NOVEL WEB Chapter 8: Tell the truth
Xu Chang rested his chin on his right hand, slouching in the front desk chair as he spaced out, eyes fixed on the waiting area.
What a lousy morning.
The whole first half of the day had gone by, and not a single attractive girl had walked in. Just a few older aunties. Well, and a bunch of guys, just like himself.
His mind wandered back to that girl from last night in the yellow tee.
Shame she didn't show up today.
If only I'd asked for her contact…
"Xu Chang." A soft voice called from behind.
Xu Chang immediately sat up straight, chest out and stomach in. In under a second, his whole demeanor switched to manly and professional.
"What is it, Jiang Baibai?" he asked with an elegant smile.
Thankfully, at least Jiang Baibai still worked here.
If not, he'd have died of boredom long ago.
"I heard Shen Mo took a day off today?" Jiang Baibai asked.
"Yeah."
"Do you know why he took the day off?"
As she asked, the image of Shen Mo hurriedly leaving her house yesterday popped into her mind.
She couldn't shake the feeling that he was hiding something.
Could today's absence be related?
Xu Chang shook his head emphatically—he had no idea.
Shen Mo hadn't missed a single day all summer, and now he suddenly took leave with no explanation.
Xu Chang was just as curious.
Unless… he's out on a date with some pretty girl?
*****
Meanwhile, in Huayang District, outside a convenience store.
Shen Mo sat on a bench, leisurely sipping a cold cola.
A moment later, a curvaceous figure appeared before him. Her generous chest bounced with each step, looking like it might burst out of her shirt at any moment.
It was Xia Ying.
"Sorry, got stuck in traffic. I'm a bit late," she said apologetically.
"No worries, I just got here myself."
Still sipping his drink, Shen Mo stole a glance at the sexy girl in front of him.
Is it just me, or does she look even more… endowed than yesterday?
A flash of information crossed his mind:
[Target: Xia Ying. Cup size: E.]
Bigger than the landlady's? No—same size?
Then it hit him.
Of course—it was because today, Xia Ying was wearing a slim-fit tee that accentuated her curves.Clothes really do make a difference.
That loose T-shirt yesterday totally threw me off…
He pulled out his phone and checked the time.
11:30 a.m.
Only ten minutes left before Yuehu Tech's lunch break.
The reason they met here was because Yuehu Tech's building was right across the street. From here, they could clearly see employees coming and going from the main entrance.
Yesterday, when Shen Mo told Xia Ying what he had uncovered, he learned something surprising.
It turned out Xia Ying was a rich girl—well, her family ran a company called Haitian Electronics. Not long ago, they'd done a business deal with Yuehu Tech.
The person in charge of that deal on Yuehu Tech's side? Lin Chuan.
That 700,000 RMB fake invoice? It was from that transaction.
Even if they exposed the fake receipts, Lin Chuan would get punished—but it wouldn't necessarily cancel the engagement.
What mattered now was convincing the other party—Gao Qi, Jiang Baibai's fiancé—to willingly break off the engagement.
That's why they were here today.
After a while, lunchtime finally came, and employees began trickling out of the building looking for nearby places to eat.
Around noon, a young man in a checkered shirt appeared at the entrance. He had a square face and a stern demeanor.
"There! That guy in the checkered shirt—that's Gao Qi," Xia Ying quickly pointed out.
She'd met him once during the business meeting with her family.
"Let's go. We'll follow him."
Shen Mo moved first, and Xia Ying trailed behind.
They quietly tailed Gao Qi, observing him from a distance.
He walked down the sidewalk. After about ten minutes, he turned left at an intersection and stopped in front of a store.
[Otaku Hobby Haven]
He stood still, admiring the anime merch displayed behind the glass window.
Both Shen Mo and Xia Ying were a little surprised. Shen Mo immediately activated the All-Seeing Eye:
[Target: Gao Qi. Age: 29.]
[Interests: ACG content and merchandise. Favorite series: One Piece, Naruto, Detective Conan.]
Gotcha—a full-fledged otaku!
Shen Mo felt a surprising sense of kinship.
Who says anime fans are just immature brats?
Put some respect on my boy Gao Qi's name.
"Let's go talk to him," Shen Mo said confidently.
"Eh? Shouldn't we observe a bit more first? What if he turns out to be a jerk and refuses to cooperate?" Xia Ying asked.
She had only met Gao Qi briefly. She didn't know what kind of person he was.
"It's fine. Trust me."
People who like hot-blooded shonen anime… usually have a decent sense of justice.
Shen Mo walked up beside Gao Qi and asked, pretending not to know him:
"Hey there. Are you Gao Qi, manager at Yuehu Tech?"
Gao Qi turned and gave the stranger a brief nod.
"I am. And you are?"
"I'm Shen Mo, a university student. I wanted to talk to you about something."
"What is it?"
"I heard you're about to get married—to a 19-year-old college girl who hasn't even graduated yet?"
Shen Mo went straight to the point.
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Gao Qi's face darkened instantly, brows furrowed.
What kind of punk comes up to a stranger and says this kind of crap?
I'm supposed to be marrying a 25-year-old with a high school diploma!
Granted, she did look young in the photo—like one of those anime high school girls that seem too perfect to be real.
"Whoa, relax. Let me explain."
Shen Mo smiled, then stepped aside to reveal Xia Ying behind him. "You probably know her, right?"
Gao Qi turned toward Xia Ying and paused.
Wait a minute… why does she look so familiar?
After a few seconds of memory-sifting, it clicked:
"You're… Xia Ying? Daughter of Haitian Electronics' CEO?"
Xia Ying nodded politely.
Gao Qi's expression turned puzzled.
Was there a problem with the deal between their companies?
No, if there was, the responsible staff should be handling it. Why would the CEO's daughter—still just a student—come find him?
"Could you take a look at these?"
Xia Ying pulled a few photos from her handbag and handed them over.
Gao Qi looked at them carefully, and his face gradually turned pale.
"Unbelievable… Lin Chuan fabricated the accounts and pocketed the money…"
He felt like a base in his tower defense game had just been sneak-attacked.
And honestly, it wasn't far from the truth—after all, Yuehu Tech was his family's business.
After taking a deep breath to calm himself, he turned to Shen Mo with a serious look.
"All right. What does this have to do with my engagement?"
He wasn't stupid. Two students wouldn't come all this way just to show him some fake receipts.
And recalling what Shen Mo asked earlier, he had a bad feeling.
Shen Mo began explaining everything.
As the full picture unfolded, Gao Qi's face grew darker and darker. His forehead veins bulged.
"Those two scumbags! Bastards!"
"Goddammit! They told me she was 25 and had a high school diploma!"
Gao Qi was so furious his neck turned red, and he swore like a sailor.
His outburst was intense—and honestly a little scary.
If this had gone through, even if he discovered the lie later, it would've been too late to back out quietly.
The media would've had a field day with headlines like:
"Shocking! Tech company heir forces college girl to drop out and marry him!"
"Breaking: Executive coaxes undergrad into secret marriage!"
"…"
Just imagining it made his skin crawl.
After ten whole minutes of swearing, Gao Qi finally calmed down a little.
"…Thank you. Both of you."
Shen Mo gave a slight shake of the head. "No need."
Gao Qi continued: "I'll cancel the engagement. Also, please pass on my apologies to that girl. I'm sure she must've been under a lot of stress."
With that, he pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
Soon, a voice answered—it was his assistant.
"Hello, President Gao. What can I do for you?"
"Is Lin Chuan from Finance in today? And Chen Wanyu?"
"They are, sir. Their attendance logs show no absences."
"Good. Have them report to my office this afternoon."
"Yes, sir. Anything else?"
A glint of cold light flashed in Gao Qi's eyes.
"Yeah. Call the police."
"…Excuse me?"
"Tell them to come here."