Eight years have passed, he's still going strong, but his girlfriend is having a mental breakdo

A vibrant female college student.

"sure."

Zhao Hongan readily agreed.

"I've been a bit busy lately and can't be home with you every day. It's good to have your best friend come over so you won't be bored at home."

"Thank you, sir."

Li Zimeng was overjoyed.

……

Jiuxi Manor.

This is a villa area comparable to Yunding No. 1 Courtyard.

A branch of the Tiger Spring runs through the manor, and each household has its own independent mountain spring water system, showcasing its luxury.

Lin Wanqiu stood by the water, holding a box of fish food, feeding the fish.

On the water beneath her feet, a group of koi carp were vying for food.

Behind her stood Wang Bao, his head wrapped in bandages, looking miserable.

Lin Wanqiu's back view was stunningly beautiful and alluring, but Wang Bao didn't dare to steal a single glance.

"How did it get like this?"

Lin Wanqiu's voice was cold and clear.

"This... was an accident. Sister-in-law, it was just an accident."

Wang Bao looked embarrassed.

I got a really bad beating from an old man...

How could he possibly say such a thing?

How embarrassing!

So embarrassing.

Wang Bao could only suffer in silence, not daring to tell anyone what had happened.

What followed was a depressing silence.

Wang Bao felt as if the air around him had frozen, and fine beads of sweat gradually seeped out from his forehead.

Finally, Lin Wanqiu slowly spoke:

"Leave the casino business to Song Yanxi for now. You have a month to recover from your injuries."

"Sister-in-law..."

Wang Bao panicked upon hearing this.

"Don't worry, I'm not trying to take your power."

Lin Wanqiu spoke, interrupting him.

"You should be aware of the current situation."

"What I want to see now is stability; I don't want any unexpected situations to occur."

"If you walk around with this injury, it will inevitably arouse all sorts of suspicions."

"Some fence-sitters, if they don't understand the situation and act rashly, will cause us a lot of trouble."

"Go and recover from your injuries. When you come back, the casino will still be yours."

"You're keeping an eye on Yanxi for you, don't you trust her? You don't actually think I'd be willing to send Song Yanxi to watch over the place, do you?"

Upon hearing Lin Wanqiu's words, Wang Bao breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'll listen to my sister-in-law."

"Um."

Lin Wanqiu nodded, stopped talking, and continued to focus on feeding the fish.

Upon seeing this, Wang Bao took his leave.

After he left, a young man strode in.

The man was thin, dressed in dress pants and leather shoes, with a shirt, a waistcoat, and gold-rimmed glasses. He was somewhat handsome, but his face was effeminate.

"Sister-in-law, you were looking for me?"

The bespectacled man stood smiling beside Lin Wanqiu.

"Did you go to Southeast Asia?"

Lin Wanqiu didn't turn her head, her tone still cold and aloof.

The bespectacled man's smile froze. He turned his head and angrily complained, "Which big mouth is gossiping in front of your wife again!"

Lin Wanqiu turned abruptly to the bespectacled man, her voice stern: "Su Mingsheng, I've told you before, don't associate with those people from Southeast Asia!"

"Sister-in-law, don't be angry. I just went to Southeast Asia for fun, and I didn't tell you because I was afraid you'd worry..."

Su Mingsheng smiled apologetically and tried to smooth things over.

"Su Mingsheng! Stop grinning at me! Don't think I don't know what you've been up to! I've told you countless times, we have no dealings with telecom fraud rings! That's our bottom line!"

"Telecom fraud syndicates are inhuman! How can you cooperate with them? Besides, can't you see the current state of the country?"

"Telecom fraud groups are like rats crossing the street, everyone wants to kill them! If you cooperate with them, you're just asking to be the first to stick your neck out! Aren't you afraid of not dying fast enough?"

Lin Wanqiu, however, was not buying it and responded sternly.

The smile on Su Mingsheng's face gradually disappeared.

"What humanity? What situation? Lin Wanqiu, don't forget, we run a casino. You run a casino too. Don't think you're so noble and righteous."

"How many people have lost their families and fortunes in your casinos? You're talking to me about humanity?"

"Su Mingsheng!"

Lin Wanqiu's voice was devoid of any emotion.

Su Mingsheng froze, his gaze slowly shifting away from Lin Wanqiu as he swallowed.

Lin Wanqiu's tone softened somewhat, but it remained unquestionable.

"Even running a casino has its bottom line. Besides, can't you see what the situation is online right now, and what the government's attitude is? Telecom fraud groups have already aroused public outrage."

"Those people are in Southeast Asia, and it's one thing for them to do whatever they want. But you're in China, and you're contacting them? Aren't you just asking for trouble?"

"If this gets out one day, the huge business your brother left behind will collapse and vanish in a single day."

Su Mingsheng breathed a sigh of relief, looked at Lin Wanqiu, and asked in return:

"Why would I expose it? Sister-in-law, I scored 638 on the college entrance exam back then, and I graduated from a 985 university. You don't think I'm stupid, do you?"

"Our casinos are small-scale operations; we can't grow big. Besides, doing this offline is really dangerous."

"You think you're safe just because you're behind the scenes? Once we're caught, the trail will lead to us all being implicated."

"Online is truly safe! I'm in Singapore, and I've already assembled a team. We develop the software, coordinate money laundering—it's all done in one go."

"Even if something goes wrong, at most we'll lose some bank cards and some links. We can just start over. Are they going to go to Southeast Asia to arrest people?"

Su Mingsheng's eyes lit up.

"Su Mingsheng!"

Lin Wanqiu was furious.

"You underestimate the power of the state! The only safe way to deal with something that crosses the line is not to do it at all."

"Otherwise, you should be prepared to go abroad and never come back. Even if you were willing to go, do you really think it's safe abroad?"

"It's even more chaotic abroad, a dog-eat-dog world! Once you're abroad, you're just a piece of meat! Without the protection of citizenship in a major power, everyone can take a bite out of you! Your money won't even be yours!"

"Even your brother, before he left, was already planning to cut ties with the casino business and launder his identity..."

"Lin Wanqiu!"

Su Mingsheng couldn't take it anymore.

"Do you feel that everything I do is wrong? It's always been like this?"

"When my brother was alive, you only had eyes for him, not for me!"

"My brother is only a few years older than me, which doesn't mean he's smarter or more capable than me."

"I was able to get into a 985 university, but my brother couldn't! He didn't even go to college."

"I like my brother very much! I respect him a lot! But he was able to build the Qiangsheng Group because he was born at the right time and caught the wave."

"We're both casinos, he operates offline, I operate online, does that mean he's cleaner than me?"

Snapped.

No sooner had Su Mingsheng finished speaking than Lin Wanqiu slapped him hard across the face.

Su Mingsheng was stunned by the slap.

"Su Mingsheng! Don't force me to send you to America's University!"

Lin Wanqiu's tone was firm and cold.

Su Mingsheng suppressed his anger.

"Sister-in-law, times have changed. Everything is online now, and it's safer online."

"I know you've always wanted to clear your name and get out of trouble."

"But in our line of work, there's no such thing as a guaranteed way out."

"Our Qiangsheng Group has supported so many people over the years! They're all just waiting to be fed."

"If you feed them meat, they're obedient dogs. But if you stop feeding them meat, you're the meat!"

"If you think you can stop now, the moment you turn around, you'll be engulfed in flames! You'll die a horrible death!"

"We have no way out! We'll either die a pathetic death now, or we'll die a glorious death in the future..."

"Sister-in-law, don't be so naive!"

After Su Mingsheng finished speaking, he turned and left.