Late one night, the Li Group tower stood silent above Shanghai's neon skyline. In his private office, Lucian pored over encrypted server logs displayed on three monitors. The soft hum of the cooling system was his only companion. He clicked through folder after folder—R&D archives, patent histories, secure correspondence—and paused where timestamps clustered around odd access points.
“Gao," he called without looking up.
Moments later, Gao appeared at the doorway, tablet in hand and eyes alert. “You wanted an update?"
Lucian pointed to the screen. “This access on April 12th—twenty‑six export requests for solar‑nano membrane patents. All routed through Victor Li's corporate credentials." He scrolled. “Then a series of shell‑company deposits traceable to YZCorp's offshore accounts. It's a
