In the design department of Chu Corporation.
Jiang Mengran waited until everyone else had left the office before taking out an old mobile phone from her drawer and dialing a number.
"When are you going to make your move? I told you to burn that bitch's house in the countryside, why is there no progress after so long?" she asked angrily.
Gu Si lounged with his legs crossed, speaking casually and lazily, "Do I have to do whatever you say? Did I sign a contract selling my soul to you?"
Jiang Mengran gritted her teeth in anger, "Gu Si, don't push me. When a woman goes mad, even you wouldn't want to see it. If you don't listen to me, then think about Jiang Mengmei. She's just entered the entertainment industry and has a bright future, but if I don't get what I want, she won't have an easy time either."
Gu Si chuckled, "Threatening me? After all these years, you still don't understand me." httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
"Ah... Boss Gu, I was wrong, I was really wrong. Give me three more days, no, two days, and I'll definitely return the money."
From the other end of the phone, sounds of beating and screams could be heard.
Jiang Mengran's heart skipped a beat, her hand holding the phone tightening involuntarily.
Then, a lazy, nonchalant voice sounded on the phone.
"Chop it off."
Immediately, more miserable cries and pleas came from the other end of the phone. Then, at a certain moment, the screams reached their peak, continuing for a while before gradually fading into silence.
Jiang Mengran gripped the phone tightly, standing in a sunlit spot, trying to keep her voice calm and steady, "You must resolve this for me, otherwise, we'll both go down."
"Beep~" The call ended.
"Ding~" The sound of a door opening.
"Director, aren't you going to eat?" asked Xiao Zhang, who had returned.
Jiang Mengran gave a faint hum, "I'll go in a moment."
Xiao Zhang picked up his phone from the desk and scurried out of the office.
Jiang Mengran waited until the office door was closed again before dialing another number.
"Hello, what has your boss been up to lately?"
There was a brief silence on the other end of the line before a lowered voice replied, "Just business matters, nothing special."
Jiang Mengran paused and then asked, "Is there a woman around him?"
"No, there has never been a woman around the boss."
Jiang Mengran immediately showed a hint of arrogance and pride, "One hundred thousand. You do something for me, do it cleanly, don't leave any traces."
"Okay."
After hanging up, Jiang Mengran edited an address and sent it, followed by two words: Burn it.
Having done all this, Jiang Mengran went downstairs to a dumpling restaurant next to the building, ordered two taels of dumplings, and sat in a corner.
"...I always thought President Chu was single, I didn't expect his wife to be so beautiful. But strangely, I don't feel jealous at all. I genuinely think they are a perfect match."
"Do you think President Chu just got married? Or has he been married for a long time? Why did he announce it in such a... high-profile and strange way?"
"We don't understand the world of the rich. Wasn't it rumored that President Chu was single before? His wife must have been unhappy, and he did that to appease her. After all, what woman doesn't like such a direct declaration? It's full of security."
"The most embarrassing one is Jiang Mengran. If I were her, I'd be so ashamed I wouldn't dare to come to work."
"Me too. I don't know where the rumors started, saying she's our future boss lady. For this reason, every time I see her, I find her face so annoying. She's not worthy of our handsome, rich, and capable President Chu at all."
"A while ago, her sister even came to the company to cause trouble, shamelessly calling our President Chu her brother-in-law, only to be kicked out by President Chu. Later, the two sisters actually argued. It turns out they are both toads wanting to eat swan meat."
A burst of laughter erupted in the restaurant.
Jiang Mengran's face flushed and paled. She gripped her chopsticks tightly, and suddenly, with too much force, the chopsticks snapped in two.
Jiang Mengran picked up her bag and stood up, leaving the dumpling shop with a dark expression.
...
Lijing Yuncheng, Building 7, Unit 1004.
Quan Jiu typed the final scene content of "Sin," and after checking it thoroughly, sent the electronic manuscript to Wang Can via email. She then sent a message to Wang Can on WeChat.
[Director Wang, the final script version has been sent to your email.]
Shortly after, she received a reply: [Very good, thank you for your hard work. The payment contract has been processed, and the money will be deposited into your account within seven working days.]
Quan Jiu breathed a sigh of relief and replied, [Thank you].
Just as she was about to close her laptop, an email notification popped up in the bottom right corner of the screen. It was from her university QQ account, which she had logged into during the last class reunion.
The email notification only displayed for a few seconds, but Quan Jiu still managed to read the content, as it only contained six words.
[Your hometown is on fire.]
Quan Jiu immediately opened her email. It was an anonymous email.
She froze for two seconds, then abruptly grabbed her phone, grabbed her car keys, and rushed out.
In the elevator, Quan Jiu sent a message to Wang Feifei: [Feifei, something has come up and I need to go back to my hometown. Can you come to my place tonight and pick up the kids for me?]
Wang Feifei quickly replied, asking: [What happened?]
Quan Jiu took a deep breath, suppressing her anxiety, [Not sure, I'll go and see.]
"Ding~" The elevator reached the basement.
Quan Jiu rushed out of the elevator and headed straight for the parking spot.
...
Yu Hui Club.
A person dressed entirely in a black suit hurried through the bustling lobby, private rooms, and VIP suites, finally arriving at the negative third floor. He entered a security door, shutting out all the noisy sounds behind him.
"Boss, Luo Su sent word that the house was burned down."
Gu Si's eyebrows rose. He slowly swirled the wine glass in his hand, and after a long moment, he downed the wine.
"Investigate."
"Yes." The man in the suit responded and then hurried away.
Gu Si looked at the wine glass in his hand, lost in thought for a moment, then suddenly put down the glass and stood up.
His waiting assistant, Su Bin, was about to follow, but Gu Si waved him off, "You stay."
...
The sky was overcast, and as night fell, it finally began to rain.
"Fortunately, it rained heavily last night. It's been raining these past few days, otherwise, if the fire had spread to the mountain, it would have been a forest fire."
Quan Jiu pursed her lips tightly and after a long while, asked, "Have they found the cause of the fire?"
"Lightning strike. Old houses like this are most prone to catching fire during heavy rain. Fortunately, no one was living in your house."
Quan Jiu was silent for a moment, then asked again, "Was it you who sent me the email?"
The firefighter looked surprised and shook his head, "I thought the owner of the house was no longer here. I didn't expect you to be back."
"Okay, thank you all." Quan Jiu smiled. "It's getting dark, please be careful on the road."
The firefighters nodded and reminded her, "People cannot go inside. This house might collapse again, so it's very dangerous to go in. Also, you can apply for free demolition for old houses like this. You should be able to find information by asking in town."