After the foreman was dragged away, the atmosphere at the site grew even more oppressive.
Especially for the workers laboring on the construction site. Having witnessed the foreman, who usually barked orders, being dragged off like a dead dog, and now seeing the girl with an imposing aura, surrounded by a group of men in black, walking towards them, they couldn't help but tremble.
The workers on the site were generally older, with those around forty being the main workforce. It was no exaggeration to say that some of them, who had married early, might have children older than this young girl before them.
Yet, it was this seemingly adolescent girl who made them too afraid to even look her in the eye, instinctively lowering their heads and silently praying in their hearts.
"She... she's coming over..."
"Don't... don't look at me."
"It's not my business, I really don't know anything."
"Please... please don't drag us into this..."
"..."
Liu Yutong looked at these usually simple and honest workers, now frightened and uneasy. The frost on her face gradually melted, and her expression softened.
She tilted her head slightly, looking at Yun Cheng beside her. "Yun Cheng, bring the money over."
"Yes, Miss!" Yun Cheng replied.
He immediately waved over a subordinate in black carrying a briefcase and took out a thick stack of cash from it.
Liu Yutong looked again at the nearly hundred migrant workers before her, who were like startled birds, and comforted them, "Uncles and aunties, there's no need to be nervous. We are not bad people."
The workers: "..."
Then, they nodded frantically.
If you say you're not, then you're not. We certainly wouldn't dare to shake our heads.
Liu Yutong continued, "Now that the murderer and the bad apple among you have been caught, today's incident has given you all a scare, and even caused injuries to a few innocent uncles. I promise, we will take full responsibility!"
"This money is compensation for each of you, five hundred yuan per person. It's not much, but it represents a token of sincerity from me, Liu Yutong, and the Ten Thousand Dragons Society, and also an apology for the fright caused today."
As soon as the words fell, a stir immediately rippled through the crowd.
Compensation?
And an apology to them?
Many widened their eyes, doubting if they had heard correctly.
But looking at the serious expression on the young girl's face, it didn't seem like a joke.
Liu Yutong said no more and simply gestured to Yun Cheng beside her.
Understanding her meaning, Yun Cheng immediately called over several Ten Thousand Dragons Society members to begin distributing the money one by one.
When the money was pressed into their hands, the workers flinched as if burned, instinctively pulling back before hurriedly accepting it, perfectly enacting the extreme wariness common among ordinary people at the bottom rungs of society.
A moment later.
When the workers finally believed it was all real, their awe for the young girl deepened, now mixed with genuine gratitude from the heart.
"Th... thank you, boss."
"Thank you, Miss Liu."
"Thank you..."
"..."
Afterwards, Liu Yutong reminded them not to speak about today's events. Once she received their assurances, she let them leave to go about their business.
She didn't stay at the construction site either, but got into a car with the five assassins and the foreman, heading towards the police station where Qi Wei was located.
The main reason she personally escorted these criminals was to take the opportunity to sound out Qi Wei, to find out how things were progressing on his end.
When exactly would the special investigation team be stationed in Bright Pearl City, or had they already sneaked in?
And had Qi Wei and Gao Min joined this investigation team?
Once it was confirmed they were part of the team, she could, according to her prior agreement with Qi Wei, automatically become an informant for the special investigation team.
At that time, she would be able to completely destroy Zhao Tianxing and his faction!
Since the end of last year, when Liu Yutong schemed to swindle sixty million from Zhao Tianxing, she had already possessed some evidence of money laundering by Zhao Tianxing and his East Sea Alliance.
Coupled with the information unexpectedly obtained from Great South City last year about Zhao Tianxing colluding with Master Jiu of South City in some illegal trades, although the chain of evidence in this area wasn't yet complete.
Of course, even with the existing evidence, it was enough for the police to arrest and sentence Zhao Tianxing.
However, that guy would most likely still manage to get bail through some connections, which didn't align with her original intention.
So she had been biding her time, firstly to continue gathering evidence, and secondly to wait for an opportunity.
But now, she didn't want to wait any longer.
Zhao Tianxing and the people around him had to be taken down!
Thinking of this, Liu Yutong prepared to call Hua Muying to ask about the progress of his investigation.
Ever since bringing back the girl named Lan Die from Great South City, Hua Muying had been secretly investigating various illegal businesses under Zhao Tianxing's banner.
However, after all this time, there hadn't been any major breakthrough progress.
Before Liu Yutong could make the call, her own phone rang first.
She looked at the number and couldn't help but smile. "Speak of the devil, and he calls."
As soon as she answered, Hua Muying's excited, hushed voice came through.
"Miss Liu, we did it! We caught them all! Ironclad evidence!"
"Speak!" Liu Yutong uttered only one word, very succinct.
"I had my people take shifts staking out those peripheral dens and secret transfer points Lan Die provided for almost two months! Finally, we caught the important targets at an abandoned warehouse in the western suburbs!"
"Then I used some methods to record their entire transaction process, including them forcing and transporting the girls, and all the details of them drugging the girls and loading them onto trucks—everything was recorded by us!"
"Also, through my efforts to turn people and the cooperation of personnel we planted, we successfully recorded their conversations, including the next delivery location and some client information. Some are indeed people from overseas..."
"Besides that, I followed the clues and discovered that Zhao Tianxing actually has a hidden private clinic underneath him, equipped with a full set of illegal medical testing equipment. Later, I found a few professional pickpockets... ahem... people with professional skills, to steal some documents from the safe inside. They contain detailed records of the girls controlled by Zhao Tianxing's subordinates, as well as blood types and matching information for some of his employees, and so on..."
Hua Muying grew more and more excited as he spoke, even blurting out curses uncontrollably: "These beasts, these damn bastards, actually selling our fellow countrymen like livestock! They deserve to be cut into a thousand pieces, minced, and fed to dogs!"
The main reason he lost control of his emotions was Lan Die—she had almost become one of those 'livestock' to be sold overseas back then.
Thinking of this, Hua Muying's voice suddenly turned low, carrying a plea. "Miss Liu, can I ask you for a favor?"
"Considering you've done well with this matter, I'll try to agree," Liu Yutong said, now in a better mood herself, and agreed.
With this ironclad evidence Hua Muying had added, Zhao Tianxing wouldn't be able to escape even if he grew wings now.
