Word Segmentation 5: Eldership: “Be a good girl.”
The scent of white iris drifted over, cold and soft, dampened by the desolate night and wrapping around Pei Yuan’s finger bones.
Knowing full well that the other woman was biting into the cake, Pei Yuan’s heartbeat still went wildly out of control.
That piece of cake was tiny to begin with, at most the size of half a palm. Yet Cen Zhixu acted like a picky cat, only nibbling a tiny bit off the edge.
Cen Zhixu stepped back half a pace, her fingertips leaving Pei Yuan’s shoulder and dropping back to her side.
She seemed to have lost interest in the cake already, turning her head slightly when she saw Pei Yuan frozen in place: “Not leaving?”
Pei Yuan snapped out of her trance.
With a reflex action, she shoved the remaining half of the orange cake, still clenched between her teeth, all at once into her mouth.
The cake sponge was fluffy and soft, the cream delicate, and the orange filling tasted refreshing with a slight tang; it was truly delicious.
Yet Pei Yuan inexplicably felt as though another unnameable element was hidden within that sweetness.
Like white iris submerged in water, its petals adorned with cold, pristine dew, lingering on the tip of the tongue and refusing to disperse.
Swallowing, Pei Yuan gave a muffled response: “Let’s go.”
The two of them left the reception room one after the other, walked down the long corridor, and entered the lobby.
As they crossed the lobby, the captain was reviewing data while the unlucky team member nearby was still organizing records.
Hearing the commotion, the captain looked up and glanced at the two of them, sighing inwardly with a mental click of the tongue:
That outsider had been pestering everyone with questions earlier, refusing to rest; yet the moment this person arrived, she immediately became as obedient as could be, following along nicely.
Truly, everything has its natural match.
Stepping outside the door, Pei Yuan caught sight of the parked silver vehicle and paused in her tracks.
Her eyes brightened as she let out a whistle: “Nice ride, Officer.”
Cen Zhixu smiled: “Mm.”
Darting over to the front of the car in a flash, Pei Yuan admired the wheel hub design, her fingertips sliding along the streamlined ridge as she clicked her tongue in praise.
“Is this a dual-core suspension system?” She bent down to peer closer at the undercarriage. “Too gorgeous.”
Cen Zhixu nodded.
Squatting down and standing back up, touching and poking everything around the car, Pei Yuan circled it several times before finally stopping with a lingering look of reluctance and touching the passenger door handle.
A light cough sounded from behind. Cen Zhixu was standing on the steps, the wind catching a corner of her coat. Seeming a bit chilly, she shriveled inward slightly.
“Driver’s seat,” she said.
Whoa, I get to drive a luxury car? Pei Yuan’s large eyes seemed to widen by another circle.
Feigning reserve, she withdrew her hand and gave Cen Zhixu a crooked salute: “Alright, Officer, leave it to me.”
Walking around the front of the car, Pei Yuan slipped over to the other side, pulled open the driver’s side door, and slid inside.
The door closed, shutting out the outside wind.
“Ms. Cen,” Pei Yuan adjusted the driving parameters, “speaking of which, why did you come alone? What about that whole entourage of guards?”
Cen Zhixu sat in the passenger seat with her knees slightly raised and legs crossed. A harness strap ran diagonally across her shoulder and pressed against the front of her shirt, highlighting her sharp lines.
“The guards’ task is to deal with threats and protect my safety, not to accompany me for coffee.”
Cen Zhixu turned her head slightly, her voice curving softly: “So…”
“Are you a threat, Pei Yuan?”
Pei Yuan answered in a split second: “Of course not. As long as you cover my three daily meals, I promise to be utterly loyal, work without complaint, and answer every call.”
“Besides, my service scope is very broad. I can not only accompany you for coffee, but also for pizza, cake, hot pot, and barbecue. I’m never picky.”
Cen Zhixu chuckled lightly: “Such a glib tongue.”
Leaning back against the seat with her arms crossed, she lazily dropped a single sentence: “Drive.”
“Understood.” Pei Yuan briskly started the engine. “Your personal driver is officially on duty.”
The car merged into the light strip, gliding forward smoothly as street scenery rolled backward at a steady pace, dragging out streamlines across the glass.
Once they entered the high-speed lane, Pei Yuan switched to autopilot. With nothing else to do, she couldn’t help stealing glances at the boss beside her.
Cen Zhixu was sinking into the seat, silver hair flowing past her shoulder like silk and reflecting the flowing light from outside the window.
Her eyelashes were half-closed, her cheeks tinged with fatigue, and her chest rose and fell slightly beneath the diagonal harness strap.
Beep beep. The communication ring lit up.
Cen Zhixu opened her eyes, rubbed the corner of her eye, and put on a Bluetooth earpiece.
“TPO-2,” she said.
The communication ring glowed with a faint blue light, and the Eye of Order responded instantly, beginning to analyze the waveform.
She listened attentively to her voice.
Voice Capture
Voiceprint comparison: [Passed]
Command parsing…
Command: TPO-2
Full name: Third Party On-Site
Level: Level 2
An unauthorized third party is present beside the communicator. Initiating Level 2 communication restriction, compressing report content, and ensuring the communicator can provide brief responses.
Speaker closed, audio transferred to Bluetooth, low-frequency noise deployed to block third-party eavesdropping.
Status: [Recording]
The other end responded quickly: “Understood.”
After a brief burst of static, the report continued: “Officer, the alpha’s psychological state has shown noticeable fluctuation after being detained for two days.”
“We will conduct the first interrogation shortly. Recordings and stage reports will be forwarded to you immediately afterward.”
Cen Zhixu gave a muted “Mhm,” her voice slightly raspy: “If any unexpected situation occurs, notify me immediately.”
“Be careful, don’t break her.”
She said it offhandedly.
The other end replied: “Understood, Officer. We will make sure to control the intensity of the interrogation.”
Pei Yuan could only hear Cen Zhixu speaking, unable to hear the other party. Guessing that official business was being handled, she wisely kept her mouth tightly shut.
Cen Zhixu ended the communication, removed the earpiece, and massaged her temples, pressing against her forehead.
Pei Yuan spoke tentatively: “Ms. Cen, did you not sleep well last night?”
“Mm,” Cen Zhixu lowered her head slightly. “Busy all night, didn’t sleep much.”
“Turns out you went off to handle official business,” Pei Yuan said. “I thought you found me annoying and were deliberately avoiding me, and I was sad for quite a while.”
Cen Zhixu started, letting out a sudden chuckle that carried a breathy laugh: “I wouldn’t go so far as to because of…”
Mid-sentence, she abruptly paused.
Biting her lower lip, the tips of her ears turning red, she fumbled for words: “Wouldn’t go so far as to avoid you over a small matter.”
Cen Zhixu leaned back against the seat. Exhaustion made her omega pheromones turn soft and warm as well, the white iris scent spreading silently, curling and intertwining thread by thread.
“Pei Yuan, I am going to sleep for a bit.”
With her eyelashes closed, Cen Zhixu felt entirely softened by sleepiness, her ending notes trailing downward.
Her voice was sweet and soft, like warm water mixed with too much honey: “Be a good girl, don’t scratch the door, and don’t chew up the seats.”
Pei Yuan was stunned: “Huh? What?”
Cen Zhixu had already closed her eyes, her cheek resting against the headrest and leaving a faint trace of red. Her long eyelashes fell, the corners of her eyes curved slightly.
Wait, did she just laugh?
Damn it!
Realizing it a beat too late, Pei Yuan felt her ears burn. She let out a sharp exclamation and turned her entire body toward the window.
“Honestly.”
“I am not a puppy.”
She muttered under her breath.