Hidden Moth-Chapter 383 - 216: A Flick of the Finger, the Wild Wind Never Approaches

In just one day, the Ancestral Hall has clarified the following situations—

Firstly, Steward Zou Tianjin should be innocent. When Fabre was unsealing Shi Yun Road in Nanhua, Zou Tianjin was in Huiming all day and several Magic Sect disciples can attest to this.

Secondly, the seals of other punished sorcerers in the Shi Family have no issues.

Thirdly, Lu Shutang had never heard of Mr. Fabre, nor has he heard of the company Huishishi Brand. Recently, no one approached him about any collaborative business ventures or holding shares on behalf of someone.

Lastly, Li Chun had informed Steward Zou of his intention to take shares. Gong Xiaodong personally asked Shi Zhiliao about this, but Shi Zhiliao claimed he couldn’t remember many details, though he supposedly hadn’t told anyone about it.

However, Gong Xiaodong and company, including Qian Guran, judged that Shi Zhiliao might not have been truthful.

Shi Zhiliao’s wife has passed away, leaving only one daughter. His daughter is not a sorcerer, having failed in her cultivation techniques, she went abroad with her husband ten years ago, and now they’ve settled overseas, reportedly with a son and a daughter.

Shi Zhiliao’s current state is very poor; he is elderly, with old injuries that have never healed, leaving him physically weak and low on energy, clearly nearing the end of his life.

Yet his daughter, son-in-law, grandson, and granddaughter have not returned; only Li Chun frequently visits and has employed someone to care for him.

Gong Xiaodong and others speculate that such matters are unlikely to be casually mentioned by Shi Zhiliao. If he ever disclosed them to anyone, the most probable person would be his daughter, who is far away overseas.

The reason Shi Zhiliao may not have spoken the truth could be to avoid implicating his daughter and son-in-law. Shi Yun Road met Fabre in the United States, and Shi Zhiliao’s daughter and son-in-law are also in the United States, which surely will be the next line of investigation for the Ancestral Hall.

In the apartment, Qian Guran explained the above situations and then asked, "Xiao Kao, what do you think?"

He Kao, lost in thought for a long time, finally said, "The Huiming Shi Family may have been transferring assets overseas for a long time, leaving a legacy overseas while keeping this hidden from the Ancestral Hall."

Shi Zhiliao’s daughter and son-in-law, failing to cultivate into technique, likely felt restricted locally with limited prospects, so moving overseas could be understandable.

Considering the Shi Family’s wealth accumulation, expanding business overseas seems normal.

But leaving a sorcerer legacy overseas yet concealing it from the sect violates the sect rules!

Why does He Kao suspect this? Because the Huiming Shi Family has prior offenses, such as the "Cleaning Department" set up by Bitter Tea, where those cleaners are a group of sorcerers outside the Magic Sect’s supervision.

The Shi Family organizing a cleaner group domestically could easily mean they’ve organized a secret legacy abroad.

According to the testimony of cleaner Gao Chenshu, codenamed Redwood, he encountered Bitter Tea in the United States. What was Bitter Tea doing in the United States at that time?

Shi Zhiliao’s daughter and son-in-law are said to have failed technique cultivation, but who knows the truth? What if they had cultivated techniques and concealed it, failing to report it to the Micro Realm Sect?

The foundation of the Huiming Shi Family is twofold: the Huiming clan and the Magic Sect background, both based in the Eastern Country. Why then, under this pretense, move assets overseas and leave a secret legacy?

The answer stands out clearly in two words—avoiding disaster!

Because the Shi family’s high-ranking members know what they’ve done, if discovered by the Ancestral Hall, it could spell disaster; thus, they pre-arranged an escape route.

Facts proved that the Shi Family indeed suffered a severe blow, and the main high-level figures didn’t even have time to gather their assets and flee, due to the quick actions of the Ancestral Hall.

They could not have anticipated that Hidden Moth was merely bait, and behind Hidden Moth were the three elders of the Ancestral Hall...

Of course, all these are merely He Kao’s speculations; as for the evidence, there are some confidentialities he can’t easily disclose.

Lin Qingshuang was slightly taken aback upon hearing this, pondered, and said, "This possibility indeed cannot be ruled out, the specific situation depends on the investigation results on Steward Gong’s side."

Qian Guran retorted, "If the Huiming Shi Family truly left a secret legacy overseas, why would they come back to make trouble, fearing the Ancestral Hall might not know?"

Lin Qingshuang: "This matter still needs confirmation. Even if it exists, that Fabre may not necessarily be one of them; he might have other agendas... But let’s not talk about this now, Xiao Kao, have you considered another possibility?"

He Kao: "What possibility?"

Lin Qingshuang: "If no one discovered Shi Yun Road’s scheme, and he succeeded today, and Fabre later approached Lu Shutang to hold that 30% share, what would happen?"

He Kao: "Steward Zou would certainly sense something off and would naturally investigate."

Lin Qingshuang continued, "Since Steward Zou is innocent, once this matter is uncovered, who is the suspect?"

Qian Guran reminded from one side, "That Lu Shutang, is your classmate, right?"

He Kao was startled, stood up and said, "Me! I would definitely be considered a suspect."

Lu Shutang was not only He Kao’s classmate from university but also his roommate in the same dormitory, and later during graduate studies, they had the same mentor, their relationship was quite close.

Last autumn, Lu Shutang took his girlfriend to Qi Yuan for a visit, toured their old campus, and even visited He Kao’s rural hometown.

It was when sending Lu Shutang and his girlfriend to the high-speed rail station that He Kao encountered the "lost" Wei Luo, at that time, there was no trouble regarding the Huiming Shi Family.

If Shi Yun Road’s scheme succeeded today and the case arose in the future, with Zou Tianjin being innocent, then taking Lu Shutang as the clue, whose suspicion would be the greatest?