On a cold Christmas Eve, with snowflakes flying everywhere, 30-year-old Li Ming wrapped himself tightly in his coat, ready to go on a Christmas date with his girlfriend Zhang Li. However, downstairs in the company, he unexpectedly saw Zhang Li get into the car of Mr. Wang, his boss who PUAs him every day... At that moment, Li Ming's heart sank to the bottom.
The biting cold wind scraped across Li Ming's cheek like a knife. He mechanically raised his mobile phone and took a picture of Zhang Li and Mr. Wang getting into a black car together. The car quickly disappeared into the vast night, and Li Ming turned around silently and left the company with heavy steps. He canceled his date with Zhang Li and returned to the deserted rental house. Under the dim light, he looked through the photos of him and Zhang Li on his mobile phone, but the sweet memories pierced his heart like a sharp knife. The laughter and joy in the past now sounded so ironic. He took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, and began to sort out Zhang Li's consumption records and chat messages. The bills from high-end restaurants, the purchase records of luxury goods, and some ambiguous chats all confirmed his guesses. Despair surged into his heart like a tide, and he felt suffocated.
Li Ming backed up the organized evidence to the cloud and permanently deleted all relevant information in his mobile phone. As his fingertips slid across the screen, he took a deep breath, as if a heavy burden had been unloaded. He dialed Zhao Xue's number and said calmly: "Zhao Xue, long time no see, how are you recently? I...I encountered something and wanted to talk to you. Can we meet tomorrow?" Zhao Xue's voice on the other end of the phone was full of concern: "Of course, what's wrong? Your voice doesn't sound right." Li Ming rubbed his eyebrows, briefly confessed his experience of being betrayed, and agreed to meet at the "Quiet Time" cafe the next day to discuss in detail.
Li Ming hadn't slept all night. His eyes were bloodshot, his eye sockets were sunken, and his beard was thick. The next morning, the winter sun shone through the thin curtains into the messy room, making it even more desolate. He mechanically washed and changed into clean clothes, forcing himself to cheer up.
Li Ming pushed open the glass door of the "Quiet Time" coffee shop, and a warm feeling hit him in the face. The aroma of coffee filled the air. He saw Zhao Xue sitting by the window at a glance. Zhao Xue was wearing an off-white cashmere coat today, with long hair draped over her shoulders, looking particularly gentle. Seeing Li Ming come in, she stood up and asked with concern: "Are you okay? You don't look well." Li Ming forced a smile, sat down opposite her, and whispered: "It's okay, I just didn't sleep well." The waiter came forward, and Li Ming ordered a cup of black coffee. He clasped his hands on the table, and his knuckles turned slightly white.
Li Ming took a deep breath, told Zhao Xue the whole story in detail, and pushed the USB flash drive containing the copy of the evidence in front of her. He spoke steadily, but there was a slight tremor in his tone. As Li Ming spoke, Zhao Xue's brows became more and more furrowed, and her face gradually became solemn. She picked up the USB flash drive and inserted it into the computer, quickly browsing the contents inside, and looked up at Li Ming from time to time, her eyes full of sympathy and anger. After reading it, she slammed the computer shut, making a crisp sound, and several customers in the coffee shop turned their heads to look. Zhao Xue nodded at them with a slight apology, then turned to look at Li Ming, and said in a firm tone: "It's too much! Mr. Wang and Zhang Li's behavior is simply outrageous! You must take up legal weapons to protect your rights!" She reached out and gently patted Li Ming's shoulder to comfort him. Li Ming was silent for a moment, his eyes fell on the black liquid swirling in the coffee cup, and the bitterness of the coffee seemed to reflect his mood at the moment. He finally raised his head, a trace of determination flashed in his eyes: "I have made up my mind, I want revenge." He told Zhao Xue in detail his revenge plan.
After listening to Li Ming's plan, Zhao Xue tapped the table with her slender fingers, making a rhythmic "tap tap" sound. The soothing music in the cafe set off the silence. She carefully analyzed the risks and feasibility, frowned slightly, and said after a moment of silence: "Li Ming, your plan is indeed very thorough, but the risks are also great, especially the part of directly confronting Mr. Wang. After all, he has been running the company for many years and has a deep foundation. If you are not careful, he will bite back." She paused, picked up the coffee cup on the table and took a sip, and continued: "I think we need to be more cautious. Collecting more evidence of Mr. Wang's violations of laws and disciplines is the key, so that we can completely overthrow him and leave him no chance to turn over." Li Ming listened quietly, his fingers unconsciously stroking the coffee cup, his eyes flashing with a thoughtful light.
Zhao Xue's words shocked Li Ming's heart. He realized that his previous plan was indeed too impulsive and lacked thorough consideration. He took a deep breath and drank the coffee in his hand. The bitterness of the coffee spread on the tip of his tongue, but it made him more sober. "You are right," Li Ming put down the coffee cup and said firmly, "I need to be more fully prepared." He looked up at Zhao Xue, with hope in his eyes, "What suggestions do you have?" Zhao Xue put down the coffee cup, crossed her fingers on the table, and analyzed clearly: "First, you need to collect more evidence of Mr. Wang's illegal and disorderly conduct, such as financial fraud, power-for-sex transactions, etc. Secondly, we need to find more victims, let them stand up and testify, and form a more powerful accusation. Finally, we need an experienced lawyer to provide us with professional legal assistance." Li Ming listened carefully and nodded from time to time to show his agreement.
Zhao Xue's analysis made Li Ming see the moon after the clouds have been cleared. He took a deep breath and said with a firm look: "You are right, I need to consider it more carefully and not act impulsively." He picked up his mobile phone and looked through the address book, found Lao Chen's contact information and called him. "Hello, Lao Chen? This is Li Ming, long time no see. How are you recently? I... I have encountered some problems and I want to consult you about some legal issues. Let's meet at Mingde Law Firm at 10 o'clock tomorrow morning to discuss in detail. Is that okay?... Okay, then it's settled. See you tomorrow." After Li Ming hung up the phone, he turned to look at Zhao Xue and breathed a sigh of relief. "I have contacted Lao Chen. He is an experienced lawyer who can provide us with professional legal assistance."
Li Ming told Zhao Xue in detail about what Mr. Wang had done and the evidence he had at hand, from how Mr. Wang used his power to harass Zhang Li at work to how the two of them became lovers, with suppressed anger in his tone. Zhao Xue listened carefully, frowning, pursing her lips from time to time, occasionally taking a sip from the coffee cup, the hot steam of the coffee lingering on her face, making her look even more solemn. Her fingers tapped lightly on the table, making a slight "tap tap" sound, as if she was thinking about something. After Li Ming finished speaking, she pondered for a moment before slowly speaking: "Li Ming, the evidence you provided can prove that Mr. Wang's personal morality is corrupt, but it is not enough to bring him to justice." She paused, her eyes fell on the coffee cup in Li Ming's hand, "I think you should start with the company's internal financial statements and look for clues of Mr. Wang's corruption. This is the key to bringing him down." Li Ming's eyes lit up, as if he had grabbed a life-saving straw, and he nodded vigorously, "I understand, I will check it as soon as possible."
Li Ming did not sleep all night, his eyes were bloodshot. It was dark outside the window, with only the dim light from the street lamps. He rubbed his sore eyes and continued to bury his head in front of the computer. The click of the mouse was particularly clear in the silent room. The dense numbers and tables on the computer screen were the project data that Mr. Wang had handled over the years. Li Ming carefully flipped through each document, his fingers tapping quickly on the keyboard, marking out the suspicious financial data one by one, and making detailed records. There was only the sound of keyboard tapping and paper flipping in the room, and time passed by minute by minute. The sky in the east gradually turned pale, and a new day began.
Li Ming sent the sorted financial statement data to Zhao Xue and attached a text message: "This is the information I sorted out, please see if there are any problems." Then, he called Zhao Xue, his tone slightly tired: "Zhao Xue, I sent the information to your email, please take a look, let's make an appointment to meet and discuss it in detail." After receiving the email, Zhao Xue replied: "Okay, I'll take a look and get back to you later." Putting down his phone, Li Ming walked to the window and stretched. The sun was shining outside the window, but it could not dispel the haze in his heart at all.
Zhao Xue carefully read the email sent by Li Ming, and dense data and charts flashed before her eyes. She keenly caught the obvious discrepancies in several key data, such as the abnormally high expenditures of some projects, while the income of other projects was incredibly low. She immediately called professional data analysis software to conduct an in-depth analysis of the data and cross-check other relevant information. On the computer screen, complex codes scrolled rapidly, and various charts and curves were presented in an interlaced manner. In the end, the software locked several suspicious projects and marked possible violations. Zhao Xue compiled the analysis results into a detailed report, and listed the specific information of the suspicious projects, the amounts involved, and the possible types of violations one by one. She immediately replied to Li Ming's email: "I have received the information. The preliminary analysis found several major doubts. It is recommended to meet and discuss in detail as soon as possible." Then, she called Li Ming, with a hint of urgency in her tone: "Li Ming, I have found some clues. Is it convenient for you to come to the Quiet Time Cafe now?"
The phone rang suddenly, interrupting Li Ming's thoughts. He picked up the phone and saw that the caller ID was Zhao Xue. He answered immediately: "Hello, Zhao Xue." There was a hint of expectation and anxiety in her tone. "Li Ming, I have found some clues," Zhao Xue's voice sounded a little hurried, "Would it be convenient for you to come to the Quiet Time Cafe now?" Li Ming immediately put on his coat, grabbed the car keys and went out.
Li Ming drove to the "Quiet Time" coffee shop. The winter afternoon sun shone through the car window onto his face, but it could not dispel the haze in his heart. The roadside trees quickly retreated backwards, reflecting his anxious mood at the moment.
When he arrived at the coffee shop, Li Ming saw Zhao Xue sitting by the window. She was wearing a dark blue business suit today, looking capable and elegant. In front of Zhao Xue was a cup of steaming coffee and a laptop computer, with dense data and charts displayed on the screen. Seeing Li Ming coming in, she raised her head, a smile appeared on her slightly tired face, and raised her hand to signal him to sit down.
Li Ming sat down opposite Zhao Xue. After a brief greeting, Zhao Xue handed the report to Li Ming. "This is my analysis based on the information you provided," she pointed to the key part of the report, "Look here, there are big problems with the flow of funds for these projects." Li Ming took the report, frowned, tapped the report lightly with his index finger, and read Zhao Xue's analysis carefully. He held the report in one hand and unconsciously turned the coffee cup in the other hand. His eyes swept over the lines of data, and his face gradually became solemn. Soft music was playing in the cafe, but it did not relieve his inner tension at all. There was a lot of traffic outside the window, and the noise kept coming into his ears, which further highlighted the quietness in the cafe. He connected Mr. Wang's usual behavior and some decisions in the company, such as the abnormal approval process of some projects and the whereabouts of certain funds, and found that several suspicious projects mentioned in the report were directly related to Mr. Wang. "These projects... are indeed very suspicious." Li Ming pondered for a moment, tapping his fingers lightly on the table, "I suspect that Mr. Wang used these projects to transfer funds."
Li Ming took a photo of the report and uploaded it to the cloud for backup. After deleting the photos on his phone, he long-pressed the power button, and options such as "shut down", "restart", and "format" popped up on the screen. He took a deep breath and clicked "format". The phone screen flashed a few times and restored to factory settings. Everything was back to zero, as if the past had never happened. He put his phone in his pocket and got up to leave the rental house.
Li Ming pushed open the heavy wooden door of Lao Chen's law firm, and a faint scent of sandalwood hit him. The walls were covered with various legal certificates and banners, and thick legal books were placed on the bookshelves, which looked solemn and dignified. Lao Chen was sitting at his desk flipping through documents, wearing a pair of gold-rimmed glasses on his nose, and his gray hair was combed meticulously. When he saw Li Ming, he took off his glasses, stood up and greeted him, "Li Ming, you are here, please sit down." He pointed to the chair opposite the desk and motioned Li Ming to sit down. Li Ming handed the file bag in his hand to Lao Chen, "Lao Chen, these are some evidences I have compiled, I would like to ask you to help take a look." Lao Chen took the file bag, opened it and flipped through it carefully, marking it with a pen from time to time, and his brows gradually frowned. "The situation is more serious than I thought," Lao Chen put down the documents, crossed his fingers and placed them on the table, his tone serious, "Mr. Wang's actions have been suspected of multiple violations of laws and crimes." He looked up at Li Ming, "Do you have anything else to add?" Li Ming recounted the whole story in detail, his tone calm, but he could not hide his inner anger and helplessness. Lao Chen listened carefully, nodded from time to time to show his understanding, and asked questions about some key details. Finally, Lao Chen took off his glasses, rubbed his eyebrows with his hands, and said firmly: "Li Ming, I will do my best to help you, and the law will give you justice." Li Ming stood up and bowed to Lao Chen gratefully, "Thank you, Lao Chen."
After leaving the law firm, Li Ming took a deep breath of the slightly cool early winter air and felt more relaxed than ever before. The leaves of the sycamore trees on the street had all fallen, and the bare branches stretched toward the sky, just like his mood at the moment, empty, but full of new hope. He stopped a taxi and said, "Let's go to the job market."
Li Ming walked through the bustling crowd at the talent market, and all kinds of recruitment posters came into view. He carefully browsed the recruitment information on each booth, and stopped from time to time to talk to the recruiters, asking about job responsibilities and salary benefits. He marked several companies with good treatment and good development prospects and submitted his resume. Among them, an emerging technology company called "Future Technology" caught his attention. There were crowds of people in front of the company's booth, and the recruiters enthusiastically introduced the company's situation and future development plans. Li Ming was attracted by the company's innovative ideas and booming momentum. After an in-depth conversation with the recruiters, he felt a long-lost passion. When he left the booth, he was holding a re-examination notice in his hand, which read "Tomorrow at 10 am, meeting room on the 30th floor of the company's headquarters."
Li Ming returned to his rental house and simply tidied up the messy room. He took a few professional books from the bookshelf and carefully studied the business direction and technical characteristics of "Future Technology". As the night deepened outside the window, only the desk lamp in the room emitted a soft light, reflecting Li Ming's focused face. Sometimes he frowned, sometimes he was thinking, and his fingers gently ran across the pages of the book, as if he was outlining a blueprint for the future.
Li Ming closed the book and rubbed his sore eyes. He felt tired. He picked up his phone and set the alarm for 7 o'clock tomorrow morning. He closed his eyes, but his thoughts kept churning. Mr. Wang's face, Zhang Li's betrayal, Zhao Xue's support, Lao Chen's promise... All these scenes intertwined together, making it difficult for him to fall asleep. After a long time, he fell into a deep sleep.