Chapter 1104: A Life Far from Lavish

In the evening, Chen Shijie returned to the hotel and reported Zhao Fusheng's movements that day to Tong Zhenbang.

"You're saying he went to the Central Academy of Drama for a stroll and then spent half a day at the Beijing Film Academy?" Tong Zhenbang looked at Chen Shijie with a strange expression, utterly bewildered.

Chen Shijie nodded. "Yes."

"Did he meet anyone?" Tong Zhenbang frowned and asked.

Shaking his head, Chen Shijie said, "It's hard to say, because the people he mainly interacted with were from the entertainment industry."

Actors?

Celebrities?

The expression on Tong Zhenbang's face was quite vivid, because he never expected Zhao Fusheng to live such a life.

In his impression, shouldn't this guy be focusing more on business? Why was he hanging out with actors and celebrities all day?

"Is he involved with some actress?" After a moment's thought, Tong Zhenbang considered a possibility and asked Chen Shijie.

After all, Zhao Fusheng was still young, and it was possible that after getting rich, he lost his composure and started fooling around with actresses.

"No, he seems to be friends with them." Chen Shijie shook his head. "I followed closely; their interactions looked normal."

"Ridiculous." Rolling his eyes, Tong Zhenbang looked helpless.

To be honest, he really hadn't expected Zhao Fusheng to be so different from other wealthy men.

"By the way, did you see his girlfriend?" Tong Zhenbang thought for a moment and asked Chen Shijie.

Chen Shijie nodded. "I saw her in the evening. Their relationship seems good." These were all facts, and he didn't need to hide them for Zhao Fusheng, as there was no need.

Some people always like to lie, but they always get caught because when they lie, they tend to fabricate wildly.

In fact, lies have a characteristic: once you tell the first lie, you have to use more lies to cover it up, until everything becomes a lie, with nothing real left, and naturally, people can see through it at a glance.

Therefore, a true lie is ninety percent truth and ten percent falsehood.

Just like the lie Chen Shijie was telling now—most of it was true; he only omitted the part where he met Zhao Fusheng, and the rest was simply Zhao Fusheng's entire day's itinerary.

Even if Tong Zhenbang wanted to suspect something, he couldn't find any flaws.

"Do you think there's anything about this man we can use?" Tong Zhenbang sat there, silent for a long while, then looked up at Chen Shijie and asked.

"I can't tell yet." Chen Shijie didn't rashly offer suggestions like Xiao Bao had; instead, he said seriously to Tong Zhenbang, "I haven't been following him long enough to see anything yet. And..."

He paused but didn't speak, his expression troubled.

"And what?" Tong Zhenbang frowned and asked Chen Shijie.

Chen Shijie gritted his teeth and said, "His driver—I always felt something was off. That guy seemed to sense my presence. If I hadn't deliberately kept my distance, he would have found me."

"Oh?" Tong Zhenbang raised an eyebrow. He knew Chen Shijie's skills; if he had almost been discovered by someone close to Zhao Fusheng, it seemed Zhao Fusheng also had experts around him.

In that case, this man surnamed Zhao was not simple either.

In reality, he was overthinking it.

Chen Shijie naturally noticed Tong Zhenbang's reaction, but he didn't intend to explain further. After reporting what he had seen and heard, he simply took his leave.

…

…

The next day, just as Tong Zhenbang had sent Chen Shijie to tail Zhao Fusheng for three days without any results, he received a call from Dong Chenxi.

"Mr. Tong, our Chairman Zhao would like to meet with you." Dong Chenxi's voice on the phone was quite calm; two days had been enough for her to steady herself.

"Chairman Zhao wants to see me?" Tong Zhenbang was startled, somewhat baffled, not knowing what was going on. After all, Zhao Fusheng's attitude earlier didn't seem like he wanted to cooperate.

"Well, it's about a company project. Mr. Zhao wants to ask if you're interested in participating." Dong Chenxi smiled and explained to Tong Zhenbang.

This was specifically instructed by Zhao Fusheng—to give Tong Zhenbang a heads-up in advance.

Hearing Dong Chenxi's words, Tong Zhenbang's expression changed instantly. If someone had been beside him, they would have noticed his breathing quicken.

Although Dong Chenxi's words might have been inadvertently revealed, Tong Zhenbang knew this could be an opportunity for him.

"I still have to meet with representatives from several investment funds recently. How about we set it for the day after tomorrow?" Tong Zhenbang was now putting on airs, since in his view, this meant Future Investment was coming to him.

Dong Chenxi laughed inwardly, thinking that this guy's reaction was exactly as Zhao Fusheng had predicted.

With that in mind, she smiled and said, "In that case, I'm afraid I'll have to apologize. The day after tomorrow, our boss has an appointment with Mr. Zhu Yushi, so he probably won't have time."

Ah?

Tong Zhenbang suddenly felt like he had shot himself in the foot. What was going on? He had only tried to act coy, but now they weren't giving him a chance at all.

"Zhu Yushi—the one from Brain Gold?" Tong Zhenbang hesitated and asked Dong Chenxi.

Dong Chenxi smiled and nodded. "Of course. The advertising campaign for Brain Gold was done by our boss. They have a good working relationship and are said to be on good personal terms. So when the boss has something going on, he naturally thinks of discussing it with Mr. Zhu."

Tong Zhenbang instantly felt terrible. This was the gap!

Although he controlled a considerable amount of funds, Tong Zhenbang knew clearly that compared to big shots like Zhu Yushi, the gap was enormous.

Those people started from scratch, experienced ups and downs, and had resources and influence that someone like him, who could only operate in the shadows, could never match.

At the very least, Tong Zhenbang knew that if he and Zhu Yushi both ran into trouble and needed a large sum of money, he would have to send his men to rob, while the other could simply go to the bank for a loan.

That was also why he and his backer had been trying to launder their money.

Simply put, business in the sunlight was always easier than business in the dark. Even if the profit margins were lower, it was safe—no need to worry about someone pointing a gun at your head at any moment.

With that thought, Tong Zhenbang gritted his teeth. "In that case, how about I visit Chairman Zhao today? Is that okay, Miss Dong?"

On the other end of the line, Dong Chenxi fell silent for a moment. At that instant, Tong Zhenbang's heart began to race with anxiety...