NFBE Chapter 1989 To catch the thief, first catch the king
Chapter 1989 To catch the thief, first catch the king
Li Xiangnan's three sentences were like three sharp knives, directly piercing through the carefully disguised "masses" facade of Xu Er and others.
Xu Er's face was deathly pale, his lips trembled, but he couldn't utter a single word.
Aunt Gao, who was next to him, was so frightened that she shrank back and almost bumped into the person behind her.
The young man named Xiao Ma's legs went weak, and if he hadn't been supported by the people next to him, he probably would have collapsed to the ground on the spot.
The alley fell silent instantly.
Even the crowd that was just shouting was now completely silent.
Everyone looked at Li Xiangnan, at his calm yet chilling face.
"You...you're spouting nonsense!" Xu Er finally managed to utter a complete sentence, but his voice was trembling uncontrollably.
"Slanderous accusations?" Li Xiangnan laughed, but his smile was cold. "Xu Er is forty-six years old this year. He is from Dingbao County, Hebei Province. In 1965, he came to Beijing to visit relatives and was introduced to work as a doorman for the Shangguan family. He has been doing this job for fifteen years!"
He ignored Xu Er's instantly stiffened face, took two steps forward, and said with piercing eyes, "A few years ago in August, the young master of the Shangguan family brought back a female student from outside. You took five yuan from her to help cover it up! Later, Shangguan Wuji found out and had you beaten with twenty lashes and had three months' salary deducted! Do you think your Shangguan family can keep this a secret?"
Xu Er trembled violently, his eyes widening in disbelief: "How...how did you know that..."
"How would I know? That's not important!" Li Xiangnan coldly turned to look at Aunt Gao again: "Gao Xiuying! Fifty-three years old, she is the old maid and cook of the Shangguan family. You have a son who was sent to the countryside in Xijin a few years ago. Last year, he wanted to be transferred back to Yanjing. You asked Shangguan Wuji for help and promised that as long as it was done, you would be willing to serve them like a slave for the rest of your life!"
Aunt Gao's face turned ashen instantly.
A gasp of surprise rippled through the crowd, and the expressions on their faces told everyone that Li Xiangnan was telling the truth.
"What a pity," Li Xiangnan shook his head, "Your son did come back last October, but he wasn't transferred back; he ran away! He's still hiding at home, too afraid to go out, isn't he?"
"You...you're talking nonsense!" Aunt Gao screamed, but her voice clearly betrayed her guilt, and the room was filled with surprised and doubtful voices.
Li Xiangnan ignored her and looked at Xiao Ma again: "Hehe, Ma Lianshun, twenty-five years old, is the son of the stableman who manages the stables for the Shangguan family! Your father has raised horses for the Shangguan family all his life, and when he got old, he wanted you to take over his job. Unfortunately, you were a disappointment. Last year, you stole a horse from the Shangguan family to show off and broke the horse's leg! Shangguan Wuji was furious and was going to send you to the police station, but your father knelt outside his study all night to save you!"
Ma Lianshun lowered his head, trembling all over, and didn't even dare to look at Li Xiangnan.
Everyone in the courtyard and alley was stunned.
Grandpa Yuan stared with his mouth agape for a long time before finally muttering, "My God... Dr. Li, have you investigated this person's ancestors for eighteen generations?"
Grandpa Yu gasped in shock: "How could the Shangguan family be so despicable... sending these people here to cause trouble... what other secrets are behind this...?"
Even Wang Defa and Song Ziming looked at each other in bewilderment.
They knew that Li Xiangnan had made thorough preparations, and they also knew that the Song family was monitoring the Shangguan family.
Little did they know that Li Xiangnan knew so much!
The eighty or ninety men that Xu Damao brought were all in a panic.
Many of them were people from the mountain management company, and some, although not, were paid to make up the numbers!
Seeing that the leaders had been stripped down to their underwear by Li Xiangnan in an instant, they all began to shrink back.
"Well?" Li Xiangnan calmly looked at the three men, then looked past them to behind him. "Do you want me to continue? Did you not expect me to know you? How many of you are servants, farmhands, servants, or relatives of the Shangguan family? How many of you were paid to make up the numbers? Do you want me to point them out one by one?"
These words caused complete chaos among the crowd.
Some people tried to turn and run, some desperately tried to squeeze into the crowd, and others shouted, "We are just ordinary people, stop trying to scare us!"
"I'm bluffing? Are you just ordinary people?"
Li Xiangnan sneered, then suddenly pointed to a fat man trying to escape from the back of the crowd: "You, the one in the gray cotton-padded jacket, your name is Meng Tietong, the warehouse keeper at Shangguan's farm! Heh, believe it or not, I actually know about you. Last month, five bags of fertilizer went missing from your warehouse. Good heavens, you stole them and sold them to the nearby production team! What do you think will happen to you if Shangguan Wuji finds out about this?"
The short, fat man's expression changed drastically. He didn't argue at all and turned to run away.
His running away was like a domino effect, instantly knocking down a large area.
Li Xiangnan immediately began calling out names.
"Hey old man with the bald head, don't hide anymore, I saw you! You're the old man who repairs tractors, I saw you on the ridge of the field when I went to your house!"
"Hey you in the gray cotton-padded coat, yes, yes, don't run away! You're from the transport team, right? The one who got caught stealing gasoline to sell!"
"The one wearing the wool hat, yes, you, the one with the green scarf, you're on good terms with the cooks, you often hang out with them and cheat them out of a few pounds of pork, what are you ashamed of? You dare to do it but not admit it?"
"And that tall guy, hey, you're suddenly quick now. You love stealing money to go have a good time in the Eight Great Hutongs, and you'll stay there all night, dawdling around..."
Every time Li Xiangnan called out a name, someone's expression would change drastically; some would flee in panic, while others would lower their heads and cover their faces to avoid being seen.
In less than three minutes, more than half of the originally menacing group of eighty or ninety people had fled.
The remaining twenty or thirty were also pale-faced and could barely stand.
Xu Er, Aunt Gao, and Xiao Ma were surrounded by the crowd, unsure whether to leave or stay. They were so embarrassed that they wished they could disappear into the ground, their faces flushed red with shame.
The local residents on both sides of the alley were stunned.
Just moments ago, Grandpa Yuan was extremely worried, but now he was slapping his thigh and laughing heartily: "Well done, Dr. Li! What's this called? This is called capturing the king first! Hahaha!"
Grandpa Yu was also amused: "Tsk tsk tsk, the Shangguan family is a complete mess, what a mess they are!"
Even the children who had been hiding behind the door watching the commotion were now peering out and excitedly shouting, "Uncle Li is amazing!"
Just as the three men were looking at each other, wondering whether they should take their men and run away, the sound of a car suddenly came from the alley entrance.
A van drove up and stopped outside the crowd.
The car door opened, and Xu Jiaxin was the first to jump out. She deftly grabbed the microphone, waved, and immediately led the photographer into the crowd.
"Make way, everyone make way!" she said as she pushed her way through.
Upon seeing the group's attire, Xu Da's expression suddenly changed drastically. "Reporters... are they reporters?"
Upon hearing this, he immediately turned to look at Li Xiangnan, only to see a calm smile on his lips, and his heart skipped a beat.
Oh no, we failed our mission and now we've been outmaneuvered...