The café on the third floor of the Xinghai Hotel was brightly decorated, and the aroma of coffee beans filled the air.
Jiang Nuan sat by the window with a cup of coffee in front of her. Beside her was Shen Wu, dressed in a black suit.
With the agent’s badge pinned to his chest, he looked every bit like the kind of cold, intimidating manager who seemed to say, “Talk to me and I’ll deduct it from your appearance fee.”
There was no way to tell that he had spent the entire previous night fighting.
“She’s here,” Shen Wu said.
Zhou Mengmeng, her hair tied in a high ponytail, came jogging across the lobby.
As soon as she approached, her eyes first landed on Shen Wu.
That face was simply too recognizable. He was Qinian’s top agent, a notorious figure in the industry known as the Cold-Faced King of Hell.
But the next second, her eyes flew wide.
“You… You’re the person who sat next to me at yesterday’s concert!”
Jiang Nuan stood up with a smile.
“That’s right. I’m Jiang Nuan.” She held out her hand. “Nice to meet you.”
Zhou Mengmeng shook it instinctively. Her expression shifted from shock to confusion, then from confusion to a strange kind of excitement.
“Wait.” Her gaze swept back and forth between Jiang Nuan and Shen Wu twice. “You were sitting in the audience yesterday, and today you’ve shown up with Agent Shen?”
“I happened to run into Agent Shen after the concert yesterday,” Jiang Nuan said naturally. “Their team has been short-handed lately, so I applied for a position and gave it a try. I was lucky enough to get hired.”
“Oh…” Zhou Mengmeng drawled, rolling her eyes twice before leaning closer and lowering her voice. “You’re not… Qinian’s girlfriend, are you?”
Jiang Nuan fell silent.
“You’ve misunderstood.” Jiang Nuan hurriedly tried to explain. “We just have a normal working relationship.”
“I get it, I get it!” Zhou Mengmeng nodded frantically. Her tone practically screamed, I totally don’t believe you, but I respect your privacy. “A secret relationship! Keep it under wraps! I understand!”
Beside them, Shen Wu lifted his coffee cup to hide the corners of his mouth.
He had no intention of helping her explain.
“Don’t worry, don’t worry!” Zhou Mengmeng said as she lowered her head and operated her phone. “I’m a career-focused fan. I absolutely won’t break up the couple! Besides, I have to tell you—after seeing that look yesterday, I went home and thought about it until midnight. I just couldn’t figure it out.”
“Now I understand.” She set down her phone. “I’ve already created a fan forum called ‘Qi-Jiang.’ I’m the only member so far, so it’s completely safe!”
Jiang Nuan felt her temples throbbing. She cleared her throat and tried to steer the conversation back on track.
“Speaking of which, Mengmeng, Qinian has seen the paintings you’ve given him.”
That worked perfectly.
Zhou Mengmeng instantly switched from gossip mode to overwhelmed-fan mode. Her eyes lit up astonishingly bright.
Her voice trembled. “R-Really?”
“Mm.” Jiang Nuan nodded. “He really likes your paintings. He looks at every single one carefully.”
“Qinian actually…” Zhou Mengmeng’s eyes reddened. She rubbed them hard with the back of her hand. “Sorry, I’m just a little emotional. He really saw them…”
“Every time I gave him a painting, I never knew whether he’d received it. There are so many gifts, and my paintings are so small…”
Jiang Nuan studied her reaction.
This was a girl who genuinely loved her idol. The moment she learned that her feelings had been seen, this was her most instinctive response.
It didn’t look like an act.
Without showing anything on her face, Jiang Nuan continued to guide her. “He even mentioned the painting you just gave him backstage yesterday. He said it had a lot of feeling, and that the style was somewhat different from your earlier work.”
Zhou Mengmeng froze for a moment before gripping her coffee cup excitedly.
“He… He actually noticed!”
“I could tell the things I draw look different after I started using that pen, too!”
Jiang Nuan’s heart stirred. She picked up the thread naturally. “You’ve changed drawing pens recently?”
“Mm!” Zhou Mengmeng nodded vigorously. “Actually, I’ve always loved drawing. But my family…”
Her expression dimmed.
“My mother has always thought being an artist wasn’t a proper career. She wanted me to work for the Federation, so I majored in urban and rural planning at university. This year, I passed the exam and joined the Federation.”
Jiang Nuan listened quietly.
Zhou Mengmeng gave a bitter smile. “But I really can’t let go of drawing. Whenever I have free time, I practice.”
“Being able to draw Qinian for various events is the biggest thing keeping me going.”
“Because I feel that if he can see my paintings with his own eyes someday, then all the effort I’ve put in will have been worth it.”
As she said this, her entire being seemed to glow.
“I’ll pass all of that on to Qinian. He’ll definitely be happy to hear it.” Jiang Nuan’s voice softened, but she soon brought the conversation back around. “So you drew that painting with a new pen?”
“Mm. That fine-liner belonged to my grandmother. She used it often when she was alive.” Zhou Mengmeng nodded. “She passed away last year. When we were sorting through her things, I found it in a drawer of her art desk.”
“My grandmother liked drawing when she was young, too, but she stopped later on.”
“That sounds incredible.” Jiang Nuan’s heart quickened, but she maintained her gentle smile. “I’ve been learning to draw lately as well, and I’m looking into different art supplies. Would it be possible for you to bring that pen so I can take a look?”
Zhou Mengmeng blinked, then glanced at Shen Wu, who had remained silent the entire time.
“If that stern-looking guy is interested,” she said, jerking her chin toward Shen Wu, “I’d be too lazy to make another trip.”
Shen Wu raised an eyebrow.
Zhou Mengmeng looked away from him and turned back to Jiang Nuan with an especially brilliant smile.
“But you’re Qi’s sister-in-law!”
Jiang Nuan fell silent again. “I really am not.”
“For the sake of our Qi-Jiang ship!” Zhou Mengmeng completely ignored her denial. She clenched a fist, her face solemn. “This pen is what made Qinian notice my paintings! If it can bring you good luck too, and help your relationship with Qinian go smoothly, then I absolutely have to bring it for you to see!”
Jiang Nuan said, “…Thank you.”
She had given up trying to correct Zhou Mengmeng’s use of “Qi’s sister-in-law.”
As she spoke, Zhou Mengmeng had already begun gathering her backpack. “But you’ll have to wait for me to come back. The pen’s at home, and I live pretty far away. Taking the subway there and back could take three hours.”
Jiang Nuan and Shen Wu exchanged a discreet glance.
Three hours was far too long.
In their current situation, where anything could happen at any moment, three hours was a dangerous amount of time.
“I’ll drive you,” Shen Wu said, setting down his coffee cup. “It won’t take an hour to go there and back by car.”
Zhou Mengmeng was overwhelmed. “A-Agent Shen is personally going to drive me?”
He was going to let her ride in the car of a top agent?
Wasn’t that a little too much preferential treatment?
But then she thought about it and immediately found a perfectly reasonable explanation.
It had to be because he favored the people Qinian favored! Agent Shen was only doing this for Qi’s sister-in-law!
She was getting so much sugar from this ship! More sugar!
“Mm. Let’s go.” Shen Wu stood and straightened the hem of his suit.
Jiang Nuan waved at Zhou Mengmeng. “I’ll wait here. I have a few other things to take care of anyway.”
She needed to get in touch with Su Yang and return his sports car.
“Okay! I’ll be back as quickly as I can!” Zhou Mengmeng slung her canvas bag over her shoulder and blew Jiang Nuan a kiss. “Wait for me, Qi’s sister-in-law!”
Jiang Nuan was the only person left in the café.
She glanced at the time. It was almost noon. She decided to contact Su Yang about returning his car, then go grab some lunch.
She had just activated the terminal on her wrist when—
“Jiang Nuan sis!?”
A bright, cheerful voice came from behind her.
Jiang Nuan turned and saw Su Yang walking over from the direction of the elevators.
He wore a simple white T-shirt, headphones hanging around his neck, and had a languid air about him.
“Su Yang.” Jiang Nuan was a little surprised.
“What a coincidence?” Su Yang approached with a grin, his gaze sweeping over the area behind her. “Big Brother Jiang Ce didn’t come?”
“He had something to take care of,” Jiang Nuan replied vaguely.
Su Yang didn’t press her. He merely said, “Oh,” and let his gaze fall back on her.
“You’ve changed up your style today?” he said with a clean, easy smile. “Looks great. Very professional-woman chic.”
Jiang Nuan lowered her eyes to the skirt suit she was wearing. Remembering Shen Wu’s comment that she had good taste, she felt her ears grow warm.
“It was necessary for work.” She coughed lightly. “Right, I was just about to contact you.”
She tossed the keys back to Su Yang. “Your car… things got a little complicated yesterday. It was wrecked. I’ll pay for the repairs.”
“Hey! It’s no big deal!” Su Yang waved it off carelessly. “You and Big Brother Jiang Ce saved my life. What’s one car? Even if it were totaled, it’d be worth it!”
This guy really was a pretty decent person.
“You’re heading out? Going to eat?” Su Yang checked the time. “I was just about to go find something myself. Want to come?”
Jiang Nuan raised an eyebrow. “Don’t you need to accompany the… sister who came with you yesterday?”
Su Yang blinked at her blankly.
“…Which sister?”
“The one in the passenger seat when you lent us your car.”
“Her?” Su Yang paused, then laughed. “That’s my older sister, not my younger sister. She went off to hang out with her friends ages ago. I don’t need to look after her.”
Jiang Nuan withdrew the teasing look from her face. Thinking about it, the girl from yesterday did bear some resemblance to Su Yang.
“Then sure. I was going out to eat anyway.”
The two of them walked side by side toward the hotel entrance, discussing what to have.
After Jiang Nuan mentioned a good hot pot restaurant she had spotted on the way there, Su Yang said, “Let’s not have hot pot. How about barbecue? I know a place nearby that’s amazing!”
Jiang Nuan remembered that the first time she had met Su Yang was at a barbecue restaurant. He really did love grilled meat.
As they continued chatting, Jiang Nuan sensed something wrong.
For a brief moment, Su Yang’s eyes lost their focus.
The hollow look lasted only an instant before disappearing, and his expression returned to normal.
“Su Yang?” she called out in confusion.
The person beside her stood there blankly, offering no response.
Jiang Nuan’s heart gave a jolt. She reached out and lightly tugged at his arm. “Su Yang?”
The touch seemed to jolt Su Yang awake. He suddenly came to himself. “Huh? What is it?”
Seeing that he had returned to normal, Jiang Nuan secretly let out a breath of relief and released his arm.
“I called you twice just now, but you didn’t respond.”
“Did you?” Su Yang gave her a gentle smile. “Maybe I didn’t sleep well last night. My mind wandered for a second.”
It was a perfectly reasonable explanation, and Jiang Nuan didn’t ask any further questions.
They continued walking.
But after only a few steps, Su Yang stopped again.
“Oh, right.” His gaze settled on Jiang Nuan, studying her from head to toe.
“You said something happened to the car,” he asked. “Are you all right? Did you get hurt anywhere?”
Jiang Nuan froze slightly.
Hadn’t they just talked about this?
She had only mentioned that the car had been wrecked and that she would pay for it. She hadn’t said whether she herself was hurt.
But she was standing right there. Obviously, she was fine.
Why was he asking again… and looking her over so carefully, as though he were afraid she might be missing a piece?
The thought flashed through her mind and vanished just as quickly.
Su Yang was only an ordinary person. After what he had gone through the day before, it was perfectly normal for him to be concerned about the person who had saved his life.
Thinking this, Jiang Nuan gave him a relaxed smile and spun around once.
“I’m fine. Perfectly fine. See? I haven’t even lost a single strand of hair.”
Su Yang stared at her for several seconds. Only then did the tension drain from his body, leaving him completely relaxed.
“That’s good.”
Then he asked with a smile, “So what do you want to eat?”
Jiang Nuan blinked, slightly bewildered by the abrupt change of subject.
“Didn’t you want barbecue?”
“Hmm…” Su Yang seemed to think about it seriously before shaking his head. “I don’t feel like it anymore.”
He looked at Jiang Nuan, a smile blooming across his face once more.
“Let’s have the hot pot you wanted instead.”
“Huh?” Jiang Nuan stared at him. “Really?”
What was with this guy? He changed his mind every other second.
But hot pot was her favorite!
“Of course!” Su Yang smiled warmly, as if the person who had been insisting on barbecue moments ago had never been him. “Come on. Let’s go to the place you mentioned.”
“Okay!”
Jiang Nuan answered brightly and set off in a good mood.
Together, they headed toward the hot pot restaurant.
*
At the same time.
Inside a room in a high-rise building across from the Xinghai Hotel, a man dressed in dark combat gear and wearing a mask knelt on one knee. The binoculars in his hand were aimed at the hotel’s main entrance.
Through the lenses, Jiang Nuan and Su Yang could be seen walking side by side out of the revolving doors.
The man slowly lowered the binoculars.
He raised his left wrist and pressed the communications key on his terminal.
“This is Shadow Watch 03,” he said in a low voice. “Target Jiang Nuan has left the core team and is currently accompanied by a non-threatening civilian.”
He swallowed. “…Confirmed as the optimal time for elimination.”
All heretics contaminated by anomalous energy were supposed to be purged. This woman should be no exception. Why did she get to become the sole exception under that prohibition?
The radio remained silent for a moment.
Then a cold voice came through.
“Repeat the highest-priority order you received.”
Shadow Watch 03’s breathing stopped.
His fingers tightened around the edge of the binoculars, and his entire body tensed. After a long moment, he closed his eyes.
“…Monitor the target, Jiang Nuan, and ensure that she comes to no harm.”
He paused, as if grinding his back teeth to dust.
“This order takes precedence over all other missions.”
The communication was cut off from the other end, and silence returned to the room.
Shadow Watch 03 slowly relaxed the hand that had nearly crushed the binoculars. Yet beneath his mask, his gaze was filled with deep, sinister resentment.
Ever since this woman had appeared, the Cleaners’ ironclad rule of “purging all heretics” had actually given way for a woman of unknown origins.
No one had told him why.
