Chapter 636 - 418: The Information Broker

The early morning wind gusted, whipping the tie on Chen Yuan’s shirt. It was not a clear start to the new day; the sky was dim and heavy, like a gray canvas.

The air carried the damp scent of earth.

"If you leave early now, you should reach Tokyo by evening. Don’t worry, I’ll handle things here properly. You just need to bring Jiangg Yao back safely."

Jiangg Ning stood at the entrance of the small villa, a pair of slippers on her feet. Her body was wrapped in a brownish-gray overcoat.

She wore no makeup, her face clean and unadorned. Her uncombed hair was messy and tangled.

Chen Yuan, on the other hand, had gotten ready in just over ten minutes this morning. He wore a shirt and trousers, and it was worth noting that Jiangg Ning had tied his tie for him.

A sudden phone call had forced Chen Yuan to leave the warm, cozy bed he was reluctant to part with, get up, and quickly pack for Tokyo.

His schedule had been changed. A brief separation was unavoidable.

"Mm..." Chen Yuan rubbed his nose and reminded her, "Don’t forget to think about what I told you yesterday. Once you’ve made up your mind, be sure to message me. I’ll be checking my phone."

"I understand," Jiangg Ning nodded.

She knew, of course, what Chen Yuan was talking about.

It was about her company’s bankruptcy and the huge sum of money needed for compensation. Chen Yuan had offered to raise the funds himself, rather than letting Jiangg Ning humiliate herself by borrowing money.

In his eyes, this was obviously the best solution.

But to Jiangg Ning, spending his money felt no better than begging for it.

The inner torment was the same.

She sincerely understood Chen Yuan’s good intentions, but as long as she had other options, Jiangg Ning would never consider going down that path.

"How about you don’t go today? If you agree now, I can have Mo Nana come over and help you with the fund transfer," Chen Yuan’s eyes lit up as he asked expectantly, "What do you say?"

"Forget it, Chen. You should get going," Jiangg Ning tidied her hair, watching the disappointment quickly cloud Chen Yuan’s eyes. "If I really need it, I’ll definitely message you. Just relax."

"Alright."

Seeing her resolute attitude, Chen Yuan didn’t insist further. He turned and got into the car.

He gave a wave, closed the car window, and drove off immediately.

Watching the car turn past a corner of the garden and disappear at the intersection, Jiangg Ning stood motionless for a long time. When the wind blew, she shivered, perhaps from the cold.

Behind her, at the doorway, the housekeeper emerged, holding a section of a water hose.

"Has Mr. Chen left?"

"He has, but he should be back in a day or two. He went to pick up my sister."

"The second miss knows Mr. Chen too?" The housekeeper was suddenly surprised.

"Of course. We met back in Lanjing," Jiangg Ning smiled slightly. "It’s been quite a while."

"This Mr. Chen seems like a good person," Ms. Liu said, looking in the direction the car had disappeared. In truth, she had been nearby in the yard the whole time, only coming out when the moment was right. "Not only is he young and successful, but he’s also very kind. It’s rare to find a young man as polite as him... Early this morning, he was so courteous to the few of us maids, treating us completely like elders."

Jiangg Ning smiled without a word in response to the praise. She felt a sense of pride that Chen Yuan was so well-regarded.

"The eldest miss is indeed at the age to get married. You have high standards, and he’s a one-in-a-million choice. After the madam’s affairs are settled, it should be about time to discuss marriage, right?"

"That doesn’t depend on me. It depends on him," Jiangg Ning shrugged.

"That’s true. After all, Mr. Chen is young, so you, Miss, must hold onto his heart. Maybe next year, us old folks will get to see you get married with our own eyes."

"If that day ever comes, I doubt you’ll have such a good impression of him anymore."

At this, Jiangg Ning couldn’t help but sigh.

She shook her head and went back inside the house.

Leaving the housekeeper, Ms. Liu, standing there stunned, not understanding at all what she meant.

"What nonsense is the miss talking about? Shouldn’t that day be a joyous occasion?" Ms. Liu muttered in confusion.

「...」

A black sedan drove steadily down the road.

It was the morning rush hour, and the roads were congested.

More than half an hour had passed since they left the Jiangg Family villa. Chen Yuan glanced down at his watch and suddenly spoke.

"Change course. Head to the Economic and Trade Mansion, Lis Hotel parking lot," he said flatly.

"Director Jiang, aren’t we going to the airport? The scheduled departure time is nine-thirty, and we only have half an hour left. If we go to the Lis Hotel, we won’t make it back in time."

"The trip to Tokyo is postponed. I have to meet Director Ji."

"Very well, I understand."

The driver nodded, a bit confused, then flicked on the turn signal at the nearest U-turn, stepping on the gas and heading in the complete opposite direction of the airport.

In the back seat, Chen Yuan picked up his phone, opened his messages, and his brow slowly furrowed.

Yesterday, he had sent Ji Hai to contact Mrs. Jiang’s personnel here in Mingzhu City. After stating his intentions, he had them help investigate whether President Qi, who intended to acquire the building, had any connection to Jiangg Ruxue.

Unexpectedly, Ji Hai had called him first thing in the morning, saying there was an urgent matter to discuss and that he should not go to Tokyo yet.

Chen Yuan had already promised Jiangg Yao he would pick her up.

Now he was standing her up.

This was no small matter.

Ji Hai was a discreet person who always handled worries for Chen Yuan. Given his cautious and sharp personality, he wouldn’t have made such a big fuss unless he had encountered a major issue he wasn’t sure how to handle.

That’s why Chen Yuan had lied to Jiangg Ning and left the Jiangg Family home early.

Now, as he rode to the address Ji Hai had sent, he hadn’t even contacted Jiangg Yao. She was still waiting for him far away in Tokyo.

Chen Yuan was completely in the dark, with no idea what had changed. He probably wouldn’t find out until he saw Ji Hai in person.

「...」

The journey was made without a moment’s rest.

The underground parking lot of the Lis Hotel was pitch-black, with only a few lights near the walls.

If not for the car’s headlights, you couldn’t even find the corners.

The driver passed a fork in the path, and Ji Hai’s figure faintly appeared ahead. He was waving at Chen Yuan.

"New information," Ji Hai said in a low voice as he pulled open the car door and slid into the back seat. "I couldn’t find out if that President Qi is connected to this, but last night, someone knocked on my door at the Lis Hotel and handed me a card."

Chen Yuan stared at the plain white card Ji Hai handed him. A name and contact information were written on it.

Along with a string of numbers.

"What’s this mean?"

"These numbers happen to be the price Secretary Jiangg’s uncle, Jiangg Ruzheng, offered to President Qi the day before yesterday."

At these words, Chen Yuan’s brow furrowed again.

"I called the number on the card, but an old lady answered. Then, in the middle of the night, I took some men to her house but found nothing. However, on my way out, I saw this." As he spoke, Ji Hai took out a plastic bag. He opened it to reveal a desk calendar. "This brand-new calendar had a few numbers marked on it. If you translate them into an address, it’s Building Two of the Lis Hotel in Mingzhu City... and tucked inside the calendar was a photo."

The two of them took out the photo to look.

Chen Yuan couldn’t help but be surprised.

Because the photo showed him and Jiangg Ning, wearing masks, in a coffee shop. Someone had secretly taken it.

’Someone wants to see me?’ After a moment of careful thought, Chen Yuan came to this conclusion.

"To go to all this trouble, they must want to see you, President Jiang."

"Taking my picture..." Chen Yuan’s eyelids drooped. "Not many people know about my relationship with Jiangg Ning. With protection from Mrs. Jiang’s people, the fact that he could get this photo means he’s got some skills."

"Such a risky move must have a major reason behind it. Are we going?"

"We’re going."

With that, Chen Yuan pushed open the car door with a CLICK and walked with Ji Hai toward the underground garage elevators.

「...」

THUD.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

After a few knocks, Chen Yuan crossed his arms and leaned against the doorframe, waiting.

He had already made up his mind.

’This person who sent the note had better have something important to see me about. Otherwise, for secretly photographing Jiangg Ning and me alone, I won’t let them get away with it.’

He didn’t care about business tactics, nor did he mind how others treated him. But as soon as it involved Jiangg Ning, Chen Yuan felt extremely uncomfortable.

He felt as if he had been offended.

No matter what it was about.

A moment later, Chen Yuan and Ji Hai clearly saw the peephole on the suite’s door go dark. After another ten-odd seconds, the door opened.

"Director Jiang, Director Ji, I’m terribly sorry for bringing you to such a remote hotel to meet. It was the only way."

As the door opened, the person who appeared before them was a very gaunt, middle-aged man.

The man had thinning hair and sunken eyes. He was only about 1.6-something meters tall; Chen Yuan was a full head taller than him.

Chen Yuan and Ji Hai exchanged a glance, walked inside, and sat down on the sofa, looking around the room as they did.

"If you have something to tell me, say it quickly. I delayed official business to make this trip."

In front of outsiders, Chen Yuan was stern and unsmiling, his expression cold and his face set like stone.

This was a bit of personal experience he’d gained since entering the business world. As a superior, he had to control his attitude carefully, or it would be easy to give subordinates the impression that he was young and easily deceived.

Seeing his expression, the man indeed became even more reserved.

"My apologies, my apologies, Director Jiang, for delaying your official business... Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Xiaomao. I heard recently that Director Ji has been asking about the Meiruxue Company. I happen to have some valuable information, which is why I specifically arranged this to present it to you."

"An information broker?" Ji Hai scoffed.

He glanced at the man who called himself "Xiaomao" and whispered to Chen Yuan, "Flies of the business world. Also called information brokers. Their reach is vast, they have many people, and they operate as organizations and agencies. They’re a bunch of troublemakers who thrive on chaos."

"Why did you take a picture of me and my secretary?" Chen Yuan asked with a grim face after listening. "Destroy it immediately. Otherwise, you can forget about staying in Mingzhu City. You should know who I am."

"Aiya, of course I know, Young Master Jiang. I already deleted and shredded the negatives, not a trace is left. For a small fry like me to get a meeting with you, I had to resort to such a measure, didn’t I? But I guarantee you," Xiaomao said, his expression suddenly serious, "this information will absolutely be useful to you."

"If it’s so useful, then spit it out. What are you dawdling for?"

"Er... well, we also went to great lengths to get this information. So, of course... it’s not free."

Chen Yuan found this incredible for a moment, and raised an eyebrow.

"So you want me to pay first?"

"Rest assured, it’s cash for information. But since this is our first time working together, I’ll give you an appetizer first."

The short man quickly took out a piece of paper and placed it on the coffee table.

Chen Yuan and Ji Hai looked down and examined it for a moment. They discovered that the names on the list were the very same corporate spies within the Meiruxue Company that Ji Hai had investigated yesterday.

Moreover, their identities and positions were extremely detailed, and it was formatted as a table.

It even had photos, though they were just black-and-white printouts.

Even though Chen Yuan had already seen this list, the fact that this scrawny man before him could obtain such secret information made him reassess the man.

"Name your price."

"Ten thousand," the man said, holding up a finger.

The figure wasn’t that high, so Chen Yuan was immediately tempted to give it a try.

"Beautiful Coin," the scrawny man added another two words, revealing a set of yellow, tobacco-stained teeth.

"You want ten thousand Beautiful Coin for one piece of information??? You’ve got some nerve!" Ji Hai shot to his feet and slammed his hand on the table.