Hidden identities of the AI Heiress
Chapter 822 - Chapter 822 Chapter 822 Han Luo Takes the Blame

Chapter 822: Chapter 822: Han Luo Takes the Blame Chapter 822: Chapter 822: Han Luo Takes the Blame As Qiao Yun finished speaking, the scene erupted into a frenzy of discussion.

Huo Chi and Han Luo’s hearts lurched simultaneously.

Huo Chi stared intently at Qiao Yun, his gaze extremely unfriendly.

Suddenly, someone blocked his view.

Huo Chi was stunned for a moment and then met Li Hanzhou’s calm and deep black eyes.

He was startled and instinctively averted his gaze.

On his way here, his older brother had told him not to provoke Li Hanzhou of the Li Family from Beijing; otherwise, he would not end well, but he had not taken it seriously then.

Now, Huo Chi somewhat understood why his brother was wary of Li Hanzhou–this man might seem unassuming, but he was actually quite terrifying.

The reason for his current docility might very well be due to the presence of this girl named Qiao Yun beside him.

Huo Chi began to grow anxious, thinking if his plan were to be discovered, it would still be manageable with others, but Li Hanzhou would likely be tough to deal with.

Attempting to harm the person in charge of the Li Family was a crime severe enough to bring trouble to the Huo Family.

However, he hadn’t expected Li Hanzhou to actually attend the event!

Huo Chi’s mind raced with many thoughts before his gaze finally settled on Han Luo, with a hint of darkness flashing through his eyes.

Qiao Yun was also looking at Li Hanzhou.

The man’s suit was sharp, his waist lean and strong, as he stood in front of her shielding her from all malicious gazes.

Qiao Yun pressed her lips together and her eyes were clear, but if one looked closely, they could see a touch of warmth in them.

The subconscious protectiveness of Li Hanzhou indeed pleased her, causing her heart to quicken for a moment.

Han Wang had been paying close attention to Qiao Yun, and his expression grew colder by the moment.

It’s okay, there would be other days; he could always snatch Professor Qiao back.

By now, the buzz of discussion had quieted down, and someone asked Qiao Yun, “What do you mean by that? What does ‘deliberately implanted’ imply?”

Professor Xu asked in disbelief, “So, this is a premeditated attack?”

Under the eager gaze of the crowd, Qiao Yun calmly explained, “I don’t know, the virus didn’t come from the outside.”

Although Qiao Yun didn’t go into detail, those with technical knowledge understood what she meant–if it didn’t come from the outside, it means someone planted it internally, making the ‘culprit’ still on the cruise ship!

It could even be someone they knew.

That would be terrible!

After all, the individuals who came to this event were either wealthy or noble, or they were accomplished people in their respective fields.

It was hard to fathom the ‘culprit’s’ motive.

Weren’t they afraid of offending everyone?

Someone proposed, “I think, before the cruise ship docks, we should gather everyone to conduct a search.”

That was a good idea.

The ‘culprit’ caused them massive embarrassment; finding him would mean they might not be able to do much, but at least they could give him a beating.

The crowd instinctively looked towards Huo Chi of the Huo Family, the event organizers, pressing him with their gaze to agree to this suggestion.

Huo Chi composed himself and said unflinchingly, “What follows is for our Huo Family to handle. Regarding the origin of the virus, we will definitely investigate and notify everyone once we have the results. Moreover, I can’t just interrogate today’s guests rudely based on her single statement.”

He scanned the people present with a smile that was not quite a smile, “Or are you saying that you’d like to be searched publicly? I don’t mind if that’s what you wish.”

The experts present immediately reacted to the implication that they would all have to be searched together.

Naturally, they did not want to be treated as suspects; if the situation escalated and people found out they were considered no better than a young girl…

No, they couldn’t afford that kind of hit to their reputation.

Among the experts present, only Xu Long felt that if there had to be a search, then let there be one–he had done nothing guilty to fear.

The others thought it was more prudent to deal with the matter privately.

“I think Mr. Huo has a point. Everyone who came today has a significant identity. If we start interrogating them carelessly, it might upset people.”

“How are we going to catch the culprit if we don’t investigate?”

“I am innocent. I won’t accept an investigation.”

For a moment, everyone’s opinions were divided.

Huo Chi was happy to see them splinter.

Qiao Yun tapped her fingertips on the tabletop and said in a cold voice, “Quiet.”

Her voice wasn’t loud, yet bizarrely, it made everyone present close their mouths.

Su Qingyan, who didn’t understand information technology, had no say from the start and now looked at Qiao Yun with astonishment, as if seeing someone he had never met before.

Seeing him like this, Qiao Xun laughed, “What, don’t you recognize her anymore?”

“It’s not that,” Su Qingyan shook his head. “I always thought she was fragile, but now I see that I thought too much.”

Qiao Xun said meaningfully, “Take it slow, young man. There are many things you haven’t discovered yet; you’d better get used to it early.”

Su Qingyan was completely confused.

Over here, once Qiao Yun saw that they had completely quieted down, she got straight to the point without beating around the bush, “There’s no need to check everyone. The people outside never had the chance to tamper with anything. The culprit is among us.”

Her gaze swept over everyone present and she continued unhurriedly, “While working on the virus, I also checked all the computers. The virus started from the control room.”

Everyone was astonished.

This statement was intriguing.

“Are you suggesting that the virus was planted in the control room?”

“Yes.” Qiao Yun’s eyes lifted at the corner, her expression nonchalant, as if the person who made this shocking statement wasn’t her.

“…”

Everyone fell silent.

Only the Huo Family’s security team could enter the control room.

So, was the person who tampered with the system a technician from the Huo Family’s security team?

Everyone tacitly turned their gazes toward Han Luo, whose face had turned pale.

Honestly, they couldn’t think of anyone else besides him.

He had just slandered Professor Qiao’s character; he was the prime suspect.

But what was his motive? To take revenge on society?

Huo Chi hadn’t expected this seemingly harmless young girl to be able to silently uncover all this information and felt like a bucket of cold water had been poured over him. He was inexplicably nervous, but then he saw everyone’s eyes turn toward Han Luo.

An idea that had flashed through his mind earlier surfaced again.

With today’s events escalating to this point, a resolution was definitely needed.

With that thought, Huo Chi looked at Han Luo in astonishment, “Han Luo! The Huo Family hasn’t treated you poorly, why would you sabotage this major event today?”

Han Luo’s face turned even paler, unable to believe Huo Chi was actually pinning the blame on him.

He was already discredited by Tianqi’s people; if this incident was added to it, he would have no prospect of development in the circle. Angered, he opened his mouth to retort.

But when he met Huo Chi’s threatening gaze,

Han Luo’s throat was completely choked up.

Everything he had now was provided by the Huo Family. If he didn’t obey Huo Chi’s commands, he would definitely be kicked out of the Huo Research Institute.

If he took the responsibility today, there might still be a chance for him.

In the blink of an eye, Han Luo made his decision. He lowered his eyes, admitting with shame in his voice, “Yes, it was me.”

Huo Chi’s lips curved slightly, his complacent smile concealed soundlessly.