The Master Descends the Mountain: My Destined CEO

Xiao Ye knew that whatever Xiao Wenbin gave him certainly wouldn't be the main corporation. At most, it would be a new or small company.

As for any so-called "tutors" or "assistants," they would just be spies sent to watch him. They might even be looking for a chance to assassinate him!

He wasn't fooled by Xiao Wenbin's fake, benevolent father act.

Nor did he miss the flash of impatience in Xiao Wenbin's eyes.

From the moment he had walked in, Xiao Wenbin hadn't treated him like his own son at all. It was more like he was placating a stranger.

This only made Xiao Ye more certain that he was definitely not part of the Xiao Family.

Besides, he didn't think the man in front of him was capable of producing a son as outstanding as himself.

It's true that a fine bamboo shoot can grow from a rotten stalk, but that man simply didn't have genes as good as Xiao Ye's.

As for Xiao Wenbin's wife who died young, that was even more impossible. She was just a socialite from a wealthy family with terrible grades in college.

Seeing Xiao Ye nod, Xiao Wenbin finally let out a sigh of relief.

His expression was more like someone who had just completed a mission.

After leaving the study, Xiao Ye returned to his room.

The other members of the Xiao Family rushed to complain, but Xiao Wenbin stopped them at the door, forbidding anyone from entering.

He didn't want to hear about these troubles right now; he needed to think about what to do next.

「The moon hung high in the sky.」

Xiao Ye appeared at the bar.

Shishi had already finished her dance and immediately came over to greet him.

Logically, given her status, she no longer needed to be on the bar's stage.

But only by doing this could she better evoke the sympathy of men.

"Master Xiao, you're here."

Xiao Ye nodded. "How's the investigation going?"

"After Xiao Wenbin left his mistress's place, he went straight back to the Xiao Family estate. He drove himself and didn't contact anyone on the way."

"We planted a bug in his car but didn't hear him make any calls."

'Looks like the problem lies with that mistress, then.'

"Alright, I get it. I'll go find this person and see what's going on."

After leaving the bar, Xiao Ye immediately went to the mistress's residential complex.

No one was home at the moment.

So he simply sat down on the sofa and waited leisurely.

About an hour passed.

CLICK.

The door opened.

A young, beautiful woman came in and turned on the light. Just as she turned around, she jumped in fright, dropping all the groceries in her hands to the floor.

She turned to run, only to find a dagger stuck firmly in the door lock.

"Wh-who are you?"

The terror on the woman's face, her pale complexion—none of it looked fake.

When Xiao Ye had thrown the dagger, she hadn't noticed at all. She hadn't even tensed up.

'It seems she's just an ordinary person who couldn't even hurt a fly.'

"I'm the recently returned young master of the Xiao Family."

The woman's expression relaxed slightly. She stared at Xiao Ye's face and realized he did bear a slight resemblance to the Xiao Family.

"Wh-what are you doing here?"

Her eyes darted. "Do you know who I am?"

"But I only got together with Wenbin after his wife died. There's nothing wrong with him having a woman by his side now, is there? He's still so young, he needs someone to take care of him."

"Besides, he's in charge of the entire family. He should have a woman to help him relieve some stress."

"You just got back, you shouldn't be meddling in Wenbin's affairs. Even if you disapprove, he won't make me leave."

A son who hadn't grown up by his side versus a woman who had been with him for years.

The woman was confident that she was more important than Xiao Ye.

If not for her ordinary background, she would have already become the new Lady of the House for the Xiao Family.

For a family like the Xiao Family, every decision had to be weighed in terms of benefits.

The new Lady of the House for the Xiao Family either had to be a capable woman, or the position would remain vacant.

And it just so happened that Xiao Wenbin could use the reputation of a man who missed his deceased wife and hadn't remarried for years to build a public persona, which was good for the Xiao Family's stock price.

Xiao Ye smiled faintly. "I don't care about your business with Xiao Wenbin. I came to see you about something else."

As he spoke, he tossed a piece of paper to her.

The woman picked it up and read it, her face instantly losing all color. "What did you do to my son?"

On the paper was a single address: the school her son currently attended.

Because he was an illegitimate child, Xiao Wenbin had always been in charge of him, and the woman was never allowed to interfere.

Xiao Wenbin had hidden this son well, even registering him under someone else's name, worried that someone might harm him.

Xiao Ye crossed his legs. "Your son is fine. But if you don't answer my questions honestly, I can't say what might happen to him."

"Don't even think about contacting Xiao Wenbin later. As long as he's not sent out of the country, I'll always be able to find him."

"Your son is only eight. You wouldn't want him to leave his homeland at such a young age, would you?"

Although the woman was willing to be a mistress hidden from the public for money, she genuinely loved her son.

"What do you want to ask me? Xiao Wenbin never talks to me about company matters. If that's what you're after, then talking to me is useless."

"I'm asking you, has anyone approached you to do something for them? Especially if it involved Xiao Wenbin, like passing on a message?"

'The other party wouldn't call Xiao Wenbin directly. That would leave too much of a trail.'

"There is... one thing..."

The woman looked uneasy, hesitating to speak.

Xiao Wenbin had told her to keep her mouth shut, but with her son now in danger, she couldn't worry about that anymore.

"Someone did ask me to deliver letters to Wenbin, but I don't know what was written in them."

"Every letter was sealed. I couldn't read them, and Wenbin never let me see them either."

"Where are the letters now?" Xiao Ye asked.

"Wenbin always read them in the study and burned them immediately after. Whenever I helped clean, I would dump the ashes into the toilet."

'He's certainly careful.'

Xiao Ye continued to question her. "Who gave you the letters?"

"I don't know. I've never met the person. I just go to a coffee shop every three days and take a letter from a specific locker."

"Then I give it to Wenbin. The rest has nothing to do with me."

Xiao Ye knew the woman wasn't lying.

"Give me the address of the coffee shop."

"Okay, okay! I've told you everything I know! Please don't hurt my son!"

"First, I'm going to verify if what you told me is true. You're a smart woman. You shouldn't be stupid enough to tell Xiao Wenbin about your betrayal."

Xiao Ye snapped his fingers, pinching the slip of paper with the address, and turned to leave.

The coffee shop was located on a bustling street. It had a sizable storefront and was near several office buildings.

Many white-collar workers enjoyed drinking coffee, so business here was always good.

Xiao Ye pushed the door open and walked in. There was only one female employee inside.

"Hello, can I help you with anything?"

Xiao Ye didn't respond. Instead, he walked a few steps further inside, arriving at a set of lockers located behind a partition.

These were for customers, a place to store things like coats.

Many people liked to come here to rest their feet after shopping at the mall.

The moment Xiao Ye got close, he sensed something was wrong.

A very faint beeping sound was coming from inside.

Xiao Ye held his breath and took another step forward. Now he could hear it more clearly.