Marking My Arch-Rival [Rebirth] - Chapter 19

“You know Zhang Boshi, right?”

Once she was about seventy percent full, Ji Shihuan put down her chopsticks.

Jiang Boyan took a sip of water.

“Mhm.”

While Ji Shiqin was still alive, Zhang Boshi had been one of his most trusted right-hand men. Hongxin and Huanji had crossed paths often in business, so naturally Jiang Boyan knew who he was.

“Then do you know that the decisive evidence proving Zhang Boshi leaked confidential information was an audio recording?” Ji Shihuan continued.

“…That should be an internal Huanji matter,” Jiang Boyan replied. “How would I know about it?”

Ji Shihuan saw no sign of guilt on her face and lowered her eyes to her phone.

She knew Jiang Boyan had also been a victim. In her previous life, Jiang Boyan had fallen even faster than she had.

But that alone did not prove Jiang Boyan had been entirely uninvolved in Ji Shiqin’s death.

Ji Shihuan had chosen to work with her because she trusted Jiang Boyan’s character. She believed Jiang Boyan was kind and not the sort of person who would commit something so cruel.

She had even considered the worst possible outcome.

Even if Jiang Boyan had somehow played a role in what happened, she must have been manipulated by someone else.

Ji Shihuan unlocked her phone, found an audio file, and pressed play.

“Relax. You contributed a lot this time. Our boss won’t treat you unfairly. Here—open a new bank account after you get back. The money will be transferred this month.”

The recording sounded as though it had been secretly captured from some distance away. Electrical static crackled throughout, and the quality was so poor that the man’s voice was slightly distorted.

A lighter clicked.

Another person drew deeply on a cigarette.

“Ji Shiqin has started suspecting me,” he said. “I probably won’t be able to stay much longer.”

The other man scoffed and slapped his shoulder twice.

“Isn’t that perfect? Don’t worry. We’ve already saved a position for you. Take six months off, then make your comeback. You’ll still be the same impressive President Zhang.”

Zhang Boshi chuckled.

“If we can bring Huanji down, Hong—”

He coughed abruptly.

“Then the boss will dominate City A completely. Pass along my congratulations.”

“There’s no hurry. You can congratulate the boss yourself when the time comes.”

The man changed the subject.

“By the way, I asked you to keep an eye on Huanji’s independently developed intelligent AI system. Have you found anything?”

Zhang Boshi seemed to run a hand through his hair.

“Ji Shiqin guards Zero’s source data extremely closely. Only he and his biological younger sister have administrative access. Outsiders have no way to infiltrate it.”

“What about his wife?”

“You mean Shu Ni?” Zhang Boshi replied. “They aren’t married yet. I tried sounding her out last time, but that woman doesn’t seem to know Zero even exists.”

After that, the two men merely complained about meaningless matters, offering no additional useful information.

Throughout the recording, Ji Shihuan watched Jiang Boyan closely, missing none of her expressions.

Once it ended, Jiang Boyan asked,

“Where did this recording come from?”

“About a week before my brother’s accident, he lost one of his gemstone cuff links,” Ji Shihuan explained. “His assistant reviewed the surveillance footage while looking for it and unexpectedly extracted this audio from a stairwell inside Huanji’s headquarters.”

Jiang Boyan frowned deeply.

Then it was Ji Shihuan’s turn to ask,

“Do you recognize the person speaking with Zhang Boshi?”

Jiang Boyan pressed her lips together.

“The voice sounds familiar, but I can’t place it.”

“So you know him, but you aren’t close.”

Ji Shihuan tapped the table twice.

Instead of speaking immediately, she regarded Jiang Boyan with a scrutinizing gaze.

Jiang Boyan suddenly realized that when Ji Shihuan became serious, she seemed like an entirely different person.

She could feel genuine pressure coming from her—and that was despite having recently been marked by Ji Shihuan, meaning the Alpha’s pheromones could not intimidate her.

After years in business, only a handful of people could make her feel pressured with a single look. Aside from Ji Shihuan, they were all old monsters who had spent decades fighting in the corporate world.

Because of that, Jiang Boyan’s expression became serious as well. She did not pretend ignorance.

“Although the recording never says so directly, the only party that seems capable of buying Zhang Boshi off is Hongxin.”

She shook her head at Ji Shihuan.

“But I didn’t do it. They must have been talking about the bidding project that ended last month. Hongxin achieved a new technological breakthrough in the second half of last year, so we already possessed an advantage over every other company. There was no need to do something like this.”

“Not needing to doesn’t mean you wouldn’t,” Ji Shihuan replied.

Jiang Boyan narrowed her eyes.

“I personally led that project. We conducted in-depth analysis of competing companies, but all of it was based on publicly available information. We did not steal confidential data from any other company.

“Of course, if you still don’t believe me, you can prepare your evidence and proceed through legal channels. Once Hongxin receives a subpoena, we will submit proof in accordance with the law.”

The two stared silently at each other for a moment.

Ji Shihuan was the first to relent.

The tension left her shoulders and back, and she returned to her usual shamelessly carefree demeanor.

“You’ll hurt my feelings if you think that way.

“If I didn’t trust you, why would I ask you to meet privately and expose this recording to you?”

Jiang Boyan did not relax.

“The fact that Huanji hasn’t taken legal action only proves the evidence currently in your possession is insufficient.”

She looked directly at Ji Shihuan.

“Isn’t that right?”

Ji Shihuan smiled.

“You saw right through me.”

The hotpot continued bubbling, releasing clouds of steam that blurred Ji Shihuan’s features.

Her lips were moist, and the lazy way she lifted her eyes looked almost coquettish.

The next moment, she dragged her chair closer to Jiang Boyan.

“Then, President Jiang, guess again.”

She lowered her voice.

“Why did I tell you all of this tonight?”

Jiang Boyan looked away.

Her brows remained furrowed, clearly deep in thought.

After a moment, she said,

“You can’t prove the recording is genuine, and you can’t prove that the man speaking with Zhang Boshi works for Hongxin.”

“That’s right.”

Ji Shihuan nodded frankly.

She even volunteered,

“Zhang Boshi once knelt before me in tears and swore to heaven that this recording had been forged. In fact, I’m more inclined to believe him.

“But anyone who knows even a little about the hostility between our companies—including Zhang Boshi himself—believes Hongxin orchestrated the entire incident.”

Jiang Boyan’s fingers curled slightly on the tabletop.

Ji Shihuan leaned closer.

She completely crossed the boundary of normal social distance, her lips hovering beside Jiang Boyan’s cheek with less than half a finger’s width between them.

“Someone is trying to take both of us down.”