The address Ai Lian provided was, of course, correct.
Gu Yebai did indeed live at number seventeen South Lane, Old Town, Shinan Street, Wangjiang District.
Unfortunately, they would never have the chance to stand before that door.
Before they could arrive, their lives would be cut short on the road.
“Thanks for your cooperation, Ai Lian. See you at school on Monday.”
“O—okay… See you Monday.”
‘If you can even see the sun on Monday…’
Ai Lian silently finished the sentence in her mind.
The call ended.
Si Mengjia could hardly wait to hang up.
The excitement had not yet faded from her fingertips.
In a sense, Gu Yebai had long since become an obsession in her heart.
As long as he was still alive, he was a threat she could not ignore.
And what she needed to do now was to nip that threat in the bud.
“Gu Yebai, it isn’t me who’s hurting you,” Si Mengjia sneered softly.
“It’s these chaotic times that are to blame.”
There wasn’t a hint of guilt in her voice.
“Did you get the address?”
Huang Maomao noticed the malicious expression creeping onto his girlfriend’s face and turned his head to ask.
“Yeah, I got it.”
Si Mengjia nodded, her tone certain.
“Let’s go. To Wangjiang District.”
“Take my bike.”
Huang Maomao raised his hand and pointed toward the Harley-Davidson Iron 883 in the parking lot.
It featured a matte black color scheme with a low-slung profile and a short wheelbase.
The fuel tank wasn’t large, but visually, it looked extremely aggressive.
It was his pride and joy.
Huang Maomao didn’t truly understand motorcycles.
To him, the coarse, boastful roar brought by the 883cc displacement was enough.
It had an incredibly strong presence.
In a place like Linchuan County, it was already considered “top-tier.”
Even in a big city, a layman would look at it and couldn’t help but give a thumbs-up, thinking the owner was some kind of hardened veteran.
As for what actual experts thought, that didn’t matter at all.
From the perspective of showing off, the Harley-Davidson Iron 883 was nearly perfect.
“Get on.”
Huang Maomao was the first to straddle the bike.
The moment he turned the key, he already envisioned himself as some kind of American tough guy.
It was as if he, Huang Maomao, was the ultimate combination of John Rambo, Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the Rock.
“Can’t we just take a taxi?” Si Mengjia frowned.
She clearly didn’t like this mode of transport.
A motorcycle was just flesh against steel.
If something happened, the fatality rate was far higher than that of a car.
Furthermore, she had seen Huang Maomao riding around the mountain at night more than once.
His reckless acceleration was nothing short of gambling with his life.
It was still winter, and the roads were already wet and slippery.
“Woman, get on,” Huang Maomao’s voice sank.
He struck a pose he thought looked cold and cool.
“Otherwise, don’t ever get on my bike again. I won’t say it a second time.”
He paused, his tone carrying the weight of a self-assured favor.
“Remember, I’m doing this to stand up for you.”
Si Mengjia was silent for a moment.
She truly didn’t like motorcycles, but there seemed to be no better option at the moment.
What could she do?
She could only get on.
She reluctantly sat on the back seat and wrapped her hands around Huang Maomao’s waist.
This was another reason Huang Maomao was obsessed with motorcycles.
While riding, his girlfriend’s body was forced to press against his back.
As long as he jerked the throttle, she would subconsciously hug him even tighter.
Therefore, whenever someone was in the back seat, he would often accelerate like a madman.
Traffic rules?
As long as he rode fast enough, the rules couldn’t catch him.
Even if something did happen or he got caught, his father could bail him out.
“Let’s go.”
Huang Maomao grinned excitedly.
“To the old factory district first. Once we get there, I’ll call up my crew. Today, we’re going to break a few of that guy’s bones!”
“Drive slowly, Maomao.”
“I know.”
Even as he spoke, his wrist had already twisted the throttle.
His tone was flippant and careless.
The roar of the engine suddenly rose in pitch.
Everything fell into Ai Lian’s line of sight without omission.
Originally, she had been thinking about what method she should use to deal with these two ants who dared to endanger Gu Yebai’s safety.
But the moment they chose to climb onto that motorcycle, things suddenly became simple.
As long as it was a creation related to mechanics and electronics, she could completely paralyze it in the blink of an eye, even if it were at the ends of the earth.
“Student Huang Maomao,” Ai Lian said, “and Student Si Mengjia.”
She hooked her finger.
A humanoid robot maid, nearly indistinguishable from a real person, silently stepped forward and poured her a glass of whiskey.
“It isn’t me who’s hurting you.”
Her tone was gentle, as if she were stating a perfectly ordinary fact.
“It’s these chaotic times that are to blame.”
Whiskey was a drink for parting.
Go on then.
Let your lives disappear from this world just like that.
In the grand scheme of the universe, you are nothing more than two insignificant ants.
Ai Lian was in the habit of drinking a glass of whiskey every time she took a life.
“Student Gu,” Ai Lian murmured softly, the corners of her lips curving into a nearly devout arc.
‘I’m willing to kill for you.’
‘They will die ugly deaths.’
‘And I will always protect you, observe you.’
‘You might never know until the day you die.’
‘You are a kind, good boy.’
Her voice was gentle and calm, like she was soothing a sleeping child.
‘You just need to live well.’
‘If you truly feel despair for your life, I will kill those who make you despair.’
‘Then, I will take you away.’
‘Take you to a perfect Eden built by technology.’
In the next instant, Ai Lian raised her hand and lightly swiped her fingertip through the air.
The space that was originally empty seemed to be awakened by some invisible interface.
The faint outline of keys appeared.
Her fingers fell, as if she were playing a pre-composed piano piece.
Her rhythm was steady and without hesitation.
A faint blue light flashed in the void for a fleeting moment.
[Braking System: Disabled]
[Power Output: Desynchronized with control commands]
[Chassis Attitude: Uncorrectable]
[Death Countdown Initiated]
[Predicted Result: Target will die within 60 seconds]
“Maomao… Can—can you slow down? I’m scared!”
The gale blew against them, tearing Si Mengjia’s voice into fragments.
She gripped Huang Maomao’s waist tightly, her knuckles turning white.
Her tears were pushed back by the wind pressure, making it almost impossible to blink.
She had never regretted anything as much as she did at this moment.
She regretted getting on this motorcycle.
She regretted trusting this person.
But Huang Maomao didn’t take her cries seriously at all.
On the contrary, he only felt his blood pumping faster.
He laughed wildly.
“The Harley has a temper! That’s normal! This is a toy only a real man can handle!”
In the next instant, the dashboard suddenly flickered while they were traveling at high speed, as if a signal had been briefly cut.
Immediately after, a hint of an abnormal sound mixed into the roar of the engine.
It was short and dry, like gears spinning aimlessly.
Huang Maomao’s heart sank.
Something was wrong.
The thought had just formed, and he didn’t even have time to let off the throttle before the power suddenly dropped.
It wasn’t a complete stall, but something far more lethal.
The power and speed were desynchronized.
The front wheel was still rolling at high speed, but the rear wheel lost traction in an instant.
The bike began to sway slightly from side to side in a straight line.
The amplitude wasn’t large, but it was extremely dangerous.
Anyone who played with motorcycles knew that this state had a name — the death wobble.
“Holy shit!” Huang Maomao blurted out a curse, finally realizing that things had spiraled completely out of control.
He subconsciously tried to correct the direction, but every minor adjustment was magnified into a more violent shift.
The front of the bike began to shake uncontrollably.
His center of gravity shifted.
The weight on the back seat became the final straw that broke the balance.
Si Mengjia let out a short, sharp scream.
A second later, the front wheel failed to grip.
The entire motorcycle slid out sideways at high speed.
Huang Maomao and Si Mengjia were launched into the air.
Then, they landed face-down.
At that moment, the gravel and asphalt became the perfect natural grinders.
After they hit the ground, their faces continued to slide across the rough surface.
Their faces were literally ground away, leaving behind two blood-red trails.
They looked like minced beef on sale at a supermarket.
Their spines buckled and snapped under the unnatural force.
One eyeball popped out of its socket, though it was impossible to tell if it belonged to Huang Maomao or Si Mengjia.
…
“Pour me a glass of champagne,” Ai Lian said to the AI auxiliary system.
[Bip. May I ask what you wish to celebrate?]
“I’m celebrating, of course,” Ai Lian said softly.
“I’ve excluded a risk variable. Student Gu… You aren’t alone, because I will be watching you forever.”