Chapter 28 Wine Rack

  After I explained the situation to them, everyone was shocked and lost their color.

  "What a prodigal son! How could our old Gu family produce such a spendthrift like you?! If we have to compensate for Yin Laoliu's car, how are we going to pay it back? How are we going to pay it back!!" Upon hearing this news, my father was furious and fuming.

  At the critical moment, Zhang Hao, who was quite clever, spoke up: "Little Dong, I vaguely heard him say on the phone that he seemed to have been cheated by a wine girl into consuming at a high-end venue? Because he couldn't afford the bill, so he crashed the car?"

  I nodded at Zhang Hao, indicating that what he said was correct.

  "That's nothing!" Zhang Hao retorted with a smile.

  "What's going on? What's not going on? One person wants to hit, the other wants to be hit, and when eating and drinking, one must pay the bill, right? Plus, my brother at home is a show-off, who knows how much money he spent!" I replied.

  "It doesn't matter how much money is spent, this is blatant cheating! You know the Director Wang of the city, don't you? I think Director Wang must have some connections in the capital. Let him help and pass a message to his colleagues in the capital, let them take a look. I reckon that once those high-spending stores see it's the police handling the matter, they won't dare pursue it further!"

  "Is it that simple?" I looked at Zhang Hao curiously.

  "Alas! It's that simple, actually just a report to the police could have solved it, but looking for Director Wang is more secure. The reason why people who were cheated didn't dare to report to the police is because they are afraid of retaliation from the other party. Another reason is that they want to save face or don't want to expose such a thing, feeling embarrassed, because you don't know what specific content they chatted about, some might be discussing objects for friendship, while others simply use one-night stands as a joke!"

  After listening to Zhang Hao's explanation, I carefully considered it and thought that what he said was reasonable. But the question is, how did this kid know so much about this industry? Could it be that he had done it before? So I asked again: "Brother, how do you know so clearly?"

  Seeing me ask this, Zhang Hao stretched out one hand and scratched his head in embarrassment, smiling as he turned to face me: "To be honest with you, Xiao Dong, I originally wanted to play online games and thought about finding a job at a substitute practice studio. Then I found their contact information online and went for an interview. Who knew they were running a scam? On the surface, it said they were recruiting game substitutes, game studios and all that, but in reality, they were just looking for keyboard hands!

  "What's a keyboard player? That's an unusual profession." I was somewhat perplexed.

  "Keyboard players are just people who accompany others online!" Zhang Hao replied.

  "Accompanying people to chat? Can accompanying people to chat also make money?" I found it even stranger.

  "Can make money? That's not just making money, that's making a fortune! Little Dong Ge, I'm telling you, can you imagine, you're chatting with the other person, thinking it's a beautiful girl like a flower, but unexpectedly it's a big old man with a bare chest and a messy beard?"

  "What?!"

  "Uh..."

  After listening to Zhang Hao's explanation, I feel like I've understood a bit more.

  Seeing my enlightenment, Zhang Hao continued: "Little Dong Ge, the real wine girls don't go online to chat with people. They are those big men with plenty of male hormones who pretend to be women and find various excuses to flirt with men online. Then they make excuses to ask them out on a date at their designated location. After that, they ask for the other person's phone number and report it along with the other person's detailed information to the wine girls. That's how high-consumption deals are made!"

  "Damn it! So that's what was going on!"

  After listening to Zhang Hao's explanation, I felt enlightened. I couldn't imagine what kind of expression my great brother would have when he found out that the person he was chatting with might be a big old man?

  It's so damn passionate!!!!!!!

  But for now, I should focus on how to bail out my useless brother and redeem Old Yin's car.

  Then, I picked up my phone and dialed Wang Yang's number again. I knew Wang Yang's phone number because when we were at the tea house, Wang Yang asked for my phone number and then flashed it to me, so I saved his number. I didn't expect to use it now.

  I dialed Wang Yang's phone number and he answered excitedly, asking "Brother, have you found the photo album?"

  "I replied to him: 'How can it be so fast, I haven't even seen that dead Jiang Rong yet, don't rush. The reason I called you is because I have something to ask for your help.'"

  Then I told Wang Yang everything that had happened with my cousin and Zhang Hao's explanation.

  After listening to my words, Wang Yang replied to me: "Brother, as you said, this thing is a willing fight, this kind of thing is a tricky business, not easy to handle! Although this matter is very difficult, but this matter I will take care of it for you, I will definitely make it clear for you!"

  What's so difficult? Just speaking in an official tone! However, since this guy is willing to help, I'm also very happy. I thanked him and promised that I would help him find the small photo album as soon as possible...

  With Wang Yang's help, we all felt at ease, so I first gave him my elder brother's phone number, and then after more than ten minutes, I called my elder brother again.

  After hanging up the phone, he told me that the local police had contacted him. Upon hearing this news, I also felt at ease, thinking that this matter was settled and that Wang Yang's efficiency in handling things was still quite reliable.

  I told my parents and two aunts about this, and they finally felt at ease. My father said, "If your eldest uncle finds out about this, he'll be so angry that he might not survive. His health is not good, when we get back to the village, no one should mention it, just pretend nothing happened."

  Under Zhang Hao's driving, we quickly returned to Xiaonan Village. What I didn't expect was that there were a lot of people gathered outside my house, looking like they had come to watch the excitement.

  When everyone saw that my father got off the car safely, they all swarmed over, one by one came to ask about his well-being, which moved my father deeply.

  When I arrived home, my father didn't return to our house immediately, but instead ran to Zhao Ershu's house to see how he was doing. I took Zhang Hao with me and followed my father there.

  When we walked into Zhao Ershu's courtyard, I found that several aunties from other surnames in our village were busy helping out, some sweeping the yard and others drying quilts. Seeing this scene, my father curiously asked: "Xiao Dong, why have so many old ladies come to help with household chores at Zhao Lao Er's home?"

  My father asked me like this, and I replied to him: "Yin Lao Liu said that whoever helps take care of Zhao Er Shu, he will give a push calculation to whoever does it. So these several aunts all hope to help take care of Zhao Er Shu in exchange for Yin Lao Liu's push calculation!"

  After hearing my explanation, my father suddenly enlightened and said to me: "No wonder, Yin Lao Liu is also a living god in our area, ordinary people don't even count."

  After finishing this sentence, my father took me and Zhang Hao towards Zhao Ershu's home.

  Look, we've arrived. Those busy women first chatted with my father for a while, basically saying that my father's safe return was a blessing for the whole village. Then, they all came to me and started getting familiar with me.

  They know that I've been getting along pretty well with Yin Lao Liu recently, and our relationship is not ordinary, so they want to ask me to pass on a message to Yin Lao Liu or something. They're thinking about those little things, but it's all clear as a mirror in my heart.

  After I had a long conversation with them, I finally followed my father into the house.

  Not bad, it's quite clean inside, and there are even some orange peels placed in the house to purify the air.

  After we turned into the inner room, we saw Zhao Ershu lying on the kang.

  At this time, Zhao Ershu's face was extremely pale, and even his lips were white. The whole person looked like he had aged ten or twenty years. After seeing my father, Zhao Ershu's eyes suddenly widened, and then tears flowed down. He tried to struggle to get up but couldn't, his mouth open but unable to speak.

  I understand that Uncle Zhao might have known the whole story and felt guilty towards my father, which is why he's acting like this all of a sudden. But how can he look so weak? And why is his mouth open but not saying anything?

  Just as my father and I were both puzzled, an aunt who had come with us explained

  "Last night, Yin Lao Liu came and said that after Zhao Lao Er was possessed by the little ghost, he would experience a short period of weakness and loss of voice, but after resting for a few days, he would slowly recover."

  Hearing Auntie say that, my father went forward and patted Zhao Ershu's body, then said to him: "What are you crying about? I know this matter wasn't your intention. You rest well, after you're better, I'll still settle accounts with you, save your energy, continue fighting me for those two mu of land!"

  When I heard my father say this, Uncle Zhao Er lowered his head in shame.

  After leaving Zhao Ershu's house, my father and I returned home. My mother cooked a bowl of noodles for us, saying it was auspicious noodles, that encountering disaster and turning it into good fortune is a great joyous occasion, and we must eat the auspicious noodles. According to my mother's idea, this matter still needs to be handled in a big way, gathering all the villagers to come to our house to eat and give my father "auspicious joy". But my father felt that this matter was shameful, being able to return home was already good enough, "auspicious joy" was purely nonsense...

  At the dinner table, I asked my father if he had suffered any hardships in prison. As soon as I asked this, my father opened his mouth and looked very annoyed.

  "Xiao Dong, you have no idea how ruthless these guys are. They locked me in a small room that looked like a detention cell, with a concrete pillar in the middle of the room and over ten handcuffs embedded on it. I was cuffed to one of them. The two police officers watching me at night were really something else - they deliberately left the window open behind my room, letting in the cold wind. They were wearing military coats, standing in front of my room, separated from me by iron bars, snacking on peanuts and pig trotters while drinking beer and chatting idly, all the while sneaking glances at me!"

  When I heard my father say this, I felt a wave of anger in my heart and it didn't feel right.

  Then my father said: "The worst is yet to come!"

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