Reborn: Mafia Queen

Chapter 006 Shen Mingyi's Tail

Shen Qingjiu stared at the line of data on the screen, her fingers lightly tapping the mouse. Shen Mingyi, the adopted son of Old Master Shen, was in charge of overseas business at the company. On the surface, he was an honest and kind middle-aged man, respectful to Old Master Shen and doting on Shen Qingjiu. In her previous life, Shen Qingjiu had always treated him as an uncle, and after her grandfather's death, he was the one who helped her manage the business. But this same man suddenly disappeared after a failed arms deal in her previous life, absconding with most of the Shen family's working capital. It was then that Shen Qingjiu realized that her grandfather's death and the failed deal were both inextricably linked to this adopted son. And now, with three months left until that deal, Shen Mingyi was already starting to slip up. Shen Qingjiu noticed that several overseas remittances handled by Shen Mingyi in the past six months had some issues. On the surface, they were all normal business transactions, but the recipient's account was opened in Hong Kong—Chen Ye's territory. The amounts weren't large, a few hundred thousand each time, but accumulated to over five million. This was clever. Transferring a large sum of money at once would easily attract attention. But such small, incremental transfers are difficult to detect. Unfortunately, Shen Qingjiu has memories of her past life; she knows that all the money ultimately ends up in Master Chen's pocket. She saved a screenshot of the data and then shut down her computer. The next morning, Shen Qingjiu didn't go directly to her grandfather after getting up. She called Shen Mingyi. "Little Jiu'er? Why did you think of calling your uncle?" Shen Mingyi's voice was warm and friendly on the other end of the line. "Uncle Mingyi, I'd like to visit the company today, is that alright?" Shen Qingjiu's voice was sweet, with a touch of girlish coquetry. "I've finished my college entrance exams and want to learn about the family business beforehand." "Of course!" Shen Mingyi said with a smile. "Come on over, Uncle will show you around." Shen Qingjiu hung up the phone, changed into a simple white dress, and styled her hair in a high ponytail, looking like an innocent high school graduate. She wanted to lower Shen Mingyi's guard. An hour later, Shen Qingjiu appeared at the Shen Group headquarters building. This 38-story building is located in the heart of Jiangcheng's CBD and is one of the Shen family's properties. Shen Mingyi's office was on the top floor. When Shen Qingjiu stepped out of the elevator, he was already waiting in the corridor. "Little Jiu'er's here!" Shen Mingyi opened his arms and gave her a hug. "You worked hard on the college entrance exam! How did it go?" "It was alright, I should be able to get into my ideal university," Shen Qingjiu said with a smile, but a cold glint flashed in her eyes . Shen Mingyi looked to be in his early forties, slightly overweight, with a square face and wearing gold-rimmed glasses. He appeared honest, kind, and refined. He spoke with a warm smile, giving off a friendly vibe. But Shen Qingjiu knew what kind of wolfish ambition lurked behind that smile. "Come on, let Uncle show you around." Shen Mingyi enthusiastically led her on a tour of the company, introducing the various departments. Shen Qingjiu looked at everything attentively, occasionally asking questions, looking like a curious high school student. But she was mentally recording everything—the company's security system, blind spots in surveillance, access permissions for important departments. This information would come in handy later. "Uncle Mingyi, what does your company's overseas business mainly involve?" Shen Qingjiu asked casually. Shen Mingyi's expression paused slightly, but he quickly regained his smile: "Mainly import and export trade. As you know, this is the main business of our Shen family." "Have there been any big projects recently?" "Uh... a few, but they're a bit complicated. You'll learn about them gradually later." Shen Mingyi chuckled, "Little Jiu'er, just enjoy yourself for now and don't worry about work." Shen Qingjiu nodded obediently: "Okay, Uncle." Just then, Shen Mingyi's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID, his expression changed slightly, and then said to Shen Qingjiu, "Little Jiu'er, Uncle will take this call. Wait here for a moment." He walked to the end of the corridor and lowered his voice to answer the phone. Shen Qingjiu quietly followed him and hid around the corner. "...Master Chen, that batch of goods still needs time. Shen Wanshan is keeping a close eye on it now... I know, but three hundred is too little, at least five million... Okay, okay, I'll arrange it as soon as possible..." Shen Qingjiu's pupils contracted slightly. Master Chen, three hundred, five million. She heard it clearly. After hanging up the phone, Shen Mingyi stood in the corridor for a while, seemingly calming himself. Then he turned around and saw Shen Qingjiu looking at a painting on the wall not far away, her expression natural. "Little Jiu'er, what are you looking at?" "This painting is really beautiful." Shen Qingjiu pointed to a landscape painting on the wall, "Is it an authentic work by Zhang Daqian?" "Yes, your grandfather collected it." Shen Mingyi walked over with a smile, "You have a good eye." "Grandpa taught me well." Shen Qingjiu smiled sweetly. But in her heart, she was already planning her next move. After leaving the Shen Group, Shen Qingjiu didn't go home. She took a taxi to the largest electronics market in Jiangcheng and bought a few things—a high-precision voice recorder, a miniature camera, and an encrypted mobile phone. These were all things she had learned after taking over the business in her previous life. One can never be too careful, especially in such a turbulent family. After returning home, she locked herself in her room and began to formulate a plan. Shen Mingyi had already made contact with Master Chen and was raising funds. The "three hundred" and "five million" he mentioned were likely fees that Master Chen wanted him to pay. This money was probably used to bribe insiders in preparation for intercepting the arms deal three months later. Shen Qingjiu's thinking was clear: to prevent the deal from failing in three months, she had to deal with Shen Mingyi first. But to deal with Shen Mingyi, she needed evidence. And her current evidence wasn't sufficient. She needed to find a direct connection between Shen Mingyi and Master Chen. And to do that, she needed an accomplice. Shen Qingjiu picked up her phone and scrolled to a name in her contacts that had almost been forgotten—Zhao Gang. Zhao Gang was Old Master Shen's personal bodyguard, who had served her grandfather for twenty years, utterly loyal. In her previous life, Zhao Gang had been shot and killed while protecting her grandfather on the day of the assassination attempt. He had always been a reliable person. Shen Qingjiu dialed Zhao Gang's number. “Uncle Zhao, it’s me, Qingjiu.” “Miss?” Zhao Gang’s voice was somewhat surprised. “You need something?” “Uncle Zhao, I need your help, but Grandpa can’t know.” Shen Qingjiu’s voice was very low. “Please keep an eye on Uncle Mingyi and see who he’s been contacting lately.” There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the line. “Miss, what are you doing…” “Uncle Zhao, I know this sounds strange,” Shen Qingjiu said softly, “but I can tell you, Uncle Mingyi is betraying the Shen family. I need evidence.” Zhao Gang was silent for a long time. “Okay, Miss, I believe you,” he finally said. Hanging up the phone, Shen Qingjiu walked to the window. The sky was darkening, and the city lights were gradually coming on. The first step had been taken. Next, it was just a matter of waiting for the prey to reveal more flaws.