After checking out, I called Fang Man first.
She picked up quickly, but from her tone, she sounded a little upset.
"Hmph, you haven't called me in ages. You didn't even tell me something happened at the shop."
"Manman, I've got a problem."
I hurried to explain.
I'd finally managed to get a girlfriend. If I hadn't been haunted by ghosts, with no idea whether I'd even survive, there was no way I would have gone without calling her.
"Meng Yifan was arrested..."
"What!"
Fang Man sounded startled over the phone. Lowering her voice, she asked, "What happened to the boss? Why did the police arrest him?"
"It's a long story," I said. "I'm trying to get him out. I remember you saying one of your relatives was a cop. Could you invite him out for a meal? I'd like to ask for his help."
Fang Man didn't hesitate. "No problem. He's my sworn older brother, and he's pretty close to our family. He should be willing to help. I'll arrange it. We can meet at noon."
After settling the details with Fang Man, I hung up.
I needed to go home first and get some money from my dad.
After buying the car, I still had over a hundred thousand yuan in savings. My dad was worried I'd squander it, so I'd left my bank card at home.
I'd had quite a few expenses lately, so I needed to go home and get some money.
I rode the motorcycle home.
My dad and grandpa were a little surprised to see me, since I'd only been home a couple of days earlier.
I told them I'd come back for some money. Meng Yifan was in legal trouble, and I'd need to spend a little to smooth things over.
"Legal trouble?"
My dad and grandpa both looked concerned. "What happened to Meng? What kind of legal trouble? Is it serious?"
I said it wasn't serious. These things were inevitable when you ran a business.
My dad didn't ask any more questions. He stayed seated on the sofa and pointed toward his room. "Your bank card's in my drawer. Go get it."
I looked at him, puzzled.
My dad should have been at the factory today. He worked there as an accountant.
He rarely took time off. Why hadn't he gone to work today?
"Dad, are you off today?" I asked.
He smiled. "I've been feeling a little unwell, so I asked the factory for two days off."
His complexion did look a little off, and I grew worried. "Is it serious? Have you been to the hospital?"
"No," my dad said. "It's nothing major. Why bother going to the hospital? Hurry up and get your card so you can withdraw the money. You've got important things to do."
After hearing that, I didn't dwell on it.
I really did have something important to take care of.
I went into his room and found my bank card in the drawer.
But I also found something else in there: a book titled the Six Lines Divine Mechanism.
I idly leafed through it and found the contents obscure and difficult to understand. It seemed to be a book on mystical arts.
I frowned. Since when had Dad started getting into superstitious stuff like Grandpa?
I took the book out to ask him.
"Dad, what's this? You're interested in this stuff too?"
My dad paused, pushed up his glasses, and smiled. "Your grandpa rubbed off on me, so I thought I'd take a look. But with my powers of comprehension, I couldn't make sense of any of it, so I left it in the drawer."
My grandpa laughed too. "If you're interested, you can take it back with you."
I said I'd pass.
Mostly because this sort of thing had left me traumatized.
I didn't linger at home. It was almost noon, and I had to meet Fang Man.
As I was leaving, I noticed my dad was still sitting on the sofa, with no sign of getting up to see me off.
For some inexplicable reason, a thought suddenly popped into my head-a thought that filled me with dread.
Could Dad... have injured one of his legs?
At that thought, I swallowed and stared fixedly at him.
I suddenly realized that his build was very similar to the man who'd brought me the motorcycle last night. They were at least eighty or ninety percent alike!
And that man was also the one who'd disrupted the Fuji Divination ritual that night.
More importantly, that man's leg... had been injured too.
"Dad, come see me off. I'd like to chat for a bit." I looked at him.
He paused. "Aren't you in a hurry to withdraw money and take it to Meng? You're a grown man. Why do you need me to see you off? You're not a little kid."
"Just walk me out," I said. "I want to talk to you for a bit."
He said nothing more and finally rose from the sofa, then took a few steps.
I kept watching his legs. There was nothing wrong with them. He wasn't limping at all, which meant he wasn't injured...
Just as he was about to reach me, my grandpa suddenly stopped him. "Honestly, how can you be so inconsiderate? Your dad's sick and still feeling dizzy. Go take care of your business."
I gave an embarrassed smile. "All right. Get some rest, Dad. I'll get going."
With that, I left home.
My nerves had really been stretched too tight lately. I'd actually started suspecting my own dad.
He was so timid that when I'd tried to take him to a haunted house before, he hadn't even dared go in. How could he have dared hide in a genuinely haunted place for so long?
Besides, he wasn't limping, which proved he wasn't that man.
After leaving home, I rode off to meet Fang Man.
Fang Man was twenty-three and hadn't graduated from college long ago. She was pretty and innocent, so I truly treasured her as my girlfriend.
Whether my grandpa approved or not, as long as nothing went wrong between us, I would definitely marry her in the end.
I spotted her from a distance near the restaurant.
She wore a white T-shirt, blue jeans, and white sneakers, radiating youthful energy from head to toe.
As soon as I'd parked, she ran over and threw herself straight into my arms.
Before this, we'd still been in that flirtatious stage and had only held hands.
Having her suddenly fling herself into my arms sent my heart racing.
"I missed you..."
She even used a sweet, coaxing voice.
Who could resist that?
I couldn't help holding her tight.
I thought she might have been feeling a little vulnerable lately because her grandmother had passed away.
We held each other for a while, sharing a tender moment, before heading to our private dining room.
"Where's your brother?" I asked.
"He'll be here soon." She checked the time, then asked me, "What exactly happened to the boss? Why did the police arrest him?"
I cleared my throat. "Let's wait until your brother gets here. Otherwise, I'll have to explain it all again."
We didn't wait long before Fang Man's sworn older brother arrived.
His surname was Song, and his full name was Song Xiaotian.
But the moment I saw Song Xiaotian, my heart sank.
I'd never seen a cop with hair that long, much less one who deliberately left a lock hanging over his forehead and kept flicking it around.
When he came in, I thought some street punk had walked into the wrong private room.
After exchanging greetings and introducing ourselves, I got straight to the point, not wanting to waste time. If he could help, I'd be delighted. If he couldn't, I'd have to find someone else immediately after the meal.
Song Xiaotian looked at me and flicked his hair. "Bro, I get what you're saying. You want me to help get someone out, right?"
"Thing is, I got kicked off the police force a little while ago..."
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