The Hidden Objective
Chapter 7/8
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âAlthough itâs well-hidden, my eyesight would prove to be the better of the two,â Yang Chen said as he giggled before winking at Tang Wan, as if he had won a hide-and-seek game.
Tang Wan rolled her eyes. âI canât believe you are still in the laughing mood. If even this place has a listening device, does it mean that my company, house, and other places are all bugged as well?!â
Yang Chen nodded. âIt would not be too far off to think so.â
Tang Wan took a painfully long deep breath. With high expectations, she asked, âYouâll help me locate them, wonât you?â
Yang Chen scratched his head. âI can, but even I will take some time. Letâs have lunch first, Iâm really hungry now.â
Tang Wan was quite helpless towards that fellowâs behavior. He somehow still had the appetite for lunch at this situation when something like this was going on.
Tang Xin who appeared to be surprised and curious asked, âElder Sister, your friend must be a woodpecker in his past life. Iâm impressed that he managed to locate it.â
Yang Chen who had incredible hearing, almost fell down as a result. But Tang Xinâs words managed to please Tang Wan, causing a smile to surface on her face.
Under Tang Wanâs command, the two nurses sent Master Tang who was still asleep on his wheelchair back to his room.
Pain surfaced in Tang Wanâs eyes as she watched them roll him away. âI can still remember the days when I was young and Grandpa was still in the standing committee, Grandma was still healthy and well. At that time, although Grandpa was a busy man, making me smile would be the first thing he would do when he got home. I used to feel that Grandpa was the greatest being in the world; there was nothing he couldnât achieve. As long as Grandpa was present, our Tang clan would be the most impressive one in existence. It felt like it was yesterday. Unfortunately, Grandpa isnât the same man he was. Not anymore.â
Tang Xinâs eyes turned water when Tang Wan spoke. âElder Sister, letâs not dwell in the past shall we. Iâm going to cry again.â
Tang Wan smiled apologetically. âTang Xin, are you still staying to take care of Grandpa?â
âOf course. I only came here from Beijing to look after Grandpa. Elder Sister, you donât need to stay here with me. You may go with your friend. Iâll be sure to take good care of Grandpa,â Tang Xin said obediently.
Pleased, Tang Wan nodded her head before glancing at Yang Chen and leaving the courtyard.
Yang Chen waved his hand to Tang Xin before following Tang Wan out. After catching up to Tang Wan, he asked, âHas Tang Xin always been responsible to take care of the old man? She looks so young. Ladies at her age would usually be out and about doing things. Why is she here instead?â
âItâs not me who asked her to do so,â Tang Wan said, dissatisfied. âDo you think I would force her to do this? Sheâs the only daughter of Third Uncle, also my most obedient younger sister. She has a kind heart and has clung onto Grandpa since young. Once the news of Grandpaâs sickness reached her ears, she has stayed by his side ever since. No one is able to pull her away from this.â
Yang Chen nodded as he understood the situation. âWhen I entered the courtyard earlier, the old man was shouting âLunâ something. Whoâs Lun? Is it possibly the nickname of Tang Huang? The two names sound so different.â
Tang Wan suddenly stopped moving and remained quiet for a bit. Softly, she said, âGrandpa was shouting my fatherâs name, Tang Lun.â
âOh, itâs Uncle? Why did he shout Uncleâs name?â Yang Chen asked, confused.
Tang Wan turned her head away and replied gently, âIâd rather not answer that question. I donât feel like talking about it.â
Yang Chen was surprised. He hadnât seen Tang Wan want to avoid a subject this much before. He wouldnât force her into doing something, so he chose to keep quiet.
However, Yang Chen just noticed that Tang Wan seemed to have mentioned her second and third uncles, while nothing about her parents was even remotely mentioned. Tang Tang also hadnât mentioned her grandparents before which was rather weird.
Upon Yang Chenâs request, Tang Wan asked the employees in the sanatorium to prepare a hearty lunch. She also invited the police for the meal.
Gao Xin who hadnât left yet brought a few of his subordinates and had their meals together with Yang Chen in the same room. He felt rather uncomfortable with all that has happened, so he quickly finished eating and continued his investigation work.
Tang Wan on the other hand had lost her appetite. Before Yang Chen finished eating, she couldnât help but ask, âYang Chen, Iâm quite sure you know quite a few experts from your past, donât you? Do you happen to know a doctor like Professor Andre who can treat Grandpa?â
Yang Chen almost choked on his food after listening to Tang Wan. Smiling bitterly, he said, âMy dear Tang Wan, that professor just died just now, but youâre asking me to ask my friend. Isnât it too ominous?â
âIâI donât wish to have to do thisâŠâ Tang Wan frowned. âBut even the best hospital in the country failed to diagnose Grandpaâs illness, let alone getting him treated. As you saw earlier, Grandpa isnât in a good condition now. Iâm running out of options and the only thing left for me to do is ask you for help.â
Having been an independent woman who seemed to have everything under control, she hadnât spoken in such a manner to Yang Chen before. Yang Chen wasnât used to the way she talked. Seeing Tang Wanâs exhausted face slowly lowering, Yang Chen sighed and said, âI know someone in fact whoâs an expert in solving this kind of rare cases. But that person is abroad and may not necessarily be able to come to Zhonghai as of right now. Also, youâll have to take care of the logistics. Iâll have a chat with that person and will give you an answer later.â
Overjoyed, Tang Wan raised her head and said, âReally? That would be great. Which country is that professional from? Do you need me to send someone to pick them up? Iâll ensure that the same thing would not happen again. Iâll assign a large number of bodyguards to take care of your friendâs safety.â
Yang Chen smiled and answered, âIâll provide that. That person is rather special. Youâll find out soon, in good time. Itâs best if you can finish your meal now. If this continues, I bet youâll collapse before the old man does.â
Tang Wan too noticed that she was overly excited. Blushing, she displayed a little shyness on her elegant face before obediently moving her chopsticks.
After dealing with the matter at the sanatorium, Yang Chen followed Tang Wan to the headquarters of Maple Group as promised.
It was his second time coming to her office. Expectedly, he managed to locate a listening device beneath her office table. It was the exact same model as the one found earlier.
Tang Wan terrified, causing her face to turn cold. âLuckily there havenât been any industrial secrets recently. Otherwise the consequences would have been severe.â
âI believe theyâre not trying to harm your company that whoever did this, is not out to harm your company. Anyone who has access to this type of listening devices wouldnât use them for this insignificant purpose,â Yang Chen said.
As Tang Wan planned to bring Yang Chen to check her house, one of her assistants rushed into the office anxiously.
âBoss, a law firm just contacted us via the phone. Theyâre extremely pissed after finding out of Professor Andreâs death. Theyâre now considering filing an international lawsuit to Maple Group. Boss, The Johns Hopkins University has had influence beyond what we could imagine. Lots of hospitals and well-known individuals are closely related to Professor Andre. If we donât find a solution to the problem soon, weâll definitely be targeted from all sides,â the assistant said, worried.
Tang Wan had already been troubled by various headache-inducing matters. After listening to her assistant, she smiled coldly and said, âWeâll face the lawsuit if they want to file one. Are we the ones who have poisoned him? Why blame the victims? Go and meet them with our lawyer. Use any means necessary to see that it gets done.â
The assistant was a little stunned. He had never seen her employer this resolute before. But he dared not say a word so he chose to back off instead.
Yang Chen tapped Tang Wanâs shoulder. âDonât dwell in it too much. They wonât win the lawsuit.â
Tang Wan looked at him doubtfully. âWhy? They indeed have the ability to sue us. And if we fail to find out the reason, weâll likely be the one who loses.â
âI said they wonât win it no matter what. For only one reasonâbecause I say so,â Yang Chen said with a smile.
Tang Wan finally displayed a smile on her face. Rolling her eyes, she said, âLetâs go to my house.â
Yang Chen felt that he had become Tang Wanâs temporary secretary today. He followed Tang Wan everywhere and obeyed the bossâs orders.
When he came to Tang Wanâs house, Yang Chen realized that although he had come here a few times before, this was his first time entering the place.
Tang Wanâs warmly decorated living hall was filled with a pleasant fragrance. Since Tang Wan and her daughter Tang Tang stayed at that place, it was naturally clean.
Yang Chen looked around. âTang Tang isnât home, is she?â
âWhy? Do you miss my daughter already?âTang Wan joked. âYouâre right, she isnât. The college entrance exam will be here in three monthsâ time. Iâll smack her ass into the next new year if she dares to skip school now.â
Yang Chen smiled bitterly. âThereâs no need to be no strict, is there?. Tang Tang isnât a child anymore. Her maturity index has risen significantly over the past few months.â
Tang Wan nodded and said, âI wouldâve forgotten about it if you didnât mention. That girl has indeed grown up a lot after knowing you.â
Yang Chen thought, Thatâs for sure. She has experienced the edge between life and death before, let alone the two times when she left home.
After searching Tang Wanâs living hall, Yang Chen went upstairs and walked around. Although the house had a complex structure, which made the locating of the devices relatively difficult, based on Yang Chenâs rich experience, he managed to locate two listening devices from a lamp and a fake bouquet.
Tang Wan gazed upon the two little things that somehow ended up at her home. She couldnât help but murmur, âI donât have many visitors. Only a few of my employees have ever come here before. My daughter and I have stayed here all the time. Are these listening devices planted by a betrayer from my company?â
âI donât think so.â Yang Chen tossed around the two tiny, silver-colored items. He said, âYour house isnât guarded very well and you donât exactly have very many security features to this place. A professional spy only needs seconds to break into your anti-theft door.â
Tang Wan frowned. Confused, she said, âBut if that person dares to kill using such an impressive means, why is Professor Andre the only target? The only outcome of his death is Grandpaâs delayed treatment. No one from my clan is able to be benefited from this. My business also wonât be majorly affected. What purpose do they have for doing all of this?â
Yang Chen contemplated for a while. Softly, he said, âIf Iâm not wrong, the reason that person has only killed Professor Andre is because they need to maintain the current situation in your clan. If the old man isnât able to recover, everything you own will be under his control. Regarding your Tang clan internallyâŠâ
âConflict.â Tang Wan also finally thought of a crucial point which she had almost missed. Surprised, she said, âThey want the internal conflicts within the clan to intensify?!â