Chapter 239 In order to solve the case, Qi Tongwei took his "wife" to play with birds?

On the western outskirts of Lincheng, there is a wasteland surrounded by abandoned chemical plants.

Several rows of low red brick houses are arranged in a staggered manner, with pigeon lofts made of wire mesh on the roof.

The air was filled with the pungent smell of poultry droppings, and the occasional whistle of a pigeon pierced the sky, making the place seem desolate and dilapidated.

A black Rolls-Royce with a Hong Kong Island license plate rolled over the muddy dirt road and came to a steady stop in front of these brick houses.

The car door opened, and Qi Tongwei stepped out first.

The collar of his silk shirt was wide open, revealing a gleaming gold necklace.

He held a cigar thicker than his thumb between his fingers, and thick smoke spread across his face.

Lu Yike followed closely behind, her stiletto heels clicking in disgust as she stepped on the muddy ground.

She clung tightly to Qi Tongwei's arm, almost pressed against him, her heavy makeup giving off a worldly air in the dim light.

"Honey, is this the way to make money you were talking about? It's covered in bird feathers, it's filthy."

Lu Yike's voice was sharp and sarcastic, carrying a kind of arrogant arrogance that came from someone who had never seen the world.

Qi Tongwei patted the back of her hand, the gesture rough and casual.

"Long hair, short wits; that's what they call 'the truly wise hide in plain sight.' Any one of the birds in this house that flies out could buy you ten Hermes bags."

The two walked to a rusty iron gate, and Qi Tongwei raised his foot and kicked the gate hard.

"Where are they? Where have all the breathing people gone?!"

The observation hole behind the iron gate was opened, and a pair of sinister eyes peered out for a moment.

Immediately afterwards, the heavy bolt was pulled open.

A slender middle-aged man dressed in a black Tang suit appeared at the door.

He held two shiny walnuts in his hands. Although he looked refined, there was a shrewdness in his eyes.

This man was Zhou Guichun's top henchman, nicknamed "Master Jin".

"Where did this friend come from, with such a fiery temper?"

Jin Ye stopped what he was doing and his gaze lingered on Qi Tongwei's Rolls-Royce gold watch for two seconds.

Qi Tongwei glanced sideways, exhaled a puff of smoke, and pulled a gold-embossed business card from his pocket, slapping it against the other man's chest.

"Kee Dayong, Tianhe Trading, Hong Kong Island. I've heard you have pigeons that can fly out gold. Show me what it's like."

Jin took the business card, ran his fingertips along the edge of it, and didn't rush to invite the person in.

"Boss Qi, the rules of Yunxiao Pavilion are that newcomers must have their credentials verified before entering."

"Our pigeons are precious here. If they are startled by someone who isn't sincere, the loss is something no one can afford to compensate for."

Lu Yike immediately rolled her eyes and pointed at Jin Ye's nose, yelling.

"Capital verification? Are you kidding me! My husband owns three coal mines in Shanxi and two buildings on Hong Kong Island. You're talking to us about capital verification?"

Jin Ye remained unmoved and continued to block the doorway.

"This is an ironclad rule set by Mr. Zhou, and it applies to everyone."

Lu Yike wanted to say something more, but Qi Tongwei pulled her behind him.

"Alright, stop making a fool of yourself here."

Qi Tongwei turned his head, looked at the Rolls-Royce parked not far away, and snapped his fingers toward the driver's seat.

The trunk immediately popped open, and two bodyguards in black suits carried over a heavy silver metal box.

"Bang!"

The box was slammed heavily onto the muddy ground at Jin Ye's feet.

Qi Tongwei bent down and flicked the lock with his fingers.

The lid of the box popped open, revealing neatly stacked red banknotes piled up like a small mountain.

These were all old banknotes with non-consecutive serial numbers, emitting an enticing scent of ink under the flashlight.

"Three million, is that enough for verification?"

"If that's not enough, I have ten more boxes in my car. If you find counting them tiring, I'll just burn them all for the noise."

Qi Tongwei stepped forward and pointed at Jin Ye's nose with the still-burning cigar.

That ruthless, bandit-like sense of oppression hit you right in the face.

The contempt in Jin Ye's eyes quickly vanished, replaced by a smile, and he bowed slightly.

"Mr. Qi is very generous; I was mistaken. Please come in."

Stepping through that dilapidated iron gate, the scene before me suddenly changed.

The interior of the brick house was completely hollowed out and decorated in the most luxurious way.

Underfoot was a thick Persian carpet, and the walls were covered with precious golden nanmu wood wainscoting.

A huge crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, illuminating the entire space as if it were daytime.

Rows of specially made bulletproof glass cases are neatly arranged, with constant temperature and humidity inside.

Each box contains a racing pigeon of excellent quality, with a complex number engraved on its leg band.

"This one was airlifted from Belgium, and the starting bid is 800,000."

Jin Ye pointed to a snow-white pigeon, his tone filled with pride.

"But at Cloud Pavilion, it's not called Pigeon, it's called 'Building Materials Cost'."

Lu Yike leaned over to take a look, then covered her mouth in feigned surprise.

"How far can this bird fly? Why is it so expensive?"

Jin smiled without saying a word and led the two further into the depths.

Passing through the pigeon coop, you'll find a tastefully decorated private bar.

Several well-dressed men were sitting on a sofa, talking in hushed tones, with several unsigned contracts laid out in front of them.

Jin poured Qi Tongwei a glass of whiskey and leaned forward slightly.

"Boss Qi, the pigeon is just a stepping stone. Once you buy this 'building materials fee,' people will naturally come to you to discuss several old city renovation projects in Lincheng."

Lu Yike sat to the side, habitually reaching for her notebook, but only halfway through before realizing her mistake and quickly adjusting the hem of her cheongsam.

She looked at Master Jin and asked tentatively.

"That's all? I heard that Secretary Zhou of Lincheng is quite the refined person; besides pigeons, he doesn't have any other hobbies?"

The question came out of nowhere, and Jin Ye paused for a moment.

His suspicious eyes swept across Lu Yike's face, as if trying to discern the woman's background.

"Madam, you've inquired quite thoroughly."

Lu Yike's heart tightened, and the seriousness she had maintained from years of working in the procuratorial system almost crumbled.

She forced a haughty expression and gave a cold snort.

"Of course! My husband's money doesn't come from thin air. If I don't find out the details, what if the gift doesn't resonate with him? Wouldn't that be a waste?"

Mr. Jin put down his wine glass and tapped his fingertips lightly on the table.

"Mr. Zhou certainly has a wide range of interests. Besides these flying little things, he has recently become very interested in film and television investment."

"Especially those male students from art schools, they are clean-cut and handsome."

"If you can help Mr. Zhou find a few promising male art school students, then you'll have crossed half the threshold for him in Lincheng."

Qi Tongwei's hand, which was holding the wine glass, paused slightly, and then he burst into wild laughter.

"Haha, so Secretary Zhou has a taste for this. Okay, I'll take care of it. I know quite a few people in entertainment agencies on Hong Kong Island."

Mr. Jin looked satisfied and got up to take his leave.

"Then I'll await good news. I hope to see Boss Qi at the auction in three days."

Leaving the Cloud Pavilion, the Rolls-Royce sped through the night.

As soon as she got on the bus, Lu Yike couldn't wait to rip off her wig and throw it hard onto the seat.

"Disgusting! Absolutely perverted!"

She pulled a wet wipe from her bag and vigorously wiped the heavy makeup off her face, her chest heaving violently.

"That Zhou Guichun, he always appears so respectable on television, but behind the scenes he's doing this kind of dirty work!"

Qi Tongwei sat in the passenger seat, having already taken off his flamboyant suit.

He was holding a military-grade tablet computer, on which various data were rapidly scrolling across the screen.

"Don't just focus on the disgust. The 'film and television investment' that Mr. Jin mentioned earlier is the real deal."

Qi Tongwei pointed to a set of data that had just been exported from the military database on the screen.

"This shows the flow of funds for several recent large-scale cultural and tourism projects in Lincheng."

"About 200 million of it flowed through several shell brokerage companies and eventually ended up in Zhou Guichun's overseas accounts."

"Those so-called male art school students were both his playthings and his tools for money laundering."

Lu Yike leaned closer, looking at the young faces and the shocking numbers.

"He used these students' names to open a studio, and then laundered the embezzled funds by exaggerating their salaries and investment costs."

"This method is much more covert than simply accepting cash."

Qi Tongwei turned off the tablet and looked out the window at the receding street scene.

"This is the person Sha Ruijin chose."

"On the surface, they appear virtuous, but in reality, they are rotten to the core."

He picked up the red secure phone and skillfully dialed a number.

Shen Zhong's cold and steady voice came quickly from the other end of the phone.

"How is the situation?"

Qi Tongwei straightened his expression and his tone became extremely serious.

"Secretary Shen, the bait has been cast. Zhou Guichun's money laundering route has been completely locked down, involving a huge amount of money and serious moral blemishes."