Chapter 147: Partner

The Xi Hwa Group was not a local San Lin City company, but it had been shining quite brightly recently. This was, however, not because of its large scale but mainly because the Xi Hwa Group was too active.

According to their official registration, they were in the foreign investment business. Basically, they exported local products to be sold overseas, imported foreign products to the local market, and gained profit through the middleman’s commission. However, what kind of products had they sold? What were the brands that they were working with‽ No one could really tell.

Some of the seniors in the business examined this company and realized that this supposed Xi Hwa Group was just a front. However, it was undeniable that they had a strong capital, and the few charity events that they had held were authentic and real.

“In any case, the Xi Hwa Group is more mysterious than you think. A few smaller companies have the interest of working with them, but it’s hard to tell who would be making use of whom. My family has given the order to stay away and observe for now.”

Even though Yao Zhixing was into racing, it did not mean that he was a real useless second generation. Due to his family, he still knew a thing or two about the business world. Furthermore, he had good connections, so he could see things further than others.

“If you want to investigate that Xu Jian, then it’s fine, but if it’s something deeper than that, leave it to that foreigner; this is his job to begin with.”

“You’re right.” Ye Shuang thought about it. “That baby face is not a moral person anyway. In fact, I think it’s perfect that he’s dealing with these people. But this is such a waste. If I’d known the situation would be so complicated, I would have tripled the commission. That Mr. Fang has taken advantage of my kindness again.”

Yao Zhixing chuckled. This woman would never forget to take account of things that should have been hers. After hanging up the phone, they wandered around the supermarket some more before paying for their purchases at the cashier.

They called for a cab while carrying two large shopping bags. After giving their address, even the driver could not help but turn around and gasp. “Is there a big discount at the supermarket today‽ Just how cheap is everything for you to have come so far to buy all this stuff‽”

“We were just passing by, so we bought some stuff on the way home,” Ye Shuang answered with a smile. Even though the reward was not that much that day and Xu Jian’s parents did not seem to know much about what their son was doing, Ye Shuang still managed to get a better sense of some details.

She returned home to prepare dinner, and after everyone had their fill, the sky was already darkening. No matter how late her next door neighbor’s activities could have gone, he should have been home by then. Ye Shuang wiped her hands and went to knock on the door.

It was rare for Ye Shuang to seek out Anthony, so he was understandably shocked. He blinked several times before recovering. He hugged his arms across his chest and leaned against the door. “Hmm, let me guess… My fair lady, you’re here to ask me for some help!”

“The help goes both ways,” Ye Shuang admitted. “You must have installed some things in that Alexander’s computer already, right? Can you let me take a look?”

“I’m a law-abiding citizen,” Anthony grumbled, but he still took a step back to allow Ye Shuang into the room. Then he walked into his room to switch on his precious computer. It was worth noting that this was the first time Ye Shuang had been in Anthony’s bedroom. She knew that the golden retriever was not a law-abiding citizen like he said, but when she saw the mountain of equipment in his room, she had a real understanding of how preposterous the man was.

Various finished and half-finished equipment littered every surface in the room. The ones Ye Shuang could see and identify included an aperture camera, military-use infrared binoculars, night vision googles, a pair of glasses that she could not identify the use of… If she saw something dangerous like guns, Ye Shuang would seriously have considered calling the cops.

Ye Shuang pulled on her hair and asked seriously, “Were you a special agent?”

“Hmm‽” Anthony swiveled around in his chair and shrugged at Ye Shuang. “That was exciting, but I don’t like to follow any rules, no matter what kind of rules.”

Then he turned back again. He pressed a few buttons on the computer and very easily pulled up a document. Obviously, without the order from Ye Shuang, he had started his surveillance already.

Based on Anthony’s philosophy, the strong decided the rules for the weak to follow. For example, in the world of business, everyone agreed it was a battle of wits. However, Anthony did not follow this rule because he had the ability. Therefore, he could use his ability to do things outside of this designated rule.

Xu Jian’s resume appeared on screen. He had parents and friends and had not changed his identity, so there were plenty of trails to follow. A corporate spy was not a real spy. They relied on identity theft or obscuring the most to grab or ruin certain corporate secrets. However, this could only be called acting, it was drastically different from the skill of a real spy. Just from Xu Jian’s email account alone, Anthony had gleaned plenty of information. For example, most of the money that Xu Jian embezzled had been transferred into the Xi Hwa Group’s account.

Anthony followed the trail and realized that the money of the Xi Hwa Group led to a foreign country that was famous for money-laundering. If Anthony looked any further, he would have come up against things that he should not have known.

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Nowadays, normal citizens were easy to bully because they had no power or influence. Government officials were also easily bullied because they worked on evidence. However, the underworld was like dealing with a bee’s nest. They only wanted benefits; they would stop at nothing, not even their lives, for the sake of money. One wrong move, and the whole hive would be coming at you.

Anthony was not afraid of that, but he did not want to get into so much trouble just for the sake of the An family. As long as he had evidence of Xu Jian’s embezzlement, who cared what else the Xi Hwa Group was up to‽

Anthony moved away for Ye Shuang to look through the folder, and he went into the kitchen to brew two cups of coffee. He handed one to Ye Shuang and laughed. “So, you’re interested in this kind of thing as well?”

“Not really, I guess you can call it OCD.” Ye Shuang tried to explain how she was feeling. “For example, when you see a clickbait title while browsing a news site, you want to know what happened. Or a web novel you’re reading suddenly gets dropped… It’s not about how interesting the content is; you need to reach the end to have closure.”

That was how Ye Shuang dealt with web novels. No matter how horrendous they were, even if it had bored her densely, she would continue until the end, or else it would feel incomplete, and she would be left wondering how it ended.

“A girl’s curiosity is stronger than a guy’s.” Anthony nodded. “But I don’t understand why this curiosity suddenly blossomed in you.”

Ye Shuang did not think it was such a shame to have been in love before, so she admitted, “Mainly because Xu Jian was my university boyfriend.”

“Cough! Cough!” Anthony understandably choked on his coffee. He looked at Ye Shuang with surprise and disbelief. “God, you have such bad eyes.”

“You mean taste‽”

Anthony did not mind the little misuse of terms. He rubbed his fingers in thought. Then he suddenly pushed Ye Shuang aside and opened another file for Ye Shuang to see. “Take a look at this. This Alexander has constant interaction with her. In fact, the few money transfers have been done by this woman. They must share some kind of intimate relationship. Hehe, I have locked onto her as the opening, but there’s no opportunity to get close.”

A half body picture of a small, quiet girl appeared on the screen. Ye Shuang looked at it and honestly thought she was not bad. Even though she could not be called a beauty, she had a refreshing aura about her.

“What do you mean? Are you asking me to seduce a woman?” Ye Shuang was alarmed.

Anthony leaned his baby face close. “We just need to introduce some cracks into their relationship. I’m suggesting you go make nice with your ex-boyfriend.”

“It’s so immoral to play with people’s feelings.” Ye Shuang shoved Anthony back. She was speechless at how low he would go. “Furthermore, this is your job. I just want to know what happens next.”

“Honey, don’t be like that.” Anthony pouted sadly. “It’s easiest to capture them when there’s trust issues between partners. That company is horrid. Don’t you want to personally set up a trap and watch as the prey walk unconsciously into it? Just imagine the sense of accomplishment as they try to struggle but cannot get loose!”

“What sense of accomplishment?” Ye Shuang said in a dead-pan manner. “I’m not that sadistic.”

“How about I give you half of the shares‽” Anthony offered.

Ye Shuang remained unmoved.

“One percent is a lot already.” Anthony was excited after he saw there was a chance. “You have to believe me. After this An family company is saved, it can still grow strong.”

“But why me?”

To Ye Shuang’s surprise, her question seemed to trigger some kind of trap. Anthony seemed to remember something, and he chuckled. “Of course, it’s because I haven’t seen someone that has such a big potential to surprise me like you.”

Anthony reached out to curl his finger around Ye Shuang’s hair. “We’re going to have so much fun, partner.”