Chapter 577: Laugh

"Wang Jincheng?" Hearing these three words, Li Qingshan was startled and instinctively turned to look at Chen Ling.

"Is there anything you need from our master?" Kong Baosheng, standing at the door, asked cautiously. "Our master is a good person, and the theater operates legally... Oh, only these two 'door gods' are illegal."

Wang Jincheng's gaze fell on the two fierce-looking "door gods," who flinched and quickly averted their eyes.

"Baosheng, please invite Director Wang in," Chen Ling's voice called from inside the theater. "You can continue with your grocery shopping; don't worry about things here... And Li, you should go with him too. Just pick whatever you'd like to eat."

"Understood." Li Qingshan realized Chen Ling wanted to speak with Wang Jincheng alone. He walked straight to the door, took Kong Baosheng, and headed towards the market, not forgetting to offer Wang Jincheng a polite smile before leaving.

Wang Jincheng naturally didn't stop them. After the two had left, he slowly walked into the theater.

"Your theater is a bit too dilapidated."

"I'm afraid I'm a bit strapped for cash, so there's not much I can do about it," Chen Ling said with a slight smile, pouring a cup of hot tea for Wang Jincheng and placing it on one end of the Eight Immortals table.

Wang Jincheng made himself comfortable and sat directly at the table.

"Are those two at the door the people Li Ruohong sent, as you mentioned?"

"That's right," Chen Ling sighed deeply, her voice trembling as if on the verge of tears.

"I come from a humble background, from a remote town outside the main city. It was by chance that I gained the appreciation of the Huang Consortium, which gave me the opportunity to enter the main city. To establish myself here, I spent all my family's savings just to barely afford this small building. Who knew that before I could even open for business, that bully Li Ruohong would come calling? When he failed to strong-arm me into selling the theater, he sent people to guard the entrance, preventing any customers from coming in. For this entire time, the theater hasn't had any business at all... I truly had no other option, so I dared to approach you directly to seek justice. If you don't believe me, you can ask those two thugs at the door yourself."

Dressed in red, Chen Ling sat forlornly in the corner of the Eight Immortals table, her expression mournful and sorrowful, gazing blankly at the door as if she might break at any moment.

Seeing this, Wang Jincheng sighed softly in his heart.

When they previously investigated the dance hall, they had also noticed this new theater. He had specifically sent people to retrieve information, so he already knew about Chen Ling's background before coming. What she said also aligned with what other officers had secretly observed over the past few days... This new owner of Jinghong, Lin Yan, truly seemed to have a difficult fate.

"I promised you before that I would give you an explanation."

Wang Jincheng took out a tightly wrapped red cloth from within his clothes, placing it on the table.

"This is..." Chen Ling's eyes were full of confusion.

"These are the fragments of Heart 6, Chen Ling's corpse," Wang Jincheng paused. "The Li Ruohong you saw was actually him."

Chen Ling blinked. "What do you mean?"

"Heart 6, Chen Ling, is a member of the Twilight Society, exceptionally skilled at disguise and infiltration. The arrogant and overbearing Li Ruohong you've seen recently was actually his 'performance'... Earlier, at the birthday banquet venue, when you came to find me, he was sitting right next to me. I had already been taken hostage by him at that point," Wang Jincheng said with a helpless smile.

"Now you understand why I told you to leave first, don't you?"

Chen Ling suddenly understood. "I see... I wondered why it felt strange then. So he was there... And the subsequent explosion at the venue, he caused that too?"

"Yes, he orchestrated all of it."

"This Chen Ling is truly insidious and malicious..."

Chen Ling pointed to the red cloth on the table. "And this is...?"

"Our long-term strategy against the Twilight Society has finally paid off," Wang Jincheng said slowly. "Heart 6, Chen Ling, as well as Spade 6 and Heart 9, have all been eliminated. The Grand World Dance Hall, which served as a Twilight Society stronghold, will also be permanently shut down... From now on, no one will interfere with your theater's operations."

Chen Ling stared blankly at Wang Jincheng, completely stunned. The entire theater fell silent.

After a long silence, Chen Ling pursed her lips and stood up, bowing deeply to Wang Jincheng. Her vermillion sleeves nearly touched the ground, and her voice trembled slightly:

"Thank you, Director, for bringing justice to Jinghong Theater... Lin Yan will forever remember this kindness."

Wang Jincheng waved his hand. "Heart 6 deserved to die, and shutting down the Grand World Dance Hall was a necessary procedure. There's no need to thank me. I came today just to inform you, fulfilling my promise from the birthday banquet."

With that, Wang Jincheng stood up, drained his tea cup, and walked straight out of the theater.

As Wang Jincheng stepped across the theater threshold, he saw the two "door gods" still standing blankly outside the door. He frowned slightly and gave them a cold glance.

The next moment, the two "door gods" felt a chill down their necks, as if they were being targeted by an incredibly terrifying beast. Cold sweat began to seep from their backs.

They exchanged pale glances, then turned and bolted into the distance without hesitation, feeling as if a moment's delay would result in their heads being blown off by a single punch!

Wang Jincheng watched their frantic retreat, then slowly withdrew his gaze, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Although physically exhausted, Wang Jincheng was in a remarkably good mood today. He decided that after work, he would take his subordinates to a small pub to relax and celebrate the elimination of Heart 6.

"No need to see me out. Your performance was excellent... I'll come to watch a play next time I have a chance."

Wang Jincheng brushed dust from his clothes, lifted his chin, and spoke to Chen Ling inside without looking back, then walked straight towards the end of the road.

Chen Ling's voice immediately followed from inside Jinghong Theater:

"Jinghong Theater awaits your presence, Director, anytime."

One second, two seconds, three seconds... After an unknown amount of time, Wang Jincheng's figure completely vanished into the misty rain.

Inside the empty, old Jinghong Theater, only the figure in red remained, sitting alone at the table, propping up his head with one hand, his eyes curved into a mischievous arc.

A faint mist rose from the road outside the threshold, and the world grew quiet, as if only the soft patter of raindrops on the eaves remained.

In this haze, the Grand World Dance Hall across the street was completely sealed off, with no one bothering with it;

Around the casino on the other side, the figures who had constantly loitered there were no longer seen, and even the mysterious gazes from above the clouds seemed to have vanished;

Someone's body was unjustly buried in the earth, unable to rest in peace;

Others joyfully headed to the entertainment city, ready to drink until they dropped;

Sparrows flew in from all directions, circling beneath the eaves of Jinghong Theater, intending to build their nests there. It seemed this had become the safest place in the entire main city of Hongchen.

Beside the Eight Immortals table, where the teacups had grown cool, the figure in red casually toyed with the "Heart 6 corpse fragments" wrapped in the red cloth. After holding back for who knows how long, he finally let out a soft chuckle.

The theater was empty, and his soft chuckle echoed under the eaves. He casually took a note-script from his pocket, tore it into pieces in a few swift motions, and let them scatter in the breeze...

"They all believed it..."

"Hahaha!!"

"They all believed it, they all believed it!! Hahahahahahaha!!!"

Pairs of dark red eyes silently opened in the void, filled with mockery and ridicule. Surrounded by them, the laughter of the actor in red grew increasingly unrestrained and wild!

Audience expectation value: 5