Chapter 125

Chapter 125

When Fu Yunzhe heard Yu He speak in English, a barely noticeable smile appeared in his eyes.

Upon catching Fu Yunzhe's gaze, Yu He knew that the other understood his intention. In an angle hidden from Teppu Pusanda's view, Yu He gently pinched the inner side of Fu Yunzhe's arm with his thumb, signaling him to play along.

Yu He continued in English, “Please, I'm begging you.”

Fu Yunzhe touched Yu He's face and responded in English, “Baby, let's talk about this when we get back.”

This sentence had a double meaning. To Teppu Pusanda, it seemed like they were going to discuss further donations, but it also hinted to Yu He that Fu Yunzhe had noticed something off about Teppu Pusanda, and they needed to discuss whether to investigate further once they got back.

Yu He saw no need for discussion; with the man practically in his grasp, he couldn’t just pretend not to see.

He lifted his beautiful eyes, giving Fu Yunzhe a pitiful look as he pleaded again, “Mr. Fu, please, I’m begging you.”

Fu Yunzhe did not immediately agree but nodded slightly at Teppu Pusanda as a farewell, “President, it’s getting late. We won’t disturb you any longer, farewell.”

Teppu Pusanda hurriedly stepped forward, pressing his hands together in a gesture of farewell to Fu Yunzhe.

The more desires one harbors, the more flaws they reveal.

Yu He was not adept at reading people, but after throwing out the bait of a ‘donation,’ he clearly observed a hidden anxiety in Teppu Pusanda.

Fu Yunzhe led Yu He towards the exit, reprimanding him in a low voice, “You've already donated enough, and you’ve received the medal. What more do you want?”

Fully committing to the act, Yu He played the good cop to Fu Yunzhe’s bad cop, “Didn’t you hear what the president said? It’s the rainy season, and pangolins are forced down the mountains to seek shelter. We should donate more money to help them install more infrared cameras, so pangolins won’t be picked up so easily!”

Fu Yunzhe replied, “Do you know how vast Pu Mountain is? It’s incredibly difficult to capture the movements of pangolins in the wild. Even if you installed a hundred cameras, it’s doubtful any would capture a pangolin coming down the mountain!”

No one could play the role of a haughty young master better than Yu He.

Yu He raised his voice, “Then I'll donate a thousand cameras! Ten thousand! I have the money! I’m donating my own money!”

Fu Yunzhe’s face darkened, “What money do you have? Isn’t it all given to you by me?”

This statement was particularly damaging to the pride of a grown man.

Yu He, following the logic of his role, became angry. He turned his face towards Teppu Pusanda and said, “Vice President, I'll bring the cheque over tomorrow. I really do have money!”

Fu Yunzhe and Yu He’s back-and-forth had completely tangled Teppu Pusanda in their act.

Teppu Pusanda wanted the money. Regardless of whether he was involved with the dubious pangolin products on the market, the donation was crucial for the rescue association.

Yet Teppu Pusanda said nothing, not even a word to mediate the argument happening right before him between Yu He and Fu Yunzhe.

This was unmistakably abnormal.

Yu He wanted to say more, but Fu Yunzhe firmly pulled him outside.

Yu He only had time to hastily say “See you tomorrow” to Teppu Pusanda before being pushed into the car by Fu Yunzhe.

Fu Yunzhe opened the car door, shoved Yu He inside, then got in from the other side, instructing the bodyguard to return to the hotel.

In the back seat of the car, Yu He nonchalantly leaned against Fu Yunzhe, “You’re quite handsome when you get fierce.”

Fu Yunzhe’s face showed no particular expression as he calmly voiced his speculation, “There’s a high probability that there’s a mole inside the rescue center, stealing and selling pangolin products that should have been harmlessly disposed of.”

Yu He: “???”

He hadn’t even started deducing, so how had Fu Yunzhe already come to a conclusion?

Were they answering the same question?

Was this person cheating? Did he have some kind of hack??

Yu He tilted his head as he looked at Fu Yunzhe, thinking for the first time that the term ‘uncannily clever’ might just apply to him.

Yu He’s eyes were bright, and everything he was thinking was written all over his face.

Fu Yunzhe felt somewhat uncomfortable under his intense gaze and cleared his throat, “The practice of secretly selling rare animal remains by rescue associations has been going on for ten years. It’s nothing new, and there are even those who…”

…who deliberately delay rescue operations, causing the death of rare animals, just to increase the number of casualties.

In rescue centers, everyone’s focus is solely on the animals still alive.

The dead animals are quickly processed harmlessly, and there are only one or two people in charge of this in each rescue center, making it very easy to exploit loopholes.

No one would deliberately check whether the dead animals had indeed been incinerated.

Yu He had an epiphany, “Right, that drug dealer said that this batch of pangolin scales came from a clean source. I remember seeing in the Pu Mountain Rescue Association’s brochure that they bought a high-temperature gas phase furnace, specifically for harmless disposal of pangolin products.”

In the case of abundant donations, rescue associations would also purchase pangolin products to reduce their circulation.

If there really was a mole inside the rescue association, this tactic of buying and selling would ultimately channel the charity funds from the official account into personal pockets.

Fu Yunzhuo nodded, "Buying all the pangolins at a few dozen dollars per pound, one can really rake in the money. It seems that the charitable donations from the wealthy are indeed their steady stream of income."

Before the Puzhan Rescue Association took centralized control of the grassroots pangolin rescue centers, these local entities were in disarray, managing things haphazardly. They frequently faced issues like outdated equipment and delayed treatment, leading to the death of pangolins, which resulted in low rankings in annual assessments multiple times.

The rating not only pertains to government funding but is also the most common basis that philanthropists consider when making donations.

Poor conditions, low scores, and scarce donations created a vicious cycle, pushing the Rescue Association into a predicament at one point.

It wasn't until a local philanthropist from Northern Myanmar took action, investing to consolidate and overhaul all the rescue centers. He then personally flew to various places to fundraise, ultimately transforming the rescue centers into their current state.

The high-end pet hospital-like rescue centers attracted a large number of philanthropists, consistently securing top funding from the government.

The Pangolin Rescue Association nearly became the most affluent rescue organization.

If there really is an issue within the organization, where exactly does the corruption start?

Yu He said, "But these are all just our speculations; we don’t have any evidence."

Fu Yunzhuo looked at Yu He, "Do you really want to investigate this matter?"

"Of course, it wasn’t easy for me to earn a bit of money." Yu He tossed his medal of honor onto the table. "Don’t tell me I donated all that money just for this lousy medal; the money I gave could have bought a whole train of these things."

Fu Yunzhuo said, "Alright, if we don't give you a satisfactory answer, you'll be obsessing over this even when you return to China; you won’t let it rest."

Yu He, resting his cheek on one hand, said: "Only Boss Fu really understands me."

Fu Yunzhuo picked up the medal from the table, his thumb rubbing across its bronze surface, "Donors have the right to request an audit of the association’s accounts from the Audit Bureau, but if they dare to embezzle donations, they've surely cooked the books. A cursory inspection will only tip them off."

So even if we suspect there is something wrong with Te Pusan Da, we can't start the investigation with him. Making a move directly on Te Pusan Da would create too much noise and would surely alert the people behind him.

It's difficult to catch the big fish all at once, and stirring up the waters could backfire.

It's better to catch a small fry first and then follow the trail upwards, pulling them out one by one.

More than caring about the embezzlement of donations, Fu Yunzhuo is concerned about whether the rescued pangolins are truly being released back into the wild, or if they've become a circulating currency in the scheme to swindle charitable funds.

Yu He is very smart; he understood before Fu Yunzhuo finished speaking, "Are you talking about that drug trafficker?"

Fu Yunzhuo’s lips quirked up slightly, "Young Master Yu is indeed sharp-witted."

With his arms crossed and leisurely leaning back in the wicker chair, Yu He said, "There are even smarter moves. I'm going to find a pangolin from the black market, a pangolin with wire marks on its belly."

There are only a few dealers in Pushan City who dare to deal in pangolins all year round. If the pangolins released yesterday together with the rescue center have flowed back into the market, then it must involve the regular sellers who often collaborate with them. Yu He is eager to see whether those pangolins have truly returned to the wild, or if they have been 'picked up' by others immediately after release.

Fu Yunzhen agrees with this: "We can stay in Myanbei for a while, but we must leave everything to the police. Whatever they find out, that's it. We must not be nit-picky and especially not take any risks. Do you hear me?"

Yu He forms a salute by placing the tips of his middle and index fingers on his forehead, then lightly lifting them, and salutes Fu Yunzhen: "Yes, sir, Commander."

*

The progress of the matter is not smooth.

Inside the police car, the chief of the local police station explains to Fu Yunzhen in Burmese: "That drug dealer is called Li Wentai, he is from China. Without solid evidence, it is really inappropriate for us to rashly enter Chinatown to arrest him, and we also need to coordinate with the Chinese embassy. We can't get any useful information."

Fu Yunzhen adjusts the simultaneous interpreter hanging on his left ear, remaining silent.

The Chinese translated by the interpreter is so strange that Yu He finds himself unable to understand the meaning of the translated Chinese, so he has to take off the interpreter and adjust the speech speed.

Fu Yunzhen repeats the police chief's meaning to Yu He: "Arresting Li Wentai is useless; he is a Chinese citizen. Even if we arrest him, the embassy will intervene quickly. They have no right to interrogate Li Wentai. Moreover, for the Myanbei police to arrest a Chinese citizen in Chinatown is quite a sensitive matter. It's not good to proceed without absolute evidence."

Yu He doesn't realize that what Fu Yunzhen told him is an 'interpreted version', thinking that his simultaneous interpreter has a problem and has omitted so much valid information. He takes off his earphones and asks, "What about that Myanbei person?"

The chief answers, "His name is A Kun. He is a thug for a usury company. His younger brother has leukemia and often buys counterfeit drugs from Li Wentai, so they help each other out and are familiar with each other."

Fu Yunzhen slightly furrows his brows: "Does the chief mean that A Kun is not specifically engaged in pangolin trafficking and he doesn't know who is upstream?"

The chief chuckles: "That's right. Our informant said that the pangolin matter has nothing to do with A Kun. He was just standing in for Li Wentai."

Fu Yunzhen repeats the message to Yu He and adds, "Usury companies are quite influential locally. A Kun’s boss probably has a good relationship with the police station, so the police station does not want to involve A Kun."

Whether it’s a big or small matter, it has almost become a universal cure to lay out the difficulties in advance. In this way, if it is resolved later, it appears they have put in effort; if it is not resolved, they can avoid blame.

Fu Yunzhen is accustomed to this bureaucratic style, but Yu He has never seen it before and thinks the matter is indeed difficult.

Yu He is not the type to face difficulties head-on. He got up early today, originally thinking he could witness an exciting arrest scene in the car.

But in the end, the drug dealer Li Wentai is a Chinese citizen and cannot be arrested, and the thug A Kun is a connection and cannot be arrested either.

It is really uninteresting.

Yu He’s enthusiasm for solving the case plummets. He asks Fu Yunzhen, "Can we still catch a flight back home now?"

Fu Yunzheng glanced at his watch: "We won't make it in time."

Leaning against the car window with a dull expression, Yu He said, "Forget it, I’m not as angry as I was yesterday. Why don't we just go back to our country?"

The chief of the police station never expected that just a few words from him would sound the retreat for Yu He, making him want to return to his country. How could this happen?

Although Fu's Enterprises from China had already withdrawn from the Myanbe market, it still held shares in several banks there. The influence of the Fu family’s head was evident, and they had generously donated tens of millions of dollars to the rescue center.

The chief was hoping to leverage Fu Yunzheng's influence to thoroughly investigate this case, aiming to deliver a heavy blow to the pangolin trade chain as a shining achievement on his record.

Now that Fu Yunzheng has expressed his doubts about regulatory loopholes in the pangolin product distribution chain and has called for an investigation, if he is sent back to his country with just a few words from them, and this news gets out internationally, it would appear as if the police were intentionally shielding someone. Who would dare to donate to Myanbe in the future?

What would Myanbe become then? The largest black market in Asia?