Chapter 159: Shadows of Family Business

After seeing Xie Bingran off, Xu Chen made his way to the roadside.

He was just about to hail a taxi when Fang Jun’s call came through.

A wave of confusion hit him—why was Fang Jun calling?

After hanging up, Xu Chen’s face darkened. He flagged down a taxi and said:

“Take me to Panhe Street Police Station.”

…

Ten minutes later, Xu Chen stepped out of the cab.

In the open area outside Panhe Street Police Station, his father’s black Accord was parked.

Fang Jun hadn’t given many details over the phone; she’d gotten the call from the police and was on her way too.

As soon as he walked in, he spotted Fang Jun sitting alone in the hall.

She stood up and approached, starting with,

“I’ve asked around—it’s nothing serious. They’re still questioning him inside.”

Xu Chen didn’t reply, but he felt a rush of relief.

“Dad was probably heading back from a meeting in the city, right?”

“Yeah, on his way back…”

…

They waited for half an hour before Xu Zhiquan finally emerged, followed by three others.

Besides Li Rui, there were Fang Tao and Cheng Yong.

Fang Tao sported a buzz cut and still had that straightforward, rough look.

Cheng Yong had a short, parted haircut, his face resembling Zhao Feng’s a bit, with a naturally tough edge.

The three of them saw Xu Chen and quietly said, “Hey, Xu Chen.”

Fang Jun frowned slightly, finding their greeting a bit odd.

Xu Zhiquan had mentioned on the phone last night that he’d meet Fang Tao and Cheng Yong today, but Xu Chen hadn’t expected to see them here.

Spotting Xu Chen and Fang Jun, Xu Zhiquan smiled and said:

“What brought you both here? It’s all fine!”

The two officers stepped out and gave Xu Zhiquan a few more instructions.

Xu Zhiquan handed them cigarettes and offered some words of thanks.

“Alright, head back for now. If you remember any clues, give us a call.”

We get results from the investigation, we’ll let you know right away.”

“Thanks so much, officers!”

As they left the police station, Fang Jun opened her mouth to ask something, but Xu Zhiquan had a cigarette in his mouth:

“It’s no big deal—let’s talk back at the company!”

With so many people around, it was good that Fang Jun had driven over in her white two-door Audi A3.

…

…

Jinfeng Business Tower.

In the reception room, Xu Zhiquan pulled out a pack of cigarettes and offered one to Li Rui, Fang Tao, and Cheng Yong each.

He then lit them up with his lighter.

“Thanks, President Xu…”

The three were a bit taken aback, especially Fang Tao and Cheng Yong.

Xu Zhiquan chuckled:

“Today’s events were pretty dicey, but good thing you three were there.”

Xu Chen still looked worried:

“What exactly happened?”

While lighting his own cigarette, Xu Zhiquan let Li Rui give a quick rundown.

Li Rui’s story was a bit jumbled, but Xu Chen pieced it together.

That afternoon, Li Rui had driven Xu Zhiquan to a meeting with the leaders.

The meeting wasn’t at the City Government Offices but at a conference hotel.

A few leaders were there, including Vice Mayor Wu Yongming.

Xu Zhiquan had planned to meet Fang Tao and Cheng Yong, so during the meeting break, Li Rui texted them to come straight over.

When Xu Zhiquan finished the meeting and headed to the parking lot, a dangerous figure suddenly lunged out.

The attacker had a blade wrapped in newspaper and went straight for Xu Zhiquan.

Luckily, Li Rui was quick-eyed and fast-acting, pulling Xu Zhiquan out of the way just in time.

The assailant was clearly desperate and came at them again.

Fortunately, Cheng Yong and Fang Tao arrived right then.

They grabbed a brick on the spot and charged in…

With four against one, and Li Rui, Fang Tao, and Cheng Yong being tough customers themselves, they quickly took the attacker down.

Once Xu Zhiquan confirmed everyone was okay, he called the police.

Fang Jun asked, “Did they get anything out of the attacker?”

Li Rui replied, “He’s a mute and from out of town—clearly, it was targeted…”

“…”

Xu Chen walked over to his father Xu Zhiquan and carefully checked him over:

“You’re really okay?”

Xu Zhiquan laughed heartily, “I’m fine, just took a bit of a tumble.”

Xu Chen then went to Li Rui and the others:

“You guys sure you’re all good?”

Li Rui grinned, his eyes crinkling, “Don’t worry, Xu Chen, we handle stuff like this no problem.”

He pointed at Fang Tao,

“Fang Tao here just scraped his hand a bit—nothing major.”

Fang Tao lifted his hand, which had a bandage on the palm:

“It’s nothing, Xu Chen, just a minor cut…”

Xu Zhiquan let out a hearty laugh:

“We really owe you three big time!

Li Rui, take Fang Tao and Cheng Yong out for a tour—show them around the company!”

Li Rui agreed and led Fang Tao and Cheng Yong out.

…

With a cigarette in his mouth, Xu Zhiquan pulled Xu Chen aside to sit down and said:

“This whole thing is thanks to you—your warning yesterday about staying safe, and arranging those two guys today.

Without them, who knows what could’ve happened.”

He took a drag and continued,

“Until we figure this out, you need to watch your back too, son.

Make sure someone’s with you when you go out…”

Xu Chen asked, “Who could it be? Related to the Mechanical Factory?”

Xu Zhiquan shook his head:

“Hard to say…

The police think it might be a robbery or revenge.

But I don’t buy the robbery angle—they hired a mute for this, and the target was clear. It’s not about petty cash.

In business, danger’s always lurking. Where there’s money, there’s grudges.”

Xu Chen recalled the so-called ‘business wars’ from his past life…

Even big listed companies and overseas firms didn’t always play fair—plenty of dirty tricks that left you speechless.

Xu Chen thought for a moment:

“Could it be tied to the Beishan incident?”

Xu Zhiquan: “No.

We’ve cleaned up that mess—they’d gain nothing by coming after us now.

The two groups that caused trouble before, I’ve turned them into downstream companies for Chenxin Nurseries.

Now it’s all about sharing the profits—they’re more afraid of me getting hurt than anyone.”

Fang Jun chimed in:

“So it’s probably the Mechanical Factory situation.”

Xu Zhiquan took another drag, paused, then said:

“Back when I ran the foundry and later the nursery work, it was all small-scale stuff.

The Mechanical Factory’s bankrupt and can’t even pay wages, but to some, it’s still a juicy prize…”

Fang Jun: “Is it one of the other three competitors pulling strings?”

Xu Zhiquan: “If it is, that’d be easier!

We’ll uncover it, and once the person behind it shows their face, they won’t do business in Tiancheng anymore.

A big outsider can’t outmuscle the local bosses—I’ve been around these parts for decades for a reason…”

He stubbed out his cigarette and added,

“I’ll reach out to my contacts in the city and put some pressure on this case.

Until the Mechanical Factory deal wraps up, everyone watch your step.

Fang Jun, tell Director Yang about this too.”

Fang Jun just nodded without a word.

Xu Zhiquan laughed again, hearty as ever:

“Today’s meeting with the leaders went well.

They don’t spell things out—they talk in circles, dropping hints.

But the message is clear: the Mechanical Factory thing is pretty much in the bag.”

Fang Jun: “So maybe someone heard about it early and decided to strike…

But what’s the point of moving now?”

Xu Chen said,

“It means they’ve already sunk a lot into this…

If we swoop in and take the Mechanical Factory, their investments will go down the drain.”

“…”

“…”