"The sheet?"
Chen Ling had also examined the sheet last night but found nothing noteworthy—it bore no hospital name. Given that those people had dared to use it to wrap the corpse for incineration, there shouldn’t have been any clues left on it.
"There are four hospitals in Aurora City—two public and two private. Due to differences in suppliers, the stitching patterns on these sheets have subtle variations."
Wen Shilin pulled out four fabric fragments from his pocket and laid them out on the ground one by one.
"This morning, after delivering the body, I immediately collected sheet samples from all four hospitals. The two on the left are from public hospitals, and the two on the right are from private ones. Take a closer look."
He handed Chen Ling a magnifying glass.
Chen Ling took it, squinted, and carefully examined the fragments. A flicker of surprise passed through his eyes.
"Indeed..."
"The private hospitals' suppliers are affiliated with the Stellar Chamber of Commerce's textile factories. Their business covers seventy percent of Aurora City's market—massive production lines and more advanced techniques. The public hospitals' stitching is slightly cruder, though you’d never notice without close inspection."
Wen Shilin didn’t answer. He simply flipped over the last fabric fragment, revealing the hospital’s name embroidered in the corner...
"Because the other private hospital’s sheets all have their name printed on them. The one wrapped around the corpse didn’t."
Chen Ling’s gaze at Wen Shilin grew subtly appreciative.
Now he understood how Wen Shilin had uncovered so many scandals over the years—even exposing the enforcers’ top-secret "Hand of Redemption" project. This terrifying initiative and observational skill weren’t something just anyone possessed. Even with [Secret Eyes], Chen Ling hadn’t thought to compare fabric samples from other hospitals.
"What’s next?" Chen Ling asked.
"Now that we know which hospital is involved, things get easier." Wen Shilin replied calmly. "Judging by the time of death, the surgery likely happened yesterday afternoon. We just need to investigate Frostleaf Hospital’s operating room usage records from that time, and we’ll have our target."
"If that hospital is really involved, would they let us check their operating logs?"
Wen Shilin turned to Chen Ling with a faint smile.
"Let us? No. We don’t need permission to do our jobs. Remember... we have press freedom."
---
Stellar Chamber of Commerce.
"Well? Any news on Liu Chen?"
Yan Xishou set down his teacup and frowned as someone rushed in frantically.
The man hesitated, words caught in his throat.
"Speak!" Yan Xishou’s voice was laced with anger.
"I... We checked the crematorium. We found Liu Chen’s car and one of his subordinates’ bodies—looks like he was kicked to death last night. But Liu Chen himself and two others are missing." After a pause, he added, "We also found signs of a struggle near the crematorium entrance... Most likely, they were kidnapped."
"What?!"
Yan Xishou shot up from his seat. "What about the body? Was it incinerated?"
"Unknown... No traces of it were found either."
Yan Xishou’s face twisted with rage. "They couldn’t even dispose of a damn body properly, and now they got kidnapped?! Do we know who took them?"
The subordinate kept his head low, silent.
"Useless trash!!"
Yan Xishou was clearly panicking. He paced the room frantically, sweat beading on his forehead.
"Damn it... I never should’ve agreed to that old bastard from Silver Moon Commerce’s request. Before Father left, he explicitly said to halt operations after the seven districts supply line was cut—no new ‘goods.’ If that old fool hadn’t begged on his knees, I wouldn’t have taken this risk!"
"And now? The body and our people are gone, and we don’t even know who took them! If this gets exposed, we’re all finished when Father returns!"
"Y-Young Master... There’s one more thing."
"Another?! Out with it!!"
"Frostleaf Hospital just called. Two reporters barged in and started investigating all operating rooms used yesterday afternoon... They might be targeting this."
"What?!"
Yan Xishou’s heart dropped.
"Which reporters?"
"That Wen Shilin guy... and some new assistant of his, named Lin Yan."
"Him again..."
The timing was too perfect—people and a body went missing last night, and today reporters were already digging into the hospital. Anyone could see the connection.
"That Wen Shilin has been opposing us for years, and now he dares to poke into this... He’s begging for death!" Yan Xishou’s teeth itched with fury, murderous intent flooding his eyes.
The subordinate sighed.
"We’ve sent people to deal with him before, but his counter-surveillance skills are insane. Slippery as a fish..."
"You lot? What the hell are you even good for? Can’t catch Jian Changsheng, can’t kill Wen Shilin! How did our Yan family end up with such incompetents?!"
Yan Xishou glared at the mess before him, frustration boiling over.
His father, Yan Shang, had left the commerce in his hands to test his capabilities. But ever since Jian Changsheng’s prison break, despite mobilizing so many resources, they’d found nothing. Then, the risky heart procurement for Silver Moon Commerce got intercepted, nearly exposing everything... The commerce hadn’t faced this many crises in years—let alone all at once.
After pacing for a long while, a ruthless glint flashed in Yan Xishou’s eyes. He turned to the silent butler nearby.
"Uncle Long... How many of those ‘outsiders’ Father hired from other realms are still with the commerce?"
The butler narrowed his eyes. "Oh? You’re thinking of deploying them?"
"This situation is a disaster. These ordinary lackeys are hopeless, and the enforcers won’t kill for us... The only ones we can mobilize secretly are them."
The butler fell silent.
He’d heard everything. Truthfully, this was indeed a dire predicament—especially with the reporters. If they didn’t act fast and the organ trade got exposed, it’d be catastrophic...
"Master took two with him when he left. Only three remain in the commerce. But for dealing with Wen Shilin—a mere civilian and Jian Changsheng, a first-tier [Asura], one should suffice."
The butler dipped his finger in tea and wrote three characters on the table:
[Strength], [Puppet], [Book].
"Which one will you deploy?"
Yan Xishou’s eyes narrowed. After a moment’s hesitation, he tapped [Puppet].
"Him."