They surrounded me right after the breakup.

Xia Yutong didn't go on the hot spring resort trip; she was busy with an old case from many years ago.

She overheard that conversation in the break room.

Xia Yutong came out of the Ministry of Justice and went into the tea room to get water.

Two young receptionists were chatting by the bar, their voices low, but the tea room was too small, and no matter how low they whispered, their words still reached my ears.

"Do you remember that aunt who came to see Chairman Jiang last week?"

"Which one?"

"The one carrying the canvas bag, in his fifties, wearing a purple shirt."

"Oh, her? I saw her ID card when she registered. Her name is Zhao Xiulan. It's a nice name."

The cup in Xia Yutong's hand stopped in mid-air.

"What's her relationship with Chairman Jiang?"

"I don't know. I only introduced myself as Liu Meng's mother. After hearing that, Chairman Jiang let her go upstairs."

"Liu Meng? Could she be Chairman Jiang's?"

"Don't talk nonsense!"

When the receptionist saw Xia Yutong, she quickly reminded her friend next to her not to say anything inappropriate.

Everyone in the company knows that Ms. Xia, a legal elite, has an unusual relationship with the chairman.

Xia Yutong placed the cup on the bar counter.

She walked out of the tea room, her steps quicker than usual.

The visitor registration book in the lobby was spread out on the table, and Xia Yutong flipped through it from date to date.

Visitor's name: Zhao Xiulan; Interviewee: Chairman of Jianghan Group.

The ID number was filled in neatly.

Xia Yutong took out her phone and took a picture of her identity information.

There are many people with the surname Zhao, and among the older generation, there are countless people named Xiulan.

She has to be meticulous!

Xia Yutong stared at the three characters "Zhao Xiulan" with sharp eyes.

He shares the same name as the last financial director of Heyuantao Building Materials.

……

Late at night, in the office of Junhe Law Firm.

Xia Yutong laid out more than a dozen old case files on the table.

The list of creditors, withdrawal agreements, and property distribution table for Jiang Yuantao's bankruptcy case were categorized by year and number, covering the entire long table.

She has been spending two nights in a row here.

During the day, I handle the legal affairs of Xingyue Media. After get off work, I drive over and sit in the archives until the early hours of the morning.

The air conditioner vents blow out cool air at a constant temperature, and the fluorescent light tubes occasionally emit a faint electrical hum.

The night view of Jingzhou outside the window gradually dimmed from bright lights to only streetlights remaining.

Xia Guodong pushed the door open and came in, holding a cup of hot milk, which he placed beside her.

He pulled out a chair, sat down, and glanced at the documents spread out on the table.

"Where have you found it?"

Xia Yutong flipped to page seventeen of the creditors' list and pushed it past.

"The more than forty creditors involved back then were all concentrated in three companies."

"Liheng Real Estate, Jiasheng Real Estate, Rongbang Construction".

She pulled out three business registration documents and pressed her finger on the column for controlling shareholder.

"Tracing back two levels from these three sources, they all point to the same person: Jiang Boyong."

"Back then, Jiang Boyong's network of connections was too extensive. Liheng was just his shell in Jingzhou, Jiasheng was his tentacles in South China, and Rongbang was in charge of the Southwest."

"There were more than just these three companies back then, and there will only be more now. If you want to overturn the case, commercial evidence alone is not enough."

Xia Yutong opened the notebook beside her, which was filled with notes of clues she had copied from Judge Zhou's house.

She turned to the third page of the notebook.

"There is one person who knows the whole story: the former finance director of Yuantao Building Materials."

"She raised objections initially, but quickly withdrew them herself; there must be something going on!"

As she said this, the light in Xia Yutong's eyes dimmed slightly.

"What's your name?" Xia Guodong asked.

Xia Yutong turned the notebook around, and three words were written on it: Zhao Xiulan.

Xia Guodong frowned. More than a decade had passed, and the junior manager from back then had become a middle-aged man of similar age to himself.

The world is so big, where can I find her?

Besides, even if she were found, would she be willing to testify for a long-standing, unsolved case?

Xia Guodong has experienced more than his daughter and has witnessed the dark side of society.

Since Zhao Xiulan gave up her objection application back then, it means that she encountered unexpected resistance.

It could be an economic incentive, or it could be a threat from other aspects.

But one thing is certain: she had no choice at the time.

"Dad, do you know who Zhao Xiulan is?" Xia Yutong looked up at her father.

Xia Guodong sensed his daughter's dissent from her expression.

"I don't know him. What? Do you have any leads?"

Xia Yutong's voice was helpless: "She is Liu Meng's mother."

"Liu Meng? Your best friend Liu Meng?"

"Hmm..." Xia Yutong nodded.

The archives room fell silent, and the hum of the air conditioner suddenly became amplified.

Xia Guodong stared at the name, his fingers unconsciously tapping lightly on the table.

"Yutong, have you ever thought about it...?"

"In the end, the person who will suffer the most in this case is probably not you or me, nor even President Jiang."

"It's Liu Meng," Xia Yutong said for him.

She leaned back in her chair and pressed her nose bridge with her thumb and forefinger.

My eyes feel very dry, and the muscles under my eyes are twitching.

Xia Yutong went over what she had found out in the past few days in her mind again and again.

Zhao Xiulan is Jiang Yuantao's financial manager and Liu Meng's mother.

It is also very likely that he is an insider who knows all the inside stories of Yuantao Building Materials.

She had previously gone to the company to find Jiang Han. Did she already know Jiang Han's identity and come specifically to inform him?

Xia Yutong quickly dismissed this idea.

If they had discussed case information at the time, it would have been handed over to Junhe Law Firm for handling.

Xia Yutong planned to first find out from her best friend the purpose of Liu Meng's mother's visit.

"Dad, do you think I should stop?"

"Whether I stop or not is not up to me," Xia Guodong shook his head.

"But I must remind you, this case, now that it's been investigated, is no longer just Jiang Han's business."

Xia Yutong did not immediately tell Jiang Han what she had found out.

She picked up her phone and opened her best friend's group chat.

I swiped my finger across the screen a few times and scrolled to the chat history from that night at the hot spring resort.

The few lines where Xiao Xiao was verbally abused by Lin Yaoyao are still hanging there.

Liu Meng only said a few words throughout the entire process.

"Stop arguing, stop arguing." "I already said, Xiao Xiao didn't do anything out of line yesterday."

Xia Yutong initially thought Liu Meng was there to help Xiao Xiao out of a predicament.

Looking at these sentences again now, something just doesn't feel right.

She privately inquired with Shen Qingning about what had happened at the resort.

Xiao Xiao went to knock on Jiang Han's door in the middle of the night, and Liu Meng followed her.

Is this reasonable?

Xia Yutong didn't intend to ask Liu Meng directly; instead, she sought out the person who knew the situation best first.

She dialed Xiao Xiao's number.

The background noise from across the street was loud, like someone was shouting to adjust the lighting positions at a construction site.

"Attorney Xia? What a rare guest! What brings you to call me?"

"I have something to ask you."

"explain!"

"What has Mengjie been busy with lately? Have you talked about it? Has she shown any signs of behaving differently than before?"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Xiao instantly became excited.

"Yutong, you really are a lawyer! Did you notice? That's great, I've been keeping this in my heart for so long, and now I finally have someone to tell you!"

That night at the hot spring resort, Xiao Xiao and Liu Meng shared a bed and talked for the entire night.

This includes Liu Meng asking Jiang Han to stand up for her blind date, her thoughts about Jiang Han, and her own concerns.

Finally, she made Xiao Xiao swear that she would never tell anyone.

Knowing the secret but not being able to tell anyone is really frustrating for the big mouth Xiao Xiao!

It's obvious that Yutong discovered it herself, and discussing things that both sides knew together doesn't violate the oath.

"Yutong, let me tell you something!"

"Sister Meng was forced to go on a blind date, and she asked Jiang Han to go with her."

"Oh no, Jiang Han helped her get rid of the guy she was set up with on a blind date, and now her own mother is mistaking him for her boyfriend!"

"Is it fun or not?"

Before Xia Yutong could ask, Xiao Xiao blurted everything out.