Chapter 66

Liu Ran had originally wanted to ask if the bomb could be removed, but upon hearing the implication in Ming Siyu’s words, her mind froze, and she blurted out, “You… did it with someone else?”

Ming Siyu breathed unsteadily as she looked down at her from above. “I’ve told you before—there are plenty of people who want to get into bed with me, and many of them are better than you.”

Liu Ran’s breathing grew cold. So, what Ming Siyu had said that day wasn’t just angry words. She really went and found someone else, replacing Liu Ran the moment she got bored. Even though there was no longer any possibility between her and Ming Siyu, the pain was still overwhelming.

The thought of Ming Siyu tilting up someone else’s chin, her eyes clouding with desire for another person, made Liu Ran so sick she wanted to devour the bed whole.

She held back and said, “Anyway, you already tore up the check. I just want to say that I didn’t conspire with Ming Siwei to harm you.”

But Ming Siyu no longer cared about that. At this point, if she could still easily believe Liu Ran, then all the losses she’d suffered at the hands of Ming Siwei and Qi Zhen would have been for nothing.

With a cold laugh, she threw Liu Ran’s own past words back at her verbatim. “From now on, I won’t believe a single word you say.”

Ming Siyu swiftly handled everything with her usual decisiveness. After much thought, she still didn’t plan to simply abandon Liu Ran. She decided to head to Country D first, and once the situation stabilized, she would bring Liu Ran over, lock her up, and let her experience what it truly meant to cry out to heaven and earth with no response.

Before leaving, however, she slightly loosened the restrictions on Liu Ran. She wanted to see exactly what Liu Ran and Ming Siwei had plotted together and what role Liu Ran had played in it.

On the day of departure for Country D, Ming Siyu left home without a word. She made one last visit to the Ming Group headquarters and Ming Media, feeling a pang of reluctance. Just before heading to the airport, she received news: Liu Ran had run away. The nano locator on Liu Ran had also been discarded.

Ming Siyu’s expression changed instantly. She hadn’t expected Liu Ran to have the guts to flee. By the time she reached Country D, catching her would require cross-border operations, which would be troublesome. Fortunately, she had always kept people watching Liu Ran, and they quickly tracked her whereabouts.

Secretary Wen urged her to head to the airport—their flight was about to take off. Ming Siyu was unwilling; she wanted to wait until she had Liu Ran firmly in hand before leaving. Liu Ran hadn’t even left A City yet, so it probably wouldn’t take long. She had Secretary Wen rebook them on a later flight that same day.

However, before she could catch up to Liu Ran, the joint investigation team from the government departments arrived due to allegations of irregularities in the project land approval process.

The investigation team came prepared. They had received a report that a piece of original agricultural land in the pharmaceutical park project in the neighboring city had irregularities in its development process. As the company boss and ultimate person responsible for the project, Ming Siyu had to undergo review.

Upon discovering she was about to leave the country, they suspected intent to flee as a guilty party and detained her without hesitation.

“Ms. Ming, based on the evidence we’ve gathered so far, we don’t believe this matter will have serious consequences,” the deputy team leader said politely. “However, to prevent any issues, please cooperate with our work.”

Ming Siyu’s teeth nearly ground to dust. “Who—who did this?”

“Sorry, we can’t disclose that.”

Secretary Wen said anxiously, “We have important matters in Country D. Could the investigation wait until we return? Or we can cooperate remotely from Country D.”

The team members looked troubled. “If there’s no issue, the investigation will be quick—a few days at most.”

Secretary Wen wanted to negotiate further, but Ming Siyu shook her head. “Go contact the doctor about rescheduling. I know about the company matters; this splash of dirty water for irregularities won’t stick to me. Also, find out who reported me.”

It was just someone using this to buy time.

Ming Siyu felt her cheeks burning with pain, as if she’d been punched with full force. She didn’t even need Secretary Wen to investigate; she already had a prime suspect in mind. The park project, delaying time, something detrimental to her—every arrow pointed to Liu Ran, who had been involved in the park development and was now on the run.

The investigation team treated her well, arranging her in a nice five-star hotel without full isolation. Considering her health, they even prepared an emergency medical team. True to form, Secretary Wen was efficient and found the whistleblower that very afternoon.

When Secretary Wen uttered Liu Ran’s name, Ming Siyu felt no anger—only waves of heartache and utter disappointment. In all fairness, if she were Liu Ran wanting to escape, she would prepare a countermeasure in advance to create an opening for flight; otherwise, capture would be swift.

But she never imagined Liu Ran would actually use such a despicable trick on her.

In the end, the deepest, most painful knife came from Liu Ran.

From discovering Ming Siwei’s poisoning up to now, Ming Siyu had been driven forward by rage. Revenge had become her greatest motivation. She brimmed with confidence, imagining Ming Siwei’s defeated face and nearly laughing aloud. She had returned to being the Ming Siyu who always held the winning hand, methodically handling everything, believing she had everyone under her heel.

Yet Liu Ran had suddenly shoved her from on high, shattering her into pieces.

Again and again, she stumbled over Liu Ran.

Suddenly, she no longer understood what she had been competing with Liu Ran over these past days. To win her back? To make her fall for her again? Or just to satisfy her possessiveness? For a moment, Ming Siyu couldn’t clarify it. She only knew she had gone mad, obsessed with binding Liu Ran to her side, heedless of everything else.

But now, the obsession to possess Liu Ran vanished in an instant. She no longer wanted Liu Ran by her side at all costs, but she wouldn’t let her off easily either.

“They’ve already tracked Liu Ran’s exact location. Also, Liu Ran’s mother, Bai Yu, is en route to transfer hospitals. President Ming, just give the order, and we can capture them immediately.”

“Forget it. Let them go,” Ming Siyu said calmly, her heart still as water. “Don’t intercept them, but don’t lose track either.”

She sat idly in the hotel for two days. During that time, Secretary Wen worked her connections tirelessly and even alarmed Old Madam Ming, who hurriedly pulled strings to expedite the investigation. On the third day, the results came clear: there were indeed procedural issues, but they coincided with the transition between old and new regulations. It should have been rectified with new approvals. The matter was neither major nor minor—not serious in nature; just file the paperwork.

Ming Siyu left A Country at top speed. Before departing, she casually sent someone to her home to smash Liu Ran’s room and every flower decoration in the living room to smithereens.

***

Liu Ran finally breathed a sigh of relief after boarding the plane. She wasn’t sure if Ming Siyu hadn’t looked for her, hadn’t found her, or if her report had temporarily tied Ming Siyu up. On the day of departure, she felt no joy as imagined—only heavier sorrow enveloped her.

She had promised Ming Siyu she wouldn’t settle personal scores through company business. Yet she had indeed needed something to distract Ming Siyu and aid her escape. She had broken her word. She racked her brains and dug up a seemingly problematic but substantively minor oversight from the project, anonymously submitting it to the authorities ahead of time. Ming Siyu’s oversight of her management had loosened after returning from abroad, giving her the perfect window.

When submitting, her heart raced with guilt: It’s just to buy a little time—no real harm to Ming Siyu or the company, just a few days of investigation. It’ll be fine by then, and I’ll be far away.

But the guilt weighed her down. The investigation wouldn’t just target Ming Siyu—it would involve her former colleagues too. Liu Ran repeated to herself in her mind: Just a little time, no big impact, it’ll be okay. Yet the guilt didn’t lessen one bit.

After landing, she drafted a text: Sorry. In the recipient field, she entered Ming Siyu’s number. She hadn’t saved it on the new phone, but those digits were etched into her heart.

Then she deleted it.

She settled Bai Yu into the local sanatorium. The completely new environment and the local-accented international common tongue filled her with deep fear. No one left to help her—she could only rely on herself. After arranging Bai Yu and exchanging for local currency, she suddenly had nothing to do and stood frozen in place. A sanatorium nurse remarked that she looked like she might drop dead from exhaustion. Liu Ran checked a mirror and saw a woman with swollen eyes, lifeless gaze, and utter fatigue. Only then did she realize she hadn’t slept for two days and nights.

Liu Ran sat on an empty staircase, staring blankly at the bustling street nearby, filled with unfamiliar faces. Loneliness welled up, and longing surged like a flood or beast. In that instant, she missed Ming Siyu terribly—terribly. Even if she hated her, feared her, wanted to escape every moment, she couldn’t deceive herself. She had never stopped liking Ming Siyu.

A few days later, while tending to Bai Yu and scrolling entertainment news, the words “Ming Media” caught her eye. She paused, and before her brain caught up, her finger tapped in.

A hot web novel adaptation film broke ground that day. In the group photo of the leads, Liu Ran spotted a familiar face: Zhu Xinghan.

Her heart hammered as if struck. She quickly searched related info—Zhu Xinghan played the protagonist’s white moonlight supporting female role, the perfect ballerina living in memories. Anyone in the industry knew such roles were foolproof for gaining fans: no need for top acting skills, just show your most approachable, beautiful side to hook an audience, then leap into stardom. The original novel was a massive hit IP with built-in traffic, backed by industry giant Ming Media. Zhu Xinghan’s socials gained over a hundred thousand followers in less than a day.

Liu Ran watched with a sense of detachment from another world. So when Ming Siyu had embarrassed Zhu Xinghan publicly, claiming it was for new movie casting, it wasn’t a lie—she really intended to cast Zhu Xinghan?

She wanted to call and ask what was going on, to get the real story. She opened her contacts—empty. She wanted someone to talk to but didn’t know who or what to say. In the end, she helplessly pocketed her phone.