The World's Richest Man: Start with the Daily Intelligence System

181: Chapter 181 Xiao Li’s HatredXiao Li played dumb, a bitter smile forced onto his lips. ”Officer, I really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

The police officer said no more, pulling a sheet of paper from a folder and slamming it heavily onto the table. ”This is the lab report for the coffee in Wang Xiaoqu’s office. It clearly shows the presence of sodium nitrite.”

Xiao Li’s face instantly turned deathly pale. An irrepressible terror flickered in his eyes, and his entire body seemed frozen in place.

”Xiao Li, leniency for those who confess, severity for those who resist. Think it over for yourself.”

’Why does everything go so smoothly for him? I’m just as talented, so why?!’ Xiao Li roared in his heart, his rage and jealousy like a raging fire consuming his sanity.

Both of them were university students who had come to City Name from other provinces. When they first started school, their style of dress made them look out of place among their classmates. Wang Xiaoqu had an extroverted, lively, and cheerful personality; after just half a semester, he successfully integrated into the class and became one with the other students. In contrast, Xiao Li was withdrawn and taciturn, always finding it difficult to break the ice with his peers. Despite this, Wang Xiaoqu would sometimes out of friendship take Xiao Li along to various class activities and social gatherings.

This situation continued until they graduated from university. Relying on his flexible mind and sharp market insight, Wang Xiaoqu quickly founded AC Game Company after graduation. His game projects had broad prospects and innovative ideas, soon attracting the attention of many investors. Large sums of capital poured in, and the company rose rapidly. Meanwhile, due to his introverted nature and lack of eloquence, Xiao Li hit walls repeatedly during his job search after graduation, failing to find suitable work for a long time.

When Xiao Li was in dire straits, Wang Xiaoqu did not forget his old classmate. He extended multiple invitations, hoping Xiao Li would join AC Game Company. After much deliberation, Xiao Li finally accepted Wang Xiaoqu’s invitation and became an ordinary employee at AC Game Company.

Initially, Xiao Li was filled with gratitude toward Wang Xiaoqu. However, as time passed and he watched Wang Xiaoqu’s career flourish, an unspeakable jealousy gradually grew in his heart. Whenever there was a company meeting, Wang Xiaoqu was always the star, while he could only sit silently in a corner. This massive disparity caused the poisonous weeds in his heart to grow more and more lushly.

Until that one time, the company hit an unprecedented bottleneck, and the capital chain was at risk of breaking at any moment. Wang Xiaoqu spent his days with a furrowed brow, his eyes filled with endless worry, so distressed over the company’s future fate that he lost his appetite and sleep. Watching this, a twisted sense of pleasure actually arose within Xiao Li, as if he had found a sliver of morbid solace in the darkness.

”Xiaoqu, don’t worry too much. We’ll definitely pull through this.” On the surface, Xiao Li softly comforted Wang Xiaoqu, but the corners of his mouth turned up slightly as he gloated in secret, as if witnessing some hidden victory.

To alleviate the financial strain, Wang Xiaoqu scurried about, visiting all sorts of investors and even stooping to ask old friends for help. Just as he was on the verge of despair, Zhang Wei appeared like a savior, bringing 20 million in capital and instantly relieving the company’s urgent crisis. Additionally, several game companies Xiao Li had contacted all refused to cooperate with him. Seeing that he not only failed to dismantle Wang Xiaoqu’s career but that it was instead thriving with Zhang Wei’s help, the distortion in Xiao Li’s heart reached its limit. Jealousy and rage gnawed at his soul like venomous snakes.

He began searching the internet for various murder cases, trying to find inspiration and methods. In the dead of night, he flipped through the Sherlock Holmes stories, attempting to find a perfect murder method from those ingenious deductions—one that would achieve his goal while allowing him to escape the sanctions of the law.

Xiao Li was Wang Xiaoqu’s old classmate and a senior employee of the company, so he knew Wang Xiaoqu’s daily habits like the back of his hand. He knew very well that Wang Xiaoqu always drank a cup of coffee before starting work every morning; even recently, while busy seeking investment and eating irregularly, this cup of coffee was never absent. After several days of careful consideration, he finally decided to buy industrial-grade ”sodium nitrite” online. This colorless, odorless, and highly toxic substance was exactly the perfect tool he needed.

Xiao Li’s mind was meticulous. To implement his plan, he created a small program in advance and quietly planted a Trojan horse virus in the assistant’s phone. Consequently, this morning, when the assistant made coffee for Wang Xiaoqu as usual, Xiao Li first took control of the phone via remote access. During the few minutes the assistant was away, he stealthily mixed the pre-prepared sodium nitrite into Wang Xiaoqu’s coffee.

Sure enough, as was his custom, Wang Xiaoqu picked up the cup of coffee before work to refresh himself. However, not long after, he suddenly felt a wave of dizziness in his office and subsequently lost consciousness, being rushed to the hospital.

”This is why Xiao Li wanted to kill Wang Xiaoqu and his murder plan.” Zuo Hemei’s voice was low and heavy as she handed the confession to Zhang Wei, her eyes revealing a trace of unspeakable, complex emotion.

Zhang Wei took the confession, his brow furrowed as he read it word for word. After finishing, he couldn’t help but let out a long sigh, as if the heavy stone in his heart had gained more weight. ”Wang Xiaoqu kindly gave Xiao Li a hand, but he never expected that the other party would not only be ungrateful but would harbor resentment and want him dead. The human heart... it really is harder to fathom than the deep sea.”

”Indeed,” Zuo Hemei nodded slightly, a flash of pity in her eyes. ”Jealousy is a terrifying thing. It’s like a venomous snake, silently consuming a person’s reason and conscience. We found a large amount of sodium nitrite at Xiao Li’s home, along with the relevant online purchase records. It’s truly chilling.”

The two looked at each other in silence; the air seemed to freeze at that moment.

Zhang Wei’s heart felt as if it were being crushed by a boulder. Wang Xiaoqu’s situation left a lump in his chest that he couldn’t expel, feeling as uncomfortable as being pricked by thousands of fine needles. He decided to visit Wang Xiaoqu in the hospital, hoping it would alleviate his inner distress.

Pushing open the door to the ward, Zhang Wei saw Wang Xiaoqu leaning against the bed, his face somewhat pale. Zhang Wei walked to the bedside and asked softly, ”Brother Qu, how are you feeling?”

Wang Xiaoqu gave a slight smile. ”Don’t worry, the doctor said it’s nothing major. I just need a few days of rest, and I can be discharged in a couple of days.”

Zhang Wei nodded, feeling slightly comforted, but thinking of Xiao Li, he couldn’t help but speak up. ”Brother Qu, about Xiao Li... I want to talk to you.”

A flash of complex emotion crossed Wang Xiaoqu’s eyes, but he quickly regained his composure. ”I know what you want to say. I don’t regret helping Xiao Li.”

The two were silent for a while, then Wang Xiaoqu suddenly remembered something, an excited smile appearing on his face. ”Right, I have good news for you. Our game has entered the second stage of testing.”