Reborn in 2000: I'm the Boss's Driver

It was 7:30 a.m. on the 29th day of the twelfth lunar month.

Lin Fan was fast asleep when he felt someone nudge him. He opened his eyes and saw that Wang Juan was already up, standing by the bed in her pajamas.

"The baby's fever has gone down," she said softly, a smile on her face.

Lin Fan snapped out of bed and headed straight for the children's room. Pushing open the door, he found the baby already awake, sitting on the floor playing with building blocks, his little face flushed, but not in a sickly way.

He knelt down and touched the child's forehead. It was warm, not hot.

"Really retired?" Lin Fan was still a little uneasy.

"Yes, I got up twice in the middle of the night to take my temperature, and it gradually came down." Wang Juan followed in. "Now her temperature is normal, but she's still a little listless."

The baby saw his father and reached out for a hug. Lin Fan picked him up, and the little guy rested his head on his shoulder, feeling soft and yielding.

"Are you still feeling unwell?" Lin Fan asked.

The baby shook his head.

"How about we stay home and rest well today?"

The little guy nodded.

After finishing breakfast, Lin Fan called Zhou Wenyuan to ask for leave. Upon hearing that the child was sick, Zhou Wenyuan granted his request without hesitation.

"Stay home and spend time with your children; work isn't urgent."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Fan looked at his two sons playing in the living room and felt much more at ease. Wang Juan was cleaning up the dishes in the kitchen, and her mother had already started preparing food for the New Year—fried meatballs and fried ribbonfish, the aroma wafting from the kitchen.

"Are you really not going to work today?" Wang Juan poked her head out from the kitchen.

"I won't go, Secretary Zhou has given me leave," Lin Fan said. "Perfect, I'll spend the morning with the kids, you go with Mom to buy New Year's goods. We didn't manage to buy any yesterday, did we?"

"Okay." Wang Juan wiped her hands. "Then I'll go to the market with Mom and be back at noon. What do you want to eat? I'll buy it while I'm there."

"Whatever, buy whatever you think is best."

After Wang Juan and her mother left, only Lin Fan and the two children were left at home. He sat on the carpet, playing with them, building blocks, and looking at picture books. Although the babies' fever had subsided, they were still not very energetic and wanted to be held after playing for a while.

Around ten o'clock, my phone rang. It was Zhao Gang.

"Director Lin, did I disturb you?"

"It's okay, go ahead and tell me."

"We've found the other two witnesses," Zhao Gang said. "One of them is Wang Hai, an employee of Li Jianguo's company. We've already contacted him. He agreed to meet, but we need to find a secluded place."

Why?

"He said Li Jianguo might have sent someone to keep an eye on him," Zhao Gang said in a low voice. "From the way he sounded, he seemed quite scared."

Lin Fan thought for a moment: "Where should we meet?"

"He said to find a teahouse and talk in a private room. The time was set for 3 pm today at the 'Qingxin Teahouse' in the south of the city."

"Okay, I'll go."

"What about the other one?" Lin Fan asked.

"The other one, Liu Ming, is the son of Li Jianguo's friend. He's not in the area now," Zhao Gang said. "I found out that he went to work in Shenzhen three years ago and didn't come back for the Spring Festival. I'll have to contact him after the Spring Festival."

"Alright, let's see Wang Hai first."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Fan checked the time. There were still several hours until 3 PM; he had plenty of time.

At noon, Wang Juan and her mother returned with bags full of New Year's goods—whole chickens and fish, various vegetables, and also melon seeds and candies.

"The market was so crowded, I was sweating buckets." Wang Juan put her things down. "Oh, by the way, I saw Secretary Zhou's driver, Xiao Zhang. He was also buying New Year's goods. We chatted for a bit, and he said that Secretary Zhou was in a meeting today, discussing the stability maintenance work for the political and legal system during the Spring Festival."

Lin Fan nodded. For ordinary people, the Spring Festival is a time for family reunion, but for the political and legal system, it's the busiest time. Public security, fire safety, and traffic—none of these can afford to go wrong.

After finishing his meal, Lin Fan checked his watch; it was 1:30.

"I have to go out this afternoon," he told Wang Juan.

"Going to work?"

"No, I'm going to meet someone in the south of the city. It's about the case." Lin Fan put on his coat. "I'll try to be back as soon as possible."

"The child is still sick," Wang Juan said, sounding a little unhappy.

"I know, but this is quite important." Lin Fan hugged her. "I promise, I'll be back as soon as we're done talking, without delay."

Wang Juan sighed, "Go ahead, go ahead. Anyway, I can't stop you from doing what you're supposed to do at work."

Lin Fan kissed her cheek and then went to check on the children in the nursery. Both little ones were fast asleep.

On his way to the south of the city, Lin Fan called Zhao Gang.

"Have you arrived yet?"

"We're here. I'll wait for you at the teahouse entrance," Zhao Gang said. "Wang Hai hasn't arrived yet. We agreed to meet at three o'clock, so we have twenty minutes to go."

Qingxin Teahouse is located on an old street in the south of the city. It has a small storefront and is decorated in an antique style. Lin Fan parked his car, and Zhao Gang came out to greet him.

"The private room is booked, the one at the very back on the second floor."

The two went up to the second floor. The private room wasn't big, with a tea table, a few chairs, and a window facing the back alley; it was quite quiet.

Just as he sat down, a waiter came in to make tea. After the waiter left, Zhao Gang checked his watch: "They should be here soon."

At exactly three o'clock, there was a gentle knock on the door of the private room. Zhao Gang went to open the door, and a man in his thirties stood in the doorway, wearing a gray down jacket, a mask, and a hat, completely covered up.

"Wang Hai?" Zhao Gang asked.

The man nodded, quickly slipped inside, and closed the door behind him. He took off his mask and hat, revealing a nervous face, his eyes constantly glancing towards the doorway.

"Have a seat," Lin Fan said, pointing to the chair opposite him.

Wang Hai sat down, his hands clasped tightly together: "You...are you really from the Political and Legal Affairs Commission?"

Lin Fan and Zhao Gang both showed their work IDs. Wang Hai looked at them carefully before relaxing a little.

"What do you want?" he asked, but his eyes darted around, clearly feigning ignorance.

"You were one of the witnesses to the case at Nightclub on August 15, 2006," Lin Fan said bluntly. "We reinvestigated the case and discovered some problems."

Wang Hai remained silent, his head bowed.

"Sun Qiang has already told us the truth," Zhao Gang said. "Back then, Li Jianguo made you give false testimony, right?"

Wang Hai suddenly looked up: "Sun Qiang said it?"

"He did speak, and he even wrote a statement." Lin Fan looked at him. "Wang Hai, perjury is illegal. But if you confess now, you can receive a lighter sentence."

There was a few seconds of silence in the private room. The water in the teapot gurgled softly.

"I..." Wang Hai began, his voice dry, "I had no choice. Back then, I worked for Li Jianguo's company, and he said he'd fire me if I didn't do what he said. My wife just gave birth, and the family depends on my salary..."

"What did he ask you to say?" Lin Fan asked.

"He said his son, Li Qiang, had beaten someone up at a bar, and fearing the victim would hold him accountable, he asked me to give false testimony, saying that Chen Xiaohu had beaten Li Qiang, and that I should identify Chen Xiaohu," Wang Hai said. "He gave me a photo and told me to remember his face. He also said that if the police asked, I should say that I saw Chen Xiaohu hitting someone with a bottle."

Did you see that?

"No," Wang Hai shook his head. "I was indeed at the bar that night, but I was sitting in a corner, quite far from where the fight was going to happen. I just saw one person hitting another, and then someone fell down. I didn't even see who did it."

Lin Fan and Zhao Gang exchanged a glance.

"How much money did Li Jianguo give you afterward?" Zhao Gang asked.

"Twenty thousand." Wang Hai smiled bitterly. "I took the money, but I've had a guilty conscience all these years. I know Chen Xiaohu was sentenced to six years. A young man, ruined just like that..."

"If you were asked to write a testimony, to tell the truth, would you be willing?" Lin Fan asked.

Wang Hai hesitated. He picked up the teacup, his hand trembling slightly, and some tea spilled out.

"Will Li Jianguo retaliate against me?" he asked in a low voice.

"He's in dire straits himself now," Lin Fan said. "Our investigation revealed that Li Jianguo is suspected of multiple illegal activities, including bribery and illegal business operations. If this case is overturned, he won't be able to escape."

Wang Hai thought for a long time before finally nodding: "I'll write it."

Zhao Gang took out paper and pen, and Wang Hai began to write his testimony. He wrote very slowly, pausing to think every few words, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

He finished writing, signed, and pressed his fingerprint. Wang Hai, as if all his strength had been used up, slumped into the chair.

"Is this... all right?" he asked.

"Okay, thank you for your cooperation." Lin Fan put away the testimony. "If anything happens recently, I'll contact you immediately."

Wang Hai put on a mask and hat and left in a hurry. Lin Fan and Zhao Gang sat in the private room for a while longer.

"Both witnesses have recanted their testimonies," Zhao Gang said. "Now we only need to talk about Liu Ming."

"Liu Ming is in Shenzhen, we'll talk about it after the New Year." Lin Fan glanced at his watch; it was almost four o'clock. "By the way, how's the investigation with lawyer Zhang Ming going?"

"I checked." Zhao Gang took out a document from his briefcase. "Zhang Ming, 48 years old, a local, runs a small law firm called 'Justice Law Firm,' mainly handling civil cases. I checked his bank statements from 2006 and found that a week before Chen Xiaohu's trial, his account received a transfer of 50,000 yuan from Li Jianguo."

"Just as I expected." Lin Fan sneered, "He took the money and did the job."

"But that's not enough," Zhao Gang said. "He has to admit it himself. This kind of person is incredibly stubborn."

Lin Fan thought for a moment: "Let's talk to him directly. Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, let's go this afternoon."

"Now?"

"Now."

The two left the teahouse and headed straight for the Justice Law Firm. The firm was located on the eighth floor of an office building; it wasn't very large, and a young woman was sitting at the reception desk, playing on her phone.

"Who are you looking for?" the girl asked without looking up.

"Find lawyer Zhang Ming," Zhao Gang said.

"Attorney Zhang is not here; he's out."

"Where did you go?"

"I don't know." The girl then looked up, saw that Zhao Gang was wearing a court uniform, and paused for a moment. "You... what do you need?"

"It's important," Lin Fan said. "When is he coming back?"

"It's hard to say, maybe this afternoon, maybe not at all," the girl said. "Why don't you leave your phone numbers so I can have him contact you?"

As they were talking, the elevator doors opened, and a middle-aged man in his forties stepped out, carrying a briefcase. He paused for a moment when he saw Lin Fan and Zhao Gang.

"Attorney Zhang!" the girl quickly stood up.

Zhang Ming forced a smile: "And you two are?"

"I'm from the Municipal Political and Legal Affairs Commission," Lin Fan said, showing his work ID. "I have something I'd like to discuss with you."

Zhang Ming's expression changed slightly, but he quickly recovered: "Oh, please come in, please come in. Let's talk in my office."

His office was very simple, with a desk, two bookshelves, and a sofa that was so old the leather was peeling. Zhang Ming invited the two to sit down and personally went to pour tea.

"No need for that," Lin Fan said. "Let's get straight to the point. You were the defense attorney in Chen Xiaohu's intentional assault case in 2006, right?"

Zhang Ming's hand trembled, and he almost spilled the tea: "Yes... there is such a case. What's wrong?"

"We reinvestigated the case and discovered some suspicious points," Zhao Gang said. "As a defense attorney, why didn't you present strong arguments back then? Accepting the prosecution's evidence entirely is not in accordance with a lawyer's professional ethics."

Zhang Ming put down the teapot and wiped his hands: "That...that case has solid evidence. I've reviewed the case file and feel there's not much room for defense, so..."

"No room for defense?" Lin Fan interrupted him. "Is it normal for the eyewitness testimonies to be so consistent? Did you notice the flaws in the fingerprint analysis of the murder weapon? Chen Xiaohu has consistently denied the charges; have you investigated that?"

A barrage of questions made Zhang Ming sweat: "I... I had only recently started practicing independently and lacked experience. Moreover, the client's family had limited financial resources and didn't offer much in legal fees, so I..."

"Is 50,000 too little?" Lin Fan said coldly.

Zhang Ming froze.

"On August 20, 2006, your account received a transfer of 8 yuan from Li Jianguo." Zhao Gang produced a copy of the bank statement. "Was this money for lawyer fees, or something else?"

The office was eerily quiet. The sound of car horns blaring from the street outside seemed particularly jarring.

Zhang Ming slumped into a chair, covering his face with his hands.

"I...I had no choice." His voice, trembling with sobs, came through his fingers. "Li Jianguo approached me and said he'd give me 50,000 yuan if I didn't defend myself too aggressively in court. At that time, my wife was sick and hospitalized, and we urgently needed the money. I...I was confused for a moment..."

"So you took the money and betrayed the person involved?" Lin Fan asked.

"I know I was wrong. I've regretted it every day these past few years." Zhang Ming raised his head, his eyes red. "I didn't spend a single penny of that 50,000 yuan; I saved it all this time. I wanted to find a chance to return it to Chen Xiaohu's family, but I didn't dare..."

Lin Fan looked at him, feeling little sympathy. Everyone has their own difficulties, but there are certain bottom lines that cannot be crossed.

"Write down what happened." Zhao Gang took out paper and pen. "Including how Li Jianguo contacted you, what he said, and how the money was given. Write it all down clearly."

Zhang Ming took the pen with trembling hands and began to write. He would stop to wipe his sweat after writing a few words, writing slowly but in great detail.

He finished writing, signed, and pressed his fingerprint. His hand was still trembling as he handed the testimony to Lin Fan.

"Will I...go to jail?" he asked softly.

"That depends on your attitude and the final outcome of the case," Lin Fan said. "But it's always better to confess voluntarily than to be found out."

It was almost dark when I left the law firm. The streets were getting busier, with more pedestrians heading home for the Chinese New Year.

"Now we have everything," Zhao Gang said. "Witness testimonies, lawyer's testimony, and bank statements. Li Jianguo can't escape now."

"We're missing one crucial link," Lin Fan said. "We need to find Li Qiang. He was involved, and only he knows what really happened back then."

"I checked, Li Qiang's family moved to Guangzhou, but I haven't found their exact address yet," Zhao Gang said. "After the New Year, I'll ask my colleagues in Guangzhou to help me look for them."

"Hmm, no rush."

The two parted ways at the street corner. Lin Fan drove home and called Wang Juan on the way.

"I'm almost home. What should we have for dinner?"

"Let's make dumplings," Wang Juan said. "Mom said we need to make some dumplings in advance for New Year's Eve and freeze them. You can help roll out the wrappers when you come back."

"Okay, wait for me."

When they got home, the dumplings were already half-finished. On the coffee table in the living room were a cutting board, a rolling pin, and a bowl of filling, where Wang Juan and her mother were busy working.

"Daddy!" The baby saw him and ran over.

Lin Fan picked up his son, who had regained his spirits and was squirming in his arms.

"It's so different now that the fever's gone," Lin Fan said with a smile, then looked at Bei Bei, "And you? Were you good today?"

Beibei was sitting on the floor playing with her toy cars, not even looking up: "Good girl."

Wang Juan handed him an apron: "Don't just stand there, come and do some work."

Lin Fan washed his hands and started rolling out the dumpling wrappers. He rolled them out quickly, and round dumpling wrappers flew out one after another, so fast that Wang Juan and her mother couldn't keep up with making them.

"Slow down, slow down! You've rolled it so thin, it'll break when you cook it," Wang Juan complained.

"Thin skin and big filling make it taste better," Lin Fan said with a smile.

The family chatted while making dumplings. The mother talked about how much preparation was needed for the New Year in the countryside, and how they would start preparing as early as the 23rd day of the twelfth lunar month.

"It's much simpler now; you can buy whatever you want to eat anytime," she said. "It's just that the festive atmosphere is weaker."

"Mom, let's go back to our hometown after the New Year," Lin Fan said. "It's been several years since we've been back."

"Sure, your dad was saying the other day that he wanted to go back and see the old house."

Just then, the doorbell rang. Lin Fan went to open the door, and it was Zhou Wenyuan's driver, Xiao Zhang, carrying two boxes.

"Director Lin, Secretary Zhou asked me to deliver this," Xiao Zhang said. "One box is nutritional supplements for the child, and the other box is wine for tomorrow noon."

"Oh, Secretary Zhou, you're too kind." Lin Fan accepted the gift. "Would you like to come in and sit for a while?"

"No, no, I have to pick up Secretary Zhou." Xiao Zhang waved his hand. "See you tomorrow at noon."

After seeing Xiao Zhang off, Lin Fan brought the things in. Wang Juan opened them and saw that the nutritional supplements were imported children's milk powder and vitamins, and the liquor was two bottles of Moutai, which looked quite old from the packaging.

"This wine must have been stored for over ten years, right?" Wang Juan said.

"This is a collection of Secretary Zhou's; he usually doesn't even drink it," Lin Fan said. "Make sure to cook some good dishes tomorrow, don't waste this fine wine."

After wrapping the dumplings, they were neatly arranged on the bamboo steamer. My mother cooked some, and froze the rest.

Steaming hot dumplings were served, dipped in vinegar and minced garlic, and the family enjoyed them immensely.

After dinner, they put the child to bed. Lin Fan and Wang Juan sat on the sofa, watching a pre-Spring Festival Gala program on TV.

"Tomorrow is Lunar New Year's Eve. Do you still have to go to work in the morning?" Wang Juan asked.

"I'll go there to take care of something and then come right back," Lin Fan said. "Secretary Zhou is coming over for lunch, so I'll come back early to prepare."

"Okay, I'll prepare the ingredients this morning, and you can cook them when you get back."

"Thanks a lot."

Wang Juan leaned on his shoulder: "What's so hard about it? It only happens once a year. By the way, I have something to tell you."

"Um?"

"I ran into Xiao Xu when I went shopping for New Year's goods today." Xiao Xu is Wang Juan's store manager in the provincial capital branch. "She said there's a shopping mall in the provincial capital that's looking to attract tenants, and the location is really good. She asked if we'd like to consider renting a shop there."

What do you think?

"I think we can give it a try," Wang Juan said. "'Juanfan' is already quite well-known in the provincial capital. Opening another specialty store should do good business. Besides, that shopping mall is newly built, so there's a guaranteed flow of people."

Lin Fan thought for a moment: "Is the rent expensive?"

"It's not cheap, 400,000 yuan a year," Wang Juan said. "But I've calculated that based on current sales, I should be able to earn it back. Besides, opening a franchise store is good for the brand image."

"Then let's do it," Lin Fan said. "I support what you've decided on."

Wang Juan laughed: "Aren't you afraid I'll lose money?"

"We can always earn it back if we lose," Lin Fan said, putting his arm around her. "It's not like we can't afford to lose money now."

They spoke with absolute confidence. Indeed, with their current assets, losing one or even three or five stores wouldn't cripple them.

But Wang Juan wouldn't do anything she wasn't sure of. Lin Fan knew this very well.

"Oh, right," Wang Juan suddenly remembered something, "Xiao Lei is coming back tomorrow, his school is on holiday."

"Great, the whole family is together now."

Outside the window, someone started setting off firecrackers, which crackled and popped for a while. The New Year is really approaching.

Lin Fan looked out at the night sky and thought of Wang Hai and Zhang Ming, whom he had met that afternoon. Their fear and their regret were real.

And what is Li Jianguo, the mastermind behind all this, doing now? Is he preparing for the New Year, or is he worried about being exposed?

And then there's Chen Xiaohu, spending his fourth Spring Festival in prison. How would he feel if he knew the case had taken a turn for the better?

These thoughts swirled in my mind, only to be suppressed.

Tomorrow is Chinese New Year, I'll stop thinking about these things for now.

Spend time with your family, enjoy a good meal, and have a proper New Year.

We'll continue with work after the New Year.

He turned off the TV and pulled Wang Juan up, saying, "Come on, let's go to sleep. We have to get up early tomorrow."

The bedroom light went out, and the house became quiet.

Only the sporadic sound of firecrackers in the distance reminded people that the new year was just around the corner.