You know just what I want

"You mean Vice President Yuan..." Shen Yi sighed softly. "That reckless bastard finally got himself into trouble."

Yuan Chen rose from his chair, walked around the desk, and sat on its edge, bringing himself face-to-face with Shen Yi.

"Yuan Hao's side is already in chaos. The opponent he's provoked this time is no pushover. You can tell he's desperately trying to cover it up."

"Word has already spread internally. Aren't we going to do anything?"

"Let him throw money at it. He might smooth things over for a while, but let's wait and see whether he can really silence everyone."

"Given Vice President Yuan's usual methods... he'll probably try to suppress it by force because the rumors involve the Chairman."

Yuan Chen braced both hands on the desk, pulling the front of his shirt taut. Suddenly, he tilted his head and chuckled.

"You seem to know Vice President Yuan quite well now?"

"It looks like Vice President Yuan is in for a dressing-down."

"In that case, it would only be reasonable to give him a few gifts before he gets one."

Shen Yi met his gaze. Though he couldn't claim to have completely figured out Yuan Chen's plans, there was one thing he was certain of.

"You're going to move against him?"

The corners of Yuan Chen's lips lifted slightly, confirming that Shen Yi had guessed correctly.

Indeed, handled properly, this incident could be enough to take Yuan Hao out of the running for good. Especially with a scandal involved, the public backlash was not to be underestimated.

Although it would temporarily damage the company's reputation, the Chairman never cared about such things. No, quite the opposite: the more often the company's name appeared in public discussion, the more likely the Chairman was to come down hard.

The man at the helm loved his company far more than his family. Blood ties had never been his weakness.

While Shen Yi focused intently on working through the situation, Yuan Chen watched him in silence, like a king waiting for his minister to offer a strategy. Beneath his deliberately composed expression lay the faint assurance of someone with everything under control.

After careful consideration, Shen Yi cautiously suggested:

"Should we... let a little information slip? I have a few friends in the media."

Shen Yi had a solid network of contacts in media circles.

Although he had worked at his previous company for less than six months, he had handled his departure gracefully and remained on good terms with the people he had met there. His university classmates and seniors now held important positions as well, all in their prime. This was the perfect time to draw on those connections.

Shen Yi had also handled most of the company's press releases, maintaining close contact with major media outlets.

Having thought of a suitable candidate, Shen Yi told Yuan Chen, who smiled in satisfaction.

"My secretary really does know just what I want."

It was the most satisfied expression Shen Yi had ever seen on Yuan Chen's face.

"Yes, everything's going well. How are you all doing? My voice? It's nothing, I'm just a little tired. Things have been pretty unsettled at the company lately..."

Shen Yi delivered his half-truths without batting an eye.

On closer consideration, they weren't really lies. He played at being exhausted and reluctant, but every word rested on solid facts.

The call to his university senior appeared to be a friendly check-in, but in reality, he was casually letting slip hints about Yuan Hao's incident. Sure enough, his senior took the bait immediately and pressed him for details. After repeatedly confirming the facts with Shen Yi, he begged him for the exclusive and promised to keep his source strictly confidential.

"I really can't... If anyone finds out I leaked it, the company will definitely fire me."

Shen Yi refused several times in a troubled tone before finally, "with no other choice," revealing more information.

His conscience didn't hurt, but his cheeks felt a little hot. Ever since the call began, Yuan Chen had been watching him with his arms folded, as though studying some fascinating new curiosity.

Shen Yi deliberately turned away to continue the call, spoke about Yuan Hao for another few minutes, and finally ended the conversation with, "Let's have dinner sometime."

He sighed softly and turned back. Yuan Chen still stood rooted to the same spot like a rock, watching him.

"Your acting... is quite good?"

"Thank you."

Shen Yi calmly accepted the comment, unsure whether it was praise or criticism. He cleared his throat softly and continued:

"Judging by his reaction, they should start conducting interviews very soon."

"He's an expert in this area. It should be fine."

Arms still folded, Yuan Chen raised his chin slightly, his eyes gleaming as he looked down at Shen Yi.

"Shen Yi, your part in this ends here. You don't need to follow up anymore. I'll personally handle whatever Yuan Hao does next."

"Understood, President Yuan."

Yuan Chen had long since planted his informants. Although his behavior and attitude were calculating in every way, his striking looks somehow tempered the darkness beneath them.

Shen Yi thought to himself, Yuan Chen is absolutely the most two-faced person I know! And don't ever think you can pull anything in front of him.

It was two hours after their private discussion ended that Shen Yi finally left the office. The secretaries were all curious about what they had discussed, but he returned to his desk without a word and resumed working.

Whether Yuan Hao would be kicked off the board remained uncertain.

But once the interviews for the investigative report began, Yuan Hao's side truly found itself overwhelmed.

Although he insisted he was completely innocent, his sordid past deeds were exposed to the public one after another.

None of this required Yuan Chen to act personally. Yuan Hao had simply done too many outrageous things. Even though he kept his mouth shut, even though he struggled to reach a settlement with the victim, the details of this incident still gradually came to light.

After the police investigation, his elite team of lawyers managed to get him off the hook. But the real problem was the media.

The news program targeting Yuan Hao was famous for digging deep and showing no mercy, leaving him with a terrible headache. He tried meeting with the editor-in-chief to offer a bribe, and even attempted threats, but none of it worked.

Apparently, when he was backed into a corner, Yuan Hao brought up how a former employee had nearly faced prosecution... But then evidence suddenly surfaced of Yuan Hao psychologically manipulating that employee, plunging him even deeper into the mire.

"Did you anticipate this all along?"

"What?"

"The evidence about that Omega researcher from before. When did you prepare it?"

In the car, Shen Yi asked about the evidence. The company had paid the researcher a settlement last week, but at the time, he hadn't known that Yuan Chen had also collected evidence involving Yuan Hao.

Reading the news in the back seat, Yuan Chen glanced up at him with an expression that seemed to say, "Do you even need to ask?" He answered calmly:

"Isn't that obvious? Did you think I'd pay such a large settlement for nothing?"

Emails, text messages, call records... Judging by what they had obtained, the money had certainly been well spent.

Impressive! Once again, Shen Yi was awed by Yuan Chen's meticulous planning.

Before he knew it, their destination was in sight. As always, Shen Yi drove smoothly toward the company Headquarters.

Because of the news that had broken yesterday, the company convened an emergency board meeting. Chairman Yuan sat at the head of the table, his face contorted with anger, while Yuan Hao, in the first seat diagonally across from him, was deathly pale.

Seated opposite Yuan Hao, Yuan Chen remained composed, leisurely savoring the Longjing tea prepared through the tea ceremony. Its fragrant, lingering sweetness was indeed delightful.

"Doing something this filthy right under the company's nose-and molestation, at that? An executive at a pharmaceutical company actually abusing drugs?!"

Chairman Yuan's roar thundered in their ears. In the meeting room, with nowhere to hide, Yuan Hao shrank further and further into himself. His already thin, sharp face had grown almost unrecognizably haggard over the past few days.

"I've been framed, Chairman! I've already reached a settlement with the victim, and the police investigation is over. Everything has been resolved..."

"You've disgraced the company in front of the entire country, and you call that resolved? You idiot, you still don't understand the situation!"

Had there been an ashtray in front of him, the Chairman probably would have already snatched it up and hurled it at Yuan Hao's head. His fury far exceeded anyone's expectations, and he cared nothing for family ties. Humiliated before so many directors, Vice President Yuan could only clench his teeth and bury his face.