Gangster heir? Please call me a legitimate entrepreneur.

The jarring dial tone echoed through the cramped garage.

The office of the municipal bureau chief. The headlights were off.

Only the old table lamp on the desk was lit. Its dim, yellowish light shone on the glass tabletop.

"Click—"

A sharp, teeth-grinding crack.

The white enamel mug with red lettering that had been with Li Jianguo for more than ten years, with its paint chipped off, was crushed by his hand.

The inferior sheet metal had a gap in the rolled edge.

The sharp stub cut directly into the flesh of his palm.

Warm blood mixed with overnight spoiled cold tea.

It dripped down between his fingers.

"Thud, thud." It hit the table and spread a dark red puddle of water.

Captain Gu pushed open the door and came in, holding a document in his hand.

The strong smell of blood mixed with the odor of red plum tobacco filled the room, which startled him so much that he dropped the paper in his hand.

He frantically ran to pull out the gauze from the drawer.

Li Jianguo ignored the cut on his hand.

His chest felt like a bellows with a hole, hissing and panting as cold air poured in.

His eyes were so red they were bulging out, and blood vessels covered the whites of his eyes.

"Su Ye...did he bankrupt the Quantum Fund by taking the cleaning lady's grocery money?"

Li Jianguo gritted his teeth, the muscles in his cheeks trembling.

"Three hundred million US dollars! The foreign actuaries used a magnifying glass to check the accounts, and all they found was a dog's psychological counseling fee?!"

Captain Gu unfolded the gauze and wrapped it around the bureau chief's hand.

"Chief, calm down! Watch your blood pressure!"

"Disappear my ass!"

Li Jianguo flung Gu's hand away, and the blood-stained gauze flew to the corner of the wall.

He pointed to the landline on the table, spitting onto the lampshade.

"He even chartered a plane! Used tax-free charity accounts! Sent Steven to a mental hospital! This is fucking blatant murder and robbery with the intention of maintaining a virtuous image!"

Captain Gu swallowed hard and habitually touched the scar on the back of his head.

"Director... Chen Suan just said on the phone that the charter flight fee was paid for with consecutively numbered machine-printed VAT invoices. The tax bureau had already filed it, and not a single penny of tax was evaded."

Li Jianguo swayed.

My vision went black. It felt like dozens of sledgehammers were pounding in my head.

He clutched his chest tightly and collapsed onto the faux leather swivel chair.

The swivel chair creaked loudly.

He just couldn't understand it. How did foreign capital, which should have been a sharp knife aimed at the underworld, become a stepping stone for Su Ye?

……

The next morning, the sun came out.

The snow on the road melted into muddy water. A cold wind blew, and the air was filled with a pungent, earthy smell.

The CEO's Office, on the top floor of the Sihai Building.

The air conditioner vents were spewing out hot air.

Sunlight streamed through the explosion-proof floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the rosewood executive desk.

There were seven or eight newspapers on the table, their ink still smelling fresh.

Longhai Finance Morning News, Financial Reference, and Southern Business Observation.

The front page headlines were all in bold, black font.

"A victory for retail investors! Sihai Group legally intervenes to defend its share price, thwarting a hostile takeover attempt by Wall Street!"

"A pillar of private enterprises: Su Ye teaches capital a lesson through absolute compliance!"

Su Ye leaned back in his chair. He hadn't read the press releases.

He was holding the silver thermos with its paint chipped off in his left hand.

Slowly unscrew the cup lid with your right hand.

The hot air enveloped the lenses of the gold-rimmed glasses, creating a thin layer of white mist.

He took off his glasses, grabbed a piece of fine velvet cloth, and slowly and meticulously wiped them.

Chen Suan stood across the table.

The right leg of the black-rimmed glasses is broken, wrapped with a layer of clear tape. It broke last night when I was so scared on the rooftop that I bumped into the wall and it broke.

His legs felt like they were walking on cotton, wobbling uncontrollably.

His left hand was digging into his stomach.

"Hiccup—"

Chen Suan let out a long burp that smelled of sour coffee.

The dark circles under his eyes were almost down to his chin.

"Chairman Su."

Chen Suan swallowed the sour water that had risen into his mouth, his voice fading like a voiceover from a horror movie.

"We received a letter from the State Administration of Foreign Exchange. The foreign exchange settlement procedures for the one billion US dollar account that Anna handed over have all been completed."

His legs went weak, and he quickly grabbed the edge of the desk for support.

"The city approved a green channel for us. They said it was a reward for us to defend our local market and even reduced some of the handling fees."

Su Ye put her gold-rimmed glasses back on.

The lens refracted a cold light without any temperature.

"Legitimate profits should be deposited into the public account."

He lowered his head and took a sip of the warm goji berry water.

"The security and legal department employees who worked overtime last night should be paid triple wages in accordance with the Labor Law."

Chen Suan nodded repeatedly, his lips trembling.

One billion US dollars. Legally settled.

This money is so clean it could stand in the sun for three years.

This undercover economic crime investigator personally typed out a billion dollars for the underworld last night.

If this were recorded in his file, Director Li would probably have him shot.

The crisp sound of high heels came from outside the door.

Anna, dressed in a brand-new, sharp business suit, pushed open the door and walked in.

Her long, golden hair was styled in a bun at the back of her head, looking as sharp and capable as a knife.

She had noticeable dark circles under her eyes, but her whole demeanor exuded an almost pathological fanaticism.

"Mr. Su, I've completed the procedures at the Human Resources Department."

Anna handed over a labor contract stamped with a red seal with both hands.

"I've taken care of Steven's place at the mental hospital in Los Angeles. The best single room, with all four walls padded, to ensure he won't self-harm."

Su Ye nodded.

Put the thermos lid on. The metal threads click together with a crisp "click".

"We must act legally and compliantly. Remember to give the medical invoices to Director Chen for accounting purposes."

"Understood." Anna's bright blue eyes were fixed on Su Ye.

"Also, Mr. Su, I spent the whole morning researching the overseas acquisition routes of Express Delivery Logistics."

Her voice was strained with excitement.

"With this funding, our operations in Southeast Asia can fully comply with regulations, avoiding all local antitrust scrutiny."

Chen Suan rolled his eyes as he listened from the side.

My stomach is cramping again.

This foreign woman has gone mad. She's been completely brainwashed by Su Ye's corny theory of legal capitalism.

……

11:00 AM. Municipal Party Committee Office.

The radiator was too hot to touch.

There was a faint smell of ink in the room.

Mayor Chen wasn't wearing his reading glasses.

He was clutching an official internal reference document in his hand, pacing back and forth behind his desk with great excitement.

The leather shoes made a loud "thump-thump" sound as they stepped on the wooden floor.

"Okay! Okay!"

Mayor Chen slammed his hand on the solid wood table, making the teacup lid rattle.

The creases at the corners of her eyes were all squeezed together.

He held up the documents and pointed at Li Jianguo, who was standing in front of the table.

"Old Li! Look! This is an internal report from CCTV's financial channel!"

Mayor Chen's cheeks flushed, and spittle flew everywhere.

"The higher authorities specifically praised Longhai City! They said our private enterprises have backbone! They know how to use legal capital as a weapon to protect the market!"

Li Jianguo stands at attention.

His right hand was wrapped in thick white gauze.

The shirt he wore under his police uniform was soaked with cold sweat and clung to his back, feeling icy cold.

His teeth were grinding together, and his calves were cramping.

"Mayor... Su Ye's victory was a fluke! Those guys on Wall Street underestimated him..."

Li Jianguo stiffened his neck, attempting a final struggle.

"His fund pool is definitely problematic! If the police investigate further..."

"Here we go again!"

Mayor Chen's smile vanished abruptly.

He slammed the internal report onto the table.

"Foreign actuaries spent half the night scrutinizing the accounts with a magnifying glass, but couldn't find a single penny of fraudulent accounting. You think you know more about finance than those people on Wall Street?"

Secretary Xiao Wang brought in a thermos to refill the water.

He blurted out a comment without any tact.

"Yes, Director Li. Last night, Sihai Group even sent a special plane to rescue the foreign boss who suddenly suffered a mental breakdown. The internet is buzzing about it, saying that Chairman Su is a living bodhisattva."

Li Jianguo's vision went black for a moment.

It felt like a millstone was pressing on my chest, making it hard to even breathe.

The blood vessels next to my temples were throbbing, as if they were about to burst at any moment.

He pinched the flesh of his uninjured left thigh hard, forcing himself to swallow back a mouthful of blood.

……

2 PM. Lobby on the first floor of Sihai Building.

The marble floor is so shiny it reflects your image.

Anna was carrying a stack of English documents and walking briskly towards the elevator.

She looked up at the red banner with yellow characters on the wall that read "Heroic Act".

The fervor in his eyes intensified.

The fire escape at a secluded corner of the lobby.

The lighting was dim. There was a musty, sour smell of mops in the air.

Chen Suan huddled at the bottom of the stairs.

He hugged his knees with both hands and buried his head deep in the crook of his legs.

The acid in my stomach surged upwards in waves.

"Squeak."

The fire door was pushed open a crack.

Cyber ​​police undercover officer Zhou Ming sneaked in like a thief.

He was wearing a black suit that was a size too big, with the sleeves rolled up.

He clutched a yellowed rag in his hand. No matter how he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, he couldn't get it off.

He was always hunched over, as if he had developed an occupational hazard from fixing toilets.

"Old... Old Chen."

Zhou Ming's voice trembled like a leaf as he grabbed Chen Suan's shoulder.

Chen Suan raised his head.

His black-rimmed glasses were askew to one side. His dark circles under his eyes made him look worse than a dead person.

"Hiccup—what? The internet cable's down again?"

"Broken my ass!"

Zhou Ming threw the rag on the ground.

His eyes were brimming with tears, and he wailed in a sobbing voice.

"I just saw the OA document on the intranet backend. That foreign woman named Anna has been appointed as the Director of Overseas Expansion!"

Zhou Ming gripped Chen Suan's collar tightly and shook him.

"Old Chen! They're going to do international business! All the funds will go through legitimate overseas foreign exchange channels!"

His nose was practically dripping with snot.

"You can't find any evidence of money laundering in the domestic accounts! Now all the ledgers will be in English, and they'll have to go through a legal audit by an offshore company... Are we going to be working for the mafia for the rest of our lives?!"