Reversing, Please Watch Out

Half an hour later, the police temporarily concluded their investigation. The forensic doctor's conclusion matched what everyone had witnessed: the magician had been burned to death, though there were signs of phosphorus poisoning beforehand.

Even so, no conclusive evidence pointed in any specific direction. Although the police learned that the magician had previously performed a trick transforming Tan Yixing into a fat pig, Tan Yixing's demeanor had been entirely composed and he had clearly enjoyed it, revealing nothing suspicious.

The police questioned the magician's assistant, who had remained backstage the entire time, asking if she had touched the performance costumes. She flatly denied it, explaining that the magician's props involved trade secrets and were the tools of their livelihood, strictly forbidden for others to handle.

Nevertheless, the police still took the assistant and the lighting technician at the scene into custody.

The previously lively atmosphere instantly cooled. Many scheduled performances that followed were entirely cancelled. People felt uninspired and lingered with lingering fear, wishing they could leave immediately, yet forced to endure since the host had not given the word.

"Everyone, I am terribly sorry for dampening your spirits once again," Young Master Feng said, picking up the microphone and speaking with sincere tones. "However, this is more akin to our lives, always filled with unknown variables. We never know when bad luck will strike, nor when fortune will suddenly smile upon us."

Using a relaxed tone and apt metaphor, Young Master Feng defused the tense atmosphere. He was about to say more when Tan Yixing suddenly strode onto the stage, snatched the microphone from his hand, and declared domineeringly and straightforwardly: "Just now, bad luck befell everyone, but I will make sure fortune smiles upon all of you immediately.

As for everyone present today, without exception, we'll change venues shortly to keep the party going. Let's find a KTV to sing our hearts out, then head to a bathhouse to relax—the men can get massages, the women can have spa treatments, and finally, we'll grab a late-night snack. In short, let's have as much fun as we can, and everything is on me!"

The crowd immediately rejoiced, cheering repeatedly. Although everyone present was a wealthy elite who had seen it all, and the fat man's words sounded like those of a vulgar nouveau riche, having someone else foot the bill was always welcome. Furthermore, being personally invited by the fat man was a distinct honor in itself, not to mention the opportunity to build connections with the Tan family.

"Let's move out!" The fat man waved his hand like a proud general.

The crowd bustled after him. Young Master Feng looked slightly awkward, feeling as though everyone had betrayed him.

"Are we still going?" Tang Shiya asked hesitatingly, regretting the words the moment they left her lips. She wondered when she had started using the word "we" and when the two of them had become a single camp.

Liu Jingye smiled slightly and said, "Go, of course we're going. Only a fool turns down a free treat."

"Yet I keep feeling an undercurrent of danger everywhere," Tang Shiya remarked, her intuition remaining quite sharp.

Liu Jingye nodded. "It's good for a woman to have a sense of crisis, but there's no need for excessive tension."

He tilted his chin toward the two Tan brothers and said, "In their eyes, we're nothing more than tiny fish and shrimp. If danger comes, it won't reach our heads."

Tang Shiya gave a bitter smile, proactively hooked her arm through his, and followed him along.

In the entertainment industry, the starkest reality one witnessed was the immense disparity between people. Among actors, some were stars while others were mere extras; among beautiful actresses, some were leads while others were nude doubles. The crux of the matter was that those high above looked down upon those below, while those below despised those above in a vicious cycle.

The boisterous crowd walked out of the newly reopened restaurant. Several city bigwigs took their leave; attending banquets and cocktail parties was acceptable, but late-night carousing crossed the line into misconduct.

Tan Yixing did not force them to stay, but he presented each of them with a small, exquisitely wrapped gift box. No one opened them on the spot, and the fat man repeatedly claimed they were mere souvenirs, yet anyone could tell the items were undoubtedly valuable.

In the parking lot, the Tan brothers had already decided their next destination: a renowned private club in the city where every imaginable entertainment facility was available and absolute safety was guaranteed.

"Hey, buddy, how did you get here?" The fat man suddenly turned around to ask Liu Jingye.

Liu Jingye pointed at his own legs and said, "Route 11."

The fat man laughed. "Then drive my car."

With that, he tossed the car keys over casually, treating them as if they were bicycle keys and showing complete disregard for a Phaeton worth millions.

"What about you?" Liu Jingye asked.

"Me? Naturally, I'll share a ride with my dear cousin to catch up properly." The fat man threw an arm around Young Master Feng's shoulders, and Tan Yifang immediately nodded and extended a warm invitation.

Liu Jingye smiled faintly, turned, and walked toward the Phaeton. The Tan brothers boarded a luxury Bentley sedan together, and Gao Jing squeezed in right behind the fat man, inseparable like Siamese twins.

*This fat man must be worried that Young Master Feng might plot against him on the road,* Liu Jingye thought to himself. *These two guys throw sparks the moment they meet, constantly undermining each other. An innocent magician even lost his life because of it. This is a clash among the upper echelons, where the slightest movement brings tempests and storms.

Still, they should still be in the mutual probing phase. If someone strikes a fatal blow now, it might actually succeed.

If that's truly the case, isn't this damn fat man using me as a scapegoat?*

Liu Jingye looked at the high-end Phaeton sedan. Tang Shiya was standing right beside him, and he lowered his voice to ask, "Did you drive here?"

Tang Shiya nodded and pointed at a red Volkswagen Beetle parked nearby.

"Good, then I'll ride in your car later," Liu Jingye said.

Tang Shiya looked at him in bewilderment. "Then why are you getting into the Phaeton?"

"Just practicing my driving." Liu Jingye smiled as he climbed into the luxury sedan, ignited the engine, and shifted gears.

Since there were quite a few vehicles parked around and the Phaeton was parked facing the wrong way, Liu Jingye needed to reverse it out first into a parking space behind him before he could drive off normally.

He rolled down the window and said, "Novice on the road, please be patient. Could you help guide me?"

Tang Shiya offered a wry smile and nodded. She watched Liu Jingye start the car and slowly reverse, asking as he backed up, "How is it? Am I in the space yet?"

Tang Shiya glanced at the yellow lines of the parking space beside her and shook her head. "No, you're not aligned at all. You're completely skewed. How could you possibly get in?"

Liu Jingye pulled forward a bit and reversed again. "How about now?"

"Still no. At that angle, there's no way you're getting in," Tang Shiya said.

After Liu Jingye tried several more times without success, Tang Shiya said impatiently, "Can you actually drive or not? Watch the position of the rear bumper. Come on, try pulling in slowly. Slowly, a bit more, good, you're all the way in..."

The car came to a steady halt within the parking lines. Liu Jingye and Tang Shiya both breathed a sigh of relief and smiled at each other. But as they smiled, both of them froze.

Tang Shiya's pretty face instantly turned as red as fire. Remembering what she had said while guiding him to park, she wished she could dig a hole and hide in it.

*Thump...* At that exact moment, a sharp sound echoed. Tang Shiya jumped, the noise coming from right beside her.

Turning her head, she saw that the rear of the luxury Phaeton had slammed hard into the flower bed behind it. Realizing now that Liu Jingye couldn't drive at all, she quickly pushed aside her embarrassment and cried, "Quick, drive forward!"

"Got it!" Liu Jingye shouted. Flustered, he shifted gears and stepped hard on the accelerator. The car shot forward like a cannonball breaking free of its barrel, crashing heavily into a vehicle parked in front. Smoke began to billow from the smashed hood, the entire front end was caved in, and spiderweb cracks spread across the windshield.

"Are you alright?" Tang Shiya asked with concern as Liu Jingye crawled out of the car.

Seeing him calmly light a cigarette, he glanced at the unrecognizable luxury wreck and said, "I'm fine, but the car is totaled. I definitely can't afford to pay for this. We'd better run."

With that, he sprinted straight toward Tang Shiya's Beetle. Tang Shiya stood frozen for a long moment, muttering, "Is this something you can just run away from and pretend never happened?"

Carefully maneuvering her own car, Tang Shiya slowly drove out of the parking lot. Liu Jingye sat in the passenger seat, puffing on a cigarette, entirely nonchalant as he glanced back at the destroyed Phaeton.

"Is it really okay just to leave the car like that?" Tang Shiya asked with worry. After all, that was a luxury car worth millions.

Liu Jingye waved a hand dismissively. "It's fine. The Tan family has vast wealth and deep resources; they won't care about such trivial matters."

Tang Shiya said nothing more. Liu Jingye smoked in silence, an ambiguous, half-amused smile playing on his lips as he thought to himself: *The fat man suddenly handed his car over to me to drive while abruptly going off to travel with his enemy—all of this is far too bizarre. The most dangerous place is the safest place; by staying close to Young Master Feng, he ensures his own safety.

However, Young Master Feng might have already hatched an assassination or ambush plan, and this Phaeton was the sole target. If I had driven it out, I might well have become the scapegoat.

Of course, the fat man might also be using this to test me. Regardless, I'm just here to watch the show; I have no mood to play games with the two of you.*

Simultaneously, Liu Jingye pondered the magician's death: *If this incident truly stems from the fat man's retaliation, then the fat man must have more than just Gao Jing as a bodyguard.

The female host mentioned that a man in a black suit and sunglasses told her a VIP wanted to witness another magic trick. Because his attire resembled Young Master Feng's subordinates, the host assumed he was sent by Tan Yifang. Yet Tan Yifang had absolutely no motive to kill the magician, making it highly probable that this man was the fat man's subordinate.

Perhaps he deliberately wore a black suit, or perhaps he had planted himself as a mole right beside Young Master Feng.

Another critical figure is the lighting technician. A seasoned professional would never make such a glaring error. There are only two possibilities: first, the lighting technician is the fat man's man, cooperating in the murder; second, the lighting technician is completely oblivious, and someone tampered with the lighting equipment, which implies there is someone else within the fat man's ranks.*

Sitting in the car and smoking, Liu Jingye gazed out at the brightly lit metropolis and thought: *Young Master Feng shouldn't have time to deal with Chen Yuxin right now. Let me sit back and watch how you wealthy heirs slaughter each other, what human life is truly worth in your eyes, and just how much tougher your lives are compared to ordinary people.*