Starting from South America, speeding through the world

Chapter 123 My Dad is

Zhou Yi looked down and examined the keyhole of the door.

It's new—silver, with the serial number printed on the side.

Unfortunately, it's not mine.

He straightened up, looked around to make sure no one was paying attention, and quickly walked to the side window.

The glass has been replaced; it's thinner than before, which makes it much more convenient.

Zhou Yi summoned a pistol from the system, aimed it at the corner, and smashed it down.

"Bang."

There was a crisp sound.

Glass shattered.

Zhou Yi reached out and pressed the latch, gently turned it, and then bent down and crawled into the kitchen.

The layout here is pretty much what I remember.

Only the cabinets turned white.

Several promotional leaflets bearing the words "ATO 2013 Spring Rush" were pasted on the refrigerator.

In the distance, from the living room, you can vaguely see several water pipes winding in from outside the balcony, indicating that electricity is being temporarily connected.

Further inside, the sound of noisy conversation could be heard.

Zhou Yi strode forward and walked straight into the backyard.

String lights were hung around the pool.

A makeshift sound system stood next to the jacuzzi.

White parasols and folding chairs were piled up on the grass.

A black man wearing a yellow vest was squatting there installing a plug, humming a tune.

It wasn't until Zhou Yi approached and patted him on the shoulder that the black man turned around, frowned, and asked:
"Yo, who are you?"

"Hey delivery guy, where's your boss?"

The man looked Zhou Yi up and down but wasn't too wary, assuming he was just there to deliver 'medicine'.

He blinked, giving him an "understanding" look.

"Oh, Ben, he's upstairs. He said he's going to catch up on some sleep. There's a big party tonight, haha."

The Black man gestured with his chin toward the house and chuckled, “Take the leftmost staircase, the second room.”

"But you'd better hurry, bro, and remember not to let Lenny see you."

Zhou Yi smiled and said, "Thanks, brother."

He turned around and went back into the house.

As I passed by the living room, the group of workers who had been setting up earlier had all gathered together to rest.

The tall white man was still sitting at his original coffee table, eating a hot dog.

No one noticed him.

Zhou Yi walked lightly up the stairs to the second floor.

The door was ajar, the curtains were drawn, and the light was dim.

A blue and gold banner of the Alpha Tau Omega Brotherhood hung on the wall.

A young white man was lying in the center of the large bed.

Brown hair, bare-chested, reddish skin, wearing athletic shorts with the University of Florida logo.

At this moment, his face was turned inward, and his breathing was deep and even.

Didn't wake up.

defenseless.

Beside him was a laptop, its screen blacked out, but still playing extremely unpleasant music.

Zhou Yi walked in quietly, closed the door, and locked it.

Then put your backpack against the wall.

He did not draw his gun immediately.

Instead, he moved closer to the bedside, his eyes calm, as if he were about to help someone cover themselves with a blanket.

Then--

He raised his right hand and slapped the young man across the face.

"Snapped!"

The man tilted his head and instantly woke up from his sleep, sitting up abruptly.

"Dude——what the fu——"

Before he could finish speaking, a black pistol was shoved directly into his mouth.

"Shut up," Zhou Yi said.

The young man's eyes widened, and he made a muffled "woo-woo" sound.

He tried to struggle, but the gun went deeper and deeper, making his jawbone ache.

The computer was still running. The rhythm was monotonous, the drumbeats were too dense, and there was a constant loop of synthesizer noise.

That's fucking awful.

Zhou Yi couldn't help but reach out and close it, then gently pressed the man back onto the bed.

His head hit the pillow with a dull thud.

The young man was overwhelmed and couldn't breathe, his hands and feet unsure of what to do, like a fish being strangled.

"Now, you are not allowed to say anything except answer my questions."

Zhou Yi looked down at him and said, "Did you understand?"

The young man nodded repeatedly, his eyes filled with pleading.

"Very good." Zhou Yi withdrew his strength slightly.

"your name?"

"Ben-Benjamin."

"Full name?"

"Benjamin Castelli".

“Castley?!” Zhou Yi was a little surprised. “What’s your relationship with Mike Castley?”

“It’s my dad.” After saying this, Benjamin regained a little confidence, straightened his back, and said:

“Listen, brother, you know this name, which means you know who he is.”

He swallowed hard. "Federal Representative, if you really don't want to mess with her, I promise—"

"Snapped!"

Zhou Yi slapped him again.

Crisp and neat.

This time, the bullet landed squarely on the left cheek, creating a symmetrical pattern with the previous redness and swelling.

Benjamin was completely stunned, and tears welled up in his eyes.

“I’ve seen that constituency map your dad drew,” Zhou Yi chuckled. “It looks just like the one his mother drew with her urine.”

“Gerrymandering, huh? The only thing worse than that is Maryland’s Third Congressional District.”[2]
Upon hearing this, Benjamin's fear gradually turned into confusion, and his lips trembled as he stammered, unsure of what to say.

Having achieved his goal, Zhou Yi stopped commenting and continued, "How did you get into this house?"

"Bought."

"Bought it?" Zhou Yi was even more surprised. "You bought it?"

“I bought it. I mean, it was bought with money from the family trust.”

Which trust company?

McCormick.

"Under which name is the property nominally registered?"

“Wilson Grant is our family’s legal counsel.”

"Who did you buy it from?"

Benjamin's mind went blank, and he said uncertainly:
"A female real estate agent, not very old. Her name is, uh, Linda Linda Moraes, I think."

"When?"

"About two months ago—my dad said it was a low-profile asset, and then...and then we moved in."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yi finally realized what was going on.

For the past two years, I've been traveling on missions, and communication has been intermittent, so I've basically had no time to deal with the accounts here.

That real estate agent probably thought he died in some war zone.

In addition, the recent surge in housing prices has fueled his wicked schemes.

It's reasonable, but it's utterly ridiculous.

What a clichéd "deus ex machina" plot.

If this had happened in a movie, he would have turned it off long ago and yelled at the screenwriter for being out of his mind.

While internally complaining, Zhou Yi looked down and sized up Benjamin.

The latter was staring at him with a look of terror on her face, huddled on the bed, motionless.

Killing this kid would be easy, but doing so now would only affect my vacation.

It would be better to just dump the mess on Lucas.

After all, if the document is leaked, he will be the only one who suffers.

As for myself? I just want to get the money I spent on the house back.

After a brief pause, Zhou Yi asked:
"Can you guarantee that you won't tell anyone about this afterward, including your father?"

"I...I promise!" Benjamin paused, his voice trembling.

He paused for a moment, then emphasized again, "Really! I won't tell anyone."

Zhou Yi nodded and put away his pistol. "Very good. I hope we won't meet again in the future."

　[1] Parallel worlds, which have no relation to real-world time, place, people, or political structure.
　　[2] If you want to see more real-life elements, I can try to post the photos (if the review committee doesn't block me).
　　
　
(End of this chapter)