Hong Kong variety show: I wanted to be a lawyer, but I became a big shot.

He slowly sat back on the sofa, picked up the now-cold wine on the table, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp.

"When did you find out?"

"The moment you mentioned Li Zicheng when we first met, I arranged for a thorough investigation."

"I always plan carefully before I act."

Lin Bei lay on the sofa and slowly exhaled a puff of smoke.

Ding Qing looked up and stared directly into his eyes, her voice hoarse:

"Then why... why did you wait until now to tell me?"

"Even if I had told you earlier, it wouldn't have helped."

Lin Bei's tone was indifferent:

"I deliberately chose this time to point it out because the police will take action tomorrow, and you don't have time to hesitate."

Ding Qing lowered his head and remained silent, his heart churning with emotions.

He recalled the five years he and Li Zicheng had fought side by side, killing people together, drinking together, smoking together on the streets late at night and talking about the future, promising to grow the Peking University gang together and lead the brothers to clean up their act and go ashore.

He treated Li Zicheng like a brother, never guarding against him or holding anything back, only to be betrayed in the end.

After a long while, he took a deep breath, reviewed the entire document again, and looked up at Lin Bei with a solemn expression.

"Mr. Lin, I, Ding Qing, will remember your kindness today."

"If there is ever a need for me in the future, I, Ding Qing, will do my utmost, even at the cost of my life."

Lin Bei casually waved his hand:

"Don't thank me yet."

"Think carefully about how to break this deadlock."

"By the way, Lee Ja-sung's wife, Kim In-seo, is also an informant planted by Kang Hyung-cheol, dedicated to monitoring Lee Ja-sung around the clock."

"If you want to control Lee Ja-sung and make him completely loyal, Kim In-seo is the best breakthrough point."

"If you still want your brother to turn back from the wrong path..."

Upon hearing this, Ding Qing was completely stunned.

He never imagined that the person he shared his bed with day and night was actually a pawn planted by the police to monitor him.

In an instant, I felt both absurd and chilled.

Everyone is pretending and scheming at every turn; you can't even trust your closest relatives.

Ding Qing exhaled a breath of stale air, gripped the documents in his hand tightly, and bowed deeply to Lin Bei.

"call!"

"I understand, Mr. Lin!"

……

Around 11 p.m., Li Xinyu left the business hotel.

She politely declined Section Chief Jiang's offer to see her off, and instead hailed a taxi by herself, giving him the address of Jiangbei Apartment.

The car was dimly lit. She closed her eyes and leaned back, repeatedly processing the intelligence report in her mind.

The financial records, call logs, and recorded statements from key members of the Kinmen gang are all irrefutable pieces of evidence.

With these things in hand, even if Seok Dong-chul has the backing of a conglomerate, he is doomed.

The car was parked downstairs at the apartment building.

Li Xinyu paid the fare, got out of the car, tightened the collar of his coat, and quickly walked into the apartment building.

Several lights in the hallway were broken, causing the light to flicker, and footsteps were particularly clear in the narrow corridor.

She reached into her pocket for her keychain, and just as her fingertips touched the keys, she heard very light footsteps behind her.

She reacted extremely quickly, raising her elbow as she turned, but her opponent was even faster.

A dark figure lunged out to the side, and a hard object slammed into the back of her head.

Li Xinyu's vision went black, all strength left her body, and she collapsed onto the cold ground, instantly losing consciousness.

Two masked men stepped forward, lifted her up from both sides, and quickly disappeared into the shadows of the stairwell.

……

At the same time, Section Chief Jiang parked his car in the underground garage of his residential complex.

He was in a great mood, full of confidence that he was about to be promoted and become a permanent employee.

The evidence submitted by Lee Ja-sung is solid enough to bring down Seok Dong-chul and take down the entire Kinmen Group, the number one organized crime syndicate in South Korea. It's practically a sure thing.

I'll meet with Director Gao tomorrow. Once the plan is finalized, this great achievement will be mys for sure.

He locked his car, got into the elevator, and went to the seventh floor.

The key was inserted into the lock and turned, and the door opened with a click.

The house was pitch black and deathly silent; there were no lights, no television, and no sound of family members breathing as they slept.

The entryway light, which I used to leave on for him every night, was completely off tonight, leaving an eerie silence.

Section Chief Jiang's heart tightened. He slowly reached his right hand behind his waist, gripped the handle of his sidearm, and quietly drew and chambered the gun.

He pressed himself against the wall and slowly made his way to the living room.

The living room door was ajar, letting in a faint ray of light.

He burst through the door, raised his gun and aimed it at the room, but froze on the spot, his face filled with horror.

In the center of the living room, his wife knelt on the floor, her hair disheveled, her mouth tightly sealed with black duct tape.

A masked man held his seven-year-old son under his arm, with the muzzle of a gun pressed against the child's temple.

The child's eyes were wide open, tears streaming down his face, but he couldn't utter a sound.

Behind his wife, another masked man held a dagger, the blade held against her neck.

"Waaaaah!"

Section Chief Jiang's fingers trembled violently as he gripped the gun, his voice strained:

Who are you?

"Why are you taking my family hostage?"

The masked man holding the child hostage lowered his voice, his tone icy:

"Put down your gun."

I'll count to three.

"one!"

Section Chief Jiang was covered in cold sweat.

He was a veteran detective and knew that at this distance, if he opened fire, even if he killed one person, his wife would die instantly.

"two!"

"Don't act impulsively!"

"I'm willing to do it!!!"

Section Chief Jiang gritted his teeth, put the pistol on the ground, and kicked it towards the corner of the wall.

The gun struck the kickboard with a crisp sound.

The masked man gave his companion a wink.

A man emerged from the shadows and struck Section Chief Jiang hard on the back of the neck with a stick.

He groaned, his vision went black, and his consciousness rapidly faded.

In his hazy state, he only saw his wife and children being forcibly dragged to their feet and led towards the door.

He tried to struggle and call for help, but no sound came out of his throat.

His vision went completely dark, and he fell into a coma.

......

The next morning, the sky finally cleared up.

Sunlight pierced through the thin clouds, casting a dazzling glow on the puddles on the road.

When the alarm clock rang, Lee Ja-sung slowly opened his eyes, while Kim In-seo beside him was still sleeping soundly.

He got up quietly, washed up, changed his clothes, and got ready to go to work.

Just as I stepped into the living room, my phone on the coffee table suddenly rang.

He glanced down at the caller ID; it was Ding Qing.

"elder brother?"

"Zicheng, are you awake?"

Ding Qing's voice was no different from usual, relaxed and even somewhat casual.

"Let's go out for breakfast, it's on me."

Li Zicheng had a slight doubt in his heart.

Ding Qing rarely asked him to go out early in the morning; if he did, it was usually because he had something to do.

"What happened?"

"It's nothing serious, I just wanted to have dinner with you."

"Bring Renrui along too, it's been a long time since I've seen her."

Li Zicheng hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at his sleeping wife in the bedroom.

"Okay, where to?"

"The usual place, that soup restaurant in Jiangnan, do you remember it?"

"Remember, I'll be there in half an hour."

After hanging up the phone, Lee Ja-sung walked back to the bedroom and gently patted Kim In-seo on the shoulder.

"Get up, Brother Ding Qing is calling us to go out for breakfast."

Kim In-seo turned over and opened her sleepy eyes.

"Now? So early?"

"Yeah, they said they have something to talk about. Why don't you come with me?"

"Okay, wait for me."

Kim In-seo didn't ask any more questions. She got up, changed into a plain-colored coat, quickly combed her hair, and went to the bathroom to wash up.

After getting ready, the two went out together and drove to the soup restaurant in Jiangnan.