The family compound was not far from the guesthouse, and they arrived within minutes.
Lin Wenhui accompanied Xiao Mandong to the front desk. She took out her public security identification, exchanged a few words with the staff member on duty, and acted as Xiao Mandong’s guarantor. Soon, Xiao Mandong was checked in without a hitch.
Just as Lin Guoan’s car pulled away from the entrance of the guesthouse, Xiao Mandong suddenly slapped her forehead.
“Oh no, I left something in the car.”
With that, she pretended to chase after it, then quickly turned around and headed back toward the family compound.
She jogged to the vicinity of the compound’s entrance and looked around, searching for Shen Linzhou. She had no idea where he was waiting for her.
The same gatekeeper who had spoken with her earlier, Mr. Zhang, saw her and immediately greeted her with a smile.
“Comrade, you’re back again?”
A gentle smile appeared on Xiao Mandong’s face.
“Master, I left something at my aunt’s place. I’m just going in to get it. I’ll be right back out.”
The gatekeeper did not stop her and waved her through readily.
“Go on, go on. Since Comrade Lin gave you the okay, of course I have to let you in.”
Xiao Mandong thanked him and walked straight into the compound, heading toward Director Lin’s residence.
She had not yet reached the gate of Director Lin’s house when a powerful hand suddenly seized her wrist. In an instant, she was yanked into the shadows beside the wall.
Her heart tightened. When she looked up, she saw that it was Shen Linzhou.
Almost at the same moment, several beams of flashlight swept across the area from nearby. A few patrol officers wearing red armbands passed by.
The scent of soap nuts from Xiao Mandong’s body lingered beneath Shen Linzhou’s nose. He fought to suppress the wild pounding of his heart.
Only after the footsteps had faded did Shen Linzhou release her. His gaze was deep, and his voice was lowered to a near whisper.
“What did you find?”
The two of them were standing extremely close. Xiao Mandong’s light breathing brushed against his jaw.
A sudden flash of memory crossed her mind—the accidental contact she had shared with Shen Linzhou on the train. Before she could stop it, the tips of her ears turned red.
She steadied herself and spoke in a voice barely louder than a mosquito’s buzz.
“Director Huang is Sun Wenbin’s superior contact. His house is just ahead. We can sneak in and look for evidence. He drank quite a bit today.”
Under normal circumstances, Shen Linzhou would not have advised taking action so rashly. But in their previous missions, Xiao Mandong’s judgment had never been wrong. For some reason, he had developed an inexplicable trust in her.
He quickly weighed the feasibility of the operation. Director Huang was drunk—this might be a rare opportunity.
Shen Linzhou swept his eyes over the surroundings. After confirming that no one was nearby, he lowered his voice.
“Let’s go.”
As soon as he spoke, Shen Linzhou slipped around the old locust tree nearby and pressed himself against the wall, moving step by step toward Director Huang’s house.
Xiao Mandong followed close behind. Before long, they reached the gate to Director Huang’s courtyard.
The night was dark and still, and the lights inside the house had already gone out. Shen Linzhou signaled for Xiao Mandong to wait beneath the wall. He hooked his fingers into a crack between the bricks, pushed off with his foot, and vaulted over the wall in one swift motion. He landed without making the slightest sound.
Shen Linzhou gently lifted the latch and pulled the gate open a crack. He gestured for Xiao Mandong to come in, and she slipped through.
Shen Linzhou himself did not know why he had allowed Xiao Mandong to follow him inside. Clearly, it would have been safer for him to investigate alone. Yet his instincts told him that only Xiao Mandong could find the evidence.
He fastened the latch again from the inside. By the faint moonlight, the two of them moved one after another toward the door of the house.
The furnishings in Director Huang’s home were quite modest, with no valuables in sight. Xiao Mandong needed to find a chance to plant the radio transmitter, so she and Shen Linzhou could split up and search separately.
Shen Linzhou went to inspect the bedrooms on the first floor.
Xiao Mandong made her way to the corner of the second floor. Strange sounds came from a bedroom with its door left ajar.
Holding her breath, Xiao Mandong peered through the crack. By the dim moonlight, she saw Director Huang pinning Liu Mengyao beneath him.
Liu Mengyao seemed to want to resist, but she was too afraid to do so.
“What’s wrong, Liu Mengyao? I found you a man, and now you don’t want to serve me anymore? You think you’re too good for me?”
Director Huang’s voice was dark and sinister. He gripped Liu Mengyao’s chin, making no attempt to hide his possessiveness.
“No, no. I’ve just been feeling a little unwell these past few days.”
Liu Mengyao’s mind was in chaos. She did not dare say what she was really thinking. She had been with Lin Guoan just the day before, and she had not taken any contraceptive pills. She wanted to have Lin Guoan’s child so that she could secure her position in the Lin family once and for all.
But if she became involved with Director Huang now, she would have to take the pills. She had no idea what she should do.
“Liu Mengyao, if you behave, you’ll enjoy a lifetime of comfort. But if you try to play games with me, I guarantee you’ll end up with nothing.”
When Director Huang had seen the tall, handsome Lin Guoan sitting beside Liu Mengyao, he had been seized by an inexplicable jealousy.
She was his woman.
“Liu Mengyao, have another child for me. Let the Lin family raise it. How about it, my darling? I promise no one will ever find out the truth.”
Listening to Director Huang’s vile words, Xiao Mandong was utterly disgusted by his shamelessness. It was not enough that he had made someone marry his mistress—he even wanted her to bear his child and have the other man raise it.
Liu Mengyao stared at Director Huang in disbelief.
“No… No, I can’t… I…”
Her mouth was covered by Director Huang.
Then came the rustling of clothing.
Director Huang continued spouting filthy obscenities.
“No? Say that again.”
“Don’t forget how you managed to get into the city.”
“So tell me, between me and that Lin Guoan, who’s better? Hmm?”
“Answer me, or I’ll kill you tonight.”
[Ten thousand words omitted…]
Every time Liu Mengyao was with Director Huang, she felt as though she were being tortured.
Especially after she had been with Lin Guoan, she had learned that a man could be gentle—that this was what a husband and wife could be like.
Director Huang disgusted Xiao Mandong so thoroughly that she stopped listening. She moved silently into the study next door.
Her eyes swept over the bookshelves, the desk, and every corner of the walls. She needed to find a suitable place to hide the radio transmitter.
She had stolen from Director Huang before, and her experience told her that there had to be a concealed compartment somewhere in his study.
She ran her fingertips along the spines of the books, paying attention to differences in their texture, tightness, and the sounds they made.
The first few rows were ordinary enough. But when she reached a thick, old book in the middle, the sensation beneath her fingers changed. It felt heavier and somehow different from the others.
Xiao Mandong pressed inward with her fingertip.
Click.
A wooden panel inside the bookcase sprang open, revealing a hidden compartment half a meter wide.
Inside were several small gold ingots, along with cash and ration coupons. Xiao Mandong did not touch any of them. She simply pushed the radio transmitter into the deepest part of the compartment, then carefully restored the panel to its original position.
She had just turned around when she heard the bedroom door next door open.
Her heart jolted. She immediately held her breath.
The study door was suddenly flung open, and Xiao Mandong found herself face-to-face with Director Huang’s sinister eyes.
