A week pass since Leng Xuanmo gave Leng Shiyan the job to do and he has disappeared without a trace. No one knew his whereabouts and no one bothered cause they know once he is done with the assignment he would be back.
The storm outside echoed the unrest within. Rain tapped relentlessly against the wide windows as Leng Shiyan entered the study, soaked at the edges, his coat dripping onto the polished floor.
Leng Xuanmo didn't look up from the reports sprawled before him. He simply said, "Speak."
Shiyan dropped a sealed envelope onto the desk. "I've scraped everything from the banks, the corporate ties, and shell companies tied to the Lu family's collapse. There's movement" he stayed quiet
"But?" Leng Xuanmo asked
"But no name." Leng Shiyan replied
Xuanmo's gaze lifted, sharp and expectant. "You're telling me you found nothing?"
"Not nothing," Shiyan said, peeling off his gloves. "Whoever did this used shadows as allies. Three offshore accounts closed within 24 hours of the Lu scandal breaking. The companies tied to those accounts? Vanished. One of them briefly shared a holding company once tied to the Leng conglomerate, but only for six days."
Xuanmo stilled. "Internal?"
Shiyan nodded slowly. "Someone with access. But they used proxies. Fake names. Dead men on paper."
Xuanmo leaned back, eyes narrowing. "So we're chasing ghosts."
"For now. But someone cleaned it too well. Too fast. That's their mistake. Normal cover-ups leave crumbs. This one left sterilized air."
He paused. "But they missed one thing."
Xuanmo's brows lifted.
Shiyan reached into his coat and slid out a flash drive. "A hacked correspondence from one of the burner accounts. A message was sent two days before the scandal hit the news. It read: 'Target acquired. Collapse begins in 48 hours. Red Lotus.'"
"Red Lotus?" Xuanmo repeated, voice low, dangerous.
"A name. A code name. Could be a group, could be one person. But that's our only string."
Xuanmo stared at the drive for a long moment, then said, "Then we pull that string. Even if it strangles someone."
Shiyan's voice was calm. "That's what I was hoping you'd say." Leng Shiyan said
"But. I can't find more than this. No wonder a mortal like Li Zeyan couldn't find anything" Leng Shiyan said
Leng Xuanmo gaze turn cold. "Red lotus" he whispered again
"Who are you thinking of?"
"Black verdict" Leng Xuanmo said
"What? Him?" Leng Shiyan asked"didn't he leave the group? And you think he'd do it? He is mad man himself"
"He owe me. And he can never repay it all" Leng Xuanmo said
"You think he'd join the group because of you?"
"He joined back for someone he cared about" Leng Xuanmo said "and now I need him for someone I care about" Leng Xuanmo said
"Someone" he called and Li Zeyan walked in
"Contact him. Tell him it's time to repay what he owe me" Leng Xuanmo said
"Boss. If I may ask who should I contact?" Li Zeyan asked
"The black verdict. Mo Tianyi" Leng Shiyan said
Li Zeyan was shocked when he heard the name his boss called. In the whole of China only two family names rule the world. The first is the Leng' family and the second is the Mo family. Both never agreed they are the first or second all they know is both are ruling in their territory. Li Zeyan know for his boss to sort out his help means the war ahead is unavoidable. Especially since the one who would fight the war is Mo Tianyi
"I will go contact him immediately" Li Zeyan said as he left the room for his bosses