Chapter 557 - 557: Worse Than the Bad Guys
The woman had no choice but to agree to Ye Qing's demands. Clearly, she was also aware of Lu Jiangong's criminal activities, so this shouldn't have been difficult for her.
Ye Qing instructed the woman on the matter and threatened her a few more times before lifting the man on his shoulders and leaving the villa.
Seeing Ye Qing act this way, the woman became anxious and said, "Where are you taking him?"
"I am quite cautious in my actions," Ye Qing replied, "having a hostage makes me feel more secure. You can use those pieces of evidence to exchange for him, but if you can't produce the evidence, then I'll hand him over to Lu Jiangong!"
After speaking, Ye Qing carried the man on his shoulders and left the villa, leaving the woman stunned behind him.
She might not care about this man, but she was well aware that if Ye Qing handed this man over to Lu Jiangong, she would be finished as well. Therefore, she had no choice but to work for Ye Qing now!
Old Wang Ba was still hiding behind the flower bed. Seeing Ye Qing carrying a person out, he immediately came over and asked in surprise, "What are you doing? Carrying a young girl out? Damn, why is it a man? You kid, you don't even spare men?"
Ye Qing ignored him, carrying the man away from the villa area to a more secluded place, where he explained the situation inside the villa to Old Wang Ba.
After hearing Ye Qing's explanation, Old Wang Ba suddenly perked up and said, "Damn, that slut has been stealing men, an unexpected gain indeed. Shit, as long as she brings the evidence of Lu Jiangong's crimes, Lu Jiangong will have no choice but to speak. Little Leaf, your method is really good!"
Ye Qing looked at the man and said, "The most crucial thing now is to find a place to hide him before that woman gets the evidence. We can't let him escape!"
Old Wang Ba said, "Hiding a person is too easy, just bring him back and lock him in a room!"
"No!" Ye Qing firmly shook his head and said gravely, "If we bring this guy back, and something happens later, it will most likely implicate Lin Dade's entire family. We can't do that!"
Old Wang Ba glanced at Ye Qing and said, "Damn, you really think of everything. So according to you, we need to rent another room to hide him?"
Ye Qing nodded, and Old Wang Ba said, "This is too troublesome. You are always the good guy, always thinking about others, making it so difficult for yourself. But speaking of which, you have also changed a lot lately. The way you dealt with that woman just now, you would never have used such tactics before!"
Ye Qing suddenly fell silent, his transformation had indeed been significant since he had experienced so much in Shenchuan City. When he first left the military, he was disdainful of using such tactics. But now, he had gradually learned to employ tactics against the Fierce Tiger Gang and the Tianqing Gang Fubang. Just now, he used a strategy on that woman, something he would never have done before.
However, Ye Qing didn't regret this change. He had suffered a lot because he disdained using tactics before. Especially the events in Shenchuan City, the orphanage explosion, Tie Yongwen being killed, his brothers being captured, injured, and the survivors hiding, unable to venture out—this was because he wasn't cunning like others. To survive in society, one must have not only courage but also cunning!
Seeing Ye Qing like this, Old Wang Ba thought he had been too harsh and comforted him, "You don't have to blame yourself so much. In life, it's not how you do things that's crucial, but whether you are true to your conscience. Leaf, have you ever heard the saying, 'Be better to a good person, and worse to a bad person'? Use schemes against bad people, sincerity towards good people—that is the true way to be human. If you are still kind-hearted towards bad people, it will just end up like the Farmer and the Snake, where you save someone only to be bitten by them!"
Ye Qing stared at Old Wang Ba for a while and said, "What you said makes a lot of sense."
"I didn't say that..." Old Wang Ba laughed and shook his head, "It was Third Master Li who once told me that. Unfortunately, despite all his words, he himself never fully understood the principle. For the honor of the Northern Martial Arts Community, he fought a great battle with the Southern Fist King, not only sacrificing his life but also a lifetime of honor. He was drugged and defeated, and instead of being grateful, the people of the Northern Martial Arts Community blamed him for losing face. Damn, the Farmer and the Snake, why are there so many snakes in this society?"
Ye Qing also sighed. He didn't know much about Third Master Li's past, only hearing bits and pieces from others occasionally. However, in their tales, Third Master Li was definitely a man of indomitable spirit. Unfortunately, after a battle with the Southern Fist King Shen Tianjun, where he was secretly drugged and defeated, his lifetime of reputation was destroyed in an instant, truly a cause for sighs.
The two men took this man to the city, found a hotel, and hid him inside. Old Wang Ba specifically bought a leather cord to tie the man up tightly, stuffed a towel in his mouth, and made sure everything was secure before heading back to Lin Dade's place with Ye Qing.
For the next two days, there were no movements, and Ye Qing was still renting Lin Dade's three-wheeled cart, though he hardly went out, mainly waiting for news from that woman. Even so, they visited the man daily to feed him and let him relieve himself.
During these days, Ye Qing received quite a few messages from Shenchuan City. First, Zhao Chengshuang was thoroughly investigated and found to have many issues. Then, Li Lianshan and Da Fei were released, but Da Fei was ambushed and severely injured; eventually, Lin Zhen Nan intervened to save him. Li Lianshan was relatively lucky as his remaining minions escorted him to a teahouse where he temporarily hid but dared not venture out.
Meanwhile, the police visited the teahouse several times, but Cui Yu didn't even let them in. Although the police were furious, they couldn't do anything and didn't dare to storm in. After all, Cui Yu was a top-tier assassin, and even the Ding Family and the Shenchuan City Police Department dared not truly provoke him.
What made Ye Qing most furious was another matter. A deputy mayor in the city, in conjunction with several departments, claimed that Ye Qing's orphanage was suspected of child trafficking and harboring trafficked children, preparing to take all the children away. The principal, Wu Yian, had already been arrested by the police as Ye Qing's accomplice and was now under investigation. As for the children, they were going to be distributed among various orphanages across the region, and the city was currently discussing how to deal with Ye Qing.
When he heard this news, Ye Qing was almost exploding with rage. These so-called leaders and departments did nothing when those children were trafficked, begged, or even had their organs harvested. Now, they were accusing Ye Qing of taking in these children and wanting to take them away — was this what humans did?
Ye Qing was most worried about these children. If these so-called leaders and departments took the children away, who knows what could happen. If they were sent to similar orphanages and encountered the same issues as before, the children's fate would be truly worrisome.
Upon hearing this news, Ye Qing wished he could rush back to Shenchuan City immediately to confront these so-called leaders and departments. However, Old Wang Ba stopped him, repeatedly emphasizing that they needed to handle the matters in Xishan City first and set aside other issues for the time being.
Ye Qing knew that if he went back to Shenchuan City now, he couldn't do anything about those people. Reluctantly, he had to follow Old Wang Ba's advice and prepare to first handle the matter in Xishan City. He knew that Liu Changping and Zhou Bolong had complex identities, and if he could handle this situation well, Liu Changping might support him. By then, when he returned to Shenchuan City, he would be more confident.
On the third day, Ye Qing received a call from that woman; she had obtained the evidence of Lu Jiangong's crimes.
For safety's sake, Ye Qing went to meet this woman alone while Old Wang Ba stayed in the room watching the man to guard against any tricks the woman might play.
Actually, the woman didn't dare to play any tricks, as she was well aware of Lu Jiangong's methods. If Lu Jiangong found out she was cheating behind his back, she would most likely meet a gruesome end. Therefore, she just wanted the matter to be quietly resolved.
Ye Qing met the woman in a cafe, where she handed him a bag, whispering, "Inside here are videos of Lu Jiangong accepting bribes. He often received money at my place, and I had secretly recorded some. There are also photos and ledger records, all ironclad evidence."
Ye Qing opened the bag and examined its contents. Just as the woman had said, the evidence was all legitimate, the photos very clear, and the ledger detailed. The photos and ledger alone could topple Lu Jiangong from power. As for the video, it was even more convincing.
"You didn't get these items in just the past few days, did you?" Ye Qing looked at the woman and offhandedly said, "You had started collecting this evidence a while ago, hadn't you?"
"He's a madman. I knew that from the day I met him. I was just his plaything, and once he tired of me, he would discard me. Knowing so much about him, what do you think my fate would be?" The woman bitterly smiled and said, "So, I made preparations long ago. These items were meant to save my own life.Further west, though, he reasoned that as Ogre was most likely his father's location as opposed to his mother's.He turned back in the direction of the ogre.ICU However, none of this matters now as I've decided to leave this city. I've given you all the evidence. What you do with it is up to you; just let my boyfriend go!"
Ye Qing said, "You're quite devoted to him, aren't you?"
"He will marry me!" The woman looked at Ye Qing and said, "Do you think I was with Lu Jiangong for nothing? I was just doing it to make money, to live a good life with him. Now that I've earned enough, rather than live in constant fear here, I'd rather leave Xishan City as soon as I can, to have a world of our own with him, never to step into Xishan City again. No, to never enter Eastern Province again!"