When Qi Zhi’e heard what was said on the phone, she almost doubted her own ears.
No matter how she thought about it, she never expected that Bian You, who had gone out to negotiate a business deal, would end up in a police station.
After hanging up the call, Qi Zhi’e was wide awake.
She leaned against the headboard, phone still clutched in her hand, her lowered eyes lost in thought.
In the past, Qi Zhi’e wouldn’t have doubted such a possibility. But ever since her rebirth, she felt Bian You had mellowed considerably. Logically, she shouldn’t have been so reckless as to get into a conflict with others, especially not on someone else’s turf.
Suddenly, she recalled the message Bian You had sent her before leaving, no matter what happened, she had to keep her cool.
So, was it possible this incident was deliberate?
Qi Zhi’e’s frown deepened. Even if it was intentional, why would the police call her? Was this Bian You’s doing too?
Under the dim lamplight, half of Qi Zhi’e’s face was obscured in shadow, her expression unreadable. Her fingers tapped lightly against the phone screen before her lips suddenly curled into a faint, unamused smile.
Perhaps she understood why Bian You had done this.
6 a.m., Tongyuan City Police Station.
Qi Zhi’e was dressed simply, a fitted khaki maxi dress paired with an off-white cardigan, her beautiful long hair cascading down her back. She looked gentle, utterly non-threatening.
The moment she saw Bian You, Qi Zhi’e noticed how her eyes instantly lit up, brimming with surprise and a hint of flustered delight.
Clearly, Bian You hadn’t expected Qi Zhi’e to actually come.
After that initial glance, Qi Zhi’e didn’t spare her another look, turning instead to speak with the police and signing the necessary paperwork.
Beside Bian You, Assistant Zhou appeared slightly more disheveled her hair tousled, her lipstick smudged. Leaning close to Bian You, she whispered, “Boss, she actually came?”
As Bian You’s assistant, she naturally knew some things about her, including Qi Zhi’e and some of the less-than-admirable things Bian You had done to her in the past.
Despite all that, Qi Zhi’e was still willing to come all this way to bail them out. Assistant Zhou was utterly awed.
Truly, a woman of great stature her magnanimity was beyond compare.
Hearing her words, Bian You couldn’t help but smirk. Though she knew exactly why Qi Zhi’e had come, that didn’t stop her from feeling pleased.
Without any prior discussion, Qi Zhi’e had still guessed her intentions. Couldn’t this be considered a kind of telepathy between them?
Once Qi Zhi’e finished signing the papers, she turned to Bian You and saw the two of them huddled together, whispering about who-knows-what. But they seemed to be in high spirits.
Qi Zhi’e couldn’t resist asking the police where the people they had fought with were.
When she first arrived, she noticed that aside from the two of them waiting to be bailed out, there was no one else.
The officer’s expression turned somewhat complicated. “They’re all in the hospital.”
Those who hadn’t been hospitalized had already been bailed out long ago, they certainly hadn’t waited around till now.
After hearing this, Qi Zhi’e cast a cool glance at Bian You, who suddenly sat up straight, but said nothing before walking straight out.
Bian You and the others were quick on the uptake. Seeing the situation, they immediately followed Qi Zhi’e and left together.
Once outside the police station, Qi Zhi’e stopped and turned to look at the two of them, her gaze sweeping over them before finally settling on Assistant Zhou’s lips.
Taking in the situation, Bian You immediately took a step away from Assistant Zhou, putting on a righteous expression as she declared, “It wasn’t me who kissed her!”
Assistant Zhou, who had been confused by Qi Zhi’e’s stare, suddenly understood and began shaking her head and waving her hands in a flustered explanation.
“No, no, President Qi, don’t misunderstand! There’s nothing between me and President Bian! I kissed those two Omegas who were blocking me!”
As she spoke, Assistant Zhou lowered her head slightly, her face turning red with embarrassment.
It wasn’t her fault, those two Omegas had grabbed her and blocked the door. Since she couldn’t fight them off, she had no choice but to resort to this tactic: planting a firm kiss on each of them. The unexpected move had stunned them long enough for her to pull open the private room door.
And then… she came face to face with the arriving police officers…
Qi Zhi’e hadn’t actually cared who Assistant Zhou had kissed. Initially, she’d just been surprised to see her lipstick smudged from the scuffle. But after hearing her explanation, Qi Zhi’e fell silent.
Was there even a single normal person among them?
Seeing Qi Zhi’e remain silent, Bian You cleared her throat awkwardly. After all, Assistant Zhou was her subordinate. If Assistant Zhou wasn’t the brightest, didn’t that indirectly reflect poorly on her as well?
“Can we go back to the hotel first?” Bian You said, glancing at herself with distaste. The chaotic fight had left her clothes splattered with alcohol, and after enduring it all night, she was reaching her limit.
Qi Zhi’e gave her a brief glance, noticing the shallow cut on her arm. It didn’t look deep and seemed to have already been treated.
When they got into the car, Qi Zhi’e ignored the occasional glances from the person beside her. The truth was, she hadn’t come to the police station simply because they had called her.
She had wanted to see for herself whether the situation was really as the police described four men ganging up on Bian You, including an Alpha.
And the evidence was right in front of her. In a one-against-four fight, the others had ended up in the hospital, while Bian You remained unscathed. That was what intrigued Qi Zhi’e the most.
If Bian You had displayed this level of combat prowess in her past life, Qi Zhi’e wouldn’t have been able to resist when Bian You forced herself on her.
So much had changed in this life.
Bian You had no idea what Qi Zhi’e was thinking. The early spring morning was still misty, obscuring Qi Zhi’e’s expression and making it hard to read.
Still…
The fact that she had come here at all was enough to fill Bian You with joy.
It seemed she wasn’t entirely indifferent to her after all.
Glancing at the system panel, the mission progress remained stubbornly at 0, unchanged.
This mission progress really made it feel like there was no end in sight.
“You haven’t booked a room yet, have you?” Bian You asked.
“No.”
Bian You glanced back at Assistant Zhou, who immediately understood and said, “I’ll go book another one right away!”
Bian You nodded in satisfaction, feeling that her communication with Assistant Zhou had gone quite smoothly. This was a talented individual, she’d give her a raise as soon as they got back.
Upon arriving at the hotel, Qi Zhi’e was assigned the room next to Bian You’s. Before entering her own room, Bian You turned to Qi Zhi’e and said, “I’ll need to freshen up and rest for a while. You know what to do next, right?”
Qi Zhi’e didn’t respond, silently opening her door with an expressionless face and stepping inside.
As the door closed softly behind her, Bian You blinked, then broke into a wide smile.
Seems her mood’s quite stable today, she didn’t even slam the door.
Inside her room, Qi Zhi’e opened a bottle of water. Of course she knew what to do next. The question was whether she should play along with Bian You’s game, or observe how Bian You would act without her cooperation.
Setting down the water bottle, Qi Zhi’e sighed quietly, her eyes clouded with gloom.
This trip had been too impulsive. Whether Bian You’s police contact had been meant for her or not, there’d been no need to come. Ultimately, it was everything Bian You had done since waking up in this timeline that had caught her attention.
Remembering Bian You’s barely concealed good mood during their return trip, Qi Zhi’e’s lips twisted. She couldn’t keep following Bian You’s lead this was clearly another test.
Moreover… she couldn’t stand seeing Bian You smile so brightly.
Why should Bian You get to live carefree in this second chance while she still had to tread carefully, meticulously planning every move?
Before long, room service arrived with breakfast ordered by Bian You next door.
Looking at the spread on the table, Qi Zhi’e gave a faint smirk.
Did she really think this would change anything?
Meanwhile, Bian You remained unaware of Qi Zhi’e’s turbulent thoughts. The breakfast had simply occurred to her when she realized Qi Zhi’e probably hadn’t eaten after rushing over so early.
Fresh from the shower, Bian You nibbled a few bites before collapsing onto the bed with a contented sigh.
Playing model citizen for the police had meant waiting dutifully at the station all night for someone to sign her release and pay the fine. Her back ached and her butt was sore from sitting so long.
Since Wang Jianzhu had thrown the first punch and his group had ganged up on her, Bian You’s actions barely qualified as self-defense. She was being generous by not pressing charges, certainly no one expected her to face consequences.
But upon waking, Bian You discovered Qi Zhi’e hadn’t contacted Zhiyuan Group at all…
Nor had she seized the opportunity to secure the project during Bian You’s conflict with Wang Jianzhu…
This puzzled Bian You. Did she even want this project?
Was she really waiting for Bian You to deliver it on a silver platter?
With a long sigh, Bian You consoled herself that she’d never truly expected Qi Zhi’e to come through. Her backup plan, the one that would truly cripple Zhiyuan Group was already in motion.
Just as the media broke the news about the brawl between Zhiyuan Group’s project director and Bian Group’s general manager, which quickly climbed the entertainment charts, another even more explosive piece of information rapidly ascended to the top of the news rankings, with its popularity continuously surging.
Zhiyuan Group was under investigation by the tax bureau for tax-related issues.
As soon as the news broke, panic selling ensued among shareholders, causing Zhiyuan Group’s stock to plummet dramatically.
When Qi Zhi’e saw the news, she froze.
There was only one reason in her previous life, Zhiyuan Group had been perfectly fine at the time of her death.
In this life, was it Bian You?