I work as a security guard at a cemetery, and I overhear the dead chatting about getting rich quick.

When news of the incident at the Mountain and Sea Banquet reached Gu Mingyuan's ears, he was in his office on the top floor of Gu's Cultural Tourism.

Around 1 a.m., only a few lights remained on in the entire building.

The secretary stood at the door, her face as white as if she had just come out of a cold storage.

"Mr. Gu, the Guiyun Club... has been investigated."

The teacup in Gu Mingyuan's hand stopped in mid-air.

He didn't speak immediately.

A few seconds later, he put the cup back on the table.

The porcelain cup touched the table with a soft sound.

The secretary's shoulders trembled in fright at the sound.

Gu Mingyuan raised his eyes.

"Who was taken away?"

"Bai Jingchuan, and several guests present," the secretary swallowed hard. "Pei Jingluan has also been asked to cooperate with the investigation."

Gu Mingyuan's face twitched.

"please?"

The secretary dared not answer.

In this situation, "please" and "bring" actually mean the same thing.

The former just sounds a little more respectable.

Gu Mingyuan leaned back in his chair.

The office was quiet.

Outside the window is the night view of Qingcheng, with lights shining in patches, as if nothing has happened.

But Gu Mingyuan knew in his heart that something terrible had happened.

The investigation of Guiyun Club means that some things can no longer be covered up with a simple "misunderstanding".

He picked up his phone and dialed a number.

No one answered.

Dial again.

Still no one answered.

The third time, the phone was simply turned off.

Gu Mingyuan's face finally darkened.

He slammed his phone onto the table.

"waste."

The secretary lowered her head even further.

Gu Mingyuan stood up and walked to the safe.

My fingers trembled slightly when I entered the password.

I typed it wrong the first time.

The safe emitted a piercing alarm sound.

The secretary was so frightened that she barely breathed.

Gu Mingyuan turned to look at her.

"go out."

The secretary, feeling as if granted a pardon, immediately turned around.

"etc."

The secretary froze.

Gu Mingyuan said coldly, "Who came to the company tonight?"

"No, no." The secretary thought for a moment, then quickly added, "Lawyer Jiang from the legal department came by this afternoon and took a few contracts, saying that you asked him to transfer them."

Gu Mingyuan's eyes darkened.

"Jiang Cheng?"

"Yes."

"Where are the others?"

"They said they went back to the law firm."

Gu Mingyuan didn't say anything more.

After the secretary left, he re-entered the password.

The safe was opened this time.

There was no cash or gold bars inside.

There were only a few document bags.

Gu Mingyuan pulled them out one by one.

A17 Supplementary Explanation.

Outsourcing agreement for the old warehouse.

Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation with Qinglan Consulting

Supplementary Agreement on Safe Transportation of Temporary Exhibition Venues.

He flipped through it very quickly.

He flipped through the pages with a rustling sound.

On one of the contracts, there were several circles drawn in red pen.

The circle is very light.

Without careful examination, one might mistake it for ordinary review marks.

Gu Mingyuan stared at the red circles for two seconds, then suddenly pulled out the contract and stuffed it into the shredder.

The paper shredder started up with a hum.

The paper strips were spat into the wastebasket piece by piece.

Just as I put the second portion in, my phone rang.

The caller ID showed Jiang Cheng.

Gu Mingyuan stared at the screen.

It took a while before they answered.

On the other end of the phone, Jiang Cheng's voice was hoarse.

"Mr. Gu, are you aware of the Guiyun Club incident?"

Gu Mingyuan chuckled.

"It's such a big deal, it would be hard for me not to know."

Jiang Cheng paused for a moment.

How many documents do you have left?

"What do you mean?"

"Handle what you can as quickly as possible," Jiang Cheng said, "especially the supplementary documents from A17 and Qinglan Consulting."

Gu Mingyuan said coldly, "Didn't you create these documents?"

There was another second of silence on the other end of the phone.

Jiang Cheng said, "President Gu, it's true that I made the document, but I didn't sign it, and the money didn't come from my account."

Gu Mingyuan narrowed his eyes.

"Are you going to betray me?"

Jiang Cheng's tone also turned cold.

"President Gu, it's not about who betrayed whom now, it's about who can save a few years in prison."

Gu Mingyuan gripped his phone tightly.

"Jiang Cheng, don't forget who fed you back then."

"I haven't forgotten."

Jiang Cheng said, "That's why I reminded you not to put all the blame on me. If things really escalate, it won't look good for anyone."

The call was disconnected.

Gu Mingyuan stood in front of the safe, his face frighteningly gloomy.

After a few seconds, he suddenly laughed.

The laughter was very low.

"Everyone wants to run away, but can they really escape?"

He tossed his phone back onto the table and picked up a document.

The shredder kept running.

buzzing.

Like a mosquito that's gone mad with hunger.

At the same time, at Qingshan Cemetery.

Lin Ye had just returned from Guiyun Club and was still feeling a bit dizzy.

It's not happiness.

It's tiring.

The kind of exhaustion that comes from being tense for too long, then suddenly relaxing a little, but not daring to relax completely.

Uncle Zhao stood at the entrance of the security booth, wearing a coat and holding an enamel mug in his hand.

"You're back?"

Lin Ye glanced at him.

"Uncle Zhao, why do you sound like you're checking up on me?"

Uncle Zhao looked him up and down.

"Still alive?"

"Thanks to you, I haven't started working in the West District yet."

Uncle Zhao snorted.

"That's good. Miss Gu's people came by and said not to wander around after you come back."

Lin Ye slumped into a chair.

"I can't run around like this right now. My body is my body, and my legs are my legs; they haven't been successfully combined yet."

Uncle Zhao placed the enamel mug on the table.

"Hot water."

Lin Ye was stunned for a moment.

"Oh, Uncle Zhao, why are you being so thoughtful today?"

"Be poor."

Uncle Zhao said, "I'm afraid you'll die in my class, and then it'll be hard to schedule attendance at the end of the month."

Lin Ye picked up the cup and took a sip, which was so hot he almost died on the spot.

"Was this water just boiled in the underworld?"

Uncle Zhao rolled his eyes at him.

"Aren't you listening to dead people? Ask them if it's hot."

Lin Ye choked a little.

He coughed twice and looked up at Uncle Zhao.

Uncle Zhao's face remained expressionless.

"Miss Gu's people didn't say, I just guessed."

Lin Ye held his cup but didn't reply.

Uncle Zhao sat down next to him, lowering his voice.

"You've been acting really strange lately. You're always hanging around flea markets or cold storage facilities. You even got targeted the other day. Do you think I'm stupid?"

Lin Ye laughed dryly.

"Of course you're not stupid."

Stop flattering me.

Uncle Zhao looked out the window.

"I won't ask you what happened. If you can really help, that's your skill. But remember one thing."

Lin Ye raised his eyes.

Uncle Zhao said, "Don't think you're invincible just because you have some skills, and don't consider yourself a savior. There are plenty of people in the cemetery; they won't miss you."

Lin Ye was silent for a moment.

I was just going to say something witty.

For example, "Uncle Zhao, you're suddenly so serious, I'm a little scared."

But the words stuck in his throat.

In the end, he simply said, "I know."

Uncle Zhao stood up and patted his clothes.

"Just so you know. I'm going to sleep. Don't stay in the West District too long tonight, it's windy."

After he finished speaking, he walked away with his hands behind his back.

Lin Ye sat in the security booth, looking at the anti-flood bottle on the table.

Fake Qianlong enamel revolving vase.

Eighteen thousand.

It sits on the corner of the table, like a silent anti-fraud advocate.

My phone vibrated.

A message from Gu Wantang.

"Gu Mingyuan is at the company."

The next one will be here soon.

"According to the company's building control system, he just had his secretary clear the rooftop, and boxes are being moved into the underground parking garage."

Lin Ye sat up a little straighter.

Tao Shuang then sent two photos.

The first photo was taken outside the Gu's Cultural Tourism Building.

The lights were on in the top-floor office.

The second picture shows the exit of the underground parking garage.

A black sedan was stopped by security guards. The trunk was open, and there were two cardboard boxes inside.

Tao Shuangfa:

The box contained shredded paper and torn pages of a contract.

Lin Ye looked at the photo, and his drowsiness dissipated by half.

Gu Mingyuan was really anxious.

He wanted to cut it.

They wanted to push Pei Jingluan, Bai Jingchuan, Jiang Cheng, and Liu Jiankun out.

He pretended to be an "uninformed project manager".

Lin Ye pinched the bridge of his nose.

He understands this.

When something goes wrong, the leader's first reaction is usually not to solve the problem, but to shift the blame.

My phone vibrated again.

This time it's Gu Wantang.

"The Gu family."

Lin Ye glanced at the time.

2:07 AM.

He replied:

"Miss Gu, even capitalists don't use people like this, do they?"

Gu Wantang replied quickly.

"Add more money."

Lin Ye stared at the two words without hesitation, then stood up to get his coat.

no way.

She gave so much.

Half an hour later, Lin Ye arrived at Gu's Cultural Tourism.

The conference room was brightly lit.

This is not a formal board meeting.

It's more like a temporary blockade.

Gu Wantang sat in the main seat, her face cold.

Attorney Shen sat to her left, with several torn pages of contracts and printed photos spread out in front of him.

Tao Shuang stood at the door.

On the other side of the conference room, Gu Mingyuan sat.

The suit was still neat, and the tie was not messed up.

But the hint of panic in his eyes was impossible to hide.

His face immediately darkened when he saw Lin Ye enter.

"What's he doing here?"

Gu Wantang looked up.

"I called them."

Gu Mingyuan sneered: "Gu Wantang, this is an internal matter for the Gu family. You let a cemetery security guard sit here?"

Lin Ye had just pulled out the chair when he paused.

He looked at Gu Mingyuan.

"President Gu, should I leave? I'm afraid I'll get fired if I listen to your internal meetings anyway."

Attorney Shen looked down at the documents, and the corner of her mouth twitched slightly.

Gu Wantang glanced at Lin Ye.

"sit."

Lin Ye immediately sat down.

Very obedient.

Gu Mingyuan's expression turned even uglier.

"Gu Wantang, you're becoming more and more outrageous."

Gu Wantang didn't argue with him.

She pushed a document over.

"The ledger in the hidden compartment of A17, the archive box in the back alley of Guiyun Guild Hall, the Hongyun cold chain transfer records, and the collection numbers in the white box have all been sealed by the cultural relics inspection team."

Gu Mingyuan didn't even glance at it.

"What does that have to do with me?"

Gu Wantang looked up.

"The projects under your name, the funds you approved—what does that have to do with you now?"

"I approved funding for cultural and tourism projects."

Gu Mingyuan spoke in a very steady tone.

"As for how the people below carried out the orders, how Jiang Cheng prepared the documents, how Liu Jiankun drove the cars, and how Pei Jingluan did things under the Gu family's name, it's impossible for me to know everything."

Lin Ye, who was listening nearby, wanted to applaud.

coming.

The classic three-part blame-shifting tactic.

I do not know.

I didn't do it.

It was all due to misunderstandings by the people below.

Gu Wantang was not in a hurry.

She looked at Attorney Shen.

Attorney Shen adjusted his glasses and opened the folder.

"President Gu, Jiang Cheng just said the same thing."

Gu Mingyuan's expression changed slightly.

"Have you met Jiang Cheng?"

"We communicated by phone."

Attorney Shen said, "He admitted to having prepared the documents, but emphasized that all key attachments require your verbal or written confirmation."

Gu Mingyuan sneered: "Of course he would say that. He'll throw any dirt at him to protect himself."

Gu Wantang placed another document on the table.

"Liu Jiankun also spoke up."

Gu Mingyuan's fingers tightened suddenly.

That happened very quickly.

But Lin Ye saw it.

Gu Mingyuan wasn't afraid of Jiang Cheng, since any contract could be subject to disputes.

But he was afraid of Liu Jiankun.

Liu Jiankun knew who had made the phone call in the middle of the night, what time they got on the bus, and what they had said in the parking lot.

Gu Wantang continued, "He said that three years ago, before that transfer on A17, you personally asked him to change the car lining, and the route wasn't decided by him."

"He's talking nonsense."

He also said that you told him to remember one thing.

Gu Mingyuan's face was grim.

Gu Wantang looked at him and said, word by word:

"Don't bring anything into Gu's store, deliver everything to A17."

Gu Mingyuan finally fell silent.

The meeting room fell silent.

Lin Ye sat beside him, looking at Gu Mingyuan's face.

This person is very good at pretending.

No matter how good she was at pretending, her eyes still flickered with confusion when she heard those words.

Because that's what he said at the scene back then.

The fact that Liu Jiankun was able to speak out shows that he wasn't just a driver who was pushed out to take the blame.

He was indeed involved.

I have indeed listened to Gu Mingyuan's instructions.

Gu Mingyuan quickly regained his composure.

"What can one driver's words prove?"

Gu Wantang said, "It cannot be proven by a single evidence."

She pushed the documents forward, page by page.

"The A17 ledger can prove it. The Hongyun Cold Chain accounts can prove it. The Qinglan Consulting transfer can prove it. The audit page left by Zheng Shouan in the white box can also prove it."

Gu Mingyuan looked at the documents and suddenly smiled.

"Gu Wantang, you've really grown up now."

Gu Wantang remained silent.

Gu Mingyuan raised his head.

"You think pulling me down will clean up the Gu family's mess? Didn't your grandfather have a speck of dirt on his hands when he was working on those projects?"

Gu Wantang's eyes turned cold.

Attorney Shen frowned.

"Mr. Gu, please watch your words."

Gu Mingyuan, however, seemed to have finally found an opening to bite back.

Did I say something wrong?

He looked at Gu Wantang.

"Is the Gu family really so clean in its path to where it is today? If your grandfather was truly so innocent, why has A17 been kept within the Gu family system for so many years?"

Lin Ye's eyelids twitched.

Having said that, Gu Mingyuan is clearly determined to fight to the death!

Knowing they were doomed to defeat, they began to muddy the waters.

They dragged Old Master Gu into this mess.

This dragged the entire Gu family down with them.

This way, he can say that he is just "continuing an old project" and not the originator.

Gu Wantang did not speak immediately.

Her fingers pressed against the edge of the document, her knuckles turning slightly white.

Just then, the voice of Old Master Gu suddenly appeared in Lin Ye's mind.

It's not something I'm hearing now.

A few nights ago at the grave, Old Master Gu mentioned something while he was cursing:

"That kid doesn't use his real name when he signs... He likes to circle things in red pen, like he's approving imperial edicts."

Lin Ye didn't pay much attention at the time.

Because when Old Master Gu scolded Gu Mingyuan, nine out of ten sentences were filled with personal emotions.

Now that I think about it, that sentence suddenly makes sense.

Circle it with a red pen.

You don't need to use your real name to sign.

Lin Ye looked down at the torn pages of the contract on the table.

One of the outsourced supplementary parts had a faint red circle around its edge.

Not a comment.

It's not a key point to mark.

The circled area represents a number.

A17 - Temporary Exhibition Auxiliary Library

Lin Ye did not directly mention Old Master Gu.

He picked up his pen and gently touched the red circle with the tip.

"Attorney Shen."

Attorney Shen looked at him.

Lin Ye asked, "Who drew this circle?"

Gu Mingyuan's expression changed instantly.

Very fine.

But things have changed.

Attorney Shen looked down.

"Marked in red pen?"

"Um."

Lin Ye said, "This is not like a normal review. There was no signature or notes next to it, just a circled number."

Attorney Shen took the torn page and then turned to another photo of a contract.

He quickly laid out the three documents side by side.

Each one has a red circle on it.

The positions of the circles are different.

But their penmanship habits are very similar.

Attorney Shen's expression turned serious.

"Miss Gu, there are similar red circles in the file boxes in the back alley."

Gu Wantang immediately looked at Tao Shuang.

Tao Shuang had already taken out her phone to contact the outside.

"Take high-resolution photos of all the documents marked with red pen in the archive box and send them over."

Gu Mingyuan said coldly, "What do a few red circles prove?"

Lin Ye looked up at him.

"Mr. Gu, what's the rush?"

Gu Mingyuan stared at him.

Lin Ye said very sincerely, "I was just asking who drew the circle, I didn't say it was you. I'm a little embarrassed that you're in such a hurry."

Gu Mingyuan's face turned pale.

"You have no right to speak here."

There's nothing we can do about that.

Lin Ye leaned back in his chair.

"Miss Gu gave me extra money."

Gu Wantang: "..."

Attorney Shen coughed lightly, looking down.

The tense atmosphere in the meeting room was slightly eased by this sentence.

But Gu Mingyuan couldn't laugh.

He stared at Lin Ye, the hatred in his eyes finally becoming undisguised.

"It's you."

Lin Ye blinked.

"what?"

Gu Mingyuan stood up.

The chair scraped backward with a screeching sound.

"If it weren't for you, Gu Wantang would never have found out any of this!"

The meeting room fell silent.

Gu Mingyuan seemed to have finally shed his facade, his voice rising uncontrollably.

"Liu Changhai's accounts, A17, Hongyun Cold Chain, Guiyun Club... which one wasn't you involved in?"

He pointed at the forest, his eyes red.

"Whose side are you on?"

Gu Wantang stood up.

"Gu Mingyuan."

Her voice was not loud.

But it made the entire conference room fall silent.

"You just said you didn't know these things."

Gu Mingyuan's face stiffened.

Gu Wantang looked at him.

"Then how do you know that Lin Ye is involved every time?"

Gu Mingyuan's lips moved slightly.

He didn't utter a single word.

Attorney Shen slowly closed the folder.

Tao Shuang stood at the door, her eyes as cold as knives.

Lin Ye sat in the chair, looked at Gu Mingyuan, and sighed softly.

It’s over.

President Gu's move was a Pyrrhic victory, hurting the enemy eight hundred while injuring himself a thousand.