Something’s not right.

Really not right.

Over the past few days, Lin Kesheng has been acting very strangely.

Anyone from the committee could see that Director Lin hasn’t been in a good mood recently.

He’s been looking at everyone with a suspicious and gloomy expression.

Tan Shuwei found this strange.

He felt it more keenly than the others because he noticed that Lin Kesheng often cast suspicious glances in his direction, and had even tried to engage him in conversation both openly and subtly.

But he didn’t know why?!

It was something he couldn’t figure out.

However, Tan Shuwei wasn’t afraid of Lin Kesheng.

After all, apart from him, Tan also had support from higher-ups, and he had never done anything that could be used against him.

Even if Lin Kesheng had discovered that he arranged a good place for the Su family, it wasn’t a big deal.

Where they were sent didn’t matter—it wasn’t just the Su family being relocated, and the Su family didn’t have to be sent to the farm.

So, Tan Shuwei wasn’t afraid.

“Director Tan, is Lin really sick?”

An Kai leaned toward Tan Shuwei’s desk, watching Lin Kesheng’s back with a playful tone.

Like Tan Shuwei, An Kai was one of the only two people in the committee who wasn’t afraid of Lin Kesheng.

He had been appointed as the deputy director the day the Su family was relocated out of the capital.

His position was the same as Tan Shuwei’s, one rank lower than Lin Kesheng’s, but that was the extent of it.

On the day An Kai started working at the committee, Lin Kesheng didn’t even show up, which was a clear sign of disrespect—he didn’t think much of him, or of An Kai, for that matter.

Even when Lin Kesheng arrived in the afternoon, his eyes were cold, and he gave An Kai an obvious hostile vibe, making An Kai feel increasingly uncomfortable.

Originally, he had been assigned to the committee because he had heard it was a lucrative position with lots of benefits, where Lin Kesheng was making a fortune, but some higher-ups weren’t happy about him.

“Deputy Director An, whether he’s sick, I don’t know. I’m not a doctor,” Tan Shuwei replied indifferently. This guy was no saint either. The committee was becoming more and more chaotic.

“I’m not saying anything. It’s just that Director Lin’s been acting a bit scary lately, looking at everyone like they’re bad people. It makes me uneasy,” An Kai said.

Before meeting Tan Shuwei, An Kai had investigated his background and knew that he didn’t want to offend Lin Kesheng, but he didn’t want to offend An Kai either.

Anyway, Tan Shuwei was an interesting person.

“Maybe something’s going on at home or elsewhere? Recently, there hasn’t been anything happening at the committee,” Tan Shuwei analyzed, understanding how An Kai felt.

He had been thinking the same, but after considering it, he believed the issue wasn’t with the committee—it was likely something at Lin Kesheng’s home.

“But he wouldn’t be staring at us like we’re thieves. If he’s unhappy, it’s our fault, but it’s just so weird,” An Kai said in a dismissive tone. Truthfully, though, he was secretly pleased that Lin Kesheng was upset, even though he acted indifferent on the surface.

Tan Shuwei didn’t know how to respond to that.

Luckily, just the next day, Lin Kesheng’s bad mood and strange behavior disappeared, and everything returned to normal.

Lin Kesheng knew that the committee members had been avoiding him the past few days, but he just hadn’t been in a good mood—he was very upset.

However, now that things at home had settled (his belongings had been stolen but he wasn’t killed, so it was still a relief), Lin Kesheng had decided to head to the house in Jinyu Alley to get some money and bills.

His wife had borrowed money from her family, and it needed to be paid back, or her parents, brothers, and relatives would start thinking badly of them.

Lin Kesheng didn’t go home for dinner.

After work, he ate at a state-run restaurant and stayed at the committee until around 9 or 10 p.m.

When he was sure no one was following him, he took his bicycle and set off for Jinyu Alley.

He didn’t go directly to the house.

Instead, he took a winding route and spent over an hour making sure no one was tailing him.

In the deep of the night, after confirming no one was behind him, he quietly approached the house in Jinyu Alley.

When he reached the house, he carefully observed the surroundings, checked the lock on the gate, and confirmed it hadn’t been tampered with.

Only then did he feel safe enough to take out his key and open the door.

Instead of rushing inside, Lin Kesheng walked around the yard to check for anything unusual.

When he didn’t find anything, he began to feel a bit more at ease.

Still cautious, he first checked the window, remembering how his home window had been broken before. After confirming the window was intact, he felt more relaxed.

This house was well-hidden and rarely visited.

Even when he did come, it was always late at night, so it shouldn’t have been discovered.

Lin Kesheng pulled out the key to the door, gently unlocked it, and entered the house.

Once inside, he took out his flashlight and carefully checked the place from top to bottom, not finding anything unusual.

Finally, he felt relieved.

He came here to get some money and bills, and he knew exactly where to find them.

He hurried to the wooden bed inside the room.

The bed was similar to the one at his own home—simple, with three sides enclosed by bedrails and one open side for easy access.

The bedframe and legs were unusually thick, even thicker than a grown man’s arm.

Lin Kesheng gripped the bedframe and pulled it open with one hand, while using the other to slide open the latch on the bed’s beam…

He easily revealed a hidden compartment inside the frame.

Then, his hand quickly went into the compartment, searching…