The shareholder, Mr. Zhang's palm struck upon the table so thunderously as if it would split into half.
"What the hell is this nonsense!? My son was arrested for prostitution racket? What bullshit is this?"
His body trembled as he watched the news headlines painting his son in the most evil and deplorable way possible. It was a scale of a scandal that only grew worse the more days passed. His son was in for questioning and the future outlook looked grim.
"This cannot be a coincidence," The other partner, Mr. Li's jaw clenched.
Just days before, his daughter of twenty years got exposed to drug consumption. Some not so appealing and tasteful pictures were floating of his daughter's that was making his reputation go down to the toss by every passing moment.
A suffocating silence fell over the room. The two men stared at each other, anger, disbelief, and something far more dangerous slowly creeping in.
"…This is not a coincidence," Mr. Li repeated, his voice lowered further this time. "This timing feels too suspicious."
Mr. Zhang's breathing grew heavy. "They are targeting our families now?"
"Not they," Mr. Li corrected, his gaze sharpening. "He."
A third shareholder at the far end finally spoke, his fingers tapping restlessly against the table. "You think this is Hai's doing?"
"No," Mr. Li said immediately. His eyes flickered for a fraction of a second.
"I don't get a feeling this is Hai's doing," he added, slower this time.
Mr. Zhang slammed his fist again. "Then who the hell-"
The door clicked, and all heads turned. The assistant stepped in, face pale and body trembling.
"Sirs…"
"Speak!" Mr. Zhang barked impatiently.
The assistant swallowed. "Mr. Wu…has been detained."
The very air froze.
"For financial fraud," he continued. "Authorities raided his home this morning. All accounts have been frozen."
A chair scraped harshly against the floor.
"This…this is impossible. All of this happening at once!"
Mr. Li slowly leaned back in his chair, his fingers curling inward. Targeting everyone one by one. Precise. Up to the mark. Not a single sound chimed until it was too late.
His mind raced back to the recent weeks for any unusual movements before everything began collapsing. It began when their carefully crafted plans were making Hai lose projects and his face.
Then a face surfaced in his thoughts - calm, unreadable, watching.
'You shouldn't brew troubles if you can't handle the consequences.'
When those eyes came to his mind, a shudder escaped him for as they were…just like a certain man he knew once upon a time. A man who left the world long time ago, yet the madness he held never really left Mr. Li's subconscious.
"…We were wrong," Mr. Li murmured.
"What?" Mr. Zhang snapped.
He looked up. "We thought we were moving against Hai…But someone was already moving against us. He was waiting in silence all along."
"I don't give a damn!" another shareholder within their group roared in fury. "This humiliation is too much to take! Hai exposed all my affairs! I look like a clown now! He knew we were planning to oust him, so he had his ammunition ready!"
"That bastard…" Mr. Zhang gritted his teeth. "He will pay for this. How dare he put my son in jail! I won't forgive this…" his expression kept worsening.
"We have to think this through," Mr. Li snapped at him. "This is a collective attack on us. We have to keep our calm-"
"Your daughter is also in the mix!"
"Don't I know that!" He thundered. "More than Hai, I am awed at my daughter's stupidity to get caught like this! Have I taught her nothing at all? But we cannot lose and do something even stupider!"
"I don't care! My son is in jail!"
"And my reputation is in the dust! The media is hounding upon my doorstep."
Mr. Zhang's jaw clenched. "I won't take this lying down. Who does he think he is? He believes he can yield me to him. Hah! I will show him I was there long before he even began to wet his diapers! If he targets my son, then I…will return the same favor."
Mr. Li's teeth gritted again. "Like I said, don't think anything stupid! We will figure something out."
His eyes shone with a dark, cruel glint. "No! I will show Hai that he is messing with the wrong man."
—
Proof came to light a few days later as to who was messing with who. And by the time a full month had passed, there was none left to 'show' anyone who had the upper hand because by then, the boardroom had gone completely silent. The only sound echoing was that of a pair of crisp boots tapping against the floor as a man made his way in.
'Breaking news! A horrific accident has emerged. A car suddenly went off the rails and fell off a bridge last evening. Reports say that Mr. Wu Tin was driving the car. Paramedics arrived the scene twenty minutes later but by then, Mr. Wu had already passed away.'
The man stepped in the boardroom - a distinct mark of bloody footprints etched on the floor behind the path he walked.
'Headlines! Mr. Lao was shot dead outside AVC pub and bar. Preliminary investigation suggests three masked robbers to have been escaping from their stint, and Mr. Lao was caught in a crossfire!'
The blood on the footprints turned darker. More crimson.
'Businessman and venture capitalist Mr. Dong was found dead in his house in the early morning hours of Tuesday. Reports suggest that an insider could be behind his death.'
The man turned around the long boardroom table and stood behind the head chair.
'In another horrifying crash, Mr. Zhang Shen was crushed to death when a truck slammed into his car while returning from the Beijing Public Security Bureau. Reportedly, he was there to meet his son detained on charges of running a prostitution racket.'
His fingers brushed against the top edge of the chair, his black eyes staring at the empty seat.
'Within just a span of one month, four big businessmen - who also happen to be shareholders of the Liu Corps - have been found dead. Is this a coincidence?'
Adjusting his black business coat, he took his seat - slow and steady. His gaze scanned across the boardroom, watching the shareholders with an amused expression.
'Or a well-planned…purge?'
His elbow rested upon the table, his chin loosely hovering over his fingers. A dark glint of pure menace and foreboding shone across the depths in his eyes. He tilted his head, raising a brow.
"Why such a stark silence? Won't everyone…welcome the new CEO of the Liu Corps?"
