Upon hearing that, Chasing Wind lowered his head in embarrassment, gritting his teeth as he reported,
"Still haven't pinned down the exact location. The target is using a network of domestic and overseas IP hops to run me in circles. I've already contacted Wang Yue—RedHack will step in soon."
Shang Yu responded in an indifferent tone, glancing sideways at the phone on the table, a faint smile flickering in his eyes.
"No need to keep tracing."
Chasing Wind's eyelids twitched. He couldn't help but exchange glances with Liu Yun.
"But Boss, if your number's been compromised…"
Shang Yu swirled his glass, the ice clinking gently, and his tone left no room for argument.
"Shut it down."
"…Yes, Boss."
Three seconds later, Liu Yun and Chasing Wind walked out of the room looking utterly baffled.
Neither spoke a word, descending the stairs in perfect unintentional sync, and then returned to their respective rooms—each one lying awake all night, questioning their very existence.
Why the hell was the Boss suddenly so… merciful?
…
Time skipped ahead—Monday.
It was the thesis defense day at Nanyang Medical University.
At 7 a.m. sharp, Li Qiao arrived at the garage, ready to head out. Just as she slid into the driver's seat, a call came in from Li Shaoquan.
"The forum issue is settled."
Li Qiao tapped her fingers on the steering wheel, casually curling her lips. "Thanks."
After ending the call, she tossed her phone aside and drove straight to the university campus.
Because it was thesis defense day for the seniors, the campus was noticeably busier than usual.
This time, Li Qiao didn't park on the street like before—she went straight into the campus parking lot.
Just as she stepped out of the car, a Maserati roared into the spot beside hers. The window rolled down to reveal Tang Yiting's face behind a pair of sunglasses, smiling.
"Well, look at you. Not parking outside today?"
Li Qiao twirled her car key, crossing her legs and leaning lazily against her door. "Felt like showing off some wealth today."
Tang Yiting rolled her eyes and reached for her printed materials from the passenger seat before stepping out. "Come on, my defense is in Room 402 of the main building. What about you?"
"307."
Tang Yiting linked arms with her affectionately as they walked. "Then let's eat together at noon, yeah? Xiao Wen will be there too."
Li Qiao glanced at her, asking coolly, "He's back again?"
"Mm-hmm. Texted me this morning, said he's tagging along with his advisor again. Won't be done until evening. If you're free, join us for lunch."
Li Qiao neither agreed nor refused.
As they walked toward the main building, they passed many underclassmen—almost all of them gave Li Qiao lingering stares.
The buzz from last week's forum post hadn't died down. But after the forum mysteriously crashed and stayed offline for days, no one knew if the "melon patch" still had any juicy gossip left.
Noticing the not-so-subtle looks from other students, Tang Yiting frowned and took off her sunglasses, handing them to Li Qiao. "Put these on—no need for a bunch of idiots to lust after your face."
Li Qiao smiled faintly but didn't take them. Instead, she asked with a half-smile, "Heard the forum crashed?"
"You're damn right it did!" Tang Yiting exclaimed loudly. Then, glancing around cautiously, she leaned closer and whispered, "Was it you who had it taken down?"
Li Qiao raised a brow, neither confirming nor denying. "Try logging in now."
Tang Yiting blinked, then quickly pulled out her phone. The forum was back—and at the very top, a new pinned post had appeared:
"Discussion: How the Mistress Got Socially Destroyed!"
Two attention-grabbing keywords. Both hot topics lately.
Curious, Tang Yiting clicked on the post and skimmed through the detailed, image-laden exposé. She gasped on the spot, "Holy sh*t—so that's how it went down!"