Xu Lang's secretary poured her some water.
"How long has Chairman Xu been inside?" Scarlett asked.
"It's been about twenty minutes," the female secretary replied.
Are all the colleagues from each department here today? How many female colleagues are there?
The female secretary thought she was concerned about the beautiful finance manager and Xu Lang getting close. "Almost everyone is here, but there are only two female colleagues inside, the director of the new project and Ms. Zhou. The director of the new project just returned from maternity leave, and Ms. Zhou just came out after receiving a phone call, so it seems she's not here now."
Scarlett, who was casually rubbing the rim of her paper cup, paused upon hearing this. "How long has she been gone?"
"We were right behind each other, probably less than a minute apart."
Scarlett frowned. If Zhou Luming got off the elevator, she could have used the direct elevator to go up and down with her authority. However, there was only one direct elevator. She did not see Zhou Luming when she came up, so Zhou Luming should not have gone downstairs.
Where did she go?
Scarlett took out her phone and found the signal was poor. To maintain secrecy, the Zhou Group's senior management would use signal jammers during meetings. Zhou Luming received the call, but finding the signal weak, she would go to…
Scarlett put down her paper cup, stood up, and took out a cigarette, about to light it, when her secretary stopped her. "Excuse me, Ms. Scarlett, smoking is prohibited in the building. Otherwise, it will trigger the smoke alarm."
“Then I’ll go up to the rooftop to smoke.” Scarlett took the cigarette case and went up the emergency staircase.
If Zhou Luming didn't go downstairs and needed to receive a cell phone signal, he would most likely choose to go upstairs. Scarlett quickly climbed the stairs and pushed open the iron door to the rooftop.
As expected, Zhou Luming was here.
Unexpectedly, Xu Yan was also here.
"Ahem, you two conspired to lure me out?" Scarlett smiled, a smirk playing on her lips. It was too late to turn back now. Thinking it over, coming here today was indeed impulsive; she should have been more rational and restrained. If she had just calmed down and thought things through carefully, she could have figured out all the suspicious details.
“Thanks to your concern for me, we found you so quickly. Although I guessed it was you, I still don’t understand why it was you?” Zhou Luming stepped forward and asked Scarlett.
Xu Yan stood upright with his hands in his pockets, like a statue.
Scarlett shrugged and said, “You should thank your dad and mom. They selflessly donated money and established a foundation that has helped many people like me. Some of them want to repay them, like me. I heard you’ve returned to China, and I happen to be with Xu Lang, so I want to help you as much as I can, at least to save your life.”
Zhou Luming: "So, you chose me over Xu Lang?"
Scarlett: "That's not necessarily true."
Zhou Luming: "Oh? Then I'm disappointed. I thought you treated me differently, sister."
Scarlett raised an eyebrow at her and said with interest, "Don't you already have Miss Xu? Aren't you satisfied?"
Zhou Luming smiled, "Xu Yan is more than enough."
"And how does that compare to the Zhou Group?"
“Of course Xu Yan is more important,” Zhou Luming answered without hesitation. She added in her mind that even the Zhou Group belonged to Xu Yan, so of course she was more important.
As the topic veered off course, Xu Yan interjected, "Who are the painters of the two oil paintings in your exhibition?"
Scarlett: "I drew it."
"Why did you paint those two pictures? Was it something you witnessed?" Xu Yan pressed.
Scarlett shook her head. "I didn't have the money to go abroad back then, so I didn't witness that disaster. The content of these two paintings is actually based on two photographs that I saw by chance and bought. But the source is untraceable and unsearchable."
Xu Yan frowned, again finding no way to track down or find the source of the information.
Where did you see those two photos?
"I saw that Xu Lang had logged into an account on his computer in his study and forgot to log out."
"Do you have instantaneous memory?" Xu Yan asked.
"Probably. I can visualize things I see at a glance and store them in my mind," Scarlett said. "That's also why I do well in my studies."
"Do you remember Xu Lang's account and website?"
“I don’t know, because the page URL was incomplete at the time. The account required clicking on the avatar to see the login page, but I didn’t have time to operate the computer, and it would have been very unsafe to do so,” Scarlett replied.
Xu Yan: "Thank you for answering our questions."
Scarlett: "I didn't really help much. I told you everything I knew, so I have a clear conscience. But don't tell me your plans either. I won't do anything for you. I don't want to let Xu Lang down again because of this, after all, he's my husband now."
“But—” Zhou Luming wanted to persuade Scarlett, after all, she was someone who worked for Xu Lang, and if she could help, everything would go much more smoothly.
Xu Yan stopped Zhou Luming and said to Scarlett, "We won't look for you anymore. We'll find out the truth on our own. But thank you anyway, you helped us get closer to the truth."
Scarlett turned her back to them and said, "You're welcome."
Looking up at the deep blue iron gate and the distant sky, Scarlett felt the burden on her shoulders lighten, and she felt more relaxed.
Best of luck to you.
She thought to herself.
After leaving the Zhou Group building and returning to her car, she took out her old cell phone, removed the SIM card, and destroyed it. She had bribed Lao Liu to report Zhou Luming's whereabouts in order to secretly protect her. After reminding him several times, and finally having her identity exposed today, Scarlett felt she had fulfilled her duty. From now on, their affairs were no longer her concern, and she no longer needed to contact Lao Liu to monitor Zhou Luming.
But the Zhou Group is about to face another bloody storm.
Scarlett drove off with the engine roaring, blowing away the parking ticket that was stuck under the windshield wipers. When the parking attendant came running at the sound, he only saw the back of the car disappearing into the distance.
The parking attendant stood in the parking space, muttering to himself, "I never thought such a beautiful woman, driving such a luxury car, would try to evade parking fees, damn it!"
Meanwhile, in the underground parking garage, Xu Yan said, "Let's go find Wang Anjing to deal with the surveillance footage installed in Xu Lang's office. The camera won't last long and may be discovered soon, so we need to hurry up and get it done."
“Okay, then hold on tight.” Zhou Luming’s eyes gleamed.
Xu Yan felt a chill run down her spine as she looked at her expression. "Even if you're in a hurry, you still need to obey traffic rules, be mindful of moderation, and pay attention to traffic restrictions."
The light in Zhou Luming's eyes immediately went out. She had indeed lost many points due to her lack of self-control, and the few points she had left made her very upset.
"Xu Yan, when will you be able to drive?"
I don't drive.
Zhou Luming winked mischievously, "We can't drive outside, so shall we drive at home?"
Xu Yan vaguely sensed that there might be a deeper meaning behind those words, but she usually only browsed the news online and knew very little about internet slang. Without understanding Zhou Luming's true meaning, Xu Yan wouldn't speak rashly for fear of being laughed at by him, so she remained silent.
Zhou Luming started the car, saying, "If you stay silent, I'll take that as your consent, okay? I'm really looking forward to getting this done and going home quickly."
Xu Yan frowned, sensing something was wrong, but she didn't dwell on it for long; they needed to get Wang Anjing's records.
Chapter 85
===================
When I called Wang Anjing on the way, she said, "I'm in a coffee shop. Come find me here."
Zhou Luming turned the steering wheel sharply and quickly made a U-turn towards a chain coffee shop that Wang Anjing had indicated. Xu Yan almost fell on top of Zhou Luming. Looking up, Xu Yan saw that Zhou Luming's lips were curled up, clearly intentionally.
"Why is Sister Anjing in a coffee shop at this hour? Did she skip work like me?"
"Something might have happened," Xu Yan said. With Yuan Universe Technology's stock price fluctuating wildly, and Wang Anjing hiding outside at this time, something urgent must have occurred.
They found Wang Anjing on the second floor of a coffee shop located on the street in a shopping mall. Wang Anjing was sitting in a corner with bright floor-to-ceiling windows on both sides, where she could see passersby coming and going.
Zhou Luming came over with a smile and said, "Sister Anjing, are you planning to become a secret agent or hide from your debts? If you don't mind, I can lend you my office at the Zhou Group headquarters. Anyway, I'm not going there."
Xu Yan had just ended the call: "Someone is targeting the shares of Metaverse Technology. Are you hiding here now because they've found something to use against you?"
Seeing two young and energetic women approaching, Wang Anjing's mood improved: "I'm a tech guy, and it took me a whole week to realize that someone had hacked into the company's security system. Can you believe how embarrassing that is? I don't even dare to go back to the company and use the company network now. I've fled here with my computer to access the backup cloud server and am doing anti-hacking work with trepidation... In short, if this gets out, I'll become a laughing stock in the industry, and Yuan Universe's stock will become a junk stock."
This is indeed a tricky matter; it's a major incident.
Zhou Luming pulled a chair from the next table and pushed Xu Yan to sit down.
It was peak time for customers at the coffee shop. When Zhou Luming asked if anyone was seated, the boy at the next table shyly replied "no." He had been expecting Zhou Luming to sit opposite him, so he politely took his backpack from the chair and made room for him. However, Zhou Luming pulled the chair over and sat at another table.
The boy, clutching his backpack, immediately deflated, regretting that he hadn't managed to strike up a conversation with the pretty girl.
Xu Yan was pressed down into a chair by Zhou Luming.
"Who would dare to touch Sister Anjing's Metaverse Technology?" Zhou Luming leaned back in his chair, his elbows resting on the chair. Suddenly, a name popped into his head. "Could it be that S from the dark web?"
S, posing as Wang Anjing's assistant, sabotaged Xu Yan's family's security system, blew up their car, and even stole some instant noodles. Zhou Luming was furious whenever she thought of her. She had caused him to burn half his hair, making his hairstyle look terrible. What was even more infuriating was that she had caused Xu Yan to be injured and hospitalized. If she didn't avenge this, she would feel ashamed of all the days she spent on the streets.
Xu Yan calmly asked, "Sister Anjing, can you access the dark web?"
Wang Anjing said, "It is possible to get in, but it is almost impossible to find people on the dark web."
The dark web is characterized by its high level of encryption, which has bred rampant darkness and depravity. Although the authorities have repeatedly tried to use technical means to crack down on these groups living on the dark web, they have all failed.
Although Wang Anjing is a highly skilled hacker, she is still no match for the entire dark web.
"Instead of cracking the dark web system, we'll post a mission announcement there," Xu Yan said.
Wang Anjing seemed thoughtful. "You mean you're saying the mission is to lure S into appearing on their own?" A slow smile crept onto her lips. She had to admit that Xu Yan's reverse thinking was quite creative. Since these people living on the dark web make a living by offering bounties, why not use high rewards to lure them into betraying their accomplices?
“On the dark web, everyone uses Bitcoin to trade in order to hide their identities. Luckily, I have some savings.” Wang Anjing said as she typed rapidly on the keyboard. A series of characters flashed on the screen. “Okay, the bounty has been posted, the bait has been laid, and we’re just waiting for the fish to take the bait.”
After finishing her work, Wang Anjing leaned back in her chair and glanced at the two of them, asking, "By the way, what brings you two to me today?"
Xu Yan: "The situation is urgent. We need your help to access and analyze the surveillance footage from Xu Lang's office."
Wang Anjing looked up. "Once the surveillance footage from Xu Lang's office is accessed, it will be detected and traces will be found. In other words, we only have one chance to view and save the footage. Are you sure you want to view it now? Can't you wait?"
Xu Yan nodded, "I'm sure I want to see it now."
Many things were pressing, and there were vaguely ominous signs. Although Xu Yan had never believed in fate, he now decided to deal with them quickly before fate arrived.
Wang Anjing turned her gaze away and asked Zhou Luming with her eyes.
Zhou Luming said nonchalantly, "Don't look at me, Xu Yan's meaning is my meaning."
Wang Anjing smiled and said, "sosweet." Noticing the blush on Xu Yan's ears, she added, "socute." Without further ado, she opened a backdoor in the Zhou Group's network to access the surveillance system and download the monitoring records.
"It will take about 2 minutes," Wang Anjing said, looking at the progress on the computer screen. "It's already 64% complete."
Xu Yan asked worriedly, "Is it too late?"
“Under normal circumstances, there’s plenty of time. Although the IT department of the Zhou Group is excellent, they will be more cautious when it comes to their respected Chairman Xu. As you know, the style and practices of such established companies are very lengthy. Many things need to be reported layer by layer and cannot be reported to higher levels. By the time the old-fashioned procedures are completed, these two minutes will have already passed. Mr. Zhou, don’t you agree?” Wang Anjing looked at the progress on the screen.
Zhou Luming nodded with a smile, "Yes, Sister Anjing is indeed very familiar with the routines of old companies."
Xu Yan stared at his watch.
Zhou Luming stared at Xu Yan's neck and her profile.
Tsk, so cute.