The Cold, Aloof Dominatrix After Parasitically Entering a Rich Family - Chapter 29

Chapter 29: The Treasure — Mango Tree, I Seriously Want to Chop You Down!

“Mark’s lips are simply too tight… We’ve interrogated him repeatedly, and he still hasn’t disclosed the ledger’s whereabouts.” The lawyer reported to Gong Shayu, the same exact rhetoric as yesterday.

“Go negotiate for Boss Gong to go in and question him personally,” Fang Yu told the lawyer. “Go now.”

Gong Shayu’s expression was grim. This wasn’t China. After a criminal suspect is transferred to the public security bureau and before they are handed over to the procuratorate, the victim or the head of the victim’s unit is not permitted to interrogate them alone or participate in the interrogation.

After the lawyer left, Gong Shayu finally spoke. “What do you think?”

Fang Yu: “He definitely won’t admit to the ledger. He’s probably involved with a big shot. Whether he admits it or not, prison is inevitable, but by not admitting it, at least his family is safe.”

Gong Shayu shot back, “Oh, is that so?”

“Boss Gong, the layoff list…”

“Hold off on it for now.” Gong Shayu got up, poured a glass of water for herself, and poured one for Fang Yu as well.

Assistant Fang, holding the glass nervously, took a sip. “What if… I mean, what if he never tells us? Hotel employees are already nervous, and most of them can’t focus on their work…”

Gong Shayu: “There is no ‘what if.’ Anyone with half a brain wouldn’t tell us.”

“…” Fang Yu was confused. “Then why are you still going through the effort (to go in)?”

Gong Shayu ran her fingers over the bone chain on her wrist. She seemed to really like this vintage bracelet. Fang Yu had noticed Boss Gong playing with it more and more in recent days. She tried to find a topic to ease the tense atmosphere. “Boss Gong, this bracelet… it looks very unique. What material is it?”

Gong Shayu reminded her expressionlessly, “Please focus on the key point, Assistant Fang.”

Fang Yu: “…” I wish Tu Si were here!!!

“I’m sorry,” Fang Yu quickly apologized. I’ve spent too much time with Tu Si; I’m being led astray.

“Whether he confesses or not, those on the double ledger don’t know,” Gong Shayu said. “Do you remember when he fainted during the first meeting?”

Fang Yu suddenly realized. “Mark is inherently timid. The people whose names are in the ledger must know better than we do. So, whether he speaks or not, as long as they think he has, that’s enough.”

Just then, the lawyer knocked and entered. “Boss Gong, Boss Fang, the negotiations are complete. You can go in, but only Boss Gong can enter.”

Gong Shayu and Fang Yu exchanged an imperceptible glance.

…

The Interrogation

Inside the interrogation room, two prison guards sat on either side. Gong Shayu walked directly opposite Mark. Hua Xun sat in front of the monitoring screen outside, watching Gong Shayu.

From the moment Mark saw Gong Shayu, the cold sweat hadn’t stopped. It seemed to pour out of every pore in his body, not just his forehead. In no time, he was soaked. His complexion was a mix of pale green and white, conveying a fragile sense of don’t scare me, I might pass out any minute.

Gong Shayu didn’t speak, just stared intently at him.

A minute later, Mark was trembling violently. He gnashed his teeth: “I’ve already confessed! What else do you want?”

Gong Shayu curved her lips, smiling like a spring breeze. “You are very obedient, a good employee. Tell me, where is the ledger?”

Mark trembled even harder. He gasped heavily, “I’m telling you, I’ve had two stents placed in my heart. You’d better not scare me! Otherwise, I… I…”

“Relax, no need to be so nervous. Even if you have skeletons in your closet, you don’t need to panic so much. We’ll talk about the ledger in a moment,” Gong Shayu changed the subject. “First, tell me about your daughter, who’s about to take her college entrance exam. Has she chosen a major?”

At the mention of his daughter, Mark’s expression fluctuated slightly, but his exaggerated panic was enough to make anyone overlook it.

Gong Shayu leaned back in her chair, her red lips still curved, her chin slightly raised. She said meaningfully, “Whatever you do, don’t let her deal with numbers, okay? With your genes, it would be difficult for her not to go astray later.”

Her tone sounded genuinely like she was advising an old friend. Mark’s scalp crawled. His opened pores instantly closed. The cold sweat stopped pouring out, and instead, all the bl00d in his body felt frozen.

Time, it seemed, stood still.

Of course, time hadn’t stopped. What stopped was the light source in the interrogation room. The entire space plunged into instant darkness.

Hua Xun’s eyelid twitched. He slammed his hand against the monitor screen and yelled at the police officer beside him, “What’s going on?”

The two young officers in the monitoring room exchanged bewildered glances. They thought, It was fine before you came in.

“What are you standing around for? Go find someone to fix it!” Hua Xun was furious. If Mark pulled a stunt right under his nose, he might as well resign as Chief.

“I-I-It’s fine…” The junior officer stammered, pointing at the screen. “M-M-Maybe it was just a loose connection.”

On the screen, Gong Shayu had already gotten up and walked to the door. Mark was slumped in the interrogation chair, looking utterly depleted, his eyes vacant.

Gong Shayu seemed to sense something, meeting Hua Xun’s gaze through the monitor.

Hua Xun collapsed onto the monitoring chair, as if infected by Mark, cold sweat spreading down his back from the screen. His mind was buzzing. He completely missed the sound of the man on the screen struggling, pleading, and the heart-wrenching wail: “I didn’t say anything…!!!”

…

A Blue Notebook

Leaving the police station, Gong Shayu got straight into the car. Assistant Fang was a little excited about her first attempt at cutting electrical wires, still caught up in the heart-pounding moment.

“Go back,” Gong Shayu said briefly.

Fang Yu snapped back to attention. “He confessed?”

“No,” Gong Shayu affirmed. “Our direction was wrong. That ledger is probably not digital.”

“Not digital? A paper ledger?” Fang Yu suddenly understood. “No wonder I hacked all his electronic devices and found nothing…”

…

“I’ve searched this entire area and can’t find any sign of that little piece of iron,” Tu Si complained to the small hibiscus in the roadside green belt. “I’m doomed.”

Small Hibiscus: “Master, why don’t you check over there? You’ve been looking here for two days, and none of us have seen the ‘little piece of iron’ you speak of.”

Tu Si glanced at the crooked-neck tree across the flowerbed and sighed. “I haven’t replenished my nutrients in two days. See that mango tree? It’s definitely going to beg me to save it.”

Tu Si said this, but her body was already honestly walking towards the other side of the road, because her IQ 210 brain recalled that she and Ma Yi were chatting in that vicinity that night.

“M-M-Master, s-s-save me…”

Sure enough, Tu Si heard the mango tree, which had no mangoes, cry out desperately from afar.

“Shut up, first answer me one question,” Tu Si held up two fingers in the air. “Did you see an iron box this size?”

The mango tree shook its head, shedding another circle of leaves.

“Then I’m leaving.” Tu Si prepared to slip away.

“Master, Master… please! Some heartless person buried a big iron box under my roots, and I suspect it’s a treasure! Master, human treasure chests can be exchanged for a lot of money!”

Money?

Tu Si was tempted. After turning human, especially after spending time with Gong Shayu, she learned to think. “If it’s a treasure, why would you tell me?”

The mango tree almost cried. “The problem is, the iron box is wrapped in desiccant, but my roots are absorbing it anyway. Look… it’s poisoned me and made me bald.”

Tu Si, for the sake of the treasure, picked up two dead branches nearby. Using the last bit of her spiritual power, she quickly dug a hole.

Sure enough, an iron box was lying there, except there was a layer of quicklime around it. That stuff is a strong alkali. The fact that the mango tree had only gotten a slight crick in its neck despite this harsh environment proved its vitality was immense.

After Tu Si shoveled all the soil with the quicklime to the middle of the road, she returned, pried open the iron box, and saw a very ordinary, common, unremarkable blue notebook lying silently inside. It wouldn’t even fetch a dime if sold as scrap. And he called this a damn treasure!

Tu Si: “…”

“Mango Tree, I seriously want to chop you down!”

…

Tu Si was dejected about losing Wang Wei’s USB drive. Even her favorite variety show couldn’t make her smile. Fortunately, she had recently found a new focus.

When Gong Shayu returned, she found her completely engrossed in a dance program. Gong Shayu felt 0.1 gram of envy for Tu Si for the first time. Tu Si seemed perpetually untroubled, capable of developing intense interest in any mindless thing.

“Sister is back?” Tu Si’s form of address reverted after only two days. She seemed oblivious to the other woman’s mood and enthusiastically shared, “The chef named A Jie grilled sweet potatoes today. They were fragrant and sweet. Can I bring some home for you to try next time?”

Gong Shayu couldn’t be bothered to correct her address, giving her a don’t bother me look, and walked straight to the study.

Tu Si secretly released a vine to follow Gong Shayu. The instant the door closed, the vine slipped inside the study.

The TV switched to a more explosive piece of music. Tu Si couldn’t resist swaying to the rhythm. She had been leaning her face against the study door. Seeing the vine successfully infiltrate, she confidently moved to the center of the living room.

The little vine followed Gong Shayu into the study, only to find its unreliable counterpart getting further and further away… To see the password more clearly, the little vine had no choice but to cling to Gong Shayu’s back.

But Miss Gong simply pressed a key on the keyboard—the fingerprint recognition system instantly lit up, and the screen followed suit. She cleanly joined a video conference without typing a single number. After the conference ended, she snapped the laptop shut decisively, leaving the little vine to wander aimlessly in the darkness.

Tu Si, after finishing a vigorous dance: “…”

Gong Shayu opened the study door and saw Tu Si standing there, disheveled and breathing heavily, her chest rising and falling… well… in disarray.

“Hi! Boss Gong Jie.” Tu Si awkwardly waved at her.

Gong Shayu suddenly recalled an Afghan Hound her grandmother used to keep. Every time it did something wrong, it would have that presenting a gift expression.

Afghan Hound?

Indeed, the hair could rival Miss Tu’s.

She suddenly had the urge to laugh.

But in the end, she didn’t. There was nothing funny. There were only five working days left until the wine party. If the ledger wasn’t found and she missed this golden opportunity, she had a premonition that she would never find it.