Chapter 489 One Step Too Late!
"Elder Li, what do you mean by this? Please get up, you've already been a great help. I can't accept you kneeling!"
Ye Fan quickly reached out to help Li Mo up from the ground, "Whatever it is you want to say, stand up and take your time, no rush!"
Taking advantage of the help, Li Mo stood up with a look of guilt on his face, "Young Master Ye, actually, a few months ago, I was also kidnapped, and it happened that the Third Young Master Ye saved me. I already owed him a favor... Then, a month ago, just before the Third Young Master Ye ran into trouble, he found me and gave me a key. It was for a very important safety deposit box stored in the bank. He asked me to keep it safe..."
"He said that if he hadn't retrieved the key after a week, I should open the safety deposit box and hand over its contents to the Ye family members!"
Huh?
Hearing Li Mo's words, Ye Fan felt a sudden thud in his heart.
Could it be a fragment of the Immortal Palace Map?
Did my third brother foresee his own misfortune?
While speaking, Li Mo carefully took out an ancient-looking key from a small leather pouch and respectfully handed it to Ye Fan.
Ye Fan took the key, puzzled, and said, "Elder Li, since the key is still here, why don't we just go to the bank, open that safety deposit box, and get the items? What fault lies with you in this matter?"
Li Mo spoke dejectedly, "I was one step too late! On the day the Third Young Master Ye ran into trouble, I had gone abroad... It was only on the third day that I returned to find out about his misfortune. Immediately, I went to the bank in Guangcheng to retrieve the items, but then..."
"Then what?" Ye Fan's heart shivered slightly. Had Prince Jin's men already taken the Immortal Palace Map Fragment a step ahead?
But, from what Ye Fan currently knew, the people from Prince Jin's side had not obtained the Immortal Palace Map Fragment from his third brother.
If they had obtained the fragment, Prince Jin certainly would have made a big deal out of it.
"Then... after I arrived in Guangcheng, I found out that the Zhongmin Bank's head office in Guangcheng had been destroyed by a fire the day before... The entire building, eighteen stories and five basement floors, were burned to ashes, and the items left by the Third Young Master Ye also..."
A fire disaster?
Such a coincidence?
Just before Li Mo went to retrieve the items, everything had burned so thoroughly?
As a well-known bank in Great Xia, Zhongmin Bank has strong backing and top-level security and fire precautions in its Guangcheng head office. Even if there had been a fire, it should have been contained quickly within a small area.
Thus, this must definitely be a conspiracy!
Moreover, such a major fire at the Guangcheng head office of Zhongmin Bank and yet not a single piece of news about it online—this is completely abnormal! Logically, if a total fire had occurred at the head office, all the valuables stored by numerous customers should have been lost. Wouldn't those customers have made a fuss?
Now everything remains so calm, which indicates that this was a scheme specifically targeting the safety deposit box left by my third brother!
Looking at the changing expressions on Ye Fan's face, Li Mo continued, "Young Master Ye's thoughts are exactly right! I used all my connections and resources to gather information. The belongings of all other depositors at Zhongmin Bank were intact; only the items belonging to the Third Young Master Ye were missing... I have failed the trust of the Third Young Master Ye..."
Li Mo frowned and sighed, "I don't even know what exactly was in that box the Third Young Master Ye had, but now that I've lost it, the guilt is too great! Ah!"
"If only I had returned one day earlier!"
"This past month, I've hardly slept a wink! I've used all of my connections to investigate, but all the results are the same—that the fire disaster was an accident caused by a short circuit, and no one would be held accountable!"
Listening to Li Mo's words, myriad thoughts raced through Ye Fan's mind, and he swiftly pieced together many things.
The fire at Zhongmin Bank was definitely man-made; that was inevitable, but such tight information lockdown couldn't be the work of ordinary people.@@novelbin@@
By now, there was no concrete news about the Third Young Master Ye from Prince Jin's side, which meant that if it was someone from Prince Jin's faction who had acted, they must have deceived their superiors and the news hadn't yet been reported to Prince Jin!
Combining all the information Ye Fan currently held, he had already locked onto a suspect in his mind.
The "Big Fish" that Director Chen had mentioned, the one hiding in the Vermilion Bird Domain!
The fire at Zhongmin Bank was most likely his doing!
The military martial exercise in the Vermilion Bird Domain was about to begin, providing a perfect opportunity to enter the Vermilion Bird Domain and settle the score with the last enemy responsible for his brother's death.
"Elder Li, since it's still early, how about you accompany me to the fire scene to take a look?" Ye Fan asked with a devilish smile, "Who knows, we might find some clues!"
Ye Fan was very clear in his mind that after so much time had passed, it was virtually impossible to find any clues at the scene.
If they had intended to swap out his brother's safety deposit box, they would have certainly erased all traces.
But since the key was still in Li Mo's possession, they would definitely investigate Li Mo and keep an eye on the fire scene. Explore hidden tales at My Virtual Library Empire
What Ye Fan needed to do was to "startle the snake by hitting the grass" and "throw stones to ask the way"!
He planned to deliberately loiter around the scene and deepen the investigation to draw the attention of the other party, forcing them to expose themselves.
"Ah… this… okay…"
Li Mo was puzzled, having already had people investigate the site countless times without finding any clues; could Young Master Ye really find something new upon his arrival?
When leaving the gymnasium, Ye Fan called Songyang and asked him to mold a key, which he received from Songyang halfway.
Li Mo became curious, "Young Master Ye, what do you need this replicated key for?"
"Fishing!"
Ye Fan replied with a mysterious smile!
...
The former site of Zhongmin Bank's Guangcheng headquarters had by then been flattened, even featuring a huge burnt pit in the middle. It was fenced around with metal sheets and warning tapes, with a team of security personnel constantly patrolling.
As soon as Ye Fan and Li Mo approached, several security officers immediately intercepted them, "Please stay away from here; this area is still under police investigation and not determined, further inquiries are ongoing, no outsiders allowed!"
Heh!
They were even able to mobilize law enforcement to guard the place? Their influence was indeed significant!
"I am Ye Fan from the Town Martial Hall, the Young Marshal of the Heavenly Master Mansion... Do you think I qualify to take a look here?" Ye Fan didn't bother with pleasantries and tossed his token to the lead security captain!
Upon hearing Ye Fan's name and matching his appearance, the captain's face immediately changed, "This… Young Master Ye, please…"
Although the superiors had ordered them to guard the place, Ye Fan's current rank and status were too formidable. A mere team captain couldn't possibly stop him.
Ye Fan gave a mild smile and stepped towards the inside of the caution line, speaking loudly to Li Mo, "Elder Li, are you sure the key was dropped here? Let's search thoroughly once more!"
"Ah?" Li Mo was stunned, instantly understanding Ye Fan's intention. Ye Fan was deliberately staging a play for those secretly watching the site, "Yes… I dropped the key here when I visited for some inquiries a while ago, it's the key to the safety deposit box, very important indeed…"
Li Mo intentionally raised the volume of his voice, fearing those around might not hear him!
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