502: Chapter 497 Rotting from the Inside

Shen Yan blew on the steam rising from his teacup, not looking up.

Zhang Jufeng snapped out of it and hurriedly picked up the old leather suitcase by his feet, placing it on the table with both hands.

Click.

The suitcase was opened.

Inside were no gold, silver, or jewels, only stacks of neatly arranged documents.

Some of the papers had already yellowed, and the handwriting was somewhat blurred.

Like a group of silent orphans, they quietly told the story of a buried past.

"Mr. Shen, everything is here."

"These are all the core project materials from Yuanshan Heavy Industry back then, including all of Master's... his elderly self's manuscripts and notes."

"And... and some copies I secretly made of the Finance Department transaction records, as well as a list of people who had contact with Master before and after the incident."

Zhang Jufeng's voice carried a suppressed tremble.

These items were what he had risked his life to preserve.

Shen Yan didn't speak.

He set down his teacup, reached out, and picked up the document on top.

It was a project report regarding 'New Composite Material Smelting Technology.'

On the cover of the report was a bold and powerful signature.

Li Chongshan.

One of the founders of Yuanshan Heavy Industry, Zhang Jufeng's master, a genius Engineer whose death had been labeled an accident.

Shen Yan flipped through the pages one by one.

His speed wasn't fast, but his gaze was extremely focused.

In the private room, only the rustling sound of flipping paper remained.

Zhang Jufeng's heart was in his throat.

He didn't know what Shen Yan could see.

He had gone over these materials himself hundreds of times; besides proving his master's innocence, he couldn't find the real culprit who framed him at all.

Time passed, minute by minute.

Half an hour.

One hour.

After finishing all the technical documents, Shen Yan began to look through those Finance Department records.

His brow didn't furrow even once.

His expression was as calm as if he were looking at a report that had nothing to do with him.

Suddenly.

His finger stopped on a photocopy of a receipt.

It was a record for the overseas procurement of a special catalyst.

"Who is this person?"

Shen Yan pointed at a signature on the receipt.

Zhang Jufeng leaned in to take a look.

"Oh, his name is Zhao Guang. He was the deputy manager of the Procurement Department at the time. Not long after Master's incident, he resigned. I heard he went back to his hometown."

"Back to his hometown?"

A nearly imperceptible curve appeared at the corner of Shen Yan's mouth.

"I suspect he didn't go back to his hometown, but to a better place."

He pulled out that receipt and set it aside.

Then, he picked up another document.

It was a list of asset divestments made before Yuanshan Heavy Industry applied for bankruptcy.

"Where did Yuanshan Heavy Industry's core technologies and patents eventually end up?"

"Well, the company was in a mess back then. Many were treated as non-performing assets and auctioned off in low-priced packages."

Zhang Jufeng recalled.

"Most of them were acquired by a company called 'Jiangnan Group'."

"Jiangnan Group..."

Shen Yan softly repeated the name.

He placed the asset divestment list side-by-side with that procurement receipt.

"After this Zhao Guang resigned, did he go to Jiangnan Group?"

Zhang Jufeng was stunned.

"I... I don't know. I didn't pay attention to him."

"No need to check; he definitely went there."

Shen Yan's tone brooked no doubt.

"And, his position shouldn't be low."

He picked up an unsigned private note.

Quickly flipped to the last few pages.

There were only a few messy words on it.

"I'm sorry, Uncle Shan..."

"They used Xiao Yun to threaten me..."

"I had no choice..."

The handwriting was scrawled, showing how much pain and struggle the owner's heart was in when writing these words.

Zhang Jufeng's eyes turned red.

"Xiao Yun is Liu Xu's only daughter. Back then... she suddenly developed a very serious kidney disease and needed a large sum of money for a transplant..."

"Liu Xu went to your master to beg?"

Shen Yan finished the second half of the sentence for him.

Zhang Jufeng nodded painfully.

"So that's how it is."

Shen Yan leaned back in his chair, fingers interlaced in front of him.

"The clues are all connected."

His voice was very soft, yet it was like a heavy hammer striking Zhang Jufeng's heart.

Zhang Jufeng snapped his head up, looking at Shen Yan with a face full of astonishment.

"Mr. Shen, you... you mean you know who the real culprit is?"

"A father who took a desperate risk for his daughter."

"A business tycoon who meticulously planned to obtain core technology."

"An insider who coveted wealth and collaborated from within."

Shen Yan's gaze fell on the cup of tea on the table, which had already gone cold.

"A very common and clumsy drama."

"The fall of Yuanshan Heavy Industry wasn't an accident, but a long-premeditated hunt."

"The hunter is Jiangnan Group."

"And your master, Zhou Baoping, as well as his master, Li Chongshan, were just the... prey in this hunt."

Every word was like an icicle piercing into Zhang Jufeng's ears.

His entire body stiffened.

Jiangnan Group!

That business empire that was now at the height of its power in the entire Jiangnan region!

Its chairman, Wei Mingyuan, was a powerful figure with immense influence!

He never dreamed that the one who killed his master would be such a colossus.

A bone-chilling cold rushed from the soles of his feet straight to the top of his head.

Despair.

It was a deeper despair than before.

If the enemy was Jiangnan Group, then his meager evidence was no different from a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

"How... how could it be them..."

Zhang Jufeng's voice was full of helplessness and confusion.

"It's over... it's all over..."

He slumped into the chair as if all his strength had been drained.

Shen Yan looked at his despondent state without any reaction.

He just picked up the teapot again, unhurriedly poured out the cold tea in front of them, and refilled it with scalding hot new tea.

The fragrance of tea wafted out once more.

"Is this all the backbone you have?"

Shen Yan's voice was as cold as ice.

Zhang Jufeng jolted and looked up.

He saw that in Shen Yan's eyes, there was no sympathy, no pity, only a bottomless calm.

"Since I've promised you, I won't go back on my word."

"A mere Jiangnan Group isn't qualified to make me back down."

Zhang Jufeng's lips quivered, but he couldn't say a single word.

He felt that the Shen Yan before him was somewhat unfamiliar, even a bit terrifying.

"What do you plan to do?"

Shen Yan picked up his teacup and blew on it gently.

"There are many ways to clear a dead man's name."

"The stupidest way is to take this so-called evidence and knock on the doors of the authorities."

"The result of doing that would be your disappearance, and these things would turn into a pile of waste paper."

Zhang Jufeng's face instantly turned pale.

He knew what Shen Yan said was the truth.

"Then... then what should we do?"

"To deal with a hunter, you must use the hunter's methods."

A hint of a smile finally appeared at the corner of Shen Yan's mouth.

That smile, however, sent a shiver down Zhang Jufeng's spine.

"First, we will make the fortress he is so proud of start rotting from the inside."