Chapter 132: With Him

Song Qingtian found it a bit odd that Chen Yun was going back to his own floor—she could understand that. But why was he heading somewhere else? According to the company’s floor hierarchy, this level is a special floor, essentially the company’s confidential tier. It houses the central control room for all computer equipment, along with various facilities and a dedicated area for storing archives and documents. Normally, only senior management is allowed in this area.

As Song Qingtian stepped out of the elevator and looked down the corridor, she noticed that every door had a sign reading “Authorized Personnel Only—No Entry Below Executive Level.” In her view, the project manager of the Development Department was practically half an executive himself. Yet even he needed someone to accompany him if he wanted to enter this place. Large companies have different management systems from smaller departments; certain areas are off-limits to just anyone.

Chen Yun had been beaten so badly his head was bleeding, and even if he hadn’t been disciplined by Ling Hanyu, he should still be in the hospital. So what on earth was he doing here? Song Qingtian was utterly baffled. She’d assumed Chen Yun was coming to settle scores with Ling Hanyu or something, but now she thought that might even be overkill.

Still, since she’d already come this far, Song Qingtian decided to tag along and see what was going on. Because she arrived late and wasn’t sure which door Chen Yun was headed for, she started searching room by room. Finally, she found the Archive Room, where she saw Chen Yun sneaking around, using his phone to transfer files from the computers inside.

Taking advantage of the moment when Chen Yun didn’t notice, Song Qingtian went straight to the electrical panel and switched off the power. Since desktop computers don’t have any backup power, the moment the electricity was cut, the machines immediately shut down.

When Chen Yun emerged from the Archive Room and glanced around, he couldn’t spot anyone—and headed straight for the electrical panel. There, Song Qingtian was standing not far away, watching as Chen Yun struggled to open the door to the power switch. She couldn’t help but laugh—didn’t he realize who she was?

He couldn’t even handle one person like her!

Chen Yun spent a long time fiddling with the door to the electrical panel, finally managing to get it open. Naturally, anyone who’s up to no good tends to feel nervous and flustered. As soon as he opened the door, though, he saw that the power had been cut, and he got even more scared. He pushed the switch back up, turned around, and kept looking over his shoulder, convinced there was someone lurking nearby.

Unable to steal any more data, he hurried back into the Archive Room—only to discover that his phone was gone.

Panicked, Chen Yun dashed out of the room and headed straight for his office floor. By the time he got there, he tried to grab his laptop, but it was nowhere to be found either.

“Who could have been here?” Chen Yun asked, forcing himself to stay calm as he questioned everyone outside his office.

But today, everyone seemed deliberately avoiding him. They’d all just gotten back, too, so how was he supposed to know where he’d been? He’d only just returned himself, after all. Everyone stared at each other, shaking their heads—none of them had any idea.

“We just got back, too!” Chen Yun’s eyes were bloodshot; there was no way this could be true!

Everyone was keeping as far away from Chen Yun as possible, each absorbed in their own work and pretending they hadn’t seen a thing. When Chen Yun finally left the office, he started searching the corridors. He was sure someone was watching him, but he couldn’t afford to let that slip at the company.

So he called home—and then disappeared.

He figured he was pretty smart: once everyone else was gone, he’d make sure to grab whatever he could. Even if he lost his phone and laptop, that wasn’t such a big deal.

After work, the lights began to go out on every floor of the company. Song Qingtian was frustrated: she couldn’t turn off Chen Yun’s phone, and with it still running, she had no choice but to find a safe place to stash both the phone and the laptop. And she still had to keep an eye on him.

In truth, she just wanted to see what Chen Yun was up to—but he was surprisingly bold. After everyone else had left, he actually carried off the computer case from the archive room. That was something Song Qingtian hadn’t expected at all.

Still, Song Qingtian couldn’t help but think Chen Yun was a bit of a fool. If it were her, she’d have taken Ling Hanyu’s computer case instead—then she’d have walked away with even more.

Song Qingtian followed Chen Yun out of the company very carefully, laughing to herself as she watched him glance over his shoulder every few steps, walking ahead like a thief. She trailed behind him, making sure he broke out in a cold sweat—and she wasn’t even sure whether he realized it himself.

Clearly, this guy just wasn’t cut out to be a thief.

And yet, Song Qingtian kept following him without even noticing. Then again, it was probably because, back in middle school, a classmate of hers had been raped, and she’d helped investigate the case, picking up some serious tracking skills along the way. Otherwise, she really wouldn’t have been able to keep up with him.

Although Chen Yun was timid, his vigilance was remarkably high. Song Qingtian had to be extra careful as she shadowed him—mentally and physically strong!

End of Chapter 132: With Him