Chapter 215: The Peeping Thief?
"Forty-two meters away?" Zhang Yang thought for a moment. Forty-two meters would place it near the future headquarters of Nuwa Group and the factory of Nuwa Pharmaceuticals.
After Zhou Lunfa mobilized all manpower and resources to speed up construction, the main structures of the future Nuwa Group headquarters and Nuwa Pharmaceuticals factory had already been completed. Now, they were in the mid-stage of construction, so even at night, there were still some workers on site.
As expected, the person peeping at the villa should be from those unfinished frame buildings.
A level-five danger, according to the system settings, was the lowest level—posing no direct threat to the villa. It simply meant that the person spying on the villa might have some malicious or greedy intentions but hadn't taken any action yet.
It could be a pervert, a thief, or someone scouting the area for another purpose.
Zhang Yang wasn't too worried about the first two. If it was a pervert, the women in the villa had strong awareness of self-protection, and the glass was anti-peeping. As for a thief—even if he wanted to steal, he'd have to get in first.
What Zhang Yang worried about was the third possibility—whether the man was an assassin or someone sent by hostile forces seeking revenge.
That possibility was far too high.
Recently, things had seemed calm on the surface, but Xu Danlu had told him that Chen Tianxiong's team had already detected multiple stalking incidents targeting the women living in the villa.
That meant the enemy wasn't inactive—they were waiting for an opportunity, a better time to strike.
Not to mention the Du family and Spade Eight, both of whom hated him to the bone. Now, the Cai family definitely wanted him dead as well.
Facing this situation—where the enemy hid in the shadows while he was exposed—he had no better choice than to remain defensive for now. He still lacked the strength to go on the offensive, but that wouldn't last forever.
Once his base of operations was stable and Nuwa Group officially got on track, it would be time for his counterattack.
For now, the best move was simple—anyone who dared to reach out their hand would have it chopped off. Only pain would make them think twice.
"Click to check the source of the threat," Xu Danying said, glancing at Zhang Yang and double-clicking the warning alert. The Magic Eagle Eye Surveillance System zoomed in immediately.
Sure enough, about forty meters away, on the seventeenth floor of the future Nuwa Group headquarters, in a remote corner…
A middle-aged man in a black trench coat, around thirty-five or thirty-six, with a weathered face and a goatee, was sneaking around with binoculars, clearly peeping at the villa.
Zhang Yang frowned and quickly called Xu Danlu, explaining the situation. She was stunned at first but then replied, "Got it. Lao Yi's on duty tonight. I'll tell him to take care of it."
About five minutes later, Zhang Yang zoomed in again—the situation had changed. Lao Yi and five or six men appeared behind the trench coat man like ghosts.
The man panicked and tried to toss his binoculars, but Lao Yi knocked him out with one punch and confiscated the equipment.
Zhang Yang called Lao Yi.
"Check it for me. From his angle, what could he see?"
"Boss, not much—just the villa's front gate." Originally, Lao Yi and the others called him 'Boss Zhang,' but Zhang Yang didn't like it and made them switch to 'Boss.' Over time, they got used to it.
Zhang Yang thought for a moment, then ordered, "Wait for me. Bring him to the first floor—I'll be right there."
He'd planned to let Lao Yi handle the interrogation, but after thinking it over, decided to go himself.
"Danying, keep tuning the system. I'll be back soon," Zhang Yang said. "Oh, and have your sister come up to get familiar with it."
After about seven or eight minutes, Zhang Yang arrived at the headquarters' first floor. There, beside the construction area, a temporary prefab building had been set up for the workers and security staff to rest.
When Zhang Yang arrived, construction supervisor Pang Wang was already there. The man in the trench coat was tied up tightly like a zongzi, lying on the ground.
He looked pitifully at Pang Wang, begging for mercy.
"I didn't mean to! I just lost my mind for a moment. The girls in the villa are so pretty, so I… I got tempted… I'll never dare again. Boss Pang, please forgive me. I've worked under you for years—please say something for me. Don't call the cops!"
Pang Wang's face darkened. He glared fiercely, then hesitated and looked at Zhang Yang. "Boss Zhang, this guy's name is Cao Decai. He's been with me for about three or four years. I really didn't expect him to do something like this. I'll fire him immediately." Pang Wang kicked the man hard, shouting, "You bastard! I treated you well, paid you two or three times the market rate, and this is what you do? You're worse than an animal. Don't even think about working for me again."
After kicking him a few more times, Pang Wang looked at Zhang Yang and said quietly, "Boss Zhang, could you please spare him this time? Don't call the police. He's single, no wife or kids. Maybe he just got desperate after so long on-site. It was probably an impulsive mistake."
"Single?"
"Yeah, single. Normally after work, he spends his pay on prostitutes. But we've been working nonstop lately—he hasn't gone out in over two weeks."
"Really?" Zhang Yang stepped closer to the man. The man's face twisted into a pitiful expression, his eyes brimming with tears.
"Boss Zhang, please forgive me. I won't do it again."
Zhang Yang hesitated, and Lao Yi came over, handing him the binoculars. "Military-grade binoculars," he said quietly. "With range-finding capability."
"Hm?" Zhang Yang's heart tightened. He looked at the man again, who continued begging, unaware that Lao Yi recognized the device.
Zhang Yang motioned for Pang Wang to come over. "How long has this Cao Decai been working with you?"
Pang Wang thought for a moment. "Four years—well, about three and a half."
"Can you guarantee he really hasn't gone out during this time?"
"Well…" Pang Wang hesitated, frowning. "We've been working overtime, but there was one team dinner recently. After that, everyone went their separate ways. Cao Decai disappeared for a whole day and even showed up late the next morning. I scolded him, and he promised not to do it again."
"I see. Old Pang, I'm taking this man with me," Zhang Yang said evenly—loud enough for the trench coat man to hear.
"Uh…" Pang Wang looked hesitant and awkward. "Boss Zhang, is it really that serious?"
"If it's inconvenient for you, I can tell your boss Zhou about it."
"N-no, no need," Pang Wang said quickly,
Waving his hands frantically.
"No need to trouble the old man." He kicked Cao Decai again. "Damn it, you've caused me enough trouble. Even if Boss Zhang forgives you, I won't."
As soon as he finished speaking, the man on the ground suddenly struggled to his feet.
He bolted, barely making it a few steps—
One of Lao Yi's men stuck out a leg and tripped him, and the others pounced, punching and kicking him mercilessly.
"Fuck, you bastard, trying to run now?!"
Pang Wang's face turned pale. A simple voyeurism incident would normally just get a beating, but running like that meant the man was hiding something. Otherwise, Zhang Yang wouldn't have insisted on taking him.
"Boss Zhang…" Pang Wang said miserably. "I'm sorry. I really didn't manage my people well."
Zhang Yang looked at him and smiled faintly. "It's fine. But if you can tell me his recent movements, that'd help. Lao Yi will contact you."
Zhang Yang handed Cao Decai over to Lao Yi, then returned to the villa. His expression was dark. He hadn't expected the enemy to act already—and even infiltrate so close. If not for the Magic Eagle Eye system, Cao Decai might've done something worse.
Seeing Zhang Yang return with that grim look, Xu Danlu quickly came up to him, taking his coat. "What's wrong? Danying said you caught a pervert."
"But I checked with the girls. Since construction's going on outside, they've kept all the windows closed and curtains drawn. The bathrooms face the other side, so there shouldn't be any losses, right?"
"That guy wasn't a pervert." Zhang Yang looked at her calm face and felt a little comforted. "He was using military binoculars—with range-finding. I've told Lao Yi to make him talk. He was probably paid to scout the place. Looks like someone's planning something against us."
"Don't worry, Yangzi. Here in Meining, they don't have that kind of reach yet. And with your system, our villa's as solid as a fortress."
"Yeah, let's check the system first."
"Brother-in-law, don't worry," Xu Danying said as she approached with a smile. "I just finished testing it—the system's fine. It's just that the cameras aren't powerful enough. For now, they can only monitor about two to three hundred meters effectively. But once the headquarters and factory are finished, we can install more cameras using their height. Then, not only will they be unable to attack the villa—they won't even get close."
Xu Danying's height was nearly the same as her sister's now, though her figure wasn't as curvy. The two sisters stood side by side—one modern, one elegant—one in a black short wool skirt, the other in a light-blue knee-length cheongsam. The contrast was striking.
"Good. With Danying's assurance, this brother-in-law can rest easy."
Xu Danlu shot her sister a glare and whispered, "Brat, stop calling him that."
"Brother-in-law, brother-in-law!" Xu Danying scrunched her nose and called several times. "I'll call him if I want to."
Xu Danlu sighed helplessly, pinched her sister's nose, then sniffed. "Ugh, you smell. Go take a shower."
"Hmph!" Xu Danying twisted her waist. "You just don't want me disturbing your lovey-dovey time."
"No, that's not it," Zhang Yang said quickly, waving his hands.
"Whatever. I'm taking a bath anyway." Xu Danying wiggled her fingers playfully. "Bye-bye."
Once she left, Xu Danlu snuck close to Zhang Yang, nudged his crotch gently with her leg, and whispered meaningfully, "Yangzi, I'm done with… that."
"Huh? Done with what?" Zhang Yang was focused on checking the Magic Eagle Eye system, confirming that all functions were working as expected. His little sister-in-law really was a genius.
"My period, idiot." Xu Danlu pinched him hard.