Meanwhile, in the residential district on the other side of the city.
The full moon hung high in the sky, casting a gentle glow.
In the brightly lit living room, Zhao Dongyuan was lifting his seven-year-old daughter high into the air.
The little girl’s silvery laughter echoed like chimes.
His wife, wearing an apron, stepped out from the kitchen carrying two plates of freshly sliced beef, her eyes curved in a warm smile as she looked at the playful father and daughter.
“Yueyue, honey, the hotpot is ready. Come eat.”
Hearing this, Zhao Dongyuan gently set his daughter down and took her small hand, guiding her to the dining table.
His wife placed two bowls of prepared hotpot dipping sauce in front of Zhao Dongyuan and Yueyue respectively, smiling softly.
“Hubby, here’s your extra vinegar and sesame oil… and for our precious Yueyue, this is for you.”
As she spoke, she reached out to gently stroke Yueyue’s hair.
“I added extra sugar just for you, be a good girl~”.
“Thank you, Mama!” Yueyue beamed, her chubby little hand steady as she held the chopsticks.
Though her movements were slow, she was already quite practiced.
The steaming hotpot bubbled and boiled with a soft gurgle.
As his wife dipped beef slices into the boiling pot, she quietly asked, “Honey, do you have to work this weekend again?”
Zhao Dongyuan nodded.
“The headquarters investigation team is arriving in Binhai in the next couple of days. I’m the head of security, so I have to be extra vigilant at this critical moment.”
No sooner had he finished speaking.
Yueyue immediately pouted, her face full of displeasure.
“Daddy, you don’t keep your promises! You said you’d take Mom and me to the amusement park… but it’s always like this.
I’m not going to talk to you anymore!”
Seeming determined to prove her unhappiness, she put down her chopsticks on the table, turned her plump little face away, and crossed her arms.
Zhao Dongyuan was momentarily at a loss for words in the face of his daughter’s complaint.
Seeing this, his wife gently stroked Yueyue’s hair, patiently explaining, “Daddy is an Executor.
He’s a great hero protecting Yueyue, protecting Mom, and protecting so many people in Binhai…
Our precious Yueyue will surely understand Daddy, won’t you?”
She gently nudged her daughter’s small hand with a tender smile.
“Come on, be good and help Daddy pick some beef.
He loves the dishes his little Yueyue picks the most~”
Upon hearing this, Yueyue tilted her head thoughtfully.
The adorable little girl hesitated, then carefully picked up her chopsticks.
Wobbling slightly, she took a piece of beef from the pot and delicately placed it into her father’s bowl.
Seeing this, Zhao Dongyuan’s eyes crinkled into a smile, his wrinkles softening.
He quickly grabbed his chopsticks, eager to taste the heartfelt gesture from his daughter.
But just at that moment—
A gray mist suddenly spread across the pupil of his left eye, and his eating motion came to an abrupt halt.
The next moment, Zhao Dongyuan’s expression changed dramatically.
He sprang to his feet, eyes filled with regret.
“There’s an incident. I have to head back to the office.”
Hearing this, Yueyue’s little face immediately fell.
She was about to speak when her mother gently held her back.
His wife looked at him with concern, knowing well that his position involved many confidential matters.
The sensible child did not ask further, and the myriad unspoken words finally condensed into a single phrase.
“Be careful.”
Zhao Dongyuan nodded, then turned and went back into the room.
Not long after, he opened the door again, carrying a briefcase in his left hand and a handheld device slightly larger than a palm in his right.
“I’m leaving now, honey,” he said, pausing briefly by the table.
He looked at his wife, then at his daughter, his voice tinged with apology and helplessness.
“Sorry, Yueyue, Daddy will come home as soon as work is done.”
With that, he walked straight to the entrance and stepped out.
…
At the Executor Division building, in the underground storage area.
In front of a row of temperature-controlled storage cabinets against the wall, Chu You had just opened a metal box containing four chameleon potions.
But the moment the lid was lifted, a wisp of gray mist suddenly burst forth, dispersing quickly into the air.
Chu You’s expression shifted sharply.
Her heart sank as she roughly guessed that this mysterious gray mist was the hidden trap left behind by Zhao Dongyuan, the head of the division’s security office.
This was bad — they’d been exposed!
Everything had gone smoothly until now, but at this critical moment, trouble had arisen.
There was no time to think.
Quickly, Chu You stuffed the four potions into the thigh pocket of her tight suit and turned to leave.
The instant she stepped forward, the lighting in the storage room abruptly switched to a harsh red.
Immediately, a piercing alarm shattered the silence.
“Beep, beep, beep, beep…”
There was only one access passage in the underground storage area.
She had to get out before Zhao Dongyuan or any other security agents arrived.
Thinking this, Chu You sprinted as fast as she could through the circular corridor and reached the elevator—
Only to freeze in place.
The display beside the elevator read clearly: 【Descending】.
The shrill alarm and the subtle hum of the elevator’s machinery combined into a pounding hammer beating against Chu You’s mind.
What should she do?
Was the person in the elevator Lin Mo?
Or perhaps… a security agent responding to the alarm or Zhao Dongyuan’s orders, coming to inspect the storage area?
Seconds ticked by.
Chu You took a deep breath and turned back toward the storage room.
She couldn’t take the risk.
If she were caught on the spot, the trouble would be immense.
Even if Lin Mo could negotiate on her behalf, the fact that an outsider had infiltrated the storage room would definitely be logged by Zhao Dongyuan in the security records, even if not formally reported.
At that point, Gu Qiancheng wouldn’t need to investigate Binhai Experimental Middle School.
Just by digging through the security logs, they could expose her.
As Chu You’s figure disappeared down the end of the circular corridor.
“Ding—!”
The elevator door’s opening chime sounded.
The silver metal doors slowly slid apart, and four fully armed security agents swiftly stepped out.
The lead agent glanced down the corridor, then turned to the other three and gave orders.
“Pair up and search the area.
Report immediately!”
“Yes!”
“Yes!”
“Yes!”
The other three agents responded in unison.
The four security agents, fully equipped, quickly spread out down the circular corridor in two groups, each swiftly investigating from opposite sides of the storage room.
Deep inside the storage room, the red alarm lights flashed.
Chu You backed away anxiously.
Damn Lin Mo!
He was supposed to wait by the elevator.
But now the security agents had come down, and she hadn’t seen a trace of him.
Now she was trapped like a turtle in a jar.
Chu You cursed Lin Mo’s unreliability in her mind.
As the footsteps ahead grew louder, she suddenly felt a chill down her back—there was no way out now.
Time ticked relentlessly, and Chu You’s expression grew more desperate.
Just as the agents were about to search the last part of the area, a warm hand suddenly reached out from the darkness, gently covering her mouth.
Chu You instinctively turned her head, her pupils contracting sharply—it was Lin Mo!
Lin Mo pressed a finger to his lips in a shushing gesture, then wrapped an arm around Chu You’s waist.
“Report, no issues over here.”
“Didn’t find anyone? Move on, the person must be further back!”
The voices of the security agents drew nearer.
Lin Mo held Chu You with one arm.
Then, under her watchful eyes, he gently pressed the middle section of one of the storage cabinets.
In the next instant—
Accompanied by a barely audible ‘click’, a narrow gap suddenly appeared between two rows of cabinets.
Lin Mo steadily pried the gap open, embraced Chu You, and slipped inside sideways.
Just one second before the security agents rounded the corner, he shut the extremely hidden secret door tightly.
“Anyone there? Can you fly or something?”
“Quick, contact the director.
You, hurry upstairs and report to Minister Lin.”
Hearing the faint conversation outside, Chu You twisted her body, trying to escape Lin Mo’s embrace.
But the hidden space was extremely cramped, leaving no room to move an inch.
In the darkness, Lin Mo’s breath seemed to engulf her completely.
Chu You’s heart pounded wildly.
Feeling the warmth so close, her breathing grew uneven.