Chapter 053: Brother Wu, I Owe You One This Time!

Chapter 053: Brother Wu, I Owe You One This Time!

Lei Cheng shot to his feet, staring at Wu Chen.

Wu Chen had mentioned earlier that Lei Cheng feared his own brother would have him killed. At the time, Lei Cheng had assumed Wu Chen must be a core descendant of some massive family—otherwise there was no way he could have known.

Inside Hongfa itself, only a handful of people close enough to understand the upper echelons would even dare speculate, and the company had locked down all information completely afterward.

Anyone outside who knew, who had heard even fragments, had to be someone extraordinary.

And then Li Ruobing had called, only to be shut down without a second thought—which had all but confirmed Lei Cheng’s guess. Wu Chen was absolutely no ordinary man.

After that, neither of them had brought up the Lei family mess again.

Lei Cheng’s final impression was clear: Wu Chen was a promising young man backed by serious power, real ability, and ruthless methods to match.

He didn’t think Wu Chen could have any deep understanding of his family’s internal affairs. At most, he might have caught wind of a few things.

But now—

Wu Chen had just handed him a phone number.

And told him that as long as he caught the owner of that number, he’d learn the truth behind the car accident ten years ago?!

Lei Cheng could not stay calm.

That accident was the one thing that could strike his nerves most easily.

“You said it yourself. The two of us—we really do have fate.” Under Lei Cheng’s fixed stare, Wu Chen brought up fate once more.

Lei Cheng’s eyes flickered.

He thought about it. Said nothing. Only slowly sat back down.

Only now did he finally understand what Wu Chen had meant by repeating the word “fate” again and again.

The reason they’d met this time was because they’d played the same private server game together.

But fate—

It didn’t mean that when Wu Chen saw Lei Cheng, he’d simply discovered he recognized him.

It meant that Wu Chen not only knew Lei Cheng, but also happened to know certain things about the Lei family. Could even help him.

That was what fate meant.

Lei Cheng thought again of the subtle expression Wu Chen had shown the moment he’d walked in. He understood now that he’d misread it. It hadn’t been merely because Wu Chen happened to recognize him. It was because Wu Chen not only recognized him, but knew things.

His gaze fell once more to his phone screen.

That number.

“Actually, I never wanted to get involved in your Lei family’s business.” Wu Chen lifted his teacup naturally, though he didn’t drink. “Your family’s affairs—even if outsiders know something, it’s not really our place to interfere.”

“But… Brother Lei, today you made me feel that heaven’s been unfair to you. A good man like you—you lost your mother the moment you were born, lost your wife in a car accident, or rather a murder, and then had to endure brothers turning on each other…”

Wu Chen shook his head and sighed, as if he truly felt the injustice on Lei Cheng’s behalf.

He took a sip of tea, set the cup down, and continued. “You helped me today. We only just met, yet you did me a huge favor. So I’ll return it in kind.”

That phone number had originally been meant as trade goods, something to exchange for the spokesperson. Now it had become repayment for Lei Cheng’s initiative.

Wu Chen would not owe Lei Cheng a favor.

He would only make Lei Cheng owe him one.

From what Wu Chen had just said, Lei Cheng could tell he really did know a great deal about him. He’d even mentioned that Lei Cheng had lost his mother at birth—something from forty-two years ago.

He glanced once more at the number in the message, then looked up. “Whose is it?”

“Have someone check and you’ll know, won’t you? With your reach, Brother Lei, tracking down a number’s owner should only take a few minutes.” Wu Chen didn’t say it outright.

Lei Cheng was silent a moment. Then he tapped the screen, forwarded the message to one of his trusted men, and immediately moved to make a call.

“Oh, right.” Wu Chen spoke again. “This man changed his name. He’s also got two ID cards with different ID numbers. He stopped using his original identity information long ago. So you’d better have your people check his household registration and get the current photo on file. Ten years have passed, but you should still be able to recognize him.”

Wu Chen paused, then added, “One more thing. Before you find him, don’t let anyone call this number. The people who know it can be counted on one hand. Spook him and he’ll run. Maybe even flee the country overnight.”

Lei Cheng gripped his phone and listened until Wu Chen had finished. He still said nothing. At last he placed the call.

It connected almost immediately.

“I just sent you a number. Have someone check the owner’s information right away. Everything. Keep it confidential. Get me his photo first—the rest can come later.”

Lei Cheng hung up at once and stared straight at Wu Chen again.

Then, on his expressionless face, a bright, easy smile suddenly appeared. Natural. His tone casual. “Little brother, you’ve got real skills. No wonder you can keep Li Ruobing so well-behaved.”

“I get by.” Wu Chen smiled faintly.

“Tell me the truth. How do you know so much about our Lei family? And in such detail?” Lei Cheng asked again.

He was especially good at creating a relaxed atmosphere—one expression, one smile, and he could do it.

“Brother Lei, you know how it is. Some things aren’t mine to say just because I want to. It’s not that I’m deliberately hiding anything from you, but… you understand.” Wu Chen’s tone carried a hint of deliberate mystery.

But given everything that had come before, Lei Cheng didn’t think this was mere mystification at all.

On the contrary, he understood. Behind Wu Chen stood another force—or rather, a major power.

Clearly there were secrets involved, so certain words couldn’t be spoken lightly.

There was no damn force behind Wu Chen.

His family ran a noodle shop.

But Lei Cheng believed it, and Wu Chen knew that afterward, Lei Cheng would definitely investigate him and dig up his family background.

But once he learned Wu Chen’s family situation, Wu Chen was certain Lei Cheng would assume all the information he found was fabricated—something Wu Chen had deliberately arranged to block investigation.

He might keep digging, but he’d never find the great background behind Wu Chen.

Because it didn’t exist in the first place.

And the more he failed to find it, the more he’d believe Wu Chen’s background was even more terrifying than he’d imagined.

Wu Chen’s image in his mind would only grow more mysterious, more towering.

“I get it. Tsk. You people from families that are more…” Lei Cheng didn’t finish. Then he shifted topics. “Forget it. Let’s talk about something else. Oh right, Brother Wu—I heard last night someone almost got into it with Old Lu at a restaurant, then smoothed it over with just a few words. They say it was Li Ruobing’s boyfriend. That was you?”

By Old Lu, he meant Lu Guangnian.

The story had already spread. The explosive detail was that Lu Guangnian had slapped his usually doted-on wife. In just one day, the matter had traveled through all of Donghai’s business circles.

“Yeah, that was me.” Wu Chen smiled. “It’s all exaggerated. Brother Lu and I just had a little misunderstanding yesterday. We cleared it up. Nothing to it.”

After that, the two chatted casually about various things.

Mostly Donghai affairs—whose business, whose connections, that sort of thing.

Lei Cheng was probing Wu Chen, but when it came to Donghai matters, never mind Lei Cheng’s nearly ten years in the city—even if he’d stayed a hundred years, he still wouldn’t know them as clearly as Wu Chen.

Ding-ling.

Lei Cheng’s phone chimed.

He picked it up and opened the message. His expression changed abruptly. Veins bulged rapidly across his forehead, and his eyes began to flush with blood.

Extreme fury.

Barely restrained.

For a long while he stared at his phone.

“Brother Wu.” Lei Cheng slowly raised his eyes to Wu Chen, his tone deadly serious. “This time, I owe you. From now on, whether it’s a mountain of knives or a sea of fire—one word from you and I’ll handle it. If I don’t, you can take my head.”

Wu Chen knew why his reaction was so violent.

He’d received the information on the number’s owner.

Probably the photo—he’d asked for that first. Easy to check. With the right connections, an ID photo could be pulled straight from the household registration system.

He’d recognized who it was.

The killer who’d driven the truck ten years ago. Who’d rammed a car full of people, killing three and critically injuring one. Who’d murdered his wife.