Late at night.
Inside the manager's office.
Hou Qing, dressed in a black women's business suit, was tied up layer upon layer and thrown onto the floor, half reclining there. Her expression was indifferent as she looked at the others. Flathead and the Bath Center lobby staff were nowhere to be seen. There were only several fierce-looking men in black, apparently Ma Wentao's trusted subordinates. Farther away, Dong Xuebin had also been brought into Ma Wentao's office. It seemed Manager Ma no longer intended to hide anything from him.
Ma Wentao looked down at her coldly. "Talk. Who sent you?"
"I don't know what you're talking about," the middle-aged woman said.
Ma Wentao's gaze sharpened. "Cut the fucking crap. Which Public Security Bureau are you from? Or are you with the Provincial Department?"
Hou Qing looked at him. "You're Manager Ma, right? Public Security Bureau? How could I possibly be with the Public Security Bureau? I couldn't sleep tonight, so I came out for a walk and wanted to get something to eat. I couldn't find the elevator, then remembered this building wasn't tall enough to have one. I must have been half-asleep earlier. I was about to find the stairs and go down a floor, so why did several people suddenly start chasing me? Manager Ma, everything I said is true."
Ma Wentao sneered. "Then why did you run?"
Hou Qing gave a bitter smile. "I'm a woman. So many people were chasing me. Of course I had to run."
Ma Wentao looked at her contemptuously. "Don't take everyone else for idiots. How many people do you think would believe that?" After a pause, he said sternly, "Tell me. Who sent you to the Seaside Bathing Center, and what were you doing here? Busting prostitution? Gambling? Or something else?