ACONITUM SCENT

"Long lasting route..."

A few days have passed. It was a lovely morning. The sun is shining brightly. The north wind is howling. The plants in the area are all green. The road is congested with various types of vehicles. The birds perched on the tree's branches sang loudly. Colorful flowers sat in the sunlight, and some were hung outside the cafe. The breeze gently brushed through the tree's leaves, causing them to dance in a whistle of the wind.

While Lianhua is busy in the kitchen of his workplace, his coworkers and brother are busy greeting customers and directing them to open seats.

Hei Bao, on the other hand, is preoccupied with business matters. He works with layers of papers on the left and right. His left hand was tapping the keyboard, while his right hand was holding the papers. Later, one of his trusted employees, Secretary Wen, walked into the office. He didn't knock and walked straight to Hei Bao's desk, where he placed the folder he was carrying on the folders that Hei Bao hadn't dealt with.

"I hope you didn't forget about today's schedule, Mr. Bao," Secretary Wen said. Hei Bao looked up from his keyboard, puzzled, and looked at Secretary Wen.

"What schedule?" Hei Bao inquired, his brow furrowed.

Secretary Wen looked at Hei Bao for a moment before responding.

"I told you a few weeks ago, and Mr. Qi told me that both of you needed to go somewhere, so I had to change your entire schedule for today," Secretary Wen responded.

Hei Bao then realized that Secretary Wen had told him that a few days before. "I completely forgot. Where is Cheung Qi?" Hei Bao inquired once more.

"He has already left, Mr. Bao; he said he had already sent you the address of the meeting place, and he drove away after saying that," Secretary Wen responded.

Hei Bao started to feel uneasy. He stood up and walked over to his coat rack, where he fished out his phone. He opened it and finally calmed down when he saw Cheung Qi's message. He typed a few words before turning it off. Hei Bao exchanged words with Secretary Wen, who was still standing in front of his desk.

"Prepare the car," Hei Bao said.

Secretary Wen bowed slightly and exited a second later.

Hei Bao returned to the rack and took his coat. He hung it on his left arm, put his phone in his pocket with his right arm, and walked back to his desk.

He stood there for a second after turning off the computer. He chose to open his upper drawer, where the box was stored, and take it in his hand. He brushed his thumb gently across the golden dragon wrapped in the box. After a brief moment, he decided to replace it in his drawer and close it again. He walked out of the office and into his room. He went to his bedside table and placed a pink cloth there, the one Lianhua had used to wrap the bento box that had been given to him.

Hei Bao took it and left his room, closing the door behind him. He then proceeded to his personal elevator but came to a halt outside. Hei Bao discovered the notice stating that it was being repaired due to a problem. He walks grumpily down the hall and comes to a halt outside the elevator that his employees use. He waited and waited for it to reach the top floor. The door opened in a split second, revealing the empty ride.

Who was foolish enough to enter the upper floor? Because the conference room is located on the 49th floor, most employees can only go there. Other employees can be found on the 49th floor.

Hei Bao took the elevator by himself. However, the elevator abruptly stopped on the 23rd floor. Hei Bao heard a faint chattering of people as the door slowly opened. The door eventually opens. It revealed a crowd gathered outside the door. The crowd fell silent when they saw their boss inside the elevator. For a brief moment, the people outside looked at him with concern.

"I-I believe... I left my wallet on my table; I'll go get it," one employee said before fleeing.

"I'm not really hungry, so... I'll just go finish my work," a girl said as she ran away.

"Uh… I believe... I need to use the b-bathroom," said another girl.

The crowd thinned out and the door closed again. Hei Bao looked around the reception area after reaching the upper ground floor and noticed Chu Yan wasn't there. Hei Bao continued walking and left his workplace. He noticed his driver standing outside the car. Hei Bao did not enter the car after the driver opened the door.

"Give me the key," said Hei Bao.

The driver froze for a moment before handing over the keys to Hei Bao.

Hei Bao told Secretary Wen to get out of the car, which he did despite his confusion. Hei Bao drove away without saying anything, leaving Secretary Wen to handle his work. Hei Bao drove away to a location he is very familiar with.

To be continued.