CH 53

Zhou Qingbo felt that Pei You had been acting a little differently lately.

He seemed… livelier than before.

Pei You was gentle, but he had a low-key and passive nature. Previously, Zhou Qingbo had to persuade and convince him to do something together. However, over the past few days, Pei You seemed to have changed somehow. He had become proactive.

…………..

At 10:00 in the morning, someone knocked on Zhou Qingbo’s door precisely on time. He woke up from his sleep, habitually reached for his phone under his pillow, and checked the time.

The screen displayed the time, neither earlier nor later, exactly 10:00. Zhou Qingbo sighed, grabbed a handful of hair in frustration, and got up from the bed like a wandering spirit. He drifted over to open the door.

“Do you have some kind of supernatural ability?” Zhou Qingbo opened the door and complained in a thick nasal tone, “Like being a human AI with a built-in alarm clock or something.”

Outside the door, Pei You was already neatly dressed. He held a takeout box in his hand, and the inside of the plastic bag was lightly misted, indicating it was still hot.

“Since it’s raining outside today, the fried dough stick stall downstairs isn’t open. Let’s have xiaolongbao instead,” Pei You said.

The aroma of the steamed buns wafted through the plastic bag into the air. Zhou Qingbo sniffed, and his drowsy spirit slowly began to awaken.

Blinking his eyes, his initially damp eyes gradually lit up, and he couldn’t help but lower his head and use his fingers to pull the plastic bag open a bit to take a look inside.

“What’s in this?” Zhou Qingbo asked.

“One basket of pork, two baskets of crab roe,” Pei You replied.

Since the day they started working at Qingshan, Pei You and Zhou Qingbo had shared countless meals. Now, Pei You not only knew his taste preferences like the back of his hand but could also predict them.

Sure enough, as soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Qingbo’s eyes brightened visibly, and he smiled as he stepped aside to let him in, saying, “Come on in… Take a seat. I’ll go wash my face first.”

Recently, Liu Xin had been under investigation by the Economic Investigation Bureau. Zhou Qingbo and Pei You had also stayed behind, awaiting the final investigation results.

His company had been temporarily shut down for investigation, so they didn’t need to run out under the scorching sun to audit the accounts anymore. They finally had a bit of leisure time.

After the incident where Zhou Qingbo had lightly hinted about his “preferences,” Pei You had been meticulously following the standard answer, almost like he was commuting. He knocked on Zhou Qingbo’s door every morning.

From nine in the morning to six in the evening, he “created” opportunities to spend time alone with Zhou Qingbo. Whether they ate together or worked together, Pei You had mastered their daily routine.

He initially worried that his behavior might be too obvious, but he quickly realized that Zhou Qingbo didn’t mind this intrusion into his private space. In fact, he seemed to enjoy it, adapting quite quickly.

Initially, Zhou Qingbo used to tidy up a bit before Pei You arrived, but in less than two days, he had reverted to his usual self, often not getting up until Pei You knocked on his door.

The sound of running water came from the bathroom. Pei You placed breakfast on the coffee table and took a quick look around. He couldn’t resist bending down, heading towards the bedroom while picking up the clothes Zhou Qingbo had thrown on the floor.

Zhou Qingbo took a quick shower. When he finished dressing, he walked out with damp hair. He noticed that the bed was already made, the clothes were hanging on the hanger, the window was partially open, and the fresh, humid air entered the room, bringing a hint of coolness.

Zhou Qingbo smiled, feeling a bit embarrassed, and walked over to the sofa, jokingly pinching Pei You’s shoulder, “Hey, I said you don’t need to go through all this trouble. I’ll tidy up later.”

“I don’t mind it,” Pei You replied. “It’s just a small gesture.”

Since Pei You was used to being tidy, he couldn’t help himself from tidying up Zhou Qingbo’s things. Over the past few days, he had gotten used to it, even knowing where Zhou Qingbo would put his T-shirts.

“still….,” Zhou Qingbo insisted with his own reasoning. He bent down, kneading Pei You’s shoulder while justifying, “You’re an intelligent worker, you don’t need to do this kind of work.”

“Is that so?” Pei You was puzzled. “But yesterday, you were too lazy to go downstairs and persuaded me to go get you drinks.”

Zhou Qingbo replied, “That’s not the same.”

With Zhou Qingbo’s body so close, Pei You could clearly feel that he was enveloped by Zhou Qingbo’s moist toothpaste scented breath. He wasn’t used to such close contact, so his ears turned red. Instinctively, he tilted his head, intending to remove Zhou Qingbo’s hand from his shoulder.

“Sit down,” Pei You said. “The food will get cold if we don’t eat it.”

Xiaolongbao would lose its taste when it got cold. Zhou Qingbo just responded with an “Oh” and, even too lazy to walk around the sofa, plopped down beside Pei You. He tore open the packaging of the takeout box.

“By the way,” Zhou Qingbo remembered something and said, “The Economic Investigation Bureau officer called me last night and said they’ve pretty much figured out Liu Xin’s case.”

Zhou Qingbo was Qingshan’s head, so he was also considered a partial victim in Liu Xin’s embezzlement case. He needed to be informed about the progress of the case. Pei You nodded and asked, “What’s the result?”

“It’s pretty much what you guessed,” Zhou Qingbo said. “He was indeed laundering money, but luckily, there were no government officials involved. It was his personal behavior.”

According to the police investigation, Liu Xin had been involved with drugs for many years. He had started with occasional use and gradually became addicted. He couldn’t afford the drugs himself, so he started embezzling funds from the company.

Around that time, his father had passed away, and Dongjiang Company had been handed over to him. Thus, Liu Xin began using construction projects as a front to launder money for local drug traffickers.

He fabricated documents to request charitable funds while using his mother’s identity to register a new construction company. He outsourced the “charitable projects” to that company, which he then transformed into actual construction projects.

This way, empty projects turned into real ones. Liu Xin would then buy building materials or invest money in the projects on behalf of the drug traffickers. Through these transactions, black money turned white.

It was due to this process that Liu Xin was especially sensitive about those “charitable projects.” Zhou Qingbo’s mention of them made him prepare for an all-out confrontation.

“The mysterious transfer you found last time was likely done by them,” Zhou Qingbo said, holding a xiaolongbao, and continued vaguely, “They just transferred it to the wrong account, and you happened to notice it.”

“However, turning back to the conversation,” Zhou Qingbo swallowed what was in his mouth and asked in puzzlement, “How did you know he’s involved in money laundering?”

“Lucky guess,” Pei You replied, “You mentioned he wanted to involve you in a huge business deal, which likely means money laundering.”

Liu Xin wouldn’t make empty promises to Zhou Qingbo. He was intelligent, speaking differently to different people, tailoring his words to manipulate them onto his own path.

For people like them, ensuring someone stays on their side permanently requires offering consequences that couldn’t be reversed. Like making Zhou Qingbo, a privileged young man, unwittingly participate in money laundering or ensnaring Pei You, a social elite, in the drug trafficking.

Considering this, Pei You’s thoughts briefly interrupted.

The chaotic scene at the club that day had prevented him from overthinking, but in the days since, he had become calmer and, in hindsight, somewhat fearful of that situation.

On the night at the police station, Pei You had seen the “evidence” seized by Lu yi and the others. A small plastic bag, not much larger than a palm, containing several tens of grams of white powder. It was enough to ruin his entire life.

Pei You later felt fortunate – fortunate that Zhou Qingbo had luckily uncovered the truth that day, and grateful that Zhou Qingbo was there.

Drug addicts were desperate individuals, disregarding the law and social norms. If Zhou Qingbo hadn’t impulsively confronted Liu Xin, escalating the situation beyond control, nobody could predict what might have happened in that dimly lit club.

“Zhou Qingbo,” Pei You suddenly said, “Thank you for what you did for me that night.”

“Why are you thanking me all of a sudden?” Zhou Qingbo wasn’t pleased. He bit his straw and frowned, saying, “Didn’t I say –”

“You protected me that day,” Pei You interrupted. He looked at Zhou Qingbo and earnestly added, “if it wasn’t for you I don’t know what might have happened. You defended my dignity and honor in life, so thank you.”

Perhaps fate had shifted direction quietly that day at the club or even earlier, when Zhou Qingbo willingly volunteered to accompany him on a business trip. Because of Zhou Qingbo, Pei You could rest easy.