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At this moment, Cui Wei slammed a stack of documents heavily onto the conference table, and the beam of light from the projector illuminated his tired yet determined face.

"Director Zhang, through cross-referencing base station location data and call records, we've confirmed that this number starting with 138 is being used by Qin Xiaoming."

Director Zhang frowned as he flipped through the report: "Based on this?"

"There's also the interrogation video." Cui Wei pressed the remote control, and the suspect on the screen suddenly looked up: "...President Wang said he would protect me..."

The image freezes on that terrified face.

"Cui Wei, what do you want to do?"

"Chief, please grant us permission to use the listening vehicle."

Director Zhang took off his glasses and wiped them: "Approval for the use of the listening vehicle is granted, but be careful to keep it concealed."

"Yes! Chief."

"Furthermore, before you have solid evidence, remember not to have any conflict with Wang Hongyu."

"clear."

The boat rocked gently with the waves, and Suning wrote something on a sticky note with a waterproof pen.

"Remember, after I receive your pager message tomorrow, I will immediately call Wang Hongyu." He pushed the note to Cui Ye.

Cui Ye stared at the lines on the note: "'I know what you did at the docks last month'... Isn't that too obvious?"

"That's the effect I wanted." Su Ning's gold-rimmed glasses reflected the shimmering water. "People only reveal their weaknesses when they're panicked."

"Okay! Maybe you're right."

"What? Are you starting to back out?"

"Su Ning, you're so rich, you shouldn't need to do these things, right?"

"Who would complain about having too much money? Besides, I'll take two-thirds after it's done. It's such a lucrative business, why not do it?"

"..."

……

The next morning, the family of three had a very happy breakfast together, except for the most important person, Gao Shuhua.

Unfortunately, Cui Ye gets a headache just thinking about his troublesome wife, just like a stray cat that never goes home.

"Dad, try this." Yan Yan pushed the fried egg in front of Cui Ye. "Grandma said eggs should be eaten while they're hot."

Cui Ye ruffled his son's hair: "Yan Yan is such a good boy! After Daddy is done with this busy period, I'll take you to Ocean Park in Hong Kong to see the dolphins."

Yan Yan tilted her head: "Dad, you seem... different lately?"

"What's the difference?"

"I can't quite put my finger on it," Yan Yan said, biting her chopsticks. "I just feel more energetic."

Cui Ye smiled and glanced at his watch—8:15. Gao Shuhua should already be at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau.

At this time, Gao Shuhua was indeed waiting at the entrance of the Civil Affairs Bureau. She did not see her ex-husband Cui Ye appear for a long time, and she sent two messages to Cui Ye's pager.

Meanwhile, Cui Ye's pager suddenly vibrated, displaying two messages: "Where are you?"

"Don't bother coming back if you don't show up soon!"

At the same time, Cui Wei, carrying a ping-pong paddle with the national team logo, strode into the elevator.

"Mr. Wang, I just happened to be passing by and brought you a small gift." He placed the ping-pong paddle on the desk. "I heard you mention last time that you like playing ping-pong?"

Wang Hongyu's eyes lit up: "Captain Cui, you're too kind!"

He took out his phone, "I need to save your number..."

Cui Wei glanced at his phone screen and saw a real estate advertisement text message: "Warehouse at Pier No. 3 Clearance Sale..."

Then Cui Wei took his leave, as if he had already taken Wang Hongyu under his control.

Just then, Cui Ye came in from outside. The two brothers took the elevator and the stairs respectively, perfectly missing each other and avoiding a face-to-face encounter.

The elevator dinged, and Cui Ye quickly stepped out, brushing past Cui Wei in the stairwell.

Neither of them noticed the other.

Cui Ye hid in the fire escape and took out his pager to send the code: "The goldfish have been fed."

Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of Cui Wei downstairs out of the corner of his eye, and then saw him get into a van parked on the side of the road.

Cui Ye immediately guessed that this was a disguised listening vehicle, with the antenna faintly visible, and he happened to know that the criminal investigation team had a listening vehicle.

"Oh no!" He rushed into the office without having time to notify Su Ning, only to hear Wang Hongyu's phone ringing.

“Mr. Wang,” Su Ning’s voice on the other end of the phone was tinged with electronic noise, “Boss Wang! Qin Xiaoming and the ledgers are in my hands! Three million! The transaction will take place at the dock at eight o’clock tonight…”

"Why should I believe you?" Wang Hongyu's face turned deathly pale instantly.

A cold laugh came from the other end of the phone: "The blinds in your office were replaced last year. The sunshade has the Hongyu Group logo on it, and your daughter's red hair clip is still stuck in the curtain track."

Cui Ye took a step forward, then suddenly clutched his chest and collapsed to the ground.

"Hello? Hello!" Wang Hongyu shouted into the phone, but only heard a busy tone.

He reached out to help Cui Ye, his voice trembling: "Teacher Cui?!"

The phone rang again: "Look out the window now."

Wang Hongyu turned her head sharply and saw the antenna on the roof of the listening vehicle rotating.

"That's a police listening vehicle. You're being watched by the police." Su Ning said and then hung up.

Wang Hongyu slumped into a chair, feeling fear and panic for the first time, mainly because her opponent was too mysterious and powerful.

An ambulance arrived quickly and took Cui Ye away. Medical staff confirmed that Cui Ye had no physical problems.

"Blood pressure is normal, and the electrocardiogram shows no abnormalities." The medical staff removed their stethoscopes.

The driver suddenly stopped the car: "I can't hold it anymore, I need to pee."

A small orange kitten was meowing timidly in the roadside grass.

The driver grinned maliciously and raised his foot: "You eyesore, you beast!"

However, his appearance made him the perfect scapegoat for Cui Ye, as in the original drama, it was this guy's greed that shielded Cui Ye from disaster.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Cui Ye slipped out of the car, crouched behind the bushes, and quickly dialed a number: "The situation has changed, immediately..."

"I see."

Cui Wei's apprentice, Xiao Ding, happened to run into Cui Ye again and took him back to the station to give a statement.

Xiao Ding pushed the notebook in front of Cui Ye: "Teacher Cui, it's just routine, please don't mind."

"clear."

The moment Cui Ye signed, his gaze swept over the case file on the wall. Qin Xiaoming's photo was connected to Wang Hongyu by a red line, and next to it was written "Dock smuggling?"

In the bathroom, Cui Ye turned on the faucet, and the rusty water pipe suddenly burst.

Amidst the gushing water, he saw Cui Wei standing at the door, his eyes filled with complex emotions.

If one coincidence is just a coincidence, then multiple coincidences together are no longer coincidences. Therefore, based on his intuition, Cui Wei began to suspect his younger brother, Cui Ye.

Of course, suspicion is suspicion, and Cui Wei currently has no favorable evidence.

Then Cui Wei personally escorted his younger brother Cui Ye home, also taking the opportunity to question Cui Ye.

The two brothers sat in the car. Cui Wei asked Cui Ye why he went to see Wang Hongyu. Cui Ye told him about organizing the Go master class, revealing his cowardly nature to the fullest extent.

The windshield wipers swung rhythmically as Cui Wei lit a cigarette: "So, what do you want with Wang Hongyu?"

"About the Go master class..." Cui Ye rubbed his hands together, looking down. "I didn't expect Wang Hongyu to get involved... I..."

"What? So Su Ning and Wang Hongyu know each other too?"

"Yes! I'm the one who introduced them."

"..."

"Ring ring..." The cell phone rang from Cui Ye's pocket.

"When did you buy a phone?" Cui Wei turned to look at Cui Ye again in surprise.

At the beginning of the new century, mobile phones were a luxury item; pagers were still the most common device.

"Uh? It's been a while." Cui Wei held out his hand: "Give me the number."

“138…265…” Cui Ye recited a string of numbers, his palms sweating profusely.

After questioning Cui Ye and finding nothing amiss, Cui Wei temporarily put aside his suspicions about his brother.

The main problem was that Cui Ye's explanation was too flawless, making it difficult for Cui Wei, the captain of the criminal investigation team, to detect the problem.

Then Cui Wei started to feel sorry for his younger brother again, so he parked the car and went to a pharmacy on the side of the road to buy medicine for Cui Ye.

In the pharmacy, Cui Wei tossed the nitroglycerin pills into his shopping basket and grabbed a box of stomach medicine.

"Brother, why did you buy so much medicine?"

"I bought this for you! Sometimes it really can save your life."

"Thank you."

After returning home, Cui Wei gave a few brief instructions and then took Xiao Ding and the others to the Children's Palace.

Remembering that the ledger was still in his office, Cui Ye hurriedly called Cui Wei, pretending that he had left his ID card at the police station, to confirm his current location.

After hanging up the phone, Cui Ye raced against time, rushed to the Children's Palace to retrieve the ledger, and placed the notebook he had already written in on the table to dispel Cui Wei's doubts and convince him that he was indeed running a master class.

……

However, Cui Ye still told Su Ning about what had aroused Cui Wei's suspicion, but Su Ning didn't care at all.

When the time is right, inform Cui Wei. Cui Wei will definitely make a decision, after all, Yan Yan's illness is a bottomless pit.

After listening to Cui Ye's account, Su Ning laughed instead: "It's a good thing to be suspicious."

He gazed at the lights on the opposite bank, "When he learns the truth, he will understand that there are some things that must be chosen."

"For Yan Yan?"

“That’s right! Yan Yan’s condition is very special. Without money, she will die. I believe your brother Cui Wei would not be willing to do that.”

When should we tell him?

"Absolutely not now! It has to be at the most opportune moment."

"This……"

"Teacher Cui, there's no turning back now! We can only go down this path to the bitter end."

"Suning, you're right! I really have no way back."

"Next, we need to be careful of your brother Cui Wei. I believe he will definitely not give up on Wang Hongyu."

“My brother will ruin our plans.”

"Don't worry! Wang Hongyu will handle this herself."

……

In fact, the relationship between the brothers Cui Wei and Cui Ye has always been very good, and the reason why things have turned out this way is probably due to reality.

Then, filled with melancholy, Cui Ye began to tell Su Ning his story, which was about him and his brother Cui Wei.

"Su Ning, do you want to know the story of me and my brother?"

"Great! I'm also very curious about you two brothers."

Rainwater trickled down the mottled window frames of the Children's Palace. Cui Ye stood in the storage room, his fingers gently tracing the dusty trophy.

The bronze base is engraved with the words "Champion of the 1997 Provincial Amateur Go Tournament," and it has already oxidized and turned black.

The memory of myself at twenty years old, rushing home with a trophy in my arms, is still so vivid.

"Brother, I won."

That day, he made a special detour to the police station, wanting to give Cui Wei, who had just become a police officer, a surprise.

But the older brother simply looked up from the case file, the silver stars on his police uniform epaulets gleaming coldly in the sunlight.

“Amateur group?” Cui Wei closed the file, his voice weary. “Yezi, Mom still needs eight hundred more for medical expenses this month.”

The trophy suddenly felt incredibly heavy in my arms.

Cui Ye remembers how he managed to force a smile: "Brother, the prize money for this competition is three thousand..."

"And then? What about next month?" Cui Wei took off his police hat, revealing a bruise near his eye, a result of the accident he sustained while apprehending a fugitive last night. "You're twenty years old, you can't always be like this?"

"Ring ring," the next words were interrupted by a suddenly ringing phone.

But Cui Ye knew what his brother Cui Wei wanted to say, because he had said these words countless times before: "Can playing chess put food on the table?"

The sea breeze of 1990 carried a salty, fishy smell.

Fifteen-year-old Cui Ye clutched the payment notice for his Go class and lingered at the dock until sunset.

He knew that his mother had worked three consecutive night shifts to raise money for his tuition.

"Yezi!"

Cui Wei's shouts came from afar.

Cui Ye gritted his teeth, then suddenly climbed over the railing and jumped into the sea.

As the salty seawater filled his nostrils, he heard the muffled thud of a heavy object falling into the water.

The older brother jumped down before he could even put down his police academy acceptance letter.

"Are you crazy?!" Cui Wei dragged him ashore, soaking wet, the admission notice turned into pulp.

Under the moonlight, the older brother's hands trembled. "It's just three hundred yuan, right? I'll give it to you!"

But Cui Ye will always remember that night when he was getting an IV drip at the hospital, he heard Cui Wei say to his mother in the corridor, "Police academy... I'm not going. The steel mill's security department is short-staffed..."

Then came the winter of 1998, when he secretly copied chess scores while on duty at the steel mill, which led to the theft of the warehouse.

Upon hearing the news, Cui Wei rushed over and managed to suppress the matter by using his connections with his classmates from the police academy.

On their way home, the two brothers walked one after the other on the icy road.

"Brother, I'm sorry..."

Cui Wei suddenly turned around and punched a sycamore tree by the roadside.

The snow on the bare branches fell in a soft rustling sound.

"Cui Ye, do you know that you almost got a criminal record this time?" His brother's voice was colder than the north wind, but the gloves he handed over were still warm from his body.

"I'm sorry! I won't do it again next time."

"Hmph! You want a next time?"

Three months later, Cui Ye received an offer of employment from the Children's Palace.

When Cui Wei came to offer his congratulations in his brand-new police uniform, he noticed the wedding ring on his brother's ring finger, but he had only heard that his sister-in-law was the daughter of a certain leader.

As expected, Cui Wei became a son-in-law who moved into the wife's family home, which marked the beginning of Cui Ye's resentment towards his brother.

"Teacher Cui, have you ever considered that your brother might not want to be a live-in son-in-law?"

"Really? He seems quite happy."

"Teacher Cui, no matter what, your brother is really good to you, so don't make your life so hard."

"Suning, thank you."

“Unlike your brother! I advise you to divorce Gao Shuhua as soon as possible.”

"why?"

“Teacher Cui, a woman who has changed her heart is no good! Your brother and your mother will never change, but your wife is another story.”

“Su Ning, you have no idea that Gao Shuhua and I have a foundation of feelings for each other. She’s just too career-oriented.”

"Fine! Whatever makes you happy."

"..."

Cui Ye was naturally the most aware of his relationship with Gao Shuhua, but he just couldn't let go of his feelings for her.

...(End of chapter)