By the edge of the woods, a figure appeared, approaching from a distance.
If Ji Nian had been there, she would have recognized the woman—the same one she had spent a hundred yuan (which the person in charge later returned to her) to gather information about.
The woman’s eerie smile, the one that had sent chills down Ji Nian’s spine, was still there, and she seemed to be in a particularly good mood.
Until a tall figure came rushing over.
"Where did you go? I’ve been looking for you for a long time."
The man was wearing work clothes, clearly having rushed back in the middle of his shift. Sweat beaded on his forehead. His features were ordinary, the kind you’d forget after one glance, but he was tall.
The woman in the wheelchair didn’t speak. Her one good eye, dark and piercing, swept over the man before her.
A gaze as light as a feather.
*Thud.*
To everyone’s shock, the tall man knelt down upon receiving her glance, bowing his head in submission.
It was an extremely submissive posture.
"I’m sorry… I shouldn’t have questioned you."
He lowered himself further, pressing his lips to the tip of her prosthetic shoe.
When he looked up, ready to say something, a sharp slap struck his face.
The woman had used her good hand to deliver the blow.
It was forceful, and the man’s cheek swelled instantly.
But he seemed accustomed to it, frowning as he looked at her hand.
"You could have let me do it myself. Does your hand hurt from hitting me?"
He seemed eager to check, but he didn’t dare touch her.
"I saw a child," the woman suddenly said.
Her voice, in stark contrast to her appearance, was hoarse, as if roughened by years of smoke.
The man, however, was unfazed.
At the mention of a "child," his head snapped up.
His expression seemed eager to ask something, but his tone remained humble: "You saw Ji Tingzhou's daughter."
The woman, her nails painted a wine-red, lightly touched her chin, as if savoring the memory of seeing Ji Nian.
"She looks so much like Xiao Zhou."
Ji Nian’s silhouette seemed to overlap with that of Ji Tingzhou at fourteen.
The same pure, clear soul.
It made one…
Unable to resist the urge to destroy it, to drag them down and turn them into one of their own.
Madness stirred in the woman’s eyes, and the corners of her lips curled up unconsciously, like a malevolent spirit wearing a beautiful mask.
The man kneeling at her feet looked at her with adoration, like a devout cultist willing to sacrifice everything for his deity.
He personally pushed the wheelchair back to the cabin and closed the door behind them.
The moment the door shut, the man’s ordinary demeanor vanished.
His aura suddenly intensified, making him seem inscrutable, his eyes as calm as an ancient well.
"Speak," he said, answering the phone that had been buzzing in his pocket.
A voice came from the other end.
"Sir, Ji Tingzhou is investigating us."
At the mention of Ji Tingzhou’s name, a flicker of irritation crossed the man’s face.
Chen Mo hadn’t died, and his plans had been disrupted, drawing Ji Tingzhou’s suspicion.
No, perhaps it had started with Lide’s failure.
Thinking about how the situation had changed, a faint trace of killing intent surfaced in his deep eyes.
"Release the people we prepared earlier."
"What about the pharmacist? Any progress?"
The person on the other end hesitated before replying, "Still no leads."
The matter of the pharmacist who had suddenly appeared in the Ji family was tightly sealed by Ji Tingzhou, as impenetrable as an egg without cracks.
But…
"Although the pharmacist has never shown themselves directly, in all three incidents… Ji Tingzhou's daughter was present."
The implication was that the pharmacist’s identity might be uncovered through Ji Nian.
"Investigate."
...
The sound of glass shattering on the floor reached Ji Nian’s ears, sharp and piercing.
She quickened her pace, walking into the room.
There, she saw Ji Tingzhou sitting alone at the table, his elbow resting on the surface as he glanced at the shards on the floor.
It wasn’t the broken glass that concerned him, but whether his pant leg had been stained by the spilled wine.
"Dad, are you okay?"
Ji Nian walked over.
Seeing the child approach, Ji Tingzhou raised a hand to stop her in her tracks.
He waited for the servant to clean up the shards and the wine before allowing her to come closer.
At the same time, he looked at the few drops of wine on his pant leg with distaste and stood up to change his clothes.
"I just didn’t hold it properly. It’s fine."
Then he casually ruffled the child’s hair.
"Done with the bathroom?"
It was a statement, not a question, clearly indicating that Wei Yang had already reported Ji Nian’s activities.
"Done. It was really comfortable."
This time, Ji Nian was genuinely impressed.
While Ji Tingzhou went to change his pants, she asked how much he had drunk while she was away.
The answer satisfied her.
[Well, our princess might seem difficult, but she’s actually quite obedient.]
The system thought, *Of course she’s obedient. If she weren’t, she’d have dared to chug a bottle in front of her dad at the tender age of seven.*
And then vomit all over him.
The memory of that time was still vivid: a panicked dad, a vomiting child, and Wei Yang and Zhiliao watching the chaos unfold. Well, it wasn’t the most poetic scene, but it would have to do.
By the time Ji Tingzhou finished changing, he could see the sea of red flowers in the distance from his floor.
He pressed a hand to his throbbing temple, as memories he thought had faded came rushing back with startling clarity.
A young boy running barefoot through a field of thorny flowers, the scent of blood filling his nose, his throat burning from overexertion. The ground beneath him was stained with blood, blending into the crimson hue of the flowers.
A girl’s light laughter, though distant, seemed to echo everywhere, like a devil’s whisper in his ears.
"Xiao Zhou… Xiao Zhou… run faster…"
With a sharp tug, Ji Tingzhou pulled the dark green curtains shut, blocking out the bloody scene outside.
His hand gripped the fabric tightly, veins bulging, trembling with the force of his grip.
Ji Nian, who had been waiting for nearly an hour for Ji Tingzhou to finish changing, was about to speak when he came downstairs.
But before she could, Ji Tingzhou called the person in charge and ordered them to uproot all the Tess roses.
The person in charge assumed he simply didn’t like the variety and agreed without question.
Ji Nian, however, sensed something was off.
Ji Tingzhou’s complexion didn’t look too good…
"Dad, are you feeling okay?"
"You’re not running a fever again, are you?"
The last time he had been so sick, it had left a lasting impression on her.
Seeing the child’s concerned face, the restlessness in Ji Tingzhou’s heart seemed to ease slightly. He pinched her cheek lightly.
"No, I’m fine."
Just as he finished speaking, Wei Yang came rushing over in a panic.
"Ji Nian! Ji Nian! Zhiliao’s back!"
