The subsequent events unfolded as planned by Li Chenglong. Li Hanmin went to the police station to call the police and told the police that it was because his uncle Li Chenglong had a long-standing conflict with the principal Ji Zhong and was just taking advantage of this restaurant bidding. This incident intensified the conflict, so in the chaotic fight, Li Chenglong accidentally killed Ji Zhong.
Although it was a manslaughter, due to Ji Zhong's status and the impact of the incident, Li Chenglong could not escape legal sanctions in the end.
The impact of this incident quickly attracted the attention of all walks of life, and the restaurant bidding incident implicated in it also emerged in front of everyone's eyes, and there were divergent opinions for a while.
Some say that Ji Zhong is indeed suspected of abusing power for personal gain and helped his brother-in-law's Lexiang Company obtain the winning bid. Others say that Ji Zhong has been an upright person and would never do such a thing. Moreover, Lexiang Company has an excellent reputation, and the possibility of obtaining a tender based on its own strength is also very high.
But after all, people are still jealous. Ji Zhong's perfection during his lifetime not only failed to make people believe in his character, but also made more and more people suspicious and jealous of him, drawing a connection between him and Lexiang Company.
Even though Director Wang of the Discipline Inspection Commission personally came forward to explain that the standards of Lexiang Company were the most consistent among the companies participating in the bidding, many people still thought that it was due to the mutual protection between the Discipline Inspection Commission and the school, and they all took away the benefits of Lexiang. .
Due to the increasing pressure of this incident, higher-level agencies finally sent personnel to intervene in the investigation. However, the results of the investigation were not announced to the outside world. Instead, the outsourcing work of the restaurant was canceled and continued to be managed by the school's catering department.
After paying attention to this matter, the Ministry of Finance at that time quickly allocated a sum of funds to use as Jiangning University's education funds, easing Jiangning University's financial constraints.
——
——
Fukuyama Cemetery.
Hundreds of people wearing black suits or long skirts stood in front of a tombstone, holding a bouquet of white chrysanthemums in their hands, silently staring at the black and white photo on the tombstone.
The middle-aged man in the photo is wearing a pair of black-rimmed glasses and looking straight ahead with a warm smile, seeming to be reassuring those who came to express their condolences that they should not be sad.
"Ladies and gentlemen, we gather together today to commemorate the death of this great scholar, educator, and literary master - Mr. Ji Zhongji..."
As if in response to the pastor's words and to heighten the atmosphere, drizzle began to fall from the sky, dripping on everyone's heads. The pastor's soft prayer echoed in the cemetery and reached everyone's ears.
Zhang Ziqing opened a black umbrella and hit it on Su Ran's head. Su Ran was holding a bouquet of bright carnations in her hand, and she lowered her head in silence along with everyone present.
Zhang Ziqing asked her why she was getting carnations instead of chrysanthemums. Su Ran replied that it was because Mr. Ji wanted to be remembered as an educator rather than for any other identity or reason, so giving carnations was the right thing to do. most suitable.
The procedure of a Western-style funeral is much simpler than that of a Chinese-style funeral. After the pastor reads the eulogy, everyone bows and sends flowers, it is over.
After everyone present had left, Su Ran stepped forward, placed the carnation in her hand in the middle of the tombstone, then bowed seriously to Ji Zhong's tombstone four times before turning around and leaving.
"Now that we know that the final murderer is actually Li Hanmin, what are your plans?" Zhang Ziqing asked softly.
After Su Ran was silent for a while, he frowned: "If this thing really happened like this, then why did Mr. Ji's soul suddenly appear in the school again after thirty years, and it still keeps coming? Follow Li Hanmin?
If it was because of hatred, then the best chance of revenge would be right after death, right? Now why? Are you getting more and more angry after staying down there for a long time? But I think Mr. Ji is not such a person. "
"so?"
"So I think something must have happened recently that made Mr. Ji couldn't help but sneak up here regardless of violating the rules of the underworld."
"Okay, your brain is a lot smarter." Zhang Ziqing praised.
Su Ran punched him, "What do you mean? Does it mean that my brain was not working well before?"
"I didn't say that."
Su Ran rolled her eyes, "So what happened recently?"
——
——
2022, spring.
In the large office, a middle-aged man with a shaved head was half-lying on his soft office chair, swaying in circles with his eyes slightly closed, looking very comfortable.
Opposite the man, the gray-haired Li Hanmin was sitting on the sofa with a reserved look on his face. He placed his hands in front of him and rubbed them unnaturally. He looked up from time to time and glanced at the man in front of him, his eyes full of anxiety.
"Teacher Li, oh no, it's Professor Li now!" The man touched his bald head and folded his legs on the table, "Long time no see, Professor Li, you look much older than before. Why, Have you been having a hard time these past few years?"
Li Hanmin nervously looked at the man in front of him who had hardly changed much from thirty years ago, and said with a smile: "Thanks to Mr. Chen, I have actually lived quite well these years, but we scholars are very poor. , I definitely don’t take good care of myself, Mr. Chen, so I will naturally age faster.”
"Hahahahaha, scholar." The man laughed loudly, put down his legs, stood up from his position, walked to the sofa next to Li Hanmin and sat down, and Li Hanmin leaned unnaturally into the corner of the sofa.
"Professor Li still remembers that he is a scholar." The man looked at Li Hanmin with a smile on his face, "Professor Li owed a gambling debt of 10,000 yuan when he was still a teacher at Jiangnan University thirty years ago. Why, three Ten years later, I still owe gambling debts, and the debts are all mine, you say it’s a coincidence or not.”
"It turned out to be Chen Hao." Su Ran recognized the man in front of her.
Thirty years ago, Chen Hao was still a young gangster fighting on the streets with iron bars and steel pipes. As the boss, he had to collect debts himself.
And now Chen Hao is sitting in a large office in a more than 60-story office building in this city. The downstairs are all the properties of his Laolang Group. He is also in a suit and leather suit, sitting on the sofa with his legs crossed. He no longer has the impulsive and arrogant temperament he had on the street, replaced by a calm and superior atmosphere in his talking and laughing manner.
"Wait a minute, Li Hanmin is in debt again?" Su Ran suddenly reacted and looked at Li Hanmin in disbelief, "Shouldn't he have started to change his mind since that incident thirty years ago? Why does he still dare? Gambling, is he worthy of Principal Li?"
As soon as he saw that Li Hanmin seemed to have no repentance at all, which meant that Ji Zhong and Li Chenglong could be said to have died in vain, Su Ran immediately became angry and felt aggrieved for them.
After hearing Chen Hao's words, Li Hanmin opened his mouth, but in the end he said nothing and just sighed.
But Chen Hao had no intention of changing the subject, and continued to ask with interest: "Why, Teacher Li, you said that you were an ordinary teacher who was short of money, so forget it. At that time, Jiang University's conditions were indeed not very good. In this way, everyone is poor.
What now? You are already a veteran professor and doctoral supervisor of Jiangsu University, and your annual academic funding is estimated to be 18 million. What, so much money is not enough for you? Still need to make money by gambling? "
"It's true that there are some difficulties at home..." Li Hanmin said with a smile.
"Oh? Are you having trouble? Tell me if you have trouble! We have been old friends for so many years. Tell me, can I still help you? Is it worth it for you, a respected old professor, to make money through gambling?" Chen Hao Pretending to be surprised, he then lit up another cigarette and said, "Come on, Professor Li, if you have any difficulties at home, tell me and see if I can think of a solution for you."
Chen Hao's face was full of smiles, but in Li Hanmin's eyes, he felt that this seemingly warm smile was actually extremely cold.
After Li Hanmin hesitated for a while, he slowly said: "My cousin's child, my nephew, was diagnosed with brain cancer last year.
Fortunately, it is still in the early stages. The doctor said that there is a high chance of cure, but it will require long-term hospitalization and chemotherapy, which means there will be a lot of expenses.
My nephew has been undergoing chemotherapy for three years. Cancer chemotherapy is a very expensive thing. All the savings of my cousin and my family have been spent on it. We have just started to get better, and we don’t want to give up. A child.
The salary and academic funding in the school are always far from quenching the thirst, and the amount is also limited, so I thought about how to double the money I have..."
At this point, what Li Hanmin wanted to express was very clear.
After hearing this, Chen Hao seemed to have remembered something and asked, "Your cousin? The daughter of your uncle who is the vice principal?"
Li Hanmin nodded.
After hearing Li Hanmin's explanation, Su Ran also breathed a sigh of relief.
If he only gambled for his own selfish desires, Su Ran would really feel disappointed. But now that he was doing it for someone related to his uncle, Su Ran felt that it was not so difficult to accept.
"Speaking of which, your uncle was a murderer. Mr. Ji died at his hands." Chen Hao recalled the big news that shocked the whole city. "It's a pity that Mr. Ji is such a good person. I didn't expect that." The day we met turned out to be the anniversary of his death, and he still owed me a drink and didn't drink with me.
I didn’t expect you, Professor Li, to be such a disowned person. I remember it was your uncle who you personally reported at that time, right? What's the matter, is he trying his best to help his daughter now to make his conscience feel better? "
When Chen Hao talked about the murderer, Su Ran noticed that Li Hanmin's originally nervous face suddenly turned very ugly. His eyes were staring at Chen Hao, like a wild beast that would pounce on him in the next second. Like biting the throat of his prey.
It's just that when Chen Hao talked about his first and last encounter with Ji Zhong, this gangster boss who in everyone's impression only knew how to fight and kill and was unkind seemed to be in a daze. He didn't notice anything wrong with Li Hanmin's expression at all.
It was as if the gentle man stood in front of him thirty years ago, with a smile that made people feel like spring breeze. He stretched out his right hand to Chen Hao and said with a smile: "Mr. Chen, you must let me pay back the money." I’ll treat you to a meal!”
After this scene flashed through his mind, Chen Hao also temporarily put away his previous teasing and intentional teasing of Li Hanmin, and went straight to the topic.
"Professor Li, you owed me 10,000 yuan thirty years ago. It was Mr. Ji who helped you pay the bill and shouldered the debt of 10,000 yuan for you.
Now that Mr. Ji is gone, the ten thousand yuan has become ten million now. How are you, Professor Li, going to repay the ten million in 2022? "
Chen Hao's words made Li Hanmin ignore the disrespect he had just shown to his uncle. He took a breath and looked at Chen Hao in shock, "Ten million? How is this possible, Mr. Chen! I just I only borrowed 1 million! How can 10 million be such an exaggeration!"
Chen Hao shook his finger, "Professor Li, we are both old friends, and it's not like you don't know who I am.
Would I borrow money with less interest? What's the point of borrowing money?
Look, prices have doubled over the years. Back then, a university teacher’s salary was only twenty or thirty yuan, but now a university teacher’s salary is at least ten thousand, right? This has increased five to six hundred times.
In comparison, my interest rate has only increased so much. I feel that I am already very conscientious, and this is because we are old friends. If you don’t believe it, go ask somewhere else and see if there is anyone else who wants a lower interest rate than me. If there is, then I, Chen Hao, will give this million to you for free without saying a word. Don’t tell me. It's interest, and you don't even have to pay back the principal. "
"Li Hanmin is the same Li Hanmin as before, and Chen Hao is also the same Chen Hao as before." Su Ran only found it a little funny: "Chen Hao has eaten Li Hanmin to death in his life. No matter what, Li Hanmin will eventually fall. In his hand."
Zhang Ziqing nodded, "Chen Hao's interest rate, if it were anyone else, they would report him no matter what.
But Li Hanmin already had a deep-rooted fear of Chen Hao, so no matter how much Chen Hao increased the interest rate, Li Hanmin did not dare to have an objection, and in the end he could only accept it. He was really short of money, and only Chen Hao could help him. "
"Mr. Chen, the interest rate is too high. All our family savings have been used to treat my nephew's illness. Now the money our family can spend is really limited. Not to mention a huge sum of 10 million. !
Mr. Chen, look, can we discuss it and lower the interest a little, or let me pay it back to you in installments? I really don’t have the ability to pay 10 million in one breath! "Li Hanmin looked at Chen Hao with a sad face.
"Negotiating terms? Do you think you are Mr. Ji? Are you qualified to negotiate terms with me?" Chen Hao snorted coldly, "I let you go because of Mr. Ji's face. I originally thought it was because I knew you. You killed Mr. Ji, but your damn uncle actually murdered Mr. Ji. Otherwise, how can I say that you and your family deserved it.
You can discuss it. If you can make Mr. Ji come back from the dead to discuss it with me, then I can even give you an extra ten million.
If you can't do it, then give me three days to pay back the money, otherwise your happy family, Professor Li, will not be saved. "
Li Hanmin's uncertain face became panicked again after hearing Chen Hao mention his family, and he knelt on the ground directly, "Mr. Chen, I beg you, no matter what, let my family go." People! They are innocent, I am the one who owes money, come at me!"
"Oh? Why is this coming at you? Do you have the money to pay it back?"
Li Hanmin gritted his teeth and said with difficulty: "I have no money. Otherwise, you should just sell my kidney. Anyway, it should have been taken away by you thirty years ago."
Chen Hao was stunned for a moment, then he laughed out loud as if he wanted to hear a joke, and kicked Li Hanmin to the ground.
Both of them are about the same age, but Chen Hao still maintains the same physical strength as before, while Li Hanmin is already very old. This kick made him lie on the ground and cough violently, and he couldn't recover for a long time. .
"Professor Li, do you think this was thirty years ago? One of your kidneys is a priceless treasure? Besides, even if the kidney is still valuable, how much is your kidney in your fifties and sixties still worth? If you sell it, someone will still want it. ?" Chen Hao kicked Li Hanmin with his foot, "Get up, I didn't use much strength in this kick. Even if you want to die, don't die in my office."
Li Hanmin resisted the pain, climbed up from the ground with difficulty, holding on to the coffee table beside him, and sat on the sofa again, breathing heavily.
Chen Hao flicked the ashes of his cigarette and yawned, "Okay, when I lent you money, I knew that you, the old boy, would definitely not have the money to pay me back. Let me find a way for you."
"Mr. Chen, tell me." Li Hanmin felt a little surprised when he heard that Chen Hao seemed to have other solutions.
"Actually, it's not a new method. Recently, I heard that your school's restaurant is going to be outsourced. The reason is that it wants to change the single style of the traditional restaurant and create a modern restaurant that is more suitable for the study and living atmosphere of college students. But none of these bullshit reasons matter." Chen Hao waved his hand, "I asked you to do this back then, but you said you were just a clerk, and your uncle was an upright man and wouldn't help you with such a small trick.
Well now, your nosy uncle is dead, and you, Li Hanmin, have become a highly respected veteran professor in the school. With your current status, please mention it to the school and let our company get it from your school. It shouldn’t be difficult to get the right to operate a restaurant, right? "
"Ah? This..." Li Hanmin was stunned for a moment. He didn't expect that the method Chen Hao mentioned was actually this matter, which perfectly overlapped with that of thirty years ago.
