The Accomplice's Ghost 014

Day four, day five.

Lin Zhou lost all his winnings, and even his own money that he had brought with him.

He was filled with endless regret.

But at this moment, the man he had met earlier leaned in. "Don't lose heart, little brother. What kind of gambler cries every day? The opportunity is always in the next hand."

Lin Zhou pulled a bitter face. "I'm out of money."

The man paused for a second, subtly making a hand gesture. "How about I lend you some?"

Lin Zhou looked at him with immense gratitude. "Brother, you are like my own flesh and blood!"

"Oh, come on, a chance meeting is a stroke of fate!"

So, Lin Zhou took the borrowed money and threw himself back into the fray. Just as the man had said, he actually won a few rounds. Riding the high, he continued to place bets, only to start losing continuously. When the people around him offered to lend him more money, he nodded and agreed almost instantly.

When he lost it all again and wanted to borrow more, the man's expression changed.

"I can't lend you any more, little brother. You're a newcomer, and your credit limit is capped. I only lent you an extra twenty thousand because I thought you were a good guy."

Lin Zhou was stunned.

"Here is your loan contract. Sign it." Seeing the contract the man pulled out, it suddenly dawned on Lin Zhou.

"Brother, please don't. You said it yourself, a chance meeting is a stroke of fate..."

"Fate? Sure, Euros, US dollars, a hundred thousand yuan. Alright, alright, you're not trying to renege on your debt, are you?"

As soon as he said this, several men gathered around them.

"But I don't have the money to pay you back..." Lin Zhou was filled with terror.

The man frowned. "You don't have money to pay back, but you had money to gamble? What were you thinking earlier? Get your family to pay it off for you!"

"My... my dad has washed his hands of me!"

"Then how about you use something on your body as collateral?"

"No, no!" Lin Zhou's selfishness completely blinded him to anything that would endanger himself. "I have a wife! My wife's family is rich!" At this moment, he suddenly remembered what Fang Zhiyi had said. Even though he couldn't find Sun Xiaomei, he knew where her family lived!

"Now that's more like it."

Since the Sun family had managed to cultivate Sun Xiaomei's toxic enabler personality, they naturally weren't easy to deal with.

Faced with Lin Zhou, who had come looking for his wife, Father Sun and Mother Sun, who had received the news beforehand, gave him a cold reception.

"Get lost! Acting tough when you're broke. Let me tell you, it's impossible for my daughter to keep living with you! You'd better divorce her immediately!" Mother Sun stood with one hand on her hip, pointing at Lin Zhou with the other, her demeanor fierce and aggressive. Father Sun stood to the side with a dark expression, while Sun Xiaoming yelled from behind, "Get out!"

Lin Zhou hadn't expected this family to speak to him like this after taking his money, and he instantly felt sick to his stomach.

The men waiting for him downstairs heard the commotion and came up to check. When the Sun family saw several fierce-looking men appear behind Lin Zhou, their arrogance immediately deflated.

"What... what are you trying to do? Believe it or not, I'll call the police!" Mother Sun was somewhat frightened but remained stubborn.

Looking at this wrinkled old face and recalling his own misfortune, Lin Zhou's resentment flared up. "Give me my money back! Three hundred and eighty thousand, not a penny less!"

"Why should we give it back to you? You gave that to our daughter, which means you gave it to us!" Mother Sun instantly became displeased at the mention of money.

Sun Xiaoming was even more aware that this money was all his. "Yeah, why should we!"

Lin Zhou was now enduring double psychological torment: on one side was the ruthless betrayal of his parents-in-law, and on the other were the glaring casino thugs behind him.

He was someone who knew how to assess the situation and figure out which side he could afford to offend. This was exactly why, in the original plot, he had watched indifferently as Fang Zhiyi was beaten up—he always made the most advantageous choice for himself.

"If you don't give the money back, I'll kill you!" Lin Zhou lunged forward directly. He chose his opponent very carefully—it was Mother Sun.

"What are you doing! Murder!"

In an instant, the room descended into chaos. Lin Zhou was losing his mind—it was all them! They were the ones who had reduced him to this state!

Sun Xiaoming, bizarrely enough, just stood on the sidelines shouting. Father Sun wanted to help, but seeing the burly men outside the door made him too afraid to act. In the end, it was Mother Sun's miserable shrieks that attracted the neighbors, who then called the police.

By the time the police arrived, the casino thugs had long since fled. The officers pinned Lin Zhou down.

Mother Sun's face was swollen like a pig's head, and she couldn't even speak clearly.

Taken to the police station, Lin Zhou finally calmed down. Faced with the police's interrogation, he suddenly burst into tears, recounting his misfortunes—his father's abandonment, his wife's desertion, and his friend Fang Zhiyi's betrayal. The listening officers furrowed their brows.

"Just get straight to the point, why did you hit someone!"

Startled by the stern reprimand, Lin Zhou trembled and opened his mouth, wanting to confess that he had been coerced by the casino.

But his clever brain suddenly kicked into gear again. If he told them, would those men be caught? What if they escaped? He would definitely be retaliated against. No, that wouldn't do! Besides, if word got out that he had been gambling, what would others think of him?

"They scammed me out of my bride price, a whole three hundred and eighty thousand! My dad even kicked me out of the house because of this!" Lin Zhou wailed loudly.

"Even if someone owes you money, you can't just show up at their door and beat them up! Economic disputes need to go through legal procedures!" Seeing him cry so miserably, they couldn't help but feel a bit of pity for him.

However, detention was still inevitable. Lin Zhou never expected that just a few days after his dad got out, he would be locked up himself.

When Sun Xiaomei learned what had happened at her home, she viciously cursed Lin Zhou. Beside her, Chen Xuan sighed. Ever since her best friend moved into her house, she had been complaining and whining all day long, from her colleagues and boss to her family and husband, acting as if the whole world had abandoned her.

Because she had believed Xiaomei's words, Chen Xuan had specifically gone to Fang Zhiyi to ask about the investment situation. The professionalism Fang Zhiyi displayed was so flawless that she could hardly find any faults. Moreover... he even revealed some other things.

A couple of days ago, Sun Xiaomei had complained to Chen Xuan about a friend. To comfort her, Chen Xuan had chimed in with a few agreeable remarks. Who knew that the next day, that friend would post a passive-aggressive social media update. When Chen Xuan asked about it, the person had directly lashed out at her.

It was exactly as Fang Zhiyi had predicted.

She looked at the pitiful Sun Xiaomei in front of her, suddenly feeling a sense of unfamiliarity.

Thinking back carefully, it seemed that Xiaomei had never really contributed anything to their friendship. Instead, Chen Xuan had become exactly what Fang Zhiyi described—an emotional trash can and a negative energy recycling station.

When she spoke up for her, the private conversations they had would instantly be relayed by Xiaomei to that very person, resulting in Chen Xuan inexplicably making a new enemy... Chen Xuan had never thought about these things before, but ever since her conversation with Fang Zhiyi, she couldn't help but start reminiscing.

And the more she recalled, the more terrifying it felt. But she's my best friend! Xiaomei is just a little sensitive; she's still good at heart.