Golden Scale [EN]: Chapter 158

The Integration of Politics and Economics (Part 2)

“I lost to him, I really lost to him,” Hou Longtao shook his head and slumped back on the sofa. “If they hadn’t mistakenly found Situ Zhiyuan to be the scapegoat, I would have definitely been in trouble this time. The timing, location, and people were all on my side, but I still lost to him. This isn’t the first time, and I still don’t understand how he saw through Long. Damn it, I lost to him.”

“Hmph, you can’t look at it that way,” Gu Quanzhi said, letting the young man mutter to himself for a while. “Why is it that there’s always someone to remind him at the most crucial moment? Those who achieve great things have the favor of heaven, which means they have luck, and they always have benefactors to help them. When have you ever seen a loser achieve great things all by himself?”

“Hmm…” Hou Longtao was still brooding over his misfortune. “Why do you want me to continue talking to them? Now that things are like this, I don’t want to play with him anymore.”

“We haven’t figured everything out yet. We’ve been assuming that Tian Donghua has enough funds to implement his plan, but that’s eight billion US dollars. Where did he get that money from?”

“Where?”

“I’m asking you.”

“How would I know? Don’t you know?”

Gu Quanzhi shook his head. “We haven’t figured out the most crucial question yet.”

“Michael Sha’s old man and GM [General Motors] each put up half? That’s not right. Situ Zhiyuan and GM don’t have that kind of budget. So, Michael Sha’s old man is putting up all the money himself?”

“Why would he do that?” Gu Quanzhi tilted his head. “He can’t come up with that much money either. And if Tian Donghua is using other people’s money, he’ll get at most two or three percent of the shares as a commission. Would he be willing to do that?”

“Maybe I’ve forced him into a corner. He probably guessed that I would kick him away soon. Compared to having nothing, two or three percent of Dongxing’s shares is a huge income.”

“Hmm… unlikely. Let’s stick to the facts we know. GM doesn’t have this money. If someone else wants to buy, like Lockheed, hmm…” Gu Quanzhi narrowed his eyes, staring at the ceiling. “An American arms company, hmm… it might need to use GM’s name. But I don’t think it can come up with eight billion in cash. And for them, controlling Dongxing doesn’t have any real meaning. On the other hand, Lockheed is too close to the American government. If it’s really trying so hard to control a Chinese company, our government, even if it can’t win back the controlling stake, might become a major shareholder and participate in company decisions. It would be creating unnecessary trouble for itself.” He shook his head. “It won’t be Lockheed.”

“You want me to continue negotiating to see where he’s getting the money from?”

“Aren’t you curious?”

“If it’s just for that, we could just kidnap Michael Sha and ask him.”

“What nonsense are you talking about? Kidnap him? Do you think he’s a cigarette vendor outside your door?” Gu Quanzhi looked a bit disappointed. “Besides, he might not even know. If I were Tian Donghua, I would never tell this secret to anyone, let alone someone who only has a business relationship with me.”

“I know it’s useless to kidnap Tian Donghua. He’d rather torture me than satisfy my curiosity.”

“Heh, you’ve thought that through pretty well.”

“Could Jia Qi possibly know?”

“Even if he knows, how would you ask him? I was really thinking about putting pressure on him, but not to get him to confess, but to warn Tian Donghua not to cause trouble. But my curiosity is forcing me not to do that. If it were this question now, there’s really no way to ask, let alone put pressure on him. He hasn’t done anything, and he’s also in an important position. No one knows what his relationship with Tian Donghua is really like.”

“There’s one more person we can ask.” Hou Longtao suddenly thought of someone.

“Who?”

“Zhang Yuqiang.”

“Him? What kind of big shot is he? Tian Donghua would never confide in him.”

“How could Tian Donghua ensure that the National Security Bureau detained Situ Zhiyuan? I think it was through Zhang Yuqiang. Even if Zhang Yuqiang really doesn’t know about the money, he can prove our guess.”

“Aren’t you afraid of stirring up trouble?”

“I’m confident I can keep things quiet.”

“Okay, you handle it.”

“Hiss…” Hou Longtao seemed to remember something else. “How can continuing the negotiations show where his money is coming from?”

“Have you forgotten? GM hasn’t paid for your shares yet. And we have Situ Zhiyuan as an inside source. To avoid arousing his suspicion, GM won’t reduce his power until the last moment. Once GM receives the money, he will definitely be able to trace its source.”

“How can he trace it? The bank on the other side won’t reveal this information.”

“Who wants them to reveal it? In a few days, I’ll let you meet some people, and then you’ll know.” Gu Quanzhi walked over and patted Hou Longtao on the shoulder…

Zhang Yuqiang was originally quite happy living at his grandparents’ house, but after his cousin and sister moved out, he suddenly felt that he shouldn’t live there anymore. After all, he was a senior police officer and the leader of a group of cronies. It would be too embarrassing not to have his own place. He had just bought a house outside.

These days, Feng Jie had been busy helping her son move. Most of the furniture and other things had already been taken care of, and now all that was left was to organize the clothes. No matter what, he was her own flesh and blood, so as a mother, she would of course take care of him wholeheartedly.

Feng Jie had just started cooking rice when the doorbell rang. “Did he forget his keys?” she muttered as she walked over. Judging by the time, it should be her son coming back from work.

The beautiful woman took off her apron and opened the door. Standing outside wasn’t Zhang Yuqiang, but Hou Longtao with a smile on his face.

“Hmm.” Feng Jie was slightly stunned.

“Is your son home?”

“Yuqiang? He… he’s not back yet.” Feng Jie really didn’t expect her lover to show up here.

Hou Longtao stepped into the house, swung his hand and slammed the door shut behind him, pulled the beauty into his arms and hugged her tightly, and began to kiss her lips passionately.

“Hmm… hmm…” Feng Jie leaned back, holding the man’s head with both hands, closing her eyes as if in a daze. The feeling of being forcibly kissed by him was quite intoxicating.

Hou Longtao kissed the woman’s neck, and with both hands, through the green military uniform skirt, he caressed her buttocks.

“So good.”

“Oh God… Old… husband… ah… husband…” Feng Jie hugged the man’s head, breathing rapidly, her lower body pressing against his crotch. “Don’t… don’t… don’t do this… ah… ah… Qiang is… is coming back…”

Hou Longtao, holding the mature woman’s buttocks, lifted her up from the ground, rushed forward, and fell with her onto the large sofa, pulling up her skirt with both hands.

“Oh!” Feng Jie gently kicked her legs, patting the man’s back. She wanted to resist, but she was afraid of hurting her beloved. “Husband… don’t… really… don’t…”

Hou Longtao sat up, pulled the beauty into his arms, and kissed her forehead. “Don’t you miss me?”

“Of course I miss you, but…”

“I know, I know, I won’t let you off tonight, hmph.” Hou Longtao let go of the woman and got up to straighten his clothes.

Feng Jie also began to tidy herself up. “What did you come here for?”

“Yuqian told me that your son comes back here every day now.”

“Are you really looking for Qiang? What’s the matter?” Feng Jie poured a glass of water for the man.

“Pa,” Hou Longtao playfully slapped her on the butt.

“Annoying.” Feng Jie playfully pushed the man’s forehead.

“I’m here to talk to him about some business.”

“Does he know you’re coming?”

“No, this is a surprise visit.” Hou Longtao was afraid that if he had made an appointment with Zhang Yuqiang in advance, he would tell Tian Donghua, although this possibility wasn’t particularly high, it was always better to be cautious.

“Why are you making it sound like an interrogation? What’s going on?”

“Don’t worry, it’s a good thing.” Hou Longtao grabbed the woman’s hand and kissed it.

Feng Jie heard the sound of someone opening the door with a key, quickly took two steps back, and sat down on the sofa.

Zhang Yuqiang pushed the door and entered the house, saw the man in the living room, his movements paused for a moment, and then he continued his actions. “Hou Longtao? What are you doing here?” His tone wasn’t friendly.

“Let’s find a place to talk.” Hou Longtao stood up.

“Let’s just talk here,” Feng Jie also stood up. She could feel the tension between the two young men. “I’ve already cooked the meal, it would be better to eat and talk, don’t go out.”

“You can eat it yourself.” Zhang Yuqiang turned around and walked out again.

Hou Longtao pinched Feng Jie’s buttocks, and followed him out.

The two found an inconspicuous Xinjiang restaurant nearby. As soon as they arrived, freshly grilled skewers and tendon were brought up immediately. They were originally grilled for other customers, but of course, the police comrades were given priority.

“Wang An,” Zhang Yuqiang grabbed a skewer of meat and started eating. “I wasn’t looking for you, but you came looking for me.”

Hou Longtao ordered a few more dishes from the waiter, such as lamb spine and big plate chicken. He lit a cigarette and looked at the police officer across from him with a serious expression. “Zhang Yuqiang, don’t be so rude right off the bat. I’m here today to give you some friendly advice for the sake of Yuqian, Feng Yun, and your mother.”

“Friendly advice?” Zhang Yuqiang spat out a piece of tendon that he couldn’t chew. “You’re going to give me friendly advice? Who the hell do you think you are?”

“Hmph, hmph,” Hou Longtao shoveled fried noodles into his mouth. “Why are you being so unfriendly to me? I’m your future brother-in-law and cousin-in-law. We’re family.”

“You motherfucker,” Zhang Yuqiang waved his hand and knocked the cigarette butt out of Hou Longtao’s hand. Although he didn’t actually hit him, he had to show his anger. “What the hell are you being so cocky about, you pretty boy? Hmph, you better pray to God that my cousin will always protect you. As long as she’s not happy with you, you… hmph, hmph.”

“Sigh…” Hou Longtao sighed, but it was clearly not out of concern for his own situation, but to mock the other party’s low intelligence. “Why do you have to make things difficult for yourself?”

“How am I making things difficult for myself?” Zhang Yuqiang bit into a large kidney that was sizzling with oil.

“Feng Yun will be mine forever. What are you going to do about it? At least she’ll be on my side for the next six months. You don’t have any objections, do you?”

“So what if I do?”

“To be honest, the conflict between me and Tian Donghua has reached the point of no return. We’ll soon have a life-or-death battle. It’s time for you to take a stand and choose a side.” Hou Longtao took a bite of Xinjiang cuisine.

“What does ‘no return’ even mean?”

“Let me explain,” Hou Longtao briefly explained the grudges between himself and Tian Donghua. “For whatever reason, he thinks he can replace me.”

“I’d be happy for him to replace you,” Zhang Yuqiang didn’t know that the feud between Tian Donghua and Hou Longtao was so deep. “At least he’s my friend.”

“Hahahaha,” Hou Longtao laughed contemptuously. “You’re friends? Zhang Yuqiang, you’re a smart man. You can’t be friends with people who hold you back. We’ve already seen through Tian Donghua’s tricks. His ultimate fate has been decided. Are you still going to tie yourself to him?”

“You two can fight your own battles. What does it have to do with me? Just tell me what you want.” Zhang Yuqiang was an absolute snob. He had a different definition of the word “friend” than ordinary people. Before he understood the other party’s intentions and the truth of his words, it was best to maintain a neutral stance.

“Maybe it doesn’t have much to do with you now, but it will soon. According to our speculation, it won’t be long before Tian Donghua asks you to do something for him. How will you answer him?”

“What kind of thing?”

“Now,” Hou Longtao tapped the table with one finger and threw away a skewer with the other hand, “It doesn’t matter what he specifically asks you to do. It’s definitely something you can do. The important thing is whether you help him or not. Are you helping him or helping me?”

Zhang Yuqiang stared at the “scumbag” across from him while gnawing on a lamb spine. “Who do you think I should help?”

“I told you earlier, you’re a smart man and you’ll make the right choice. I have the support of the political, military, and business worlds. I have a great influence on the underground scene,” Hou Longtao said that Zhang Yuqiang was smart, but he knew in his heart that he was an arrogant fool. It was best to lay out all the advantages for him. “My financial resources are very strong. I have good relationships with international financial groups and large syndicates. What does Tian Donghua have? I need someone in the police force to support me. If you really want to have your own world, you also need someone like me to support you. Wasn’t that what you were implying to me last time in the suburbs? You have what I want, and I have what you want. Why not?”

“What about you?”

“Right, right, you and Tian Donghua are frie…”

“That’s not the reason.” Zhang Yuqiang handed a cigarette to Hou Longtao.

“Oh, Yuqian?” Hou Longtao took the cigarette. This Zhang guy was even more ungrateful than he thought. “I understand, you’re being a brother. But think about it, would I treat her badly? Don’t you know your sister? She’s smarter than a ghost. She’s the only one who can control me.”

“Hmph, that girl is pretty good. I’m warning you, brother-in-law, don’t let her come home crying to me to complain about you again.”

“It won’t happen.”

Zhang Yuqiang helped Hou Longtao light the cigarette…

After Feng Jie waited for her son to return home and confirmed that there was nothing wrong, she left. She was going to take the elevator in the middle of the floor.

“Hi!”

“Ah!” Feng Jie was startled by the man’s voice just as she reached the stairwell. She turned her head and saw Hou Longtao leaning against the wall with a smile on his face. She patted her chest. “Oh, you almost gave me a heart attack.”

Hou Longtao reached out and grabbed the woman’s right hand, pulled her suddenly in front of him, and grabbed her buttocks. “I told you I was going to make you feel good tonight. You didn’t think I was joking, did you?”

“Really, let me go, good husband,” Feng Jie struggled gently while looking around. It would be terrible if someone saw them. “I’ll go with you.”

“Then let’s go.” Hou Longtao pushed the woman and walked into the stairwell.

“Where are we going? Aren’t we taking the elevator? Ah!” Feng Jie didn’t realize what was going on until the man started pulling her skirt up. “What are you doing? Right here?”

Hou Longtao had already pushed the woman to the middle of the stairs, pulling her skirt up to her waist. The dim yellow light shone on her thighs.

“Don’t… don’t… don’t mess around,” Feng Jie wanted to break free from the man’s grasp, but she was pinned against the wall by him. Although she was pushing his shoulders, it was like pushing against a rock. “You’re really… really going to kill me… don’t… don’t…”

Hou Longtao completely ignored her pleas and kissed and licked her face and neck. Her panties were wedged into her crotch, one hand rubbing her mound, and the other hand pulling out his own penis.

“What if someone comes? What if… what if someone comes… what… what do we do? Please don’t, don’t… don’t…” Feng Jie was really scared, but at the same time, she had a strange excitement in her chest, so excited that she felt dizzy. She knew that she was already wet. This was too exciting. The stimulation she had received in the past few months was hundreds of times more than the sum of the previous forty years.

“This is the sixteenth floor, who would come here?” Hou Longtao used his legs to separate her legs, and pinched her butt.

“Hoo… hoo… hoo… will… will… will be heard… heard… hoo…” Feng Jie no longer resisted, but instead hugged the man’s head.

“No one will hear you if you don’t scream.” Hou Longtao held her mouth and kissed her.

“Mmm, mmm…” Feng Jie twisted her body, but not in resistance, completely because the rising desire had not been satisfied.

Hou Longtao lifted her buttocks and lifted her up. Feng Jie took advantage of the situation and jumped up, wrapping her legs around the man’s waist.

Hou Longtao held her butt, and at the same time as he thrust his hips upwards, he pressed down, and thrust his penis into her, and began to move quickly. Feng Jie’s body was bumped up and down, she desperately bit the man’s collar, forcing herself not to make joyful moans, but the pleasure and stimulation she received did not diminish because of this. The feeling of being penetrated again and again made her burst into tears…

Long Tian spent his days in the United States shopping, whoring, and spending money lavishly. Anyway, his fourth brother reimbursed him for half of it, so he was living a carefree life. These days, Zuo Wei also helped him rent a villa by the sea, so he had even more fun. However, he would still complain to Tian Donghua every two or three days about Hou Longtao’s despicable and shameless behavior, or tell him how much he missed Yuqian.

That night, the clouds in the sky were very thick, and there was no wind, so not a single ray of moonlight could penetrate through. Across a fairly wide road from Long’s villa, there was a three-story high-end apartment building. Three Russian men were playing cards in a room on the second floor. A thermal scope was placed at the window, and next to it was an LCD screen with two overlapping colored human figures, constantly shaking.

The intercom on the wall rang from downstairs.

One of the men went over and pressed the button. “Yes?”

“Pizza for 206.”

“Come on up.” The man opened the door.

Another man got up, took out money from his wallet, and opened the door, ready to pay.

A short Asian man wearing a pizza shop uniform came around the corner from the stairs with an insulated bag in his hand. He came to the door of the room, pinched the bottom of the bag with his left hand, and reached in with his right hand, as if to pull out the box, but what he took out was a pistol with a silencer.

The three Russians didn’t even grunt, and each had a bullet hole in the center of their foreheads. Five more Asians appeared, two people carrying each body downstairs and throwing them into a gray Dodge Ram.

The three returned upstairs to pack their things, and the other three walked towards the villa across the street.

Before long, three more colored human figures appeared on the screen in the apartment room.

＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊＊

“Cool.” Long rolled off the blonde’s breasts, rubbing them while lighting a cigarette.

Tina helped him light the cigarette.

With a “bang,” the bedroom door was kicked open, and three Asian men rushed in with guns.

“Ah!” Tina screamed, wrapping herself in a sheet.

“Shut the fuck up!” One of the men pointed a gun at the woman’s head and said fiercely.

Long didn’t even have time to move before a silencer was pressed against his forehead. “Lin Long?”

The man’s Chinese was very accented.

“I am.” Long knew that denial was useless.

“Get up.”

Long got off the bed. “Who are you people?”

The third man, who wasn’t holding a gun, was by the window. At some point, he had a syringe in his hand. He stepped behind Long and grabbed him.

“What are you doing!?” Long only shook his body instinctively, not really wanting to resist.

“Don’t move, cooperate.” A gun was pointed at Long’s head again.

The person behind Long stuck the needle into the back of his neck, and the liquid in the syringe slowly disappeared.

“Hmm…” Long only struggled for a moment before his body became limp.

“Ah!” Tina screamed again.

“Do you want him to die?” One of the men tore the sheet off the woman, revealing the semen flowing between her legs. “Hmph.”

“What are you doing? What are you going to do?” Tina shrank back in fear.

“Asking if you want him to die?”

“No… don’t want to.”

“If you don’t want to, don’t call the police,” the man took an envelope from his jacket pocket and threw it on the woman’s breasts. “When you wake up, give this to your Chinese boss, and then let him give it to his boss.”

“What?” Tina didn’t understand what the other party meant by “Chinese,” nor did she understand the meaning of “when you wake up.”

“When you wake up.” The man slapped the woman in the face, knocking her unconscious…(The Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate)