"Transfer it over when he does," Yue Linze said, a slight curve to his lips. "The housekeeper will give you the account details."

"...Oh." Though the money meant nothing to her, as a supposedly vulgar woman driven by money, it still stung a little to leave before a promised payment landed in her account.

Yue Linze watched her, a smile on her face but her thoughts clearly elsewhere. Displeased, he pinched her chin between his fingers. Tao Yu felt a chill against her skin and her gaze snapped back to him, involuntarily.

"Don't let your mind wander when you're with me," he murmured, his lips barely moving.

Tao Yu gave a dry laugh and a small nod.

The atmosphere grew strangely awkward. She stood smoothly, moving away from his intensely present fingers, and returned to their previous topic. "So, you suspect Yue Linying orchestrated the car accident, and you believe there's evidence against him in the surveillance footage, correct?"

"Yes." The strange tension that had sprung up between them dissipated as Yue Linze spoke of the matter.

Tao Yu nodded. "You have people at the old manor, too. Why not have them search Yue Linying's room discreetly, instead of coming back yourself?"

"It's only a guess that the footage is in Yue Linying's room. I can't risk exposing my network based on a guess," Yue Linze replied.

Tao Yu paused, considering his words. It made sense. If Yue Linying was deliberately setting a trap, sending in her network would be like offering him a free kill.

She smiled. "Thinking about it this way, I seem to be the most suitable person for this task. The worst-case scenario is Yue Linying discovering me, but I'm not staying long anyway. Even if he finds me, what can he do to someone who simply wandered into the wrong room?"

If there was indeed something in Yue Linying's room, she was confident Yue Linze would find a way to retrieve it, even if she failed. If there was nothing, then it didn't matter; Yue Linying would at most become more vigilant, which might even lead him to expose himself sooner.

Yue Linze watched her calmly, offering no response to her question. In truth, he'd already formulated this plan when he'd asked her to fend off the unwanted attention. That's why he'd been constantly observing and testing her, trying to investigate her background.

Now that he was certain she was clean, he was having second thoughts about going through with it.

"Sir?" Tao Yu raised an eyebrow.

Yue Linze said indifferently, "You're overthinking it."

"What do you mean?" Tao Yu asked, surprised. Had he really brought her back just to shield him from those bothersome romantic advances?

Yue Linze glanced at her. "Yue Linying might not be the sharpest tool in the shed, but he's not stupid enough to let anyone just waltz into his room and steal things. My people discovered he's installed a lot of high-tech security devices in there. You're so clumsy, you'd be caught the moment you stepped inside. What then? We'd have alerted him for nothing."

Tao Yu's lips twitched. She'd always cultivated a professional, elite image. Where did he get the idea she was clumsy? She was about to retort when a thought struck her. "Are you worried about me?"

"...What do you think?" Yue Linze scoffed.