Chapter 1362: Invalid Number
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Gu Nianzhi heard from Song Jinning that she didn’t want to appear in court anymore, so she didn’t insist.
She knew that this wasn’t something that an average person could handle, so she quickly said, “Are you feeling unwell? It’s okay. You don’t have to go next time, I can go alone…”
Song Jinning cut her off and said with a smile, “It’s not because I’m not feeling well. It’s because I think it’s too much of a waste of time. I spent three hours in court today, but I could have done a few experiments during that time.”
Gu Nianzhi: “…”
Having been a straight-a student for many years, Gu Nianzhi finally understood what it was like to not be a “straight-a student”.
“Nianzhi, this is a critical time for the experiment, and I really don’t have much time.” Song Jinning held Gu Nianzhi’s hand apologetically. “I am getting more and more magnetic field data, and I have a new idea. I’m using a computer program to miniaturize the experiment and plan to run a simulation on the computer. Once the simulation begins, the a.n.a.lyzer will run the program day and night without stopping for even a second.”
Gu Nianzhi’s eyes appeared completely bewildered.
But she still nodded to indicate that she understood!
Song Jinning was amused by her adorable expression. “What’s with that look?”
“You didn’t understand a single word, did you?”
“Not really, I understood the last sentence. You can’t stop for even a second.”Gu Nianzhi smiled and hugged Song Jinning’s shoulders. “It’s okay, you can go do the experiment! Leave the matter of dealing with the ghosts and monsters to me, the Ghost-busters, Gu Nianzhi!”
Song Jinning laughed so hard that she bent over. Her stomach hurt from all the laughing.
Fan Jian, the orderly driver in the front seat, subconsciously glanced at the rear-view mirror. He saw Huo Shaoheng sitting upright in the backseat with his solemn eyes flas.h.i.+ng a satisfied smile.
Sitting beside him was the woman he loved and the mother he respected.
Huo Shaoheng had never been one to mourn the pa.s.sing of time, but at this moment, he only wished for the world to last forever.
..
Cai Shengnan and Luo Jialan stired up a ruckus in the court for more than an hour. They had to pay a sky-high deposit before they could complete the procedures for bail.
Luo Jialan’s pa.s.sport had been confiscated by the Special Operations Forces, and her ident.i.ty card and driver’s license had been withheld by the court.
She could only stay at her home in the capital and couldn’t go anywhere else.
After leaving the court, the two of them sat in Cai Shengnan’s car and didn’t speak for a while.
It wasn’t until they drove away from the court and onto the highway that Cai Shengnan said to Luo Jialan, who was sitting in the pa.s.senger seat, “Have you thought it through? Do you really want to do this?”
Luo Jialan snorted and rested her elbow on the window, then said, “Do you have a better idea?”
Cai Shengnan turned the steering wheel to drive to the fast lane and said lightly, “I do have a good idea, but you won’t agree.”
“You want me to confess, so how could I agree!” Luo Jialan was so angry that she only pounded on the window. “I said I want to plead not guilty! Not guilty!”
“But in the current situation, since the other party wants to mess with you, it’s difficult for you to plead complete innocence.” Cai Shengnan persuaded her in a low voice. “We can confess to a relatively minor crime and get the other party’s consent in exchange for not pursuing a felony like murder.”
“Then… would I go to jail?” Luo Jialan felt that it sounded very reasonable, but not going to jail was her bottom line.
“If you want me to go to jail, I might as well die,” Luo Jialan said indignantly.
Cai Shengnan looked ahead and said indifferently, “Don’t get too worked up. Confessing to a relatively minor crime is just my idea. The other party might not accept it.”
That was a common method in the United States.
After discussing with the public prosecutor, in order to avoid the lengthy trial taking up too much public resources, the defense lawyer would usually propose this compromise.
However, that kind of situation was usually when both sides were in a stalemate.
If this kind of situation was to be reached, Cai Shengnan would have to argue this case towards the “dirty” side. Only when the other party couldn’t stand it anymore and couldn’t continue to appear in court would she accept this method of admitting to a lesser crime to avoid a felony charge.
Luo Jialan bit her lip and thought about it for a while. Finally, she said, “Try calling her number first. She once gave me a number and said that I could call that number as a last resort. Usually, I wouldn’t have to call her.”
Cai Shengnan nodded and asked with a smile, “Aiko Yamaguchi? Sure, as long as she can help you.”
It sounded like that person was quite capable. Cai Shengnan also hoped that that person could come forward, so that the money laundering case could be closed.
“She must have a way.” Luo Jialan seemed to have a lot of trust in that person’s abilities.
Cai Shengnan drove off the highway and came to the bustling downtown area. She stopped in front of a small grocery store.
Luo Jialan got out of the car, lowered her head, and quickly walked to the grocery store.
“Excuse me, can I borrow your phone?”She said gently as she handed over a 100-yuan bill.
The owner of the grocery store took the money with a smile and said, “One yuan per minute. You can make the call.”
Luo Jialan didn’t care. She walked over, picked up the phone, and started dialing.
She had memorized that number a long time ago, but she had never dialed it before because she believed in Aiko Yamaguchi, and because she never had to use a “last resort” before.
This time, she really had to use a “last resort”. However, no matter how frantically she dialed, there was only the mechanical woman’s voice reminding her that the number didn’t exist.
It had the same result for dozens of times in a row.
The last nerve in Luo Jialan’s mind finally broke.
She returned to Cai Shengnan’s car almost in a daze. She covered her face with her hands and started to cry hysterically.
“She lied to me! She lied to me! She really was using me!”
Cai Shengnan sighed softly and handed her a tissue. “Don’t cry. It’s not like we can’t do anything about it. As long as you’re willing…”
Luo Jialan had no choice. She grabbed Cai Shengnan’s hand as if it was the last straw and sobbed. “I’ll listen to you! I’ll listen to you!”
“Then admit to a misdemeanor and avoid a felony.”Cai Shengnan made up her mind. “But then you won’t be able to be with Huo Shaoheng anymore. Would it be worth it?”
Luo Jialan thought about it and finally let out a long sigh, “Lawyer Cai, can you communicate with him? Just say that as long as he agrees to leave Gu Nianzhi and drop the charges, not only will I not charge him, but I’ll also treat the trust fund as my dowry and share it with him.”
The final plan that she and Cai Shengnan had worked out would be a devastating blow to Huo Shaoheng.
Cai Shengnan laughed. “I’ll communicate with Gu Nianzhi. It’s useless to talk to Huo Shaoheng. The only person you can threaten is Gu Nianzhi.”
“Is that so?” Luo Jialan thought about it, smiled, and nodded, “That’s true. Then tell Gu Nianzhi. As long as she’s willing to break off the engagement with Shaoheng, I won’t press charges. It’ll be clear at a glance if she’s trying to protect Huo Shaoheng’s reputation or if she’s just greedy and won’t give up on the prospect of marrying into a wealthy family.”
The two of them drove off.
After they had completely disappeared from the path in front of the grocery store, an ordinary-looking man walked into the store and looked at the phone records of the store owner.
He found the time and number of times Luo Jialan had called, and sent an encrypted text message to his colleague.
“The target dialed the number XX-x.x.xx.x.xx.x.xxx from the phone at X point XX minutes XX seconds. Check the phone company to see what number was called.”
..
After Huo Shaoheng sent Song Jinning back to the Inst.i.tute of High Energy Physics, he asked Gu Nianzhi, “Where are you going?”
“I’m going back to Hepingli Precinct.” Gu Nianzhi shook Huo Shaoheng’s hand. “There’s still a tough battle ahead. I need to prepare the information.”
Huo Shaoheng actually wanted her to go back to the official residence with him, but seeing the dark circles under her eyes, he gave her a thumbs-up and gently caressed the dark circles under her eyes. “Okay.””Go back and have a good rest. Do you have anything to eat at home?”
Gu Nianzhi pursed her lips and smiled sheepishly. “I’ll order takeout.”
Huo Shaoheng shook his head. “Come with me. I’ll get someone to send something over.”
He called the orderly at his mansion and asked them to send over rice, noodles, oil, eggs, vegetables, mushrooms, and shrimp, as well as some home-cooked dishes such as fresh fish, dried scallops, ham, green beans, beef, and pork.
After returning home, Gu Nianzhi went to the bathroom to take a shower. Huo Shaoheng waited for a while, and after everything was delivered, he personally went to the kitchen to cook for her.
The meal was ready, but Gu Nianzhi still hadn’t come out.
“Nianzhi?” Huo Shaoheng called out a few times, but no one answered.
His heart tightened, and he rushed to the bedroom. He kicked open the bathroom door, only to find Gu Nianzhi asleep in the bathtub.
Under the clear water, her alluring body was faintly discernible, and rose petals were floating on the surface of the water.
Huo Shaoheng relaxed and smiled as he picked her up from the bathtub. He wiped her dry before waking her up.
While the two of them were eating, Huo Shaoheng received a call from his subordinate.
“Major General Huo, after Luo Jialan left the courthouse today, she made a call in a very remote grocery store. She called the number a dozen of times in total.”
Huo Shaoheng put down his chopsticks and asked with an impa.s.sive expression,”… What number? Who was it?”
“It was an invalid number. No one picked up.”