Release that Man

Where there are people, there will be conflict.

Honestly, there was nothing surprising that there would be traitors from the enemy camp. Even the good guys would have a hard time achieving unity, much less the bad guys who were only working together due to mutual benefits.

Other than that, it was impossible for a bad guy to turn because they were suddenly inspired by justice. Most of the time, it was because the benefits were no longer mutual, or they had spent too much time together and had begun accumulating resentment.

That was because the reason these people gathered was not simple. Even if they betrayed, they would not turn to become loyal to Ye Shuang immediately. At most, it would be a mutual cooperation. For example, you wanted to injure my organization, and I happened to hate the organization’s leader…

Edward could still be considered someone with honor. At least he was not betraying for the sake of something physical but because of his spiritual desire. It sounded better on paper, but in reality, it was betrayal plain and simple.

“I am not your enemy,” Edward explained. “Of course, I know you probably feel hostility toward us, but that is not important… Based on the performance I’ve seen so far, I’m satisfied, but that doesn’t mean that you have enough power, so…”

Edward was silent for a while like he was coming to a decision before continuing. “I can give you three hints. One, my mother’s name is Cynthia. Two, the organization was formed before the formation of the Egmont Group. Three, our actual establishment is already more than forty years old… If you can guess the message that I’m trying to tell you, then you will voluntarily come and find me.”

That might not be true—perhaps she might not want to get involved… Ye Shuang flashed a smile that did not reach her eyes. “Then I shall go back home to understand what is happening for now.”

Perhaps because Ye Shuang did not want to play with him, the excitement Edward showed at the beginning quickly disappeared. He returned to his state of laziness. He half-collapsed on the island, looking just like a slab of pork…

“You’re leaving France so soon?” Edward sighed. “Life really is boring. I should have waited a few days before I tell you these things.”

“I think you have selected the best time to tell me.” Ye Shuang pouted. “I might be busy in a few days, and it will soon be the time for me to return to China. Meanwhile, you have to stay back to clean up Xia Cheng’s mess. If we do not have the time to clear the air, next time we meet, we’ll be at each other’s throat. How sad’ll that be?”

Edward thought about it. He tutted and said, “Fine, then I shall wish you good luck and hope that we can have a good time the next time we meet… By the way, I’ll give you an extra tip. Have you seen last year’s Time magazine? The annual people of the year for the European version…”

“Huh?” Ye Shuang was baffled.

Edward chuckled darkly. “If I’m not mistaken, your little friend should be a very good thief, right? Everyone knows France is famous for its thieves, but in reality, their technique is not that good… Do you know Cedrick, who was on the magazine last year? According to insider information, he is also in France.”

…

“Cedrick, American Michigan local, also known as ‘the Gentleman’. He is a thief with a very high IQ. After he graduated from high school at the age of 15, he was directly approached by Columbia University. He did not accept the offer but left school. After all, he stole about seven airplanes as along with many cars and ferries. He is related to many theft cases and fourteen important jewelry stores…

“During the investigation, if Cedrick ever shows up on the surveillance tape, he will be wearing a business suit and a pair of gentlemanly white gloves, smiling shyly at the camera… But due to a lack of direct evidence and fingerprints, the police have been unable to bring him to justice.”

Ol’ K had collected all the information that he could find on the internet, and he could not suppress the excited tone in his words. “Wow, the man is so cool! Xiao Su was targeted? If the culprit is really the gentleman, then there is no need to be mad. How many people want to meet him but are unable to!”

“That is the guy!” Su Zheng pointed at the picture that Ol’ K sent over. “I remember that face. He was there when I lost my phone, but I had no idea he’s also a thief! No wonder I felt he was weird. The day was so bright, and he was wearing a suit, tie, and a pair of white gloves… I should have known that weird people have weird habits!”

Ye Shuang was speechless. “Calm down… Even though we now know who stole your phone, you have no evidence… Fine, I know you probably won’t want to settle this through an official channel… But other than that, you don’t know his location. Even if you want to settle this privately, we have to find the man first.”

“He sure is brave to dare steal from me!” Su Zheng did not care about much else. After so long, she had finally found the culprit. Her anger rushed forward, and she slammed her fist on the table. “I don’t care! Find him! China has more than five thousand years of history. I don’t believe our culture and history is unable to win over a petty thief!”

“…5,000 years of history has nothing to do with thievery, and even if it did, I don’t think that would be anything to be proud of.” Ye Shuang was now not only speechless but also powerless. “That question aside, it is the same problem—even if you know who the culprit is, do you know where he is now?”

Su Zheng choked. She turned her eyes around and then turned to Ye Shuang. “Sister Shuang…”

“Stop it!” Sister Shuang immediately drew the line. “At least you have seen the person before, I’ve only seen the picture. You have to go to someone else; this route is closed!”

Su Zheng pouted and huffed. Then she turned to Ol’ K with a less than polite tone. “Investigate him for me! Dig up the whole city and find him for me! Paris is so small; I don’t believe how hard it is to find a petty thief!”

Ol’ K almost choked on the other side of the screen. “Xiao Su, you sure talk a big game, ‘just’ one Paris? This is overseas, and it will be so much harder to do things discreetly… Even if this was local, to use manpower to control the surveillance of a whole city to find one person, that is not something simple!”

Su Zheng was depressed. “Sister Shuang, Ol’ K is useless. How about you ask Edward and see whether he can be a good guy again and tell us directly where Cedrick is staying?”

“First, Edward is not a good guy, and even if he was willing to help, don’t you think we’d need to return the favor in the future?” Ye Shuang explained patiently. “Also, Edward now is in a collaborative term with us, but that is only because the cooperation is mutually beneficial. In other words, this incident with Cedrick can be viewed as a test, and if we cannot settle this same problem on our own, then in the future… he he he.”

That should be clear enough.

Although Edward was being kind to offer the tip or he was testing out Ye Shuang’s team, Ye Shuang’s team ability was going to show based on how they handled this issue. Act cute to ask for outside help? If you cannot deal with something as small as this, then it’s better we go our separate ways soon. This is not a kid’s game, who has the patience to help clear up your mess every time?

Su Zheng was annoyed. “Then what should we do?”

“Hey, what do you mean, I am useless? I just think your thinking is too naïve. How about we adopt a different tactic like luring him out?” Ol’ K gave the idea from the other side.

Ye Shuang thought about it. “Let me ask Tony first, he should be able to find something… After all, it is not that difficult to find information on Cedrick. The main issue is that he is too cunning, so he will escape normal detection… Look, every time he goes and conducts his crime, he knows where the camera is. I believe that he should know a thing or two about electronic devices, and Tony is more familiar with things like that.”

“Beep, beep, beep. Please bring me along,” Ol’ K quickly said. “You promised to let me learn from Ace. Since he’s going to work, you have to bring me along!”

“You cannot even find a thief. No matter how much you improve, it’s going to be useless.” Su Zheng mocked the man first before turning to persuade Ye Shuang on his behalf. “Sister Shuang, our Ol’ K is hardworking and easy to rear. He will help you warm the bed and act cute. If you keep him as a student, he will do all the necessary things like cook food and steep tea… Why don’t you just help him? That Ace listens to your order, doesn’t he?”

“He also listens to Brother Han. Why don’t you go and ask Brother Han for help?” Ye Shuang rolled her eyes and made the call. Before Su Zheng answered, the call was already connected, and then a happy voice came from the phone cradle.

“Honey! You called me at 3 am? Is it because you couldn’t resist your desire for me?”

“…3 am?” Ye Shuang looked at Ol’ K on the computer screen.

The latter quickly explained, “The time difference! Sister Shuang, have you forgotten? We are about six or seven hours later than China.”

“Oh!” Ye Shuang nodded and cut to the chase. “Skip the nonsense, I need your help finding someone in Paris!”