Quenching

“We’ve been working together for many years. If his company hadn’t stagnated a few years ago and fallen behind everyone else, he wouldn’t be giving me this huge box of money now. Take the money and get them to make the purchases as soon as possible. Once the fabric is produced, send it to him to help him get through this difficult time. I need to go to the private entrepreneurs’ class to listen to the teacher’s lecture.”

"Okay, please take your time."

At noon, the accountant wiped the sweat from her brow, pushed aside the pile of cash on her desk, rummaged through the latrine to find her room key, grabbed her lunchbox, stepped over the small mountain of cash on the floor, and headed to the cafeteria for lunch. She had only taken a few steps when she heard a loud "bang." Immediately, she snapped to attention, put down her lunchbox, grabbed the fire extinguisher from the corridor, and stealthily pulled out her key, heading back to her office.

Shards of glass were scattered by the window of the accounting office. The heavy curtains bulged unusually large, and a ray of sunlight peeked in through the gaps in the thick curtains. The sparse rustling continued. The accountant put down the fire hydrant and dialed the security office.

"Hey, what do you want?"

The security guard roared fiercely, but the noise outside the window continued. He frowned, pulled back the curtains, and saw a boy with brightly colored hair sawing through the iron bars on the accountant's office window. He relaxed his muscles, put away the stick, and the accountant breathed a sigh of relief.

"Mao Mao, stop causing trouble, let's go."

The security guard sternly reprimanded the boy.

"Brother, just hand me two stacks and I'll be going."

Mao Mao grinned and pointed to the cash on the ground at the security guard.

The security guard ignored the boy and looked around at the shattered glass and the iron fence that had been sawed.

"Brother, please have mercy and give me two stacks."

When Mao Mao saw that the security guard was ignoring him, he simply grabbed his hand and started shaking it.

"Brother, I haven't eaten for days. Give me two stacks of crabs, I want to eat hairy crabs."

"I am a hairy crab, you can eat me!"

The security guard waved for Mao Mao to hurry up and leave. Mao Mao grabbed the guard's arm with both hands and bit down suddenly. The guard bared his teeth and pushed Mao Mao's mouth away.

With a "bang," the security guards and accountants in the accounting office felt their heads buzz and their faces turn pale instantly.

******

"That's right, their factory is unethical. They don't pay their workers the money; they pocket it all for themselves. And they don't have holidays, they don't pay overtime, and they even use poison..."

Kong Yanfei stared at the video on her phone and angrily cursed.

"I want to see which vicious person is spouting this nonsense."

Sheng Shanxing put away his phone and hurriedly quickened his pace.

Kong Yanfei pushed open the swollen and warped wooden door with a fierce air. The rusty padlock lay pitifully in the uneven, muddy puddle.

Sheng Shanxing lowered his head, squeezed into the three-square-meter room, and suddenly froze there.

"Eat slowly, don't choke."

Huang Qiaqia's father sat on the ground, holding a bottle of water in one hand and gently patting Mao Mao's back with the other.

"Hehe, it's delicious, Uncle, you should have some too."

Mao Mao happily sucked the crab juice from her fingers, and proudly held up a crab, handing it to Huang Qiaqia's father.

Huang Qiaqia's father handed a tissue to Mao Mao.

Instead, Mao Mao pushed the tissue away, tilted her head back, and Huang Qiaqia's father was slightly stunned. After a while, he gently wiped the crab juice from the corner of Mao Mao's mouth.

"Eat your fill, take a nap, and don't make any more mistakes, understand?"

Huang Qiaqia's father put down a bag of steamed buns and a roast chicken, gesturing for Sheng Shanxing and the others to come out with him.

"Uncle, he was the one who made up rumors about Auntie's factory in front of the media."

"It's him."

"Then why do you still buy food for Mao Mao?"

Sheng Shanxing watched as Huang Qiaqia's father picked up the rusty lock from the ground, wiped off some of the rust with his hand, and hung it back on the door. He then slowly raised his eyes and stared at the two crooked characters "Mao Mao" on the door frame.

"You go to the film set with the bodyguard first."

Sheng Shanxing pushed Kong Yanfei away from the narrow alley that could only accommodate one person.

Huang Qiaqia's father watched Kong Yanfei's departing figure and spoke slowly.

"Mao Mao finally got a girlfriend who studied hairdressing, but she broke up with him because he didn't have money to treat her to hairy crabs."

"How much did the factory lose?"

"Hehe, they are all long-term customers of several decades. They have visited the factory many times before and not many people believed the nonsense on the Internet. The factory not only did not suffer any losses, but also received a lot more orders."

"Public opinion can be a powerful force. It would be better to clarify the situation after some time has passed."

"Yes."

"Okay, Uncle, I'll head back now."

"Be careful on the road."

Huang Qiaqia's father watched Sheng Shanxing's car drive onto the main road before slowly walking towards the bus stop. Little did he know that just two stops after the bus left, Mao Mao looked up and saw a tall and imposing figure.

******

As dusk fell, Wu Haofeng stretched and got up to leave work.

"Sir, sir, please wait a moment, you..."

Wu Haofeng, who had his hands raised, paused for three seconds before signaling his secretary to close the door.

Who did what happened to Mao Mao?

"What fur?"

Wu Haofeng, looking exhausted, casually tapped his phone screen. In a flash, he frowned and looked up sharply at Sheng Shanxing, who exuded a fierce aura. His eyes were filled with a hint of vigilance, and his brows furrowed slightly.

What's wrong with Mao Mao?

Sheng Shanxing stared intently at Wu Haofeng's gloomy face, his heart filled with suspicion, but his eyes revealed nothing about his own situation.

"What happened on your end?"

"I……"

Wu Haofeng bit his lip, reluctant to say it aloud.

"You speak first."

"The photos sent by Wei Shengziqing clearly show the bloodstains on Xing Songfeng's face and the gun he is holding."

Wu Haofeng's eyes showed embarrassment, as if he wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

"My longtime bed partner just had an accident."

"Was it done by Wei Shengziqing?"

"Who else could it be but him?"

Why can't I get in touch with Wanli Fuguang?

"I don't know, but don't worry, Huang Qiaqia will be fine. Who is Mao Mao?"

"It's none of your business."

Sheng Shanxing turned and left. Wu Haofeng hurriedly ran over to stop him. His heart seemed to be beating a little fast, his body trembled slightly, he clenched his fists tightly, and suddenly looked up, letting out the excitement that had been pent up in his heart for a long time.

“Sheng Shanxing, I don’t hate you. I never intended to target you personally. Now, Wei Shengziqing, that madman, is determined to deal with the Wanli family. Even if you want Huang Qiaqia to completely sever ties with the Wanli family, it shouldn’t be now. You can’t defeat Wei Shengziqing, let alone protect Huang Qiaqia.”

Sheng Shanxing snorted coldly, gave a bitter smile, and met Wu Haofeng's excited and affectionate gaze.

"What about her?"