A Lai's mind raced as he tried to recall the events before the assassination attempt, replaying each scene like a movie, hoping to uncover any crucial details. He had always been a diligent young man. During his summer break, he used the electrical skills he had learned to work on construction sites. After half a month, he had gained some experience.
One afternoon, a scar-faced man wearing sunglasses arrived at the construction site. He approached the foreman and demanded that an experienced electrician be sent to a boss's house to repair an electrical switch immediately. After inquiring among the workers, the foreman realized that the old electrician had gone out. Seeing the scar-faced man's expression darken, his scar twitching with tension, and his eyes filled with malice, the foreman didn't dare delay.
"Figure something out! I don't have time to wait," the scar-faced man demanded impatiently.
The foreman, noticing A Lai nearby, quickly said, "A Lai, household electrical switches are easy for you. Go fix it."
A Lai, eager to earn some extra money and thrilled at the chance to ride in an off-road vehicle, happily agreed. He grabbed his tool bag and confidently followed the scar-faced man, soon arriving at a luxurious villa.
After a brief inquiry, A Lai confidently explained that the issue was a serious short circuit, which was why the main switch couldn't be turned on. The scar-faced man received a phone call and warned A Lai sternly, "The problem is probably in the kitchen. Once you fix it, report to the guard's room. Don't wander around." With that, he left in a hurry.
A Lai began checking the wiring, but he couldn't find the problem in the kitchen or downstairs. So, he took his toolbox upstairs and discovered that a standing electric iron was plugged into a socket in the living room. He quickly unplugged it, opened the socket, and began fixing the short circuit.
Suddenly, he overheard sweet whispers and strange rhythmic sounds coming from the bedroom. His heart raced, and he felt his pulse quicken as he listened intently. Not long after, the whispers turned into a heated argument between a man and a woman, growing louder and eventually escalating into a scuffle.
"You're a pervert!"
"You've been stringing me along all this time!"
"I thought you were a decent man!"
"You're so childish!"
"As long as I have a place in your heart, it's enough."
"She won't divorce me, but the property will be mine eventually. We've been through this for so long, what's the rush?"
"Ha!"
"Without a proper title, waiting any longer will be futile. How can a plain old woman like me compete with her beauty? Are you tired of me? Disgusted?"
"And what about Fangfang? You can't ignore her!"
"I'll take care of it! How am I supposed to handle it? If you force this issue, it'll cause big problems."
"Let me remind you, rumors can destroy us. Stop visiting me in the office if you don't want people to find out. If word gets out, we'll end up with nothing, losing everything overnight."
"You're talking nonsense!"
"Stop defending yourself! You know the law. Buying human organs is illegal! If you're not careful, it'll all blow up in your face!"
"You—you—"
"Have you been snooping in my office, looking at confidential documents?"
"I don't need to see the documents! Do you think I'm stupid?"
"You're just a woman. What do you know? It's all voluntary donations."
"I don't want to hear your excuses! You know what's going on. Be careful, or you'll regret it."
"If you keep acting paranoid and spreading rumors, don't blame me for what happens next!"
"I'm trying to help you, and you call me crazy? Ungrateful!"
"I'm warning you, only my trusted assistants know about this place, not even my wife. Don't come here without my permission again!"
"You haven't visited me in months, and when I find you, you act like this? You're a heartless traitor!"
"Bang!"
The bedroom door was kicked open, and a middle-aged woman with disheveled clothes stormed out, holding a coat in her hand.
"Clang!"
She kicked A Lai's toolbox, sending it flying. A Lai quickly stood up, shocked.
The woman recognized him instantly. "Isn't this the boy I nursed as a child?" she thought, horrified. Without waiting for A Lai to speak, she hurriedly put on her sunglasses, covered herself, and ran downstairs without looking back.
From the window, A Lai watched as she scolded the guards at the gate before leaving the villa in a rush.
"What are you doing up here? Who told you to come upstairs?" A voice demanded from behind A Lai. He turned to see a scholarly-looking man in his forties or fifties, wearing a sharp blue suit and brown sunglasses, questioning him sternly.
"Boss, I was just fixing the electrical issues. The problem was upstairs," A Lai stammered, trying to explain.
"How long have you been upstairs?" the man asked.
"I just got here," A Lai answered cautiously.
"Is that so?" The man glanced at the open socket A Lai had been working on. "Finish up quickly. I need the power back on."
"The problem was a short circuit in the living room socket," A Lai explained proudly. "I've already restored the main power."
The man nodded, his phone vibrating in his pocket. He stepped out onto the balcony to take the call. A Lai, still working, detected a fault in the steam iron and offered to repair it. The man handed A Lai two packs of expensive cigarettes as a tip, despite A Lai not smoking. Grateful but confused, A Lai accepted the gift, thinking it would be a nice gesture to share with his coworkers.
The man retrieved a high-end beverage from the fridge, offering it to A Lai as he expressed his gratitude for the work done. A Lai was deeply thankful, even though the beverage and the cigarettes felt like more than just simple thanks. The man then asked A Lai to check the garage's lighting, warning him not to wander around. A Lai quickly replaced a faulty switch in the garage, using his own tools, and then took a break, savoring the luxurious drink.
Suddenly, he felt the urgent need to relieve himself. Not wanting to spoil the image the man had of him, A Lai decided to find a restroom. He stumbled upon a dimly lit underground room and finally found a restroom. As he entered, a strong smell of blood and disinfectant hit him. Curious and uneasy, he noticed a blue trash bin and a large black plastic bag. Inside were sharp instruments, tubing, blood-stained rags, and other medical waste.
A sense of dread washed over him. Why was there so much medical waste here? Had someone undergone surgery? Why not at a hospital? He felt a cold breeze from the ventilation, sending chills down his spine. Hastily finishing his business, A Lai prepared to leave but was drawn by a strange noise from a nearby room. Peeking through the slightly ajar door, he saw the scholarly man, now wearing a white coat and mask, holding a bloody organ.
A Lai froze in horror as the man proudly examined the organ, which A Lai recognized as a human kidney. Two assistants, dressed in blue scrubs, praised the man's skill as he placed the organ in a container, ready to be transported. Realizing he had seen too much, A Lai knew he had to escape.
But before he could move, a sharp blow to the back of his head knocked him out. When he regained consciousness, he was tightly bound and gagged in another room. He could hear voices nearby discussing his fate.
"Boss, should we harvest his organs too?" one voice asked.
"Just handle this quickly. It was your negligence that caused this mess!" the scholarly man snapped.
"I'm sorry, boss. I'll deal with it as you instructed."
"Remember, to the outside world, I'm just a doctor. How you handle this is up to you," the man warned.
"Yes, sir. I'll make sure there's no trouble for you."
The man left angrily, leaving A Lai at the mercy of the scar-faced man. The next thing A Lai felt was a jolt of electricity surging through his body, causing him to convulse uncontrollably before everything went black.
Now, sitting in the rain, A Lai reflected on the events. He was certain that the scholarly man was involved in organ trafficking. Even if he wasn't the mastermind, he was deeply implicated. But what about his old nanny? Had she been involved in the plot against him? He wondered how she could be so ruthless, despite their past connection.
As he struggled to make sense of it all, he knew that finding evidence was crucial. He vowed to track down the scar-faced man, investigate his nanny, and uncover the mastermind behind it all. With a determined resolve, A Lai shook off the mud and rain, stood up, and left the graveyard.
But after walking for a while, hunger and exhaustion overcame him. His thoughts became more and more disjointed until, finally, his legs gave way, and he collapsed, losing consciousness once more.