0126 126 It's like a dream
When the news spread throughout the country, the woman who was massaging Qi Shuyao's arm smiled and gestured "please" towards the door. Qi Shuyao was stunned for a moment, then ran out of the house.
She had lived there for so long that she felt dizzy when she came out. Holding onto the wall, she walked in the direction she remembered and heard voices in the lobby.
Excited, but not irrational, Qi Shuyao hid behind and observed inside. She couldn't see anyone, only hear voices. As soon as the old voice spoke, she rushed in immediately.
Shu Li also heard her footsteps. When she saw her run in, he smiled at her and deliberately turned on his phone screen in front of Qi Yu, revealing the little girl who had grown up on the screen saver.
Qi Shuyao instantly stood in front of Shu Li, and unexpectedly met Qi Yu's gaze. He clearly raised his eyebrows.
Looking over his shoulder, she finally saw the woman opposite her, the one who had thrown her the file folder at the art exhibition.
"What are you trying to do?"
"This farce should end, and we should all go back to where we are."
"Is this the successor you found?"
Qi Shuyao's mind went blank for a moment, and she pointed at the woman and asked such a stupid question, which earned her another eye roll from the woman.
Shu Li was amused by her. When he laughed, he looked like a real human. He pointed to the computer on the middle table, where the screen was showing a post.
"The secret here is known only to the four of us. You understand how much it will affect you and the person you love. So, persuade him to give up his current position. I guarantee that your future standard of living will not decline, but will only improve. It's just some power. If you let go, you will still be the most honored people."
Qi Shuyao smiled too, leaning against the table and looking at Shu Li.
"Did you conquer the world today by threatening others? You only use this one tactic to deal with everyone."
"As long as it works."
"Aren't you afraid that someone might have leverage over you?"
"The biggest benefit I've gained from spending a year with you is that it has made me realize the power of the internet. When the full picture of something is not presented to the public, I can fabricate it in a certain way, and the public will believe it to be something else entirely. Moreover, refutations are ineffective. You are all transparent figures standing in the public eye, while I, an old man, have not appeared in public for thirty years, and no one knows who I am."
"It seems you've really gotten old, so old that you're forgetful."
"You talk about your threats? Useless child, who will believe your words alone? I only agreed to your request because I wasn't ready myself."
"Yeah."
Qi Shuyao stood up straight, pulled out the necklace she always wore from her clothes, and untied it, letting it hang in front of Shu Li.
Do you still recognize this?
Shu Li denied being forgetful, but he was indeed nearsighted. He leaned forward before seeing what she was holding, and his expression immediately changed. He raised his hand to snatch the item from her, but Qi Shuyao quickly retreated and put the necklace in her pocket.
“You’re right, the internet is a terrifying thing. Guan Xiang is still being mocked even now, but the longer time goes on, the more things you’ve tried so hard to hide will surface. People have already figured out the whole details and timeline of Guan Xiang’s case. They’ve started to suspect who his backer was, who was his brain that could run his already dilapidated business so well, who made him disappear into thin air overnight, and where all his treasures went. Grandpa, are you starting to get scared? Do you want me to post all the details of how I taught Guan Xiang to escape and hide, how I accepted his carload of antiques, and how I smashed those treasures one by one and threw them into a furnace at thousands of degrees Celsius to melt them into water, and tell everyone? You’re indeed getting old. Your thinking is impeccable, but you’re no longer suited to today’s society. Just like you would never install a camera at home, you would only arrange for the little maid who comes to take care of me to monitor me.”
Shu Li slumped into the chair, head bowed.
"I don't know how you could bear to destroy such a precious treasure. It's such a waste; it represents the history of a nation. However, your methods weren't very good either. One piece just happened to break off, and I just happened to pick it up. It just so happens to be the one with the ancient emperor's seal on it. Even the old man in the alley could help me distinguish the real one from the fake. Actually, I didn't want things to come to this, but why did you tell Xu Mei about my situation? Why did you have to disrupt my life?"
Qi Shuyao turned around and finally looked at Qi Yu. He stared at her and asked her with his eyes what was wrong.
She was about to shake her head when a beam of light rushed towards her. The woman who had been standing in the corner flew over and pounced on the computer, pressing the send button.
Qi Shuyao, realizing what was happening, flipped her to the ground and pinned her arm down, but the operation was already irreversible. In less than a minute after Zhou Cheng deleted the data from the entire network, it had already been downloaded tens of thousands of times.
The woman, her throat being choked, lay on the ground laughing maniacally, spitting out sharp swords from her mouth.
"Now, everyone has seen his true colors. His good leader, his great hero who wiped out the largest gambling syndicate and criminal gang in the country, how he ran casinos, how he trafficked arms all over the world, how he was a ruthless gangster who wouldn't even blink if he cut off someone's limbs, how he murdered an undercover female reporter. He thought he had extinguished the light, but the light will never go out. The spirit of the teacher is in my mind. Even if you dig out my brain, you can't steal the spirit."
Qi Shuyao grabbed the computer next to her and was about to smash it at her when Qi Yu came up from behind and hugged her. The computer was smashed to the ground, leaving a deep dent.
He held her and kept backing away, getting far away from the two people who seemed to be frozen in the middle. Qi Shuyao broke free from his control, turned around in his arms, and raised her small hand, but in the end it only landed on his shoulder.
It's over, everything is over. Even if he fakes his death like Pei Yuzhou, the King of Hell won't take him in.
"We're almost there, just a little bit more, and we'll be able to leave here."
"What did you say? Now you can tell me what your plan is, tell me everything, whether it has anything to do with Liu Jiangyan."
“He returned to his position, helped cover up a huge sum of money that had been misappropriated, and then, regardless of his reputation, he sent the Qin family and the Qin family away, and we were able to leave unscathed.”
"What do you mean by 'retreat'? You're still dreaming."
She grabbed Qi Yu by the collar, demanding he look her in the eye, and confessed, word by word.
“From this moment on, you are no longer the leader of this country. I don’t care what methods you use, hide yourself immediately. I will deal with the problems you left behind. Until then, do not come out.”
"Where are you going..."
"Now, I know everything you know, and I also know everything you didn't want me to know. I've been willingly used by you for so many years, and in the end, I will pay it all back."
Qi Shuyao strode away, and as she passed the woman lying on the ground, the woman was still smiling and even grabbed her ankle.
"Your dad really loves you. He can't even survive himself, but he still wants to delete the details of your involvement in money laundering."
"Oh, thank you. My dad protected me in the first half of my life, and I'm protecting my dad in the second half. That's normal."
She left, took out her ID card from the room, and made a phone call.
Judging by the time, it should be midnight there, and it would be impolite to call directly, but she couldn't wait any longer.
The phone rang twice before being answered with a lazy "Hello~"
"Sister Tang Qian".
"Oh, why are you all so formal? What happened?"
"Could you please go back to Jingyang?"
"What happened?"
"You can find out by searching online. If you think it's okay to meet me again after reading it, then come. I'm begging you."
"I'm back. I'm in the Yue Islands. I'm boarding the plane now and will arrive in Jingyang tonight. Wait for me."
After hanging up the phone, Qi Shuyao walked towards the door. The people in Changxi Palace made way for her. At the corner of the courtyard, she almost bumped into a pillar, but was stopped by Xu Mei who suddenly rushed over.
What are you doing here?
"I saw what happened online. Don't act impulsively, please don't act impulsively."
What happened to your face? Why is it so red?
"Shucheng went to see me."
"He hit you!? I'll get revenge for you..."
"No, no, no! This is... Where are you going? How are you going to get revenge?"
“I’ll go and release Guan Xiang, and I’ll have him kill Shu…”
Xu Mei hugged her daughter tightly, for the first time in her life, pressing her entire body into her arms, gently comforting her.
"Let the grudges of the previous generation remain here. Let's not bring up any more unnecessary things. We deserved what we got, but you are innocent. You should leave this world with a clean conscience. That's what your father wanted too."
Qi Shuyao slid down, tears falling to the ground. Her whole body was limp and she couldn't muster any strength, but she had to stand up and protect her family behind her.
At 10 p.m., she met Tang Qian in Xiaobei District.
"So much money, and it's all prepared so quickly?"
"I've kept it by my side all this time, perhaps it was all part of my preparation for this day."
"The money is just a formality, but the courtyard will be back in my name. You can continue living here while I'm not in the country. I'll definitely transfer it back to you before I die."
"Sister Tang is destined for great wealth and honor, and she'll definitely live to be a hundred. People like us, no one would care if we disappeared one day."
Qi Shuyao signed the contract, and this gift for her seventeenth birthday was returned to its rightful owner through the proper procedures. At the same time, a large sum of money was first transferred from her secret account to Tang Qian's account, and then transferred to Qi Shuyao's public account under the guise of a house purchase payment.
Xu Du helped her arrange this while she was abroad. Everything went smoothly, and the money she earned from selling her paintings, which had been hidden underground for so long, finally came in handy.
With the national treasury hole plugged, she made another voyage overseas. Standing on the dock, she watched as Yuan Ajian contacted a black ship and sent Liu Jiangyan and Qin Jiangzhi's family away.
She dared not look Qin Jiangzhi in the eye, and only lowered her head to look at the sea.
Qi Yu became a wanted criminal and disappeared into the vast Jingyang. Xu Mei said that Shi Heyu also disappeared with him.
It's true that everyone needs a friend who can be infinitely tolerant of you. She used to have one, but later, she never saw her again.
Qi Shuyao walked along the coastline, from one small pier to another, where there was another boat covered with a black cloth.
She could see that beneath the bow of the ship, there was a small mound of earth, completely untouched by pollution in this chaotic and abandoned dock.
She slowly walked over, sat cross-legged next to the protrusion, raised her hand, and gently stroked the top of her head.
The waves surged up and erased her footprints. She gently rested her forehead on the bow of the boat and looked up at the sky.
She didn't know where she should go, or whether the world would still accept her.
She watched the sunset, her exposed skin sunburned and peeling, her stomach growling with hunger, and she felt dizzy and lightheaded. She banged her head against the bow of the boat, trying to stay awake.
Night fell, and the shore behind her became quiet. The sea breeze made her shiver. Qi Shuyao struggled to her feet, rubbing her numb legs.
She was about to leave when she turned back for one last look at the mound of earth. From where she had just passed, she heard a few sounds.
Tap it approximately every ten seconds, three times each time.
She suddenly burst out laughing.
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