Chapter 70 Showdown
The study door was flung open, and Huo Shen stood at the doorway, his face gloomy enough to drip water. He was obviously disturbed, and a storm was brewing in his eyes, but when he saw Su Yan's bloodless face, full of panic and despair, the storm froze for a moment.
"You'd better have a good reason." Huo Shen's voice was cold, with impatience at being interrupted.
Su Yan gasped, his chest heaving violently. He looked up at Huo Shen, his voice broken by extreme fear: "Sir...Bentzai...Assistant Zhou...Did he discover something? Is he...going to do something to me..."
He spoke incoherently and could barely form complete sentences, but the fear that came from his bones was real and not fake at all.
Huo Shen stared at him, a sharp light flickering in his deep eyes. He didn't answer immediately, but reached out and grabbed Su Yan's wrist, dragging him roughly into the study, and then slammed the door.
The loud sound of the door closing made Su Yan tremble all over.
Huo Shen pressed him against the cold door panel and looked down at him, his gaze like a scalpel: "What are you afraid of? Huh?"
His breath sprayed on Su Yan's face, carrying a dangerous sense of oppression: "Are you afraid that Zhou Mingchen will find out about your shameful little actions? Or are you afraid... that I know more?"
Su Yan's heart nearly jumped out of his chest. He closed his eyes, tears streaming down his face uncontrollably. He knew he was on the edge of a cliff, and if he took another step back, he would be doomed.
"I... I buried something at the door of the study..." He choked and chose to partially confess. This was the only way he could grasp and perhaps exchange for a little trust. "A USB player... empty... I was just... just scared..."
He didn't dare mention the diary or the medicine bottle, and only stated this relatively "harmless" fact that had been discovered.
Huo Shen tightened his grip on his wrist, his eyes becoming even darker and more unfathomable. "When was it buried?"
"It was... a long time ago..." Su Yan's voice was as thin as a thread. "After you... warned me for the first time... I was so scared... I wanted to keep something... I don't know why..."
He attributed his motives to pure, foolish fear, which was consistent with his mentality at the time and was more convincing.
Huo Shen was silent for a moment, as if trying to judge the truth of his words. The only sound in the study was Su Yan's suppressed sobs.
"Why are you telling me now?" Huo Shen asked again, his tone unclear whether he believed it or not.
"Because... because of Assistant Zhou..." Su Yan raised his tearful eyes, which were filled with real fear. "The way he looked at me... what he said today... I felt that he knew... He wanted to deal with me... Sir, please... I was wrong, I won't dare to do it again... Don't let him..."
He directed all his fears towards Assistant Zhou. This was the truth, and it was also the only self-preservation strategy he could think of at the moment—taking advantage of the subtle rift between Huo Shen and Assistant Zhou.
Huo Shen loosened his grip, but his eyes remained fixed on him. He took a step back, leaned against the desk, and lit a cigarette. His face was a little blurry in the smoke.
"Zhou Mingchen..." Huo Shen muttered the name in a low voice, a cold, ambiguous arc appearing on the corner of his mouth. "He really knows too much, and his hands are too long."
This sentence, like a flash of lightning, instantly illuminated Su Yan's confused thoughts!
Huo Shen was indeed dissatisfied with Assistant Zhou! He might even have known about Assistant Zhou's actions behind the scenes for a long time!
What about himself? Did his "confession" accidentally hit the mark and cater to Huo Shen's thoughts?
"Sir..." Su Yan called timidly, with complete dependence and pleading.
Huo Shen blew out a puff of smoke, his gaze falling through the smoke onto Su Yan's pale, fragile face. The look in his eyes was complex and difficult to discern: scrutiny, calculation, and perhaps a hint of... a sense of enjoyment from being relied upon that he himself hadn't even noticed.
"Where's the stuff?" he asked.
"In...in the secret compartment of the drawer in my room..." Su Yan confessed honestly.
Huo Shen nodded and didn't ask about the USB drive anymore. Instead, he changed the subject: "Stay away from Zhou Mingchen in the future. You don't have to worry about his affairs."
This is almost a disguised commitment to protection.
Su Yan felt relieved and nodded quickly: "Yes, sir, I will remember it."
Huo Shen put out his cigarette, walked up to him, and lifted his chin with his fingers. The force was not strong, but it carried an unquestionable meaning: "Remember what you said today. Behave yourself, and I will naturally protect you. If you dare to do it again..."
He didn't say the rest of the words, but the cold warning in his eyes said it all.
"No...never again..." Su Yan quickly assured.
Huo Shen seemed satisfied. He let go of his hand and his tone returned to normal: "Go out."
Su Yan felt as if he had been pardoned, and he left the study room with his hands and feet almost limp. The moment he closed the door, he leaned against the wall and slowly slid down to the ground, all the strength in his body drained away.
His bet was right. Huo Shen temporarily believed him, and because of Assistant Zhou's relationship, he seemed to have a little more...insignificant "protection" for him.
But the crisis is far from over. Assistant Zhou is like a ticking time bomb. And what exactly is "Phase Two"?
At this moment, his phone vibrated again. He trembled and clicked it. It was still the same unknown number, but this time the message was shorter, only two words, but it made him feel like he was falling into an icy cave:
Run away!
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