Cao Weiguo didn't seem to be in a hurry at all.

He leisurely brewed some tea for Chen Yan, then brought it over and said to Chen Yan, "General Manager Xiao Chen. I drink tea casually and don't understand anything about the way of tea or the quality of leaves. So, you'll just have to make do."

Chen Yan nodded and replied, "I don't understand either. So, it's no problem."

With that, he picked up the teacup and took a sip.

The tea was indeed just an ordinary tea. Of course, it could also be that Chen Yan himself couldn't distinguish good from bad.

After drinking two or three cups, Cao Weiguo also started talking about serious matters. He put down his teacup and then said, "I received the notice this morning, saying that Elder Brother Zhao had been taken away."

"Then, I went to find out a bit about the news."

"Apparently, it's related to an arson case from two years ago."

"An arson case?" Chen Yan hesitated, asking, "What arson case?"

Cao Weiguo said, "You remember how Elder Brother Zhao faked his own death for a while, right?"

Chen Yan nodded.

Cao Weiguo, "The reason he faked his death was because a building in Tiandu caught fire, and he got trapped in the building, unable to escape in time."

"Originally, in addition to him, there was another casualty."

"It was Elder Brother Zhao's secretary."

"And this case, due to the push from certain interested parties, is being retried. The investigators now suspect Elder Brother Zhao is connected to the arson and deliberately caused the death of that female secretary."

Listening to Cao Weiguo, Chen Yan recalled the reports of the time and some rumors and couldn't help asking, "Is this true?"

Cao Weiguo shook his head.

Just when Chen Yan breathed a sigh of relief, Cao Weiguo said, "I don't know. Elder Brother Zhao has never discussed this matter with me."

Chen Yan stiffened for a moment.

Afterward, his mind working quickly, he asked, "But, even if it was the female secretary who died in the fire, the investigators should be looking for the person who set the fire, right? What does it have to do with Uncle Zhao?"

Saying this, he paused and then added, "Although I don't know who it is. But, guessing, it should be Zhao Qingtian?"

"The investigators should be catching him. Why go after Uncle Zhao?"

Cao Weiguo said with an odd look on his face, "You actually guessed wrong on this one."

"Back then, the criminal in the arson case was put to death, claiming he held a grudge against Zhao Xuan and thus set fire to the entire building."

"But..."

"But?" Chen Yan couldn't help but look toward Cao Weiguo.

Cao Weiguo said, "But now, the investigators have discovered that this person might not have told the whole truth."

Chen Yan continued, "It was Zhao Qingtian who ordered it?"

Cao Weiguo, "The investigators suspect it was Zhao Xuan who instructed him."

Chen Yan: ....

Possibly not understanding the matter thoroughly, Chen Yan felt his brain was full of a mess, "Uncle Zhao set fire to his own place?"

Cao Weiguo nodded.

Chen Yan: ....

Perhaps because Cao Weiguo looked so serious, even though Chen Yan felt the possibility was far-fetched, he couldn't help pondering the plausibility of the matter.

Previously Chen Yan thought no one would be so foolish as to set fire to themselves, but upon further thought about what Zhao Xuan did back then: faking his death to escape, to get away from Zhao Qingtian's surveillance and targeting.

Looking at it this way, he did indeed have the motivation to stage it himself.

Chen Yan didn't know how to describe his feelings at that moment.

So, in the end, is it the older generation that plays the game better??

Seeing that Chen Yan understood, Cao Weiguo said, "However, don't get too anxious about this."

"Although Elder Brother Zhao hasn't spoken to me about what happened in the past, he did have a casual chat with me recently."

"At that time, he seemed to have foreseen this day, so he said that it was only necessary to wait patiently. He had everything arranged."

"Afterward, he even told me to reveal my identity and help you with whatever you wanted to do."

Hearing Cao Weiguo's words, Chen Yan frowned slightly.

He couldn't help but activate his "Inner Heart Headphones" to verify Cao Weiguo's inner thoughts.

But he didn't know why Cao Weiguo's current state of mind was so peaceful; in the "Inner Heart Headphones," there were only the quiet sounds of a heartbeat, without any other sounds.

Chen Yan had already encountered this state before; when he used this device on Yang Rou before, there would sometimes be this kind of reaction.

It wasn't until Yang Rou completely broke down emotionally after getting involved with him that Chen Yan could hear some of her inner thoughts.

Chen Yan felt that this indicated a level of tranquility in Cao Weiguo's mindset to a certain extent, untroubled by the ebbs and flows.

So, he turned off the Inner Heart Headphones, no longer wasting his efforts.

After chatting with Cao Weiguo for a while and drinking some tea, Chen Yan found an excuse to get up and leave.

Cao Weiguo escorted Chen Yan all the way to the office door.

As he was about to leave, Chen Yan suddenly stopped, then turned and asked, "Brother Cao, Uncle Chen said you would help me, so will you help with anything I do?"

Hearing Chen Yan's question, Cao Weiguo was visibly taken aback, and then he smiled and said, "Of course that's impossible. I still need to see what you are planning to do before I can decide whether to help."

Cao Weiguo's candidness made Chen Yan smile, then he said, "What if it harms the interests of Weibo?"

Cao Weiguo couldn't help but show a troubled expression and said, "How should I put it? It depends on how much damage there is...."

Before he could finish, Chen Yan said, "I will offer enough compensation, cash, investments, or even... shares in my companies."

Hearing Chen Yan's words, Cao Weiguo's eyes brightened with interest, and he nodded, "Then that's something we can talk about."

After roughly grasping Cao Weiguo's thoughts, Chen Yan did not continue to waste time. He said goodbye to Cao Weiguo and left the headquarters of Old Wave with Zhao Ying and Jiang Xiaoyun.

Sitting in the car, Zhao Ying curiously looked at Chen Yan and asked, "How did it go?"

Although he knew Zhao Ying wouldn't understand, Chen Yan still briefly explained, "Not very optimistic. Cao Weiguo didn't provide us with much substantial help, only telling us not to rush and that your dad has everything planned."

Hearing Chen Yan's explanation, Zhao Ying breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That's also good."

Chen Yan glanced at her and said, "Thinking that way can lead to problems very easily."

Zhao Ying asked, "What problems?"

Chen Yan countered, "What if Cao Weiguo isn't your dad's man?"

Zhao Ying was taken aback.

Chen Yan asked again, "What if he truly is your dad's man but later got bought over by Zhao Qingtian?"

"Or, perhaps, after weighing the options, he thought supporting a loser isn't as profitable as supporting a winner, so he abandoned your dad?"

Chen Yan concluded, "In that case, if we believe his words and do nothing, we might miss the best chance to save your dad, leaving him in dire straits."

Listening to Chen Yan's layers upon layers of reasoning, Zhao Ying was somewhat stunned.

Fortunately, she had a hearty nature, so after a moment, she nodded and said, "Then I'll leave it all to you."

Chen Yan: ....

Chen Yan couldn't tell whether Zhao Ying's disposition was good or bad, but at such a critical moment, at least a person with her temperament wouldn't cause any trouble.

Thinking this way, the three of them drove back to Zhao Xuan's villa.

Chen Yan had Zhao Ying find him a guest room, and then he sent Jiang Xiaoyun back to his house in Tiandu to tidy up some bedding and personal items.

After that, Chen Yan locked himself in the room and began to work out his next plans.

While making his plans, Chen Yan hadn't forgotten Yang Rou.

He made a phone call to Yang Rou, exchanged thoughts on the current situation, and together they checked for any oversight, refining their upcoming strategy step by step.

Chen Yan's judgement of Cao Weiguo before was based on his real thoughts.

Since meeting with Cao Weiguo this time hadn't yielded any substantial help, and Cao Weiguo had even told Chen Yan to stand down and wait patiently, this made Chen Yan have certain doubts about Cao Weiguo's allegiance.

Therefore, Chen Yan planned to follow his own ideas. This way, even if he later truly found out that Cao Weiguo had issues, at least Chen Yan wouldn't regret having trusted him.

And the plan between Chen Yan and Yang Rou was simple: to take the offensive.

Offense is the best defense, rather than waiting patiently and watching Zhao Qingtian use his power to push Zhao Xuan into the abyss, Chen Yan would rather take the initiative to trouble Zhao Qingtian.

If Zhao Qingtian was playing a game of creating distractions on Chen Yan, then Chen Yan could also play a game of diverting to save Zhao.

Since their target was a trillion-dollar conglomerate leader, Chen Yan and Yang Rou's plan was very detailed. It took an entire afternoon and a night for the two of them to largely complete the plan, which was based on their previous blueprints.

After finalizing the plan, Chen Yan finally relaxed a bit, and then he left the room.

Outside the room, Jiang Xiaoyun sat on the sofa reading a book.

Although this young girl couldn't speak, she was very determined and hardworking. It was exactly this quality that appealed to Song Chuang when he decided to hire her despite the formalities.

And Zhao Ying was her complete opposite.

Perhaps due to Zhao Xuan's pampering or her own nature, she seemed to be indifferent to everything.

Seeing her take interest in a matter for once made her particularly endearing.

When Chen Yan found her, she was sitting beside the artificial hill behind the villa, staring blankly at the goldfish in the pond.

Having never seen her like this before, Chen Yan felt a lump in his throat.

Then, Chen Yan walked over and gently hugged her, burying her head in his chest, softly saying, "It's okay. I'm here. This will pass. Uncle Zhao won't have any problems."

Hearing Chen Yan's words, Zhao Ying quietly nodded, then she asked a bit naively, "Chen Yan, why... why does a group of people have the right to punish a person?"

"Isn't everyone a free and equal individual?"

Faced with Zhao Ying's question, Chen Yan didn't know how to answer for a moment.

He thought about it and then replied, "Maybe because they think he did something wrong, they punish him and lock him up, so he doesn't harm other people."

Zhao Ying's eyes were full of confusion, "But what is right and what is wrong?"

"To avoid harming others, you have to lock that person up?"

"What if one day someone finds out that killing an innocent person could save ten others, is it then alright to kill them?"

"If, one day, the majority finds that the minority's existence affects their own survival, is it okay to just kill them off?"

Chen Yan was somewhat at a loss for words. He felt that Zhao Ying's questions were full of philosophical debate, yet somewhat changed the concept.

So, he returned to the topic, "The examples you gave were of innocent people. Now they think that person made a mistake, he hurt others."

Zhao Ying asked, "Does hurting others mean making a mistake? Is it a mistake when a lion eats a goat or a cheetah kills a gazelle? Some people raise, play with other creatures, leading them to die or be maimed, is that a mistake?"

"Who sets the standards for right and wrong?"

Chen Yan: ....

Chen Yan replied, "They are creatures, and we are humans. We can't...."

Zhao Ying looked up at Chen Yan, "Aren't we 'humans' creatures too? How much more noble are we than other creatures?"

Chen Yan was momentarily tongue-tied.

Seeing Chen Yan unable to answer, Zhao Ying lowered her head and then said, "I'm not trying to defend my father. I just really don't understand. I haven't experienced these things."

Chen Yan looked at Zhao Ying, whose originally clear eyes were filled with bewilderment.

Chen Yan sighed lightly in his heart. He didn't know if Zhao Ying was truly missing a piece in her brain or if Zhao Xuan had protected her too well, leading to her ignorance of these social rules.

Yet, how many people truly understand all this?

People are indoctrinated with various rules and clauses from a young age.

Believing that complying with all this is legal, in accordance with morality.

Once someone violates these, they'll list a myriad of reasons why one shouldn't do so.

Yet, even the junior high school textbooks state, "Law is the reflection of the ruling class's will."

"Morality is the rules and standards of people's communal life and behaviors."

Yet these don't spell out "right" or "wrong" or which specific standards to judge by.

So, most people just follow the rules as told by others…

Even the essential difference between the two is not understood: one is the restraint of a few on many; the other is the exact opposite, the restraint of the many on the few…

After chatting with Zhao Ying for a couple of hours, Jiang Xiaoyun came to the backyard to find them: it was time for dinner.

Chen Yan was finally able to escape Zhao Ying's unending questions by taking her to the dining room for a meal.

During the meal, Zhao Ying was indeed much quieter.

However, perhaps because of her mood, her appetite was just average.

After dinner, Chen Yan sent Jiang Xiaoyun away first.

When Chen Yan let Jiang Xiaoyun leave, he didn't feel anything unusual.

But after she left, Chen Yan belatedly realized that in the villa, there were only him and Zhao Ying left.....

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