Chapter 1046: Chapter 919: Gathering Intelligence
As soon as the off-work bugle sounded, Zhang Guoqing hopped on his 28-bar bike and headed to Ping’an’s school. He learned that Ping’an had been picked up by his grandfather, and then returned to the Big Courtyard’s daycare, but didn’t leave with his grandfather.
There was no problem with the kids being left with the old father-in-law, especially given Ping’an’s skills. Unless five or six people tried to take him away, it wouldn’t be possible, not to mention the three children always had self-defense items with them.
Seeing nothing unusual, he turned around, rode his bike out the gate, and followed the bus route towards the city. He wasn’t even worried about missing his wife along the way.
It wasn’t like the future; even in the capital, the number of vehicles was limited, and furthermore, his wife’s sixth sense was incredibly sharp, maybe he’d be discovered by her before he even found her.
Meanwhile, the three brothers were cheerfully following Zhou Xiaozheng home, chirping non-stop, asking questions like: "Grandpa, how come you have time today?" or "Grandpa isn’t working anymore?"
One can’t blame the kids for all these questions. Everyone in the family might pick them up, but their grandfather, except for sending them to school, rarely picked them up from school.
"It’s been a long time since I picked up you three." Zhou Xiaozheng changed the topic, and with a smile asked the twins, "Did you have any fights with your classmates in class?"
Ping’an thoughtfully looked at his grandfather’s hand tightly holding his, lowered his eyelids, and a sharp glint unsuitable for his age flashed in his eyes.
Right up to the doorstep, after getting off from the vehicle, he maintained his smile, waited for Aunt Chen to finish cutting the hot tea and milk and leave, then he turned serious and looked at Zhou Xiaozheng.
"Grandpa, is someone trying to harm me?" It’s not strange for him to ask this, compared to his brothers who spent most of their time at the Big Courtyard’s daycare, he was more vulnerable on his way to and from school.
But weren’t those people underestimating him!
The originally smiling Liu Yi and May 1 immediately put down their milk cups upon hearing their brother say this and looked at their grandfather.
Zhou Xiaozheng wasn’t surprised by the children’s reaction and smiled comfortingly at them, "We’ll have to wait for your mom to come back and see what she says."
Liu Yi frowned, "Aren’t we picking up mom?"
Next to him, May 1 looked at the clock in the living room, "Dad isn’t back; he’s gone to pick up mom."
Liu Yi nodded, "Hmm, makes sense."
"Brother, don’t be afraid, we will protect you."
"..." Ping’an paused, "Um, thank you, brother."
May 1 waved his little hand generously, "No need to thank us, united as brothers, we conquer all obstacles."
"If anyone dares harm our brother, I’ll beat those bad guys up." Liu Yi raised his arm waving, the fierce tone contrasted with his fair, tender face, making him especially charming.
With the banter from the three brothers, Zhou Xiaozheng’s mood improved significantly. "Alright, since we still don’t know how it is yet, we’ll discuss when your mom comes back. You guys should drink some milk first."
This milk was supplied directly from the unit below, cheaper than powdered milk, though the brothers might not particularly like it. However, the three children knew it was beneficial for growing taller and chugged it down like medicine.
Zhang Guoqing and Zhou Jiao encountered each other on the road, and after meeting at the next station, couldn’t talk much due to the crowd. He took the small note passed by his wife and immediately headed into the city alone.
This time he was truly infuriated; the four bold characters on the note felt like a stab to his lung, and after taking several deep breaths, he sped up towards the city.
No matter who was causing trouble this time, he had worked hard for so long, if he couldn’t even protect his wife and kids, then Zhang Guoqing was truly a coward! He had to make sure he dealt with this using his abilities.
Ever since entering Beijing in fifty-nine, Zhang Guoqing spent a great deal of money to build connections across all levels. Was it only for a reputation of righteousness? Ha, that would be underestimating him.
With his fangs bared, the man was not overwhelmed by anger. He started analyzing from around his father-in-law and searched for clues from the white piece of paper.
To approach his wife at noon so seamlessly, without her even noticing, this individual not only had outstanding abilities but had considerable connections with his family.
With this clue, Zhang Guoqing first went to Zhou Jiao’s unit under the pretext to pick her up after work, of course, his wife had already left, impossible to meet.
But his target was the guard at the gate.
Unlike having Zhou Jiao ask directly, the personnel at the four-building complex was complicated, her every move might give away clues, but Zhang Guoqing was different.
His excellent connections were not exaggerated.
After learning that Zhou Jiao had already left, Zhang Guoqing cheerfully didn’t rush to depart, sitting in the guard room chatting with the old man, avoiding sensitive topics, starting with Wan Dayong’s unit gossip.
While waiting for the old man to leave and make tea, he checked the registration book of today’s visitors. By the time the old man reluctantly parted with him, he had already summarized the limited clues.
Such a warning reminder is impossible to act from outsiders without familial ties, but according to Zhang Guoqing’s analysis, the long-lost Lin Dinghui appeared in his sight.
This couldn’t help making him think more.
The young man who was never talkative, greeting with a slight nod when met - was it sincere or for benefit? Regardless of the truth at present, he couldn’t alert the danger prematurely. Later, whether they were human or ghost, their intentions would become clear.
Moreover, as he understood, Lin Dinghui differed from Lin Dingsheng. Even though he had a vicious sister, besides marrying a well-matched good wife and having a good Yue Family, he normally wasn’t seen taking aggressive measures.
Zhang Guoqing remembered that after graduation, the other party had been working in the secretary department, making it easy to guess how he could get such news, affirming the information wasn’t baseless.
"Who’s there? Hurry up, you’re rushing someone for reincarnation?"
Zhang Guoqing heard this, pursed his lips, and continued knocking without a sound.
"Oh, Brother Wu, you’re such a rarity, what wind brought you here?"
The door opened, a slightly older young man than him stepped out, happily pulling him inside, "Brother, just got some good wine, have a drink."
"How have you been?"
"Just the same! Brother Wu, you wouldn’t be here without reason, been caught in some trouble? Which bastard lacks eyes, let me deal with them for you."
Zhang Guoqing waved his hand, smiling, "No, you aren’t what you used to be. Better live well, marry early, and have a plump son, that’s the real thing."
Despite saying this, after a couple of bowls of wine, the person working at the revolutionary committee relayed the recent happenings to him. They knew each other intimately,
making heart-to-heart exchanges possible.
Likewise, that night similar scenes unfolded in different parts of Beijing. With Zhang Guoqing’s vast connections and shrewdness, he gathered detailed information without any effort, only returning home late at night.
Indeed, someone wanted to pull his father-in-law onboard, but they also knew Zhou Xiaozheng wasn’t easily swayed. Provoking him would mean a formidable opponent.
So, someone was quietly inquiring about Ping’an. One of Zhang Guoqing’s old pals said, the other party set up a trap masquerading as a savior plan, intending to bribe and kidnap Ping’an to save the day, aligning with the Zhou Family.
Brothers in the community more or less heard the whispers, hadn’t informed Zhang Guoqing of his nephew’s matter, not just because it wasn’t necessary, but the timing wasn’t right; they were still looking for a scapegoat.
No matter if this was true or not, Zhang Guoqing sincerely thanked them. Not for anything else, a few times they secretly helped him, that was the truth without deceit.
