Chapter 146: Story of Paris
Chapter 146: Story of Paris
At six in the evening, Li Zian arrived at Weihai Middle Road.
He didn’t wear his flashy Tang Suit. Instead, he had on a black T-shirt, blue jeans, and a pair of sneakers. He also wore a low-brimmed baseball cap, hiding half his face. Dressed like this, he didn’t seem at all like a Master; he looked just like an ordinary young man killing time.
It couldn’t be helped. Being this handsome meant women stared wherever he went, so he needed to keep a low profile.
He didn’t bring his toolbox, but he carried a small box containing a piece of Body-Poisoning Ointment and a stick of sandalwood incense. The Mechanism Ring was on his finger, the Alloy Barb coated with Movement-Halting Ointment. Even if Huang Bo showed up at the dinner tonight, he wouldn’t be worried.
People flowed along the sidewalk. Even dressed this plainly, many women spotted Li Zian with their discerning eyes. There was no special reason. His physique was just too good.
Even buried gold, as long as a little piece is showing, will shine.
The building number 123 Weihai Middle Road grew nearer. Lifting his head, he could see the European-style spire and the open-air balcony on the second floor.
No one was on the balcony.
Li Zian didn’t approach. He stopped roughly thirty meters away.
A lush Osmanthus Tree stood by the roadside.
Li Zian walked over to the tree. He took out the cylindrical container he used for his Silver Needles from his pocket and opened it. He took out half a stick of sandalwood incense. Then, he pulled out a lighter and lit the incense. A wisp of blue smoke rose. He took a deep breath, inhaling the smoke.
BOOM!
The Great Sluggish Cauldron inside him instantly awoke. A thread of blue smoke curled upwards, and Li Zian entered the Incense Burning State.
Countless tiny sounds flooded into his ears, rushing into his brain.
The sound of wind flowing through the air, southeast direction, four to five meters per second—a light breeze.
The voices of at least several thousand people talking: men, women, old, young, children; some loud, some soft, some gentle, some vulgar, talking about all sorts of things. It felt like being plunged into a vat of pure sound.
So many environmental noises too: vehicles moving, music playing from shops, the clatter of keyboards in the embassy, sounds of intimacy from a hotel room…
Were they really this eager?
It’s only six o’clock and they are already ‘getting busy.’
Li Zian focused his attention on the building number 123 ahead.
His thoughts directed his focus, his hearing followed.
Soon, he heard voices.
“Young Master, didn’t we arrange to have dinner with that Master tonight? When are we leaving?” It was the voice of the fake Pan Guoqing.
“Xu Cheng.” It was Pan Renlong’s voice.
Xu Cheng—that was the fake Pan Guoqing’s real name.
“You ordered something, Young Master?” Xu Cheng’s voice was full of sycophantic reverence.
“I arranged to meet Li Zian at Story of Paris at eight. I’ll get there at seven-forty. You come at eight-thirty.” Pan Renlong instructed.
Xu Cheng asked, “Young Master, I’m not going with you?”
“You need to remember your role. You do exactly as I tell you.”
“Yes, the Young Master’s words are like the Master’s words. Whatever you tell me to do, I will do it.”
“Then listen carefully. I’ll tell Li Zian that something urgent came up at the company so you had to go handle it. When you arrive at eight-thirty, say the same thing.” Pan Renlong said.
“I’ve remembered.”
“After you sit down, talk about things he’d be interested in.”
“This… I don’t know what interests him.”
“I looked into him. His wife is Yu Meilin. She used to be the Chairperson of Dajiang Group but stepped down. Now she runs her own small company called New Star Company. That company relies entirely on a Copper Mine in Yun Di. The female assistant he brought last time is named Mu Chuntao. Her parents are divorced, she lives with her father, Mu Long. She’s actually Li Zian’s mistress. My men found hotel check-in records of him and Mu Chuntao at The Peninsula Hotel…”
Thirty meters away, sweat broke out on the young man under the baseball cap.
Truly, no wall is impenetrable; even an eagle flying past leaves a shadow.
He had Kun Li investigate Pan Renlong on the Underground Network, but Pan Renlong was investigating him too.
“Talk business with him. Drop a piece of information: say Qinglong Group wants to buy the Copper Mine from New Star Company. He’ll be interested.” Pan Renlong said.
“I’ve got it.”
“Then tell him a foreign Boss wants to meet him, to ask for his help solving a problem, and is willing to pay double. When you bring this up, one of my men will call you, pretending to be that Boss. His name is Dawson. He will tell you he’s already in Shanghai and that he has a Yacht here; he is staying on the Yacht. Then you invite Li Zian to go to the Yacht together to ‘solve Dawson’s problem’.”
“Young Master, will he agree?”
“He should, provided you don’t slip up. People love money. Who says no to money?”
“Yes, yes! Last time, Young Master offered two million, but he asked for four. I’ll talk about buying his wife’s Copper Mine—that’s a big deal, he’ll be happy. Then I’ll tell him Dawson will pay double to solve his problem—eight hundred thousand at once! He’ll definitely agree. Once he follows us to the Dock, it’ll be like catching turtles in a pot. Such a cunning plan, Young Master. Brilliant, truly brilliant.” Xu Cheng’s voice oozed with flattery.
“Have you memorized the steps and what to say?”
“Memorized.”
“Go on, get ready.” Pan Renlong’s voice.
Thirty meters away, Li Zian’s ears caught the sound of Xu Cheng walking away. Then came the sound of a door opening and closing.
Beep beep, beep beep…
The ring of a phone.
Who is calling Pan Renlong? Li Zian’s heart stirred.
“Hello?” Pan Renlong’s voice came through. “The plan on my end is ready. The net is cast, we just need the big fish to swim in.”
“Mm.” A hoarse, low voice came through the phone.
But the caller only made that one sound, then hung up.
Li Zian felt annoyed and frustrated. If the caller had said even one sentence, he might have been able to tell if it was Huang Bo based on the voice characteristics. But he only heard one “Mm”—he couldn’t judge at all.
Pan Renlong didn’t make any more sounds. It seemed he was just sitting quietly on the Sofa, reviewing the night’s action plan.
Li Zian ended his eavesdropping and pinched out the sandalwood incense.
Only half of that stick had burned. He put the remaining piece back into the Silver Needle cylinder and tucked that into his pocket.
“Catching turtles in a pot? Tonight, I’ll show you exactly who’s the idiot turtle.” A cold smile touched Li Zian’s lips.
He crossed the street and continued walking along the opposite sidewalk. He glanced at the navigation map on his Mobile Phone. That Western Restaurant, Story of Paris, was just ahead, another two hundred meters or so.
He needed to scout around the restaurant early, see if there were any ambushes.
Not far along, a Bentley car drove past on the road. It wasn’t fast, maybe going thirty or forty miles per hour.
Li Zian caught the car with the corner of his eye. The model type and paint color felt strangely familiar. He glanced at the license plate and froze.
It was Yu Meilin’s car.
That afternoon, when he and Mu Chuntao were eating sunflower seeds in her bedroom, Yu Meilin had called. She said a friend invited her to dinner, so she wouldn’t be home for the evening meal. He’d been terrified then—Mu Chuntao even teased him for trembling from fear. Something that impactful, how could he forget?
“Who is she eating with? Why arrange to meet here?” Li Zian felt puzzled.
Suddenly, a thought struck him.
“Embassy area… didn’t say what friend… Wait. Could it be… did that Hank come back? And he’s meeting her here?” Thinking this, Li Zian felt an unpleasant tingling sensation, almost like grass growing on top of his head—like wearing a green hat.
He quickened his pace.
No man enjoyed that feeling. He was no exception.
But he was already trying to reason with himself.
It might not be Hank. Maybe it really is some other friend meeting her here. A lot of people love European-style settings, and the embassy area has the strongest European style out of everywhere in Shanghai.
And even if it was this Hank fellow, he needed to stay calm. He should put himself in her shoes. After all, he had turned his pure friendship with Mu Chuntao into a battlefield comradeship where shells rained overhead. He was the one who had betrayed the marriage.
So what crime was it if she had one meal with her first love?
Thinking about it, he suddenly found himself almost hoping it was Hank.
His brain automatically started playing out a possible scenario.
Hank and Yu Meilin enjoying their dinner together. Wine flows, old feelings rekindle in the haze of light intoxication, flirtatious tension slowly builds. Memories of the fun things they experienced together as young teens surface in both Yu Meilin’s and Hank’s minds. The sweet, confused affection of their youth gradually matures and flares into passionate heat. Unable to control themselves, they leave the restaurant for a Hotel. Oblivious to the man in the baseball cap following them, they walk arm-in-arm, chatting and laughing into the Hotel, book a room, and just as they’re about to begin…
CLANG!
The door bursts open.
The young man wearing the baseball cap charges into the room. Snap-snap-snap! He pulls out his phone and furiously takes picture after picture.
Hank is petrified. Yu Meilin is stunned.
The baseball cap guy savagely beats Hank. Oh, it’s brutal. Hank’s own mother wouldn’t recognize him.
Yu Meilin drops to her knees, begging the man in the baseball cap for forgiveness, crying like a fountain of tears.
But the man wearing the cap has a heart of stone. He cuts her off immediately: “Yu Meilin! Civil Affairs Bureau! Tomorrow morning! I want a divorce!”
“No… please don’t divorce me…” Yu Meilin collapses to the floor, overcome by sobs.
The man wearing the cap turns and leaves. He kicked in a door on his arrival; he leaves carrying no clouds with him.
Pretty great little script, isn’t it?
“Li Zian, ah, Li Zian! Are you sick? Why imagine your own wife cheating so you can catch her in the act?” Li Zian shook his head with a bitter laugh.
It really was an illness.
And the root cause of this illness was Mu Chuntao.
Taozi had never directly asked him to divorce Yu Meilin, but he knew she must want it deep down. What woman truly wished to be someone’s third wheel? To openly live a life with the man she loved—wouldn’t that be better? He kept his marriage with Yu Meilin, had a loving daughter—his little jacket providing constant warmth in his life. His life was comfortable. But Taozi, Mu Chuntao… what did she really get? It was unfair to her, and it felt awkward and uncomfortable for him too. Far better to have a clean break!
If Yu Meilin didn’t cheat, he couldn’t draw his knife to cut her off.
If Yu Meilin did cheat… his knife could come out smoothly.
He probably wasn’t alone; there must be other men suffering from this exact same affliction.
But would Yu Meilin cheat?
That truly couldn’t be predicted.
The Bentley pulled into a dedicated parking spot in front of a restaurant.
Li Zian stopped walking and looked at the restaurant’s signboard. A sudden, intense sense of life’s unpredictable twists hit him.
The restaurant was Story of Paris.
Tonight, this restaurant was bound to have quite a story.