Chapter 394 393: Taking the Wasteland

Huang Mao trembled from head to toe, as if struck with a fever.

"Captain Bi, you can't just say things like that! I might be a scoundrel, but I'd never kill anyone! The worst I'd do is beat someone up so they're stuck in bed for half a month, tops!"

Bi Haitao glared at him. "That's still enough to land you in jail!"

Terrified, Huang Mao shrank back.

"Actually... someone told me not to let anyone touch that barren land. I don't know why. He just said I couldn't let anyone mess with it, but he wouldn't say for what. I thought it was strange, too."

Mu Lin said, "Who told you to watch it? Huh? Spit it out!"

"He said he was the secretary to the board of the Baiju Group. He gave me ten million to take care of it."

Bi Haitao sucked in a sharp breath. 'What kind of mess is this going to turn into?' he wondered.

He hadn't expected it to be such a huge case from the get-go. To think it actually involved the Baiju Group—they weren't an organization to be trifled with. One wrong move could lead to disaster.

'This is going to be tough.'

He was hesitant to make a move. Confronting the Baiju Group was completely beyond his capabilities.

Qu Zizi and He Zheng also turned pale with shock. The name was too powerful—so powerful they were left speechless.

'Could this land really be that precious?'

The middle-aged man looked at his nephew in a rage. "You'd sell your conscience for ten million? Huh? I was wondering why you were so invested in this. Turns out you were just being someone else's lapdog!"

Even though everyone's lives had improved these days, ten million was still a massive sum of money, then and now.

In the middle-aged man's eyes, his nephew taking money to threaten him not to sell the land was a complete betrayal.

It was a betrayal of his own family.

Mu Lin found it very strange. 'Baiju Group has its eye on this land? Does that mean Gong Jintang also knows about the business of cultivating Spirit Medicine?'

'But if he was willing to pay a fortune to have Huang Mao guard it, why not just buy it outright?'

'Wouldn't it be much safer to have it in his own hands?'

Mu Lin said, "Uncle, how about this? I'll offer twenty million to buy this land. Whether you spend the money yourself or set some aside for Huang Mao, that's entirely up to you."

The middle-aged man was utterly stunned. 'I've never seen so much money in my life,' he thought.

But then he remembered Mu Lin was Qu Zizi's friend, and felt a little embarrassed about taking so much money. "Sir, I can't take that much!"

Qu Zizi smiled. "Uncle, please, just accept it! It's all right."

Only then did the middle-aged man accept the offer. With this money, he could first set some aside for Huang Mao and use the rest for his retirement. He would no longer have to toil so hard growing tea.

Huang Mao didn't dare say a word. After all, Mu Lin had mentioned he knew He Zongshan, and Huang Mao knew full well the consequences of offending him.

To save his own skin, Huang Mao decided it was best not to look for trouble.

He shrank back and asked uneasily, "Mr. Mu, do you really know Chairman He?"

Mu Lin smiled. "Want me to call him over right now?"

"No, no, no, that won't be necessary!" 'If I actually get He Zongshan involved,' Huang Mao thought, 'I'm a dead man for sure.'

He immediately shook his head. "No need, Mr. Mu! I believe you!"

Mu Lin narrowed his eyes. 'Just as I thought. To handle these thugs, you have to take down their leader first. That way, you can steamroll through without much resistance.'

"Don't breathe a word of what happened today. And there's no need to report back to that... board secretary. If I discover anyone from the Baiju Group has heard about this, I'll have He Zongshan pay you a visit."

Huang Mao frantically waved his hands. "I get it, I get it! I absolutely will not breathe a word, you can rest easy!"

Satisfied, Mu Lin returned to Qu Zizi's house.

The moment he walked in, the old woman enthusiastically pulled him over to the tea table.

She looked him over from head to toe. Even though Mu Lin wasn't wearing any designer brands, the old woman seemed to like him all the more for it. The more she looked, the more proper and respectable he appeared.

"Mu Lin, do you have a girlfriend?"

"I don't," Mu Lin replied.

He always gave the same answer to this question; there was nothing more to say about it.

After all, Li Xue didn't let him tell anyone.

The old woman was overjoyed. "Then what do you think of our Zizi?" she asked excitedly. "She's quiet and well-behaved, very obedient, and so considerate!"

Qu Zizi jumped. Her worst fear had come true. She quickly grabbed her grandmother's arm. "Grandma, don't say such things! Mu Lin and I have only known each other for two days. Besides, he's the number one Divine Doctor of Nanjiang. Why would he ever be interested in me?"

But the old woman was unfazed. "What's wrong with two days? You can't start a life together after two days? Aren't whirlwind marriages all the rage with you young people nowadays? You can get married first and cultivate your feelings later!"

Qu Zizi was frantic. She pulled her grandmother up and started ushering her toward another room. "Grandma, you're getting too worked up! Go cool down for a bit!"

He Zheng pointed at Mu Lin. "Let me tell you something—don't you dare lead my best friend on! She's very innocent. If you play with her feelings, you'll make her cry!"

Mu Lin tilted his head. "First, nothing is going to happen between us, so you can rest easy. Second, even if something did, I wouldn't need to report it to you, would I?"

He Zheng was so furious she was speechless. Mu Lin was completely dismissing her. "Just look at yourself! How could Zizi possibly be interested in you?"

Mu Lin couldn't be bothered to respond. Just then, Qu Ren Jie heard the voices outside and, knowing Mu Lin had returned, hurried out to greet him.

Qu Ren Jie spoke to Mu Lin with great respect. "Mr. Mu, I've been watching the medicine pot without leaving its side. It's been three hours and fifty minutes. I added a bowl of water at the three-hour mark."

Mu Lin went inside, leaned over the clay pot to smell the aroma, and said,

"It's ready. Take the pot off the heat, let it cool for ten minutes, and then have the old madam drink it."

Qu Ren Jie deftly followed his instructions, and Mu Lin noticed his movements were surprisingly skilled.

"Did you study medicine? You seem very familiar with brewing decoctions."

"No," said Qu Ren Jie. "I just brew medicine for my grandmother often, so I've gotten the hang of it over time."

Mu Lin nodded but said nothing more.

'Qu Ren Jie has plenty of flaws,' Mu Lin thought, 'but at least he's a filial son. He's not a complete lost cause.'

After talking with her grandmother, Qu Zizi came out with her to the living room to watch TV.

Although the grandmother still regarded Mu Lin with great approval, she no longer tried to play matchmaker. Instead, she just kindly offered him fruit and snacks.

Mu Lin accepted, and they all chatted while snacking. The atmosphere was quite pleasant.

As it was nearing dinnertime, the others went to prepare the meal, leaving the living room empty for a moment.

Mu Lin then turned his gaze to Bi Haitao. Their eyes met for a moment before Bi Haitao lowered his head and walked over.

He still hadn't dealt with the main reason he'd been sent here. This was only the beginning.

In the end, it was all about the matter of Lu Jing being released.

Mu Lin stared at Bi Haitao. "Captain Bi, let's hear it. Why is Lu Jing walking free? Did you arrest him just to put on a show for me?"

"I swear, it's not like that!" Bi Haitao said. "Yongyuan Construction is a subsidiary of the Baiju Group. So, when Lu Jing got into trouble, he immediately went to Gong Jintang for help. Gong Jintang then called my superior right away..."

Mu Lin narrowed his eyes. "Your superior?"

"Yes, Zheng Ying... He took the call and immediately ordered the release. I only found out after the fact. At the time, I was busy collecting evidence to prepare for the indictment."

"But when I returned to begin the interrogation, I discovered Lu Jing was already gone... I knew I had no way to explain this to you, so I chose to say nothing."

"Saying nothing isn't much of an explanation either," Mu Lin said. "Why didn't you just tell me directly?"

"I was trying to look out for you! What if you found out and decided to pick a fight with the Baiju Group? They're the largest corporation in Lanyang, controlling every facet of the city. Your base isn't here; there's no way you could take them on."

Mu Lin narrowed his eyes. That was a novel excuse. It was true that Bi Haitao didn't know him, so his decision was understandable.

Still, he found it hard to accept.

"So your boss is just a lapdog for the Baiju Group? He doesn't even try to resist?"

Hearing this, Bi Haitao sighed heavily. He pulled a flask from his pocket and took a long swig.

"You don't know the whole story. Back in the day, he was a hero. He never gave a damn about the Baiju Group and was famous for locking up any rich kid who broke the law."

"But things turned ugly. The Baiju Group started going after his family. He might have been a hero with nerves of steel, but everyone has a weakness."