I leaned closer, whispering in her ear, "Don't flatter yourself. If you think you can seduce me, my wife is a hundred times more beautiful than you."
Zhang Ying'ai let out a sharp laugh. "Tang Nan, do you know? Love is noble, but marriage is base. In any marriage, no matter how beautiful your wife is, a man's thoughts are always on the lewd bodies of other women."
I scoffed, offering no comment on her statement.
"Zhang Ying'ai, not many people knew about the banquet, and you were one of them. You arrived late that day to conceal the fact that you had been there, secretly installed a camera, and then deliberately leaked the video content online."
"Why should I tell you?"
Zhang Ying'ai seemed delighted, her demeanor bordering on the neurotic. She laughed sharply, a stark contrast to her usual composed and unflappable demeanor.
"It doesn't matter if you tell me. I'm asking you, did you deliberately sell the information to 'Headhunter'?"
"Do you want to know? If you want to know, then sleep with me. I'll answer your questions earnestly and without concealment for as long as you can last in bed."
I sneered, "I doubt you have that many questions to answer."
Zhang Ying'ai let out another piercing laugh. "Try me!"
...
I carefully pushed away the body entwined around me like a snake and gently patted her face. "Time for lunch, wake up."
"My head hurts, I don't want to. How about we sleep a little longer and have dinner together?"
"How can that be? I'll go cook."
"Oh, good husband, you're so sweet, muah!"
Seeing Lin Han, whom I had just released, blow another kiss, I smiled helplessly. I put on a thick cotton nightgown, preparing to cook in the south room. Just then, there was a knock on the door. Puzzled, I went to open it.
Da Huang entered like a thief, looking around furtively. "Where's sister?"
"Still sleeping?"
"Tang Nan, do you know? I want to smack you~"
I was bewildered. "What's wrong?"
"Inside, inside," Da Huang said, pulling me toward the south room.
Afterward, he handed me his phone. It was still on Tianya's emotional forum. The woman named "Spring Wind Proud of One Night Stand" had updated her post, apologizing and titling it "I'm not a lying ghost anymore, I'm reformed."
The content was roughly as follows: Love or no love, you only know after a kiss. He was nothing like his usual polite self, like a lion, taking advantage of every inch.
Below this text was a picture. It showed a man's broad back and, on a snow-white bedsheet, bloodstains as bright as peach blossoms.
The content continued: I have been lying. All along, I have been a slut at heart. In reality, behind the fabricated story, I have never lost my physical virginity. I have been waiting for him, for this passion to flow into his heart.
As of now, there are no photos of me here, but there is a recording next:
"Do you want to know? If you want to know, then sleep with me. I'll answer your questions earnestly and without concealment for as long as you can last in bed."
"I doubt you have that many questions to answer."
Laughter!
"Try me!"
Finally, there was a picture of me entering Zhang Ying'ai's residence.
...
Zhang Ying'ai was once a psychologist. Despite her severe psychological flaws, she knew how to manipulate people's minds.
She masterfully controlled the psychology of netizens. These people imagined her debased appearance from her words, yet she possessed a face as beautiful as a celestial being and an air of nobility. When she repeatedly described in her writings stories of being conquered by successful men, it ignited a desire in these netizens to conquer her. However, she employed the same tactic again: a base soul, a chaste body, finally finding true love.
As expected, lucky goddess Zhang Ying'ai was about to showcase this fortune to her hundreds of thousands of fans. Some said she was lucky, but others were not. They were accustomed to the debauchery of "Spring Wind Proud of One Night Stand," and they could not tolerate any man being so fortunate as to win their goddess.
Therefore, doxxing!
...
I frowned. Da Huang looked at me nervously. "What do we do?"
"What do we do about what?"
"This woman..."
Da Huang suddenly wisely closed his mouth because the question was not from me, but from Lin Han.
Lin Han, wearing a nightgown and with disheveled hair, looked as if she hadn't woken up yet, but her eyes were much clearer.
"What woman."
"No... no woman." Da Huang said, reaching to put away his phone. Lin Han snatched it away and scrolled through the content. Her face grew increasingly grim, and she flung the phone to the ground. The porcelain tiles were solid, and the phone shattered instantly upon impact.
Da Huang's eyes widened, and he gritted his teeth, saying in a low voice, "That phone was mine."
"Divorce!" Lin Han pointed at me, her face contorted in rage.
"This is a misunderstanding."
"Yesterday, you sneaked out to meet your lover while I was drunk, and you didn't come back until three in the morning. Did you really think I was that drunk? Off to see your little mistress? Talking about love or no love, you only know after a kiss? Pfft!"
"Sister~" Da Huang attempted to placate her in a low voice.
Lin Han glared at him, and Da Huang flinched back. "Second Brother, whose side are you on?"
"I... I am your brother."
"Get a lawyer. Divorce. And don't let him get a single cent."
...
I found Luo Bo, putting on a conciliatory smile. "Brother-in-law, I know Sister has gone back to her parents' home. Can I stay at your place for a couple of days?"
"That's not appropriate. You're a thief, and I'm a police officer."
"I'm not a confirmed thief yet, am I?"
"You've been kicked out."
"Yes, my wife is angry. She's making a big fuss about divorce, I can't help it."
Luo Bo pondered for a moment. "If you divorce, isn't the siheyuan your premarital property?"
"Not like you. We're just arguing, it hasn't reached actual divorce yet. Will you take me in or not!"
"Fine. I'll do it for your sister's sake."
...
With a place to stay, I felt much more at ease.
Afterward, I went to a residential complex, the kind ordinary people live in. Following the address on my phone, I found the building and knocked on the door. Lao Tie, sitting in a wheelchair, opened it for me.
I was taken aback by the wheelchair and my gaze fell on his amputated leg, severed above the knee. Part of it had been resected during the amputation to allow for a prosthesis.
"You don't wear that leg normally?"
"No, it's tiring, and my leg is uncomfortable. Come in. Your sister-in-law is in Singapore; I'm living here alone."
"Rented?"
"Bought. Isn't buying a house in Beijing an investment too?"
As we spoke, we had already entered the house. Lao Tie, maneuvering his wheelchair, went to the TV cabinet, took out an ID card from his wallet, and handed it to me. I saw the name: Tie Shan. By then, Lao Tie had already wheeled himself over to pour tea.
"Lao Tie, I asked you to keep an eye on Zhang Ying'ai. Did you discover anything?"
I took the teacup and, without any pleasantries, got straight to the point.
"Are you still worried about my work? Zhang Ying'ai was not involved in stealing the national treasure. She leaked the information to a woman named Cui Fang. Cui Fang used the strategy we set up, a feint to the east while attacking in the west, and stole the 'Qing Yin Jian Gu Tu'."
"Cui Fang? Do you have her information?"
"Ready!"
Cui Fang was an inspirational woman. Two years ago, she gained public attention due to a tragic experience. Cui Fang was a blog author, and her first post narrated her marital misfortune.
Once, Cui Fang was the daughter-in-law of a family business. She was a very capable person, and through her own abilities, she made her husband's family business flourish. She was elegant in public and a good homemaker at home. If one had to find fault with Cui Fang, it was that she couldn't conceive.
In her fortieth year, her husband appeared with a girl, claiming she was his daughter. Cui Fang couldn't believe it. She knew her husband had many flaws, but she never imagined he had an affair and a seventeen or eighteen-year-old daughter.
After twenty years of marriage, Cui Fang realized she didn't understand her husband at all. She knew she hadn't conceived and thought her husband would be tolerant of her, but she never expected... Cui Fang was also ruthless in this regard. She left with nothing, divorced, and didn't ask for a penny from her ex-husband.
...
Looking at the information, I asked Lao Tie curiously, "What does Cui Fang have to do with this matter?"
Lao Tie said, "Her ex-husband was reported and sentenced to five years for bribery."
"You suspect Cui Fang reported him?"
"If it were just a report, that would be one thing. But when the police went to arrest her ex-husband, he committed suicide."
"Suicide?"
The word "suicide" carried a familiar scent to me.
"Lao Tie, are you implying Cui Fang executed her ex-husband? You suspect Cui Fang is one of 'Zhengqi's' people."
"Mm!"
Lao Tie knew Zhang Ying'ai had approached Cui Fang, and that Cui Fang was associated with people who did things similar to what 'Zhengqi' would do. His suspicion was understandable.
"Is there any evidence?"
"No direct evidence, but Cui Fang has a young boyfriend, more than ten years her junior. This kid is a kept man, living off her. Before he met Cui Fang, he was a thief with a record of stealing famous paintings."