A minute or two passed.
After discarding the cigarette butt in a nearby empty lot and exchanging phone numbers with the little punk, I turned and left without delay.
There was no need to go to any other venues to make money today.
Because there was a much more important matter waiting for me to attend to!
The autumn wind rustled, bringing a chill.
After walking a bit further, I hailed a taxi and left with the two Xianyu brothers.
Silence all the way...
Half an hour later, I was back at the rented apartment.
When I had sent Xu Peiyu away with Han Jinlun and called Cheng Minglang to pack and leave, I hadn't told him to ask the landlord for a refund.
Because I knew that checking out early was a breach of contract, and neither the rent nor the deposit would be returned.
Therefore, facing the prospect of having nowhere to go, I had to return, risking exposure.
The world is vast, but where is my home?
After going upstairs and entering Xu Peiyu's room, I said nothing, just sat there smoking dryly.
Seeing that my expression seemed a bit off, Xianyu didn't ask me about the specifics.
He, along with his younger brother Yu Fei, stood quietly beside me.
The old wall clock ticked and tocked relentlessly, as if to inform me that time was silently slipping away.
After an unknown amount of time, the sound of a car braking suddenly came from outside the building.
Hearing it, I stood up from the sofa and walked to the windowsill to look outside.
I saw Cheng Minglang and Han Jinlun, that golden duo, getting out of the car one after another.
At the same time, the people borrowed from Zou Laogou also got out of the car with them.
As if enjoying the thrill of showing off, before going upstairs, Han Jinlun turned to the group with a flourish and said, "You don't need to follow us in. Just wait outside."
Zou Laogou's subordinates heard this and did not utter a word of complaint, standing firm downstairs.
Seeing this, I sat back down on the sofa.
At this moment, Cheng Minglang and Han Jinlun entered, one after the other.
The moment he saw me, Han Jinlun immediately complained, "Damn it! We had a whole bunch of people staking out the hotel from before for half the day, and we couldn't catch a single one of them!"
"I really don't know why these guys are so fast. It's like they have eyes in the back of their heads and ears everywhere!"
"Oh, right! Didn't you tell us to be discreet earlier? Why did you choose such a place to meet after all the searching?"
"Aren't you afraid that Yu Shuang's gang will come looking for us?"
Hearing this, I first smiled and shook my head, then took out cigarettes from my pocket and passed them around.
Just as Xianyu took a cigarette and lit it with a lighter, I suddenly stared at him and asked, "What exactly happened at that venue this afternoon!?"
Hearing this, Xianyu's expression froze, and he subconsciously asked, "Wh-what's wrong? Is there a problem with that venue?"
"Heh!"
After a cold laugh, I asked pointedly, "Five out of ten gamblers were decoys. Do you think there's a problem?"
Before Xianyu could speak, Yu Fei, after glaring at me sideways, retorted, "Chen Xiang, what exactly do you mean by that?"
"Even if my brother missed some information, it has nothing to do with you going in there to make money, right?"
"You didn't make money, and now you're taking it out on my brother. Isn't that a bit unreasonable?"
Hearing this, I replied directly, "My brother knows best whether it's reasonable or not!"
As soon as I finished speaking, I saw Xianyu staring at me blankly, his face filled with disbelief.
Then, throwing the cigarette in his hand to the ground and stomping it out, Xianyu laughed in anger and said, "Heh! Xiang Ge, you... you suspect me?"
Looking at his angry reaction, I felt no guilt whatsoever.
Instead, I felt a profound sadness.
A wild wolf that cannot be tamed, a heart that cannot be warmed!
With this thought, I forcefully suppressed the anger and grief in my heart and said in as calm a tone as possible, "Yu Xian, if you think that I, Cheng Minglang, and Han Jinlun can still get along with you..."
"And if you want to continue working with us, then I can pretend that nothing happened before, and we can start fresh!"
"But if you intend to continue fooling me while secretly colluding with them, then you're treating me like an idiot!"
Before Xianyu could explain, I continued, "There are two things that you can never explain away, no matter how hard you try!"
"First, as soon as you appear, the pursuers will arrive immediately!"
"It was like this when we left the casino, and it was like this when I called you over for a meeting this morning and sent Xu Peiyu to the station..."
"At first, I thought Shen Mengqing's driving skills weren't good enough, but on my way back from the station, Han Jinlun told me the pursuers had caught up again..."
"At that moment, I suspected someone was tipping them off!"
"But it was just a suspicion, after all, everyone was doing their own job at the time."
"But after I figured out what happened at the casino, I realized that my suspicion was indeed true!"
"Even a novice con artist knows that there are many decoys in that place. Yet you patted your chest and told me there was no problem?"
"Ask yourself, since you started working with me, I've never verified the truthfulness of any information you've gathered!"
"This trust is equivalent to handing my entire back over to you!"
"How did you repay my trust? Come on, let's see your performance!!!"
As soon as I finished speaking, I fiercely stomped out the cigarette butt on the ground.
Honestly, I wished all of this was a lie.
But I knew it was all too real.
As I fell silent and watched Xianyu, he also looked up, staring directly at me.
For a long, long time, he remained silent.
The atmosphere in the room began to solidify. Except for Yu Fei, who was in the know, Cheng Minglang and Han Jinlun looked at Xianyu and me with bewildered expressions.
Clearly, they still didn't quite understand what had happened here.
After about ten minutes like this...
Suddenly, Xianyu smiled.
However, it was a bitter smile.
"I'm sorry, Xiang Ge!"
"Yu Fei was set up by Yu Shuang's gang. If I didn't cooperate with her, she would have found someone to break Yu Fei's legs!"
"As the saying goes, the elder brother is like a father."
"Our parents died early, and my brother and I have depended on each other since childhood."
"No matter how useless, how much of a scoundrel, or how unambitious Yu Fei is, he is someone I must protect!"
"Even if it means risking my life, abandoning my principles... I wouldn't hesitate!!!"
Hearing this, my heart sank.