Zhang Haiyan really had no intention of paying attention to Zhang Ruipu, nor did he believe that Zhang Haixia’s intuition was particularly accurate. Penang was indeed Zhang Ruipu’s territory, and in this plague, he must have suffered the most. However, using a plague to target a specific person seemed a bit excessive.

Moreover, the assassination of Zhang Ruipu was their first mission upon arriving in Perak, while the Panhua Haijiao case was assigned years later. The two missions were far apart and had no connection; insisting that they were related seemed rather forced.

Zhang Haiyan had a theory of his own: conspiracies in the world were bound to have flaws because those who implement them are unreliable. Yet, many conspiracies go undiscovered because you don’t know the route they take. Most conspiracies are crude, but this crudeness is obscured by the enemy’s carelessness and blind spots in their awareness.

He shook his head, indicating disagreement. The two fell silent for a while, and then Zhang Haixia asked, “Why did you stop? Afraid that if you keep talking, you’ll touch on sensitive topics and it won’t end well, right?”

“Yeah,” Zhang Haiyan nodded.

“Since the clues point to the Nanan, why not go check it out? When will the ship dock again?” Zhang Haixia asked.

Zhang Haiyan took a deep drag on his cigarette. “Next week.”

“The Nanan is headed to Xiamen. If you board the ship to investigate, you’ll have to stay on the whole journey and disembark in Xiamen,” Zhang Haixia said. “Tickets for the Nanan are very expensive. Even for the cheapest cabin, we can only buy one one-way ticket. That means once you get to Xiamen, it might be over a year before you can come back.”

“So, isn’t that unreasonable?”

“Isn’t it good? You can go back and check why your salary hasn’t come through, and you can also see your godmother. Investigating a case in Xiamen isn’t against the rules, right? If the Nanyang Archives are gone, then don’t come back. Just send me a telegram, and we’ll part ways here.”

“We agreed to go back together. It would be awkward for me to go alone. Besides, isn’t the money ours?”

Zhang Haixia rubbed his legs. “This is Nanyang; you won’t freeze to death sleeping on the street. I’m familiar with the things in the sea and the fruits in the forest. If I really go to Xiamen, it’s not as good as being here. I’ve already decided; I’m not going back. You go back to Xiamen for me; there’s no need for me to be worn down here.”

Zhang Haiyan shook his head. “Forget it, I’ll go check on Zhang Ruipu. Maybe you’re right. This way, I won’t have to go back to Xiamen.”

Zhang Haixia didn’t say anything more. After a while, Zhang Haiyan helped Zhang Haixia back to his room.

That night, neither Zhang Haiyan nor Zhang Haixia slept well. When he woke up in the morning, Zhang Haiyan found his military uniform and a neatly stacked pile of money placed at the foot of his bed.

“Did the idiot’s leg heal?” was Zhang Haiyan’s first reaction. He got up and saw that Zhang Haijiao was tidying up. The clothes and money were neatly folded, clearly at Zhang Haixia’s behest.

Zhang Haiyan picked up his military cap. They had received training on maintaining military uniforms, and this set was in excellent shape. He sighed and looked at the little girl, “You’ve surrendered so quickly? Don’t you think about who saved you?”

“Uncle Xia said you really want to go back to Xiamen, and that it’s not easy to have something you want to do in your heart. He envies you.”

“And then? You all just want to drive me away?”

“You said that bringing us back means making Uncle Shrimp a pet, right? I will take good care of Uncle Shrimp, so you can leave without worry.” Zhang Haiyan squinted and shrank back, looking at Zhang Haijiao as if she were a monster. He thought to himself, this woman, or rather, this girl, is truly a terrifying creature. She quickly found a shortcut to elevate her status in this family.

“Did Uncle Shrimp teach you to say that?”

“It’s also my own idea. In the future, it will just be us and Uncle Shrimp relying on each other. We will work hard in business, save enough money, and reunite with you in Xiamen. You can rest assured and leave; you won’t die without me.”

Zhang Haiyan shrank back even more, slowly standing up and putting away the money, cursing, “Zhang Haixia, this is quite interesting—” He rushed into Zhang Haixia’s room, only to suddenly find that he was not the only one in there.

In fact, there were many people standing in his room.

These individuals stood tall and serious, most of them in their late twenties, with a middle-aged man at the forefront who was inspecting Zhang Haixia’s leg.

Zhang Haiyan stepped forward without fear of the crowd, his tongue licking the blade, addressing the middle-aged man, “If you like playing with cripples, you’ll have to wait in line here.”

Zhang Haixia immediately stopped Zhang Haiyan, shouting, “Don’t act recklessly, Hailou, this is Mr. Zhang Ruipu.”

Almost simultaneously, all the young men present bent at the waist, and Zhang Haiyan immediately hit the brakes.

The middle-aged man knocked on Zhang Haixia’s leg, shook his head, and stood up.

He was a very robust middle-aged man, to the extent that there was a dazzling light in his eyes, unlike that of an ordinary person. When this kind of gaze looked at you, you would feel as if needles were pricking you.

“I heard that you are investigating the plague,” Zhang Ruipu said. “I specifically came to help.”