MY WIFE IS A BEAUTIFUL CEO

Chapter 691 - Chapter 700

Chapter 691 - This Is Official Business

After he had heard that sentence, Yang Chen said without the slightest change in his expression, "The parent company is already in a mess, but our branch company cannot follow in suit. Relay my words, every department should continue doing their jobs and don't discuss baseless gossips."

After hearing his words, Wang Jie nodded and immediately ran out to calm the subordinates down.

An Xin said worriedly, "Hubby, what should we do? Sister Mingyu definitely wouldn't do such a thing. This looks like a premeditated move, trying to frame her."

As Mo Qianni and Liu Mingyu had both come to meet An Xin before, despite working in different buildings, they would still bump into each other occasionally during meetings. Even though they weren't very close, they knew each other to a certain degree.

Yang Chen smiled at An Xin. "Even if the sky was falling, I would still be here to hold it up. Don't worry. Are you afraid that I'll have no money to keep you all alive if the company goes bankrupt? You stay here and help me call the shots. I'm going to the parent company right now to check out the situation."

An Xin nodded obediently. She knew that as the important branch company, they shouldn't be chaotic right now.

More than ten minutes later, Yang Chen stepped into the Yu Lei building. Almost every Yu Lei employee that he bumped into hung a gravely solemn expression on their faces. They were all discussing about the mole in the company and the gloomy future prospects of the company.

Yang Chen asked around for Lin Ruoxi and the other executives' whereabouts. Then he headed straight for the level where the big conference room was at.

No fewer than twenty to thirty Yu Lei executives were already seated in the conference room. Lin Ruoxi, Mo Qianni, Li Minghe, Chris, and also the person in question of this incident Liu Mingyu were all present.

The atmosphere in the conference room was a dark one. Everyone looked awful at the news.

Gloomy clouds overcast Lin Ruoxi's icy cold yet unrivalled beautiful face. She had looks that could kill. Literally.

Mo Qianni, Wu Yue, and the rest sat on the two sides of Lin Ruoxi. They were all silent while their faces were burning with anxiety. Li Minghe, Chris, and the other executives looked equally worried.

Liu Mingyu was the most devastated among them all. Sitting on her seat, she looked like she had lost her mind. She was biting her lips while her hands were holding so tightly onto a pen, looking as though she was about to break it in half!

"What's wrong? Have you all become mute? Say something," Lin Ruoxi said coldly. She wasn't loud, but her words made the temperature in the completely silent conference room drop by a few degrees.

No one could say anything. Everyone's eyes were darting around the room avoiding her gaze and her question.

Lin Ruoxi smiled scornfully. "Why? Aren't you all always very full of opinions? Now that something has gone wrong, why have you all gone dumb?"

There was another round of silence. Finally, one of the executives gulped and said, trembling, "Boss... Boss Lin, I think that there's something odd about this incident. Our company's security is top-notch within the industry. How could someone... how could someone steal such important information and yet not be detected at all?"

Slam!!

Lin Ruoxi slammed one hand on the desk fiercely, making everyone shudder awake!

"Department Head Fang, I asked you all here to resolve the matter, not for you to report the incident to me. Everyone here knows what has happened! What I want to hear is a solution!! A solution!!!" Lin Ruoxi was obviously ready to explode. She was always calm and had never been as mad as this, even when they faced the bombardment from the foreign financial group back then. Her anger might have been credited to the fact that it was someone from inside the company!

Department Head Fang wiped off his cold sweat and hurriedly said again, "Yes, yes... Boss Lin, I think the priority now is to find the enemy who has stolen our company's data. If we can gather evidence within a short period of time, then we can file a criminal suit. With that, we might be able to take control of the situation. Even if we suffer some losses, we should be able to compensate that amount through the legal damages given from our opposition! I believe that a competitor who dares to lay their hands on our company is definitely no small fry! As long as we can secure the situation and turn things around, then even despite losses, we can still make a comeback!"

As Department Head Fang finished his words, almost everyone shifted their gazes towards Liu Mingyu who hadn't said a word.

Another executive snorted and said, "Apart from Boss Lin, the passcode to the safe deposit box in every department head's office is known only to the respective department heads. Department Head Liu, we've been colleagues for so many years. I can't believe you did what you did! How dare you make such a move against the company?!"

"Hmph, back then I even voted for this woman to replace Vice President Mo's former position. I was so blinded!" A few others started joining in and said.

Immediately, all of their arrows were pointed towards Liu Mingyu! After all, Lin Ruoxi would definitely not leak the documents. Since Liu Mingyu was the only one who knew the passcode, naturally she was the most likely suspect.

Liu Mingyu's face was ghastly pale. There were tears in her eyes, but she didn't know what to say. She knew clearly that no excuse in the world could prove that she was innocent.

Mo Qianni spoke up for her angrily, "Think carefully. Since everyone knows that only Department Head Liu and Boss Lin know the passcode, if she still leaked out the documents under such circumstances, wouldn't it be such a dumb move on her part?! Is there such a stupid culprit?! Department Head Liu was obviously framed by others. The priority now is to find out the real culprit! Not to start internal arguments here!"

With that, everyone finally became quiet. Mo Qianni's reputation in the company was only second to Lin Ruoxi. What she said had made sense too. This was indeed too obvious. Even if Liu Mingyu wanted to betray the company, she wouldn't do such a silly thing!

Suddenly, Li Minghe who hadn't said a word spoke slowly, "Actually, you can't put it this way. Perhaps it's a psychological tactic by the culprit. Think about it carefully, we all think that it's way too obvious if it was done by Department Head Liu. And that's why she was framed. But what if, the culprit is making use of this to make everyone think that she was framed?"

Indeed, what Li Minghe said wasn't impossible either!

"Vice President Li, the way you're trying to pin the crime onto Department Head Liu right now, isn't it a little too motive-laden?" Mo Qianni said in anger.

"Vice President Mo, pardon me for being straightforward, but what I say speaks on behalf of the people in this room. Although we hope that Department Head Liu isn't the culprit, we don't want to let go of any opportunity to locate the culprit either, do we?" Li Minghe said honestly.

"You..." Mo Qianni was grinding her teeth in anger, yet she had no other ways to defend Liu Mingyu.

"That's enough!" Lin Ruoxi stopped everyone. She furrowed her brows and asked Wu Yue next to her, "Wu Yue, are the calculation results out yet? What's the estimated loss?"

Wu Yue looked at her tablet and nodded with a heavy expression, saying, "Yes, Boss Lin. I've done a rough estimation of the loss from those tender projects, purchasing projects, acquisition plans and design plans. We're looking at a loss of at least five billion. It's mainly because our purchasing and acquisition plans this year are expanding at a global level. Our budget has been completely expanded. Our contingency plan did not account for accidents like this one."

Everyone's faces sunk when they heard 'five billion'. Everyone in the room knew very well that regardless of how wealthy Yu Lei was, if there was a sudden loss of five billion in the company's cashflow, it would be a disastrous situation. It was equivalent to a super generator that had run out of oil abruptly!

"That's probably not all..." Chris who was still new to the company added with a bitter smile. "Now that our company's situation has been made public to everyone online, no one will have confidence in our financial status. When NASDAQ opens in the afternoon today, the entire world will be dumping our stocks in the market. When that happens, our assets will shrink terribly. With that, even if we manage to attain sufficient funds from a bank loan, it'll only be a temporary solution. Our business for the next half of the year will have to start from scratch and we'll have zero competitive strength."

Everyone started looking at each other. They all saw desperate and resigned looks on each other's faces.

"Damn it!" An executive thumped on the table and said miserably, "We don't even have a chance of retaliating!"

"If I find out who did this, I'll peel his skin off alive!" Some other executives even started swearing, unable to control their emotions.

Liu Mingyu could sense that everyone was glaring at her in boiling madness. Finally, she could withstand the burden no more. Tears started streaming down her face and she couldn't stop sobbing in her seat.

Lin Ruoxi looked at her indifferently and said, "Department Head Liu, what is there to cry about? Now that everyone suspects you, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"Boss Lin!" Seeing that Lin Ruoxi not only did not console Liu Mingyu, but even treated her so harshly, Mo Qianni started persuading her, "Boss Lin, this was definitely not done by Department Head Liu. It might be possible if it were someone else, but Mingyu would never do it. You should understand what I mean. Don't you trust her?"

Lin Ruoxi glanced Mo Qianni and said mockingly, "Sorry, I really don't understand what you mean. Why should I trust her? Besides, Vice President Mo, don't start playing the relationship card at such critical moments. Our personal relationship means nothing in a business setting. As blatant as everyone can see, the only possible suspect now is Liu Mingyu, isn't it?"

Mo Qianni's face went pale. She stared at the emotionless Lin Ruoxi before her eyes in disbelief. She looked like a cruel icy statue that froze Mo Qianni's heart utterly.

"Ruoxi... why would you..." Mo Qianni was choking a little.

"Mind your words, Vice President Mo," Lin Ruoxi said flatly. "This is official business. I have a responsibility towards our dozens of thousands of employees across the globe. Right now, Liu Mingyu is the key suspect. Whether she has been framed is something that we'll find out after an investigation is done."

Liu Mingyu raised her head pitifully and looked at Lin Ruoxi. She smiled miserably and said, "Boss Lin is right. No matter what, the documents were leaked out from my possession. I have to take responsibility for such a huge damage to the company."

"Mingyu! But you're innocent!" Mo Qianni was on pins and needles. Liu Mingyu was after all a subordinate that she had promoted, plus because of their relationship with Yang Chen, the two of them were as close as sisters. Seeing that Liu Mingyu was about to just admit for the sake of ending this, Mo Qianni was so anxious she stood up from her seat.

"Vice President Mo, your actions make us suspect if you have some special connections with Department Head Liu," Li Minghe interrupted.

Mo Qianni turned around and glared at Li Minghe furiously, "Don't be too happy. We'll eventually find out who's the one pulling the strings behind all these."

Li Minghe lifted his eyebrows and said smilingly, "I hope so too."

Right then, the door of the conference room was opened from the outside. To everyone's surprise, Yang Chen stretched himself with a yawn lazily and walked into the room. Then he said with a sigh and a smile, "I've been outside listening to your conversation since just now. Your discussion methods are so inefficient. Instead of wasting your time like this, why not we all go back to doing our own duties and prepare for the upcoming battle? As for tracking down the culprit, how about you guys just hand it over to me?"

Chapter 692 - How About Me

Yang Chen's involvement had caused the environment to once again return solemn. The entire executive board stared at Yang Chen and Lin Ruoxi in an obnoxious manner.

As their secretive marriage was exposed to the world, the perceptions they had towards Yang Chen went from a hooligan with a pretty face to a man with an unforeseeable background. No one present knew much about Yang Chen's origins.

Upon Yang Chen's entrance, Liu Mingyu dried the tears on her face as she kept her head low. She avoided looking at him despite wanting his comfort at a time like this.

That tiny gesture, however, had not evaded Yang Chen's sight as he went towards her and gently patted her on the shoulder.

Liu Mingyu was terrified by his simple reaction, notably in front of everyone including Lin Ruoxi. She was obviously deeply moved by his act of support and adore, but at the same time was genuinely worried about the aftermath that potentially follows.

Which prompted her to abruptly swipe his hands off her shoulders as she shook her head while she reassured, "I'm fine, Director Yang."

"Why are you still crying then? Take a day off, go home and get some rest," Yang Chen gently replied.

Liu Mingyu that had just recently dried her tears felt new ones circling her eyes as she felt genuine emotions gushing through the same head that she shook vigorously, trying her best to indicate that she was fine.

The ambiance in the room took a huge turn as the incident took its place, an act by Yang Chen that had exposed his illustrious relationships.

Meanwhile, Lin Ruoxi appeared hardly affected by the turn in events, without expressing a single change in emotion. She watched the scene unfold before asking, "How do you plan to handle this?"

Yang Chen turned his head towards that stern wife of his, before he awkwardly giggled, "That uhh... Wifey, quit that seriousness. I'm a little scared now."

Lin Ruoxi stressed her brows ever so slightly before she emphasized, "I'm not kidding, not to mention this is a company, Director Yang."

"Uhh..." Yang Chen scratched on the back of his head as he scanned across the plenary before he ambiguously smiled. "I haven't decided on how to investigate yet, but rest assured the truth is going to be revealed soon."

The executive board was left stupefied, finding it absurd.

"Oh yeah!" Yang Chen clapped excitedly at an apparent discovery. "Well, we have CCTV in every corner of the company right? Why don't we just rewind on the tapes and see who else tried their hand on the safe besides Liu Mingyu?"

Everyone was in a loss for words, as they awkwardly glanced at one another before Mo Qianni eventually explained, "Director Yang, you do realize that we intentionally excluded the CCTV from the executive floor right? It was for the confidentiality of business conversations."

Yang Chen froze at the knowledge of this newly acquired information. No CCTVs? Doesn't that mean no one would know who had laid their hands on the safe?

"Director Yang, I highly suggest you consult your thought process before speaking," Li Minghe sneered.

"What other ideas do you have in mind then?"

"Me? Well, I wish I do but unfortunately this might not be my line of expertise." Li Minghe quickly evaded the responsibility.

"Then keep your mouth shut," Yang Chen sarcastically replied before turning towards Lin Ruoxi. "Wif—erm no, rest assured Boss Lin, that I can guarantee a lead in this case in two days' time."

Lin Ruoxi, on the other hand, remained silent before turning to Wu Yue. "Are the police here yet?"

Wu Yue quickly nodded. "Yes, they were here 5 minutes ago and are currently in a separate room awaiting the end of our meeting."

"Let them in."

"Yes, ma'am." Wu Yue upon replying immediately left the conference room.

Yang Chen heard their conversation as he frowned. "So you did call the police."

Lin Ruoxi vaguely glanced at him as she replied, "Who wouldn't? Even if I didn't, the police would make their way here."

Yang Chen seemed to have something in mind as he raised his voice. "Wait, are you going to make them take Mingyu away?"

Lin Ruoxi nodded without hesitation. "The police will know what to do. Liu Mingyu is currently the biggest suspect; theft and exposure of business confidentiality is no small matter. If Yu Lei's share price experiences a sharp fall in the next few days, it'll undoubtedly lead to a significant hit in Zhonghai's economy. It is their job to interrogate the suspect after all."

Upon her speech, the executive board was amazed at her just and headstrong execution, after all, Liu Mingyu had been her trusty employee all these years. They would have mostly expected that she would personally interrogate her, but instead, she called the police in such early stages to take her away.

Liu Mingyu appeared to be in a confused state, she never would have expected that Lin Ruoxi would make the call, as she sat by her corner awaiting her fate.

Mo Qianni, on the other hand, was stupefied by the turn of events, as she stared at Lin Ruoxi. She shifted her focus over to Yang Chen, hoping that he could once again save the day.

At this moment, two men in full police attire entered the conference room. Wu Yue pointed at Liu Mingyu and as expected the two policemen walked up towards Liu Mingyu and stood by her sides.

"Miss Liu Mingyu, in accordance to the latest presented evidence, we hereby suspect that you're involved in corporate confidentiality theft, unauthorized exposure of customers' information and multiple other accusations towards business misconduct. Please follow us to the station for interrogation. You have the right to remain silent or demand a lawyer but it is advised that every word you say from this point onwards might be used against you."

After he was done, he made an invitatory pose towards Liu Mingyu.

Liu Mingyu took a deep breath, without any sign of resistance stood up and was ready to go with them.

"Wait..."

Yang Chen grabbed onto Liu Mingyu as he questioned Lin Ruoxi in a deep, coarse tone. "Lin Ruoxi, are you seriously going to do this?"

Lin Ruoxi was unfazed. "It's not my decision to make. Based on how the events unraveled, this has to be done."

"All these years I'm sure you knew what kind of person she truly is." Yang Chen was deeply frustrated that Lin Ruoxi was actually ready to send Liu Mingyu to the police station.

Lin Ruoxi coldly replied, "Look, Yang Chen, I can only believe the facts and they point to her. So, if you want to personally investigate this incident then feel free to do it. As for now, I need to be held accountable for the incident that has happened within Yu Lei International, towards my employees and shareholders. Personal relationships have nothing to do with what is happening now. Henceforth, the police under my approval shall be allowed to take Liu Mingyu away.

"After this case is put on pause, I still need to host a series of urgent meetings on the firefighting of this matter and its aftermath. So if you excuse me, I don't have time to be wasted here with you."

Lin Ruoxi's gaze was headstrong and unwavering, not afraid to go head on with Yang Chen.

Yang Chen sarcastically laughed, "Wow what a great boss you—"

Before he could finish, he felt a jerk on his arm.

Yang Chen turned back, only to see Liu Mingyu with her teary eyes shaking her head at him.

"Stop... please stop. Boss Lin's decision is right. I was unable to provide an alibi. I have no idea it would turn out like this. If you really want to help me out, then find the culprit. Arguing with Boss Lin will not solve anything." Liu Mingyu forced a smile. "I'll be fine, I've not been sentenced yet. I'm just assisting the investigation. All I need to do is tell them the truth."

Staring into Liu Mingyu's desperate eyes, Yang Chen felt worse to continue making her life harder. So with an aching heart, he had to let the police take her away.

Lin Ruoxi didn't really pay much attention at the escorted Liu Mingyu as she proclaimed, "Alright if there is nothing else to discuss, assume your roles. Amidst the departure of Liu Mingyu, the public relations department will be overseen by someone else for now. An urgent meeting will be held shortly in regards to the aftermath and the solutions that follow. I will send Wu Yue to notify all of you regarding other meetings this evening. Dismiss."

Everyone else instantly evacuated their seats in the conference room and hurried back to their positions. Boss Lin was not someone to be trifled with.

As the employees gradually left the conference room, Mo Qianni was hesitating if she needed to convince Lin Ruoxi about the handling of the incident, but as she saw Yang Chen firmly stood right where he was, she could only let it go and headed out to deal with more pressing matters.

After everyone had left only did Lin Ruoxi prepare to return her office, accompanied by Wu Yue.

Yang Chen stood there stone cold as he taunted her. "Why won't you let me prove her innocence? You know I can! Besides, what hurt would sparing her for one more day do to you?"

Lin Ruoxi turned towards him as she halted her footsteps. She hesitated for a moment, ordered Wu Yue to leave them, before she solemnly replied, "I just followed the law, that's all."

"Mingyu did all she could for the company, and yet she's not even worth an extra day? Do you not care how this is going to affect her?" Yang Chen was furious.

Lin Ruoxi was unfazed, as she stared coldly into his eyes and said, "What about you? You stood by her side in front of everyone, did you care about how I felt?"

Yang Chen was stunned, before he replied, "You saw how she was attacked by all sides. Was I supposed to just leave her alone to brave the odds?"

"Well, what about me then? Everyone knows you are my husband, but you came towards another woman's defense in front of my face. So I mean less to you now, is that what it is? If you can put me in that position just to defend her, then why should I care about how she felt when she was sent to the police station? Not to mention it was only fitting in that situation."

"Are you telling me it was all because you were jealous?" Yang Chen was stupefied.

Lin Ruoxi was firm. "You can think whatever you like. I have work piling up on me as we speak. Arguing with you only wastes my time. As you said, you're so very great aren't you? Money and power you have it all. If you really wanted to get her out of her misery then go investigate and solve the case. But I'm warning you, this crisis involves the wellbeing of the company and its functions. It's not something that can be dealt with using money."

Upon giving her orders, she instantaneously left the scene.

Yang Chen could only watch as Lin Ruoxi went into the elevator. He took a long breath before he threw a small tantrum. The situation was clearly more complicated than he had expected.

After he calmed himself down, he tried to reevaluate the situation. It was obvious that Li Minghe was the prime suspect. He was the most persistent in making it seem like Liu Mingyu was the culprit.

Not to mention that he recently met that prick on his way to Liu Mingyu's office. According to what she mentioned, Li Minghe was frequently visiting her in her office to chat and to discuss work matters. In addition to his relationship with Wu Yue, there was no telling the number of things he would've seen and heard.

However, the key to this incident was to prove that Li Minghe masterminded it all despite the absence of security camera footage. Even if Yang Chen were to murder him, it would not prove Liu Mingyu's innocence.

Not to mention that an insignificant person like Li Minghe to be able to blatantly accuse Liu Mingyu as the culprit, someone powerful must definitely have offered him unwavering support behind the scenes. Moreover, it would have to take more than one party to be able to achieve a perfect crime.

As a result, it was never a doubt to him that his top priority would be gathering evidence for Li Minghe's crime and the people in support of his crime.

Yang Chen contemplated for a short while before he dialed out Molin, Captain of the Sea Eagles' squad.

"Your Majesty Pluto, are you calling in regards to the bombshell news from Yu Lei International early today?" Molin proudly mentioned.

Yang Chen pinched on his nose, frustrated that the news was no secret to anyone anymore. He taunted, "Alright cut the jokes. I need you to stop by Yu Lei International right now. I require your professional wisdom to clarify some of my doubts..."

Chapter 693 - Doesn't Make Sense

Molin chuckled ominously and said, "I saw the news online this morning. I guessed you might need our resources for the investigation. Unfortunately, I am not adept in crime scene investigation, but I will instead assign one of our best to pay you a visit."

"Send whoever you deem fit for the job." Yang Chen sighed for a bit before he continued, "Oh yeah, there's this man from Yu Lei International by the name of Li Minghe. He works as the vice president of the corporation. I need your team to do a thorough background check on him, the deeper the better. Report anything you find on him to me by the end of the day. Should you run into trouble, just message me."

"Got it."

In no time a petite Caucasian girl arrived at the lobby of the building. She was exactly the person he was expecting—Fanny from the Sea Eagles.

In pink shades, while carrying a humongous leather bag, Fanny made her way towards Yang Chen. She shyly paid her respect, and in a nervous tone she mumbled, "Your Majesty Pluto, before I inspect the crime scene, do you mind briefing me on the security protocols undertaken in this building?"

Yang Chen took the lead as they went on the elevator, along the way he mentioned, "The executive floors are voided of any security cameras, but any conference rooms have security cameras on all four corners of the room and are monitored closely by the security personnel twenty-four seven. If anyone were to steal information from the office it would most definitely be caught on camera. It's worth mentioning that although the information was leaked today, there is a possibility that it was stolen much earlier so keep an eye out for people who have entered prior to this."

Fanny attentively listened as she nodded every once in a while.

As they exited the elevator on their way into the public relations department, Yang Chen cracked up. "Fanny, why are you coiled up around me? Am I that terrifying to you?"

Fanny instantly shook her head profusely as she awkwardly smiled. "No, definitely not. Your Majesty, just that it's my first time meeting you alone and I would never want to fail you."

Yang Chen patted her on the shoulder. "All you need to do is support my claim that the safe was manipulated, or cracked open by a third party. I'll handle the rest myself."

"Understood. I know exactly what to do."

As they were discussing, the two arrived at Liu Mingyu's office, only to see the public relations department in a mess. The vice department head who would temporarily take Liu Mingyu's place was a young woman. Seeing that Yang Chen was accompanied by an investigator, she helped to unlock Liu Mingyu's office.

The other public relations employees curiously stared at Yang Chen and Fanny. Never would they think that a Caucasian woman with a modest figure would be an expert in crime scene investigation.

Yang Chen soon shut the door and allowed Fanny to wield her expertise. Since the entire company were busy with urgent matters, they did not give much attention to the two.

Fanny retrieved a silver-colored laptop from her huge bag along with some wires and intercepting equipment as she sat on the ground next to the huge safe before she began analyzing its structure.

Yang Chen might have stored an ocean's worth of knowledge in his head throughout the years, albeit it was mostly just blatant memorizing, not much would he consider as actual comprehension.

Therefore it was no surprise when Fanny's computer displayed rows after rows of codes, Yang Chen could do nothing but watch.

Knowing that Fanny might require some time for the analysis, Yang Chen felt like he had to make himself useful as he ran down towards the security monitoring room and ordered the security personnel to retrieve the footage recorded from the cameras for the past two weeks.

All he wanted to reassure was the people caught on tape entering Liu Mingyu's office in recent days.

About a little more than an hour later, Yang Chen fast forwarded through all the security footages and unsurprisingly besides an array of business partners and internal employees, Li Minghe was caught on camera four times.

What stood out the most for Yang Chen however was in the evening the day before, Li Minghe entered Liu Mingyu's office in her absence, as it was evidently shown on footage that she only returned approximately five minutes later.

And after that, slightly more than ten minutes, Li Minghe once again made his exit.

However Yang Chen noticed something extremely peculiar, how did he manage to smuggle all that information out after obtaining it? He went in and left barehanded!

Yang Chen was in deep thought before he checked the time and understood that it was time to return to Liu Mingyu's office.

Upon entering the office, he noticed that Fanny was also just done with her inspection as she wiped the sweat off her forehead and turned towards him. "Your Majesty, I apologize for the delay. The complexity of this lock rivals or exceeds those found in banks. It is truly an unbelievable creation, to think that it's a safe of a corporation..."

Yang Chen lifted his brows. "How so?"

Fanny was more than excited to brag about her line of profession as she explained, "The lock system of the safe was created by the famous European brand, Casa, as a multi-turn free range lock, in which case according to the preferences of the beholder, every numerical figure constructs a distinct combination. On this safe, in particular, the wheel goes from zero to ninety-nine, which means there are a hundred different combinations for each code.

"And a safe of this format allows a combination of four, resulting to a hundred to the power of four. In short, the possible combinations of this are in the hundred millions.

"The fastest way to crack a safe of this calibration would require an advanced calculator connected to the combination unlocking system, and during the process of random calibration, the wheel has to be turned to the opposite direction—"

"Stop, stop, stop!" Yang Chen cut her short as he embarrassingly giggled. "I know you're a professional but I want to know, for a master of lock combinations, what is the shortest duration possibly required to crack the safe?"

After some thought, Fanny continued with equal enthusiasm as she replied, "If it's the cream of the crop, it might take about an hour or so. But to my knowledge, there are only less than five people on this planet who are capable of this. To be honest with you, even with an entire day, an ordinary person wouldn't even come close to cracking this lock."

Yang Chen squinted his eyes. "So what you mean is, for someone with no knowledge of the password to open the safe, the possibility of it happening is negligible, right?"

"That's right, Your Majesty," Fanny replied as she stood up.

Upon reassurance Yang Chen started searching around every corner of the office, thoroughly scanning through every nook and cranny of the room.

Fanny saw his actions and asked, "Your Majesty, are you searching for a micro-camera?"

"You guessed it. The only other possibility of this happening is if our thief was watching the safe be unlocked," Yang Chen replied.

Fanny smiled bitterly. "I apologize for keeping this from you, but I actually conducted a scan throughout the office, and if I am mistaken, there was no trace of surveillance equipment."

"What?" Yang Chen was stupefied at a true shocker of a revelation; he was previously confident that there had to be a camera in the room, just like the ones used to monitor Master Tang's movements. He definitely did not expect this to be the case!

Yang Chen knew that Fanny was serious. As a member specifically sent by the Sea Eagles to assist him, she was definitely the best of the best in the field.

Yang Chen was tense as the situation took a quick turn against his favor. With no leads, there was no way he could provide sufficient evidence to prove Liu Mingyu's innocence.

"I'm truly sorry, Your Majesty. I wasn't much of a help." Fanny guiltily held her head low.

Yang Chen reassuringly replied, "It's fine, you did your best. I'm going to investigate somewhere else. You can return now. Tell Molin to speed things up on his side."

Fanny agreed and immediately packed her equipment into her bag before making her exit.

Yang Chen was considering his next move when his phone started vibrating. It was Liu Qingshan.

Yang Chen facepalmed as he saw the caller. What a perfect timing he had, clearly making the call in regards to his beloved daughter getting arrested, which was a clear embarrassment for Yang Chen, but he ultimately decided to pick up the phone.

"I know you must be really pissed off right now, but I..."

"Cut the nonsense, I don't want to hear excuses from you! I gave you my daughter's hand in the belief that you would take good care of her. I did not consent to allow her fate to be decided in the hands of Ruoxi! Before I recall my word she better be out of that police station. If you're incapable of doing I strongly suggest you cut back on your hookups!" Liu Qingshan was not holding his punches as he taunted Yang Chen.

Yang Chen was bitter with his own incompetence, but he was no longer the man he once was, the brash little brat that would kill whoever that crossed him. Frustrated, he replied, "Bringing her out of the police station is clearly the easiest part. Right now proving her innocence is our main goal. Don't you think that's important? The mastermind had clearly planned it in detail and if we go against each other we would have fallen right into their trap, wouldn't we? If you don't mind her being guilty for the rest of her life then I can get there right now and blow the station up, are you fine with that?"

Liu Qingshan was furious, but with Yang Chen's composure, he tried his best to do the same as he replied, "Alright, you get one more day. If you fail to prove my daughter's innocence at the end of the day then you can count yourself out. I'll bring my men to deal with this by myself."

Yang Chen was slightly agitated as he continued, "Don't you worry, I won't let them keep her in there for much longer. If anything happens to her, I will personally level the station."

"Make sure you hold true to your words..."

Before Liu Qingshan managed to finish his sentence Yang Chen abruptly hung up on him. This was obviously not the time for long chats as he was left puzzled. What part of the incident did I miss? Everything doesn't make sense now. Every detail pointed towards Li Minghe but I still can't seem to figure out how he did it.

All of a sudden the threads connected as he grabbed his phone and instantly dialed Lin Ruoxi's number.

Even though they were just in a huge argument, she ultimately picked up the phone as she emotionlessly replied, "What did you find?"

Yang Chen continued without hesitation, "I need to know, among the stolen information, what was the time taken to complete the first and last section. Also, how many copies does your company have of the leaked information?"

Chapter 694 - Can't Do Anything About You

Lin Ruoxi tried to recall the information and said, "Because they were all documents that involved planning, we started the preparations one after another since the beginning of this year. The earliest ones were probably completed in January, and the rest were finalized last week. Only two people in the entire company, Mingyu and I, have the copies. Although the executives from the other departments were involved in the discussions, they did not have access to the compiled documents. Although the documents online are all in digital format, they are all in the official, standard format which means they were definitely leaked from the inside. Since we didn't have any original documents in digital form, they're definitely not fabricated. Why? Have you found something out?"

"All the documents including last week's were leaked?" Yang Chen continued asking in detail.

Lin Ruoxi replied with a confirmation, "You can't possibly be suspecting me, are you? After all, I also had access to the documents and thus can become a suspect. Plus it's not like I don't have a motive to do it."

Yang Chen didn't know whether to laugh or to cry. "Ruoxi, is there a need for sarcasm right now? Ninety percent of Yu Lei International's shares are in your hands. I can't think of a person that would damage their own business. I know that you probably don't like Mingyu that much in your heart, but you wouldn't resort to such a method to bully her. You're a proud woman after all, aren't you?"

There was a brief silence from Lin Ruoxi. Then she ignored Yang Chen's comments at the end of his sentence and said, "There's only fifty-five percent of shares left in my hands now."

"What?" Yang Chen was startled, "How did it suddenly drop to only fifty-five?"

Lin Ruoxi said, "Since the launch of new materials, the company has been expanding at a large scale. Plus I've been acquiring various entertainment and recreational businesses in the past few months. I needed some form of funding. I've already paid back the entire loan that we took from the Union Bank of Switzerland. The market value of our company is very high now; our reviews have been very high globally. Naturally, our share prices have skyrocketed since. That's why I sold off thirty-five percent of my shares. After all, as long as I'm the one holding the company, it doesn't matter how much I have either."

Yang Chen said, "There wasn't a need to repay the Union Bank of Switzerland's loan at all. Didn't the bank manager explain that to you? Why bear an unnecessary burden on the company? Besides, if you're short on money, just ask it from your husband, me. Why sell off the shares on your own?"

"Hmph, it's not like I don't have my own money. I can keep myself alive. Why do I have to ask it from you?" Lin Ruoxi was obviously unhappy about Yang Chen's male chauvinism.

"Do you think I would threaten you if you asked me for money? Am I really so petty in your eyes? Besides, why didn't you think it through? Now that you only have fifty-five percent of the shares in your hands, what would you do if there was a huge fluctuation in the company's shares and someone declared financial war against you?" Yang Chen asked, frowning.

Lin Ruoxi replied in a rather upset tone, "Do you think I'm a deity? How would I know that something like this would happen? Plus, I'm just the CEO of a multinational corporate. Others who hold positions like mine, for example, Microsoft's Bill Gates only holds twenty percent of shares as well. Me holding about fifty percent of the shares is already a rather generous amount. What in the world would've made me think to keep the majority of my shares?"

Yang Chen was unwilling to continue going rounds on the topic. He sighed and said, "Okay okay, it doesn't matter now. What I want to say is that, if I'm not wrong, Wu Yue is the one in charge of making photocopies of those documents."

Lin Ruoxi asked hesitatingly, "You suspect that Wu Yue did something to the documents?"

Yang Chen said, "Where are the photocopy machines? I remember you don't have those in your office."

Lin Ruoxi said, "Yes. They're all in Wu Yue's office. But something of that sort is quite unlikely. Because I personally supervised Wu Yue finish photocopying most of those important documents before bringing them back to my office. If Wu Yue were to do something to it, I would definitely have known."

"One last question, the original copies of those documents are still inside the safe in Mingyu's office, aren't they?" Yang Chen said.

Feeling puzzled, Lin Ruoxi asked, "You... opened the security safe?"

Yang Chen said, "No, I'm just guessing."

Lin Ruoxi replied truthfully, "They're still inside indeed. We know that much. But technology is so advanced nowadays, as long as she has some digital equipment, she could have easily copied the physical documents into digital format anytime. This doesn't help to prove Mingyu's innocence. After all, it's even riskier to bring the physical copies around. If I were the thief, I wouldn't take the physical documents with me either."

"Hmph, in that case, everything makes sense now. Wu Yue didn't do anything to the documents on purpose. But she had unknowingly helped the person responsible for the mishap."

Recalling his memories, Yang Chen's thoughts become clearer and he smiled with a sigh of relief.

However, there was no reply from Lin Ruoxi's side at all, nor did she ask any more questions.

Yang Chen was still waiting for her to ask him so that he could boast to her. But after waiting for a while, all he heard was the sound of something hitting against a hard object.

"Ruoxi? Ruoxi? Are you still there?" Yang Chen's heart tightened. "Dear please don't frighten me."

There was no reply at all from the other end of the phone, but the line was still connected.

Yang Chen suddenly realized what might have happened. He raced out of his office and dashed into an empty emergency staircase, made two leaps and then immediately arrived at the floor of the CEO's office.

As Yang Chen appeared in the corridor abruptly, Wu Yue who had just left her office and was about to head to Lin Ruoxi's bumped straight into him.

Wu Yue panicked a little when she saw the anxious look on Yang Chen's face. Before she got a chance to greet him, Yang Chen had already dashed towards the entrance of the CEO's office, and he pushed the door open.

When Yang Chen stepped into the office, what he saw next made his heart sink.

Lin Ruoxi was lying unconscious on the carpet in front of the office desk. She still had her phone in her hand. It was clear that she was still talking to Yang Chen when she suddenly fainted.

Wu Yue who had followed Yang Chen into the office screamed upon seeing this scene. She dropped the pile of documents she was holding in her hands, her eyes filled with panic.

Yang Chen took a moment to calm himself down before doing anything. He walked over to Lin Ruoxi and squatted down. He took her wrist in his hand and held her body in his embrace. He then transferred True Yuan into her body while carefully investigating the conditions of her body.

Shortly, Yang Chen's eyes started burning with fury. His body was trembling a little.

Upon checking her body, Yang Chen discovered that an area near Lin Ruoxi's liver contained a large accumulated amount of unknown substance that was probably toxic.

Although these substances were not fatal, they would obviously corrode Lin Ruoxi's internal organs gradually and destroy the healthy cells. If he were to allow things to progress, he was sure that it would soon develop into a form of cancer.

Lin Ruoxi probably had a sudden onset of the disease just now, which led to an aggressive reaction from her body's immune system, making her lose consciousness as a way of protecting the body.

"Wha—what's wrong with Boss Lin?" Wu Yue's face was full of sorrow. She started tearing and trembling, totally dumbfounded.

Yang Chen transferred a surge of True Yuan and stabilized Lin Ruoxi's condition before he asked, "Did Ruoxi eat or drink anything just now?"

Wu Yue was stunned for a short while. She pointed towards a half-empty cup of hot coffee on the desk and said softly, "I only served Boss Lin the cup of coffee."

Yang Chen asked with a solemn face, "Did you make that coffee personally, without anyone else involved?"

Wu Yue's face went ghastly pale, "Director Yang, it's not me. I really don't know how this has happened. This coffee is Boss Lin's favorite flavor. She has been drinking it all this while."

Yang Chen lifted Lin Ruoxi up with his arms and said to Wu Yue, "I'll be sending someone over later. Pass the coffee to that person and let him collect something from your office. If anyone asks about Ruoxi's whereabouts, just say that she is feeling slightly unwell. Other than that, you may assume your previous task."

In the past, Wu Yue had always found Yang Chen a pain in her eyes. But she didn't dare to be reckless right now. She could only nod her head repeatedly to agree. And her eyes were filled with worry.

With Lin Ruoxi in his arms, Yang Chen went all the way downstairs to the parking lot. Driving Lin Ruoxi's car, he immediately left the building and headed to the hospital.

While he was on the road, Yang Chen made a phone call to Molin. Molin was in the middle of investigating Li Minghe's background and he couldn't leave. Thus, Yang Chen made him send another team member to Yu Lei's office to bring the two pieces of evidence back to their secret base for analysis. At the same time, they had to monitor Li Minghe closely to know his exact location. They didn't want to attract his attention just yet, but they couldn't let him disappear either.

Thanks to Yang Chen's formidable True Yuan, Lin Ruoxi's condition remained stable during the journey to the hospital.

Yang Chen got an intensive care unit of the highest standard, but he did not ask for any doctors in the hospital. He had no intention of relying on normal medical treatment to cure Lin Ruoxi's illness.

Yang Chen locked the room door and switched off his phone to prevent any distractions. Then, he started combining the cell restoration characteristic of the Endless Resolve Restoration Scripture into his now formidable True Yuan and used it to clear the poison that had accumulated in Lin Ruoxi's meridians.

Compared to the poison in Tang Wan's bloodstream previously, the poison in Lin Ruoxi's body was much weaker. If not for the large amount that had accumulated, it wouldn't have affected her in such a way.

However, this made it easier for Yang Chen to treat her. He didn't have to use his own blood just to purge the poison out. Instead, using just his True Yuan, he could guide the poison out of her body.

To avoid damaging Lin Ruoxi's internal organs, Yang Chen was very careful with how he proceeded with this. He spent nearly an hour to finally remove most of the poison in her body.

When Yang Chen finished removing the poison, a sickly flush appeared on Lin Ruoxi's pale face. A mouthful of black blood clot surged out from the corner of the still unconscious Lin Ruoxi's mouth.

Yang Chen was already prepared for this. He wiped it all off with a piece of wet towel so that none of the blood would get on Lin Ruoxi's clothes.

Looking at the pale and dry lips of the woman before him breathing in and out feebly, and the hair strands that stuck to her forehead, Yang Chen sighed heavily. He held Lin Ruoxi's hand in his and got lost in a daze.

In fact, in Yang Chen's eyes, no matter what happened to the company, as long as she was fine, nothing else mattered. Compared to the trouble in the company, Yang Chen's heart was clenched even more tightly when he saw the unconscious Lin Ruoxi. He almost couldn't catch his breath for a second.

Just as Yang Chen was immersed in his thoughts, Lin Ruoxi regained her consciousness slowly. She looked at her surroundings in confusion and realized that she was in a hospital ward. She seemed to remember what had just happened, and she slowly shifted her gaze towards Yang Chen who was standing in front of her bed, asking weakly, "The company... How are things going now?"

Yang Chen was delighted to see that Ruoxi had come to. He ran to get a cup of lukewarm water so that Lin Ruoxi could rinse her mouth with it. But the moment he heard her words, the joyous expression on his face froze immediately.

After slowly placing the cup of water on the table, he turned to look at Lin Ruoxi with an unpleasant look on his face, saying, "Can't you think of anything else in your mind? Is the company really all you care about? You're already lying in the hospital. Don't you know how to worry about yourself first? Lin Ruoxi, this behavior of yours is not professional dedication but stupidity."

The more he scolded her, the more worked up Yang Chen got. He stood up and started walking up and down before her hospital bed with his hands on his hips. He pointed his finger at Lin Ruoxi and continued saying, "If I had known this, I wouldn't have saved you so quickly. I would've left you there. Yu Lei International going bankrupt might've been a good thing. You could be a housewife. And you wouldn't have to hold meetings or work overtime so often. You're a married woman and yet you're busy working from day to night. If others hear of this, they might even think that your husband enjoys mistreating you, making you earn to keep the family alive. Do you know that you were poisoned? If I wasn't by your side, it might have turned into cancer. Do you know that?"

Yang Chen just went on and on scolding her like that, totally infuriated.

However, Lin Ruoxi went from her initial confusion to looking at him with a gentle gaze. A smile then crept onto the corners of her mouth.

Noticing that Lin Ruoxi was not angry and was smiling shyly instead, Yang Chen was slightly taken aback. He said aloud, "Why? Do you find it funny? Let me tell you, even if you call me selfish or a male chauvinist, that's just how I am. So be it if I'm a petty man. I can't be bothered about the lives of those people in the company. I don't believe that their entire lives revolve around you being the CEO."

Lin Ruoxi lowered her head. She was pinching and grabbing at the blanket with her hands as she said, "Right now, Mingyu is still in the police station. While you're here saying all these to me, don't you worry about how she's doing now?"

A resigned look flashed across Yang Chen's eyes. He said with a bitter smile, "I'm worried. Of course I'm worried. But there's an order of priority to everything."

Lin Ruoxi raised her head and said, "I'm feeling much better now. You can proceed with your other business."

Yang Chen's temper was all gone now. He sighed in resignation, "Lin Ruoxi, I really can't do anything about you. You're still doing this to me at such a time. It's already total chaos outside, and Mingyu is still in the police station. But even at a crucial time like this, I've turned off my phone to focus solely on you. I ignored everything else just so that I can focus on removing the poison in your body. Do you possibly need me to dig my heart out and cut it into slices for you to observe under a microscope before you will understand my feelings towards you?"

Chapter 695 - Of Course There's No Evidence

The hospital ward fell silent. The faint smell of sanitizer in the air felt almost like the fragrance of flower. It was rather refreshing.

Yang Chen and Ruoxi's gazes converged and turned into ripples.

After a long pause, Lin Ruoxi furrowed her brows. Her gaze was gentle as she grumbled, "What is all this about digging your heart and cutting into slices all of a sudden? It sounds so crude. Can't you make it sound a little nicer?"

Yang Chen rubbed the back of his head and curled his lips while saying, "Take it as 'a filthy mouth that can't utter decent language'. Would you be willing to listen to me even if I put it nicely? Might as well just make it sound more exciting."

As he said so, Yang Chen grabbed the cup of water that he had put on the table just now and passed it to Lin Ruoxi again. "Rinse your mouth, and drink some water. You've only just recovered. Although you're mostly fine now, it's still better to get some rest."

Lin Ruoxi took the cup of water and slowly moved to get down the bed, saying, "There's still a lot of matters I have to deal with. I'll tidy myself up a little and go back to work. I'm fine now."

Yang Chen let out a long sigh. "I knew that you wouldn't listen."

"I'm alright. You should turn on your phone and find a way to solve Mingyu's problem." Lin Ruoxi glanced at Yang Chen with a faint smile on her face. Then she went to the restroom to wash up.

Although Yang Chen couldn't bear to see her start working again, he also knew that after channeling True Yuan into her body, despite still being weak, Lin Ruoxi would recover quickly. Work shouldn't be an issue. Furthermore, without her acting as the brain of Yu Lei, it would be very difficult for the company to progress any further. Thus he did not impose his expectations on her.

Turning on his phone, Yang Chen immediately saw a few missed calls on the screen, including the ones from Molin, Mo Qianni, An Xin, and Wu Yue.

Yang Chen was just about to call Molin to ask how things were going when his phone started ringing. It was Mo Qianni.

He picked up the phone and Mo Qianni started saying worriedly, "You've finally switched on your phone. Yang Chen, are you with Ruoxi at the hospital? How is she now? Is she in danger?"

Yang Chen said smilingly, "Don't worry. She's fine now. I'll send her back to the company in a while. Why did you call me so many times? Is it just to ask about Ruoxi's body condition?"

Mo Qianni replied in frustration, "I'm on the verge of a breakdown. After such an incident to the company, the mainstream media have approached us, asking us to explain the situation. But just now, someone leaked the news and now all the reporters know that our CEO has fallen sick. Those reporters have completely surrounded the compounds of our company. And they're coming up with all sorts of ridiculous conspiracy theories in their news. I think if Ruoxi is fine, it's better if she comes back as soon as possible. The employees have all lost their direction upon hearing that the news. When the stock market reopens, it will be the last punch needed to knock us out. We'll really be done for then."

Yang Chen snorted. "They're really chasing us relentlessly, driving us into a dead end."

Some emergency situation seemed to have occurred at Mo Qianni's side again. There was a clamor, and it sounded like something was being reported. Mo Qianni had no choice but to excuse herself and hang up the phone.

Yang Chen let out a bitter smile and shook his head. Then, he dialed Molin's number.

"Molin, how's the analysis and investigation that I made you do?" Yang Chen asked.

Molin sounded a little embarrassed as he said, "Your Majesty Pluto, I'm very sorry. Li Minghe's background is slightly too complicated. I can't compile anything of substance just yet. I need a bit more time. But as for the two things that you asked us to analyze, we've already gotten the result."

Yang Chen frowned. "Complicated? Li Minghe is just a managerial employee that was sent over by Hong Kong's Muyun Corporation. He's at most just a distant relative of the Li clan from Hong Kong. Why would information about him be difficult to obtain?"

"Actually..." Molin said, "I thought so too initially. But according to the information that I've gathered so far, Li Minghe is not his actual name. He seems to have changed his name after he started working in Hong Kong. Besides, Li Minghe seems to have no connection to Muyun's Li clan at all. Their common surname is their only tie. This is what misled our investigations at first. His resume appears very fishy too. Lots of the content have been altered. Clearing things up might take some time. It's difficult to explain it clearly now. I hope that Your Majesty can give me a little more time. I guarantee you that I'll complete the task."

Yang Chen did not expect so many problems to arise upon investigating Li Minghe's background. But, without a doubt, this also meant that matters were much more mysterious than what he had expected.

"What about the evidence that I made you investigate then? How is it?" Yang Chen asked again.

This time round, Molin replied rather confidently, "We've already gotten the results. There is poison in that coffee indeed. It is a substance similar to 'tannin' that can be found in tea leaves. When this kind of acid is combined with a certain extract from animal protein, for example a substance in the proteins of dogs, it will produce a type of carcinogen that destroys humans' internal organs.

"This cup of coffee contained not just tannin, but also some unique protein that usually isn't found in coffee. We can say that this cup of coffee was made with the intention of causing harm to its drinker.

"But since it takes a long time to accumulate this kind of poison before it can yield a strong effect when it's triggered, hence according to my deduction, the person who put in the poison in must be familiar with the victim of the coffee. The culprit added the extract into the coffee in a well-planned manner according to how much the drinker usually drinks. Although I can't deduce the exact time of the first disease onset, but according to my estimation based on the ratio, I estimate about one week ago."

Listening up to this point, a thick killing intent had already emerged in Yang Chen's eyes. He thought to himself, To think that Ruoxi has been drinking coffee that contains chronic toxin all this while! Regardless of whether Li Minghe did this behind Wu Yue's back, I can't let Wu Yue continue being Lin Ruoxi's assistant anymore. Even if it means I have to kill her.

"As for the thing that you mentioned," Molin continued, "Just like what you said, it was indeed tampered with. But it is a little insufficient to be presented as an evidence..."

By the time Molin was almost done explaining, Lin Ruoxi had also finished washing up and stepped out of the restroom. Seeing that Yang Chen was on the phone, she asked softly, "Is there anything urgent?"

Yang Chen was already done with the call, so he hung up and said smilingly, "The company needs you back quickly. The reporters have already blocked the entire entrance. Let's go."

A worried look flashed across Lin Ruoxi's face, and she just nodded her head.

On the way back to Yu Lei International, Yang Chen called An Xin back as well. She was just concerned if something had happened, so she didn't say much upon learning that everything was fine.

Lin Ruoxi sat on the front passenger seat and pondered for a while. Then, she turned to her to Yang Chen and asked, "Have they found out who the culprit is yet? Who's the one that stole the documents from Mingyu's office?"

With one hand on the steering wheel, Yang Chen shook his finger at Lin Ruoxi with his other hand. A malicious smile appeared on his face as he said, "This culprit is very cunning indeed. We've all been cheated by him even since the beginning."

"What do you mean?" Lin Ruoxi couldn't quite understand.

Yang Chen heaved out a sigh and said, "The thief didn't steal anything from Mingyu's office. He managed to collect all the information via other means."

Lin Ruoxi's eyes were filled with surprise. She clearly didn't understand what Yang Chen was talking about.

Yang Chen explained patiently, "Since the start, we have been focusing on the security safe in Mingyu's office. And that's because there were only two copies of the document. As the CEO, it's only natural that you wouldn't benefit from leaking the documents. That's why everyone assumed that Mingyu was the one who did it.

"With that, our line of thought was focused on things like what kind of person could find the opportunity to lay their hands on the documents kept by Mingyu, or what kind of person would have a way of decrypting the passcode. We even suspected if the thief installed a high-tech pinhole camera in Mingyu's office to monitor her when she opens the safe."

Lin Ruoxi asked, "Isn't that how it is? If it isn't from Mingyu's office, I can almost guarantee that it did not come from my office. Apart from Wu Yue, almost no one else can enter my office. Plus the area around the safe in my office is totally empty. There's no way of installing a pinhole camera there."

Yang Chen smiled and said, "Let me finish. Actually, even I fell into the culprit's trap. They came well prepared. He probably understands me very well even before he started the plan, or, we could say that he did many things to confuse us beforehand.

"The culprit has been visiting Mingyu's office very frequently and diligently in the past two to three months. And the visits often seem to be without any proper reason or motive. He made sure that not only people like me who visit Mingyu's office only occasionally noticed his behavior, but even the other employees noticed and became curious about the relationship between him and Mingyu.

"Don't tell me that you have no idea who the person is. You would have definitely suspected him to be the one to have stolen the documents. And that's why you let me investigate it, right?"

Lin Ruoxi did not deny. She nodded and said, "You're talking about Li Minghe. I am aware that he has been visiting Mingyu's office very frequently recently without any reason. It is not secret to the rest of the company too. I believe many other employees in the company share my suspicions. It's just that there was no evidence to prove that he was the one who stole the documents. And this is also why no one brought up his name during the meeting. Because no one had any evidence."

"Of course there's no evidence," Yang Chen shook his head with a smile and said, "I even went to check the surveillance footage, and calculated how likely he could open the safe, and how he managed to steal such a huge amount of documents without anyone noticing. Now that I think about it, it's such a joke. This line of deduction was totally baseless. He had never once planned to steal the documents from Mingyu's office. There is only one reason behind his actions—to attract our attention, and to make us think that he did it in Mingyu's office."

Lin Ruoxi was quick to catch up too, and she asked, "You mean to say that this was all a deliberate trick that he played to mislead us? Then how did he manage to steal it?"

Chapter 696 - Treating Her Well

Yang Chen said helplessly, "I've been overthinking everything as well. Actually, it wasn't a human that betrayed the company. It was the photocopy machine used to print documents in Wu Yue's office."

"Photocopy machine?" Lin Ruoxi frowned. "Did Wu Yue make extra copies? That's impossible. I've already told you that I was there to personally monitor the process."

Yang Chen explained, "I don't fault you for not knowing this information. Most of the photocopy machines in the market nowadays have an internal hard disk. After every photocopy, there will be a large amount of data stored as a backup in the hard disk. For computer savvy people, all they have to do is to connect the hard disk to their computer, and then it only takes only about ten minutes to extract all the information.

"Situations where confidential data is leaked via the photocopy machine often appear in corporate espionage. That's why many important departments place heavy emphasis on destroying and replacing the hard disk of their photocopy machines. Understand?"

A look of shock hung on Lin Ruoxi's face. After all, she studied business, and so she was completely clueless about such technical knowledge.

After sorting out her thoughts, Lin Ruoxi said, "Even if he can extract all the information from the hard disk, the machine is in Wu Yue's office. Wu Yue knocks off very late from work just like me. Plus no one has easy access to her office as well as mine. The office door is usually locked so..."

"Despite so many beauties in the company, Li Minghe didn't pursue any of them when he came in. Instead, he went after Wu Yue relentlessly as though he was foolishly in love with her. It's because he knew very well that he had to gain Wu Yue's trust in order to not arouse her suspicion when doing things in her office. Perhaps he even made Wu Yue pass him her keys at times, lying to her that he needed to look up some information," Yang Chen said with mixed feelings, "I can't help but admire that fellow's patience and calculations. Ever since he entered the company, everything he did was in preparation for this. Every step he has taken was calculated and planned to not leave a single shred of evidence tracing it back to him."

Sadness flashed across Lin Ruoxi's eyes. "Wu Yue, she... she's genuinely in love with Li Minghe."

Yang Chen glanced at Ruoxi silently. He recalled the scene when Lin Ruoxi asked him to keep the secret that Wu Yue was romantically involved with Li Minghe. Lin Ruoxi had never shown much concern in her words towards this sole female assistant that she had, and who was also her junior in school. But in her subconscious, perhaps she had hoped that Li Minghe was innocent and was truly in love with Wu Yue.

Yang Chen said flatly, "It can't be helped. Do you know this? There was this one time I came to your office looking for you and happened to bump into Wu Yue bringing Li Minghe to your office to look for some documents. They even told me that you had gone out to Yucong Building to shop."

Lin Ruoxi nodded. "I remember. You came to look for me that day."

"I've only realized it now. Li Minghe went to your office to confirm which machine was used to photocopy. After confirming that there was no photocopy machine in your office, he was finally sure that all the information that he wanted was in the photocopy machine in Wu Yue's office. Ever since the start, he had been executing his plans with sheer perfection."

Lin Ruoxi shut her eyes, seeming a little sad about this outcome. After a while, she asked, "Then was Li Minghe also the one who poisoned me?"

"The coffee that you drink contains some chronic toxin. I won't go through the details. If I'm not wrong, Li Minghe probably asked Wu Yue about your daily dosage of coffee and then mixed the poison into your coffee. He then replaced the coffee powder in Wu Yue's office with the one he had mixed. He had specially calculated the dosage so that the poison would take effect only when he needed it to," Yang Chen said gravely. "If I'm not wrong, he wanted to let you fall dead sick when Yu Lei is in its most critical period so that you won't have any chance of retaliating."

Lin Ruoxi bit her lip and asked with a gleam of hope, "That means, Wu Yue didn't know about it, did she?"

Yang Chen nodded. "It seems so for now. However, regardless of whether she knew about it, I won't allow her to stay by your side anymore. You must replace your assistant with someone we can trust. You must listen to me on this. There's no room for discussion."

"How can you do this? Even if I can't use Wu Yue anymore, why should I listen to you on the candidate of my assistant?" Lin Ruoxi was unhappy and she was blaming him a little.

"No matter what you say, your assistant must be someone that I approve of. If it isn't, I'll throw them out the window of your office floor," Yang Chen said with a solemn look, "Although we can break down the process behind this incident now, Li Minghe's skills are superb in that even if we know how he did it, we don't have any conclusive evidence. We can't possibly pin him to the data being stolen from the hard disk. That's why, after sending you back to the company later, I plan to get a lawyer to bail Mingyu out first. After all, now that we know of another more plausible method of committing the crime, it can clear most of Mingyu's innocence."

Lin Ruoxi pouted. "Understood. I'll handle the matters in the company; you go ahead and save your Mingyu." As she finished her words, she turned her head to look at the view outside and ignored Yang Chen.

Yang Chen rolled his eyes. It seems like this woman had indeed recovered greatly now that she could be so sarcastic again.

At the same time, in the vice president's office of Yu Lei International, a secretary opened the door with a look of surprise as she said aloud, "Great news, Vice President Li."

Li Minghe who was flipping through some forms frowned unhappily and said, "What are you being so agitated about? Don't you know that the more chaotic the company is, the more we should remain calm?"

The secretary grinned brightly and said, "Yes, yes... It's just that we received news that Boss Lin has already recovered. She will be back to attend the press conference. Everyone is very excited about it and so I came to tell you about it."

A dark, puzzled look flashed across Li Minghe's eyes, but he put on a cheerful grin on his face and said, "That is really good. Continue doing a great job. I'm going out for a while to meet a few important figures. We'll need their assistance. If there's anything urgent just report it to Manager Wang and the others."

The secretary obeyed immediately and ran back to work happily.

Li Minghe clenched his teeth in anger. He reached for his jacket and put it on, grabbed a few of his belongings, and left his office, taking the lift down.

When he reached the parking lot, Li Minghe's phone started ringing. He pulled it out to see the number and was irritated. But he still picked up the call and said as calmly as possible, "This better be urgent."

"Pretending that you don't know?" The person on the phone said with contempt, "Look at what a stupid job you've done. Didn't you say that Lin Ruoxi will be sick for at least ten days to half a month and that she would develop cancer after that? Why is it that she's already returning to the company after only a few hours' time?"

"Please calm down. I have no idea why this happened too. But she had indeed fallen sick before this. Perhaps she got lucky this time. I—I've really tried my best," Li Minghe said desperately.

"Hmph, on the account that the other plans are proceeding smoothly, I'll forget about this matter. Even if Lin Ruoxi returns to Yu Lei International now, there's nothing she can do to salvage the situation anyway. Yu Lei's plans for the next half of the year are already completely exposed. Even if Lin Ruoxi is wealthy enough, all she can do is secure a few of their fixed assets. It won't be easy for them to recover from this incident."

"Yes, yes. You have a divine strategy. That's why it was only a matter of time for you to ruin Lin Ruoxi," Li Minghe hurriedly flattered the person on the phone.

The person sneered and said, "You don't have to be like this either. You will get what is rightfully yours. Your cover might have already been blown now. Don't go anywhere other than the place that I have arranged for you."

Upon hearing these words, Li Minghe replied gratefully, "Thank you for your kindness. I'll set off right now."

He hung up the phone. An expression of excitement and viciousness appeared on his face simultaneously as he quickly walked towards his car.

Right at that moment, a pale, skinny figure in a black suit appeared at a short distance in front of Li Minghe and blocked his path.

Li Minghe braked in his steps, his eyes revealing a hint of complicated feelings. And then he said smilingly, "I see it's Yue'er. Boss Lin is coming back soon. What are you doing here?"

Wu Yue's eyes were red. Tears glimmered in her eyes as she looked at Li Minghe painfully. She forced a smile and mumbled, "Tell me... that it wasn't you. It wasn't you who did all these, was it?"

Li Minghe's smile slowly faded away. He pondered briefly and let out a contemptuous smile. "Since you already know the answer, do you still need me to say it? Why? Are you going to stop me? Even if that Yang Chen manages to find out anything in the end, he has no evidence to prove it either. And what can you do to me?"

Wu Yue took a deep breath. She raised her head to stop her tears from rolling down. With trembling shoulders, she said, "I should have thought about it. Why would you fall in love with a woman like me? But I was delusional, thinking that you weren't the kind of man who judged a person by their appearances. I figured that if I treated you well, you would definitely treat me sincerely too. That's why no matter what you said to me, I chose to believe that you were innocent, that you had no ulterior motives."

The corner of Li Minghe's brows twitched a little. But he remained expressionless.

"Li Minghe..." Wu Yue's eyes were completely red, and her thin neck was strained tightly. She said miserably, "Whether you were manipulated by some competitor of ours, or you did it out of your own will, I could've regarded everything that you've done to Yu Lei as a business competition. I could've found it in my heart to forgive you. Bu—but how can you make use of me to harm Boss Lin whom I respect the most?"

Li Minghe's facial muscles twitched a little and he sneered, "Say whatever you want to say. Let me tell you, if it weren't for greater plans in the future, I would have grabbed a knife and stabbed Lin Ruoxi to death. I'm already treating her very well by letting her die of a chronic toxin."

Chapter 697 - Not Bored Yet

Wu Yue was stupefied. Never could she bring herself to comprehend how the man she loved would despise the person she respected and adore so much.

"Why... why would you do such a thing?"

"It's none of your business," Li Minghe said as he shoved the obstructing Wu Yue aside.

Wu Yue stumbled as she struggled to keep her balance.

Li Minghe arrived by his car, ready to enter before the same familiar silhouette appeared by his side.

After a moment of hesitation, with conflicted emotions, he turned towards her, looking at the woman he loved in distraught. He then proposed an ultimatum to her. "I'm offering you a chance to come with me right now. Or, stay here and burn with Yu Lei to the ground."

Wu Yue's frail figure was stunned, before she lifted her head. With tears still in her eyes, a slight glimpse of joy however was seen on her face.

"You... still care for me, don't you?" Wu Yue tearfully questioned.

Li Minghe, on the other hand, was not having it. "No matter how you spin it, I've still spent countless nights with you. Let's just say I haven't gotten bored of you yet. Stay here and die or come with me and you shall live, your choice."

Wu Yue heart-wrenchingly stared at him but ultimately shook her head in disagreement as she dried her tears before solemnly replied, "I will not go with you, Minghe. Now's the best time for you to turn yourself in. It's still not too late. You're no match for Boss Lin..."

"Bullshit," Li Minghe ranted. "You really think this fatal poisoning is a joke? You've truly underestimated me. In a bit, the American stock market will open, and the sharp fall of Yu Lei's stocks would shave thirty percent of the company's assets. All that leaked information is already in the hands of Yu Lei's main competitors. In two days, this will become so severe that no one can bring Yu Lei out from its pit. Even with Lin Ruoxi's wealth, she could keep the corporation afloat for at best a few months before she has no choice but to declare bankruptcy. You really take her as a corporate prodigy, don't you? The only reason she is so revered is that none of her opponents dares to take a shot against her!"

Wu Yue bit on her lips tight, as she firmly replied, "I believe in her. She will definitely find her way. Minghe, please don't do this anymore. I know you still care about me, and I know you're still the man I once knew.... You—"

"That's enough!!!" Li Minghe looked as if he had gone insane. Walking right before Wu Yue, with a stone-cold gaze, he said, "Look, woman, I don't know what she has told you to make you trust in her, but if you won't sway then I'll make sure you're in the audience to witness the collapse of Yu Lei."

Before Wu Yue could react, she felt a huge pound towards the back of her neck as her vision went blurry.

The perpetrator was none other than Li Minghe, who took it out on the poor woman the split second that she was unfocused.

Li Minghe scooped the now unconscious Wu Yue and cautiously scanned his surroundings, making sure that nobody was tailing him. He then carefully placed her on the passenger seat and secured her seatbelts.

Li Minghe quickly returned back to his solemn expressions as he drove the car out of the parking lot.

Just as Li Minghe was leaving the car park, a petite Caucasian girl in a pair of pink-framed sunglasses came out from behind a pillar by the corner. It was none other than Fanny of the Sea Eagles squad.

Fanny was chewing on gum as she made a loud pop before reaching for her cell phone and dialed up a number. "Adeline, the rat is out of the trap. It's all up to you now."

"Why did he leave so quickly? I'm still waiting for my sandwich to be prepared... Excuse me sir, no bell peppers please... Yeah... alright I'll catch up real quick, why don't you make the call to His Majesty Pluto first?"

Seconds later, Yang Chen right across the corner of Yu Lei International received a text message.

Yang Chen scanned through the text message in Italian, as he smiled towards Lin Ruoxi by his side. "That brat Li Minghe is on the run."

Lin Ruoxi was puzzled. "How'd you know?"

"I got a few friends to monitor his movements, and they just told me that he left."

Lin Ruoxi was not curious about the real identities of his 'friends'. Instead, she quickly followed up, "Then why didn't they stop him? Isn't arresting him our top priority?"

Yang Chen shrugged. "Li Minghe can't fly on his own. We can always tail him wherever he decides to go, so we're going to let him take us to his mastermind. We're in no hurry."

Lin Ruoxi, however, was worried, as she slightly nervously asked, "What are you going to do to those people when you find them?"

Yang Chen replied in a dull manner, "What is right of course."

"You plan to kill them all, don't you?" Lin Ruoxi was genuinely concerned. "Yang Chen, I want you to promise me not to kill these people. I know that you used to do that all the time abroad, and there is a lot about your life that I have no understanding towards, but killing isn't the solution! Since there's no way they can possibly beat you, why not arrest them and put them to trial?"

Yang Chen relaxedly replied, "Don't worry about all this, I think it's better if you put your attention to saving the company from this enormous crisis. Even when we manage to get Li Minghe and his gang of culprits, there's still no way of preventing the company's losses in the upcoming months. The future of the company is at stake here. More money may not be the solution to all your problems here."

Lin Ruoxi shook her head as she sternly declared, "Work is work, and you're you. Don't put these two together. You have to promise me alright, that you can break them, paralyze them, but under no circumstances are they allowed to be killed, understand?"

"I'll do what I need to do."

"No, you got to promise me that you're not going to do it, or else I will latch myself to you. I wouldn't even mind not going to work unless you knock me out." Lin Ruoxi grit her teeth as she firmly fixed her gaze at Yang Chen.

Yang Chen took a deep breath before he frustratedly replied, "That filthy animal made you drink a slow-onset poison all this while, and even framed Mingyu into custody. How can you still expect me to keep him alive? Besides, I'll be fine. Killing people isn't something new to me."

"Whatever it is you shouldn't casually kill people!" Lin Ruoxi yelled at the top of her voice.

Yang Chen felt the tingling sensation in his eardrums as he dumbfoundedly stared at Lin Ruoxi. "I have no idea why you women are so emotional all the time."

Lin Ruoxi mumbled as tears seemed to be forming in her pupils, "Exactly because I've seen you do it, and every time I wished it would be your last. You do know that the fury in your eyes every time you kill terrifies me, don't you..."

Inside the vehicle was dead silence. Yang Chen held his breath, unsure of what he was supposed to say.

"Yang Chen, I don't believe anyone would find pleasure in murder. I also know that not everything can be solved through murder. You once told me that Cai Ning stopped you from killing Zeng Mao, and instead resorted to bearing the responsibility in your stead, right? Well, I guess we're both alike in the sense that we do not want you to soak your hands in blood." Lin Ruoxi sighed before she reached out for Yang Chen's right hand as she continued, "You don't need to kill Li Minghe to avenge me. All I want right now is to see him face justice as the consequence of his actions, that's all. I don't want to see you kill anymore. I can't recognize you when you kill."

Eventually, she cracked Yang Chen as he gave a frustrated smile. "Well, I guess you succeeded this time. If I knew it would end like this, I would've kept it from you and finished him up somewhere remote. I promise you if he's not doing anything over the line, I will ensure that he faces trial. But know that if he steps one toe out of the line again, I will not be responsible for what happens."

Lin Ruoxi seemed a little weary as she nodded. "Alright, if he really does threaten you then I guess there's no other way."

Yang Chen knew deep down that Li Minghe was prone to resistance. So it was only a matter of time before he ended his life. But to have Lin Ruoxi concern about his killing tendencies on his behalf was quite unsettling.

For someone of a standard civilized society, the thought of a dead person is truly a horrifying sight to behold. It prompted him to reconsider the thoughts of the people around him before he resorted to murder. Even the slightest move would be a gargantuan shock towards Lin Ruoxi.

As they were debating, their vehicle arrived at Yu Lei International, and at this very moment, Mo Qianni called. But this time, the call was for Lin Ruoxi.

Chapter 698 - Doing Everything Possible

As the night settled in Zhonghai, the street lights of the city were lit. But the natural work hours were extended due to the huge crisis faced by Yu Lei International as their employees were discouraged to leave on time. In the center of it, all was Mo Qianni. She was trying to put out all the fires as they started.

Lin Ruoxi picked up the phone, and before Mo Qianni could speak, she asked, "Nasdaq is open now, how's the situation?"

Mo Qianni through the phone sounded fatigued and distressed. "How should I put it? The situation is much worse than predicted."

"I'm here at the company. Will be there soon. For now, just roughly describe the situation," Lin Ruoxi replied.

"Just minutes after the stock market opened, our share price has plummeted for almost eight percent and it is still falling. Many are flooding the market with our share."

Lin Ruoxi frowned from the unexpectedly dire condition. "That fast huh..."

Mo Qianni sighed, "I wasn't aware of recent financial news earlier but apparently the American financial reports showed poor performances during the last few days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average has fallen for nearly one percent, while the S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq Composite were also at identical lows. Everyone is extremely wary right now of the stock market's situation. It didn't take long for the crowd to notice that something's off."

Lin Ruoxi clenched her phone as she replied, "Alright, try not to engage on any countermeasure at the moment. I'll be back to handle the remaining tasks. Qianni, I need you to reassure our employees that we're doing fine."

"Got it, please come back soon. I'm about to go mad. That Li Minghe left all his responsibilities to me at this crucial hour and he is nowhere to be seen." Mo Qianni was wrought up.

Lin Ruoxi glanced over at Yang Chen before she gave her final order and ended the call.

As the car navigated into the parking lot, Lin Ruoxi unfastened her seatbelt and said, "I need you to go over to the police station to bring Mingyu back. I know how this may look but right now, I need her help back here if we want a shot at recovering from this mess."

Yang Chen definitely was no professional in the field of finance and economics, but he understood the urgency of the situation which prompted him to nod in agreement. "You lest be worried about this. If the company falls, you can still rely on me."

Lin Ruoxi rolled her eyes at his sweet talk. "You're the one who should relax. No matter how much I lose, I will never ask you for living expenses."

After she ended her sentence, she hopped off the car and jogged to the elevator.

"What a strong, independent woman," Yang Chen happily mumbled to himself as he shook his head. After he saw Lin Ruoxi off, he lowered the car window and signaled someone by the dark corner.

At the shady corner of the parking lot was Fanny as she vaguely nodded to his command, naturally for her keep an eye out on Lin Ruoxi in his absence.

Yang Chen knew it would be unlikely for anyone to come over at this time and threaten Lin Ruoxi's safety in broad daylight, but prevention is better than cure. Moreover, with Fanny acting as his eyes, no matter what tacky situation were to happen, he would be back in an instant.

Soon after, he drove towards the police station. Even though it was a small task that he could undoubtedly get someone to do in his stead, he wanted to be the one to personally escort Liu Mingyu out of the station.

Along the way, his phone started vibrating.

Yang Chen picked up the call, and it was Molin on the other side of the line.

"Found anything?" Yang Chen wanted to hear about Li Minghe's detailed background.

Molin answered with a yes and with some degree of disbelief, he said, "Your Majesty, I got to admit I was a tad bit amazed by the results. Li Minghe's actual background was far more complicated than expected, from his great-grandfather onwards. It would seem like he and you share some commonalities."

"With me?" Yang Chen was puzzled.

"Exactly. To be more precise, his bloodline is very much intertwined with the Yang clan of Beijing. He also has close ties with Madam Persephone, though certain details are yet to be verified. Due to the sheer number of people and incidents involved, it might be a little... inappropriate to be discussed on the phone. I arranged an email for you, is that fine?" Molin elaborated.

Annoyed, Yang Chen said, "Then why are you wasting time going around the bush? Send it quickly!"

Molin agreed profusely and in a matter of seconds, an email was sent to Yang Chen's inbox.

Yang Chen hung up the phone immediately and went to the mail app on his phone, one hand on the wheels while the other scrolling through the crucial email.

Yang Chen's facial expression shifted through many emotions as he read the email. It went from the original anxiety to seriousness, then gradually to a face filled with astonishment and bewilderment.

After he went through all of it, Yang Chen forced his phone into his pocket, his other hand furiously hitting the steering wheel as he cursed. It took some time before he could gather his thoughts to calm down.

Meanwhile, at Yu Lei's headquarters, Lin Ruoxi who had made her way back into the office sat right at the commanding seat at the far end of the meeting table. She took a look around the table at the people seated around it. Her employees, mainly from the finance and accounting departments, were firefighting through ever-growing problems resulted from the catastrophic event.

Mo Qianni and her team of executive employees were frustratedly seated along the table as multiple projectors showed countless constantly updated data and news. It was safe to say that the atmosphere was a heavy one

The staff members were aware that the company's share price was falling uncontrollably, as multiple collaborators and significant business partners kept Yu Lei's phone lines active. All in all, things were massively out of hand.

The previous excitement from the safe return of their leader Lin Ruoxi quickly dissipated as everyone fell back into this battle of company survival.

Under such circumstances, Li Minghe and Wu Yue's absence had been the least of their concerns.

"Ruoxi, if this goes on, within less than half an hour our stocks would plummet through the twenty-percent baseline!" Mo Qianni dispiritedly notified.

Lin Ruoxi kept her silence as her pupils were locked onto the data displayed. Her elegant face was devoid of any emotion as one of her hands was held towards her supple lips, seemingly in deep thought about something.

Several of the executive board were disheartened at their current situation. Even when the company had been through two monumental crises, they ultimately managed to cruise through with Lin Ruoxi's brilliance. But this time, it was clear that the situation was vastly different from the previous two in a bad way.

The previous two crises were mainly due to financial shortcomings, which at most had only led to decreased revenues, losing some competitive advantage.

However, this time, the corporation under the preexisting circumstances of decreased competitive advantage and uncertain future had to deal with ongoing destructive setbacks.

Just when the others could only hope for divine intervention, Lin Ruoxi lightly sighed before she gave her order. "Department Head Wei, pass a message to the financial management department. When our share price falls to fifteen percent, purchase two to five thousand units using separate accounts. Repeat the purchase every ten to fifteen minutes. Alternate these purchases via at least a hundred accounts."

"Huh?" Department Head Wei was stunned.

Lin Ruoxi frowned. "What, you want me to repeat?"

"Erm, no no no..." Department Head Wei smiled stiffly. "Boss Lin, the problem is if we do that, it wouldn't do any good for our current situation. There are tons of investors getting rid of our shares in the hundreds of thousands. We would hardly be doing anything to help the downward trend."

"All you need is execute my instruction. I did not ask for your explanation," Lin Ruoxi stoically replied.

Department Head Wei gulped as he ran out to give orders to his department.

Mo Qianni warily added, "Ruoxi, I understand that you're anxious. But Department Head Wei is right. There's really no reason to do that."

Lin Ruoxi gave out a long sigh. "I'm aware of that, but I'm doing everything possible to deal with this while we wait for what the heavens want us to experience... Qianni, I need you to schedule appointments with the CEOs of the biggest banks. We need to make sure our funds are sufficient and fluid."

Mo Qianni puzzlingly nodded. "Understood. Oh yeah, should we transfer a portion of our funds to the Athena team? Maybe they could help."

Lin Ruoxi shook her head. "There's no use relying on traders in this situation. Look, even the investors who have bought our stocks at sky-high prices are now willingly selling them at a price so low. That's because they're all aware that they would only lose more should they hold the stocks instead. Not even the Athena team can change the perspective of the general public towards us. Now what we could do is to push our operations back on track. I will discuss with the others to modify the issues of acquisition and allocation. We can do this."

Mo Qianni struggled to align herself with Lin Ruoxi's plan, but deep down she knew it was the only viable way, so she turned around and left the conference room.

The world's economy all had their attention focused on the east tonight while Yu Lei International's branches across the globe received the impactful blow, causing the immense pressure to build up!

Their close competitors were clearly rejoicing with the seemingly dire situation over at Yu Lei International. The corporation which had dominated through various sectors were on the verge of collapse, while others sympathized with the inherent bad luck bestowed upon the company.

There were even certain spectators predicting that among all assets owned by Yu Lei International, only the entertainment branch company would survive the catastrophe. That was because solely based on Lin Hui's phenomenal influence, the company could rake in huge amounts of revenue over the foreseeable years.

In this silent yet chaotic night, by the ocean of Zhonghai lay multiple sanatorium-like villas built by the Chinese government. While the disaster took place, inside one of those villas was an entirely different story...

Chapter 699 - A Righteous Father

There were armed militants who patrolled the area, marching to the sounds of a whistle. However, upon closer inspection, this wasn't a military base. Or any military training camp for that matter. It was just a retirement facility for militants, with several identical venues scattered all over the country. Needless to say, places like these were usually left vacant and under-maintained.

And by its side facing the coast, a mansion stood visibly well-lit on the first floor.

A huge Mediterranean-made rug covered much of the plywood floor. The light brown leather cushions were coupled with several extravagant redwood pieces of furniture. The corners of the room held masterpieces of renowned sculptors and vintage million-dollar paintings.

In the center of it all was a huge mounted television where the financial news of foreign satellite broadcasts was showing. There were two smaller monitors with constantly updating stock market data flanking its sides.

Right across the room was a man with the top of his shirt unbuttoned, as he lazed on the couch with a glass of blood-red wine on his hand. He was visibly satisfied with what was shown on the screens.

Not too far from the man was a pale, skinny woman equally concentrated at the news. But her facial expressions were quite different, ranging from anxiety to worry.

They were none other than Li Minghe on a temporary retreat from the storm he created, and Wu Yue who was knocked unconscious and forcefully brought along.

At this moment, the latest updates from the news were in regards to a small amount of Yu Lei shares being purchased on Nasdaq.

Li Minghe saw the headlines and broke into laughter. "Wow, I guess Lin Ruoxi is truly desperate to fake some individual buyers to repurchase her stocks. What good does she really think it is going to do? What a delusional idiot. Yue'er, come over and take a look at your charismatic, perfect Boss Lin. Turns out she was just an ordinary person like everybody else."

Wu Yue pitifully turned towards him and questioned, "Minghe, why are you doing this? How would Yu Lei's bankruptcy benefit you?"

Li Minghe unwaveringly replied, "I never said I wanted Yu Lei to crumble. I just want to witness the fall of Lin Ruoxi. Once the plan has achieved its expected outcome, Lin Ruoxi would no longer be worthy for the role of Yu Lei's CEO. That's when I will return to play the role of hero."

Wu Yue was horrified at his words. "Why would you want to do that?"

Li Minghe sneered, "Yu Lei International is nothing but a corporation too small for my appetite. But then again, I don't expect you to understand my ambitions. Besides, I'm just taking back what was rightfully mine."

"You're crazy... Why are you..." Wu Yue was overwhelmed by the things she had uncovered. She panickingly stood up and declared, "Minghe, I'm going to go back to support Boss Lin! Even if this is a lost cause, I'd still give my all to make sure... make sure you never get what you want."

Wu Yue upon finishing dashed towards the exit of the mansion.

Li Minghe instantly tossed his wine glass aside as the red wine spilled all over the redwood tiles, while he simultaneously latched onto Wu Yue and embraced her from the back.

Wu Yue struggled to break free but to no avail. She tried to bite his shoulder but he was persistent in keeping her there.

She ultimately broke into tears and lifted her head. "Minghe, let me go. Please stop this madness right now."

Li Minghe eyes were filled with fury as he taunted, "Why, do you not love me anymore? Does it really pain you to see me get better? Is Lin Ruoxi that much more important to you than I am?"

Wu Yue blankly stared at the man she once loved before she shook her head. "You're not comparing apples to apples. Boss Lin is my senior. You're the man I love. I cannot allow you to continue falling into this trench. I don't want to sit by and watch you go mad."

Li Minghe sternly replied, "You need to know, in my plans, you're nothing but a chess piece. A pawn that only has so much use before I discard it..."

Wu Yue was stunned, feeling a heart-wrenching pain.

"But," Li Minghe let out a long breath, "I have ultimately decided to take you here with me."

Wu Yue's body trembled as her breathing sped up.

Li Minghe had a bitter smile as he replied, "Yue'er, do you not know how I feel about you? I know I used you. But right now, I really want you by my side. Once I become the CEO of Yu Lei or achieve even greater things, you'll be Mrs Li! It definitely sounds a lot better than the puny assistant position you're getting right now."

Wu Yue held her head low as teardrops trickled down on the carpet. She stayed in that position for a while before finally lifting up her head up as she said, "Thank you... for clarifying. I'm glad to hear that from you. No matter what you do, or what you've become, I will still love you."

Li Minghe happily replied, "You mean—"

"Sorry!" Wu Yue continued before he could finish, "Despite how much I really want us to last, I still need to return to Yu Lei, to assist Boss Lin. I am a naive little idiot with an insignificant position. But it would still be wrong to sit here idly while Yu Lei sinks."

"Why would you throw my heart away for a woman I hate to my guts?" Li Minghe went unhinged as he furiously shook Wu Yue's body.

Wu Yue meanwhile sympathetically stared at the man as he descended into lunacy. Smiling, she answered, "That's because, more than anything, I wish that the child inside me will have a righteous father..."

The entire living room went dead silent—the only noise was that of the broadcasted cable news.

Li Minghe froze upon hearing those words, his eyes filled with nothing but confusion and bewilderment.

Under the same night sky in Zhonghai, Yang Chen adjusted his emotions before getting off the car and walking into the police station. He was frustrated with the abnormally high frequency of visits he had made to the police stations recently. One might think that he was trying to forge a relationship with the police.

Just as he was considering the potential interactions he could have with the police, while also contemplating on how to comfort Liu Mingyu after that incident, a familiar silhouette of elegance and charm strolled out from the police station.

In her full office attire was Liu Mingyu. She looked identical to when she was escorted away that noon. The only difference was the added fatigue in her pupils.

Staring at the man standing right at the end of descending steps, Liu Mingyu was bewildered for moments before she eventually sped up on her footsteps as she dashed towards him. "Yang Chen, why are you here?"

"Stop running, you're wearing heels." Yang Chen held his woman on the waist as he scanned her from top to bottom. When he realized there was nothing wrong, he curiously asked, "I found evidence to prove that you were not at fault. I rushed my way here to pick you up. But why did they let you out early?"

Liu Mingyu was electrified as she questioned, "Who? What evidence?"

Yang Chen briefly summarised how Li Mingyu manipulated the hard disk from a photostat machine to get access to the classified documents. As for Lin Ruoxi's poisoning, he felt that it would be best discussed at a later time.

Liu Mingyu happily continued, "I knew something was off when he kept coming over to my office. But never would I have guessed that it was a decoy. Actually when I arrived at the police station, Boss Lin had already sent lawyers to defend my rights as a civilian under custody, so there wasn't anything done against me. Just a few simple questions about the details of the incident."

"Ruoxi did that?" Yang Chen was stunned. "Why didn't she tell me about it?"

Liu Mingyu rolled her eyes. "You idiot, you made a huge fuss this noon at the meeting. How could you stand against her in front of so many people? Any wife would be pissed if their husband did that. But she was just calm as a cucumber the whole time. If it was me, I would've stamped on you with my heels!"

Yang Chen giggled embarrassingly. "I just wanted to make sure you were fine as everyone was picking on you."

"Yeah, but that's because the situation was centered around me," Liu Mingyu replied, "Even if I was being falsely accused, I can still keep myself under control. After all, it was for the greater good that I was sent to the police station. In a way, it was a form of protection for me as well as a chance for me to prove my innocence. Do you really think your wife is a nincompoop? If someone as mediocre as you could notice the problem, what makes you think she hasn't? Under such a circumstance, she could only send me over first, then deploy Attorney Zhang to deal with the legalities. This would prevent the attacks on me from escalating, killing two birds with one stone."

Yang Chen was rather annoyed. He understood that he was little brash, notably those that involving his women. Despite how rapid the growth of his cultivation is, his maturity was still rather synonymous with his age.

Liu Mingyu continued, "That's why don't blame Boss Lin for keeping it from you. You were the one that was trying to pick a fight with her."

Yang Chen pouted as he went straight towards her butt cheeks and gave a prolonged pinch, prompting her to coyly moan before worryingly looking around to make sure no one saw it.

"Alright, you can stop now. You have to leave me with some pride intact. I'm not a saint, so making mistakes is normal." Yang Chen smiled awkwardly. "Ruoxi clearly had some embedded intentions when she told me to come pick you up. But let's just keep it short for now. Now that you're fine, I should take you back to the company. The situation there is worse than ever."

Liu Mingyu understood that the severity of the incident was no joking matter. She hopped into his car and the both of them headed back to Yu Lei's headquarters.

But as he was on his way back, Yang Chen once again received a text message. It was Adeline who was stalking Li Minghe all this while...

Chapter 700 - A Respectable Lifestyle

Yang Chen took a look at it, let out a long sigh, and continued driving.

Liu Mingyu saw part of the message. It was filled to the brim with Italian words. Puzzled, she asked, "Is that a foreign friend of yours?"

Yang Chen smiled vaguely. "I guess you could say that."

"There seems to be something bugging you," Liu Mingyu asked in a concerned tone.

Yang Chen thought for a bit before he said what he had in mind, "Babe, do you think Ruoxi is a brutal and heartless person?"

Liu Mingyu was caught off-guard before she hit Yang Chen incessantly, not knowing how she was supposed to feel. Frustrated, she said, "Why would you ask such a question? And it's even about your wife! I know I'm the third wheel here but don't expect me to talk behind her back!"

Yang Chen forced a smile gloomily. "You misunderstood. I was just casually asking about what you feel about Ruoxi. Not gossip behind her back."

Liu Mingyu gave him the look of despise. She then genuinely thought about her answer before she replied, "If I really have to answer, I feel that... it's true half of the time."

"Hmm?"

Liu Mingyu continued, "Boss Lin is definitely not a weak-minded person, to say the least. Just like the previous crisis over with Goodman in Europe, Boss Lin unhesitatingly drained the swamp. Her actions were surely not for the faint of heart.

"Not to mention the time when she was just promoted to the CEO, I had just joined the company for a little over a year. She unapologetically flushed out highly ranked senior employees that were in opposition through direct and indirect ways. She drove them out from the company despite all the work they had done in the past for the benefit of the company.

"If that wasn't the case, Boss Lin wouldn't have owned more than ninety percent of the company's shares in the past. A large majority of that came from the hands of our former major shareholders, some of whom even had to declare bankruptcy because of her..."

Yang Chen was a little surprised as he smiled bitterly. "No wonder she had such a huge slice of the company all to herself. Turns out she robbed the other investors of their shares. Tsk tsk, it's no wonder that she's made so many enemies along the way."

Liu Mingyu rolled her eyes. "Well, she earned it herself, didn't she? In the business world, a loss is a loss. While many hate her for her merciless personality, they all genuinely rever her competence."

Yang Chen nodded. "Then what about the other half?"

"The other half would be..." Ling Mingyu smiled before she continued, "That any employee who could dedicate their heart and soul for the company will be acknowledged and highly rewarded. Oh yeah, not to mention the charitable contributions made by Yu Lei International have ranked top 3 within the country year after year. Boss Lin didn't want publicize them either, so the media rarely report on it. But we, being in the management, are all aware."

Yang Chen too was aware of this side of hers. After all, Lin Ruoxi would periodically visit orphanages to meet the children. As time went by, it was evident that she did it with full sincerity.

"All in all, I personally feel that with business rivalry and competition aside, Boss Lin truly has a side of her that's genuinely loving and kind. Here's the most obvious of all examples, while Qianni and I have ties with her husband, she has never lost her trust towards either of us. I don't believe that a person like that could mistreat their loved ones, which is why I said she's not always cold and stern." Liu Mingyu chuckled before she mumbled, "Oh please don't tell her about anything I said here. I wouldn't want to risk being fired."

Yang Chen forcefully cracked a smile, but at that moment he felt guilty nonetheless. Liu Mingyu was right. Even for a walking scum like Lin Kun, Lin Ruoxi couldn't bear to watch him die, in certain ways she truly had a heart of gold.

"What if, I want to protect her but in the process hurt someone whom she cares a lot about. What do you think she'd do?" Yang Chen asked casually.

"What do you plan to do?" Liu Mingyu immediately caught the deeper meaning in his question.

"Nothing, it was a hypothetical question." Yang Chen quickly brushed it off.

Liu Mingyu hesitated for a moment before she continued, "If there really is something, I'd suggest you not to do it. Boss Lin has a headstrong personality. Even if she doesn't end up hating you, she might need some time before she can move on from it."

Yang Chen slowly exhaled, unwilling to speak no more.

As sending Liu Mingyu to the office, Yang Chen looked for a secluded corner and made a call to Adeline.

Adeline who had been tailing Li Minghe instantly reported everything she observed, "Your Majesty Pluto, I genuinely apologize but I'm temporarily unable to approach the mansion. Instead of the usual common infantry presence, it would seem like they have a team of special ops personnel guarding the mansion. I would definitely be discovered if I move any closer. But if you need to me to disarm these men I would gladly do so. I just need a little bit of time."

"That's not necessary, they're not the enemy. You just need to keep an eye for any movement in and out the mansion. You may call Molin for reinforcements. Make sure any contact between Li Minghe and the outside world be closely monitored," Yang Chen ordered.

"Noted!"

After he ended the call, Yang Chen was contemplating over his next move. If he were to show up at where Li Minghe was hiding right now, there actually wasn't much that could be done. After all, the biggest issues were at Yu Lei.

Even though it was possible to pump tens of billions into the investment funds to potentially save the situation, it clearly wasn't very practical.

The problem was not money, but the image of the company and Lin Ruoxi herself, a move her pride wouldn't allow her to do.

As long as Li Minghe's mastermind had yet to appear, Yang Chen was not in a hurry to swoop the net. Even if Yu Lei couldn't escape this crisis, he had to make sure the perpetrator would pay the price.

Meanwhile in Beijing, compared to the other dominant clans, the Ning clan had the closest ties to the government. Excluding their vacant ancestral home, their residing estates were located by the edge of the government offices. The modern design blended into its office surroundings.

Immediately after getting home from the premier's office, Ning Guangyao rushed straight to his study room without taking any time to rest.

After hanging his coat, he flipped his laptop open to browse the latest news. At the top of the page was none other than the chaos at Yu Lei International.

Ning Guangyao frowned deeply before he abruptly grabbed his phone by his side and dialed up a number.

The call got connected within a few seconds. The noise of women's scream and loud music could be heard.

As the surroundings were noisy, the man yelled over the phone, "Premier Ning, what brought you to dial me up at this hour I wonder?"

Ning Guangyao was disgusted and distraught as he grunted, "Minister Jin, as a core member of the central government, I strongly recommend you to uphold a respectable lifestyle."

The minister laughed hysterically as he replied, "Oh my mistake, Premier Ning. I just happened to reunite with an old schoolmate. Nevertheless, I'll take your advice in mind!"

Ning Guangyao was visibly in a hurry to pass the message through as he continued, "I just found out this afternoon that something happened in Zhonghai, am I right? Being in the management of the Banking Regulatory Commission, has Minister Jin taken any counter-measures in regards to that, I wonder?"

Minister Kim gave a delayed reply, presumably in the influence of alcohol. "The one you sir are talking about is the crisis over at Yu Lei International right? Oh, that is a huge problem no doubt, but all in all, to maintain healthy competition between businesses, we can only make sure the banks remain neutral."

"Yu Lei is the kingpin among all Zhonghai enterprises. Its survival is undoubtedly intertwined with the economy of Beijing as well! We mustn't let it collapse just like this! Minister Kim, make sure all major banks offer effective support towards the company. I expect you to be active on this matter," Ning Guangyao lectured.

Minister Kim, however, was rather dumbfounded at his decision but nonetheless could sense his urgency on the matter. Thus, he obediently agreed, "Al—alright... Premier Ning has a valid point. I will order my subordinates to arrange financial support for Yu Lei accordingly."

Ning Guangyao aggressively snorted before he resolutely hung up.

As he calmed himself down, Ning Guangyao worryingly trotted in circles around his room before he ultimately stopped.

He silently retrieved his suitcase, and searched through the contents for a yellowed photo, in it was the face of a mesmerizing girl.

Right at this moment, the voice of a woman could be heard from outside the room. "Guangyao, are you in there? I'm coming in now..."