The two of them glanced at Director Kang, and Song Hongmei couldn’t help but beg Kang Lina.
“Director Kang, please show us mercy this once! We’ve only made this one mistake. As the saying goes, nobody is perfect, right?”
Zhou Dongmei, standing nearby, realized she should join in and started pleading as well.
“Yes! Director, we’ll never do this again. Besides, they were impersonating someone else and holding both families’ household registers. How could we possibly tell the real from the fake? Even the police might not be able to figure it out!”
Hearing this, Song Hongmei felt as if she hadn’t made a mistake at all—how could anyone be so cruel?
However, Kang Lina glared coldly at the two of them and scolded:
“You may have only made one mistake, but because of it, you’ve lost 1,200 yuan. And if they had discovered it later, you would have ruined five people’s entire lives. Do you two have the ability to take responsibility for that? How will you compensate them? I cannot allow you to continue working at the Youth Registration Office—I cannot bear that responsibility. Go prepare the money immediately!”
With that, she shoved them out.
Song Hongmei and Zhou Dongmei glared furiously at Kang Lina, stomped their feet in frustration, and prepared to leave.
The next second, Kang Lina’s voice rang out:
“Don’t even think about running away! You must compensate this money.”
The two stumbled, nearly face-planting.
They knew they couldn’t escape, and that from now on, they’d probably only be mending clothes inside the office.
At a nearby corner, Yun Youyou watched the scene and nodded with satisfaction.
“Song Hongmei, Zhou Dongmei, I hope you like the gift I’ve prepared for you. If it weren’t for you, the original owner wouldn’t have suffered at school. Don’t think that just because your family is well-off, you can do whatever you want.”
That’s right—their little brothers were classmates of the original owner. They liked her, she didn’t like them. Shouldn’t they have their classmates teach them a lesson?
Suddenly, Yun Youyou remembered that the Yun and Liang siblings might need to sell their houses.
She could then use the proceeds to prepare supplies for going to the countryside. A smirk appeared on her lips.
“More money coming in.”
Thinking of her mission, she slipped into an empty alley. Using her mental powers, she checked for safety. Once clear, she wrapped herself again in her mental energy.
She entered her space, quickly disguised herself as a middle-aged man with a fierce scar on his face, taking the alias Wu Qing.
Carrying a basket on her back, she slipped out of the space, checked again that it was safe, removed the mental energy, and then left the alley.
Meanwhile, the Yun siblings and the three Liang siblings arrived at the entrance of the black market.
They were stopped by Sun Erwa, who was guarding the door. His eyes swept over Yun Zhenguo, Yun Youran, Liang Yuanjun, and Liang Jingya. He lowered his voice to ask:
“Are you here to buy or sell?”
“If you’re buying, you can enter directly. If selling, each person must pay one dime to get in.”
Hearing this, Yun Zhenguo glanced around nervously. Once he was sure it was safe, he replied in a low voice:
“Brother, both of our families have houses to sell. Does your black market buy them?”
Sun Erwa’s eyes flickered with suspicion.
In the same low voice, he asked: “Houses to sell? What kind of houses? Why are you selling them?”
Yun Youran, standing beside him, noticed the suspicion and quickly answered cautiously in a low voice:
“Because we’re going to the countryside, no one will be staying at home, and we don’t plan to come back. So we want to sell the houses.”
Hearing the explanation, Sun Erwa understood and nodded:
“Ah, I see. Let me check with our boss.”
Liang Yuanjun interjected quietly:
“Brother, our house is also for sale. Our situation is the same as theirs. Can you take us to see your boss? Selling a house isn’t a small matter.”
Seeing their urgency, Sun Erwa hesitated but eventually nodded.
“What are the heads of your households called?”
Yun Zhenguo quickly answered:
“My father is Yun Aiguo. When can you take us to see your boss?”
Hearing this, Liang Yuanjun added:
“My father is Liang Weijun. I need to sell our house as soon as possible.”
Liang Yuanchao, keeping an eye on the surroundings, whispered:
“Brother, please help us. We need to see your black market boss quickly and sell our houses.”
They were going to the countryside soon and had no supplies. If they didn’t act quickly, the houses might be seized.
Liang Jingya added anxiously:
“Yes! We’re going to the countryside. We have to hurry!”
Seeing this, Sun Erwa frowned slightly but finally nodded:
“Fine. Follow me. As for whether our boss wants your houses, I can’t guarantee that.”
Hearing this, Yun Zhenguo and Liang Yuanjun both exhaled in relief.
They quickly whispered their thanks:
“Alright, thank you, brother! We’ll reward you handsomely once this is done.”
Sun Erwa chuckled:
“Heh, glad to hear that. Follow me! Our boss just returned. If it were a day earlier, you wouldn’t have seen him.”
With that, Sun Erwa led Yun Zhenguo, Yun Youran, Liang Yuanjun, Liang Jingya, and Liang Yuanchao through a narrow alley to a seemingly ordinary courtyard.
“Knock knock knock…”
He tapped the door lightly and whispered:
“Tian Wang covers the earth!”
Inside, Jiang Yunsheng replied:
“Chicken stewed with mushrooms!”
After a moment, the door creaked open, revealing a burly man with a grim expression.
Seeing Jiang Langchen appear, Sun Erwa quickly introduced:
“Brother Jiang, these two families have houses to sell.”
Jiang Langchen glanced at them and coldly said:
“Come in.”
The group followed the black market boss into the courtyard and entered a dimly lit room.
Jiang Langchen lowered his voice to Lin Sisheng, the actual boss of the black market:
“Boss, these two families have houses to sell.”
Lin Sisheng glanced at Yun Zhenguo and Yun Youran, then at the three Liang siblings:
“Five of you, please have a seat.”
The Yun and Liang siblings responded in unison:
“Thank you!”
Then they all sat down.