Recently, the "Thunderstorm Crackdown" launched by the Righteous Brotherhood at the train station swept through like a hurricane, instantly transforming the previously chaotic atmosphere.
During this period, not only did petty thefts decrease, but even illegal transactions dwindled significantly. Wang Simin's carefully cultivated network of distributors, who helped her move goods, suffered unprecedented losses.
With intelligence provided by Hua Muying, Scarface Brother and the Righteous Brotherhood collaborated with the police to dismantle multiple criminal gangs, including a large group of human traffickers.
These ruthless traffickers weren’t just forcing children into begging and pickpocketing—they also exploited the children’s inconspicuousness to deliver goods, including Wang Simin’s smuggled shipments.
In short, Scarface Brother and the Righteous Brotherhood’s actions dealt a heavy blow to Wang Simin’s smuggling operations. The train station as an outlet was completely crippled, resulting in massive losses.
Though Wang Simin reacted swiftly, cutting ties with the train station immediately, she still left behind some traces in her haste.
Meanwhile, Gao Min had been achieving remarkable successes.
As the police intensified their crackdown on human trafficking, smuggling, and other illegal activities around the train station, her list of accomplishments grew.
If this momentum continued, her reinstatement would undoubtedly come with commendations and promotions. Even Qi Wei might benefit, possibly securing a transfer to the National Police Headquarters—a major leap in his career.
However, Gao Min cared little for these prospects. What truly mattered to her was the crucial lead she had uncovered: the death of the Righteous Brotherhood’s former leader, Liu Lei, seemed directly linked to its current boss, Pan Xing.
If she could obtain concrete evidence to bring Pan Xing to justice, she might finally extract details about the truth behind her father’s death in the line of duty.
In her eyes, aside from Pan Xing, it was unlikely anyone else in the Righteous Brotherhood knew the full story.
And now, she finally had a chance to get close to him.
Thanks to Scarface Brother’s influence, both she and Chu Yang had gained Pan Xing’s trust.
This was undoubtedly a good thing.
Yet, for some inexplicable reason, Gao Min couldn’t shake off an unsettling premonition...
......
Yu Family Villa.
Wang Simin had been having a rough time lately.
The train station disaster still weighed heavily on her mind. Despite her quick response and emergency measures, she remained uneasy, fearing that loose ends might eventually lead back to her.
On top of that, Yu Corporation was now facing severe financial difficulties.
Overseas markets were collapsing one after another.
In the U.S., news had just broken about two Bear Stearns hedge funds losing 90% of their value due to subprime mortgage issues, followed by reports of skyrocketing mortgage delinquency rates.
As the world’s largest economy, any crisis in the U.S. would trigger a domino effect, spreading globally—Dragon Country included.
Shortly after this news broke, the domestic real estate market also began to falter, with banks tightening lending.
A conglomerate like Yu Corporation could previously rely on its size to secure loans, but after losing the bid for Plot No. 33 in the northern district, everything changed.
Not only was daily operations severely impacted, but future loans became nearly impossible to obtain.
In the past, losing a single plot of land would have been insignificant for Yu Corporation.
But now, at this critical juncture, Plot No. 33 had become the straw that broke the camel’s back. Without immediate solutions, the entire corporation could collapse.
What unsettled Wang Simin even more was that all the smear campaigns they had meticulously orchestrated online—hiring trolls to paint the Ten Thousand Dragons Society as a criminal organization—had been wiped clean.
They suspected Secretary Huang’s involvement but found it hard to believe.
Could a local official really wield enough power to erase all traces of their online attacks?
Yet the evidence was undeniable.
"What?! She actually demanded ten billion?!" Wang Simin nearly leaped out of her chair upon hearing Yu Fei’s report.
They had assumed their schemes would force Liu Yutong to surrender Plot No. 33.
Instead, reality had slapped them hard—now they were the ones on the brink.
With smuggling routes busted and the failed land bid crippling Yu Corporation, they had no choice but to send Yu Fei to negotiate.
But Liu Yutong’s demand for ten billion was nothing short of daylight robbery.
Though Yu Corporation’s accounts held that sum, it was earmarked for land purchases—untouchable.
Handing over ten billion to Liu Yutong would leave Yu Corporation severely weakened, if not bankrupt.
Wang Simin still needed to milk Yu Corporation dry—she couldn’t let it fall apart so soon.
"That woman didn’t even let me negotiate. She just named her price and had me thrown out," Yu Fei fumed.
"Mom, do you think she planned all this from the start? Lured us into a trap?"
"Nonsense!" Wang Simin snapped. "A little girl pulling off something this elaborate? If she could, she wouldn’t be human—she’d be a demon!"
Some things could still be explained logically. For instance, their online smear campaign against the Ten Thousand Dragons Society could have been countered by connections or skilled hackers.
But the idea that Liu Yutong had orchestrated everything—predicting Yu Corporation’s downfall, the overseas market crashes, the domestic real estate slump, even the Righteous Brotherhood’s crackdown on smuggling—was absurd.
Yet when Wang Simin calmly pieced together the events, a chill ran down her spine.
The Ten Thousand Dragons Society had primarily operated supermarkets—why suddenly venture into real estate, form a subsidiary, and coincidentally win Plot No. 33, strangling Yu Corporation?
And in every countermove, Liu Yutong seemed steps ahead...
Listing these events side by side, it did seem suspiciously well-planned.
But Wang Simin refused to believe—couldn’t believe—that an eighteen-year-old girl was behind it all.
Not to mention that she, too, was a woman who had once been an eighteen-year-old girl, and she also had a daughter. She knew exactly what an eighteen-year-old girl would typically be doing at that age.
Either studying under her parents' care, occasionally acting cute or playful, or perhaps rebelling in small ways...
How could someone so young possibly possess such cunning and strategic prowess? It was simply unbelievable.
"Did she say anything else?"
"No." Yu Fei shook his head.
Wang Simin glared at her disappointing son, her frustration boiling over. "Look at the mess you've made!"
Just as she was about to scold him further and then personally confront that girl named Liu Yutong, news suddenly arrived from the hospital.
Her husband, Yu Jianhua, chairman of Yu Corporation, had been discharged and was already on his way home.
Wang Simin had always sent her daughter Yu Meng to visit Yu Jianhua in the hospital—partly to maintain an image of devoted care and filial piety in front of others, especially since Yu Jianhua had always favored his younger daughter.
But more importantly, she wanted Yu Meng to keep an eye on Yu Jianhua’s condition so she could react accordingly.
Yet, she never expected that Yu Jianhua, who had seemed too weak to even leave his bed, would suddenly be discharged.
When Yu Jianhua returned home, he barely acknowledged his wife and son. The first words out of his mouth were: "Bring Yu Mo back."
...........
