Chapter 8
The massage parlor hadn’t seen a customer in ages, and most of the staff had resigned. To prove his shop wasn’t haunted and to encourage people to come inside, Wang Fuyang even launched a bizarre promotion: free eggs and stainless steel washbasins for everyone who entered.
For a while, the place was chaotic, resembling a bustling market where people scrambled for free rice. Yet some regular customers, still wary of undressing in the massage rooms, came merely to join the commotion; they refused any treatment, instead sitting together chatting, cracking sunflower seeds, and scrolling through short videos.
Shang Yange suddenly found himself deeply dissatisfied with the shop.
The lobby was packed with guests—some spitting as they talked, others with greasy faces, and still others bulging with flab… In the future, Xie Yubo might end up giving massages to people like these.
Shouldn’t there be a membership reservation system instead? One customer per week, carefully screened from a select clientele?
Perhaps due to the overwhelming crowd, President Shang was in a terrible mood, just as unable to shake off his irritation as he had been at the conference that day.
If the Xie family truly cared about Xie Yubo, they should have hired actors specifically to book appointments with him. These actors ought to be high-quality individuals: quiet, morally upright, either under sixteen or over sixty. Women wouldn’t do, and men… wouldn’t work either.
In short, the requirements are extremely high, one in a hundred million; if the Xie family were to ask him to act as a shill, President Shang might reluctantly agree out of business cooperation needs.
Having completed his inspection, Shang Yange was about to leave when, out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed two middle-aged men watching a video, occasionally exclaiming in astonishment.
The phone screen faced directly toward him, displaying a certain car accident video.
Shang Yange’s gaze turned cold; that black car with its license plate blurred out, he would recognize even if it were reduced to ashes.
That was the car Xie Yubo took to school.
He had only just seen Xie Chenbo yesterday; the other man’s relaxed demeanor suggested he was completely unaware that his younger brother had nearly been in a car accident.
Shang Yange returned to his car and reviewed the footage frame by frame from beginning to end; he even located the video segment showing someone exiting the sports car midway.
The timing of this person’s exit was far too convenient.
The location where he got out was right in front of the hotel, which made sense.
Shang Yange called Lin Bei: “I hold shares in this hotel. Immediately investigate where the sports car went and when this person checked in.”
Three minutes later, Lin Bei replied, “His name is Xu Dian. He checked in on the day of the incident. The hotel staff said he was drunk and unsteady on his feet, only coming to check out the following afternoon.”
“The owner of the sports car, Chen Pangle, works for Wangcheng Property Management. A group of second-generation elites held an all-night party in the suburbs, which didn’t break up until dawn. Most people collapsed and slept right there in the villa, but these two, believing they hadn’t drunk too much, decided to drive home.”
This was strange. There was a decent hotel right in the suburbs, next door to the party venue; why go out of their way? Moreover, since he had only checked in that day, he couldn’t have had luggage stored at this hotel, so there was no reason to insist on staying here.
Shang Yange said, “Look into who Xu Dian has been associating with recently.”
Xie Chenbo did not tell him what had happened on the anniversary day, but given that Xie Yubo was injured and Xie Chenbo had solemnly sought him out to express gratitude, these two facts alone were enough to prove that something significant had occurred that day.
Everyone in the business world is an old fox; Shang Yange could accurately discern the tone behind someone’s words. When Xie Chenbo first approached him to give thanks, he had indirectly asked about Shang Yange’s impressions of the anniversary event, claiming his own hospitality had been lacking.
At that time, Shang Yange had concluded that Xie Chenbo was testing him for something. Reflecting on it now, Xie Chenbo had actually been eliminating suspects. This meant that someone at the anniversary celebration had acted against Xie Yubo’s interests, and that person had not yet been identified.
“Lin Bei, get me the guest list from the Xie family’s anniversary celebration and investigate each name to see if they have any direct or indirect connections with Xu Dian.”
The anniversary celebration and the car accident occurred back-to-back; if the two incidents are connected, then the mastermind behind them is indeed ruthless and vicious, determined to kill within a short span of time.
“Understood.” On the other end of the line, Lin Bei scratched his head, finding it extremely strange. Their President Shang seemed overly concerned about Young Master Xie, acting just like a parent—both changing diapers and investigating cases.
..
A major star transferred into Xie Yubo’s class.
Xue Sibo, a child actor who debuted at a young age and won the hearts of audiences, had already become immensely popular by the age of eighteen.
He recently came to Longgan Film City for filming; with the college entrance examination approaching, he completed procedures to audit classes and would attend lessons at No. 3 High School during his free time.
Xue Sibo’s good looks caused quite a stir; throughout the entire morning, people kept gathering outside the windows to catch a glimpse of him, a situation that only eased by afternoon.
Like Xie Yubo, he sat alone at a separate table, positioned at the very end. A faint scent of perfume lingered throughout Class Two, quite pleasant to the nose.
“Stars are truly stars; they even wear perfume, surpassing even our history teacher.”
“This perfume brand… must be expensive.”
Xue Sibo seemed rather familiar with everyone from the start; initially, he even wanted to share a table with Xie Yubo but was turned down by him.
Xie Yubo sat in his seat; the teacher didn’t care whether he was listening or not, so he simply did his own thing. For subjects he could follow, he paid attention; when math and English proved incomprehensible, he pulled out an encyclopedia and used the time to catch up on missed lessons.
A blind student turning page after page of a book looked utterly pretentious.
This class was history again. Zhou Qiang was left speechless by Xie Yubo and Liu Fei’s bait-and-switch antics. The “model student” had crashed and burned in her estimation; Teacher Zhou began doubting her entire career, too exhausted even to scold Liu Fei.
Yet this very “model student” sat there now, poring over his book with an expression of utmost seriousness, his entire demeanor screaming, “I am the most diligent child in the class.” If only she didn’t know he was blind… The better-looking the student, the more convincingly they lie.
The two girls sitting in front of Xie Yubo, stirred by the sound of him turning pages, couldn’t resist pulling out magazines and comics from under their desks.
They had noticed that Teacher Zhou rarely looked in their direction, so slipping in a little distraction wouldn’t matter.
Xie Yubo split his attention between listening to the lecture with his ears and reading with his eyes. He finished an entire three-centimeter-thick encyclopedia in just two days.
Closing the last page, Xie Yubo lifted his gaze and discovered the girls in front of him reading extracurricular books.
Seeing the cover clearly, the Grand Preceptor’s eyes widened slightly. “Morals are declining, and people’s hearts are not as they used to be. How can there still be a nude man printed on the cover?”
Could this possibly be an erotic illustration book?
The high-definition photo of the male model in the magazine delivered a powerful visual impact; the Grand Preceptor felt a twinge of envy toward the man’s abdominal muscles.
Before he could even count how many there were, the magazine was taken away and replaced with another one featuring a pink cover.
Daguoshi, a high school student brimming with curiosity about everything, also wanted to read some extracurricular books, so he stared intently.
The girl sitting in the front row on the left glanced back alertly and wrote on a note: “From the desk behind, you can be seen.”
Her deskmate reassured her: “What are you worrying about? He can’t see.”
The two happily opened their comic book.
“Do not look at what is improper,” the Grand Preceptor thought, noting the content was rather unhealthy.
However, he “forgot” to close his Heavenly Eye and was “forced” to watch for twenty minutes, appearing utterly innocent.
Xie Yubo could not decipher the text above, which resembled earthworms, but he could tell that the protagonist was an emperor.
As soon as the dismissal bell rang, people around began to move; a girl deftly slipped the book beneath her history textbook and started discussing the plot.
Xie Yubo learned that the book was titled “The Tyrant’s Doting.”
The two female classmates thoroughly praised the protagonist tyrant in terms of appearance, power, and charismatic appeal.
The Grand Astrologer pursed his lips, using his newly learned repetitive emphasis to express his inner thoughts—
Is that it? Is that it? Is that it?
So this is what they call spoiling the queen?
This tyrant isn’t very impressive.
“Yubo, are you going to attend PE class?” Liu Fei ran over and asked him excitedly.
Xie Yubo had never attended PE class before, but today he had seen the abs of male models in a magazine and felt somewhat envious, so he said, “Sure.”
Liu Fei: “Then I’ll carry you to the playground.”
Xie Yubo glanced at Liu Fei’s frame, which was even frailer than his own. “Thanks, but no need.”
After taking roll call, the PE teacher allowed free time, and a group of bold boys suggested exploring the botanical garden.
The botanical garden was overgrown, with fallen leaves blanketing the ground. Enclosed and unattended, it occasionally served as a hideout for mischievous boys sneaking in to smoke.
A campus legend passed down from generations of seniors claims there is a dried-up well in the botanical garden. Three tales make this well particularly mysterious: one says it was an entrance to tunnel warfare tunnels, another tells of a girl who once threw herself into it, and the third suggests the botanical garden was originally a graveyard.
Whichever version you hear, such legends are incredibly common; nearly every campus has its own replica. When Liu Fei excitedly asked him about it, Xie Yubo looked utterly speechless. “Since it’s fenced off, just don’t go inside.”
Liu Fei: “The door lock has been broken recently; you can just push it open. Many classes have already gone, and ours is the last one to have PE.”
Seeing that Xie Yubo remained unmoved, Liu Fei tossed out a quick “I’ll come find you after class” before merging into the departing crowd.
Xue Sibo appeared from nowhere and, acting as if they were old friends, asked, “Aren’t you curious?”
Xie Yubo silently turned his head away. This person emitted a rotting stench, but out of politeness, he didn’t mention it. “I don’t want to go.”
Xue Sibo didn’t think he smelled bad. “I’d love to, but adventure activities don’t fit the image my agent has crafted for me. It would cause trouble if it leaked online.”
As they spoke, a sudden scream erupted from the botanical garden. Xie Yubo’s forehead twitched; he wondered what Liu Fei and the others had encountered.
Xue Sibo quickly stood up. “I’ll go check it out.”
After a moment’s thought, Xie Yubo followed him.
Just as they reached the entrance of the botanical garden, Xie Yubo saw that the interior was dim and gloomy, with the evening wind moaning like a mass grave. Granite slabs were scattered haphazardly, each bearing inscriptions now blurred and covered in moss.
Tombstones were everywhere—ones that hadn’t been there before.
The garden gate was locked. Seeing Xue Sibo frozen in fear, Xie Yubo pretended to be blind, fumbling to slide the bolt open from the outside. The moment the door cracked open slightly, Xue Sibo squeezed in from behind, muttering, “I want to see what’s so frightening.”
His push dragged Xie Yubo into the botanical garden as well, and he casually shut the door behind them. As darkness deepened, a faint shimmer of a protective barrier flashed across the gate.
They’ve taken the bait.
Someone curled their lips into a smirk.