She hadn’t reacted in the moment, and it hadn’t felt particularly bad, but it still felt off.
She shot Shen Muxi a glare and smoothed her hair.
Shen Muxi couldn’t help laughing and reached to ruffle again. “What are you glaring at? I paid for that hair and makeup—I can ruffle if I want. Forgot what you just said? I’m your backer. Can’t this huge backer ruffle your little red hair?”
Chi Yumo went crazy from the ruffling but couldn’t rough up her backer. She just bared her teeth menacingly and huddled in the back row, arms over her head.
After the playfulness, Shen Muxi was in high spirits. “Since you’ve decided to go yourself, fine. Tomorrow, Qiuxue will go with you, plus four bodyguards.”
She turned back, suddenly serious. “We don’t have to take the contract. Don’t rashly agree to any extra terms. If things look off, walk away. Don’t let them scare you with big names—you’ve got me backing you. The sky won’t fall.”
Chi Yumo smiled: [Thanks.]
[You know I know self-defense. If I can’t fight, I can run.]
“Anyway, safety first. Unless it’s an emergency, don’t clash head-on. Use your brain—outsmart them.”
Shen Muxi switched to lecture mode. “A broken bone takes a hundred days to heal. You haven’t earned me a dime yet—don’t make me feed you for nothing.”
“…” The sharp tongue was back.
Chi Yumo tuned her out automatically, pulling blue earbuds from her backpack in the back seat. She connected them to her phone via Bluetooth and played soothing light music.
The earbuds were a gift from Shen Muxi. She put them on whenever she didn’t want to hear the nagging.
Shen Muxi was so rich—these were drops in the bucket for her. Chi Yumo felt no guilt. Once she earned money, she’d pay it all back.
A brand ambassadorship was at least six figures, right?
…
The apartment Chi Yumo lived in was rented by the company—a modest one-bedroom in a mid-range complex, about ten kilometers from Shen Muxi’s home.
She lived alone, with assistant Chen Qiuxue visiting most often.
Chen Qiuxue was two years older than Chi Yumo, poached by Shen Muxi at a high price from another agency.
Her skills were average, nothing standout. She’d managed only C-list flops for years. But she knew sign language, kept her mouth shut, and was loyal.
The manager had called her last night, briefing her to accompany Mo Yu to MENAS for the fitting that afternoon. Her job: ensure Mo Yu’s safety, stay in constant contact with the manager, and authorize bodyguards to barge in if needed.
Before leaving, Chen Qiuxue earnestly told Mo Yu:
“Miss Mo, once there, they might ask you to turn off your phone or confiscate devices—common in the industry. But given your situation, they must allow your tablet for communication. This one you use doesn’t have calling, but it has a built-in locator precise to five meters. Plus, the ring on your finger has a gravity sensor. If either shows anomalies, I’ll send in the bodyguards.”
Shen Muxi had gone to great lengths for Chi Yumo’s safety, preparing multiple safeguards.
Better safe than sorry.
Chi Yumo applied an inhibitor patch and injected an inhibitor.
She also packed a set of clean clothes in her backpack.
There was a heroic resolve, knowing tigers lurked on the mountain yet heading there anyway.
[Sister Xue, I’ll protect myself.]
At one in the afternoon, MENAS sent a luxury car to pick up Mo Yu, while Chen Qiuxue and four bodyguards were already in position.
Chi Yumo got into the luxury car with Chen Qiuxue, and the four bodyguards followed behind in their own vehicle.
The extra bodyguards and car had been cleared with Shen Muxi and Xiao Wei in advance.
Not long after the car left the city district, Chen Qiuxue realized that they were not heading to MENAS’s headquarters building in the southern part of the city.
13:42.
The car stopped.
It was a standalone garden villa in the suburbs. Even though it was already early autumn, the trees remained lush and green, with flowers blooming in every color imaginable.
After entering the courtyard and getting out of the car, Chi Yumo stared blankly at the bougainvillea in red and purple that covered both sides of the iron gate and the entire courtyard wall inside and out.
—Xiao Mo, the orange and white leaf flowers in the Rooftop Garden of Shifeng Building are blooming, very lush and beautiful.
She couldn’t help but think that orange and white planted together would look even better than red and purple. Were the ones in the Rooftop Garden more prolific than these?
Unfortunately, the sky today was gray. If it had been the blue skies and white clouds like that day in Yinzhou, the flourishing flowers and leaves here would have outshone countless other scenic beauties in the world.
A middle-aged man came forward to greet them. “My master has been waiting for a while. Miss Mo, please follow me to the backyard. The rest of you, please rest in the front courtyard.”
Chen Qiuxue said, “I’m Miss Mo’s translator.”
The man replied, “Today’s focus isn’t on discussing the contract. Miss Mo can use her tablet.”
Chi Yumo glanced sideways at Chen Qiuxue and gave a slight nod.
There were also four bodyguards behind the man, standing on either side. A middle-aged female servant led Chen Qiuxue and the other four to a covered corridor pavilion in the courtyard. “Tea and desserts are prepared. Please help yourselves. You may also tour the front courtyard freely.”
Chi Yumo entered the house, passed through the first-floor living room, and followed the stairs to a door on the second floor.
The man pulled open a drawer from a wall-mounted cabinet and spoke again. “Please silence your phone and place it in the drawer, Miss Mo. Also, hand over your tablet and backpack for me to inspect. It’s for confidentiality—part of my duties. I hope you understand.”
It was all as expected. Chi Yumo complied fully, even feeling a spark of curiosity about what—or who—was behind the door.
Her intuition told her that the person inside was not Xiao Wei or Aiden, but someone of higher rank than Xiao Wei.
…
Compared to the overcast weather in Lingjiang City, the southwestern city where Shi Youwan was on a business trip enjoyed clear autumn skies, crisp air, and abundant harvests of flowers and fruits.
That morning, she had attended the “Global Intelligent Business Summit” as an invitee. At noon, she hurriedly finished a high-profile luncheon reception full of grand discussions and speeches, then rushed straight to the airport to catch a flight back to Lingjiang City.
Just past one o’clock, while Shi Youwan was still at the luncheon, Qiao Ke received the latest intelligence on Chi Yumo.
A few days earlier, she had “bribed” the security guards at several entrances to Mo Yu’s neighborhood and the monitoring room, asking them to report Mo Yu’s comings and goings.
The intelligence she received today was that Mo Yu had gotten into a luxury car with her assistant, accompanied by bodyguards.
At 13:15, Shi Youwan, uninterested in further socializing, left the banquet hall and called Shen Muxi to ask about the specifics, but Shen Muxi didn’t pick up.
Once wasn’t enough; she called twice, three times.
After all, last time she had deliberately ignored Shen Muxi’s calls first, so it was reasonable for Shen Muxi to hold a grudge and not answer.
On the fifth try, the annoyed Shen Muxi finally picked up. “President Shi, are you calling to collect a debt or take my life? Do we have business to discuss?”
“Mu Xi, you let Xiao Mo go out alone?”
Shi Youwan couldn’t bring herself to say things like “going to entertain a VIP” or “meeting a sponsor” about Chi Yumo.
“What do you mean ‘let her go out alone’? Mo Yu is 23 this year, not 3. She’s my employee, not a canary I keep caged. She has the freedom to go out, and the freedom to meet whoever she wants. You sent people to tail her, right? Fine, then her safety from now on is all on you. I’m happy to save the worry, effort, and money. I’ll see if she appreciates it. I’m taking a nap now, President Shi. Do whatever you want.”
The call ended.
Shi Youwan’s expression grew grave as she reflected on whether her recent actions or wording had been inappropriate, deepening Shen Muxi’s prejudice against her.
When it came to Xiao Mo, her rationality faltered, and she was no longer the master strategist pulling the strings.
Shen Muxi was right—Xiao Mo wasn’t a caged canary. Xiao Mo was an adult, a grown Alpha with the ability to protect herself.
But… how could she feel at ease?
After thinking it over, Shi Youwan dialed another number.
“Hello, President Shi? How’s it going? Did you win her back?” Sheng Yingfei had been pouring all her energy into the Oriental Nevernight Harbor project lately, busy with big and small matters, too swamped to even spend time with her own wife, let alone keep tabs on Shi Youwan’s pursuit.
“President Sheng, I have a favor to ask.”
“…” Sheng Yingfei rolled her eyes inwardly. For that 20 billion, she’d played packhorse to enable Shi Youwan’s pursuits, and now she had to help with the wife-chasing too?
Can’t my own wife ask me to chase her properly?
She couldn’t say that out loud, though. Pretending to be exhausted, she complained, “You have no idea how busy I am—backache, leg pain, cramps, drinking so much I ended up in the hospital. For helping out, I’m afraid I have more heart than strength, can’t split myself.”
“I’ll add another 5 billion in working capital to the Oriental Nevernight Harbor project personally. No interest, no shares.”
“What’s the matter, President Shi? Just say it—I’ll go all out.”
“Help me check a license plate number. Quickly.”
“No problem. As long as it’s a Lingjiang City plate, I’ll have it in ten minutes.”
“Thank you.”
Shengshi Group’s headquarters was in Lingjiang City, and both Wen Ruoyi and Sheng Yingfei usually lived there.
Some things, Sheng Yingfei could handle even faster than she could.
Originally, asking Sheng Yingfei to check the luxury car’s owner was just for peace of mind. But once the results came in, not only did Shi Youwan panic—Sheng Yingfei was thrown into chaos too.
“The owner of this car is named Li Longfeng. She’s the youngest daughter MENAS’s chairman’s third foreign wife bore him—a mixed-race S-Grade Alpha, fifth in line. Spoiled rotten, lawless. Same age as me. Li Longfeng is the name she changed to herself at 15, meaning ‘dragon and phoenix among men.’ What a load of crap—shameless. I say she’s more like a beast.”
