Finding Stardust (Princess Of Akkadia)

Chapter 29 - She Could Rob A Bank

Their trip back to the hotel was shorter than when they left. Emma subconsciously walked faster because she couldn't wait to unwrap her parents' painting.

"You mentioned you had something to tell me," Haoran said as they arrived at the hotel lobby and pushed the elevator's button. "Do you want to tell it in my room?"

Emma nodded. She had thought about taking Haoran to the top of the building and tell him everything earlier, but she became worried. She was afraid that Haoran might panic and fall off from the building, which would also attract people's attention.

Haoran's suite was a better choice, she decided.

DING!

The elevator door opened and both of them immediately entered. Haoran pressed the 10th-floor button, the elevator door closed again and then sped up to the floor they were going to. After they had arrived in Haoran's suite, Emma plopped herself on the couch and tried to unwrap her parents' paintings.

Five minutes later, she was already staring in awe at the two faces she had been dearly missing. Haoran boiled water in the kettle and made a pot of tea for them. He then sat down with Emma, and they both admired the painting.

"Your parents are beautiful people," he commented. He then took out his cellphone and prepared to take a photo. "Can I take their photo?"

Emma nodded. "Sure. What will you do with the photo?"

Haoran took several photos before answering Emma's question. "I know this hacker on Darknet. She can find any information you need. If I sent her these photos, I'm sure Goose will be able to find their tracks. She can compare these pictures with face recognition software to all databases in the world."

"Goose?" Emma asked in surprise. "What does that animal have to do with this?"

Haoran almost laughed loudly at Emma's question, but he managed to hold back. "Haha... The Goose I'm talking about is not an animal. It's the nickname of a really famous hacker in cyberspace. She is called 'Goose'."

"Oh..." Emma suddenly felt stupid. "How will you give it to Goose?"

"I know Goose," Haoran said. He grabbed his laptop from the bedroom and sat next to Emma while turning on the screen. "Let me show you something."

Emma watched the screen on Haoran's laptop while the young man fiddled with it. Haoran opened a particular application which contained many forums that looked mysterious, then opened a link in a browser and entered some command.

A click sounded, and now the screen showed a picture of the planet Earth from above. Emma could guess it's an image taken from the satellite. But suddenly, the screen zoomed in at such a speed that in just several seconds they could see the continent of Asia.

It kept zooming to the country of China. Seconds later, it now was above Shanghai.

The camera continued to zoom in and showed a district in Central Shanghai.

Finally, the zoom-in stopped at a large house that had a beautiful garden with several orange trees in the backyard.

"Wait, what's this?" Emma asked in surprise. She was still in shock from seeing a satellite image of planet Earth that rapidly zoomed-in to show a house in the city of Shanghai, China.

"This is Goose's gift for me," Haoran said. His eyes gleamed as his gaze fell on the house on his laptop screen. "Now, I can see my mother whenever I want."

Only then Emma understood what was happening. "Is this... your mother's house?"

Haoran nodded. "A few months ago, when I decided to go on the study trip to China, I wanted to secretly meet with my mother. For my plan to succeed, I had to find my mother's location first, so I went into Darknet and hired the best hacker in the world. Everyone in the forum said the best hacker in the world today is Goose. I then hired her services. By proving my identity as Haoran Maximilian Lee, I managed to make her agree to provide service for me with delayed payment. In return, I would pay double her asking price. It's win-win for us both."

"Oh, so you'll only pay for her services after you inherit your father's wealth?" The intelligent Emma could immediately understand what Haoran meant.

"That's right. Goose charges a very high rate, and I can't pay it with my allowance money. Different story if it's only for paying tutoring service." Haoran smiled as he glanced at Emma. The girl understood that Haoran was teasing her, so she pouted a little.

"How much does Goose charge?" asked Emma, ​​sipping her tea.

"Starting from one million dollars," Haoran answered.

Instantly, Emma spouted her tea at the young man's words.

ONE MILLION DOLLARS? Where could she get that kind of money?

Oh, wait. Emma almost forgot she had special powers. Surely it'd be possible for her to use her abilities to rob a bank and escape. Well, in that case, maybe she would ro-...

"But when Goose found out I was looking for my mother, she didn't want to be paid." Haoran grinned at Emma's reaction just now. He knew she was worried about the payment, that's why he hurriedly explained. "So, you don't need to worry about paying a lot of money for her service."

"Why is Goose like that?" Emma asked in surprise. "Doesn't she need the money?"

Haoran shrugged. "She didn't say anything to me. Maybe she has also lost her parents, I don't know. What's certain is that she managed to find my mother for me."

Emma gasped when a woman came out of the house on Haoran's laptop screen. The woman was carrying a small rattan basket and went picking for some oranges from her yard. After she was done, she sat on a garden bench and enjoyed them.

The woman was beautiful; she walked with graceful steps and elegant appearance. Emma could immediately see the resemblance between the woman and Haoran.

"Is that your mother?" she asked, tilting her head to Haoran.

Haoran nodded. "Yes. Goose is very kind to me. When she heard I couldn't go to China because my father was keeping a close eye on my mother, she changed the coordinates of one of the satellite cameras to display my mother's house. She then gave me unlimited access, so I could see my mother whenever I wanted. "

Emma pressed her lips together with both hands in surprise and admiration. Goose really sounded incredible. And she was also very kind! Haoran was really lucky he could see his mother every day this way.

"For now, I am content seeing my mother from afar," said Haoran. His voice sounded a bit shaky, but he held himself well. "As long as I know that my mother's fine, then that's enough for me. Later, once I have overtaken all the Lee Industries business, I'll fight my father and go get my mother. I must be patient until then."

Emma touched Haoran's shoulder and squeezed it softly as if giving him support. "Time passes quickly. You'll soon meet your mother."

Haoran nodded. "I know. Because of that, we also have to start looking for your parents."

"But what if Goose asks for payment from me?" Emma asked in a doubtful voice. She didn't know the exact reason why Goose wouldn't accept payment from Haoran, but Emma didn't want to assume that she also wouldn't need to pay.

She didn't have a million dollars. If she was forced to rob a bank, then she needed to make a plan...

"You don't need to worry about that. If she did ask you for money, when I turn 25 and have taken over everything from my father, I'll pay for it. After all, I was ready to pay her that much money for finding my mom," said Haoran to soothe Emma.

"But I'm not comfortable with that. I don't want to be indebted to other people," Emma said, trying to reject Haoran's offer.

"Then, don't think of me as other people," Haoran replied. "We don't know what the future holds. Who knows, maybe six years from now, you'll already be my wife. Surely it'll be reasonable for you to use my money. Because by then, what's mine is yours anyway."

Emma's face turned beet red at Haoran's words, which he uttered so lightly as if they were only air.

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From the author:

Wait.. wait... Is that an indirect proposal, Haoran? You are smooth!