Xie Changshi very often. This time, we're just lucky. If we miss the chance, we might not get it again in the future. So, why not give it a try? If it works, we'll make countless money."
"You're right. I'll tell you good news tomorrow."
"good."
After hanging up the phone, Xu Zhi let out a sigh of relief.
Then, he inadvertently looked up and caught a glimpse of Aqiu's smiling eyes in the rearview mirror.
Ah Qiu held the steering wheel with one hand and asked a fatal question: "Have you ever thought that since Qiu Qian can let the little ghost enter the target's dream, why not let the little ghost trap the target's soul as well? It would save you the trouble and worry about being discovered when doing bad things?"
Xu Zhi's expression froze.
Ah Qiu laughed: "You're being used as a pawn, and you're so happy about it."
Xu Zhi was certainly useful to Qiu Qian, as Qiu Qian relied on him to gain access to wealthy individuals through his social connections. However, these interactions didn't actually pose a threat to Xu Zhi. However, if Xu Zhi were tasked with trapping the target's soul using a magical tool, the situation would be different. Xu Zhi would be genuinely involved in the harm, a weapon Qiu Qian could hold in his hands.
One day, when Xu Zhi came to his senses and realized that he had done something wrong and wanted to regret it, it was too late.
As long as Qiu Qian doesn't say to stop, Xu Zhi will have to keep cooperating with him.
Of course, Qiu Qian could also choose to use threats and intimidation to control Xu Zhi like Chi Bai, but how can a forced knife be more effective than a conscious knife?
Stupid thing.
Aqiu commented in his heart.
…
In the evening, Yunjiang Bay.
Xie Changshi sat on the sofa, while Rong Jing sat cross-legged beside him, flipping through the notebook in his hand with his long white fingers, chattering to Xie Changshi about various precautions.
"That little devil might lose control of himself and want to eat you. If you feel something is wrong, be sure to call me and I will help you kill it."
Then he shoved the phone into the man's hand and said, "You set it up yourself. Change the emergency contact to mine."
He continued to chatter: "If that little ghost has some ability and can control itself, don't be afraid if it enters your dream. Just tell it the birth date and time I gave you."
"Don't you need to give it to me?" Xie Changshi interrupted him at the right time.
When Rong Jing heard this, his eyes widened. "I'm not stupid, why would you really give it your birth date and time? Can you just give out your birth date and time randomly?"
"Who are you planning to give it to?"
"Chi Bai and I calculated a fake one, but the birth date and horoscope we came up with is pretty good. If it were someone else, they'd probably be a successful person. That bastard shouldn't be suspicious."
Rong Jing muttered to himself and turned another page in the notebook in his hand.
Seeing how nervous he was, Xie Changshi couldn't help but find it funny.
If you don’t know, you might think that he is the one who is about to face the little devil.
So Xie Changshi reminded him: "Don't worry, didn't you tell me a fortune today?"
"Forget it. The hexagram indicates good luck, but the hexagram has convinced me, not my heart. My heart is still pounding. If you don't believe me, feel it." After Rong Jing finished speaking, he pressed Xie Changshi's hand on his heart.
The pajamas he wore were thin, and Xie Changshi could easily feel the warmth of his skin when he placed his palm against it. It was clearly normal body temperature, but it felt like it burned his fingertips.
The fingertips curled up slightly, and then stretched out after feeling the pounding of the heart.
"Is it really jumping fast?" Rong Jing sighed, "I haven't jumped this fast in a long time."
"It's really fast." Xie Changshi curled his lips, not giving Rong Jing a chance to worry any more. He patted the boy's head and urged him, "It's getting late, go to bed."
Meeting the boy's gaze, he shook the phone in his hand. The emergency contact on the screen had changed to the words "little zombie". Xie Changshi said, "Don't worry, I'll call you anytime if there's any problem."
"All right."
But Rong Jing agreed verbally, but he still didn't close his eyes when he returned to the room. He turned off all the lights and pulled the quilt to his chest. With his dark eyes open, he looked at the ceiling above his head and slowly counted numbers.
I don’t know how long it took, so long that the clock hanging on the wall suddenly made a crisp "tick". Rong Jing’s gaze suddenly turned and looked out the window.
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
A few seconds later, a ghostly figure, sniffing a sweet scent, crept into Xie Changshi's room. The room was pitch black, but the ghost could easily spot Xie Changshi, who looked like a snack. It licked its sharp teeth, wishing it could devour Xie Changshi in one gulp. But at least it wasn't some lowly ghost; it had a high IQ and self-control.
Due to the request of its owner, it could only look at Xie Changshi regretfully for a few more times, and then entered Xie Changshi's dream.
In the dream, Xie Changshi was walking alone on the street.
He turned to look behind him, but there was no Little Zombie mirror. He then looked down at his phone, and after looking through his contacts, he couldn't find the words 'Little Zombie'.
...Where is Rong Jing?
Doubts filled his mind and a look of deep confusion appeared on his face.
But at this moment, a middle-aged sorcerer carrying a long banner passed by him. He took two steps and seemed to have discovered something surprising. He suddenly stopped and looked at him, saying, "My friend... can't find the important person?"
Xie Changshi frowned slightly and said nothing, but the expression on his face clearly confirmed that it was true.
Seeing this, the Taoist didn't think he was being rude. Instead, he smiled, stroked his beard, and said meaningfully, "Would you like me to help you calculate where the most important person in your heart is?"
"Can you find him?"
"Of course, I've never failed in my actions." Seeing that he was making sense, the sorcerer walked up to him and said in a slow, seductive voice, "Now, all you need to do is give me your birth date and time, and I'll be able to calculate the position of the person in your heart."
Xie Changshi stared at him for a long while, then opened his mouth to tell him his birth date.
The old Taoist counted on his fingers, smiled and pointed to the north: "Go that way, in less than ten minutes, you will see him."
Xie Changshi obediently walked north.
After walking a few steps, he turned back, but there was no trace of the old Taoist behind him. In fact, the whole place was empty, even the shadow of the street had disappeared without a trace. But at this moment, a familiar young man's voice rang out: "Xie Changshi!"
Bang.
The dream suddenly shattered, and Xie Changshi silently opened his eyes in the darkness.
At the same moment, the door lock clicked, and Rong Jing poked his head in, whispering, "Xie Changshi."
The lights came on, revealing the man's deep, handsome features. He looked toward the door. The worry hidden in the young man's eyes turned to joy when he saw him awake. Rong Jing squeezed in, climbed onto his bed, and carefully examined him from head to toe for a long moment before asking, "How are you feeling? Are you feeling unwell?"
He felt that the little ghost came and left quickly. He thought that he had received Qiu Qian's instructions not to stay here to avoid any accidents.
Logically speaking, this amount of time should be enough for the other party to figure out the birth date and horoscope, but Rong Jing was still worried.
"It feels good." Xie Changshi lifted the quilt. "That brat didn't do anything to me."
"That's good." The boy pulled his legs back, sat on the soft bedding, and said with his chin in his hand, "If we can catch the dog shit this time, you will get half the credit, and you will also get half the merit."
When Xie Changshi heard the word "merit", a smile appeared in his eyes.
Pressing his palm against the boy's soft hair, he said slowly, "Don't worry, I will work hard to accumulate more merits and live a few more years."
Rong Jing thought, how could a few years be enough?
Xie Changshi should at least wait until this little zombie dies before dying, right?
Thinking of his lifeline, Rong Jing's expression became serious again. He stepped on the quilt and stood up, patting Xie Changshi's shoulder vigorously: "Next time there is such a good thing, I will call you again."
"Okay, thank you for your hard work, Master Rong."
"Sure, sure."
…
6pm.
Xu Zhi stood in front of the mirror and tugged at his suit.
Qiu Qian came down the stairs and saw his fearful look. He pursed his lips and said jokingly in a good mood, "There's no need to be so nervous. It's not the first time you've done something like this."
"It's different." Xu Zhi glimpsed Qiu Qian's expression in the mirror for a few seconds, but when he looked over, he lowered his gaze silently, trying not to meet Qiu Qian's gaze, lest he notice the guilt in his eyes. He pretended to observe and pretended for a moment before continuing, "Xie Changshi is not someone like Wang Shuiyan. I heard he has a bad temper too. If he doesn't like me, I won't even have a chance to get close to him."
Upon hearing this, Qiu Qian scoffed, "Why do you have to get close to him? Why don't you just throw the thing I gave you under the main seat? A meal's time is enough for that thing to draw out one of Xie Changshi's souls."
Xu Zhi was stunned for a moment, nodded and said yes, then without staying for long, he quickly picked up the tumbler doll handed to him by Qiu Qian and left the apartment.
After getting in the car, Chi Bai looked back, his eyes sweeping over the doll emitting a thick black aura, and said to Xu Zhi: "You are really brave enough to do business with such a person."
Chi Bai's words were full of sarcasm. What partnership, what business, it was all sarcasm.
Xu Zhi ignored him, and Chi Bai didn't mind. Instead, he said to himself, "I didn't expect that bastard to be so alert. It doesn't match his overconfident mind at all."
Xu Zhi currently lived in an apartment in a remote area. It looked ordinary, but it was actually full of surprises. While waiting for Xu Zhi, Chi Bai, though he didn't get out of the car, witnessed with his own eyes an unconscious ghost being suddenly incinerated as it approached Xu Zhi's apartment.
It's easy to guess who did this.
Fortunately, they didn't think of arresting Qiu Qian directly at Xu Zhi's house, otherwise the other party would have noticed them as soon as they approached the apartment.
Besides... the occupancy rate of the apartments here is quite high. If something unexpected happens, it will cost more than just one life.
Xu Zhi heard Chi Bai's comments and said nothing. He just wanted to hand the things to Chi Bai, but he saw Chi Bai's eyebrows suddenly tightened: "There is a little devil following us."
Xu Zhi's eyes darkened.
Could it be the ghost that was following Qiu Qian? Why was it following him? Did it notice something was wrong with him, or something else?
Xu Zhi's face gradually turned ugly as doubts filled his mind, but Chi Bai's voice soon reached his ears: "Calm down, maybe he's just worried that you can't do the job well, so he's looking for a little helper. After all, your success rate was as high as 100% before, it's hard to believe that you don't have anyone to help you."
Xu Zhi: “…”
He listened to Chi Bai's words and relaxed.
Chi Bai didn't say anything else, because the little kid had already gotten into the car and sat quietly next to Xu Zhi.
The car arrived at the Fu family's chain hotel at around 6:40.
The host of this dinner was Yan Chengde, Yan Yingyao's uncle and a senior executive of the Fu family.
Yan Yingyao was standing at the door. When he saw Xu Zhi approaching, he stepped forward and said with a smile, "Brother Xu is here. Mr. Xie hasn't arrived yet. Let's go in and wait."
As he spoke, he put his arm around Xu Zhi's shoulders. On the surface, he looked like a good brother, but inside he was about to vomit.
He and Xu Zhi met in a bar, and within two days of meeting, they had another drink together. Soon after, he started feeling unwell, and a hospital checkup proved to be unsuccessful. Upon learning of his condition, Xu Zhi approached him, saying he might have been possessed by a foul spirit.
Coincidentally, Xu Zhi knew a master who might be able to help.
Yan Yingyao was suffering from a strange illness at the time. When he heard this, he didn't care whether the master would be of any use or not, and immediately asked Xu Zhi to call the man over. As a result, after the master's treatment, he actually got better!
From that day on, Yan Yingyao regarded Xu Zhi as half his father.
But now he was told that everything from his so-called illness to the so-called master was a play designed for him by Xu Zhi from beginning to end.
After learning the truth, Yan Yingyao wanted to strangle Xu Zhi to death, but due to the police's request, he had to accompany him and play the role of brother.
Xu Zhi probably guessed that Yan Yingyao knew everything, so when he was hugged, he always felt that the arm would tighten at any second and strangle his neck completely. Xu Zhi pursed his lips, calming himself down, and then showed Yan Yingyao his usual smile and said, "After all, he is the one in charge of the Xie family. It's normal for us to wait for him."
"That's true," Yan Yingyao shrugged. "But then again, it's quite surprising that President Xie would do my uncle a favor and have a meal with him. Everyone knows he doesn't like to attend these kinds of drinking parties. In the past, if he wanted to show his favor, he would send the guy named Lu. If he didn't, kneeling at the door of his company would be useless."
As he spoke, Yan Yingyao narrowed his eyes and stared at Xu Zhi, then laughed: "Brother Xu, I treat you like my own brother, so I asked you to come and see the world. You can't let me down, otherwise my uncle will chop me down with a knife."
Xu Zhi felt that Yan Yingyao really wanted to chop him to pieces.
But he could only smile and agree.
The five-star hotel under the Fu Group was very upscale both inside and out. Yan Chengde chose the best private room in the entire hotel, while Yan Yingyao and Xu Zhi sat in the corner, craning their necks to watch Yan Chengde talking with several senior executives of the Fu Group.
"Old Yan is really proud of himself this time."
Yan Chengde smiled with the corners of his mouth, but his eyes turned to Yan Yingyao, thinking to himself, it is indeed a big deal. The police have been called in, how can it not be a big deal?
Yan Yingyao subconsciously shrank his neck when he was met with the gaze of his uncle.
Fortunately, this torturous moment did not last long. The protagonist of the dinner finally arrived at the hotel and opened the door of the private room.
Xie Changshi was wearing a well-tailored, handmade suit. He had a tall and slender figure, and his handsome features were restrained and indifferent. He swept his eyes over the people present, and did not miss the kid hiding in the corner with a greedy look on his face. A hint of sneer flashed in his eyes, and he stepped forward and greeted Yan Chengde.
"Mr. Xie." Yan Chengde said with emotion, "It's been a long time."
Xie Changshi nodded.
Yan Chengde said, "Please sit here."
Yan Chengde had already thought of today's topic before he came. Fu and Xie had a cooperation area, and he talked about that area the whole time. Xie Changshi didn't react much, but several other senior executives of Fu frowned repeatedly.
One person even secretly kicked Yan Chengde.
What are you talking about.
After so much trouble inviting people here, they just start talking useless nonsense. Wasn't the cooperation already decided long ago?
Yan Chengde kicked back and changed the subject: "Actually, it was our President Fu who was supposed to come to see President Xie today, but he had something to do and couldn't come back from abroad."
In the past, Xie Changshi probably wouldn't have responded to this, but the situation was different today. He lowered his eyes, took a sip of wine, and asked, "Oh? What happened to Mr. Fu?"
"I had a minor car accident and am still in the hospital."
"I see."
"I heard that the person who bumped into Mr. Fu was also Mr. Fu's blind date."
"What a coincidence."
"Yes, yes, it's all fate. But then again, Mr. Xie is the same age as our Mr. Fu. Hasn't Mr. Xie found a partner yet?"
“Almost.”
"Oh? Then it seems we will be able to attend Mr. Xie's wedding soon."
"Well, I'll treat you then."
Xie Changshi and Yan Chengde chatted for nearly an hour. The former glanced at his watch. Seeing this, Song Qing, who was following Xie Changshi, immediately said, "Sorry, everyone, Mr. Xie has some things to do and has to leave first."
Upon hearing this, Yan Chengde quickly waved his hands: "It's okay, it's okay. Mr. Xie's matter is more important."
"See you next time, Mr. Yan." Song Qing waved with a smile, and then left the hotel with Xie Changshi.
As soon as they left, several of the executives who were with Yan Chengde turned to look at him, staring at him in disbelief. "Yan Chengde, what's wrong with you today? We finally invited Mr. Xie to dinner, and you ask him if he had a relationship in high school?"
"You're still asking people if they like men or women. Have you been possessed by a paparazzi?"
Yan Chengde glanced at Yan Yingyao and Xu Zhi, who had already run off to who knows where, and snorted coldly: "You know shit, okay, go away."
Senior executives: “……?”
Seeing Yan Chengde throw down the three words "disband" and leave without looking back, one of the senior executives narrowed his eyes and looked at Yan Chengde's back, and said quietly: "I always have the illusion that I am being made a fool of."
And now in the hotel's underground parking lot.
As soon as Xie Changshi opened the door of Cullinan, he met Rong Jing's face.
The young man deliberately asked, "Xie Changshi, can you open a separate table for me when you get married?"
Xie Changshi: “…”
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