223: Chapter 218 Mysterious Disappearance

For security reasons, although Li Quanshuo had not been involved in network technology work since his discharge, he had never let it go and had been constantly learning and progressing. Cao Xiao didn't know exactly how strong his skills were, but according to Li Quanshuo himself, he was among the top tier in the field of remote network attacks in the country. For Li Quanshuo, breaking through a bank system's firewall was not difficult, but modifying depositor data without leaving a trace was impossible. Therefore, he didn't do that; instead, he hacked into the targets' computer and phone systems to steal bank account information and passwords, then directly logged into their online banking to transfer the funds.

The reason Cao Xiao gave such an order was to leave the Hu Family with no capital to seek revenge. The police would certainly confiscate all of the Hu Family's illegal gains. Without these funds, fixed assets and other industries would be used to offset the losses. By then, even if some members of the Hu Family were not involved in the crimes, they would be powerless to retaliate against him. In the process, he could also make a small fortune. He had previously gone to some trouble to make Hu Fei owe him over ten billion huaxia currency precisely to harvest all the Hu Family's cash legitimately. Furthermore, given his status, the police would not question his involvement in gambling. If he wished, he could even force Hu Fei to sign a promissory note. The Hu Family and the other casino shareholders combined definitely wouldn't have over ten billion in cash, and at that point, he could openly take over the Hu Family's assets to settle the debt.

"Cao Xiao, what's going on?"

In just a few moments, the plot had reversed. The once overbearing and evil villain was now a leader without an army, paralyzed with fear. Meanwhile, Cao Xiao, who had seemed like a lamb to the slaughter, had transformed into the boss of these armed men. It wasn't until the situation ended that Luo Yu finally reacted. Dai Zhihang and the others also stared at Cao Xiao in stunned silence, their eyes filled with questions.

Cao Xiao felt somewhat apologetic. If he hadn't agreed to come to the casino, they wouldn't have been subjected to such humiliation without knowing anything. Thus, he said guiltily, "I'm sorry. I saw signs that Hu Fei was up to something before, but I wasn't sure and didn't tell you. To be safe, I made some arrangements in advance, but it caused you a lot of fear. I know what you want to ask, but I have to deal with this guy first. We'll find another place to talk in detail later."

Seeing Hu Fei's dejected state, Cao Xiao felt extremely gratified. He went up and delivered a massive slap, his monstrous strength sending Hu Fei sprawling to the ground, several teeth falling out along with blood. He stepped forward, pinning Hu Fei's face with his foot and grinding it down hard. Looking down at him with satisfaction, he said, "Young Master Hu, why have you stopped talking? Keep being arrogant! Are you scared out of your wits?"

"Ah!" Hu Fei let out a shrill scream, his hands desperately trying to pry Cao Xiao's foot away to no avail. His eyes were full of terror as he shouted, "Cao Xiao, let me go! I admit defeat! I was wrong, I apologize! I'll give you as much money as you want! I promise I won't cause you trouble in the future, just spare me! Let go!"

Seeing Hu Fei act so spinelessly, Cao Xiao felt even more contempt. Regardless of whether his repentance was sincere or how he begged for mercy and compensation, Cao Xiao had no intention of letting him go. Everyone must pay the proper price for the mistakes they commit. Thus, he laughed and mocked, "Hahaha! Let you go? Did you ever think about letting us go just now? If apologizing worked, I'd give you a good apology first! An apology for what I'm about to do next!"

Cao Xiao was in no hurry to strike. He lifted his foot, stood to the side, and turned to Dai Zhihang and the others. "Da B, you guys come and vent your anger first. Courtesy demands reciprocity—remember to apologize first!"

"Let me go first!"

While Dai Zhihang and the other boys were eager but still hesitant, Zhu Yongqiang's girlfriend, Fu Xiaojing, stepped forward first. Without hesitation, she kicked Hu Fei hard in the crotch, then delivered kick after kick. When she got tired of kicking, she switched to stomping, cursing all the while, "How dare you scare me! I'll castrate you, you beast! Sisters, let's ruin him together!"

Fu Xiaojing was wearing pointed high heels, and she hit the mark accurately several times. Hu Fei let out one agonizing scream before passing out from the pain. Fu Xiaojing didn't care; after a few more kicks, Hu Fei was woken up by the sheer pain. He didn't even have the strength left to wail or beg for mercy. Even so, Fu Xiaojing wasn't satisfied and called the other two girls over to join in.

Cao Xiao and the other boys felt their scalps tingle as they watched. They could never have imagined that the refined-looking Fu Xiaojing would have such a fierce side. They all made a mental note: never offend a woman too deeply in this life, especially one who likes wearing high heels. Hu Fei's current fate was a warning for them all.

The girlfriends of Dai Zhihang and Luo Yu looked a bit reluctant, but they still joined in, scratching Hu Fei's face viciously several times before they all stopped together. Hu Fei's miserable state went without saying; Cao Xiao shuddered at the sight of the prominent bloodstains on the nails of those two pairs of hands. Dai Zhihang and the others didn't join in because Hu Fei was already in critical condition due to excessive blood loss from his lower body. Cao Xiao didn't move either; there was no need. Seeing Hu Fei like this had already satisfied his grudge. In any case, Hu Fei's life was over. With his extreme and cruel nature, he had surely committed many crimes; he would spend the rest of his life in prison, painfully repenting and praying to be a better person in the next life.

Just then, Duan Hong walked over to report, "Boss, everything is settled. We found a hidden vault inside containing a large amount of cash—huaxia currency, us dollars, and Euros. Converted to huaxia currency, it's about three hundred million. There are also many pieces of jewelry, gold bars, luxury goods, and antiques; their value is hard to calculate. On Little Li's end, he gathered over a billion huaxia currency, which has been transferred to your overseas account. We also unexpectedly discovered a large amount of various cryptocurrencies, with Bitcoin being the most numerous at over eighteen thousand. Little Li says that based on current market rates, they're worth nearly three billion in total. Those lackeys have been dragged out and had all five of their limbs crippled. We were a bit heavy-handed; even if they're treated, they'll still be disabled and won't be able to perform as men anymore. What should we do next?"

Cao Xiao's eyes lit up at the news. He said curiously, "Oh? That much? But it makes sense. Running a casino, fencing stolen goods, money laundering, and then investing in legitimate industries to clean it—they've made it a one-stop shop! Being so professional, they might even be involved in drug trafficking or smuggling. Over four billion—that's quite considerable. Those jewels, gold bars, luxury goods, and antiques were probably collateral from gamblers, but since I didn't open the casino, I have no qualms about taking them. Load them up with the cash and move them out. My parents should be asleep by now, so keep the noise down when you're moving things and put it all in the basement. Don't worry about the rest; the police will come to wrap things up later. It's getting late, so hurry up. Everyone gets one hundred thousand in cash later, and I'll have Brother Li transfer one million to each of your accounts, and five hundred thousand for those who aren't here. Take whatever gold bars or antiques you like; I have so many I've nowhere to put them."

Dai Zhihang asked worriedly, "Cao Xiao, won't you get into trouble doing this?"

The others also looked at Cao Xiao with worried faces.

Cao Xiao knew what they were worried about and laughed to comfort them. "Haha! You don't think we're some kind of criminal syndicate, do you? You can rest easy! They are my bodyguards, but they are also active-duty soldiers, and so am I! I already contacted the police earlier. This should be considered a joint military-police operation to crack down on organized crime. We are the victims and the whistleblowers. With such a great result, the police might even give each of us a silk banner! Haha!"

Dai Zhihang choked for a moment, then said with emotion, "Uh! When did you get into that? We won't hope for a silk banner. I'm still completely confused. If you hadn't made arrangements in advance this time, we probably would have been finished. People's hearts are hard to fathom; we should be more careful too, otherwise we'll suffer a big loss sooner or later."

Zhu Yongqiang, meanwhile, was foolishly sticking his round rear in the air while picking up the gambling chips scattered all over the floor. Seeing that large backside swaying in front of him, Cao Xiao felt a headache and gave him a mock kick. Once he stood up, Cao Xiao shouted, "Alright, Zhu Jianqiang, stop picking up your precious chips. All the casino's money is with me now. Who are you going to redeem those from? Don't act like a pitiful little wife. Don't you see how terrifying your face looks?"

At the same time, Cao Xiao was somewhat moved. It wasn't that Zhu Yongqiang was greedy, but that five hundred thousand was enough to completely change his marriage and his destiny. In today's materialistic society, everything frequently skyrockets except for wages, which don't budge for years. An ordinary white-collar worker could save for decades and still not afford a house, and might even be unable to marry or find a girlfriend because of it, making life suddenly seem very dark. If he hadn't obtained the Super Industrial Mother Machine, Cao Xiao might be living more miserably than Zhu Yongqiang right now. Not to mention distant dreams like cars and houses, even finding a reliable girlfriend willing to endure hardships with him would be a struggle. So he fully empathized with Zhu Yongqiang's current feelings; having gained something so difficultly only to lose it suddenly, his mind hadn't caught up after the emotional rollercoaster.

"I made a windfall today, and I'm sorry you had to suffer with me. In a bit, I'll have someone transfer one million to each of you. Everyone gets it, consider it a little something to calm your nerves." He had originally intended to say this later, but seeing Zhu Yongqiang like this made him feel bad, so he announced it early.

Then, without waiting for them to speak, Cao Xiao continued to act arrogant, tilting his head and squinting as he said in a sarcastic tone, "Your brother here has made it big now. Tens of billions flow through my hands every minute, and I have more money than I could spend in tens of thousands of years. Considering how you guys used to scramble to wash my underwear years ago, I'll reluctantly bestow some upon you. Want a big villa? Want a little BMW? Want long-legged... uh... ahem! Can't have that! Since you want it, why aren't you quickly crying and shouting while offering up your knees?"

"Hmph, who said they scrambled to wash your underwear? I don't know who lost a bet back then and washed our stinky socks for a whole week! You've struck it rich and don't know to show respect to your big brother? What kind of crime is that? The big villa has to be European style, at least eight or ten thousand square meters! A little BMW is a must, and it has to come with a big yacht. Private planes and such should be ready too. I should have eighty or a hundred lackeys at my beck and call! Hmm, you can arrange the beautiful maids yourself—preferably from Japan. Prepare plenty of them, and we'll swap them for a new batch once we're bored."

"My requirements aren't high. Just give me a few trillion so I can be the richest man and I'll be satisfied!"

"I want to run for President of the US, or Japan is fine too. You arrange it!"

"Get lost! I'll give each of you a trillion Zimbabwean dollars right now. I'll bury you in a cave for ten thousand years, and when you come out, you'll be the bosses of the solar system."

To prevent them from feeling like he was giving charity and to avoid hurting their pride, Cao Xiao went to great lengths, using this joking tone to lay a half-serious foundation so they wouldn't refuse when he actually gave it to them later.

The hotel employees had already been brought under control by the bodyguards, and no major commotion had disturbed the guests. So they drove the cars directly to the main lobby entrance and moved everything into the cars openly. Unfortunately, there were too many things; the cash alone weighed over three tons, and with the other items, it was four or five tons. The six Mercedes-Benz sedans the bodyguards brought could barely fit it all; they definitely couldn't move it without a truck. Not counting the bulky luxury goods and antiques, Cao Xiao only had the bodyguards load the cash, jewelry, and gold bars. They picked out some of the more valuable antiques to take and didn't take any of the luxury goods, leaving them as a reward for the police.

Only after the bodyguards drove away did Cao Xiao notify Liao Kai to bring his men in. Even though they had effortlessly cracked this major case involving gambling, guns, and organized crime, there wasn't a hint of joy on Liao Kai's face. Instead, it was filled with deep resentment. "Cao Xiao, can you give me a heads-up next time? It's the middle of the night. No one bothers people like this. So many of us were waiting outside like idiots while you were inside having a grand time acting. When you're done, you just pat your butt and leave, and we have to stay up all night cleaning up this mess for you."

Cao Xiao didn't mind. After all, today's events were very sudden, and disturbing someone's sleep in the middle of the night was indeed a bit inconsiderate. However, he laughed loudly and said, "Haha! Director Liao, that's not right. The police are responsible for not noticing such a massive tumor existing under their jurisdiction! If I hadn't discovered it and notified you today, it would have developed to the point where you couldn't deal with it even if you wanted to! You should be thanking me. If I hadn't acted, would you have had the resolve to deal with something where pulling out the radish brings the mud with it? Alright, it's getting late, so I'll have to trouble you with the rest. I'm sure you've already gathered plenty of evidence. Eradicate evil completely and punish severely—those are Commissioner Zhang's instructions. If there are any tough nuts to crack, let me know, and I'll personally invite them to eat prison food!"

"I really have to hand it to you! You added the 'eradicate evil completely' part yourself, didn't you? Commissioner Zhang never said that to me. I'm curious what these guys did to offend you so badly that you're coming down on them this hard! But as long as criminal activity is found, no one can escape the sanctions of the law." Seeing Cao Xiao's righteous act, Liao Kai was caught between laughter and tears. Finally, he added, "Actually, if you hadn't come to me today, I would have contacted you tomorrow. Something happened over in the Lianghu District. Quite a few tourists have gone missing, leaving the local people in a panic. But those missing tourists didn't leave a single useful clue. Our Municipal Bureau has been down there investigating with full force for days but has no leads. We can't even conclude how they disappeared, and up until now, not a single person has been found. I'm afraid they've already met with misfortune."}],