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

Lin Fan woke up promptly at 6:30 a.m.

This habit was formed over many years and couldn't be changed. He got up quietly, afraid of waking Wang Juan and the two children. After washing up, he changed into his workout clothes and went downstairs for a run.

The neighborhood was quiet, with only a few elderly people exercising early in the morning. Lin Fan jogged along the riverbank, breathing in the morning air. The April morning was still a bit chilly, but running warmed him up.

After running five kilometers, I went home and took a shower. Wang Juan was already up and making breakfast in the kitchen.

"Are you going to the hospital again today?" she asked.

"Yes, Secretary Zhou is alone in the hospital. I'm going to keep him company." Lin Fan dried his hair. "What about you? Are you going to the provincial capital today?"

"Go, the shop over there is finishing up renovations, I need to go check it out." Wang Juan put the fried eggs on a plate. "Are you... really okay?"

Lin Fan knew what she was asking. Being dismissed and placed on probation—anyone else might have collapsed by now. But he was genuinely fine.

"It's really nothing." He smiled. "Actually, this is quite good. No meetings, no document approvals, no dealing with all that messy stuff. I just keep Secretary Zhou company and help him with some miscellaneous tasks. It's quite nice."

Wang Juan looked at him, making sure he really thought that way, before letting out a sigh of relief: "As long as you have a good attitude, that's fine. I'm just worried you'll feel stifled."

"I'm not upset." Lin Fan sat down to eat. "Every cloud has a silver lining. Maybe this is a good thing."

After finishing his meal, Lin Fan drove to the hospital. While waiting at a red light, he glanced at himself in the rearview mirror. He was thirty years old, his face was wrinkle-free, but there was something different in his eyes.

In his past life, he worked himself to the bone to make money. In this life, he had money and held an official position, but now that he has none of that, he feels relieved.

Upon arriving at the hospital, Lin Fan parked the car and went upstairs. Zhou Wenyuan was in a private room, which was quite nice. When Lin Fan pushed open the door, Zhou Wenyuan was leaning against the headboard reading documents, his left hand still in a cast, turning the pages with his right hand.

"Brother Zhou, your injury hasn't healed yet, and you're already looking at documents?" Lin Fan put down the fruit he had brought.

"What can I do if I don't look at it? I have a ton of things to do." Zhou Wenyuan put down the documents, looked at him, and said, "You're here? Have a seat."

Lin Fan pulled up a chair, sat down, and picked up an apple to peel.

"You..." Zhou Wenyuan hesitated, "Are you really alright?"

Lin Fan laughed: "Why are you asking the same question as Wang Juan? It's really nothing. I'm perfectly fine, aren't I?"

"He was perfectly fine?" Zhou Wenyuan sighed. "The deputy secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission, a full-fledged division-level official, just gone like that. Anyone would be devastated in his shoes."

"I'm not feeling bad." Lin Fan handed the peeled apple to Zhou Wenyuan. "Brother Zhou, to tell you the truth, I never really wanted to be a high-ranking official."

Zhou Wenyuan took the apple but didn't eat it: "What do you mean?"

"I just feel at ease working for you." Lin Fan leaned back in his chair. "Do you remember 2003? I had just been reborn... no, I had just started working as a temporary worker at the Finance Bureau. That's when I met you and started driving for you. At that time, I thought, this job is pretty good, stable. Later, you promoted me step by step, team leader, deputy director of the county party committee office, director of the political and legal committee office, deputy secretary... To be honest, I didn't pay much attention to these positions."

He paused for a moment: "What I care about is being able to do something practical with you. Developing the night market economy in Tuxian County so that the people have food to eat; developing e-commerce so that agricultural products can be sold; investigating wrongful convictions in the Political and Legal Affairs Commission so that the wronged can see the light of day again... I think these things are worthwhile."

Zhou Wenyuan looked at him with a complicated expression.

"I really think things are great now," Lin Fan continued. "It's so liberating to be free of official duties. I'll continue to drive you around in nice cars and handle some official business for you. We'll keep fighting them. That Zhang Jianguo, and the people behind him, must be eliminated."

"Have you thought this through?" Zhou Wenyuan said. "You have no official position or power now, making it even more difficult for you to investigate cases."

"It's precisely because it's difficult that we need to investigate," Lin Fan said. "If we can't do it openly, we'll do it covertly. If they can use underhanded methods, we can use methods too."

Zhou Wenyuan was silent for a moment, then took a bite of his apple: "What are your plans?"

"Take good care of you first, so you can be discharged from the hospital as soon as possible," Lin Fan said. "Then, the investigation still needs to be done. The investigation with Zhao Gang is still ongoing. Although I no longer hold a position, I can still offer him advice. In addition, I plan to investigate some things myself."

"Investigate what?"

"Investigate Zhang Jianguo's network of connections in the steel city," Lin Fan said. "He's been operating here for so many years, it's impossible for him to leave no trace. The clues Li Jianguo provided can be thoroughly investigated. Also, the source of his daughter's funding for studying in Australia, although difficult to trace, is not untraceable."

Zhou Wenyuan nodded: "Tell me what you need. Even though I'm in the hospital, I can still do some things."

"You should focus on recovering," Lin Fan said with a smile. "I can handle this."

Just then, someone knocked on the door. Zhao Gang arrived.

"Secretary Zhou, Lin..." He saw Lin Fan, paused, and said, "Old Lin."

"Director Zhao is here." Lin Fan stood up. "Sit down."

Zhao Gang sat down, his face grim. "Secretary Zhou, we've all heard about Lin... Old Lin's matter. Everyone's dissatisfied, but..."

"No need to say anything more." Lin Fan waved his hand. "I will obey the organization's decision. You all continue with what you were doing and don't let it affect you."

"But……"

"No buts," Lin Fan said seriously. "Zhao Gang, the cases of Chen Xiaohu, Wang Zhiqiang, and Zhang Jianguo still need to be investigated. I'm not on duty anymore, but you can help. If there's anything I can do to help you, just say so."

Zhao Gang's eyes were a little red: "Secretary Lin, you..."

"Don't call me Secretary anymore, just call me Old Lin." Lin Fan patted him on the shoulder. "Go on, and do your job well."

After Zhao Gang left, Zhou Wenyuan looked at Lin Fan and asked, "Are you really able to let go?"

"I can let it go," Lin Fan said. "Brother Zhou, you know me. I don't care about fame or fortune now. What I care about is peace of mind and being true to my conscience. Things are fine as they are now."

Zhou Wenyuan looked at him for a long time before finally laughing: "Alright, you're more optimistic than me. Let's keep going then. My arm will be healed in two months. Then we'll settle the score with them properly."

"Um."

At noon, Lin Fan got lunch at the hospital cafeteria and ate with Zhou Wenyuan. After lunch, Zhou Wenyuan wanted to rest, so Lin Fan went out.

Instead of going home, he drove to the old town.

That old town area has many old streets and alleys, few surveillance cameras, and a diverse population. That's where he was kidnapped last time. Although the police investigated and found nothing, he wanted to see for himself.

The car stopped at the street corner, and Lin Fan got out and slowly walked in. The street was lined with old houses, some already demolished, others still inhabited. Occasionally, an elderly person would sit in their doorway basking in the sun, and upon seeing him, would look at him curiously.

He walked to the place where he had been kidnapped that day. It was a T-junction with a narrow alley next to it. The alley was so narrow that it was difficult for two people to walk side by side. If the bread cart were parked in the alley, it would indeed be difficult to spot.

Lin Fan stood at the intersection, looking around. There was a small shop diagonally opposite, with a shabby sign hanging at the entrance.

He walked over. An old lady was sitting in the convenience store, watching TV.

"Auntie, I'd like to buy a pack of cigarettes," Lin Fan said.

"What kind of cigarettes do you want?" the old lady asked, standing up.

Do you have Soft Zhonghua cigarettes?

"Yes," the old lady said, taking a package from the counter. "Sixty-five."

Lin Fan paid, opened the cigarette pack, and handed one to the old lady: "Auntie, I have something to ask you."

"What is it?" The old lady took the cigarette and lit it.

"Was something happen around here a few days ago?"

The old lady thought for a moment and said, "It seems so. That morning, I heard a commotion outside, so I went out to see what was going on. There was a car parked on the side of the road, and several people were gathered around it, seemingly fighting. I didn't get a good look, so I went back inside."

"And then?"

"Then the police cars came, and everyone dispersed," the old woman said. "By the way, there was always a white van parked at the entrance of the alley those few days; I'd never seen it before."

Lin Fan's heart skipped a beat: "A bread truck? What's that like?"

"It was just a regular white one, quite old," the old woman said. "It was gone for about two days, then disappeared on the third day."

Do you remember the license plate?

"I don't remember, who remembers that?" The old lady shook her head. "But the driver was a man, in his thirties, wearing a hat, who got out to buy cigarettes."

What kind of cigarettes should I buy?

"Hongtashan cigarettes, the seven-yuan kind."

Lin Fan asked a few more questions, but the old lady didn't know much. He thanked her and left the shop.

The white van had been parked for several days; the driver wore a hat and smoked Hongtashan cigarettes. The police may not have found this information because the old woman might not have told them.

But this is a clue.

Lin Fan made a note of it. He didn't rush to tell the police, but planned to investigate it himself first.

After leaving the old town, he called Wang Xin.

"Brother Xin, help me investigate something."

"Fanzi, you speak."

"A white van driver in the steel city, around thirty years old, wearing a hat, smoking Hongtashan cigarettes. Can you help me find out if there's such a person?"

"Okay, I'll ask," Wang Xin said. "But Brother Lin, why are you looking into this?"

"Something came up." Lin Fan didn't say much. "Be careful, don't make a fuss."

"clear."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Fan drove home. On the way, he thought about what the old lady had said.

That white van was parked at the alley entrance for two days. What does that mean? It means the other party had scouted the area beforehand and knew he would be passing by that day.

How did the other party know his itinerary? There are only two possibilities: either they were following him, or someone leaked the information.

Tracking them requires manpower. The fact that they've revealed this suggests they have someone on the inside.

Lin Fan preferred the former. If there was someone on the inside, that would be even more troublesome.

He arrived home around 3 p.m. His mother was playing downstairs with their baby, Beibei. When they saw him come home, the two children ran over.

"dad!"

Lin Fan held one in each arm: "Were you a good boy/girl today?"

"Good boy!" the two children said in unison.

"Mom, is Wang Juan back?" he asked.

"Not yet, they said there's a lot going on in the provincial capital, I'll be there later," my mother said. "Have you eaten?"

"They've eaten. They ate at the hospital." Lin Fan put the children down. "Mom, you play with them for a while, I'm going upstairs to rest."

"Go."

Lin Fan went upstairs, but instead of resting, he turned on his computer. He began organizing Zhang Jianguo's information.

Although he was dismissed from his post, his mind is still sharp. Some things are easier to do than to be an official.

He created a document, meticulously outlining Zhang Jianguo's network of connections. It included details about the victims in the Li Jianguo, Liu Zhiqiang, and Wang Zhiqiang cases, the shell companies, remittances from Australia…

Each clue may seem unrelated, but they may be connected.

I was busy when my phone rang. It was my sister, Lin Ping.

"Xiao Fan, are you home?"

"Yes, what's wrong, sis?"

"I made some soup and I'll bring some over to you. You've been... in a bad mood lately, so this is good for you."

Lin Fan felt a warmth in her heart: "No need, sis, I'm fine."

"What do you mean 'good'? You've lost your job, how can that be good?" Lin Ping said. "Don't force yourself, I know you've had a tough time. I'm coming over now, just wait for me."

After hanging up the phone, Lin Fan shook his head. His sister was always like that, always feeling he'd been wronged.

He wasn't really wronged. In this life, he had experienced a lot, so this setback was nothing.

Forty minutes later, Lin Ping arrived, carrying a thermos. Sun Lin also arrived, with Niu Niu.

"Uncle!" Niu Niu ran over.

Lin Fan picked up his niece: "Niu Niu has grown taller again."

"Xiao Fan, quick, drink it while it's hot." Lin Ping opened the thermos; it contained black chicken soup. "You've lost weight recently."

"I haven't lost weight at all," Lin Fan said with a smile as he took the soup. "Sis, I'm really fine."

"It's still alright." Lin Ping sat on the sofa. "You were a perfectly good deputy secretary, and you were dismissed just like that. And Secretary Zhou, why didn't he protect you?"

"Secretary Zhou protected me, but this matter has blown up and is difficult to handle," Lin Fan said. "Sister, don't worry, I'm fine now. Really."

Sun Lin spoke up: "Xiao Fan, if you're upset, just tell us. We can't really help, but we'll listen."

"Brother-in-law, I'm really not unhappy," Lin Fan said earnestly. "Let me put it this way, when I was the deputy secretary, I was so busy every day that I barely had time to breathe, and by the time I got home, the kids were already asleep. Now it's much better; I have time to spend with my family and time to do what I want to do. I think it's great."

Lin Ping and Sun Lin exchanged a glance, and seeing that he really didn't seem to be faking it, they were slightly relieved.

"Then... what will you do in the future?" Lin Ping asked.

"Just do what you're supposed to do," Lin Fan said. "Drive for Secretary Zhou and help him with some things. We'll see how things go after this is over."

"Sigh..." Lin Ping sighed, "You, what did you do to deserve this?"

"Some things aren't a matter of whether you provoke them or not," Lin Fan said. "Since you've encountered them, you have to face them."

After having some soup and chatting for a while, Lin Ping and her family left. Lin Fan saw them downstairs and watched his brother-in-law drive away in the Land Cruiser he had given them, feeling quite at ease.

The greatest blessing is for family members to be safe and sound.

Wang Juan returned home that evening, looking exhausted.

"How is it?" Lin Fan asked.

"It's alright, the renovations are basically finished, we should be able to open on May Day without any problems." Wang Juan took off her coat. "What about you? Did you go to the hospital today?"

"Yes, I chatted with Secretary Zhou for a while." Lin Fan massaged her shoulders. "Are you tired?"

"Tired, but fulfilled." Wang Juan leaned against him. "Xiao Fan, don't you feel wronged?"

"I don't think so," Lin Fan said. "Actually, I've figured it out. In this life, what I seek is a stable and wealthy life. But stability is not retreat, and wealth is not weakness. Now that someone is preventing me from having a stable life, I have to let them know that I'm not someone to be trifled with."

Wang Juan looked up at him: "What do you want to do?"

"Do what needs to be done," Lin Fan said. "Zhang Jianguo and his ilk have done so many bad things; we can't let them get away with it. Now that I'm out of office, it's actually more convenient for me. Some things can't be done openly, but can be done covertly."

"Be careful," Wang Juan said, holding his hand. "Those people are capable of anything."

"I know." Lin Fan hugged her tighter. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."

It was late at night, and the two lay in bed. Wang Juan quickly fell asleep, but Lin Fan couldn't.

He thought about what the old lady had said today, about Zhang Jianguo's network of connections, and about how Secretary Zhou looked in the hospital.

This path is not easy. But since we've chosen it, we have to keep going.

In this life, he was reborn, with memories of his previous life, accumulated wealth, and reliable relationships.

These are the reasons for his confidence.

One may not hold an official position, but one cannot neglect one's duties.

People may choose not to argue, but they cannot choose not to argue about the truth.

Lin Fan closed his eyes and slowly fell asleep.

In his dream, he saw Chen Xiaohu on the day he was released from prison, embracing his family and crying bitterly. He also saw Wang Zhiqiang in prison, his eyes vacant.