Chapter 17 — I Just Followed the Process Correctly

Their ultimate goal is not to run the company. It's the West area project. The project that I personally used the rules to block... Then restarted it myself. A cold feeling suddenly crawled down my spine. My entire resistance struggle... The victory that I considered mine... Was it from the beginning... Was it in someone else's calculations? Zhou Kaiming is a chess piece. So what about me? Am I… Just another slightly more useful piece? I forced myself to calm down. Now is not the time to pity yourself. The recording is truly iron evidence. But I can't directly release it. Evidence of unknown origin... Only made Co Ngon turn around and bite me. I need to find out... Who is the person behind Co Ngon's back? I need to know… What is your relationship with the board of directors. Was the board of directors tricked by you? Or right on the board of directors... Is there someone who is your accomplice? If it's the latter... Then my current situation is like playing with a fierce tiger. I opened the computer and frantically searched for all the information related to "Co Ngon". But the past three years… His resume was almost empty. There is only a vague record that he once worked at an investment bank in Europe. But the name of that bank... It's hidden again. All clues... are broken here. I leaned back in the chair, feeling an unprecedented fatigue coming over me. Dad's illness is still waiting for money to be treated. The company's chaos is still waiting for me to handle. Now there's another Gu Ngon that's bottomless... It could swallow me up at any time. I feel like I'm walking on a tightrope. It is an abyss ten thousand feet deep. At that moment— There was a light knock on the office door. It's Tieu Truong in the marketing department. He held a cup of coffee and carefully walked in.

“CEO Trinh…”

“I see you haven't rested all afternoon…”

“Should make you a cup of coffee.”

He put the coffee cup on the table. There was a bit of undisguised worry in his eyes.

“CEO Trinh, don't work too hard.”

“What happened in the meeting room this afternoon… we all heard it.”

“That new COO…”

“Not a good person.”

“You must be careful.”

I looked at Tieu Truong's sincere face, and suddenly a warm current welled up in my heart. This is the only bit of heat I feel… In the middle of this ice-cold forest of power.

“Thank you, Tieu Truong.”

“I'm okay.”

He hesitated for a moment then opened his mouth.

“CEO Trinh…”

“I… I might have something useful for you.”

I stopped. Tieu Truong took out a small USB from his pocket and placed it on my table.

“This afternoon COO Co came to the market department to check.”

“He used my computer to look up some documents.”

“After he left…”

“I discovered that there was a deleted file in the trash.”

“At that time I felt a bit strange so…”

“Should have been restored.”

My heart immediately hung in my throat.

“What is in the file?”

“It seems…”

“A draft investigative appraisal report.”

Tieu Truong's voice was a bit uncertain.

“There's a lot of our company's internal data inside…”

“There is still a lot of analysis about the West project.”

“The strangest thing is…”

“The title of the report lists the name of a company I've never heard of.”

“The name is… Thien Lang Capital.”

Thien Lang Capital! That name was like a bolt of lightning that tore through the entire fog in my head. I immediately looked up that name online. Made my whole body cold. Thien Lang Capital is the most mysterious and ruthless private investment fund in the country. They are famous for their malicious takeovers and breaking up listed companies to sell them off. Many once glorious businesses... After they got involved... They were all sucked out of the last drop of blood and then divided and sold. And the founder of Thien Lang Capital... The mysterious old man has never publicly appeared, only exists in rumors... My breath almost stopped. Tham Ham Vu. The person who single-handedly pushed me to the position of CEO... Represents the will of the board of directors. You are the royal bird hidden deepest behind. Co Ngon is just his knife. A bait used to lure prey into a trap. Once necessary... Can be sacrificed at any time. I finally understood the true meaning of the last sentence in that mysterious message.

“Be careful of him.”

The person to watch out for... Originally, it wasn't Co Ngon. It's Tham Ham Vu! I thought I won. I thought I had mastered the chessboard. Only at the end did I find out... I didn't even know where the chess board was. All my resistance. All my victory. It was just a scene where Tham Ham Vu pushed the boat up... To conveniently clear Chu Khai Minh - that old obstacle. Now the play is over. A bait like me... It's time to be swallowed whole. Just as the feeling of despair rose— The phone on the table vibrated again. Still that strange number. But this time… The message is no longer a reminder. Which is a question. Include an address.

“Want to counterattack?”

“Tonight at 10 p.m., Blue Note jazz bar, south of town, room 207.”