"Li Wei?" Susan's voice came through the phone. "Your judgment was spot on. Someone really was deliberately messing with me."
"I went through the books all last night," she said through gritted teeth. "My accountant has been cooking the books for three years. He used two sets of contracts—one price for my records, and another for the actual tenants, pocketing the difference. He also faked vacancies. All told, he was skimming a profit of 70,000 to 80,000 USD from me every year."
"That much?" Li Wei was a little stunned. "But still, congratulations on digging out the mole in your company."
He felt he'd underestimated just how rich Susan was. A single accountant could steal over 70,000 USD a year without her noticing. That kind of money was enough to pay for more than 2,000 grueling hours of his work as a sales guide.
"Mhm..." Susan said. "He confessed everything. He was deep in gambling debt and couldn't fill the hole, so he got desperate. He knew a few tenants paid in cash and that I was going to collect the rent yesterday, so he hired someone to try and pull off a big score."
"So I guess the problem is solved?" Li Wei asked. "Do you still need an accountant?"
"My lawyer will make him spit out every penny," Susan said, clearly wanting to move on. "How did it go with your uncle? Is he free to come in for an interview?"
"Of course," Li Wei quickly agreed. "I'll call him right now."
After hanging up, Li Wei called Don Quixote and told him to get his ass in gear. He was to quickly trim his nose hair and shave his beard, put his suit back on, and get to an office in Dyker Heights for an interview. Immediately! Right now!
That evening, as Li Wei was making dinner, the basement door was suddenly thrown open. Don Quixote, his face flushed and radiant, burst into the basement like a flaming meteor.
"Li Wei! Where is my nephew!" he boomed. "My boy! My great hero!"
He was speaking in the kind of archaic English you'd find in old novels. For a split second, Li Wei thought he was having one of his episodes before nightfall.
Upon seeing Li Wei chopping vegetables, he let out an earth-shattering cheer. He ripped off his suit jacket and tie, tossed them carelessly onto the ragged sofa, then charged forward and swept Li Wei into a bear hug.
"We're leaving this damn sewer! We're moving out!"
He let go of Li Wei, his face beaming, and spun around twice in place, waving his arms and legs about, as happy as a forty-something-year-old child.
"That rich lady you introduced me to, Susan... No, Ms. Susan! She has a discerning eye! She discovered my talent! She saw my professionalism!"
He slammed his hand on the counter, making the cutting board on it jump.
"That damn accountant has already been taken away by the police. To me, his books were like a children's story!" Don Quixote said, rubbing his palms together, his voice trembling with excitement. "Not only did she agree to let us live in a large, 120-square-meter house in Bei Ling Ridge for free, she's also willing to pay me a monthly salary of 3,500 USD after taxes!"
Li Wei had never seen Don Quixote so euphoric.
It was as if all his happiness and joy had been compressed and fermented over the years, only to be released in a single, explosive Burst.
"Kid, I told you I'd look out for you," Don Quixote said, splitting his face into a triumphant grin. "Although more than half my salary has to go to that damn bloodsucker—God, just mentioning her brings me pain—but!"
He emphasized, "This is only the beginning. We will succeed in the end."
Li Wei thought about it and suddenly realized that the 27,000 USD he had saved up for rent could now be kept without spending a single penny. A wave of happiness washed over him as well.
"Stop cooking," Don Quixote said, seeing Li Wei still chopping vegetables. "Let's go out for a nice meal. How about I treat you to some Australian steak?"
"You'll only have 1,500 USD left per month," Li Wei said faintly. "After utilities, gas, and groceries, can we really afford Australian steak? Can the two of us get out of there for under 150 USD, including tip?"
Don Quixote thought about it and realized he had a point.
But despite that, Li Wei ended up going to the same supermarket as last time to buy some beef ribs. He made a pot of tomato-braised beef ribs as a substitute for the Australian steak.
That night, Don Quixote very defiantly called the Spanish restaurant where he worked and told them he was quitting on the spot.
Then, while listening to an online video about football tactics, Li Wei also had to listen to Don Quixote trading vulgar insults in Spanish with the restaurant manager.
When he found he couldn't win the argument in Spanish, he switched to English and Latin, launching a frenzied attack in a mixture of all three languages. Finally, like a proud rooster, he strutted triumphantly into his cubicle.
'Sure enough,' Li Wei thought, 'in New York, everyone needs to master swear words in several different languages.'
As he thought this, an idea struck him, and he started searching online for Russian tutorials.
That night, he didn't sleepwalk, perhaps because in Don Quixote's dream world, the quest to vanquish the Witch was complete, and it would be some time before the Duke's reward was bestowed.
Li Wei only heard Don Quixote sit up in the next cubicle, sounding a bit dazed. He mumbled a few words in a language of his own dream-creation before falling back down and starting to snore loudly.
The night passed without incident. Li Wei stared at the slightly moldy ceiling, thinking with a sigh that he was finally moving out.
Early the next morning, Don Quixote and Li Wei clambered off their mattresses and started packing to move.
Since it was the weekend, Don Quixote only had to work one more day to get his full week's pay, so he still went in for his last shift.
Meanwhile, Li Wei stayed in the basement to pack their belongings for the move.
Aside from the two large suitcases he had brought with him, some pots and pans, and Don Quixote's novels and armor, he realized there wasn't much else worth taking.
In less than an hour, Li Wei had finished packing everything. All he had to do was wait for Don Quixote to get back, and they could load everything into a car in one trip and move into the big house on Bei Ling Ridge.
However, to Li Wei's confusion, 2:00 PM came and went—well past their agreed-upon moving time—and there was still no sign of Don Quixote.
'Could something have happened?'
Li Wei tried calling Don Quixote, but the call was immediately disconnected.
This immediately put Li Wei on edge. He rushed out, hailed a cab, and sped toward the construction site in Queens.
Arriving at the site, Li Wei had just stepped out of the cab when he heard Don Quixote's booming voice shouting.
He sounded full of vigor, nothing like the scenarios Li Wei had imagined.
Curious and confused, Li Wei entered the construction site and saw a massive crowd of nearly a hundred people standing by a cement mixer.
Squeezing through the crowd, Li Wei saw the site's foreman and security guards standing on one side, with Don Quixote and a group of other workers facing them on the other.
"What do you mean you can't pay us today! You want us to wait another week?!" Don Quixote was leading the charge, yelling at the foreman. "Are you trying to take advantage of honest men?!"