“Chen Ge, please don’t worry.” Meng Suihuan softly reassured him before calmly explaining, “This project is Xuyu’s first major step toward building its reputation. It’s critical for both the company and me, so I had prepared a backup plan. I added a minor protective measure to the core data—if the wrong password is entered, the core data will rearrange randomly and self-destruct.”

She glanced at the time. It had been 12 hours since Yang Xun left, so the protective program should have been activated by now. She couldn’t help but wonder how terrible Yang Xun’s face must look upon discovering the “gift” they had so carefully prepared for him. The more she thought about it, the more her lips curled into a satisfied smile.

Hearing this, President Chen finally let out a sigh of relief, his laughter bright and hearty. “Still, it’s you, Xiao Huan, who thinks everything through. But next time something like this happens, give your old brother a heads-up in advance. I’m getting old, and my heart can’t take the shock.”

Meng Suihuan nodded repeatedly, though inwardly, she couldn’t help grumbling. She herself had only learned about it two days ago! It was during her visit to Feiyun Group, where casual chatter led to her learning about Liu Ge and his hidden maneuver.

For this, she had even argued with him, harshly criticizing how awful it was for him to keep such a thing from her. But Lu Linshen, unfazed by her accusations, let her vent as much as she liked. Only after she was done did he casually explain: “The program was added last night. I got caught up in something and didn’t have time to inform you. I promise to report it to you first next time.”

Meng Suihuan was left speechless. Did he forget what they were doing? Making such changes to the plan on a whim—was there really no problem with that?

At the time, she had asked him, “If you play this card, won’t it just alert the snake in the grass? With Liu Ge as a precedent, would Shen Jin still willingly jump into your trap?”

How did he respond? His tone had been confident: “He will. He falls for this every time.”

—

During the investigation, everyone was on edge. The tension only worsened when people were individually summoned to the office, leaving everyone anxious.

“Hey, why are they suddenly calling people into the office? Does this mean the investigation has results?”

“Probably not… even Shen Ge was called in, and he’s one of the project leaders.”

“You never know! Haven’t you seen on TV how the thief often shouts to catch the thief? This could be one of those situations—”

“Keep your voice down! Things are still unclear, and you shouldn’t spread rumors. If you offend someone, don’t come crying when they give you trouble!”

Though whispered, these words still reached Shen Jin’s ears during lulls in the conversation. Upon hearing his own name, his eyes darkened slightly, betraying subtle emotions. His palms instinctively clenched.

“Mr. Shen?”

It wasn’t until his name was called again that he snapped out of his thoughts, pretending to be calm as he responded and walked toward the office.

As he brushed past Lu Linshen, he could feel the other man’s gaze lingering on him. Unable to resist, he paused and turned to look at Lu Linshen. Clenching his fist slightly under the other man’s scrutiny, he said, “As a project leader, being called into the office by President Meng is perfectly normal.”

“Hmm?” Lu Linshen raised an eyebrow, his tone indifferent. “So? Are you telling me this because you’re worried about something?”

An awkward silence followed.

Steadying himself, Shen Jin retorted sternly, “Worried about what?! If we’re talking about suspicion, yours is much greater than mine. If you’re not worried, what reason do I have to be?”

Lu Linshen’s lips curved slightly, his tone light and mocking. “Oh, is that so?”

“You—!”

Shen Jin wanted to say more, but Lu Linshen casually interrupted him, “You should head in. Don’t keep them waiting.”

Shen Jin glanced at Lu Linshen, then walked away with his head held high. Although Lu Linshen stood off to the side, a few sharp-eyed onlookers noticed the interaction. They nudged each other, and the lively discussion they’d been having came to an abrupt halt.

Unfortunately, the distance was too far for them to catch the conversation clearly. They only saw the two of them talking face-to-face, but no one knew what was said. If it were anyone else, the group would have crowded around, asking all sorts of questions. But since it was Lu Linshen—known for his aloof and unapproachable demeanor—none of them dared to pry. All they could do was speculate about the exchange based on their facial expressions.

Even though Shen Jin had spoken tough words to Lu Linshen, his thoughts wandered on the way to the office. Scenes flashed through his mind, many of them involving his interactions with Liu Ge.

Though the investigation hadn’t concluded, Shen Jin had long suspected something. After all, he had met with Liu Ge before and had been threatened by him several times. However, their meetings were always held far from the company and in very discreet locations, making it unlikely for anyone to have noticed…

He took a deep breath at the door, steadied himself, and finally raised his hand to knock.

A familiar voice quickly came from inside. “Come in.”

Shen Jin had been slightly nervous outside the door, but the moment he stepped in, that hesitation and unease disappeared entirely.

Meng Suihuan glanced up, her expression calm and voice steady, as if nothing was amiss. Her poise made it clear that Shen Jin’s psychological resilience was not to be underestimated.

“You’re here.”

“Take a seat over there. I have a few questions for you.”

Shen Jin obediently found a seat, then looked at her. “President Meng, is there a particular reason you called me here?”

Though Shen Jin tried to conceal his probing tone, Meng Suihuan caught the subtle undertones in his words, which only lifted her spirits further. However, she maintained her composed demeanor, speaking in a deliberately cryptic manner.

“I called you here because we’ve made some progress regarding the leak. Based on the evidence so far, it seems to be connected to you…”

Despite her deliberately vague and provocative phrasing, Shen Jin remained unfazed. His composure was genuinely impressive. Meng Suihuan silently acknowledged his steadiness—unsurprising, given his years-long rivalry with Lu Linshen. If he lacked this level of calm, he wouldn’t have made it this far.

“That’s why I wanted to speak with you privately.”

“President Meng, feel free to ask. I’ll answer everything to the best of my ability.”

Oh, sure. Like I’d believe that.

Meng Suihuan’s lips curved into a warm smile as she began, all the while observing his reactions closely. “Liu Ge—you remember him, right? According to the investigation, he’s closely linked to this theft. I heard that he wasn’t initially on the team roster but was added later because of a last-minute adjustment you made. Care to explain?”

When Liu Ge had sought him out and specifically requested to join the research team, Shen Jin had anticipated this moment. Calm and composed, he explained smoothly:

“There were two reasons for the last-minute change. First, Deng Jianjun had an accident and broke his leg, which would’ve kept him out for at least 100 days and risked delaying the project. When I learned about this, I had to make an urgent adjustment. Second, our project required solid foundational skills and outstanding individual ability. After reevaluating the candidates, I selected Liu Ge for his exceptional skills and extensive experience. His recent demotion was due to extenuating circumstances and wasn’t entirely his fault. After weighing all factors, I decided to add his name to the roster. There was no hidden agenda—only a failure on my part to fully consider the risks. I never expected him to do something so detrimental to the company and the team’s interests. Since this mistake stems from my decision, I’ll accept any punishment you see fit without complaint.”

Shen Jin’s strong, confident tone and flawless delivery brought his “speech” to an end. Even though Meng Suihuan already knew the truth, she couldn’t help but smirk at his performance. Feigning politeness, she reassured him, “Mr. Shen Jin, don’t worry. Everyone recognizes the contributions you’ve made to the company and the team. I didn’t call you here to hold you accountable—I just want to hear your impressions of Liu Ge’s usual behavior.”

Hearing this, Shen Jin secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He shared everything he could, carefully avoiding anything he wasn’t supposed to disclose.

‘Useless!‘ Meng Suihuan thought to herself, hiding her disdain.

“A bunch of useless idiots!!”

“Normally, you all boast about your brilliance, but now, faced with just one piece of broken code, you’ve been studying it all night without making any progress. Are you just here to waste resources?! If you can’t crack it by tonight, all of you can pack your things and get out!”

Having held back his anger the entire evening, Yang Xun had finally reached his breaking point. It only took a small trigger for his temper to erupt like wildfire. Just as he was about to lose control, someone hurried in from outside.

“Young Master Yang, there’s a new development in the lab…”

Hearing this, Yang Xun didn’t waste time dealing with the surrounding people and strode into the lab.

As he entered, everyone silently prayed that this would finally be good news. But when they looked at the screen, all they saw was a countdown: 56, 55, 54…

“What’s going on?” Yang Xun frowned, voicing the confusion everyone felt.

Those who knew the truth exchanged nervous glances, hesitant to speak. Frustrated by their silence, Yang Xun’s angry voice boomed again, “Are you all mute? Speak up!”

Left with no choice, one of them stammered an explanation, enduring the brunt of his fury.

“Y-Young Master Yang, the core data wasn’t just protected—it had a timed safeguard. If the correct password isn’t entered within 12 hours, the protection program activates, and the data… will be completely destroyed.”

“12 hours? How much time is left now?”

“…T-Thirty seconds.”

As the countdown hit zero, everyone watched in horror as the core data transformed into a mess of unreadable gibberish.

The room fell into a deathly silence as everyone tried to minimize their presence.

Yang Xun, who had been holding in his anger all night, finally snapped the moment the countdown ended. But just as he was about to unleash his rage, a phone call from Meng Suihuan came in right on time.

“President Yang, did you receive the special gift I prepared for you? I wonder, are you satisfied with it?”

Yang Xun gritted his teeth so hard it felt like they might break. “Meng—Sui—Huan!”

“You planned all of this from the start, didn’t you? You deliberately left a flaw just to watch me make a fool of myself!”

On the other end of the line, the girl’s voice rang out like silver bells, clear and mischievous.

“Hehe, congratulations, you guessed right! But unfortunately, there’s no reward for you this time.”