Chapter 170 - Surrounded by Enemies

"Sir, Mr So My ng is here."

The assistant had just entered the office and announced this when Shi Qinglan nodded to let the man in. Qinglan looked down at the pictures in his hand and smirked before placing them into the drawer and locking them.

Si Ming entered the room and greeting the man with a small bow, took his seat. In his grating voice, he started"Mr Shi. It is good to see you doing well! I heard in the news that there was an accident in your house yesterday? A small fire? This is why I did not bring my assistant along. We can postpone this interview longer, you see.  The poor Shan Shan must be traumatized, correct? So we must not scare her more."

Shi Qinglan smirked and both the men in the room knew what this conversation was about. There was never going to be a real interview. Si Ming just needed to make up the interview with the kid and he would do so once he had the right 'ink'. Shi Qinglan agreed as he said,  "Yes,  the child is traumatized. Actually, y have kept it from the media because it is shameful but the fire was caused by Shan Shan in her room. From God knows where she found drugs and decided to try them. In a drug-induced state, she burnt down her own room.  Mr Si, I am deeply ashamed and so is she. I dare not make this matter public as it will have a negative impact on not just me but Shan Shan's reputation as well will be ruined. She is like my own daughter so please help me protect the child's future.."

Si Ming nodded his understanding as he rushed to assure the man, "Don't worry Sir. Young kids these days are all like that- imm.a.t.u.r.e and thankless! I will handle this for you! Once the matter has settled, I will come to you and then you can thank me well. Yes?"

Shi Qinglan nodded in apparent understanding and soon Si Ming was guided out by the assistant.

"Was this the man?",Shi Qinglan asked to the apparently empty voice. A young girl came out from behind the office door then and looked at Shi Qinglan with a troubled expression on her face."No Sir. I have not seen this man in the past."

Nodding, Shi Qinglan then ordered the girl to leave as well which she did hurriedly. When  Xu Likun had passed Shi Ai's pictures to Shi Qinglan,  her only motive had been that nobody else must be fooled by her apparent innocent behaviour. After a little investigation from Shot, she had found that Knight was planning something against Shi Qinglan. Xu Li had thought that Shi Ai was using Knight for a personal vendetta so she had set out to ruin their plans and sent those pictures anonymously.  But she had not expected that Shi Qinglan would discover her and then blackmail her. Shi Qinglan seemed to have doubts that Ah Hai had placed some protection around Shi Ai and he wanted to get rid of that protection. To this end, he had 'invited' Xu Li here to see if Si Ming was related to KSS in any way. So Xu Li kept quiet.

Shi Qinglan leaned back on his chair as he pondered this problem before him. He did not understand why but this Si Ming person was somehow suspicious to him. But Shi Qinglan had survived this long only because of his instinct. He would actually be more relieved if the man bore a connection with Ah Hai. Otherwise, a man like Long Ah Hai would not let his dear wife go with just any man. Finally, the last man he had been waiting for was here. The investigator greeted politely and then continued, "Sir, as you said, the man Si Ming does have a connection with Long Ah Hai but it is an oblique one. I have interviewed all the past cases that he has handled and everyone has recognized the man so his history is solid and true and does not look made up. It seems when this person Si Ming was in university, Long Ah Hai had visited the faculty to teach the students there self-defence for women. Si Ming had volunteered to be a 'punching bag' for those women. Maybe that is when he left a good image on Long Ah Hai and he has let his wife work with him.."

Si Ming who had just planted a bug in Shi Qinglan's office and was now sitting in the coffee shop downstairs, listening in, rolled his eyes. "He had been a punching bag? Assistant Yang was really unbelievable. He did not only manage to get the witnesses to collude, he even created an entire person for Shi Qinglan to meet. Shi Qinglan would see what he wanted to now. After receiving proof of Si Ming's lecherous behaviour and comparing it to himself, Si Ming would naturally conclude that Si Ming was also a predator wearing a disguise. 

Satisfied that his cover had not blown, Si Ming finished off his cup of coffee and made his way home. Today's investigation had turned put to be pretty interesting and he needed to pay a visit to the little mole he had discovered. If there was one thing Knox a.k.a-Si Ming hated then it was those who babbled uselessly and thoughtlessly. Xu Li was going to pay for her mistakes. And he hated backstabbers with a passion.

As the day turned dark, Knox had once again changed his appearance and now looked like a foreigner with a french beard and messy hair. He made his way to Xu Li's apartment to confront the woman who was once a fellow comrade. However just as he would have alighted from the cab,  a message dinged in his phone,"  She is not there but the enemy is. You have forgotten that Xu Li is an expert in sign language. It's a trap."

Letting out a string of colourful curses,  Knox ordered the cab to drive further and dialled a number,  "Why would she do that?  I get she is angry about you and the loss but betrayal was never her style! What is wrong with her?  And why are you letting her be if she has done something like this?"

Ah, Hai stood still in his office as he wondered how much he dare reveal. Making a decision, he finally let it go, "It is not her per se but someone else who is using her for their own means. She is simply a pawn. And I am letting her be because she has not caused any major damage...yet and we all owe a blood debt to her brother. It is also why I did not let you walk in. If something had happened to you then we could not have let her go unpunished."

Knox stilled as he was reminded of their debt..but who would dare to use Xu Li? Son of a bi***!"Are you telling me that the man we have been looking for, ever since our discharge is the one controlling Xu Li? The person who was responsible for your teams annihilation and us being almost court-martialled? And he has instigated her to sabotage this mission? But why? Why did he wait until now to take action? And why is she listening to that person?"

"Because his primary target is me. I am the one most dangerous to his well being. And he has been in touch with Xu Li for a while now. I can actually wager that Xu Li's so-called feelings for me are also because of seeds that he has planted. And now that I have let myself into the open for this case, he wants me to lose."

Knox could only clutch at his hair as he wondered at this turn of events. Crap! They had enemies closing in from all sides. Like the carnivores they were, the enemies had smelled the blood and had come to the feast! This situation had taken a turn from bad to worst!

If there was one thing Knox knew well, it was to detect subtle changes in a persons voice. And though Ah Hai had perfect control over his, he could still detect the man's worry. So Knox directly asked, "What is your plan?"

"There is no change to our previous plan. Regarding this new development, I have already asked Shot and Viper to work on it! We just need to make sure that our common enemies, do not join hands."

Knox clenched his hands and almost punched the cab door,making the driver almost frightened out of his mind. The driver finally breathed a sigh of relief when Knox had gotten off the cab.

However there was someone who had been disappointed.Xu Li had stood behind the trees and seen the cab stop near her apartment's entry.She was looking forward to Ah Hai's plan failing.But instead of letting a man get off, the cab drove away. Frowning,she took out her cell phone and made a call,"Uncle,that man came but he did not get off the car."

The cold eyes of the man on the other hand narrowed as he rasped,"That means you have been discovered."