Chapter 65
A faint shadow of a seabird swept across the horizon, its wings embellishing the azure sky with a touch of vitality.
The sunlight shone brilliantly on the sea surface where a battle with a mutated creature had raged yesterday, leaving no trace of the turmoil that had occurred.
As far as the eye could see, the waves shimmered.
Last night’s thunderstorm and torrential rain had been blocked outside the ship by Lu Wanqing’s defense system, so very few people had even noticed it.
However, the peaceful night’s sleep was ultimately shattered by panic and screams.
During the routine room cleaning today, a waiter discovered the body of an Omega in a VIP cabin.
The cruise ship’s security team notified all passengers to report to public areas like the conference hall, cafeteria, and tea room for security checks and inspections.
Hindered by the powerful tycoons, high-ranking officials, and noble families on board whom they dared not offend, they couldn’t conduct a genuine search. So, it devolved into everyone simply having afternoon tea in the public areas.
Shu Ci was pushed out of the room by Shen Lin. He found a random spot, ate brunch, and then blended into the crowd.
He fingered Jin Li’s business card in his pocket, his fingertips trembling slightly.
The Omega lady in the smoky purple dress had perished on that stormy night; their brief encounter had unexpectedly become their final farewell.
He leaned against a corner of the open-air restaurant, the cacophony of chatter and discussion echoing in his ears.
People weren’t mourning her unclear cause of death; instead, it had enriched their idle gossip.
Jin Li, a movie queen of her generation. Even in retirement, she remained at the center of a storm of topics.
In her heyday, the streets were plastered with massive advertisements of her, and almost everyone in every alleyway could name one of her movies.
Her reputation was mixed. Despite reaching the age for marriage and childbearing, she had remained active on stage as a single woman, which had sparked quite a bit of controversy.
Some saw her as a role model for Omegas, believing that everyone should decide their own path, and that even Alphas had no right to demand when an Omega should choose a mate.
Others speculated about her with malice—
“There’s hardly any Alpha in that big melting pot of an industry who isn’t a scumbag. How could a lone Omega survive her heats and an Alpha’s ruts on a film set?”
“Even if she was never marked, she definitely hasn’t been clean for a long time.”
And these discussions reached a peak of collective emotional inflation after someone secretly learned about the state of Jin Li’s body.
“I heard she died on the bed with her clothes disheveled.”
“It seems there were bruises on her body, too.”
“Eww… I said long ago she wasn’t as simple as she looked.”
“Omegas should just obediently marry an Alpha. If she had married early and retired, would any of this have happened?”
Shu Ci’s brows furrowed tighter and tighter, his mood worsening. Just as he was about to retort, a gasp suddenly rippled through the crowd.
Following everyone’s gaze, a strictly organized fleet rose from the calm surface of the sea.
The ship’s hull remained motionless, with only the displaced seawater flowing constantly. A central movable plate slowly extended to form a wide connecting road, steadily latching onto the cruise ship to create a solid bridge.
Alphas stood on the bridge with impeccable military posture, their collective imposing pressure surging over with the sea breeze.
The chattering crowd on the cruise ship fell silent instantly, gripping the armrests of their chairs reflexively.
If this were in one of his movies, it would undoubtedly be an epic slow-motion shot. Unfortunately, sneaking a photo at a time like this would be terribly rude.
Shu Ci remained composed, shifting into a lazy, casual posture. He took a sip of tea and leaned against the railing, watching Yu Xingxing step out from the formation and stand at attention.
“Lieutenant Captain of the Far-flung Seventh District, acting on orders to assist in the investigation and escort the return voyage. We will board in ten minutes. Passengers, please wait where you are and do not move about freely.”
The loudspeaker stripped away the boyishness from his voice, replacing it with a dignified solemnity—young, but powerful.
Yu Xingxing led his fleet, all of which had deactivated their stealth mode, and boarded the cruise ship with resounding steps. After verifying the headcount with the cruise’s logistics team, he methodically arranged for room searches and passenger inspections.
“Jin Li died, but why is the military here?”
“Because the people she ate with and had contact with yesterday are from complex, intertwined factions.”
“What does that mean?”
“Are you stupid? Both Councilor Gu and Councilor Shen are on this ship. They’ve dragged us out here to waste time for half the day with zero progress. Isn’t that just a tug-of-war delay tactic? Neither side can let the other freely investigate their own people.”
“Exactly. So, it has to be this group. Until a Chief Executive is elected, they remain neutral.”
“But what if they’ve already secretly picked a side?”
“As long as the public is willing to believe in the Golden Shield, that’s enough.”
“Ahem—”
Yu Xingxing approached, and the voices nearby scattered in the wind. “Form a line and follow me.”
Shu Ci met the young man’s steady gaze. Neither greeted the other as he stepped forward to join the others for inspection.
In Shen Lin’s room.
Lu Wanqing leaned against the wall, wordlessly watching this “elder” who claimed to have raised Shu Ci. He honestly didn’t know what attitude to adopt.
In short, he had genuinely been jealous of this man.
Even now, he hadn’t fully gotten over that hurdle in his heart.
“Put away your hostility,” Shen Lin said, pushing up his glasses. “The person who can threaten you is outside, not in front of you.”
Lu Wanqing was never one to bow his head before other Alphas. Ignoring Shen Lin’s words, he paced forward slowly.
“You know it’s not safe outside,” Lu Wanqing paused. “This charity cruise… you were the one who made him come.”
Lu Wanqing knew very well that with Shu Ci’s familiarity with the “plot” of that lifetime, he would never have voluntarily stepped onto this ship.
Unless there was a reason that could override his disgust for Gu Lanzhu.
From the looks of it, only Shen Lin could achieve that.
He was a little angry—angry that Shen Lin had led Shu Ci into danger without a clear explanation.
Shen Lin nodded. “I wanted him to contact Jin Li, and incidentally, find an opportunity to let him know his identity.”
Lu Wanqing confirmed he had heard the deceased’s name, and all his personal emotions were instantly suppressed. He quickly realized that Shen Lin had sent Shu Ci away because he had something to say to him.
“Jin Li was the breakthrough point I prepared. I obtained some evidence of what the Gu family did to her, and I hoped she would come forward to publish it, prying at the empire Gu Chuang and Gu Yan are trying to build.”
The plan hadn’t even progressed before the person was gone.
“But she can still be a breakthrough point.”
Lu Wanqing remained silent for two seconds before continuing, “Investigating the case deeply is easier than waiting for her to speak up, as long as there are clues that can lead back to the Gu family.”
“The entire Gu and Chen families are on this ship. Do you think I’m the only one who will use this case? No, Gu Yan and his lot are definitely figuring out how to make an issue of this as well.”
Shen Lin looked grave.
“Right now, if I make even one wrong move, they have a label waiting to pin on me, with crimes they can fabricate at will.”
He clasped his hands and rested them against his forehead. “There are many media outlets participating in this charity gala; covering it up is impossible. A full-speed return trip takes less than five days. They might have a signal to publish news within three days.”
Among the media, some favored Gu Yan, and others favored him.
Now, they were all secretly gathering momentum to seize the initiative and be the first to publish.
This meant that in less than three days, the final public opinion war between him and Gu Yan would erupt at any moment.
This was a fight to the death.
His public and private grievances with the Gu family had been brought to the table ahead of schedule by Jin Li’s death. There was no retreat.
Shen Lin’s golden eyes shimmered with a faint light.
“Lu Wanqing, this is your only chance to find out the cause of Admiral Lu Wei’s death. Once you become a defeated subordinate of Gu Yan, it will be impossible.”
Lu Wanqing crossed his arms and glanced sideways at Shen Lin. He felt as if he could see the fox tail wagging behind this Alpha.
He chuckled lightly. “So you were waiting for me here.”
Shen Lin hadn’t pulled him onto the ship just for the votes of the Far-flung Seventh District. He knew his grudges and was well aware of his strength.
He had to admit, Shen Lin’s analysis made sense.
Originally, Gu Yan was in the light, and they were in the dark.
The high and mighty Alpha never looked directly at those weaker than himself, which was why he had given them space to grow.
Once Gu Yan recognized his opponent, he wouldn’t leave a single chance for survival.
After all, ruthless extermination was the consistent style of the Gu family.
Moreover, the power of the plot had always been trying to “correct” things, forcing Shu Ci into the original book’s scenarios repeatedly to keep him by Gu Lanzhu’s side.
If the Gu family were allowed to regain the upper hand starting from this incident, Lu Wanqing believed they would be helpless against the Gu family, the plot’s beloved children.
He had experienced this firsthand countless times.
“How much do you know about her?” Lu Wanqing looked at Shen Lin thoughtfully.
He had never hidden the clues to his identity, yet so far, only Shu Ci had uncovered his multiple identities without any hindrance.
Gu Lanzhu had investigated him, and Marshal He had investigated him too.
But the presence of a “passerby character” was so low that everyone would forget him the moment they turned their heads, not even remembering where they put the documents investigating him.
But Shen Lin was the only one who could trace back to Lu Wei.
Was it because of the near-familial relationship between him and Shu Ci?
“You’re living in her house. Right after she died, Gu Yan inserted his own people into key positions in the Seventh District. That’s all.”
Shen Lin then tossed a recording device to him.
“Yesterday, Shu Ci and I got a confession from Gu Lanzhu’s assistant.”
“Zhao Qian?”
“After his daughter went missing, he joined the Gu Corporation to investigate privately. He discovered that before the so-called Gu Corporation Omega Partner Selection, there was behavior even more outrageous.”
Lu Wanqing held it to his ear. By the time he finished listening, his face was ashen.
“Within three days, before the ship docks, we must seal off all his escape routes and make these things public. I need your warship’s secure network to do a public live stream.”
Lu Wanqing gently rubbed the recorder with his fingertips.
“Councilor Shen should know that for me, this request is no different from publicly declaring my stance, and it might even violate discipline.”
“Discipline is dead; people are alive. If I win the election, I’ll protect you.”
Shen Lin looked at him with burning eyes.
“Uncle Song and Shi Yu won’t tolerate Gu Lanzhu’s behavior, and neither will I. He has to pay the price for provoking Xiao Ci over and over again.”
Lu Wanqing relaxed his fingers. “Deal.”
After finishing the inspection, Shu Ci stepped onto the deck to get some air.
He looked at the sea horizon, recalling Lu Wanqing’s painful state in the ocean last night, and lowered his eyes.
He liked Lu Wanqing. He liked him a lot.
So he couldn’t bear to see him torture himself like that; his heart ached along with him.
“Shu Ci.” A familiar and dreadful voice came from behind.
Shu Ci’s scalp tingled.
He looked at Gu Lanzhu, frowned, and turned to leave.
Unexpectedly, the man walked quickly in front of him and stuffed a rose into his hand.
Shu Ci: “?”
Gu Lanzhu: “The charity auction tonight will proceed as planned, but only high-level VIPs are eligible to enter the venue. This is… my invitation.”
Shu Ci looked blankly at Zhao Qian behind him.
Zhao Qian looked away, his face written with “Whose boss is this? I don’t know him.”
“I am pursuing you,” Gu Lanzhu said seriously. “Before, my methods and approach were wrong, but my liking for you is sincere.”
Shu Ci: “…”
The domineering CEO had changed his route, and Shu Ci actually wasn’t quite used to it.
Shu Ci constantly felt like someone around them was holding a camera, vaguely sensing the flash blinding his eyes. He instinctively stepped back, suddenly bumping into a warm, broad chest.
“Mr. Gu, what do you intend to do to someone else’s spouse?” Lu Wanqing said coldly. “If you continue like this, we have the right to ask the court to keep you at a distance.”
Shu Ci’s ears twitched. Hearing the word “spouse,” he looked back.
He saw Lu Wanqing wearing Shen Lin’s expensive formal suit and trench coat, donning sunglasses. His arm was loosely around him, not actually touching him.
Shu Ci’s eyes curved into a smile. He threw himself directly into Lu Wanqing’s arms, burying his face in the crook of his neck, whining and complaining.
“Hubby, he’s so annoying. He’s showing off that only he can enter the auction venue tonight.”
Whether it was his acting addiction or genuine feeling, he clung to Lu Wanqing like a koala.
Caught off guard, Lu Wanqing unconsciously reached out to support Shu Ci’s legs as he hopped up. Hearing this, he took the rose from Shu Ci’s hand and tossed it backhandedly into the sea.
“From now on, he’s no longer eligible,” he said, narrowing his eyes and curling his lips.
Gu Lanzhu’s face turned dark.
Just as Lu Wanqing finished speaking, a barefoot Omega ran onto the deck like a madman, grabbing Gu Lanzhu, eyes wide with terror.
“Bai Yue?” Gu Lanzhu turned around with a frown, seeing the crimson bloodstains on the other person’s white silk pajamas.
Bai Yue tugged at Gu Lanzhu in despair, crying and screaming hysterically.
“Brother Zhu, save me! I really didn’t kill Jin Li. I woke up and my clothes were just like this. I don’t know anything! Quick, tell them I was with you last night!”
Woah, you two had such an interesting night too?
Shu Ci hugged Lu Wanqing’s neck, raising an eyebrow to watch the drama. Lu Wanqing felt his upper lip brush against the tip of Shu Ci’s ear and lowered his body slightly.
“Let go.” Gu Lanzhu shook off his sleeve in disgust. The wave of rose pheromones from Bai Yue made him nauseous.
Yu Xingxing marched over quickly with his men, their synchronized steps deafening.
“You two have been identified as suspects. From now on, you are required to cooperate by entering confinement rooms for observation and interrogation until the cruise ship docks.”
Author’s Note: Forget it, I couldn’t make a satisfactory cover with the title after several versions. I’m just going to put the picture up directly, and I won’t change the title either. (Lying down peacefully)Â
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