In Luo City’s Central Garden, Chen Shuo and Wang Hui Ling stood in front of a villa gate. Outside the beige courtyard wall hung an original wooden plaque that read, “Central Garden Building 33, Peace and Joy.”

Wang Hui Ling said sarcastically, “When your big brother’s family first moved into this house, your sister-in-law would invite us over for barbecues every so often, as if only her family had a villa and a courtyard. She couldn’t show off enough!”

“You have a villa now too, right?” Chen Shuo said smugly. “If your man wasn’t smart, could you be living in a villa?”

Wang Hui Ling excitedly grabbed Chen Shuo’s arm. “Look at you, you can!”

Chen Shuo pressed his fingerprint to open the door. As the door opened, they saw a grand and spacious high-ceiling living room with a crystal chandelier. The living room was furnished with entirely genuine leather Italian imported sofas.

However, on the most eye-catching coffee table in the living room, the black and white posthumous photos of Chen Ji’s parents were placed together, with fresh fruit placed in front of them.

Wang Hui Ling said with distaste, “How could they put posthumous photos in the living room? Does Chen Ji understand the rules or not? Doesn’t he find it creepy? Even if he’s not bothered, how is it for guests who come over?”

With a bang, Chen Shuo carelessly threw the posthumous photos into the garbage bin.

He had wanted to partner with others to do a big business and asked his big brother to borrow four hundred million, but his big brother insisted he wasn’t suitable for big business and only gave him twenty million to open a small supermarket, treating him like a beggar.

Wang Hui Ling sat on the genuine leather sofa, touching here and there. She looked at the hundred-inch LCD TV opposite her and said excitedly, “How comfortable would it be to watch TV dramas here? They really lived like gods before.”

“Watch what TV? Hurry up and go upstairs to find the house deed. I remember they also bought some gold, find that out too.”

On the wall of the second-floor corridor were nailed honor certificates: “Three Good Student,” “Luo City Go Competition First Prize,” all belonging to Chen Ji.

Seeing this, Wang Hui Ling pursed her lips. “Every time we came over, your sister-in-law would drag us upstairs to see these. She couldn’t show off enough. Hurry up and throw them away, looking at them is just annoying.”

Wang Hui Ling quickly took down all the certificates and threw them on the ground, not waiting for a moment.

Opening the door to each bedroom, Chen Ji’s bedroom was full of books, mostly popular science books on military topics, as well as detective, reasoning, and spy war novels, and many professional popular science books.

On the table was still a notice of admission to the Army Foreign Language College.

Chen Shuo and Wang Hui Ling searched the rooms and cleared out and threw away Chen Ji’s family’s belongings, as if only by clearing away these traces would the house truly belong to them.

In the living room, Chen Shuo scratched his gradually thinning scalp. “Uh, where’s the house deed? Where is Chen Ji’s property certificate kept?”

“Could he have guessed something and hidden the house deed outside?”

“Impossible, right? Old Liu said he still feels like we’re doing this for his own good.”

Wang Hui Ling quickly said, “We are indeed doing it for his good! After his parents were gone, he stayed home all day without going out. If this continues, he’ll definitely have problems and be completely disconnected from society!”

Ding dong.

The doorbell rang.

Chen Shuo was startled. “It’s already this late, who is it?”

He went to open the door. Outside was a middle-aged man wearing a black Tang suit, with dark skin and a particularly energetic short buzz cut. “Where is Chen Ji?”

Chen Shuo was suspicious. “Chen Ji isn’t home. What do you need to tell me? I’m his second uncle.”

“Second uncle?” The middle-aged man pushed Chen Shuo aside and walked in. Only then did Chen Shuo see that there was another person following behind him.

This person was bald and shiny, with a scar over ten centimeters long, like a centipede extending from the top of his head to the back.

“Who exactly are you?” Wang Hui Ling retreated in fear. “We’re going to call the police!”

The middle-aged man looked around as if no one else was there. “My friends like to call me Robe Brother. I usually do some loan business. This one behind me is my little brother, Two Knives. Don’t be scared, Two Knives’s scar looks fierce, but he just accidentally stepped off a platform at a construction site before and fell. Now his brain isn’t too good, a bit stubborn.”

Robe Brother continued, “We came here because Chen Ji mortgaged this building. He called this afternoon and said he couldn’t pay back the money, so he let me come collect the house.”

“What?!” Wang Hui Ling was greatly shocked. “How could he mortgage this building? This house is ours!”

“Oh?” Robe Brother said calmly. “The property certificate is in Chen Ji’s name. What does it have to do with you?”

“How much money did he mortgage?” Chen Shuo asked nervously.

“Fifteen million,” Robe Brother sat on the sofa in a relaxed manner. “We do things by the rules. As long as the customer can pay back the principal and interest, we’re happy and there’s no trouble. But now I look at this building, the money doesn’t need to be returned, the house belongs to me.”

“No!” Wang Hui Ling said sharply. “Chen Ji is a mental patient now, the mortgage contract he signed doesn’t count.”

This sentence also reminded Chen Shuo. He said urgently, “That’s right, Chen Ji is a mental patient. We have his diagnosis certificate here!”

Robe Brother frowned.

He looked at the date on the diagnosis certificate in Chen Shuo’s hand and laughed angrily. Chen Ji had agreed to let him come collect the house tonight, but temporarily got a diagnosis certificate to come out, clearly trying to set him up. It’s understandable to not have money to pay back a debt, but playing him for a fool was just too unreasonable. “So you were waiting for me here, planning to pull a ‘xian tiao’ on me, right? Kneel down.”

“What?” Chen Shuo almost thought he misheard the last two words.

Two Knives: “Robe Brother, which one kneels?”

“Kneel in front of me.”

Before Chen Shuo and Wang Hui Ling could react, Two Knives carried the two people in front of Robe Brother, kicking the back of their legs one by one. The two suddenly knelt in front of Robe Brother.

Robe Brother bent down and stared at Chen Shuo. “I’ve been crawling and rolling in society for so many years, what haven’t I seen? Do you really think you’re a match for me at ‘xian tiao’? Break off one finger and then we’ll talk properly.”

Two Knives: “Break off which one?”

“Index finger.”

Two Knives: “Break off which joint?”

Robe Brother scratched his eyebrows helplessly. “The second joint, I guess.”

The two people’s dialogue was very strange. This Two Knives did things meticulously. Whatever Robe Brother told him to do, he would do it.

Two Knives’s hand gripped Chen Shuo’s index finger like iron pliers, and with a click, he accurately broke off the second joint.

“Ah!” Chen Shuo cried out in pain.

“I want to call the police!” Wang Hui Ling shouted.

Robe Brother: “Two Knives, slap her.”

“How hard should I slap her?”

Robe Brother sneered, “Slap her until she sees her great-grandmother before stopping.”

After thinking for two seconds, Two Knives swung a slap, making Wang Hui Ling’s eyes go black.

After slapping her, Two Knives observed Wang Hui Ling’s expression, then turned to Robe Brother and said seriously, “She should have seen her.”

Robe Brother took the diagnosis certificate from Chen Shuo’s hand. “I am a very reasonable person. Since Chen Ji said he has no money to pay back, then the house is mine. By rights, the matter should end here. But, I am a person who dislikes being deceived the most. Since you set me up, you should accept the consequences of deceiving me.”

“No!” Chen Shuo gradually reacted. “No, no, no! It’s not us who set you up, it’s Chen Ji who is setting you up, we’ve been deceived too!”

“Oh?”

Chen Shuo’s finger was so painful his forehead was covered in sweat. “Chen Ji said he couldn’t pay back the money, so he agreed to let you come collect the house. But according to what I know, the money his parents left him is at least thirty million! So he can’t possibly be short of money, and he doesn’t need to mortgage this house, even less impossible to not be able to pay you back!”

These words instead surprised Robe Brother. Chen Ji actually wasn’t short of money?

And while Chen Shuo was analyzing, his brain gradually cleared up. Chen Ji’s performance this afternoon at Aoshan Hospital was all fake, just to let them bring the diagnosis certificate back to anger Robe Brother, while Chen Ji himself hid in the hospital safe and sound.

So, Chen Ji wouldn’t choose any of the proper banks, instead choosing a fierce person from the underworld to take the house!

Robe Brother seemed lost in thought. “Chen Ji? I thought he was quite honest and shy. You’re not bluffing me, are you?”

He recalled his impression of Chen Ji. When they signed the contract, Chen Ji was particularly shy and taciturn.

Could this kind of student from a sheltered environment be capable of manipulating everyone?

Chen Shuo saw him hesitate and continued to explain. “Didn’t you see that he deceived me too? I still don’t know that he signed a mortgage contract with you. Doesn’t that explain the problem? And didn’t you want this house? He has money to pay you back at any time. After you finish dealing with me, he’ll redeem the house, and you’ll only earn some interest! He’s playing you!”

Robe Brother smiled indifferently. “According to you, I was used by a high school student?”

“He’s not a high school student. He was admitted to the Army Foreign Language School through special recruitment.”

Robe Brother raised an eyebrow. “This school might not just teach foreign languages. Those who come out are military diplomats stationed abroad… Interesting, where is Chen Ji now?”

“At Aoshan Mental Hospital!”