C13 The Unlucky Su Li!

"Ding dong!"

Su Ziqing was enjoying a barbecue with Chiang Chen by the charcoal grill when her phone suddenly chimed.

Under the table, Xiaobai poked out his little pink tongue for a quick lick, ensuring the meat wasn't too hot before gulping down the piece Chiang Chen had offered. "Host, you've really got some serious culinary chops!

Mmm... Yummy! Yummy!

Can we do this again sometime? Just us, no need to sneak around or anything—just a good, hearty feast!"

Chiang Chen, having fed Xiaobai, playfully tapped him, eliciting a grumble of protest. "What's so special about Su Ziqing, huh? Why are you so into her? I'm a girl too, you know. Can't you treat me equally?"

"You?" Chiang Chen sneered, glancing under the table as Su Ziqing reached for her phone, "If you could turn into a Cat Girl, maybe we'd talk. But as it stands, your fluffy little self can't hold a candle to Su Ziqing, with her fair skin and long, beautiful legs."

Xiaobai rolled his eyes and seized the moment to snatch another piece of meat from the table, devouring it voraciously.

"Chen, we've got a lead!" Su Ziqing waved her phone excitedly, "I roped in a computer whiz who tracked the anonymous ID's login details from the forum's backend. We should have answers soon!"

Chiang Chen passed her a glass of juice, "That calls for a celebratory drink."

Su Ziqing took a sip, her unease palpable, yet she remained dutifully silent about the Zhang Mingming situation.

Meanwhile, Su Minghe had swiftly come to the same conclusion.

"Time to bring in our team," he said, eyeing the login data before passing the phone to the Old Housekeeper. "Qingqing's still wet behind the ears with this stuff. Who knows when she'd figure it out.

Let's follow this lead and see where it takes us. I'm curious to see who's getting too comfortable for their own good."

Time flew by, and Chiang Chen and Su Ziqing spent their day blissfully in the mountains—drinking tea, grilling, picking flowers, and cloud-watching, all their troubles forgotten in their little slice of paradise.

After Su Minghe gleaned intelligence from his daughter, he kept a vigilant watch on his subordinates as they hunted down the whistleblower, ready to ensure they'd face the music.

As dusk fell, Chiang Chen drove Su Ziqing back to the Su Family Manor.

"It's getting late; Chen, you should stay for dinner before heading out." She was still basking in the glow of their date, reluctant to see her dear one leave, secretly hoping he might agree to stay the night.

Chiang Chen was about to decline when the Su family's manager came running over in a panic.

"Miss, we have a serious problem!" He glanced warily at Chu Jiangchen and bit back his next words.

Su Ziqing's brow furrowed. "What's got you so worked up? Chen's practically family; there's no need for secrets."

After a brief hesitation, the steward steeled himself and spoke in a hushed tone, "Young Master Su Li has been arrested! The police took him in on charges of illegal detention and intentional harm!"

"What?!" Su Ziqing gasped, visibly taken aback, her gaze snapping to Chu Jiangchen.

Chiang Chen feigned a look of shock, as if he was completely uninvolved, and pressed for details, "What exactly happened? Ms Ziqing needs a clear picture to figure out how to handle this."

"I only just heard about it myself. The police who were here investigating have just left," the manager said, swallowing hard. "It seems pretty serious. They didn't even inform Director Su, just went ahead and seized some surveillance footage and documents.

I heard that last night around 7:30, Young Master Su Li summoned his attendant, Zhang Mingming. No one knows what they discussed, but by eight, Zhang Mingming was requesting leave for a sudden illness, claiming he needed to visit the hospital.

Normally, such matters would be escalated to the team leader for immediate action.

But Zhang Mingming declined the team leader's offer to file a report and arrange transportation. The gardener mentioned he saw Zhang Mingming slip into Young Master Su Li's car.

It didn't seem like a big deal at the time, but this morning, Zhang Mingming's family couldn't get ahold of him. They reached out to our HR department for help, but despite their efforts, Zhang Mingming has simply vanished."

By the afternoon, the Zhang family couldn't sit idly by any longer and decided to report to the police.

As you're aware, the police use sophisticated facial recognition technology to assist in these types of missing persons cases, conducting searches through a connected network.

Unfortunately, the search turned up some troubling results.

The police identified Zhang Mingming on the surveillance footage from an entertainment club in the northern district and immediately retrieved the video.

It showed Young Master Su Li forcefully dragging Zhang Mingming into a room, kicking and beating him.

Zhang Mingming hadn't been seen since he was taken into the room, while Young Master Su Li was spotted entering and exiting several times, occasionally carrying weapons and stained with blood.

Fearing a fatality, the police quickly dispatched a rescue operation.

I've heard Zhang Mingming was beaten quite severely.

He's now in the hospital under police protection, and Young Master Su Li has been arrested.

He was apprehended about half an hour ago. Should we... inform Director Su right away?"

Su Ziqing clenched her teeth in anger, managing to hiss through them, "This animal!"

Chiang Chen remained composed, advising, "Our immediate priority is to notify Uncle Su, then rush over with a lawyer to assess the situation. Regardless, Su Li is a representative of the Su family's image, and we can't allow him to tarnish your family's reputation.

Also, let's send a few dependable individuals to the hospital to check on Zhang Mingming.

A case of deliberate injury can be a serious matter, but it ultimately depends on the victim's account."

"Chen's absolutely right!" Su Ziqing, having calmed down from her initial rage, quickly made a call, "Dad, there's been an incident with Su Li!

He's been detained for the illegal confinement and assault of Zhang Mingming and is now in police custody.

I'm heading over with a lawyer to see if we can arrange bail.

Please, try to remain calm. Zhang Mingming has been taken to the hospital by the police. I'm sending some people to visit him and gauge the situation, to see if there's any chance of mitigating the charges of intentional harm."

She succinctly explained the situation and methodically organized the next steps.

"I'll accompany you," Chiang Chen offered, not wanting to miss out on the unfolding drama.

Without a second thought, Su Ziqing agreed. There was no time to change; they hurried into the car and made a beeline for the police station.

"Miss Su, I've already had a preliminary discussion with the police," the lawyer informed Su Ziqing. Su's Group, of course, was never short of legal counsel. A single phone call was all it took for their lawyers, always on standby, to arrive even before Su Ziqing and her entourage did.

The attorney, a young woman with black-framed glasses and hair neatly coiffed, appeared both youthful and remarkably competent at just 24 or 25 years old.

"Lawyer Qin, what's the status?" Su Ziqing asked directly.

Adjusting her glasses, Qin Man replied with gravity, "The sole piece of good news is that Su Li has the sense to keep quiet. Upon his arrest, he didn't utter a word except to request a lawyer. The police have scheduled our visit for ten minutes from now. There's not much wiggle room with this case; it largely hinges on Zhang Mingming's account. We'll meet with Su Li, clarify the sequence of events, and then formulate our plan. We can't take our eyes off Zhang Mingming—if he's willing to talk, there's a strong likelihood we could settle this matter privately."

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