Chapter 58

Xie Wendong smiled without answering. Jiang Sen said, “Brother Liu, you’ll know when the time comes. Simply put, will you help us with this?”
Liu Zhongyuan glanced at the four men in black beside him, who were staring at him as if they would tear him apart if he said no. He hurriedly said, “What are you talking about, Brother Jiang? We’re all from the same place. I’ll definitely help you with this! Brother Dong, just give me the time and address, and I’ll make sure to bring him here.”
Xie Wendong asked with a smile, “Aren’t you and Wang Guohua not very close? How are you so confident you can get him here?”
Liu Zhongyuan exaggeratedly replied, “Although I’m not close to him, we’re all well-known figures in the underworld. He’ll surely do us a favor as brothers!”
Xie Wendong sneered inwardly, stepped closer to Liu Zhongyuan, and said calmly, “I hope Brother Liu won’t disappoint me…”
Feeling the pressure from Xie Wendong, Liu Zhongyuan shuddered again and hurriedly said, “Of course not, definitely not!”
Xie Wendong nodded in satisfaction. “You decide the time and place. I think that will put you at ease!” He then gave Jiang Sen a wink. Jiang Sen understood and took out a black leather bag from under the bed. After opening it, he pulled out five stacks of hundred-yuan bills and threw them at Liu Zhongyuan. When Liu Zhongyuan tried to decline politely, Jiang Sen waved his hand and said, “We’re never stingy with those who help us. Keep this money. We’ll need your help with many things in the future.”
After hearing this, Liu Zhongyuan stood up and thanked Xie Wendong and Jiang Sen. He was secretly amazed by Xie Wendong’s generosity and greedily stuffed the money into his chest, smiling broadly. “Brother Dong, don’t worry. I’ll bring you the good news within three days. Can I… go now?”
Xie Wendong nodded. “Okay, three days. I’m not giving you this money for free. I want a satisfactory answer within three days. Now go!”
Relieved, Liu Zhongyuan bowed to Xie Wendong and turned to leave.
After he left, Jiang Sen asked with a smile, “Brother Dong, what do you think of this guy?”
“He’s not very good. He’s the type who changes sides easily and can’t be trusted. Where did you find him?”
“Hehe, it was a friend back home who told me. He said there’s such a person in City H who’s well-informed. He even gave me his phone number. I didn’t expect to find him right away. Although he’s the type who changes sides, I think he doesn’t dare lie in front of us. After all, he must know who we are!”
“Hmm!” Xie Wendong said coldly, “Even so, we still need to be cautious. Send someone to keep an eye on him. If he tries to leak our information, just get rid of him immediately. We can’t afford any complications!”

“Mm! Dongge, I understand!” Jiang Sen nodded in agreement, then nodded at the four people behind him. One of them remained silent before leaving the room. Jiang Sen then asked, “Dongge, should we take action against Wang Guohua then?”
Xie Wendong shook his head. “We originally planned to use force, but it seems that won’t work now. The situation in City H is too complicated; one wrong move and we’ll get stuck. We have to try appeasement first. If that fails, we’ll think of other options.” After some thought, he added, “We need to be prepared for both scenarios. Senge, find someone to investigate Wang Guohua’s character and his friends and family. If things really go wrong, we’ll have to resort to force.”
Jiang Sen never doubted Xie Wendong’s words. He obeyed without question, memorizing everything word for word, and nodded repeatedly.
Xie Wendong checked his watch—it was getting late. Jiang Sen said with a smile, “Dongge, it’s almost night. How about we go to the hotel downstairs and eat something?”
Xie Wendong had never been picky about eating. He shook his head and said, “No need to bother. I can just eat in the school cafeteria. I’m a ‘college student’ now—how can I go to a restaurant so often?”
Jiang Sen chuckled and escorted Xie Wendong out.
After eating in the cafeteria, Xie Wendong returned to the dormitory. It was bustling inside—four people sitting and two standing. Chips, sunflower seeds, cigarettes, and money were all mixed together as they gambled fervently. Lao Si, who was sitting on the bed, saw Xie Wendong return and shouted, “Xiao Qi, do you know how to play Tractor? Play a few rounds for me. I’m about to die!”
Xie Wendong was stunned. He felt like he couldn’t do much other than scheme and fight. He knew nothing about gambling, having only heard of “Tractor” before. Embarrassed, he said, “Si Ge, I… I don’t know how to play this!”
Everyone stared at Xie Wendong as if he were an alien. Seeing his confused expression, Lao Si laughed and said, “Xiao Qi, I’m really impressed. You don’t even know how to play Tractor!”
Xie Wendong glanced at the two people standing aside and said, “Lao Da and Lao Ma are standing over there. Let them take your place!”
“Lao Da says he won’t gamble under any circumstances! Lao Ma just knows how to ‘act serious’—he won’t play either!” Lao Si complained. “Come on, Xiao Qi, help me out. Switch partners like changing knives. I’ll cover the losses!”
Xie Wendong laughed and said, “I really don’t know how to play!”
“I’ll teach you from the side. Come on!”

Xie Wendong had no choice but to sit in the seat left by Lao Si and play along with them, trying his best to keep up. Perhaps what Lao Si said was true—changing players was like changing knives. As soon as Xie Wendong joined, he won several rounds, helping Lao Si recover a lot of his money. Lao Si laughed so hard his mouth couldn’t close, constantly peeling peanuts for Xie Wendong and bringing him a cup of hot water from time to time. The other three were furious, rolling their eyes.

Xie Wendong had played “Texas Hold’em” before and quickly grasped the essentials of the game. Nine out of ten times, it was all about deception—nothing wrong with that. No matter what cards were dealt, Xie Wendong always wore a smile and spoke calmly, unmatched by anyone else. After playing for a while, he could tell the quality of others’ cards just by observing their expressions.

Fortunately, the stakes weren’t high—just one yuan per bet with a maximum of five yuan. In no time, Xie Wendong not only helped Lao Si recover nearly a hundred yuan but also made him win over two hundred more.

Everyone thought Xie Wendong was too good at the game, so they stopped playing. They complained that Lao Si hadn’t been fair by changing players mid-game, causing them to lose money. Lao Si was extremely excited. Putting his arm around Xie Wendong’s shoulders, he said, “Enough! Stop complaining. How about I treat everyone to Shao Kao?” Only then did they let Lao Si go, vowing to make him pay back his losses later.

Lao Ma exclaimed in amusement, “Heh, now we can make a living!” Lao Si’s face showed annoyance as he shouted, “Damn it, those who aren’t playing can leave!” Then he turned to the leader and said, “I’m not talking about you, boss!”

Xie Wendong didn’t want to go after eating, but Lao Si insisted and pulled him along. He couldn’t act like a gangster in front of his roommates, nor did he want to, so he could only sigh and follow. The leader dragged the upset Lao Ma behind them.

During the Shao Kao meal, no one was polite. Everyone ordered lots of food, and alcohol was essential. They asked the waiter for a case of beer to start. They hardly ate anything but drank two cases of beer. It was almost midnight by the time they finished eating. Lao Wu took the lead in getting drunk, kicking over trash bins on the street, spreading garbage everywhere. The others joined in. Xie Wendong shook his head in disapproval.

Back in the dormitory, they didn’t go to bed right away but lay there joking around. They talked about movies and football, celebrities and the Iraq War. After sharing a few crude jokes, they shifted to Chinese military affairs. When it came to military topics, everyone became excited, discussing everything from the J-7 and J-8 to the Fei Bao, as well as Russia’s Su-27 and the U.S. F-117 as if they were everyday topics. This made Xie Wendong see these people in a new light and pique his interest in what they said. Taking advantage of their conversation, Xie Wendong brought up guns.

When guns came up, they discussed China’s most common Type 54 pistol, with mixed opinions. Lao Liu said, “The Type 54 is okay, its performance is relatively safe, but it only has a small capacity—just eight rounds!” Lao Wu replied, “Come on, the Type 54 is complete trash; its range is only fifty meters!” Lao Wu had served in the military for a year in City M through his family connections. He started with two stripes on his uniform because his father was a regiment-level officer in the army.

Lao Liu retorted, “Damn, if you want a long range, use a rifle. The Type 95 can easily shoot through black bears from over 300 meters away!” Xie Wendong lay there smiling as he listened to their discussions, gradually falling asleep…

Two days later at noon, he received a call from Jiang Sen. “Brother Dong, Liu Zhongyuan has made an appointment with Wang Guohua!” Xie Wendong asked eagerly, “How’s your investigation into Wang Guohua going?” “Damn, he’s a typical pervert. He has no fewer than five mistresses outside, including a college student. There are too many women involved with him. But it’s said he’s very afraid of his wife, and he’s only been able to get this far thanks to his father-in-law’s support. Still, he does have some skills—apparently, he’s loyal to his friends, but he’s also quite ruthless!”

“Oh? Who’s his father-in-law?” “He’s the deputy director of the H City police branch, the second-in-command there—very powerful!”

Xie Wendong pondered. “So it seems Wang Guohua isn’t easy to deal with. Touching him lightly will cause a lot of trouble!” “Brother Dong, I’ve thought about it too. What if we find a pretty girl to lure him in? Once we have something on him, he’ll have no choice but to comply. If that doesn’t work, we might have to sacrifice one of the undercover women…” Jiang Sen didn’t finish the sentence, but the meaning was clear.

Xie Wendong remained silent for a long time. After a while, he said, “Let me think about it. We need to find the best way. First, let’s arrange a meeting with him. I want to see for myself how he makes decisions!”

“Okay, Liu Zhongyuan has set the location at Fei Teng Restaurant, for tomorrow at noon. Brother Dong, I’ll come pick you up then!”

“Mm!” Xie Wendong nodded and hung up the phone. He thought to himself that Wang Guohua was really troublesome—his deputy director was his father-in-law, and he had no one to back him up. How could he make Wang Guohua submit? Approach the provincial party secretary? Probably not; although he had given that person many favors, he had never met them before and wasn’t sure. Finding a woman to lure Wang Guohua into a trap might also be difficult—after all, he hadn’t been around foolishly all these years.