Chapter 1752: Visiting Relatives and Friends
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Do you prefer Peter over here or Huo Shaoheng over there?
How was she supposed to answer that question?
Gu Nianzhi was embarrassed.
But she picked decisively, “Of course it’s Huo Shaoheng. I had nothing to do with Peter.”
Indeed, nothing to do with Peter because this “Peter” was not the real Peter at all.
Lu Jin looked at her for a while and nodded, he said calmly, “I think so too. Although this Peter was Huo Shaoheng’s counterpart on the other side, they were not the same person after all. They just shared the same DNA. Their temperaments, personalities, as well as their identities and experiences, were completely different.”
Gu Nianzhi nodded vigorously, “Yes, yes, so you didn’t have to ask this question at all.”
Lu Jin smiled sheepishly, “I saw that you two had been quite close recently, so I thought…”
He thought that she had already moved on.
Gu Nianzhi couldn’t help but frown. Was it that obvious between her and Huo Shaoheng?
It seemed that she had to be more careful in the future.
Gu Nianzhi lowered her head and said sheepishly, “Actually, it wasn’t that we were close. He’s a good person, and President Lu entrusted him to protect us here…”
Lu Jin snorted, “The Committee of State Security (KGB) doesn’t have any good people. Don’t think it’s that simple.”
If Huo Shaoheng was the Soviet KGB’s Far East ace, Peter, then he must have other motives to get close to them. She was certain of this.
However, the problem was that Huo Shaoheng wasn’t the real Far East ace Peter. Gu Nianzhi’s trust in him was deeply rooted in her bones. It seemed quite difficult for her to act as if they had nothing to do with each other.
Gu Nianzhi suddenly felt that she still had to hone her acting skills. After all, the best actor could not compete with the “king of actors”.
She lowered her head and thought for a while. Gu Nianzhi said softly, “Dad, you were right. I shall distance myself from him in the future.”
Lu Jin rarely saw Gu Nianzhi being so obedient. His heart suddenly felt like he had eaten a bucket of Häagen-Dazs berry ice cream. It was sour and sweet.
He smiled and nodded, “Okay, but you don’t have to be too distant. He’s quite skilled. I can trust him to protect you.”
…
Huo Shaoheng returned to Lu Yuan’s apartment. He read the military literature and magazines that Lu Yuan had collected there for a while and then decided to go to sleep.
He went to the bathroom to wash up. When he came out, he saw his phone vibrating on the bedside table in the bedroom.
He walked over to it and checked. It was a text message from a stranger.
There was nothing in it, only an unfamiliar phone number.
Huo Shaoheng took a look and dialed the number without batting an eyelid.
Lu Yuan’s voice soon came from the other end.
“Good evening, Mr. Peter,” Lu Yuan spoke politely, but there was a faint smile in his voice as if he was joking.
Huo Shaoheng smiled as well, “Director Lu, you’re in a good mood…”
“I’m fine,” Lu Yuan was currently holding a glass of red wine, standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling window of the luxurious suite on the top floor of the Shangri-la hotel in Z city, looking out at the night view of the entire city.
Looking from his direction, he happened to see the Qin Corporation building across the street.
The landmark in the center of Z City was the building where the Qin Corporation’s Private Hospital headquarters was located.
The name of this building was very simple. It was called the “Qin”. It had a total of one hundred floors and was more than four hundred meters tall. The shape of the building was strange and looked like two military knives standing side by side. There was a circular hole on the top of the building, which was said to be a wind tunnel design, it could slow down the wind speed when the tall building encountered a hurricane.
At night, when the lights were lit up, the silver floor of the building was like two swords shining with cold light, stabbing into the land in the center of Z City.
Lu Yuan took a sip of red wine and said with a smile, “The Qin family is really interesting.”
Huo Shaoheng knew immediately that Lu Yuan was implying something. “President Lu, you had a lead?”
“Haha, you could say so,” Lu Yuan elegantly placed his wine glass on the windowsill and looked at the Qin building across from him, he said leisurely. “Whether it’s the Qin Private Group or the Qin Orphanage, there were no loopholes. The management was perfect, the accounts were clear, and the social charity was done well. They were impressive.”
Although he was a little anxious, he still said unhurriedly, “Then there is no progress. The court is going to be held again next Monday, and we have a little progress here.”
As he spoke, Huo Shaoheng recounted the last time Gu Nianzhi had appeared in court to fight the case. Finally, he said with pride, “Nianzhi was very impressive. With just a few words, she provoked Liang Meili and Qin Yaoguang to kill each other. She just sat back and benefited from it.”
Lu Yuan was shocked when he heard this. “Wen Shouyi is the daughter of Qin Yaoguang and Wen Dayou, the gardener of the He family?! Are you sure?!”
“That’s what the DNA test showed,” Huo Shaoheng shrugged. “What does this have to do with me not being sure?”
Lu Yuan held his phone and paced around the suite, constantly thinking about this fact. He asked, “How old is Wen Shouyi this year?”
“Around twenty-six or twenty-seven?” Huo Shaoheng wasn’t very sure.
“That was twenty-seven or twenty-eight years ago,” Lu Yuan suddenly looked up and smiled. “I have an idea. Nianzhi was smart. She gave me a lot of inspiration. Alright, you guys wait for my good news!”
Huo Shaoheng was stunned, “What did you think of?”
“If we can’t find a loophole, we would have to start from where they started. I’ll call you when I’ve found out,” Lu Yuan said hurriedly, he couldn’t wait to find someone to start the investigation again.
Huo Shaoheng replied, “We would be in court again next Monday. Would you be able to find some clues before then?”
“I’ll try my best,” Lu Yuan said and hung up the phone.
He walked around the room with his phone in his hand before walking into the bathroom.
A few minutes later, he walked out. His entire appearance had changed.
He had a full beard on his face and had thick eyebrows and sharp eyes. He looked completely different from his original appearance.
However, he looked the same as the ID card he had used when he checked into the hotel.
This time, he came to Z city with this appearance.
No one knew that he was the president of the Lu Group.
His current identity was a coal boss from the north.
He wore a thick gold chain around his neck and several gold rings on his fingers. His clothes were all branded and a pair of Louis Vuitton sneakers, which were suitable for walking.
He left the Shangri-la hotel dressed like this and found a taxi on the street. He asked the driver to take him to a nightclub at the edge of Z city.
A nightclub was a place where there were all kinds of people. There were many people and the light was dim. It was a good place to hide dirty things and also one’s identity.
The taxi driver saw Lu Yuan’s outfit from the rearview mirror and smiled knowingly. He thought that Lu Yuan’s anxious look was to find a lady.
Without saying anything, he drove him to the entrance of a nightclub in the suburbs of Z City and let him down.
After getting off the car, Lu Yuan went straight into the nightclub. He bought a glass of wine inside and went to the bathroom without drinking.
When he came out of the bathroom, he was already dressed as a slovenly middle-aged man with a black faux leather bag tucked under his arm.
After passing through the crowded and chaotic crowd, he left the nightclub and wandered around the area where the city and countryside met. He found a very old-looking family hotel and walked in.
According to the information he had found, this family hotel had almost a hundred years of history here, even longer than the Qin family’s history.
Yes, this was the home of the Qin family.
The Huaxia Empire’s famous private hospital group started from here.
Lu Yuan walked into the family hotel. He opened his eyes wide and looked at the price list on the opposite wall. Then he inquired, “How much is the cheapest room here for one night?”
An old woman in her sixties raised her head from behind the reception and answered, “The cheapest is twenty dollars for one night. It’s just a bed-and-breakfast. It’s shared with eight people.”
“What about the cheapest single room?” Lu Yuan took out a worn wallet from his leather bag and asked shabbily.
“The cheapest single room is 50 dollars a night. There’s no bathroom, only a bed, and no windows.”
“Okay, I want a single room for 50 dollars,” Lu Yuan rummaged through his wallet for a long time, took out a 50 dollar bill, and handed it over.
The old woman took the money and handed him the key, “Turn in from here and go straight ahead. It would be the first room on the right.”
Lu Yuan was a little surprised, “… Aren’t you going to register my identity card?”
The old woman smiled and said, “If you’re willing to give it to me, I would register it.”
It was indeed a family hotel. After 100 years, it was still a small family hotel.
Of course, Lu Yuan did not take the initiative to give him his identity card. He smiled and nodded, “Thank you, Granny.”
This place addressed all unfamiliar old women as “Granny”.
Seeing that he was quite polite, the old woman had a good impression of him.
Walking out from behind the reception desk, she took the initiative to bring him to the room over there. As she nagged, “Be careful when you go out. Although my place is cheap, it’s very safe. No one dares to cause trouble here.”
Lu Yuan had long investigated it. The old lady’s family name was Chen. In this place, they were considered the local tyrants. Indeed, no one dared to cause trouble in their small hotel.
“Thank you, Granny,” Lu Yuan followed behind her gratefully, nodding and bowing.
“My husband’s surname is Chen. Everyone calls me Granny Chen,” The old lady was more and more satisfied with him. “Why don’t I change a bigger room for you?”
The single room door opened. Lu Yuan took a look and sure enough, it was a bed. The entire room was almost the size of this bed.
After he opened the door, he could get on the bed. His shoes could only be stuffed under the bed, or else there would be no place to put them.
He was not picky. In their line of work, what place had he not lived in before?
Lu Yuan placed a black leather bag in his hand on the bed and said, “No need, no need. This is good enough. I came from the city today. If I can find my relatives tomorrow, I would have a place to stay.”
“Your relatives?” Granny Chen was excited. She loved to help people find relatives and friends. “I know all the people here. Who are your relatives? What are their names? Maybe you could find them tonight.”
“Really?!” Lu Yuan asked in surprise, “My relatives’ surname is Qin.”
“Surnamed Qin?” Granny Chen looked at him with understanding.. “Is it the Qin family who owns a private hospital? They are not here anymore. Why did you come here to find them?”
