Chapter 142: The Ring and Underground Network Intelligence
Chapter 142: The Ring and Underground Network Intelligence
Two days later.
At the Worry-free Workshop, Tang Qing handed Li Zian a small jewelry box. “Brother Zian, the ring is ready. Please check if it fits.”
Li Zian opened the jewelry box. A silver ring appeared before his eyes. The ring’s surface had a yin-yang pattern: a white yang fish and a black yin fish. It was very unique and meaningful, perfectly suited for someone of his status.
He liked it at first sight.
He picked up the ring. It felt light in his hand, with no sense of weight, but it was very sturdy. The ring head and band were slightly thicker than usual, but considering the hidden mechanism inside, the thickness was completely acceptable.
At the bottom of the ring band, there was a silver button, about the size of a grain of rice. It was barely noticeable unless one looked closely.
Li Zian gently pressed the button. The S-shaped line between the yin and yang symbols on the ring head suddenly opened, and a sharp spike about 5 millimeters long popped out from the gap.
Although the spike was small, it was made of titanium alloy, making it very hard and sharp. Such a spike could easily pierce human skin, and even ordinary sheet metal. The spike also had five specially crafted indentations, one millimeter apart, perfect for storing “poison.”
Li Zian immediately put it on the index finger of his right hand. The size was a bit too small, but it was still acceptable. He pressed the mechanism button again, and the spike retracted. The gap on the ring surface closed, leaving no trace.
Li Zian said happily, “Xiao Tang, I never knew you had such skill. This ring is excellent, exactly what I wanted.”
Tang Qing said with a laugh, “Brother Zian, you can’t wear it on your index finger.”
Li Zian asked in surprise, “Why not?”
“Because you’re a married man. Wearing a ring on the thumb represents power, on the index finger means unmarried, on the middle finger means in a relationship, on the ring finger means married, and on the little finger means single or declaring you’re a single person. So you should wear it on your ring finger. I made the ring based on the size of your ring finger. Don’t you feel it’s tight on your finger?”
Li Zian smiled awkwardly. “I thought the ring was a bit small. So it was meant for the ring finger. I didn’t know there were so many rules about wearing rings.”
He took off the ring and put it on the ring finger of his right hand. The size was just right. Moreover, with it on his ring finger, his right thumb could still operate the mechanism button very flexibly, without any hindrance.
He tried pressing the mechanism button again. The spike extended and retracted smoothly.
Everything was ready; all he needed was the “poison.”
“Very good, very good. Your hands are truly skillful,” Li Zian praised repeatedly.
“Brother Zian…” Tang Qing hesitated to speak.
Li Zian smiled and said, “Why are you holding back? Just say what you want to say. Is there anything you can’t tell me?”
Tang Qing looked slightly embarrassed. “You didn’t even know how to wear a ring, and I’ve never seen you wear one. When you and Sister Meilin got married, didn’t you buy wedding rings?”
Li Zian felt awkward too and didn’t know how to respond.
Four years ago, when he married Yu Meilin, it was actually a transaction where each got what they needed. Besides, he was extremely poor at the time and had no money to buy Yu Meilin a wedding ring.
Forget diamonds lasting forever or the sincerity of gold; back then, he couldn’t even afford a silver ring. And when getting married, the man should buy the ring.
Tang Qing also felt awkward, but she quickly thought of a way to fix it. “You must have forgotten to buy one for Sister Meilin. It’s okay. I still have some materials left. I’ll make an identical one, and you can give it to Sister Meilin. If she doesn’t mind, then you’ll have wedding rings.”
But Li Zian felt troubled.
If he gave Yu Meilin a wedding ring, and Mu Chuntao saw them wearing matching rings, would she get jealous?
However, it also seemed inappropriate for him to wear a wedding ring while Yu Meilin’s finger remained bare. If Yu Meilin saw him wearing a ring and asked why he didn’t buy one for her, that would be awkward too.
Tang Qing actually felt very regretful and embarrassed inside.
Tang Qing, oh Tang Qing, why did you ask about wedding rings for no reason? The couple sleeps on different floors—one upstairs, one downstairs. Are you blind?
“Um… forget it then,” Tang Qing said.
Li Zian smiled. “I think your suggestion is great. Then, please trouble yourself to make another one. But there’s no need to include the mechanism for hers; she won’t use a ring to stab anyone. For hers, use some gemstones—red and green gemstones for the yin-yang pattern. Mine has a different purpose, so this arrangement is best.”
“Okay, I’ll make it prettier, and then you can give it to Sister Meilin.” Tang Qing secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
Li Zian also wondered if he should give Taozi a gift too, and if so, what would be appropriate?
This wasn’t about treating both sides equally because he couldn’t favor one over the other. Giving Yu Meilin a ring was just to avoid awkwardness and to make up for the regret from four years ago. That was all. But he genuinely wanted to give Taozi a gift; there was a difference between the two.
His relationship with Yu Meilin now was more like friends than husband and wife, while his relationship with Mu Chuntao was more like husband and wife than friends.
It was completely reversed.
When would this kind of life end?
He had no idea and didn’t bother to think about it.
“I should go teach Xiaomei now,” Tang Qing said, breaking the brief silence between them.
Li Zian said, “I should go buy groceries too. Oh, this jewelry box is yours, right?”
Tang Qing nodded. “I couldn’t find a suitable box. This one came with some earrings I bought before, so I used it for now.”
Li Zian said, “I only need the ring. You can take the box back. When you finish the second ring, put it in this box, and I’ll give it to your Sister Meilin.”
Tang Qing laughed. “I just used this box temporarily because I knew you didn’t care about the packaging. But if you’re giving it to Sister Meilin, that won’t do. You’re giving her a wedding ring; how can you use an old box? But I’ll find a suitable box for it. Don’t worry.”
“Okay, then I’ll go buy groceries,” Li Zian said.
He really didn’t mind. He was giving the ring to Yu Meilin, and he didn’t care if she wore it or not. It was just a gesture.
After buying groceries, there was still some time before cooking. Li Zian lingered on the River Embankment for a while.
He hoped to see a white figure among the bustling crowd.
There were many women in white on the River Embankment, but none of them was Gushi Dayueer.
She hadn’t appeared since the night they captured Huang Bo, as if she had evaporated from this world.
Or perhaps she really wasn’t from this world. She came from a very distant foreign land, or some time in the past or future, just like in those online novels.
“I wonder when we’ll meet again. I really want to talk to you. You said I’m too weak, but I’m very diligent. I practice cultivation every night while sleeping,” Li Zian murmured to himself, then left the River Embankment.
A Bentley car stopped beside him. The car looked familiar. He thought Yu Meilin had driven back, but when he peered inside, he saw it was Kun Li.
The window rolled down, and Kun Li said, “Go home first. I’ll park the car and come find you at your place.”
Li Zian felt a stir of excitement. “Did you find out something?”
Kun Li didn’t answer, just nodded.
Li Zian didn’t ask further. Carrying a basket of groceries, he crossed the street and entered the residential area.
Although he wasn’t a Secret Agent and hadn’t received any related training, he had watched many spy movies and knew a bit about the protocols. He knew these things shouldn’t be discussed on the street. Walls have ears, let alone a busy embankment with thousands of ears around. Who could guarantee there weren’t any spies listening?
After putting some of the groceries in the refrigerator, Kun Li entered. She held a document folder in her hand.
He had learned Mu Chuntao’s trick: he left the door unlocked for her when he returned.
“Let’s talk in my room,” Li Zian said.
Kun Li nodded and followed Li Zian into his bedroom.
After Kun Li entered, Li Zian closed the door. He couldn’t be sure if the Old Matriarch or Tang Qing would come downstairs, and it wouldn’t be good if they overheard. It wasn’t about the less they knew, the safer they were; he just didn’t want his family to worry.
“Is everything in the document folder?” Li Zian asked, looking at the folder in Kun Li’s hand, eager to see what was inside.
Kun Li handed the document folder to Li Zian. “Take a look first, then we’ll talk.”
Li Zian took the folder and pulled out the contents. They were several printed pages of information.
The first page had a photo of Pan Renlong. He wasn’t wearing ordinary clothes but the uniform of a Lighthouse Soldier.
The information was very detailed: where Pan Renlong was born, where he went to school, when he joined the military, and even described his combat experience in Afghanistan.
His earlier judgment was correct. After returning from Afghanistan to The Beacon, Pan Renlong worked at the Pentagon for two years before being transferred to the consulate in Shanghai as a Military Attaché. His rank was major. Given his age, this was impressively outstanding.
Li Zian continued reading. The following pages described several important battles Pan Renlong participated in Afghanistan, the military honors he received, as well as his favorite foods, preferred travel destinations, and so on. It was very thorough.
The last page contained information about Pan Guoqing. The photo of Pan Guoqing looked somewhat different from the one Baidu had shown. He couldn’t help but feel puzzled. He believed the photo he saw now was real because the intelligence was bought with real money. But Baidu was too careless—the photo it provided wasn’t even of Pan Guoqing himself.
Perhaps because of this casual attitude, Mu Chuntao accidentally discovered the flaw. If she had compared the impostor with the photo on this document, she wouldn’t have been suspicious at all because the impostor looked extremely similar to the person in this photo. Only because Li Zian knew the person was an impostor and had seen him in person could he notice minor differences.
Perhaps it was just luck.
Li Zian put the documents back into the folder and looked at Kun Li. “I’ll study these materials more carefully later. You said you wanted to talk with me, so you must have more information, right?”
Kun Li nodded, sparing with words.
Li Zian grew impatient. “Tell me quickly.”
Kun Li said, “I have one condition.”
Li Zian was speechless.