Chapter 51: Hand the Things Over

Most of the residents here had been arranged to move away five years ago, so it should have been sparsely populated.

Yet, because of that, it had become a sanctuary for many homeless people and migrant workers.

Who could have connected the fact that behind the prosperity of this city lay such a chaotic, mixed environment?

High-rises should have shot up here long ago. If it weren't for what happened back then—her father collaborating with her mother, who was acting as an overseas undercover agent, to abscond with such a massive sum of money.

This redevelopment project had been shelved for a full five years before bidding reopened. There was no telling how many unknown underhanded dealings beneath it remained uninvestigated.

Zhaoxiao simply hadn't gone into details with her last night.

It wasn't that Nanna hadn't guessed it.

A light spring breeze blew, carrying an unidentified foul odor with it.

Nanna's stomach churned. Looking down at the black drainage ditch nearby, her face sank into the shadows, a bitter feeling rising in her heart.

"Eldest Miss." Shi Haoran walked over, his tall figure completely eclipsing her, blocking out the faint sunlight entirely. "What are you standing here thinking about?"

Nanna looked up, her expression a bit listless. "Every time I come here, I feel physically uncomfortable. But it's nothing. Are you sure he's inside this hotel?"

Shi Haoran looked down at her. "Yes, I had someone install a camera in the room he booked. No need to go in person; we can just sit in that teahouse and watch the show."

"Huh?" Nanna's lips twitched. She felt like she was still dreaming, arriving here in a daze.

If Zhaoxiao found out, he would definitely strangle her.

Shi Haoran looked confident: "Don't worry, he won't notice. Let's go."

"Alright then."

As Nanna turned around, looking across from the hotel, the view was filled with small Western-style houses. A composite scent of damp moss and rotting wood washed over her.

It was equally old, but separated by this foul ditch, it presented a completely different sight.

Peering into the distance, she could faintly make out the Jin family's ancestral home.

Another sigh echoed in her heart.

Her parents just had to be the villains.

But there was one thing she couldn't understand: why did most of the residents willingly move away? Didn't they say all the money had been embezzled?

In truth, she had no real need to reclaim the ancestral home, considering the Jin family hadn't exactly done anything to bring honor to their ancestors.

Zhaoxiao had already said that her uncles couldn't even be found now, probably living comfortably out there somewhere, while she had foolishly returned to join the chaos.

The matter had settled; everything had been sealed away, and no one was willing to uncover it again.

Her father had indeed embezzled funds, and her mother had not died in the line of duty.

Nanna understood his underlying meaning.

Once this matter was uncovered, it would surely affect the interests of many people. She was alone and powerless; attempting to pluck the tiger's whiskers was an absolute pipe dream.

Zhaoxiao's words last night were a warning, but also a form of protection.

After all, he couldn't bear to see such a cute little white rabbit willingly walk into the tiger's jaws.

Nanna's brows knit into a tight knot.

"You're not quite right today, my Eldest Miss."

It had been a full ten minutes since they sat down in the teahouse. Nanna had been staring out the window the entire time, her eyes completely out of focus.

Shi Haoran asked tentatively, "Is it because of Zhaoxiao? Are you afraid to face the truth? But didn't you know he was a scumbag long ago?"

Nanna shook her head blankly: "It's not because of him. I just feel very uncomfortable whenever I come here."

The mountain spring water had already boiled, bubbling noisily.

Coming to her senses, Nanna reached to lift the kettle, but Shi Haoran patted her hand away.

"I'll do it."

He placed the tablet on the table, used a cloth to block the heat, and lifted the kettle to pour the boiling water into the teapot. The fragrance of the tea leaves quickly spread through the air.

Nanna inhaled the tea aroma, feeling the tightness in her chest ease slightly. She picked up the tablet; what came into view was the live feed inside the hotel room.

"Why is there no one?"

The lights weren't even turned on in the room.

Diagonally across from the teahouse, separated by a ditch, stood an abandoned hospital.

It resembled a massive, forgotten skeleton, standing silently in the faint morning light.

Rust, like festering wounds, crawled all over the tightly shut iron gates.

Inside a ward on the third floor.

The air was stagnant and heavy, mixed with the scent of rotting wood and a faint, lingering smell of disinfectant, seeping coldly into the lungs.

A man's mottled face appeared morbidly sallow under the light filtered through layers of dust and grime.

With a loud clang.

The person behind yanked him up along with the chair.

"Do you see who it is?"

Through the window, the man's gaze locked.

The voice emerging from his throat was raspy to the extreme: "Ah Huan..."

Amidst the curling aroma of tea, the young girl tilted her chin slightly and looked over. For a split second, it felt as though she had locked eyes with the person here.

The man broke into a tearful smile: "She is living very well..."

The person behind violently yanked him back, cutting the raspy laughter short.

"If it weren't for me, your sister would have died long ago, and so would you. Hand the things over."

The man said flatly, "No matter how you ask me, I will only ever have one answer."

"Is that so?" He turned his back to him, casting his eyes downward toward the window. "Living as a fugitive for these past five years, aren't you tired of it yet?"

The man remained indifferent: "Yes, you helped me over these five years, which is why I managed to leave every time before they arrived.

During these five years, you must have really enjoyed this game of cat and mouse between hunter and prey. But I am tired. Seeing my sister today has made me content. You have taken good care of her, so it wasn't in vain that I..."

Suddenly, a loud clang cut his words short.

Zhaoxiao kicked away an iron rod on the floor, clamping one hand firmly onto his injured shoulder, pressing down with force.

Fresh blood seeped out continuously. As if he possessed no pain receptors, the man didn't make a sound; instead, a glimmer of color appeared in his dull eyes.

"I brought her to see you, so you should clearly understand what exactly that implies. Wanting to die?" Zhaoxiao let out a cold laugh. "A new round of the game has officially begun."

The man froze.

Zhaoxiao's voice sounded like a blood-stained demon, sinister and bizarre: "This time, I will no longer help you. I will leak your whereabouts. For a period of one month, if you haven't fallen into their hands by then, your sister's identity naturally won't be exposed."

The man suddenly clenched his fists: "Zhaoxiao! You're using her as a wager, are you worthy of the Jin family!"

Looking down from above, Zhaoxiao let out a soft laugh: "Your sister seems to like me quite a lot."

Nanna pulled her gaze back, frowning slightly. "He booked a room but didn't check in. Where did he go?"

In truth, she didn't believe he would come to this kind of place first thing in the morning to have an affair with a man.

Shi Haoran was tracking Zhaoxiao's location. Nearly half an hour had passed, and his position appeared in the north district one moment, at home the next, and then right here.

This was practically teleportation.

"Fuck..." He cursed loudly at the tablet, then suddenly remembered, "Right, there are the roadside surveillance cameras."

Nanna remained calm: "Are you trying to hack into the Skynet system now?"

That's getting closer and closer to a prison sentence.

Shi Haoran wasn't scared at all. "I dare say my hacking skills are absolute top-tier in the country."

Nanna really didn't want to pour cold water on him: "A mere Zhaoxiao already caught evidence of you hacking into his computer."

Chapter 52: He Eats People

Shi Haoran: "..."

The two stared at each other for a long moment.

Fine, better safe than sorry.

He drained the teacup on the table in one gulp and stood up. "I'll go check with the local shop owners here instead. I saw they have surveillance cameras installed at their entrances."

After he went to find the owner, Nanna stepped out. She was originally intending to look for her little assistant, walking down along the ditch.

A Land Rover sped past her, then slowly backed up.

Nanna was baffled.

Not until the front window rolled down did Zhao Heging's somewhat elegant yet heavily rebellious face appear.

"It really is you, Nanna."

Nanna looked past him, glancing at the tattooed man in the driver's seat. His expression wasn't fierce; his skin was very pale, he had yellow hair, and he looked mixed-race.

She retracted her gaze imperceptibly, walking closer with a beaming smile: "What time is it anyway, Young Master Zhao is already awake? Truly a rarity."

Zhao Heging burst out laughing. Resting his arm on the window frame, he reached out and pressed it onto the top of her head, giving it a wild rub.

"Little sister is mocking me!"

"I am a married woman, not a little sister."

Amused by her, Zhao Heging opened the car door, got out, and then said to the tattooed man inside, "Park the car and come over."

The car quickly drove away.

Nanna looked up with a charming smile: "I'm here for work, no time to play with you."

Zhao Heging raised an eyebrow: "Perfect, I have business too."

Nanna was curious: "What are you here for?"

"To find someone," Zhao Heging added, "to find a hidden master painter, to commission a painting for a close friend of mine."

Nanna was surprised: "He lives here?"

Zhao Heging tilted his head: "The old gentleman has always lived here. Interested?"

Nanna didn't look particularly interested.

Zhao Heging smiled: "Come along. Learning more about the old residents here will be beneficial for your redevelopment project. After all, you still have to relocate them."

"Alright."

Nanna agreed.

It wasn't far. By the time they arrived at the old gentleman's house, the tattooed man had just finished parking and came rushing over.

He actively initiated a conversation with Nanna, very friendly: "Morning! Eaten yet? There's a decent beef noodle place nearby, want to try it later?"

Nanna replied with a smile: "Sure."

The one who opened the door for them was the old gentleman's nanny, a woman in her forties.

"No need to change shoes, please come in."

Zhao Heging handed over two gift boxes. "Sorry for the intrusion."

Nanna felt an indescribable sense of familiarity about this place, her heartbeat inexplicably accelerating.

Stepping into the house, her eyes swept over the paintings on the wall.

Her footsteps suddenly froze.

The tattooed man whispered beside her: "She said no need to change shoes."

Nanna nodded subtly: "Alright, I suddenly..." have something to do.

Zhao Heging turned his head, gesturing for her to come over.

Nanna walked over numbly.

He whispered in her ear: "If the old gentleman is willing, I'll request another painting from him. Your mother-in-law likes them."

Nanna glared at him.

Zhao Heging almost laughed out loud. "Pleasing your mother-in-law means pleasing your big boss upstairs. Nothing wrong with that, right?"

True enough.

Except one of the paintings hanging on the wall was far too glaring.

The people in the painting were exactly her family of four.

Fortunately, she was very small at that time.

The old gentleman hadn't come out yet.

While everyone was admiring the paintings separately, Nanna took advantage of their inattention, pulled out her phone, and snapped a picture.

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

Just as she pressed the shutter, a slightly weathered voice sounded behind her. Nanna gasped in fright, almost dropping her phone.

She turned around, offering a slight smile.

The old gentleman's sharp gaze lingered on her for about five seconds.

The smile on Nanna's face remained unchanged.

Zhao Heging stepped forward: "Really sorry to disturb your rest, I called you before..."

After some pleasantries, the old gentleman sat down at his desk. "On the phone, I already declined your request. But seeing how much you like them, if there's any painting here that catches your eye, you can take it."

Zhao Heging scanned the paintings around the room; they were all portraits of real people. But what his friend wanted was a landscape painting.

Besides, who would put a portrait of a stranger in their house?

Evidently, he had arrived too late; whatever could be given away had likely been sent off already.

Truly a headache.

The tattooed man suddenly spoke up: "Is what the old gentleman said true? I want this one, is that alright?"

Nanna looked over; it happened to be her family portrait.

The old gentleman turned his head to look, shaking his head in refusal: "Any other except this one."

The tattooed man looked a bit disappointed: "Why?"

The old gentleman: "They are no longer in this world. I want to keep it as a memento."

"Oh, I see. They must have been very good friends of yours, sir?"

The old gentleman stroked his beard, offering no answer.

The tattooed man asked again: "Are the people in the painting really all dead?"

The moment those words left his mouth, Nanna's heart skipped a beat.

The old gentleman's eyebrows shot up, clearly displeased: "Thank you for making the trip. If nothing catches your eye, please leave."

This sentence was directed straight at Zhao Heging.

Zhao Heging yanked the tattooed man behind him. "Apologies, please consider it further, sir. My grandfather's old comrade-in-arms is reaching the end of his days..."

The old gentleman interrupted: "Go back. Come collect the painting in a week."

Nanna pointlessly felt the old gentleman's helplessness when pressured by authority.

Zhao Heging thanked him repeatedly.

Nanna didn't say a word from start to finish, silently following them out.

This place—she would definitely come back.

Once outside, Zhao Heging's face instantly darkened: "What were you doing?"

The tattooed man looked completely innocent: "Nothing, it's just a painting, no need for you to be so submissive..."

Before he could finish, Zhao Heging punched him in the stomach.

The tattooed man let out a muffled groan, his face contorting.

"You really didn't hold back."

Zhao Heging said with a dark face: "Show some respect to elders in the future."

"Fine, fine, fine." The tattooed man turned, glancing at Nanna. "There's someone here, leave me some dignity."

Turning back, Zhao Heging's lips curved up. "Do you think he deserved to be hit?"

"Well hit!" Nanna raised both hands and feet in approval. "Not respecting elders brings divine punishment!"

The tattooed man narrowed his eyes: "Little sister is cursing me."

Nanna ran over to Zhao Heging's side, sticking her tongue out at him. "I told you, I'm not a little sister."

The tattooed man leaned half his body over: "Do you know how old I am this year?"

Nanna turned her head away in disgust, refusing to pay him any attention.

"Hey, you!"

Zhao Heging shot a warning glance over, and the tattooed man instantly behaved.

They arrived at a nearby long-standing beef noodle shop.

Unluckily, the moment Nanna walked in, she spotted Zhaoxiao, along with his close friend, Ji Yan.

The tattooed man raised an eyebrow: "Oh, look who's here."

Zhao Heging patted his shoulder. "Let's just eat our food."

"Tch!"

Nanna braced herself and went over to greet them: "Master Zhao, Brother Ji Yan."

Her timid appearance made Ji Yan laugh. "What a coincidence, you're here to check out the food too?"

Nanna pursed her lips: "Something like that."

Zhaoxiao gave her a lazy glance: "Where do you want to sit?"

Nanna couldn't make up her mind for a moment: "Uh... I, how about..."

"Sit down!"

Zhaoxiao's sudden command frightened Nanna so much that she practically shrunk.

The voice wasn't loud and was quite deep, but it carried an immense authority.

Ji Yan couldn't help but laugh again: "Why are you afraid of him? It's not like he eats people."

Nanna pulled up a chair for herself, sat down properly, and retorted in all seriousness: "He does eat people."