Chapter 130: Using Their Own Tactics – Part One

Qin Shu wanted to ask what was going on immediately, but seeing Jiang Xiwen lost in thought, she held her tongue.

After a long while, Jiang Xiwen spoke up. "Aunt Qin, I think I have a general idea of what's happening. Is Uncle Zhang familiar with the director of the Provincial Education Commission?"

"The director of the Provincial Education Commission?" Qin Shu looked stunned. "I believe his surname is Gao... Gao something... Gao Feng. Yes, that's it, Gao Feng." As she said this, a sudden realization dawned on her. "Xiwen, are you suggesting that Zhou Lan’s boyfriend is Gao Feng’s son?"

"Heh, yes. Though he’s not really a 'boyfriend.' This Gao Jie is a notorious playboy; a girl I know almost fell for his tricks."

"A playboy? Then why would he meet with Zhou Lan’s mother, acting like a son-in-law? And why frame our old Zhang?"

"He’s the type of playboy who fancies himself a 'lover,' finding pleasure in deceiving others emotionally. Meeting his girlfriend's mother is one of his favorite tricks. It’s said that the women he breaks up with hold no grudge against him."

"This person and I have quite a history. He tried to deceive that girl I mentioned several times, and I exposed him each time. Later, when Director Fang called my father and you to the school under the pretext of 'puppy love,' it seems highly likely that he was the one pulling the strings behind the scenes. I remember the first time I exposed his behavior, he arrogantly shouted that as long as I was still a student, he could ensure I had no school to attend."

"Without him acting as a backer, a shrewd person like Director Fang wouldn't have risked offending the Deputy Mayor. But everything until now was aimed at me. The fact that he is directly targeting Uncle Zhang this time surprises me, which is why I wanted to ask if there was any bad blood between Gao Feng and Uncle Zhang."

After listening to Jiang Xiwen, Qin Shu stared blankly into space. "Let me think. I have heard your Uncle Zhang mention the name Gao Feng. But when he mentioned him, or why, I don't quite recall..."

As she spoke, Qin Shu’s brow furrowed again, clearly deep in thought. Jiang Xiwen did not interrupt. He replayed the details from Zhao Changfeng’s phone call in his mind, determined not to let any potentially useful clues slip by. It was just like his days as a hacker; when encountering a formidable opponent, he would carefully review every step from beginning to end.

*Bank accounts? Passbooks?* Right, banks should have video surveillance. Why didn’t the investigation team check who made the deposit into the passbook account given to Qin Shu? If they had, wouldn't the truth be clear? Or perhaps surveillance technology wasn't common in this era?

A series of questions flooded Jiang Xiwen’s mind. This reminded him of one person who could help him answer these doubts: Ning Yu, the father of Ning Yan. As a retired special forces soldier who had been undercover for so long, his position in the police force should be significant. If he were willing to help obtain the surveillance footage from the Huashang Bank near the Zhenxing Tea House, everything would be solved.

***

Thinking of this, Jiang Xiwen looked up. Seeing that Qin Shu was still lost in thought, he softly interrupted, "Auntie, I’ve figured out a few things. Don't worry, Uncle Zhang will be fine; this is clearly a frame-up by Gao Jie. As for the conflict between Gao Feng and Uncle Zhang, we can figure that out later. Could you let me see the passbook they used to plant the thirty thousand yuan? I need to note down the account number to check at the bank."

Qin Shu was still wearing a look of dejected helplessness, but when she heard Jiang Xiwen mention going to the bank, she suddenly looked up and objected, "If Secretary Zhao hadn't told me, I wouldn't even have known that account was frozen."

"Clearly, the investigation team’s notification was just to see if I would go to the bank to check the account, using that to judge whether I was involved in accepting bribes. Fortunately, I had forgotten all about that passbook. If you hadn't come and asked me to pose those questions to Secretary Zhao, I wouldn't have remembered it at all."

"But if you go to check it now, and they know you are Jiang Hong's son, won't that invite suspicion even if there’s no evidence?"

"Don't worry, Auntie, I have my ways." Jiang Xiwen blinked. He certainly couldn't tell her he was going to ask Ning Yu for help, as that violated protocol. Even though it was to help Qin Shu and Zhang Yong, one could never be certain about the future. If Ning Yu and the Zhang family ever had a professional falling out, Zhang Yong could easily use the fact that Ning Yu had abused his authority to access bank records against him.

In this world, there are many who turn ungrateful due to conflicts of interest, and Jiang Xiwen didn't have a high opinion of Zhang Yong’s character to begin with.

"Then..." Qin Shu hesitated for a moment before nodding. "Alright, I'll go inside and look for that passbook." She rose and headed toward the inner room. Jiang Xiwen’s two phone calls earlier had made her increasingly trust that this boy’s clever ideas could accomplish great things. Thus, she had reason to believe he might be able to view the bank’s surveillance footage without drawing attention.

Just as Qin Shu was about to enter the room, Jiang Xiwen suddenly remembered something and called out, "Auntie, can you find those photos of Zhang Ya and me that Uncle Zhang showed me last time? I need to verify something."

With the photos, he could devise what might be the only way to solve this matter and clear Zhang Yong's name. He knew that if this plan failed, it could easily implicate his father, Jiang Hong, in an investigation. Although this plan didn't require his father's help, he was, after all, his father's son. If his actions were exposed, all the blame would be laid at his father's feet; no one would believe a child could do such things on his own.

Jiang Xiwen had no choice. He wouldn't let a bastard like Gao Jie continue his arrogance. If he chose to compromise, Zhang Yong might go to jail, and his father’s political career would crumble.

"Hmm? The photos? Your Uncle Zhang seems to have taken them to his office. I'll get the passbook first, then look in his study later."

Qin Shu spent about ten minutes in her room before coming out and heading into the study. This made Jiang Xiwen even more certain that she wasn't lying; she genuinely didn't care about the passbook, otherwise, she wouldn't have taken so long to find it. If she were cunning enough to deliberately delay to create a false impression of indifference, all while knowing about the relationship between Zhou Lan and Gao Jie, she would be an incredibly sophisticated player.

Jiang Xiwen didn't think Qin Shu had such depth. Even if she did, he would be able to discern whether it was a trap set by Gao Jie or a frame-up by Qin Shu through the series of actions he was about to take.

***

About ten minutes later, Qin Shu emerged from the study with a smile. "Xiwen, you were right, they were there. It seems your Uncle Zhang accidentally dropped them in a drawer. This is the only one I could find; the ones in his office were likely taken by the investigation team already. Is one enough?"

"That's enough, Aunt Qin. I'll be going now." Jiang Xiwen took the passbook and the photo, said goodbye to Qin Shu, and left Zhang Ya’s home.

Walking through the municipal compound, he looked at the photo in his hand. At a glance, he couldn't help but be delighted.

He didn't know whether Gao Jie or Fang Sixiang had taken this, but they certainly had money—it was a developed digital photograph. In this era in China, families with digital cameras were as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.

His original purpose for wanting the photo was to ask Ning Yu if any professionals in the police force could prove it was a forgery. Now that he saw it was a digital photo, he wasn't worried. He thought of a way to give them a taste of their own medicine: as long as he could find a copy of Photoshop 3.0 from this era, he could handle it easily himself.

After leaving the compound, he found a public phone on the street and dialed Ning Yan’s home number. As soon as the call connected, before he could say more than a "hello," he heard Ning Yan’s questioning voice: "Well, Jiang Xiwen, you haven't come for boxing practice for days. This morning was Brother Wang Wu's teaching session, and you still didn't show up. What have you been so busy with these days?"

"Ning Yan, we'll talk about other things later. I have something to ask your father." Jiang Xiwen had no time for banter. His mind was entirely focused on the matter at hand, and his tone sounded much colder.

"You?!" Ning Yan was clearly agitated, but she calmed down instantly. Remembering how Jiang Xiwen hadn't even looked at her in the classroom yesterday, instead speaking eagerly to Zhang Ya, her heart turned cold.

*He must be sick of me,* Ning Yan thought. She replied coldly, "My father isn't here. His office number is..."

"Thanks..." Jiang Xiwen hung up before she could finish, immediately dialing the office number.

Ning Yan listened to the dial tone in a daze, feeling a wave of sadness. The happiness of these past few days now felt like a mere illusion; he didn't enjoy spending time with her after all.

"Ning Yan, what's wrong? Why are you spacing out? Who was on the phone?" her mother asked while sorting vegetables.

Ning Yan snapped out of it, shook her head, and said, "Nothing, it's nothing. Mom, let me help you."