Chapter 3

Zhou Qian went on.

“Here’s a chance for him to make money, and he’s exactly the kind of man Mr. Huang needs. Choose him.”

I hesitated for a long time. In the end, I took a deep breath and agreed.

We went back upstairs. Wang Changping was clearing away the bowl.

I spoke to him seriously.

“This isn’t entirely clean work. Would you dare to do it?”

He looked at his daughter, told her to go to her room, and closed the door after her.

Only then did he ask, “What sort of work?”

We sat down to talk. Zhou Qian set the food from the restaurant on the table, but opened no alcohol.

I explained Mr. Huang’s plan. I also made it clear that afterward, the police would be looking for him. He could no longer stay in the country.

Wang Changping hesitated.

I thought perhaps he was unwilling.

“It’s all right if you won’t do it,” I said. “Just don’t tell anyone. Keep the twenty thousand I gave you. Call it payment for your silence.”

Before I had finished, he asked, “If it works... how much do I get?”

“Ten million yuan.”

He drew a deep breath.

He looked at the family photograph, then toward his daughter’s room. His eyes visibly reddened.

He wiped away his tears and nodded.

“All right... I’ll do it. As long as it pays, I’ll do anything.”

...

The next day, I took him to the group’s offices to report to Mr. Huang.

Mr. Huang was very pleased. He immediately promised Wang thirty thousand yuan a month for living expenses and medicine while the work was underway.

As soon as it was finished, he would receive the ten million. Mr. Huang also promised to introduce his daughter to the best specialist in the field and cover all her treatment costs.

Wang Changping was so moved that he knelt and kowtowed to him.

...

We got to work that afternoon, finding an agency to register the business.

A week later, the company was registered in Wang Changping’s name: Changping Construction.

Two weeks after that, Mr. Huang signed a cooperation agreement. Broadly, Xincheng Group and Changping Construction would jointly establish New Xincheng Real Estate Co., Ltd., with registered capital of two million yuan, contributed by both parties.

There were three copies.

Mr. Huang kept one, Xu Min kept another, and Wang Changping received the third.

Then it was time for Wang to do his part.

Mr. Huang told him to find five hundred construction workers. Preferably, they should bring their equipment too.

Wang Changping knew exactly how to proceed.

He put on his best suit and an expensive watch borrowed from Mr. Huang, making himself look like a successful businessman.

Then he told me to drive him to an active construction site.

I did as he asked.

When we arrived, I parked outside.

It had rained the night before. The site was full of mud. I didn’t want yellow mud splashing over the car.

“Drive in,” Wang Changping said.

“It’s filthy in there.”

“That’s the point. They need to see I’m not afraid of getting a luxury car dirty. It makes an impression.”

That made sense, so I did.

The moment we drove onto the site, the workers turned to look. Wang Changping got out.

He asked the nearest worker, “Is your foreman Zheng here?”

The man shook his head.

“He’s at another site. He’ll be here this afternoon.”

Wang checked his watch and shook his head.

“No, I can’t wait until then. Tell him Wang Changping came looking for him. I’ve got a big deal to discuss.”

He tossed the worker a soft pack of Chunghwa cigarettes.

The man nodded repeatedly.

“Of course. Don’t worry. I’ll tell him.”

Wang nodded, got back into the car, and had me drive to several other sites, where he did exactly the same thing.

...

That afternoon, we sat in the car while his phone rang constantly.

He answered the first call on speaker.

“Wang? My workers say you’ve struck it rich. Driving a luxury car and everything.”

“Yes. Made a little money recently. Found an opportunity.”

“They said you had some business for me. Going to let me make some money with you?”

“That’s the idea. I’ve got a project on my hands, too much for me alone. I want to bring everyone in.”

Another call interrupted him. The contact name was “Third.”

“Third’s calling,” Wang told the first man. “I’ll get back to you. Let me speak to him first.”

He hung up.

“Wang, you’re back on your feet?”

“Yes, I’m back. We’ve known each other for years, so I won’t beat around the bush. I’ve found a way to make money, and I want to bring a few people in. If you’re interested, I’ll host a dinner in a couple of days. We can sit down and talk. I’m busy just now. I’ll send the address later.”

Seven or eight calls like that came in over the afternoon.

All were small local contractors with some resources. Each had several dozen workers.

When the last call ended, Wang Changping sighed.

“You used to be close to these people?” I asked.

“Fairly. They...”

His phone rang again before he could finish. This time, the contact was “Boss Zhang.”

He looked at the number and answered.

“Hello, Zhang.”

“Wang, I hear you’ve made a fortune. What have you found? Any chance of bringing me along?”

“Sorry. We’ve got enough people this time. Next opportunity, you’ll be the first I call.”

“Why don’t you tell me what sort of project it is?”

“Just a housing development. I’m the contractor. I have to go. Another call’s coming in.”

He hung up and sighed.

“Why didn’t you bring him in?” I asked.

“Boss Zhang’s been good to me. After the accident, he helped buy medicine for my daughter. The others didn’t. Once I lost my leg, every one of them kicked me while I was down.”

I understood at once and nodded.

“Book somewhere big for the evening after tomorrow,” he said. “I’ll get the whole lot of them.”

“All right.”

I called the manager of Shenfan Club and told him to keep Mr. Huang’s usual private room free that evening.

After hanging up, I told Wang, “Seven o’clock, the evening after tomorrow. Shenfan Club. Room Eight.”

“Good.”

He sent the address in a group message to everyone who had called.

...

That evening, I stayed in the car while Wang Changping drank with the contractors inside.

I don’t know what they said or did. All I know is that the next morning, he tapped on my window, reeking of alcohol.

I unlocked the car.

He got into the passenger seat, bringing the smell of drink with him.

“It’s settled.”

Sure enough, a few days later, all the contractors signed project-based payment agreements with him. The contracts offered a per-square-meter fee fifteen percent higher than other sites.

Meanwhile, Mr. Huang located a batch of defective building materials and bought them for only a little over cost.

With labor and materials secured, work could begin soon.

...

On July 28, 2013, construction officially began at New Xincheng.

Zhou Qian became the site’s project manager.

Mr. Huang and Wang Changping cut the ribbon for the cameras. Xu Min stood off to one side, avoiding them.

Afterward, Mr. Huang walked over to him with a smile.

“Xu, it’s a happy occasion. Why not show your face?”

Xu Min shook his head.

“I don’t like being photographed.”

He left, leaving Mr. Huang and me standing there.

I knew Xu Min had a past. But after all those years, no one knew exactly what had happened to him. Mr. Huang had never pressed him either.

Just then, however, Mr. Huang watched him walk away and asked me, “Feng, do you think Xu Min can be trusted?”

The question startled me.

“Don’t look at me like that,” he said. “What we’re doing now puts all our necks on the line. If anything goes wrong, we’re finished. You, me, Zhou Qian, Wang Changping—we certainly won’t talk. But Xu Min’s different. What if one day he tells those other bosses?”

“You’ve got his academic records,” I said. “He can be trusted.”

Mr. Huang shook his head.

“We can’t bring those records into it. Do you know how many important people bought qualifications there? If this comes out through me, everyone who bought one will do everything they can to bury it. Once the storm passes, they’ll come back for me.”

I remained silent for a long time, not daring to speak.

Mr. Huang lowered his head toward me.

“Find out who Xu Min really is. What did he do before? See if there’s anything we can hold over him.”

He handed me a sheet of paper and patted my shoulder.

I opened it. It was the information form Xu Min had filled out when transferring his household registration south.

His original registration details were clearly listed.

...

I followed the address north and found that the house in the file had been sealed by the authorities.

I asked a neighbor about the family.

The neighbor said their story was famous around there, then gave me an embellished account.

In summary:

Xu Min was the name he had taken when he transferred his household registration two years earlier.

His real name was Lu Gong.

He had an older brother, Lu You.

After their father died, Lu You became addicted to gambling. He lost the family fortune and apparently borrowed from loan sharks.

Unable to repay them, he fell foul of the underworld. Lu Gong disappeared afterward.

The neighbors all said the loan sharks had killed him.

Two years earlier, their mother had fallen to her death from a building one night.

Lu You was the only family member left.

Later, he could no longer pay the mortgage, and the court sealed the house.

That gave me a rough understanding of Xu Min’s background.

I called Mr. Huang and reported everything.

He thought for a moment.

“Feng, find a way to let his brother know where Xu Min is now. But don’t let the brother know you leaked it. And don’t let Xu Min know we’re involved. Leave the rest alone.”

“Yes, sir.”

...