Hospital.

The police came to the hospital to question Bryce Shaw about the day of his car accident.

He began to recall.

That night, he was driving Li Qiuchi home. There weren't many cars on the road. As they reached North Ring Avenue, a van suddenly surged out from a side street and rammed towards them.

When the van came at them, his reflex was to shield Li Qiuchi, so he never got a good look at the driver's face.

Thinking back on it now, there were certainly plenty of suspicious points.

“Carefully think: have you offended anyone recently?”

Bryce Shaw had spent years maneuvering through the backstabbing world of business. Offending people was inevitable. But someone bold enough to want his head? He truly couldn’t think of anyone.

A dull ache started at his temples. He’d only just had surgery a few days ago—Li Qiuchi, worried about his health, quickly interrupted Lu Chaoran.

“Officer Lu, he just came out of surgery and hasn’t really recovered yet. Maybe he just can’t recall things clearly right now.”

Lu Chaoran saw her concern and didn’t press further.

“Take time to rest and recover. If you remember anything, contact me directly.” Lu Chaoran scribbled down his phone number and passed it over.

—

Shengmei Group.

In the break room, several employees had gathered to gossip about the third young master of the Shen family.

Employee A said, “President Shen’s younger brother looks so familiar. I swear I’ve seen him before somewhere.”

Employee B scoffed, “Yeah right! Every time you see a handsome guy, you say that. Have you ever met a hottie you didn’t think you recognized?”

Employee C chimed in, “President Shen’s brother is seriously good-looking! He’s got this powerhouse aura. I saw him waiting for the elevator just now—total heartthrob.”

…

“You all best hush up. If Manager Xue catches wind of this, there’ll be hell to pay,” warned Yang, the finance department manager, cutting off their chatter sharply.

At that moment, Chris Cooper walked in and told Manager Yang, “Manager Yang, President Shen wants you to bring the financial statements from the past two months to him for review.”

“Financial statements?” Yang looked puzzled. Why on earth would they need to look over the reports, and those from the last two months specifically?

“Assistant Cui, why does Third Young Master Shen want to see the financial statements?” Yang couldn’t help but show his displeasure. He’d never liked Yancy Shaw’s sudden appointment—and now this, micromanaging and demanding reports.

Chris Cooper didn’t answer, just replied with a neutral, “Manager Yang, the company is under Third Young Master’s management for now. Please cooperate.”

His job was just to relay the message; the rest was not his concern.

With a heavy stack of statements in his arms, Manager Yang headed to the president’s office.

He ran into Mandy Snow coming down the corridor.

“Manager Yang, what are you up to?”

“Oh, nothing! It’s just the new President Shen asking to see the company’s past two months’ statements.” Yang didn’t bother to hide his annoyance. He leaned close, lowering his voice, “Honestly, I can’t figure out what this Third Young Master Shen is up to.”

It was well known that Mandy Snow had promoted Yang herself. Before, Bryce Shaw was too busy to run Shengmei hands-on, giving Mandy Snow opportunites to assert herself. Plus, being part of the Shen family herself, most people deferred to her.

“He wants to see statements from the past two months?” Mandy Snow frowned, clearly suspicious of Yancy Shaw’s intentions.

Yang continued in a low voice, “I heard Third Young Master is a doctor—does he even know how to make sense of these reports?”

Mandy Snow stayed silent. Yang pressed on, “Since President Shen is absent, they should’ve put a capable person in charge. But this Third Young Master—he clearly doesn’t know a thing. If you ask me, things would run much better with you in charge, Manager Xue.”

Mandy Snow cut him off sternly, “Manager Yang, you can’t say such things. If President Shen has put Third Young Master in charge, there must be a reason for it. No wild guesses.”

Yang shot back, “You’re part of the Shen family, too! I think they just don’t want you managing things, so they sent in someone clueless instead.”

Yang was Mandy Snow’s distant relative, but no one at the company knew. She’d already warned him not to let it slip—or he’d be out.

It was clear he was standing up for Mandy Snow.

“Yang Jun!” Mandy Snow snapped, lowering her voice, “This is the company. Watch what you say. Don’t think just because you have this position you can run your mouth.”

Chastened by her scolding, Yang kept quiet from then on.

Inside the president’s office, Yancy Shaw sat behind the desk, gold-rimmed glasses on his nose, focused on reviewing documents—bearing quite a striking resemblance to Bryce Shaw.

Upon hearing the door, he looked up. His eyes were cold and deep, giving the impression he was appraising whoever stood before him.

Yang couldn’t help feeling a jolt of nerves—this Third Young Master’s gaze seemed even more intimidating than Bryce Shaw’s.

“President Shen, I’ve compiled the past two months’ financial statements for you to review.”

“Put them on the desk.” Yancy Shaw gestured to the tabletop.

Yang placed the stack on the table and was about to leave when Yancy Shaw stopped him.

“Wait.”

Yang froze, the confidence he'd shown earlier melting into sweat-dampened anxiety.

“Manager Yang, these financial figures are wrong. Did you know?” Yancy Shaw spoke calmly, not sharp or aggressive, but the understated manner somehow made him all the more imposing.

Yang was momentarily stunned, “W–wrong?”

“Do you realize that a small mistake on your part could cost the company tens of millions?” Yancy Shaw’s measured tone nevertheless sent a chill through Yang.

A quick review of his own report made Yang’s face go pale. He looked at Yancy Shaw, flustered. “I’m sorry, President Shen! I’ll fix it right away.”

But Yancy Shaw didn’t let it rest. “This time it’s an error—what about next time?”

Head bowed low, Yang didn’t dare meet Yancy Shaw’s eyes; he couldn’t stifle the trembling in his limbs.

“Please, President Shen, give me another chance. I promise it won’t happen again.”

He’d struggled to climb to his current position. If he was fired, who else would want him?

“How long have you been with the company?” Yancy Shaw asked in a slow and almost casual tone, but that only made Yang more nervous.

Terrified of losing his job, Yang answered quickly to anything Yancy Shaw asked.

“Three years.”

“Three years and you’ve risen to chief of finance—so you clearly have some skills.” Yancy Shaw’s words carried a hidden meaning, but Yang was too rattled to catch it.

“Yes, President—no, I mean, it’s thanks to the company giving me this opportunity that I became finance manager.”

Seeing the cold sweat beading on Yang’s brow, Yancy Shaw let out a faint, sardonic laugh. “Check the numbers again. Don’t let there be any next time, or I’ll find someone even more competent to take your place.”