05

Amelia got jolted awake by a frantic phone call the next morning.

Seeing it was an international call, she picked up and put the phone on speaker.

Sure enough, as soon as the call connected, a wailing voice came through, "Advisor Johnson! You're finally awake! Please help me!"

Amelia rolled her eyes. "If you can still joke around, it can't be that bad."

"And," she added, "stop calling me your advisor. Your half-hearted attempt in the field of psychology could seriously harm my esteemed reputation."

Just because Amelia, under the alias Professor Rowen, had casually helped him with his dissertation topic online, Samuel Harris insisted on calling her his advisor. She really didn't want to be associated with him.

Samuel laughed shamelessly. "Got it. I won't drag your name into my messes in the future!"

Hearing the clattering of a keyboard in the background, Amelia walked into the bathroom to freshen up and asked, "What's going on? Who's digging into me now?"

When it came to serious matters, Samuel's tone turned bitter. "It's Alexander from the Brown family! I thought I covered my tracks well, but he went nuts yesterday and hired a top-notch hacker to break through the firewall."

The voice on the other end grew weaker, and Amelia realized something. She spat out her mouthwash and asked calmly, "What did he find?"

Samuel's voice had a hint of guilt. "A photo of you and Mr. Moore from behind."

He didn't dare to admit that he had secretly kept the photo, which had now become his liability.

"But don't worry! You were well-covered in that photo! It's just that Mr. Moore might be recognized," Samuel added.

Amelia dried her face, grabbed a lollipop from a nearby jar, and unwrapped it, deep in thought. 'Although it's not widely known that Prof. Rowen has connections with Matthew, anyone with some resources could figure it out. When we first came back to the country, Alexander had already approached Matthew.  But now that the photo is out, it will likely become much easier for Alexander to locate me.'

"Amelia," Samuel's cautious voice came through the phone, "do you want to handle the photo yourself?"

Amelia's main goal upon returning was to find her son; she had no interest in taking on any consultations. Even the news of her return was closely guarded by Samuel. Moreover, grappling with the psychological complexities of the Brown family's heir appeared to be a headache she preferred to avoid.

But thinking of Alexander's cold yet not arrogant face in the luxury car last night, Amelia hesitated. "Forget it, don't worry about it."

"There's a tracking Trojan in the background. I can dismantle it in no time!" Samuel said.

Amelia thought for a moment and said, "You might as well keep it for practice. Before you dismantle it, how much he can trace depends entirely on his own skill."

Samuel immediately exclaimed, "Amelia, you're underestimating me! I, the famous hacker Fly, will make sure he finds nothing!"

Meanwhile, Alexander arrived at the company early in the morning, only to find the highly-paid hacker he had hired letting out a long sigh, as his flying fingers came to a halt.

Alexander put down the file in his hand and asked, "How is it?"

After a night of relentless effort, the hacker's eyes were bloodshot, but he looked particularly excited. "The opponent is too strong! I suspect it's the top hacker Fly! But I found two clues."

The hacker turned the computer around, showing a photo of two people from behind on one side and a map of Novaria with a prominent red dot in the Emerald City area on the other. "Prof. Rowen's location is now in Emerald City, and this is a photo of Prof. Rowen that once circulated."

Upon hearing the news, a glimmer flickered in Alexander's eyes, but he kept his cool and said, "Good job. Thanks for your hard work. Your fee will be increased by ten percent and transferred to your account shortly."

The hacker's eyes lit up, and he happily followed the assistant out the door. It wasn't until he left the Brown Group building that he scratched his head in confusion. "It always seemed like Fly showed mercy in the end."

Meanwhile, Samuel, the top hacker in another country, happily killed the Trojan he had deliberately overlooked with one final blow, thinking, 'Not bad, the disguise is very skillful, just as Amelia wants! I am undoubtedly like a mind reader when it comes to Amelia.'

In the office, Alexander repeatedly zoomed in and out of the photo taken from a distance.

The hacker said the photo, which was recovered from the Celestial University forum during Professor Rowen's tenure, appeared online for only three minutes before it was deleted.

The photo showed a man and a woman from behind, seemingly aware of the camera, with their bodies turned towards it.

But the man raised his hand, using a scarf to cover the woman's upper body, leaving visible only her half-exposed forehead, the lower portion of a white coat, and a pair of plain, flat shoes.

Alexander leaned back in his chair, frowning at the photo.

He recognized the man, Matthew from the Moore family. Although they had little interaction, they were aware of each other.

After learning that Matthew had seemingly met Professor Rowen once, Alexander had tried to contact him. But Matthew only said they had met by chance and had no further contact.

Now, looking at the photo, it didn't seem that simple.

Alexander sighed, thinking the Moore family, a top-tier family that rivaled the Brown family, were not easy to deal with.

Touching his left sleeve with his right hand, Alexander closed his eyes, reviewing the information he had gathered in his mind, 'A woman, approximately 5 feet 5 inches in height, likely recently returned to the country and is currently in Emerald City, engaging with Matthew.'

"Was the house of Amelia Johnson, our neighbor whom we investigated last night, purchased by Matthew Moore?" He suddenly asked his assistant, Hamilton Mason. Sawyer's unusual behavior last night left Alexander uneasy, prompting him to not only hire a hacker to investigate Professor Rowen but also thoroughly check the woman who had approached Sawyer.

Mason immediately replied, "Yes. Ms. Johnson returned to the country just yesterday, and Mr. Moore has already helped her buy the house."

Hesitating for a moment, Mason finally added, "Are you suspecting that Ms. Johnson is Professor Rowen? But according to the information we found, Ms. Johnson suffered from cognitive impairment due to a head injury and only gradually recovered and studied under Mr. Moore's help five years ago, with a bachelor's degree in finance."

Her bachelor's degree was even acquired through Matthew's financial intervention. Out of professional courtesy, Mason swallowed the last bit of sarcasm.

"It is merely a passing thought." Alexander opened his eyes and sat up straight. He knew he was being too impatient, a bit far-fetched.

'How could it be that the elusive Professor Rowen, who hasn't been found for years, is Amelia I happened to encounter by chance? Not to mention she only went abroad five years ago, while Prof. Rowen, though from Novaria, has grown up abroad. Their ages don't match.' Alexander thought of Amelia's sweet and charming face from last night and couldn't help but shake his head. 'Amelia is too young. Prof. Rowen's works couldn't have been written without at least twenty years of experience.'