"Hey, Senior Apprentice Brother, it's Chen Cheng. Has your drinking party wrapped up?"

"It's over. We're on the way home." Zhao Hui couldn't quite figure out what Chen Cheng meant by calling at this hour.

"Alright then. I'm waiting for you at the residential complex entrance. I have some matters I'd like to seek your advice on, Senior Apprentice Brother."

"Oh, sure. I'm with your Senior Apprentice Brother Miao Che."

"Oh, really? Let's meet together then. I'll wait for you both here."

"Hey, you know that..." Before Zhao Hui could finish his sentence, the phone line was already giving a busy signal.

"Hahaha," Miao Che laughed heartily as he looked at Zhao Hui. "You're still investigating him, and he's already tracked you down to your doorstep."

Zhao Hui's face darkened slightly.

Before long, the two of them saw Chen Cheng, who looked like a telephone pole, standing by the roadside at the entrance of the Ode to Joy.

This guy Chen Cheng was 1.88 meters tall barefoot, and with dress shoes on, he was at least 1.9 meters. His back was shaped like an inverted triangle from working out, but standing there, he still looked like a telephone pole—he was just too tall, couldn't help it.

Chen Cheng saw the two of them through the car window and, without standing on ceremony, opened the door and sat in the back seat.

"Chat in the car?" Miao Che turned his head to look at Chen Cheng.

"Let's go to the tea house up ahead to help Senior Apprentice Brother sober up," Chen Cheng said with a smile, pointing at Zhao Hui's flushed face.

Seeing that Zhao Hui didn't object, Miao Che stepped on the gas and drove the car to the entrance of the tea house.

Chen Cheng requested a private room. Once they were seated, Miao Che looked at Chen Cheng with a smile and spoke first: "Junior Apprentice Brother, what is this matter that you need our advice on?"

Miao Che wore a smile, but Zhao Hui was expressionless; the alcohol was hitting him, and he felt a bit sleepy.

"Senior Apprentice Brother, that matter isn't urgent yet. Let me tell you about another thing first," Chen Cheng said, waving his hand towards Zhao Hui.

Chen Cheng poured tea for the two of them. "Senior Apprentice Brother, it's quite a coincidence."

"I was just making a call in the garden of the residential complex when I ran into a little girl who fell to the ground with a thud. She was right in front of me, so I rushed over to help her up and get her seated."

"I checked her injury; she scraped a patch of skin off her knee..."

Zhao Hui and Miao Che exchanged a glance, neither knowing what Chen Cheng was up to.

"The little girl said her eyesight isn't very good, and she can't see very well at night."

Zhao Hui's expression changed instantly.

Just as he was about to speak, Miao Che patted Zhao Hui's leg, signaling him to listen to the end.

"I figured since the little girl had fallen and was carrying a package, it definitely wouldn't be easy for her. So I asked which building she lived in, and it turns out she lives in Building 8, 801."

"Isn't that a coincidence? I also live in Building 8, at 2301."

"You saw Rui Rui?" Zhao Hui's face showed suppressed anger; he was forcing himself not to lash out.

It wasn't just Zhao Hui; Miao Che's expression was also indescribably complex.

Zhao Hui had just investigated Chen Cheng a moment ago, and now he had turned around and tracked them down to their home.

No one would believe this was truly a coincidence.

"Yeah, the little sister is quite quiet and gentle," Chen Cheng nodded awkwardly.

Seeing that Zhao Hui was about to explode, Chen Cheng quickly offered reassurance: "Don't worry, Senior Apprentice Brother, I've already treated the wound. It's just a scrape, nothing serious."

"Whew~"

"And what's the second matter?" Miao Che asked. As a veteran auditor, he instinctively felt the second matter was more important.

"The second matter might have something to do with Director Dai?"

What? Director Dai?

Zhao Hui and Miao Che exchanged a knowing look, both seeing the same message in each other's eyes.

Did they really guess it right? Was the market rescue of Jiaxiang something Director Dai entrusted Chen Cheng with through the Old Madam?

"Director Dai? What does this have to do with Director Dai?" Miao Che asked.

Chen Cheng looked at Miao Che, that veteran discipline inspector, feeling a bit annoyed. Things had reached this point, yet they were still holding back.

"Jiaxiang Industrial! I participated in this battle between the bulls and bears." Chen Cheng continued, getting straight to the point.

Zhao Hui was suddenly agitated and stood up immediately. "You were the one who carried out the market rescue for Jiaxiang?"

"Senior Apprentice Brother, don't be hasty." Chen Cheng smiled and pulled Zhao Hui back down to his seat. "Let me finish."

"Yeah, sit," Miao Che also tugged at Zhao Hui.

"Market rescue?" Chen Cheng continued. "Calling it a market rescue might not be entirely accurate."

"From the beginning, I was aiming for a short squeeze."

"To be honest, when I went to the memorial service today, I was clueless from start to finish. Because I didn't know the family situation of Teacher Ouyang."

"So, as soon as the service ended this afternoon, I had my subordinates look into it. That's when I learned that the death of Director Dai seems to be linked to the battle between the bulls and bears over Jiaxiang Industrial."

Miao Che's heart tightened, and he exchanged a look with Zhao Hui. "You didn't know the situation... which means, Junior Apprentice Brother, you didn't know Director Dai before today? Is that what you mean?"

Chen Cheng nodded calmly. "Yes, I only learned about the memorial service from Tan Zongming of Shengxuan; he is my sworn elder brother."

Both Miao and Zhao felt their hearts sink. They had just thought Chen Cheng had helped Director Dai, but now that it was confirmed he hadn't, that only meant...

"I also learned that the time of Director Dai's incident was exactly when I entered the market."

"If... if..." Chen Cheng, who often played scenes with Hollywood actors, was now in full dramatic mode, his face filled with sorrow, as if the person who had died was his own father.

"If I had entered the market to support the price a little earlier, perhaps... perhaps Director Dai wouldn't have..."

Zhao Hui kicked the table leg, suppressing a curse that was on the tip of his tongue.

Regardless of Chen Cheng's motives, he had ultimately helped Jiaxiang, which was something Director Dai would have been happy to see. But the timing was just off, and Zhao Hui could only sigh helplessly.

"So you're considering whether or not to tell Teacher Ouyang? And when to tell Teacher Ouyang that you were also involved in the matter?" Zhao Hui asked.

"Yes," Chen Cheng nodded calmly. "If I don't tell Teacher, not only will I feel guilty, but since this matter involves the death of Director Dai, hiding it from Teacher isn't right either. If I do tell Teacher, I'm worried about her health."

Zhao Hui furrowed his brows. That's true; Chen Cheng is in a bind right now. Will he and Miao Che encounter the same thing?

If he and Miao Che uncover the truth, and Director Dai really did commit violations, should they tell Teacher Ouyang?

"My opinion is, let's not tell Teacher Ouyang for now," Miao Che thought for a moment and decided.

After all, this matter hasn't been fully investigated yet; telling her now would just be like looking at flowers through a fog. It's better to wait until the Old Madam's condition improves.

"Junior Apprentice Brother, can you tell us in detail about the battle between the bulls and bears over Jiaxiang?" Zhao Hui exchanged a look with Miao Che. "We are standing on the sidelines, and it's hard for us to see the inside story of the capital situation in the market."

"Director Dai was an upright man his whole life, yet now he's the subject of gossip among the common folk. Although this matter has been laid to rest, Miao and I still want to get to the bottom of it so that Director Dai can leave with his reputation untarnished."

Chen Cheng nodded, strongly agreeing with Zhao Hui's idea. Besides, he was on the side of justice, so he wasn't afraid of people knowing.

Well, the bears in the stock market are the "villains" that everyone dislikes. So, the bulls must be the "righteous" side, right?

Now that he had already exited the market, there was no harm in speaking about it.

Chen Cheng spilled everything, detailing the specifics of Zhencheng's short squeeze along with his own analysis to the two of them.

Zhao Hui keenly noticed something. "In other words, when you started closing your positions and switching to the short side, the buying support was still very strong?"

"Yes," Chen Cheng nodded. "The news about the mining area restoring transportation came too timely. Jiaxiang surged that very day, and the bears completely threw in the towel."

Zhao Hui's brows were tightly locked. "Junior Apprentice Brother, do you think the person who took your chips could be Jiaxiang?"

"It's possible," Chen Cheng thought about it. "But it could also be bulls entering the market, wanting to capitalize on the market attention and positive news from these past few days to pump it up."

Miao Che was also expressionless; clearly, he wasn't very satisfied with this answer.

In the current situation, it always feels like the truth is very close, yet it remains unclear.

Zhao Hui recalled the loan that Dai Qixing had wanted him to sign before he passed away, and thought of Xie Zhiyuan, whom he was very suspicious of. He asked: "Chen Cheng, if you were the operator for Jiaxiang, how much capital do you think would be needed to save Jiaxiang's situation?"

Chen Cheng furrowed his brows slightly and pondered for a moment. "It depends on what capacity one is operating in. If you find a third-party company that has absolutely no relation to Jiaxiang to handle the operation, it would probably take at least 2 billion."

"US dollars!"