Chapter 144: Disaster Strikes

At lunch, Li Dong didn't stay long. With the boss around, everyone felt a bit restrained, so after a toast at one table, he quickly excused himself.

As he was heading downstairs, Zhou Haidong was eating in the lobby. Seeing Li Dong, he hurriedly stood up.

Li Dong gestured for him to sit back down, saying, "You go ahead and eat. I'm just stepping out for a smoke."

Zhou Haidong had practically become his personal driver, doubling as a bodyguard, rarely leaving Li Dong's side unless told otherwise.

Even though Li Dong told him to eat, before Li Dong had finished half his cigarette, Zhou Haidong rushed out to join him.

The boss was waiting outside; how could he possibly sit there and finish his meal?

Li Dong didn't say anything and got into the car with Zhou Haidong.

"Where to, Mr. Li?" asked Zhou Haidong.

Leaning back in his seat, Li Dong didn't respond immediately. He wasn't sure where he wanted to go.

He didn't want to go to school, and he had just left the company. Going home now seemed too early and would be dull alone.

Suddenly, Li Dong realized how pathetic his life had become. Ever since he was reborn, he had been busy moving back and forth between work and more work, with little to no leisure activities.

Seeing Li Dong still deep in thought, Zhou Haidong suddenly mentioned, "Mr. Li, Tan Yong's case has gone to court."

Li Dong raised an eyebrow. "So soon?"

Without asking how Zhou Haidong knew, Li Dong pulled out his phone and called Wu Jianguo.

On the phone, Li Dong asked, "How long is Tan Yong likely to be sentenced?"

Since the Baidu incident, everyone who had their eyes on Li Dong began to take him much more seriously, Wu Jianguo included. He was now exceedingly polite and eager to please. "The case just went to court today, but I've spoken with the court; he'll get no more than two years."

Li Dong pondered for a moment and then asked, "Can the sentence be reduced further?"

Wu Jianguo's head was spinning. Li Dong was asking for a lot. Zhu Hongtao had become a vegetable—this was a serious injury case. If not for his intervention, Tan Yong could easily have been sentenced to five or six years. But Li Dong was no longer the man he used to be. After some thought, Wu Jianguo said, "It's difficult to reduce the sentence much more, but we can work on getting a reduction after he's inside."

"Thanks, Director Wu. I'll treat you to dinner sometime," Li Dong said politely.

Of course, this "dinner" was about more than just a meal. Wu Jianguo wasn't the type to go out of his way for nothing, so Li Dong would need to sweeten the deal.

Wu Jianguo understood what Li Dong meant and agreed with a laugh.

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, the call ended.

Hanging up, Li Dong glanced at Zhou Haidong and then said, "Let's go visit Tan Yong's family."

Though he had paid for Tan Yong's house and other expenses, Tan Yong had ended up in jail because of him. An honest man forced into a situation like this—it weighed on Li Dong's conscience.

More importantly, Li Dong wanted to show his people that he wasn't someone who forgot those who had done him a service.

The reason Zhou Haidong mentioned it today was likely out of a sense of shared fate—if Tan Yong could fall, so could he.

Though Li Dong thought Zhou was overthinking things, it was still important to show some concern for his people.

Just as Zhou Haidong was about to respond, his face suddenly changed. Before he could warn Li Dong, the car jolted violently.

Caught off guard, Li Dong's head slammed into the back of the front seat.

The impact left him dazed, his head spinning, and it took him a while to recover.

Still in shock, Zhou Haidong didn't even look at what had happened. He turned around anxiously, asking, "Mr. Li, are you okay?"

Li Dong managed a shaky nod before sucking in a breath of cold air in pain.

He touched his forehead—it had swollen into a large bump.

Li Dong was on the verge of tears. This was truly a case of disaster striking out of nowhere. His car wasn't even moving, and it wasn't parked in the middle of the road either. How could someone be so blind?

Fuming, Li Dong opened the car door and stormed out, with Zhou Haidong quickly following.

…

The car that hit Li Dong's was a red BMW.

Because Li Dong's car wasn't in motion, and the other vehicle wasn't going too fast, the BMW's driver was unharmed and got out as well.

Seeing Li Dong's furious approach, the driver quickly began to apologize, "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to. I just…"

One look at the driver, and Li Dong knew this wasn't just bad luck—it was a female driver, and a young one at that!

The "road killer" stereotype wasn't entirely unfounded, especially with someone who clearly hadn't been driving long.

Li Dong couldn't even be bothered to get angry. With someone like this, he could only consider himself unlucky.

His head was pounding, and he didn't want to talk much. He simply asked, "Do you want to call the insurance company, or do you want to settle privately?"

"Privately!" she replied without hesitation.

Li Dong wasn't surprised. The car didn't even have a proper license plate—no temporary plate either. It was clearly a new car.

The insurance probably hadn't even kicked in yet. Of course, she'd want to settle privately.

Without further comment, Li Dong turned to Zhou Haidong, who was inspecting the damage. "Old Zhou, how much do you think it'll cost to fix?"

After a quick calculation, Zhou Haidong replied, "About seven to eight thousand."

Before Li Dong could respond, the female driver exclaimed, "Seven or eight thousand! That's way too much!"

Li Dong's brow furrowed. He was already in a bad mood from the headache, and now he was even more annoyed.

"Then let's call the police and have the traffic officers and insurance company handle it."

He didn't want to waste time talking to her. She was driving a BMW; surely she recognized what kind of car he was driving. The front bumper was dented, and the paint on the hood was scratched. Seven or eight thousand for repairs and repainting wasn't even that much.

Anyone with a bit of sense wouldn't argue over this. Li Dong could afford a car worth over a million; why would he try to scam her out of a few thousand?

The female driver panicked when she heard about calling the police. "Don't call the police! I'll pay; can't we negotiate the price a bit?"

Li Dong almost laughed out loud. Did she think this was a marketplace? Bargaining at a time like this?

He didn't say anything, just pulled out his phone to call the traffic police.

To his surprise, the female driver suddenly rushed over, snatched his phone, and pleaded, "Please don't call the police! I'll pay whatever you want!"

Li Dong frowned, not because his phone was taken, but because her reaction was far too extreme.

This was just a minor accident. Even without a license plate, there was no need to be this afraid.

Suspicion growing, Li Dong glanced at her, then at her car. It was definitely a new car. Could it be stolen?

The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed. Even if it wasn't stolen, there had to be some other issue. Why else would she be so scared of the police?

Realizing that Li Dong was getting suspicious, the female driver quickly returned his phone and pitifully explained, "I don't have a driver's license."

Li Dong stared at her for a moment, almost cursing out loud.

Unlicensed driver, unregistered car, female driver…

With all three combined, it was a miracle he wasn't dead.

Li Dong seriously considered going to a temple to pray. This kind of luck was unbelievable.