Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

“Last night when Cheng Huo was obstructing Matthew, I took Cheng Huo off the site.” Qin Ran looked up at the ceiling, finding it hard to go on. “But I’m not that close to Matthew.”

At this point, Qin Ran paused for a moment and then looked up at him. “He sorta saved my life two and a half years ago.”

Cheng Juan hadn’t looked into this in detail.

Qin Ran guessed that he might not have calmed down after what Cheng Wenru had said. When he calmed down, he would be able to figure out what exactly had happened. Back then, he had also managed to guess that she was the person helping Gu Xichi, even with so little information on hand.

Now that there was so much information on this, it would be even easier for him to come to a conclusion.

But Qin Ran was still thinking of something else. How was she going to explain two and a half years’ worth of happenings to him? She furrowed her brows and recalled what Gu Xichi had described two and a half years back. It sounded pretty bad.

Qin Ran sighed.

That was why confessing was such a messy matter. It was so tough for her to get out of it, and she really didn’t want anything to do with the past anymore.

She hadn’t even told Gu Xichi previously.

However…

She didn’t expect that it would be Cheng Juan who wouldn’t stop talking about what happened two and a half years back.

Nor did she expect that her buddy, a buddy she’d gone through life and death with, would betray her a year ago over some money. He didn’t even dare to tell her about it after that.

Cheng Juan dragged a chair and got her to sit first before looking straight at her. “The hacker behind Matthew even got into the Hacker Alliance to look for a member inside. I don’t understand the hacking world, but… you don’t think it’s the president of the Hacker Alliance who’s free to leave and enter the group?”

“No.” Qin Ran folded her arms and looked at him. “Haven’t all of you already guessed it?”

Her attitude…

Cheng Juan recalled that Cheng Huo had been so sure that the hacker behind Matthew was Q…

All things aside, Q…

Cheng Juan was very calm. It seemed like nothing that Qin Ran said would shake him…

But he was starting to lose it now.

He knew that Qin Ran was good at hacking, but he never associated her with Q before. What was most crucial was that the president of the Hacker Alliance said that Qin Ran was almost like him, and he was 65 years old…

Q was as famous as him.

Even if Cheng Juan had confidence in her skills, he would never expect Q’s age could pass off as the president’s granddaughter.

Cheng Juan looked at Qin Ran for a long while before shaking his head. “You know that the president is going to continue looking for you?”

Qin Ran did not answer his question. Instead, she asked, “Do you know the president?”

Back when they were in Yun Cheng, Qin Ran had asked Qian Dui. She mentioned that Cheng Juan had already guessed that she must be a rather competent hacker, as he’d identified the cell phone in the technician’s hand. The technician mentioned that he had only met the president of the Hacker Alliance once…

Qin Ran suspected that Cheng Juan was the president’s friend that the technician was referring to, but she couldn’t find evidence of it.

But as she heard what he said now, Qin Ran was more or less certain.

Cheng Juan was the friend that the president of the Hacker Alliance had invited at that time.

It wasn’t exactly a complicated matter, actually. Cheng Juan and the president were both in Continent M. In terms of wealth, nobody in Continent M was comparable to Cheng Juan.

“Somewhat.” Cheng Juan leaned against the table slightly and concealed his shock. “I even helped him before with some funds.”

He was about to continue when his cell phone rang.

He looked down at it and saw that it was a private number. Cheng Juan narrowed his eyes but did not pick up immediately. He was still thinking about Qin Ran and the hacker business.

The confession was pretty much done.

Qin Ran felt that she needed some time to cool down first.

She got up and pointed to his cell phone. “You can take it, I’ll go downstairs to be with Cheng Mu and the rest.”

With that, Qin Ran turned around and left.

But Cheng Juan grabbed her wrist.

He pulled her back and put an arm around her waist. “You’re leaving just like that?”

His cell phone rang again.

“Pick it up. I’ll go downstairs first.” Qin Ran took a step back and cleared her throat.

She then turned around and left the room.

The door was closed, and Cheng Juan eyed his phone for a while before picking it up. He was looking in the direction of the door as he received the call. “Elder Tang, you’re looking for me?”

It was Old Master Tang on the other end.

The president of Hacker Alliance.

“You said you’ve always been in Beijing?” Old Master Tang smiled as he said, “I happen to be in Beijing now. We can meet when you’re free. It’s been over two years since I saw you.”

Cheng Juan straightened up. “Elder Tang, what bad timing. I happen to be in Continent M right now. I might be going back in the next few days, but not now.”

Elder Tang chuckled. “It’s alright. I’ll be in Beijing for quite a while. I might even spend the New Year here, so I’ll definitely be available when you’re back.”

“Haven’t you been urgently finding someone to take over the Hacker Alliance?” Cheng Juan got up and paced around. “You’ve got the time to travel?”

Cheng Juan thought about why someone from the Hacker Alliance would be in Beijing…

But he hadn’t found the reason yet.

“It’s not urgent. I’ve found my sister’s descendants, and they’re in Beijing. I’m currently waiting for her son.” Old Master Tang looked towards the door as he tried to suppress his excitement, but failed. “I’m calling you now just to share the good news. If my sister has a child or grandchild who’s gifted enough to take over the Alliance, I won’t have to fret anymore.”

Of course, Old Master Tang did not really mean it that way.

He wasn’t really asking Cheng Juan for a meeting as much as he was sharing his joy.

He had seen most of his sister’s descendants. Besides the daughter who wanted to sever ties with his sister’s son, he had seen all of their photos and videos before.

None of them were known in the hacking field.