Eh?
Her dad?
Xiang Wan was immediately interested. "What about my dad?"
"Your dad…" Tan Yunchun found it difficult to continue.
"Did he betray you? Or have you betrayed him before?"
Xiang Wan's assumptions made Tan Yunchun instantly change her expression.
"Don't spout nonsense!"
"Tell me then, and I won't spout nonsense." When Xiang Wan's dad passed away, she was still young and didn't really know what was going on. Now that she tried to recall, besides the color of white she remembered in her dad's funeral, she had forgotten most of the stuff. Her memory was basically blank towards her dad, she couldn't even remember how he had looked like.
It was her mom who brought her up.
Throughout her life, her dad had been absent.
As a result, that figure gradually became hazy and she would hardly think of her dad.
"Mom, what did my dad do?"
"He's not longer around, there's no point talking about him." Tan Yunchun was unwilling to talk. She patted Xiang Wan's shoulders and spoke persuasively to her. You need no bother about my affairs. You just need to take good care of yourself. Little Wan, Little Bai is a good child, you need to treat him nicely. If you lose him, I don't think you can find another one like him even if you carry a lantern and search, you hear me?"
"I hear you! I'll get a lantern with a bigger watt lightbulb…"
"You naughty girl!"
Xiang Wan was very curious about what happened to her dad who had passed away many years ago. But Tan Yunchun was unwilling to say anything and Xiang Wan knew that there was no point pestering her to talk.
After her mom left her room, she called up her eldest aunt.
"Eldest aunt, did my dad, do something wrong to my mom when he was alive?"
"… Eh?" Tan Xichun replied, "Where did you hear that?"
"My mom said so."
"Aye! That's why I say that men are all the same. If they have the capability, they will have an affair, if they don't have the capability, they will create it in order to have an affair…"
"Affair?" Xiang Wan mumbled, "My dad had an affair?"
"Ain't that the case? It was a female colleague of his. Aye, don't talk about it anymore. It's not a nice topic to talk about. Before your mom married your dad, she was the most beautiful of all three sisters. She had a lot of suitors but she chose your dad as she fell in love with him. But in the end, the marriage didn't turn out well. This is why I've always supported your youngest aunt's opinions that one should look for the best son-in-law within their scope of ability. If men will cheat on their wives anyway, choose someone who could provide a better life…"
"Eldest aunt!" Xiang Wan had a hand on her forehead.
She felt like surrendering to Tan Xichun as she went to preach about her views on love and marriage.
"Alright then, I understand now. Eldest aunt, I'll talk to you again…"
"Wait, did your mom agree to go to the Reunion Dinner tonight?"
"… I think she will go." Xiang Wan thought for a moment. "She's not really angry with youngest aunt. I felt that she's just awkward about it."
"If so, do comfort her and make sure you both come for dinner, alright? I'm worried that the little vixen of your youngest uncle-in-law might come to create a scene…"
Goodness, will that really happen?
Are homewreckers nowadays really so bold? she thought.
…
Xiang Wan opened her laptop but stared at her screen.
In the courtyard, Uncle Zhao and his wife were talking cheerfully with her mom. They were hanging the decorative lanterns for Lunar New Year. Not sure which household was cooking some festive food, the nice aroma was lingering around her nose…
She felt torn.
She kept checking the time.
Time passed too slowly that it felt painful.
Xiang Wan had both hands behind her neck as she leaned against her chair lazily and closed her eyes to relax. However, there was still a chilly feeling creeping around her back.
It was at this time that her mobile phone rang.
The caller was Quan Shaoteng.
"Xiang Wan." He actually addressed her name in full and he sounded anxious. "Do you know where is Little Bai?"
Eh? Why did he ask her about this?
That question made Xiang Wan jump as she sat up straight on her chair. "Both of you are not together?"
"We split our ways for the sake of the mission. I'm with my Operation Team while he moved together with Qi Canghai and his team… We already fixed a place and time to meet but he never showed up. D*mmit!"
"…"
Xiang Wan did not know the specific details of their operation. Therefore, she was at a loss when she heard that.
"So where are you now? Captain Quan… Hello, Captain Quan?…"
Quan Shaoteng had already hung up the call.
This fellow!
Was it because he had an emergency over there or was it because he knew she was of no help so he directly ended the call?
When Xiang Wan thought about the possibilities of what was happening, over at Quan Shaoteng's end, he really did not have the time to talk to her.
After ending the call, he looked at an old, rundown warehouse located along the suburbs using the binoculars. His fox-like eyes were cold and serious.
"Brothers, we can only depend on ourselves now!"
There were another three of his men from the Operations Team with him.
"Roger!"
Quan Shaoteng swiped a finger across his lips as he looked at the at old warehouse vigilantly then gave a call to Serious Crime Division One.
"I'm Captain Quan of the Operations Team. I can't get hold of Captain Bai! The suspects are preparing to leave with their goods, I really think my team needs to make a move now. Please try your best to contact Captain Bai, you must do so!"
"Captain Quan!" The one who took his call was Ding Yifan. "Please be safe. I'll ask the Jin City special police for assistance immediately…"
"We can't wait anymore!" Quan Shaoteng gritted his teeth. "I'll carry out our mission now! End of call!"
After that, he hang up and looked towards his three subordinates.
"We are soldiers of the Red Thorn Unit, it's time to execute our mission, are you with me?"
"Yes!"
"Let's do this together!"
Although there were some last-minute changes to their plan, their goal did not change. What they needed to do now was to seize all the goods in the warehouse and not let the drugs harm anyone.
Quan Shaoteng got ready his gun. He looked bursting with energy and his eagle-like gaze seemed all ready to prey on its target at those people who were loading the goods onto their vehicles.
"Captain Quan, are the drugs really inside all those cartons? There's too many of them."
"Most of the boxes should be fake!" Quan Shaoteng was looking at those boxes with the washing powder label with his binoculars. "Hmph! No matter if they are fake or not, none of these cartons are going to go out to the public! Get it?"
"Got it!" A team member then raised another doubt. "I didn't see any weapons on them. Captain Quan… are we allowed to shoot?"
"Don't shoot unless really necessary!" Quan Shaoteng took a look at his three team members. "The moment when they put up a resistance with firearms, then we need not hold back! I will explain and take responsibility if anything happens."
"Roger!"
"Roger!"
It was always good to get this clarified.
As there were times that one might misfire.
"Captain Quan, look! They're preparing to leave!"
There were several cars parked outside the old warehouse and those people were preparing to leave.
With that, Quan Shaoteng issued a command as a cold glint flashed past his eyes.
"Go!"
The four of them bolted from their hiding spot with guns in their hands, as though they had popped out of nowhere and they were heading directly to the warehouse.
"Police! Don't move!"
"Don't move! Hands up!"
"All of you! Squat down with hands on your head!"
…
…
On another location in Jin City.
Under the gloomy sky, thick smoke was pouring out from the tall chimneys of the cement factory in the industrial zone.
The smoke rose up to the sky, dyeing it with a shade of haze.
Huang He's eyes were half-closed, but the tiny blood vessels were still visible enough to be seen.
He was told to head directly to Jin City, travelling almost a distance of a thousand kilometers on the car.
His gaze was a little cold; he stroked his finger gently as he sat in the laboratory of the small cement factory.
"Does your finger hurt?" Tian Danyue came over to him.
"It's alright." Huang He looked at his watch. "Do you think this is another hoodwinking tactic of An Ying?"