The first thing I did was to find out

Chapter 600 Dang Kang's Gift

Wang Gensheng fell silent, which was normal. Even if he woke up, he would still be Grandpa Wang, and Grandpa Wang's language expression ability was relatively poor.

“Old Shi is Xu Mo, and Master Qin, you know that Xu Nuo is a spirit, so you…” Wang Gensheng did not answer Qin Huai’s question, but was wondering how Qin Huai knew all this.

Qin Huai said, "I am the male protagonist of a system novel. You should have heard that I have mental problems and often fantasize about having a system. I really do have a system. But that's not the point. I'll explain everything to you later. I'd like you to answer my question first."

Wang Gensheng nodded and slowly said, "What happened back then... was very complicated. They didn't actually want Xu Nuo dead; they just wanted to warn Xu Nuo and me, but..."

"Master Qin, do you know what happened next?"

Qin Huai nodded: "A year after Xu Nuo's death, you filed a formal complaint against the deputy factory director and a group of other leaders for embezzlement, bribery, buying and selling factory materials, and misappropriating factory assets. The deputy factory director and several other high-ranking leaders were sentenced to death, and your section chief at the time was sentenced to ten years, I think."

"That's pretty much it."

“At that time, our cotton mill had three deputy directors. The one with the most power was Deputy Director Zhou, and that's the one I reported. Director Xu was too upright and didn't show much leniency in his work, so he had very few loyal followers in the factory. Before I joined the factory, Director Xu had already discovered that there were corrupt officials in the factory who were deceiving their superiors and subordinates and had a lot of power. Back then, Director Xu would go to universities to poach people and recruit new people into the factory because he wanted to bring in fresh blood to investigate the corruption in the factory.”

"He just didn't expect that I would discover this before I even passed his observation period."

"I only found out later that the reason I was able to find out the problem by reading the accounts was because Deputy Factory Director Zhou and his team were already starting to have problems. They didn't have a very good accountant to keep the accounts perfect. As the amount of money increased, the factory started to decline, and Factory Director Xu started to implement reforms, such as reselling defective cloth. It became more and more difficult for them to resell materials. At that time, they were on the verge of a financial disaster."

"That's why the section chief thought highly of me and tried to coerce and entice me to join them. They need a good accountant to help them with the books, not only to do the future accounts, but also to redo the old ones."

“Xu Nuo’s death was not because I submitted the materials. Director Xu investigated very carefully, and the other party did not know that we had already obtained evidence.”

"They were simply trying to warn me."

Qin Huai: ? ? ?
“At that time, our section chief reported to the higher-ups and explained my situation. They were very interested in me and felt that they were only one step away from getting me in. The section chief suggested that I write an IOU to reward me with my father’s medical expenses, so that I could see their sincerity in trying to win me over. But Director Zhou thought I was too young and too stubborn, and wanted me to suffer more so that I would take the initiative to beg them.”

“Originally, Xu Nuo had nothing to do with this, but they all knew that Xu Nuo was rich and were afraid that he would steal things from home to sell and borrow money for my medical expenses, thus ruining their plans. So they wanted to teach Xu Nuo a lesson, or rather, give me a warning, so that I would consciously stay away from Xu Nuo.”

“That day was the Mid-Autumn Festival. Xu Nuo had ordered lard and pine nuts in the countryside. He originally planned to borrow the kitchen of the state-run restaurant to make red silk cakes after returning from the countryside.”

"They found out Xu Nuo's whereabouts and knew that he would definitely go to the countryside to pick up the goods that afternoon, and they also knew the approximate time. Director Zhou's original plan was to hire a few thugs to pretend to be robbers, beat him up, steal the goods and bicycle, and give him a warning."

"But the logistics director hates Factory Director Xu."

“He was caught cheating by Director Xu and was originally going to be promoted to deputy director, but he hasn’t been promoted since. He not only wanted to teach me and Xu Nuo a lesson, but also Director Xu, so he changed the robbery into a car accident.”

"And among those who carried out the execution, some hated Xu Mo."

"The racing team is a lucrative position, and there are only a limited number of spots. He promised to spend money to pull strings and get Xu Mo into the team, but he ended up paying money and not getting in. He wants to use this opportunity to make Xu Mo commit a crime and get fired."

"And the person who carried it out last tampered with the brakes because of laziness, which led to..." Wang Gensheng scratched his head in anguish as he said this, "How absurd."

"At the time, Director Xu and I, even before Xu Nuo died, thought that they had discovered that Xu Nuo had helped me submit the report materials and that they wanted to kill Xu Nuo. In the end, it was because of this ridiculous reason that Xu Nuo lost his life."

Qin Huai didn't know what to say.

While novels, movies, and TV series may require logic in their plots, reality often doesn't.

Just when Qin Huai thought he could deduce a plausible truth about Xu Nuo's death from his memories, Wang Gensheng told him that the truth was even more absurd than he had imagined. It all turned out to be an accident, an accident that seemed meticulously planned.

“Xu Mo committed suicide the day after Xu Nuo died.” Wang Gensheng glanced at Shi Dadan. Shi Dadan didn’t react much and continued drinking tea as before, but a closer look would reveal that his teacup was already empty.

"Xu Nuo is dead, the driver who caused the accident is dead, and since Director Xu is unwilling to pursue the matter, this case is closed."

“At the time, I wanted to fight them to the death. I wanted to report them directly to higher authorities, put up big-character posters, and make a huge fuss. I didn’t know who killed Xu Nuo, and I didn’t know how many people were in Deputy Factory Director Zhou’s group. At the time, I didn’t even know that Deputy Factory Director Zhou was the mastermind, but I wanted to avenge Xu Nuo.”

“I even thought about going to the section chief’s house in the middle of the night with a knife to threaten him and make him tell me who orchestrated this whole thing that killed Xu Nuo, and then I would die with them.”

"In the end, it was Director Xu who persuaded me to stop, but I know that it was actually Xu who persuaded me to stop."

"He made me a good accountant, made me stay true to myself, made me do what I thought was right, and made me not regret it years later. Those who killed Xu Nuo and made Xu Mo commit suicide must pay the price for their lives. Those who embezzled and accepted bribes, those who bought and sold factory materials, and those who falsified accounts to cover up the truth must pay the price for their actions."

"In order to find out the truth, the factory director did not investigate Xu Nuo's death in depth. Deputy Factory Director Zhou and the others were also afraid. They were afraid that if the factory director found out who did it, they would fight to the death, and they were afraid that I would guess the truth and report it. They did not dare to recruit me, but only warned me. The section chief gave me the cold shoulder and found an excuse to transfer me to another place."

"They even spread rumors everywhere to smear Xu Nuo's death and try to distance themselves from the matter."

"I did not take any action as the factory manager said. I just quietly checked the accounts for a year, thoroughly investigated all the accounts of the cotton mill over the years, and found all the problems. In the end, the factory manager originally wanted me to submit the materials and resolve everything."

“If I were to report this under my real name, my colleagues would distance themselves from me, my superiors would fear me, and everyone would praise my fair and selfless behavior while instinctively fearing and distancing themselves from me. Director Xu doesn’t want me to go through any of that.”

“But I refused.”

“I’m going to do what an accountant should do, and what I believe I should do. This matter started because of me, and it should end because of my whistleblowing.”

"You should be able to find out what happened next, Master Qin. Deputy Factory Director Zhou and his gang were all laid off, while I continued to work as an accountant in the cotton mill. Just as Director Xu had predicted, the leaders were afraid of me, and my colleagues kept their distance from me. Until the cotton mill went bankrupt, I remained an ordinary accountant. Before the cotton mill went bankrupt, Director Xu asked a friend to write a letter of recommendation for me, and I was transferred to Shanshi."

“No one in Shanshi knows what I did in Suzhou, but maybe it’s because of my personality, or maybe it’s because I always remembered what Xu Nuo said to me before he died, I often offended people, so I was just an ordinary accountant until I retired.” At this point, Wang Gensheng sighed: “Actually, I never understood why Xu Nuo insisted on seeing me before he died, why he insisted on saying those things to me, why he wouldn’t let me avenge him. Why was he so enthusiastic towards me from the beginning? Why was it that everyone else found it hard to tolerate my personality, but he was the only one who took the initiative to be my friend and help me so much.”

"I only realized after I woke up that he was my lifeline."

"Even if this isn't my last life, I still feel like he's my lifeline."

"He pretended to be an ordinary person until the very last moment of his life, risking his own life to help me overcome my tribulation."

Qin Huai saw that Wang Gensheng's eyes were red.

"But who can be his straw?"

Shi Dadan was still pretending to drink tea, holding the cup up without putting it down.

“Xu Mo, no, Lao Shi.” Wang Gensheng looked at Shi Dadan, “I’m sorry, I didn’t pay back the money you borrowed from me in my past life, and I indirectly caused you to commit suicide.”

“It’s alright.” Shi Dadan put down his cup. “I don’t know how much money I borrowed from you. All my money is with Xu Nuo. He just told me about it.”

“My death has nothing to do with you. I committed suicide because I was too stupid. I took my own life after I realized that I had failed to transcend the tribulation.”

Shi Dadan's voice was as calm and even as before. After he finished speaking, he subconsciously looked up at Qin Huai, met Qin Huai's gaze, and smiled at him after seeing the worry in Qin Huai's eyes.

“Over the years, I have never dared to go to Suzhou, nor have I dared to inquire about Xu Nuo’s death. When I started to inquire, I found that I couldn’t find out anything, and I felt a little disappointed,” Shi Dadan said. “I was afraid that he was murdered but the murderer was not punished. I was afraid that there was no real murderer and that I was the murderer.”

"Now... I just hope he won't blame me."

“Old Shi, Xu Nuo doesn’t blame you,” Qin Huai said. “I saw it in my memory. Xu Nuo told Factory Director Xu that he was a spirit, and that he might not have memories in his next life. If he did have memories, he would definitely come back to find Factory Director Xu and ask Factory Director Xu to wait for him to come back.”

"He told Director Xu not to blame Grandpa Wang, and also not to blame you. He told Director Xu that you are also a cunning person who is not good at dealing with people, and asked him to take better care of you."

As soon as Qin Huai finished speaking, the game notification sounded in his mind. At the same time, Qin Huai saw Shi Dadan lower his head slightly, staring straight at the table. Two tears fell straight down from his eyes and landed on the table, becoming a single tear that did not disperse.

"Ding! Congratulations on completing the side quest [Dang Kang's Wish] and receiving the quest rewards [Dang Kang's Gift] and [A recipe randomly given to you by Dang Kang]."

Qin Huai ignored the game notification sound in his mind and looked at Shi Dadan with some concern.

Shi Dadan calmly looked up, as if he hadn't just shed tears, and asked, "Have I completed my side quest?"

"finished."

"So now can I give you the gift and the recipe?"

Qin Huai was surprised that Shi Dadan actually remembered the reward for this side quest, especially since it had been triggered six months ago. Qin Huai had only mentioned the quest details and reward to Shi Dadan once when the quest was triggered, and hadn't brought it up again since.

Shi Dadan has such a good memory, he should study humanities!

"It should be possible." Qin Huai wasn't entirely sure, so he checked the game panel and found that the situation was the same as when Chen Gong woke up last time.

"Old Shi, just pick anything you think you should give me as a gift. As for the recipe, you can take some time to choose one. Pick the best recipe you've ever had, just select it and think about giving it to me. The game system will automatically determine the recipient."

"Can I give you a gift in a few years?" Shi Dadan asked. "I haven't been doing the seafood business seriously these past few years. Give me a few years so I can go back and focus on aquaculture, make more money, and then I'll give you a gift."

"Mr. Luo gave you such a large gift, if I give less... although I certainly can't compare to him, I can't be too far behind."

Qin Huai: ...

Qin Huai said he really didn't understand the competitive mentality of you guys. Luo Jun has assets worth billions, why do you have to compare this?

However, Shi Dadan does make money quite easily, especially in animal husbandry, where Kang's talent skills are just too good.

"Old Shi, you don't need to give me too much. Luo Jun has no children, and besides, I'll have to return most of his inheritance to him when he's reincarnated in a few years. You have a wife and children, unlike Chen Gong and Qu Jing who are single. Just give me whatever you want."

“It’s okay, I can tell my wife that I’m doing business with you. If I work hard to make money these past few years, my wife will think it’s because of our partnership, and she’ll feel it’s only right that she gives you money,” Shi Dadan said.

Wang Gensheng, completely bewildered: ...

"Excuse me for interrupting, what was the gift you were talking about? Should I give one too?" Wang Gensheng, who had been in a rather low mood, was quickly brought back to normal by the interruption. "Mr. Luo... did you give Master Qin a fortune of several billion?"

“I don’t have that much inheritance to leave, and I also have a wife and children, and I have nephews and nieces.”

"Can I transfer ownership of only one property?"

Qin Huai: ...

"Uncle Wang, please don't rush. Let me first give you a general overview of our situation, and then we can discuss the details."

(End of this chapter)