“Hello, hello?” Xia Jun’s voice echoed through the spacious bathroom, repeatedly calling out, “Young master, young master? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Tao Fengche took a deep breath, stood up, and stepped out of the bathtub. He bent down to pick up his phone from the floor. The phone had hit the ground too hard earlier, and cracks spread across the screen like a spider web. He swiped the screen a couple of times—it was a bit slow to respond, but still usable. Thankfully, the inner display didn’t seem to be damaged.

Misfortunes never come singly.

Tao Fengche sighed silently, wiped the water droplets off the screen with a towel, while Xia Jun’s concerned voice continued through the earpiece, “Young master, did something happen just now?”

“I was washing up. I left the phone on the sink, and the surface was too slippery, so it accidentally fell to the ground.”

Tao Fengche turned on the speaker and responded half-truthfully. Xia Jun, relieved to learn that it was the phone making the loud noise rather than Tao Fengche himself, relaxed.

“You’ve worked hard. You did a good job. It’s late now, so find a hotel nearby to sleep for the night. Come back after you’ve rested tomorrow morning. I’ll transfer the hotel fee to you, and you can get the plane ticket reimbursed when you return,” Tao Fengche said. Still not entirely reassured, he added, “Wait until your original leave ends before you return to the Tao family. And don’t mention anything that happened today to anyone.”

“Don’t worry, young master, I know what to do.”

After Xia Jun’s firm response, Tao Fengche finally hung up the call, and then struggled to navigate the shattered screen, opening his social media app.

He had intended to transfer 2,000 yuan to Xia Jun, but hesitated when entering the password. He went back and changed the amount to 1,000 yuan—his bank account was still frozen, and his monthly living expenses limit was stuck at 1,000 yuan. He hadn’t been spending much in recent months, and he had sold a small amount of gold he had bought for fun the other day. Still, his available funds totaled less than 20,000 yuan… He needed to be careful with his spending.

After transferring the money, he placed the phone on the shelf next to the bathtub and returned, exhausted, to the water.

Interrogation hadn’t even officially begun, yet Liu Tianlei, who was under intensive care in the ICU, somehow managed to get hold of a dining fork and committed suicide. Meanwhile, a traditional Chinese medicine factory that Sui Yuesheng’s people were supposed to have shut down over half a month ago was still operating. And then there was the mastermind Liu Tianlei had mentioned, someone high up… Sui Yuesheng was becoming increasingly suspicious.

But for some inexplicable reason, Tao Fengche found himself unwilling to suspect him.

Maybe his brother didn’t know about the artificial pheromone situation and just thought someone was smuggling drugs, not realizing the severity of it. He got too busy after returning from his business trip and simply forgot. Maybe Liu Tianlei just found the fork somewhere…

But how was that even possible? Sui Yuesheng was always meticulous, and Liu Tianlei’s hospital room was heavily guarded. Based on Tao Fengche’s knowledge of their family’s bodyguards, they would have searched even the flies before letting them into the room.

This theory didn’t make sense at all, and the only clue he had pointed directly to Sui Yuesheng’s involvement.

Tao Fengche’s mind was in chaos, tangled like a pair of earphone wires that had been left in a pocket for over half a month. He couldn’t find any clear thread, let alone unravel it. He couldn’t figure it out, and the pain in his temples began to throb, as if someone were drilling into his skull.

The pain was so intense that it made him nauseous. His head was spinning, and for once, he even felt an urge to escape.

—There were too many problems, too many mysteries, and his head was about to split open. Maybe he should just drown himself and be done with it.

That bizarre thought suddenly crossed his mind, and he deliberately submerged himself underwater.

But when his lungs had consumed all their air, he eventually resurfaced. His chest hurt like it was about to explode, and he clung to the edge of the bathtub, coughing violently. After catching his breath and inhaling the fresh air, feeling like he had returned to the world of the living, his phone rang again.

Another call?

He was already agitated—couldn’t they just leave him alone for a moment?

Tao Fengche furrowed his brows, his lips tight with irritation, as he glanced at the caller ID—Wang Yuan.

They had been friends for so many years that just by looking at the time, Tao Fengche could guess the reason for the call. At this hour, Wang Yuan was either calling because he couldn’t finish his homework and wanted to copy, or he had finished his homework and wanted to play video games.

Tao Fengche rarely refused Wang Yuan, but he was in no mood today. If it was about copying homework, that was fine, but he really wasn’t up for gaming. However, Wang Yuan was never good at picking up on signals and could be quite persistent. Just thinking about it made Tao Fengche’s temples throb again. He didn’t feel like answering.

But friends are friends, and this matter had nothing to do with Wang Yuan, who had even helped him a lot…

Tao Fengche wrestled with his thoughts, but then the ringing abruptly stopped.

—Well, now it’s not my fault for not answering.

Tomorrow, if Wang Yuan asked, he’d just say he was in the shower, with his phone charging in the bedroom.

Tao Fengche quickly came up with a convenient excuse and was about to put the phone down when it rang again—Wang Yuan wasn’t giving up and called once more.

…No avoiding it.

Tao Fengche sighed silently and pressed the answer and speaker buttons, ready to tell Wang Yuan that he wasn’t feeling well if he brought up gaming. But today, despite his best efforts to stay calm, his bad mood came through in his voice: “Hello?”

If it had been anyone else, they would have been scared stiff by Tao Fengche’s tone, but Wang Yuan, clearly missing a sensitivity chip, wasn’t like “anyone else.”

Without noticing the irritation, Wang Yuan excitedly started talking at high speed, “Hey, Tao Ge, guess what? I found it!”

“Huh?” Tao Fengche was caught off guard by Wang Yuan’s excitement and instinctively replied, “What did you find?”

“The account!” Wang Yuan said gleefully.

Tao Fengche’s breath caught.

Before he could say anything, he heard a clattering sound on the other end of the line, probably Wang Yuan looking for a drink. A moment later, he heard the sound of gulping followed by a satisfied sigh.

Then, Wang Yuan’s proud voice returned.

“Earlier this afternoon, that private bank had some system maintenance, or maybe something else, but there was a small vulnerability. I was watching closely and immediately seized the chance to slip in. All those large transactions from Zhang Xinyu’s account went to the same recipient. I wrote it down and traced it further.”

“Guess what?” Wang Yuan laughed. “It’s another private bank account, but this one’s in Country A.”

Country A.

Tao Fengche’s vision went black, and his heart began to race, like someone who had climbed for twelve hours to the top of a mountain only to be pushed off the peak. The overwhelming sensation of freefall nearly crushed him.

Country A, the largest nation on the western continent, was also where his school was hosting this year’s summer camp at Z University. When Sui Yuesheng heard the news, he casually mentioned that he had studied at X University, which was next to Z University.

The Tao family’s businesses and markets in the western continent had been established by Tao Fengche’s grandfather. The old man had brought many people along to build his empire, including those handling the overseas markets, but none of them were in Country A—Elder Sun had stayed in Kyushu, his son managed the production base in Country C, and the other elders had similar roles.

Country A was Country A, after all, and the branch there had always been firmly under the Tao family’s direct control.

Ever since Tao Fengche learned that Sui Yuesheng had studied at X University and that Tao Zhixing intended to groom him to assist with managing the company, he had solved the mystery of how Sui Yuesheng had taken to running Tao Corporation so quickly—he must have started managing some of the business while studying in Country A.

And now, the secret recipient, the “mastermind” Liu Tianlei had mentioned, was using an account from Country A.

Each clue was a red flag, and all the evidence pointed toward Sui Yuesheng. It was impossible to ignore anymore.

…But, that account in Country A didn’t necessarily belong to Sui Yuesheng, did it? Country A had hundreds of millions of people, after all. A quiet voice in his mind timidly emerged, weak but firm.

Tao Fengche was silent for a long time. Wang Yuan, having received no reply for a while, tossed his empty soda bottle aside and jokingly asked, “What’s the matter, Tao Ge? Did I shock you with how impressive I am?”

“…Yeah, pretty impressive,” Tao Fengche finally spoke, carefully choosing his words. “Wang Yuan, let me ask you something—are you busy lately?”

“Busy? My life’s so busy it’s practically over! You know I dropped almost fifty ranks in the practice exams. My dad bragged so much, and now he can’t take it back, so he’s ready to kill me. He said if I don’t do well in the monthly exams at the end of this month, he’ll skin me alive…” Wang Yuan rolled his eyes dramatically and complained, then suddenly perked up, “But next Thursday is Mid-Autumn Festival, and with the weekend, we get four days off, so I should be okay.”

As he spoke, he finally noticed something off in Tao Fengche’s tone and cautiously asked, “What’s up, Tao Ge? You need my help again?”

Prepared for a sarcastic reply, he was surprised when Tao Fengche simply answered, “Yes.”

Wang Yuan was so shocked that he shivered all over. As he was wondering if Tao Fengche had taken the wrong medicine, the latter spoke again: “Could you please check the owner of that overseas account as soon as possible?”

“Wha-what’s wrong?” Wang Yuan rarely heard Tao Fengche speak in such a serious tone and asked cautiously.

Tao Fengche thought for a moment and didn’t mention the matter related to Sui Yuesheng. He glossed over the key points and simply said, “The only witness died unexpectedly.”

Wang Yuan froze. “Is it… related to Uncle?”

“Yes.” Tao Fengche nodded slightly. “Now, the only clue I have left is that account.”

“I understand.” After pondering for a while, Wang Yuan made up his mind and nodded, promising, “Leave it to me. Don’t worry, Tao Ge.”

“…Alright.”

It was rare for Wang Yuan to be so perceptive. He didn’t waste words and, after a few words of reassurance, hung up the phone. The screen of Tao Fengche’s phone lit up and then dimmed again. He lifted some water from the bathtub and forcefully rubbed his face.

He had been in the bathroom for too long, and the water in the tub had long turned cold. Yet he didn’t even have the energy to turn on the faucet to add more hot water.

After a long, seemingly endless sigh, he leaned weakly against the bathtub, his face full of dejection, but his eyes still shone brightly, like stars.