Chapter 32: The Old Ghost
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“Ziguang, have you run into trouble? Is it work-related?”
Faced with his father-in-law’s concern, Xiao Ziguang did not answer at once. Instead, he turned to Xue Wen. “Wenwen, take Lele to register her household. I’ll discuss work with Dad for a while longer.”
Only after Xue Wen had walked some distance away did Xiao Ziguang lower his voice and say, “A few days ago, I had a minor misunderstanding with Director Xiong Yaohui. He ordered me to go undercover among the drug dealers...”
“That old Xiong is as narrow-minded as ever. What a vindictive bastard!” After sighing in disgust, Xue Ao abruptly changed the subject. “The Old Ghost is dead? I never imagined that bastard would die before me. I suppose it’s divine retribution!”
Xiao Ziguang carefully recalled everything he knew about the Old Ghost. At last, he connected the man with the Ghost King Dong who, in his previous life, had ruled Tianhai with an iron hand.
Nine years later, Tianhai’s largest and most luxurious bathhouse, the Heavenly Waters Pavilion, would open for business. Its owner behind the scenes would be Ghost King Dong, respectfully addressed by all as Lord Dong.
His wealth would conservatively amount to three hundred million, and he would command more than five hundred underlings. After laundering his criminal past, he would restructure his holdings into a legitimate company. His businesses would range from karaoke clubs to leisure resorts. It was even rumored that he intended to purchase several hundred acres of land and turn them into a golf course.
Rumor had it that Ghost King Dong’s protector was Xiong Yaohui, who would eventually rise to the Public Security Department. Though the two were not sworn brothers, they shared a bond forged through life-and-death experiences.
The reason Ghost King Dong could dominate Tianhai was that Xiong Yaohui served as his protective umbrella...
Yet in this lifetime, before Ghost King Dong had even begun to display his ambitions, he had become the Old Ghost who was hacked into three pieces.
It seemed that a person’s fate required more than hard work. Luck mattered too. Since Xiong Yaohui had never risen to power, he naturally could not shield Ghost King Dong from every danger.
The Ghost King Dong who had not yet matured was nothing more than an informant operating under the police codename Old Ghost.
Afraid that Xiao Ziguang did not understand the situation and might suffer for it, Xue Ao explained, “The Old Ghost used to be called Little Ghost. He was Xiong Yaohui’s lackey.”
“His family was poor, so he was bold and ruthless. He became a notorious street thug in Tianhai. Later, Xiong Yaohui became a police officer, and the two of them became birds of a feather. They’ve done no shortage of vile things over the years...”
Ding-ding-dong, ding-ding-dong...
Xiao Ziguang’s phone suddenly rang again. He glanced at the number. There was no name attached, but the last digits looked very much like Xiong Yaohui’s. He said quietly, “Dad, this number seems to belong to Director Xiong.”
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“Answer it. Put it on speaker. Let me hear whether that dog’s mouth can spit out anything resembling wisdom.”
Xiao Ziguang pressed the answer button and immediately heard Xiong Yaohui’s furious voice.
“Xiao Ziguang, you’ve truly disappointed me! I placed so much faith in you and entrusted you with such an important mission, yet you...”
“Old Xiong, calm down. What’s done is done. Even if you drove Xiao Ziguang to his death, the Old Ghost still wouldn’t come back to life. The most important thing now is to solve the problem, not shirk responsibility.”
“Besides, my son-in-law was merely carrying out the task you assigned him. We still need to carefully determine exactly where things went wrong.”
“You can’t pin the blame on him simply because my son-in-law is young and lacks work experience!”
Xue Ao was extremely protective of his own. At the very least, his words left Xiong Yaohui silent for half a minute. Old Xiong had never expected his former classmate to defend Xiao Ziguang so fiercely.
Wasn’t it said that all the live-in sons-in-law of Tianhai were spineless louts who only knew how to flatter? Why, then, did Xue Ao regard Xiao Ziguang so highly?
Suppressing his anger, Xiong Yaohui still grumbled irritably. “Old classmate, the Old Ghost was my informant. He followed me for eighteen years and never once caused trouble.”
“Yet merely by helping Xiao Ziguang establish a connection, he was hacked into three pieces. The Old Ghost died unjustly. Those bastards are slapping me in the face...”
Xue Ao tapped his fingers against the table. A faint curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.
“Since you know they’re slapping you in the face, then solving the problem couldn’t be simpler. Find a way to slap them back.”
“There are things you can’t conveniently do, but others can. The Old Ghost may be dead, but doesn’t he still have a group of men?”
“Since Ziguang is still undercover, let the young man lead the Old Ghost’s men and help you win back your honor.”
“Tianhai is our Tianhai. If every stray cat and dog dares to swagger around here, then what does that make the rest of us? Decorations?”
Xiong Yaohui fell silent once more. Originally, he had intended to pin the blame on Xiao Ziguang, manipulate him for a while, vent his anger, and then see whether he could extract some benefit.
Now that Xue Ao had spoken, Xiong Yaohui was forced to change his plans.
“Old Xue, what exactly are you suggesting? You want Xiao Ziguang to fight the Western Ridge Gang while posing as an undercover agent?”
“Jade must be polished before it can become a treasure. Xiao Ziguang is my Xue family’s son-in-law, so he naturally has to endure some hardship. Since you’ve already said that Xiao Ziguang bears some responsibility for the Old Ghost’s death, why not have him avenge the Old Ghost?”
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The proposal truly took Xiong Yaohui by surprise. The Old Ghost’s death had thrown him into disarray. If someone was willing to step forward and eliminate the Southern Ridge Gang, that would be a good thing for Xiong Yaohui.
After all, police investigations depended on evidence, and large-scale operations required approval from superiors. If anyone was killed or injured during such an operation, considerable effort would then be needed to deal with the aftermath.
Xiong Yaohui was not a patient man. He believed that grudges should be settled face-to-face and without delay. Otherwise, he would never have deliberately made things difficult for Xiao Ziguang by assigning him to go undercover.
The Old Ghost’s blood had written the words “Southern Ridge Gang,” and that was a direct slap in Xiong Yaohui’s face. Given his vindictive nature, he would certainly retaliate in kind.
“Old Xue, since you want to temper your son-in-law, I’m willing to give him a chance. He has three days. If he can kill Kong Ersheng, I’ll agree to transfer all of the Old Ghost’s men to you. But what happens if Xiao Ziguang fails?”
“That’s easy. If Xiao Ziguang can’t do it, I’ll prepare a cash gift of two million yuan and offer it to you as an apology on behalf of my worthless son-in-law.”
“Then it’s a gentleman’s agreement. My word is my bond!”
“Agreed. It’s settled, and I won’t regret it.”
After Xue Ao finished speaking, he signaled Xiao Ziguang to hang up. Then he said earnestly, “Ziguang, whether or not the Old Ghost’s death was caused by you, you are my son-in-law. That means you must shoulder your responsibility.”
“Since Xue Qiang has given you such a generous gift, I can’t be stingy either. I’ll arrange for someone to kill Kong Ersheng. You just need to remember to take over the forces the Old Ghost left behind...”
Before Xue Ao could finish, Xiao Ziguang interrupted him.
“Dad! Why use a butcher’s cleaver to kill a chicken? I’ll deal with Kong Ersheng myself. If even such a minor character requires your intervention, I might as well buy a block of tofu and bash my head against it.”
Xiao Ziguang understood perfectly. Though Xue Ao’s words sounded generous, he was still testing him—or forcing him to present a pledge of allegiance.
No matter how beautiful the words or how humble the posture, it would all be useless. Unless Xiao Ziguang placed a handle in Xue Ao’s hands, the old fox would never truly regard him as one of his own.
That was why Xiao Ziguang had to kill Kong Ersheng personally. It would give Xue Ao leverage over him.
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