"You don't understand anything if I don't say a word. I looked at Ning Caishen thoughtfully. Ning Caishen seemed to read my mind and replied, 'If Ding Tai asks, I'll pretend to know nothing.'"
"This sentence made me realize that Ning Caishen truly understood me. I asked him seriously, 'Do you want to expand the shop?'"
"From a market trend perspective, there's no need to expand. With the rapid advancement of technology, the demand for smartphones among young people far exceeds that for gold and jewelry. For weddings, young people today aren't keen on gold or jade rings. The middle-aged and elderly have high consumption power but are also more cautious. There's no need to expand operations just for the sake of layout. Another point is that no one pays much attention to small shops like this; they'll just chat about random things. Once it gets bigger, competitors will try to dig up information. By then, they'll all know we're affiliated with Lin's Appraisal. In that situation, the shop would lose its inherent value."
"I understood Ning Caishen's reasoning, but I still had some doubts. 'If the shop is too small, won't we be unable to reach the core?'"
"The information for this small shop mainly comes from hearsay. We need to judge the truthfulness ourselves. Nowadays, there are countless gentlemen drinking tea worth thirty yuan an ounce, worrying about national affairs. Just ask around. If you want to reach the core, I suggest investing in Lin's Appraisal and increasing advertising. That way, with both overt and covert methods, we can completely control the leads."
"Who should be assigned to this task?"
"Matters involving money are naturally my responsibility. As the boss, you don't need to be involved."
"Won't you raise suspicion by working on both sides?"
"No, it's the shop owner who gathers information. I've told him that collecting more information is beneficial for the gold shop's operations. He has a contract with me, and I'm the investor, holding the supply source. He will definitely listen to me. Of course, he wouldn't connect the investor of a gold shop with a large enterprise like Lin's Appraisal."
"Amazing. It's so good to have you by my side. How should we invest in Lin's Appraisal?"
"I'll go under your name. It's your own company. We'll increase advertising, providing only funds, not power. Lin Han will surely agree to the leaders he's chosen. As I get more involved, I'll be able to find out what kind of enterprise 'Chinese Style' jade rough is and who its owner is."
I was incredibly impressed by Ning Caishen's series of plans and asked seriously, "Did you already have this in mind? Did you have your own plan?"
"Yes, I've already thought about the investment direction. There's a cultural channel in Foshan that features many programs on humanities, history, and antique appraisal. The money we give to Lin's Appraisal can be used to fund a reality show for folk appraisals, inviting experts to appraise and estimate the treasures of folk collectors..."
"Alright, you don't need to tell me the specifics. Just do it. Give me the information on the landlady Zhang Li, and I'll contact her."
...
To contact the landlady Zhang Li, I applied for a sales position at a company. I couldn't understand why Zhang Li worked here. She wasn't new; she had been working at this mother and baby product retail chain for two years and had been promoted to branch manager.
Like Ye Qingcheng, Zhang Li was a typical Southern girl. However, Zhang Li was even more petite than Ye Qingcheng and preferred wearing black pantyhose and white tops. This made her, at thirty, look very girlish. Combined with her exquisite makeup, she was almost the dream girl of the single men in this chain company.
After working here for a few days, I gained some understanding of Zhang Li. She didn't act like a manager. When customers arrived, she would usually offer them tea and water with her signature smile.
Actually, Zhang Li wasn't a great beauty, but her charming and lively eyes were not off-putting to men. Moreover, she could quickly bond with mothers, which was probably the reason for her excellent sales performance.
Initially, some people had pursued Zhang Li, buying her roses and gifts. Zhang Li would casually give these to the cleaning lady. Zhang Li seemed to be alone, but through a few days of observation, I quickly noticed that Zhang Li and a sales associate named Liang Feng occasionally exchanged glances. The problem was that Liang Feng had a good reputation among everyone. Colleagues said his first girlfriend was his current wife, they were a loving couple, and they had a three-year-old child. Despite this, I still asked Xiao Zi'an to investigate Liang Feng.
Not long after I arrived, the month ended. Sales figures for the month were excellent. Zhang Li invited everyone to sing karaoke. I sat in a corner, helping everyone select songs. People in Foshan were really good at singing Cantonese songs, which was rare in the environment where I grew up. Zhang Li loved singing love songs, and Liang Feng was also a good singer. While singing, they held hands with deep emotion.
That night, Liang Feng, drunk, held Zhang Li's hand and didn't want to let go. Finally, Zhang Li broke free and asked a colleague to send Liang Feng home. Towards the end, those single guys scrambled to offer Zhang Li a ride home. Zhang Li smiled and refused, then pointed at me: "You take me home?"
"Me!" I feigned surprise, pointing at my nose.
"Yes, you!"
Everyone looked at me as if I had won the lottery. I, on the other hand, knew clearly that after I arrived, I hadn't focused on work; I had been observing her, and she had noticed.
...
Zhang Li took a taxi with me to a dilapidated neighborhood. When we got out, she linked her arm with mine, leaning against me, saying, "I drank too much and was swaying. I was afraid people would laugh. Please don't mind."
We walked to the door together. Zhang Li let go of me, her charming eyes alluring. She smiled and said, "Do you want to come to my place for a cup of tea?"
"No, it's not convenient."
I politely declined Zhang Li. She smiled generously and turned to go upstairs. I stood downstairs, and only after the light on the fourth floor turned on did I turn and leave.
Afterward, I returned to my rented apartment to sleep. Finding Ye Qingcheng from the landlady wouldn't be easy; it required a long-term plan. The next day, I continued to go to work. During lunch, Liang Feng asked me to eat with him. He said I was from out of town and introduced me to a place with Foshan specialties. After leading me into a secluded alley, Liang Feng's demeanor turned menacing.
"Zhang Li is mine. Stay away from her."
"I don't understand what you mean."
Liang Feng took out a photo and threw it at me. It was a picture of Zhang Li holding my arm, seen from behind. Judging by the angle, it looked like we were walking into that building together.
"Brother Liang Feng, you've misunderstood. I didn't go inside. I brought Manager Zhang to the door and then went home."
"You'd better stay away from Zhang Li, or I'll break your neck."
After saying this, Liang Feng didn't eat with me and left, shaking me off.
I watched Liang Feng's retreating back and took out my phone to call Xiao Zi'an: "How's the investigation going?"
"Zhang Li and Liang Feng met on a dating website. Other than that, there are no other leads. Later, Zhang Li came to this mother and baby product sales company and quickly became a branch manager. I believe her purpose was Liang Feng."
"Why?"
"Actually, Zhang Li isn't here to work at all. Before entering the company, she had already bought this mother and baby product retail chain. It's now confirmed that Zhang Li's goal is Liang Feng, but we're still unsure what role Liang Feng is playing."
...
I pondered and then asked, "How is Liang Feng's personal emotional life?"
"It's hard to find out. He married his first girlfriend. His marital relationship has always had a good reputation."
I couldn't help but laugh. "If his marital relationship is good, why would he need to go on a dating website? Can you find out what Liang Feng did on the dating website?"
"That can't be found out. The dating website has already been shut down because a girl met a netizen privately through the dating website and was murdered. This incident had a huge impact, not only on that website but many other dating websites were also shut down because of it."
"Was the murderer caught?"
"No."
"Thank you, Madam Xiao. Let's get ready to rescue Ye Qingcheng."
Now I have enough pieces of information. This situation is basically complete. If so, it's time to reel it in, rescue Ye Qingcheng, and find out Lin Han's whereabouts as soon as possible. The longer Lin Han is away from me, the more uneasy I feel.
...
Before implementing my plan, I must find Fatty.
When I arrived, Fatty Ding Tai and Da Huang's wife were asking the doctor about Da Huang's condition. Seeing me, Fatty, with a heavy expression, led me away from Da Huang's wife's sight.
"Why are you still here?"
I didn't say much and threw the photo of Zhang Li holding my arm to Fatty.
"Brother Pang, what are you doing? I have my plan, why are you joining in the fun?"
"Tang Nan, I understand you have a plan, but my sister is in unknown danger right now, and you're still playing ambiguously with this woman. Is that meaningful? You should be grateful that I'm giving you a push."
I heard this and gave a wry smile. "Ding Tai, do you consider yourself a schemer now? Inciting conflict, using me to deal with Zhang Li, so you can quickly search for Lin Han."
"Can't I?"
"You've messed up my entire plan."
"Serves you right! Who told you not to let me search for my sister with you? For my sister's safety, I naturally have to use my own methods."
I pointed at Fatty, unable to speak. Finally, I said, "Ding Tai, I beg you, follow my arrangements. This problem will be resolved in a few days. Don't cause trouble. I don't want you to end up severely injured like Da Huang."