Chapter 23: Equal Share of Dew and Rain

In the end, though, he restrained himself. As a father, he had to show some decorum first. So he typed: "Nice to meet you for the first time. Dad is sending you a red envelope. Gou Liang's phone is right here with me." "Thank you, Dad," Zhang Zhihan replied silently, taking the chance to withdraw her small hand. Only then did she breathe a sigh of relief; this father-in-law's enthusiasm was truly overwhelming for a daughter-in-law to bear.

Gou Liang originally planned to impress Zhang Zhihan a bit, casually sending a twenty-thousand yuan red envelope. But when he opened his mobile banking app, he was instantly dumbfounded—his pupils shrank sharply. The balance was zero.

It was obvious that Old Ye had transferred the money away.

A sense of utter shock crashed through him, as if his mind had been struck by lightning. In a flash, he realized he had likely been played for a fool. Old Ye had taken on the job himself, with a million to be made—why wouldn't he pocket it, but instead let Gou Liang handle it? There could only be one reason: this job was a dead end, an impossible knot to untie.

And since Old Ye still wanted the million, he had Gou Liang take the fall. Once it was done, he transferred the money away.

He should have known—there are no pies dropping from the sky, much less ones this enormous. In the end, he'd been flattened by the very pie he'd been hoping for.

In that moment, all hope was lost. The future stretched out bleak and uncertain.

Zhang Zhihan noticed Gou Liang's face had turned pale and his gaze had become fixed. She immediately typed a message of concern on her phone: "Dad, what's wrong? Are you alright?"

Gou Liang snapped back to himself. "Sorry, I actually forgot the password. I'll just give you cash directly," he replied.

With that, he pulled out the five thousand yuan Wang Xiaomeng had given him and handed it all to Zhang Zhihan. After a shy refusal, she finally accepted the money.

Gou Liang's phone rang just then. It was an unfamiliar number. He pressed the answer button, and a man's voice came through. "Hello, is this Gou Liang?"

Gou Liang's breath stalled; he immediately sensed the caller was up to no good—probably the police.

He took a deep breath and replied calmly, "No, I'm not."

"Then why do you have Gou Liang's phone?" the other man pressed.

"Gou Liang owed me money and gave me his phone to settle the debt, then disappeared," Gou Liang thought to himself, Whatever I say now, it makes perfect sense. If you have the ability, come find me inside this skin.

The call ended abruptly with a sharp click.

A knock came at the door.

Zhang Zhihan went to open it.

Leng Xueqi appeared at the threshold, a tall policeman following behind, holding a phone in his hand—clearly, he had just made the call.

At that moment, Gou Liang felt as though besieged on all sides. As long as he wore Hao Dagen's skin, no one could do a thing to him; but if it came off, he was as good as dead.

Leng Xueqi showed no change of expression when she saw Gou Liang. She merely smiled faintly. "Hao Dagen, fancy seeing you again so soon after parting. Seems fate keeps bringing us together. Why not skip formalities—let me buy you a coffee?"

"Alright, I'll let you treat me," Gou Liang replied, knowing there was no evading her, and curious to see what Leng Xueqi had in store for him.

Feigning reluctance, he bid Zhang Zhihan a casual farewell and followed them downstairs, where he got into Leng Xueqi's car.

He couldn't help but wonder if she might take him to the station for coffee instead.

But even if she did, he wasn't nervous—there was no way they could confirm his real identity.

He soon realized he'd been overthinking; Leng Xueqi drove him straight to an elegantly appointed café.

They found a booth and sat facing each other.

With a lazy stretch, Leng Xueqi signaled the owner for coffee.

Only then did Gou Liang remember he was completely broke—not even the need to fight for the coffee bill remained.

A fragrant cup arrived. Leng Xueqi stirred it slowly with a small spoon, savoring it, seemingly absorbed only in her coffee, as if she'd forgotten Gou Liang was there.

Since becoming a suspect, Gou Liang had done his homework—reading up online on how to deal with interrogation. Never engage in small talk; the more you speak, the more mistakes you make. Through casual conversation, the other party will seize on the smallest clues. The most important principle: silence is golden.

Through the clear floor-to-ceiling window, Gou Liang sipped his coffee, watching the street outside, as if he too had forgotten Leng Xueqi's presence.

And so, the two sat in silence for over ten minutes.

In the end, it was Leng Xueqi who broke the quiet.

Out of nowhere, she asked, "Have you ever seen the film 'Painted Skin'?"

Not wanting to converse, Gou Liang simply shook his head—even if he had seen it, he'd say he hadn't.

Leng Xueqi, her tone no longer interrogative, her eyes cold and sharp as blades, stared at him. Yet, like Gou Liang, she gazed idly at the street, her voice unhurried and casual. "I don't mean the recent remake, but the old version from decades ago. They say it was so terrifying it killed people, and has been banned ever since."

Gou Liang shook his head again. "Never heard of it."

Leng Xueqi didn't pursue the topic, and they lapsed into silence once more.

Gou Liang was the very picture of fearless defiance—a dead pig unafraid of scalding water. No matter how clever her ploys, his rules were fixed: silence is golden. Let’s see what you can do.

Suddenly, there was a clatter.

Leng Xueqi’s little spoon fell to the floor, landing right at Gou Liang’s feet.

He had at least enough manners to retrieve something a lady had dropped. He bent down under the table to pick it up.

Leng Xueqi’s long, elegant legs swayed gently before his eyes.

He straightened up, about to call the waiter for a new spoon.

But Leng Xueqi’s long, curled lashes quivered slightly, and her dazzling red lips moved to stop him. “Thank you, that’s alright. I’ve finished my coffee.”

With that, she set down the cup.

She sensuously flicked her tongue around her lips in a teasing gesture.

This left Gou Liang a little baffled—could it be that Leng Xueqi was attracted to older men?

She smiled, lips parting gently. “Thank you for joining me for coffee. If you’re busy, you can leave first.”

This was truly unexpected. Was Leng Xueqi just bored and invited him for coffee on a whim?

He reflexively asked, "You really don’t want to ask me anything else?" The words escaped before he could stop them—why was he so foolish?

Leng Xueqi burst out laughing. “Alright, I’ll ask you just one thing.”

Gou Liang tensed instantly, on high alert.

Leng Xueqi glanced around the cafe. It was quiet, with only six or seven patrons.

She crooked a delicate finger at Gou Liang.

He leaned across the table, bringing his face closer.

Leng Xueqi drew her luscious red lips near his ear, her warm, fragrant breath brushing against him.

“I just want you to answer one question: In this café, which woman do you think has the most beautiful leg