After the breakup, I was taken in by a group of trendy young women.

In Shanghai, there is a teahouse hidden deep in an old alley.

The storefront is small, with the words "Half a Day of Leisure" engraved on a faded wooden plaque.

When Lin Ye arrived, Sun Bao was already sitting at the table by the window.

He was wearing a clean white shirt today, the collar was neatly buttoned, and the stubble on his chin was clean-shaven.

He still has the habit of unconsciously touching the back of his neck when he talks; it's a habit he picked up during his years as a sycophant, and he can't break it.

"You're here?"

Sun Bao stood up, his movements hurried.

Lin Ye sat down opposite him

Without exchanging pleasantries, Sun Bao picked up a dark gray canvas bag from beside the chair, took out a stack of ledgers and document copies wrapped in kraft paper, and pushed them in front of Lin Ye.

"Take a look and see if you can use it."

Lin Ye took the stack of account books

Lin Ye closed the ledger, leaned back in his chair, and glanced at Sun Bao: "How did Hou Guifen get these things?"

"Zhao Donglai used to have a habit of recording all his shady expenses in a separate ledger, separate from the official accounts. He kept that ledger in the safe in the car dealership office. Hou Guifen had helped Zhao Tianyun manage the Zhao family's accounts for a while and knew the combination to that safe."

"Zhao Donglai doesn't know?"

"He hasn't gone back to the car dealership since he got out. The dealership was shut down after being raided twice, most of his employees left, and the few remaining can't be contacted. He probably thought that the transaction record was still in the safe, and even if it was gone, no one would dare to take it out and use it."

Sun Bao: "Lin Ye, if these things are submitted, Zhao Donglai's case won't just be about illegal detention this time. Underground car gambling, illegal car modification, bribery, plus the liability for hit-and-run, he'll face multiple charges and at least five years in prison. As for Director Wang, if the records in the ledger are accurate, he won't escape either."

Lin Ye rewrapped the account book in brown paper and placed it beside him: "Okay. Zhao Donglai will definitely be going in this time."

Sun Bao looked at him, remained silent for two seconds, and then spoke: "What about the Shen family project..."

"Once Zhao Donglai's matter is settled, the Shen family will allocate a portion of the project to Hou Guifen. I'll discuss the specific amount with Shen Tong."

Sun Bao nodded: "Then I'll head back now. Hou Guifen is still waiting for news."

"Go."

Lin Ye remained seated and flipped to Shen Tong's number.

"Lin Ye? What's wrong?"

"We got Zhao Donglai's things. Account books, bank statements, photos—enough to put him in jail for five years."

"What is it?"

"All the illegal transactions, bribery records, and related evidence of accidents involving modified vehicles that his car dealership had accumulated over the years. Hou Guifen took these from the dealership's safe."

"Hou Guifen? When did you two start dating?"

"Sun Bao was the one who made the connection. A few days ago, Zhao Donglai went to Hou Guifen to demand the Zhao family's accounts, forcing her to return the more than seven million yuan that had been transferred. Hou Guifen panicked and sent Sun Bao to me. The condition was to exchange these things for the Shen family's project."

Shen Tong laughed: "Zhao Dong came to Hou Guifen to collect a debt? He certainly knows how to pick his time. Hou Guifen is the kind of person who, if you push her, will do anything."

"Give the project to Sun Bao. It doesn't need to be too big; start with a small one to test the waters. If Hou Guifen cooperates well, we can add more later."

"Sure. I happen to have two projects under negotiation. I'll subcontract one to the Zhao family. It's not a large project, but it should give them some breathing room."

"That's settled then. Give Zhao Donglai's account book to Qian Xiaomeng."

Okay. I'll wait for your reply.

It was a little after 3 p.m.

Qian Xiaomeng pushed open the door to Lin Ye's office.

"Where are Zhao Donglai's things?"

Lin Ye took the stack of ledgers wrapped in kraft paper out of the drawer and placed them on the table.

Qian Xiaomeng sat down in the chair opposite the desk, unwrapped the kraft paper, and flipped through the ledger page by page.

"Wang Deming... I've always felt that this person is not clean. A deputy director who has already retired to the second line, coming to the public security section in the middle of the night to pick up people, I felt something was wrong at the time. It turns out that he took so much from Zhao Donglai's car dealership."

She continued flipping through the pages, and when she reached the pages of accident records for the modified cars, her brows furrowed even more: "The time of these two accidents matches those two hit-and-run cases in the west of the city. The police investigated for months, but the trail went cold. It turns out the root of the problem lies here."

She closed the ledger, leaned back in her chair, and turned to look at Lin Ye: "I'll submit these documents directly to the branch office. The evidence chain for Zhao Donglai's case is complete. As for Wang Deming, who is involved in bribery, I will transfer that case to the disciplinary inspection department at the same time."

"The sooner the better. This guy has to get in."

Qian Xiaomeng nodded, rewrapped the ledger in brown paper, and put it into her canvas bag.

Then she leaned back in her chair, turned her head to look at him, her eyes watery.

"But how will you thank me?"

Lin Ye leaned back in his swivel chair, watching her expression.

He knew perfectly well what Qian Xiaomeng's look meant.

She sat on the chair with her back slightly turned, her waistline cinched tightly, the curve from the hem of her coat to her waistband clean and crisp.

"It's not convenient here."

I'll come to your apartment tonight.

"When you come over tonight, bring some food. I'll go straight home after get off work; my fridge is empty."

"What would you like to eat?"

"You can decide which one to buy."

Lin Ye picked up his phone, scrolled to Wang Xiaoying's chat window, and sent a message: "Tell Bai Xiaojing and the others about tomorrow's training. I'll be there later this morning."

Wang Xiaoying replied quickly: "Received. What time will you arrive tomorrow?"

Around ten o'clock.

"OK."

By the time the Panamera drove out of the training base, it was completely dark.

He first stopped in front of a roast meat shop that was still open on the roadside, bought half a roast goose and a braised platter, and then turned into the convenience store next door to get two bottles of ice-cold beer.

Lin Ye rang the doorbell, waited for about ten seconds, and then the door was opened from the inside.

Qian Xiaomeng changed into a dark blue silk slip dress with a neckline that was just right.

Her hair was down, and the ends still had a slight dampness from her recent shower.

She stood barefoot on the floor, tilted her head to look at him, and her gaze fell on the plastic bag in his hand.

"Roast goose?"

"And braised food."

"Come in."

She stepped aside to let Lin Ye pass through the doorway, and Lin Ye changed into slippers and walked into the living room.

Two sets of bowls and chopsticks and two clean water glasses were already set on the coffee table, with a bottle of red wine that had just been opened next to it.

"Didn't you say the refrigerator was empty?"

"I just went downstairs to buy it. The convenience store downstairs is having a wine sale today."

Lin Ye took the roast goose and braised meat out of the bag and placed them on the coffee table. Qian Xiaomeng bent down and took two plates from the low cabinet, chopped the roast goose into pieces and arranged them, and poured half a glass of red wine and placed it in front of him.

The two sat down on the sofa. Qian Xiaomeng picked up a piece of roast goose leg and put it in his bowl, then picked up a piece of goose wing for herself and started eating it.

Halfway through the meal, Qian Xiaomeng put down her chopsticks, picked up her wine glass, took a sip, and turned to look at him: "I'll submit the account book tomorrow morning. Is there anything else you want to add?"

"That's all. I've given you everything; just follow the procedures."

"Okay. I'll transfer Wang Deming's case to the disciplinary inspection department at the same time. If all goes well, we should have preliminary results next week."

"The sooner the better."

Qian Xiaomeng put the wine glass back on the coffee table, turned to face him, her knees slightly bent, and the hem of her silk nightgown bunched up on both sides of her hip bones as she sat down.

She looked at him

"Then we've finished discussing the important matters."

Lin Ye swallowed the last bite of roast goose, wiped his hands with a tissue, and turned to look at her: "Okay, I'm done."

Qian Xiaomeng stood up from beside him, stepped barefoot onto the carpet, walked to the window, and drew the curtains halfway.

Then she turned around, leaned against the windowsill, crossed her arms over her chest, and tilted her head to look at him.

"So, how do you plan to thank me now?"

"The bed in your apartment is softer than the one in the villa."

"You slept with me last time, you know that."

Lin Ye did not speak again.

He reached out and completely closed the curtains, leaving only the small warm glow of the table lamp in the living room.

Then he bent down, put one hand under her knees and the other hand on her back, and lifted her up from the windowsill.

Qian Xiaomeng adjusted her position in his arms, wrapped her arms around his neck, rested her face on his shoulder, and her voice came from the crook of his neck, muffled.

"The bedroom is on the left. The door isn't locked."