Chapter 148: Ma Qiangzhuang

After finishing their training, An Nan and Gu Zhiyu cooled down and chatted about their next steps.

An Nan said, “The birthday banquet is the night after tomorrow. Wouldn’t it be easier if we just drugged the food in the kitchen directly?”

Gu Zhiyu shook his head. “The kitchen is heavily guarded. I heard that on the day of the banquet, Zhu Dazhuang will be there in person, overseeing the dishes for the Boss. It’ll be hard for us to make a move.”

An Nan raised an eyebrow. “You’re pretty well-informed! You even know Zhu Dazhuang will be cooking himself?”

Gu Zhiyu pressed his lips together. “The kitchen aunties love to chat.”

An Nan stifled a laugh.

Looks like he gets cornered by the kitchen ladies for gossip every time he picks up food.

Gu Zhiyu shot her a sideways glance, and An Nan quickly straightened her face, putting on a serious tone. “Looks like we’ll have to work with the well, then.”

Gu Zhiyu nodded in agreement.

But An Nan thought for a moment and frowned. “The banquet is at night, but people fetch water in the morning. If someone drinks the water during the day and passes out early, wouldn’t the problem be discovered before the banquet even starts?”

Gu Zhiyu, however, wasn’t worried. “I have a drug that’s heat-resistant. It only reacts with alcohol. Within ten minutes of drinking, it’ll make people weak all over and lose consciousness.”

An Nan’s eyes lit up. “So even if they drink the drugged water ahead of time, it won’t take effect until they drink alcohol at night?”

Gu Zhiyu nodded. “Even if they don’t drink the water, as long as they eat meat stewed with it, they’ll still get hit.”

An Nan considered it. “That could work. I noticed the other day, everyone there drinks. And for the Boss’s birthday, they’ll definitely all raise a glass together.”

With the plan set, An Nan asked, “Where did you get this miracle drug?”

Gu Zhiyu pursed his lips. “A lunatic gave it to me.”

An Nan was puzzled. “A lunatic?”

Gu Zhiyu replied, “Yeah. The young boss from Taiyu Group I mentioned to you before.”

An Nan said, “The one who likes animal experiments?”

Gu Zhiyu nodded.

An Nan thought to herself, he really is a lunatic. She asked again, “Are you sure this drug works?”

Gu Zhiyu nodded confidently.

An Nan was reassured. Gu Zhiyu was always reliable.

She said, “We’ll act tomorrow night.”

Speaking of action, An Nan thought of Susu, who had been keeping a close eye on her lately.

For some reason, Susu had shifted her attention from Gu Zhiyu and now clung to An Nan every day, coming up with all sorts of excuses.

If An Nan wanted to sneak out tomorrow night to drug the well, she’d have to find a way to shake Susu off.

Hearing An Nan’s concern, Gu Zhiyu suggested bluntly, “Knock her out?”

An Nan shook her head. “When she wakes up, she’ll run straight to Hou Jianming and report. That’ll alert them.”

Gu Zhiyu: “Kill her?”

An Nan shook her head again. “She’s the lead dancer for the banquet. If she goes missing, it’ll cause chaos and draw unwanted attention.”

Gu Zhiyu was about to say something else when suddenly there was a knock at the door.

“An Mei, are you there?”

An Nan made a face that said, “See? Here she comes again.”

She went to open the door. Unexpectedly, this time Susu didn’t try to act cute and barge in, but instead asked her to come downstairs.

“An Mei, someone’s here to see you downstairs.”

An Nan was surprised. Who in the base would come looking for her?

She went downstairs and saw a familiar face.

“Hey, little sister! We meet again!”

An Nan was surprised. “Brother Ma?”

It was Ma Qiangzhuang, the enthusiastic guy who had helped her register when she first arrived.

Ma Qiangzhuang grinned. “How have you been settling in? Getting used to things?”

An Nan replied, “Pretty well, thanks for checking in.”

Ma Qiangzhuang scratched his head. “Good to hear! Us folks from the outer ring aren’t usually allowed in the inner area, but today there was someone from the inner area registering, so I got a chance to come say hi.”

An Nan was surprised. “You’re not an inner area resident?”

He’d seemed so at home when helping her register, she’d assumed he was from the inner area too. But now that she thought about it, she hadn’t seen him at the mobilization meeting or the celebration banquet.

Ma Qiangzhuang shook his head. “I wish I was, but luck’s never on my side.”

He was a small boss in the outer base and doing pretty well for himself, but he still hadn’t qualified to move into the inner area.

Ma Qiangzhuang asked, “I heard there was a woman with a dog who killed the boss of the Longhu Base. That was you, right?”

News didn’t travel as fast in the outer base, so it had taken a few days to reach him. As soon as he heard, he wanted to find a way to get on An Nan’s good side—maybe she could help him get into the inner area.

Now that he finally had the chance to come in, he came looking for her right away.

Ma Qiangzhuang grinned from ear to ear. “Congratulations in advance, little sister! You’re going places. Don’t forget to look out for your big brother in the future!”

An Nan thought for a moment, then had an idea. She pulled him aside and put on a troubled face.

“You’re right—the Boss really does favor me. He even wants me to be his wife!”

Ma Qiangzhuang was puzzled. “That’s great news. Why do you look so worried?”

An Nan jerked her thumb behind her. “That Susu—she’s jealous. Every time I’m alone with the Boss, she butts in and ruins the mood.”

Ma Qiangzhuang glanced over and saw Susu peeking out from inside the house.

“She really is! She’s spying on you right now.”

An Nan pouted. “See? She’s so clingy!”

Ma Qiangzhuang knew about Susu, too. Her parents lived in the outer base and always bragged that their daughter was the Boss’s woman. At first, he’d tried to cozy up to her, but soon realized Susu was no help at all. The Boss didn’t care about her, and even her parents hadn’t been able to move into the inner area—they weren’t doing as well as Ma Qiangzhuang himself.

He grinned. “Don’t mind her. She’s been with the Boss for so long, but even her own parents are still stuck outside. Clearly, she doesn’t mean much to him.”

An Nan kept up her troubled act. “Yeah, but… the Boss invited me to admire the moon with him tomorrow night, and Susu overheard. She’ll probably ruin the mood again.”

Ma Qiangzhuang’s eyes lit up. “You go on your date—leave her to me!”

An Nan’s eyes sparkled. “You have a plan?”

Ma Qiangzhuang said, “I’ll think of something tomorrow. I’ll use her family in the outer base to lure her away. I guarantee she won’t bother you.”

He patted his chest. “When it comes to the outer base, I’ve got some pull!”

An Nan handed him a few candies and painted him a bright future. “That’s great, Brother Ma. Don’t worry—when I succeed, I won’t forget your help!”

Ma Qiangzhuang immediately perked up, energized.

Back at the villa, An Nan winked at Gu Zhiyu. “The Susu problem is solved.”

That night.

The four tattooed men guarding the well were standing watch as usual, when suddenly they felt a chill behind them."