Chapter 281: Chapter 274: Four “8s Chapter 281: Chapter 274: Four “8s Zheng Tan had always felt that only academics could talk about things that would be considered hooliganism if said by others, without making the listener feel offended. Instead, the listener might think, “Wow, this person really has a broad range of knowledge.”

These people could turn something normal and nice into something utterly twisted and distasteful. What should have felt like youthful romance would somehow seem a bit horrifying. Now, he realized that it wasn’t just academics who used this trick; others could too, including Liu Ba.

This made Zheng Tan wonder if Liu Ba and the General entered society solely to take revenge. Hadn’t the student standing next to him been stupefied?

After snapping back to reality, the student chuckled awkwardly and said, “Ahem, I’ve always considered bees to be a very positive insect, as they always appear to the public in a positive light.”

“That’s true, some introductory books portray bees as hardworking creatures, but there are some facts in nature you have to accept,” said Liu Ba mysteriously as he shook his finger and continued, “I’ve always regarded bees as magical insects because the male bees in their colonies don’t have a father. Plus, they are born solely to mate with the Queen Bee. Never mind those who die after completing the task, those male bees that don’t get a chance to mate can enter any other beehive. They grow big and ‘handsome’, eat a lot, do no work, but when the seasons change and food becomes scarce, they are driven out of the hive by worker bees, then left in the wilderness to die and become food for ants and other insects. Thus, male bees were once given a very interesting name.”

“…What name?” The student absent-mindedly scratched his arm, as if he were scratching goosebumps.

Zheng Tan had a bad feeling.

“Tragic Playboy,” said Liu Ba. “So I’ve always wondered if the term ‘playboy’ might originate from the male bee.”

Zheng Tan: “…” He could never look at the term “playboy” the same way again! There was a time when Zheng Tan himself had been referred to as a “playboy.”

It’s best not to take things too seriously, for if you do, you’ve lost.

The student laughed dryly a couple of times, then stood up and patted his pants, “Um, they’re calling me. I’ll head over first!” After saying that, he sprinted away without inviting Liu Ba to join them.

Watching the departing figure, Liu Ba sighed, “He’s already scared away.”

Glancing around and seeing no one nearby, with the constant cheering from the soccer game on the sports field ensuring no one paid attention to them, Liu Ba turned his gaze to Zheng Tan who was yawning in a tree. This caused Zheng Tan, who was in the midst of yawning, to shudder and abruptly stop yawning.

“Heitan,” said Liu Ba looking at Zheng Tan, “Let’s continue the discussion we didn’t finish earlier.”

Zheng Tan: “…”

Liu Ba was probably in a bad mood. Whenever the General was in a bad mood, he would either chat with someone or simply go out to attract animosity. Liu Ba’s earlier remarks had already left Zheng Tan and the student, who had fled, with some psychological shadows regarding certain terms, so Zheng Tan was not at all interested in continuing the conversation.

Ignoring whatever Liu Ba was mumbling on about, Zheng Tan jumped down from the tree and walked away. He didn’t want to stick around to hear Liu Ba lash out at society.

Zheng Tan ran to a small grove, took out his phone to check for new messages, and sure enough, as soon as he turned it on, there were several messages, most of which were from Jing Gui. One was from an unknown number, and the last two were missed call notifications before powering on — the unknown number had called Zheng Tan twice, but his phone had been off.

Looking at the number, Zheng Tan noticed this strange mobile number contained four “8s,” and the sequence of those four “8s” was positioned exactly like the four “6s” in his own mobile number.

The first person Zheng Tan thought of was Zhang Dong, the second was someone related to Jing Gui.

After going through all the messages, Zheng Tan learned that Jing Gui had located the evidence they were looking for. As for Jing Gui’s inquiries about Zheng Tan’s identity, Zheng Tan glanced at them and passed by, uninterested in replying. The mobile number with four “8s” didn’t ask for Zheng Tan’s real identity, but instead asked, “Interested in one more companion?”

At first glance, it seemed like a mass message for hook-ups, casting a wide net to catch a big fish—something Zheng Tan had done before.

But upon further consideration, Zheng Tan felt something was off. The message spoke of “one more companion,” and after sending the text, followed up with two phone calls. If this wasn’t someone phishing or harboring a fetish for group activities, then this person knew about the activities Zheng Tan had previously used this number for.

To reply or not to reply?

Zheng Tan’s finger hovered over the reply button, but after a moment’s thought, he decided to let it be. He didn’t bother playing games; he simply turned off his phone and left. He knew that police interested in a previous case had once monitored him, but if this person wasn’t from the police, then who could it be? Generally speaking, those who use four “8s” are either wealthy or successful individuals, but Zheng Tan felt it wasn’t that kind of person.

Not long after, during a chat session with Jiao Yuan and others, Zheng Tan heard that the troublemaker involved in the milk tea powder case had offended someone. As for what happened to him, Jiao Yuan and the others speculated wildly, but the true circumstances remained unknown. Anyway, that guy never showed up again.

Since the problem kid had already fallen out of the picture and no longer posed a threat to Jiao Yuan and the others, Zheng Tan felt much more at ease.

One day, after installing a fully charged battery, Zheng Tan had just powered on his phone and hadn’t yet had a chance to look at the messages Jing Gui had sent when a call came through.

Looking at the screen displaying the number with four “8s,” just as Zheng Tan was about to press the reject button, he paused. He didn’t know whether to answer or hang up. He had too many guesses and wanted to identify the caller through this call, but also didn’t know how to communicate after picking up. Was he supposed to just yell?

The phone Zheng Tan had set to silent was continuously lit up. It didn’t take one call, and as soon as it stopped, another call came in, somewhat relentless in its pursuit.

By the fifth time the number called, Zheng Tan pressed the answer button. He was more curious about the caller’s identity, and even if the caller traced the phone’s location, Zheng Tan wasn’t worried. After all, he was just a cat now; no one would believe that a cat was the mastermind behind this number.

After the call was answered, neither side spoke but listened carefully to the background sounds coming through the phone.

Both locations were relatively quiet. Zheng Tan could occasionally hear birds chirping not far from where he was, while the other end seemed to have the sound of a computer fan.

About half a minute into the silence, just as Zheng Tan was about to hang up, the other party spoke.

“Interested in having another partner?”

Zheng Tan recognized the voice.

“My name is Liu Ba. I work in various industries and have a bit of a reputation in circles similar to private detectives. I think, with your skills, you should be able to check out,” he started by exposing his own identity to show sincerity. Seeing that Zheng Tan didn’t respond, Liu Ba continued, “I know your deeds. If you have something fun next time that’s difficult to handle, consider pulling me in. I guarantee good character, truly the conscience of the industry. You can ask my clients if you don’t believe me. The first job is free, and if it suits your taste, the price is negotiable. Actually, I don’t trust text messages on phones, prefer calls, or emails. Of course, if you still prefer to use text messages, that’s fine too.”

After a barrage of words from the other end, Liu Ba finally asked, “May I ask, how should I address you, sir?”

Zheng Tan’s whiskers above his eyes twitched, and he promptly pressed the disconnect button.

Address you my foot!

On the other end, Liu Ba, who was decisively hung up on by Zheng Tan, chuckled resignedly and said to Jing Gui, who had been silent beside him, “The person behind this number definitely has a bad temper.”

Liu Ba had no idea that it was his own bad impression during the few meetings with Zheng Tan on his side that made Zheng Tan uninterested in listening to Liu Ba’s nonsense. Zheng Tan used to think about asking Liu Ba for some tips; now, he thought better of it, never knowing when Liu Ba might be in a bad mood and tell him an animal story that would totally screw things up.

As for emails, Zheng Tan didn’t have an email account. Even if he did, he wouldn’t use email to contact Liu Ba. Although Zheng Tan’s computer skills were limited to some basic internet operations, he knew the internet was not a very reliable hiding place. Perhaps he’d send an email today, and by tomorrow, Liu Ba might show up at his doorstep.

Seek his help?

Zheng Tan didn’t think there was anything currently that required Liu Ba and Jing Gui’s assistance, the kind of private detectives they were.

Entanglement of a wealthy family? A family melodrama? Zheng Tan felt that was too far from the Jiao family.

After switching off his phone, Zheng Tan tidied up the tree hollow a bit, placing a desiccant bag and the phone into a bag. He wasn’t sure if this would help, but it was worth a try.

Emerging from the tree hollow, Zheng Tan stretched lazily. He jumped and ran around the woods for a while, stretching his limbs, then rested near a tree not far from the side gate, watching a guard play a game of fetch with his dog.

While watching, Zheng Tan’s gaze suddenly sharpened, and his eyes widened.

He saw a man and a woman walking in from the outside, the man being Mr. Jiao and the woman not being Jiao Ma.

If she were a colleague, that might be excusable, but Zheng Tan often visited the Life Science Institute and had never seen this woman before. Moreover, very few female professors at the institute dressed in such professional attire. She was quite good-looking, at least her makeup was well done. The two seemed like acquaintances.

Just when Zheng Tan thought there wouldn’t be a family melodrama unfolding, he started to feel nervous. Fortunately, he soon noticed that Jiao Fox’s expression was not very good, showing some alienation and serious dissatisfaction towards the woman.

Zheng Tan jumped down from the tree and stealthily moved closer to the roadside, using the trees as cover. He then perked up his ears to listen to what the two were discussing.

Just as he heard the word “Youzi,” a term sensitive to Zheng Tan, he kept a close watch on the woman, suddenly hearing someone shout:
“Heitan!”

Zheng Tan looking toward Mr. Jiao found that Mr. Jiao was looking right at him.

Professor Jiao, who was very unhappy with the person next to him, unwilling to even show his face, preferred to look at the trees beside him rather than this person. Unexpectedly, upon looking, he found his own cat son sneaking around behind a tree. Even if he was hiding, that cat’s tail wasn’t tucked away.

Having been exposed, Zheng Tan decided not to hide anymore and just followed the two people closely, openly eavesdropping! (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep