The monster caught the fragrance of human blood in that instant. A sound of excited purring emanated from his throat. The fishy, foul odor in the air began to grow thicker. Soon, a rich, floral scent began to diffuse throughout the room. It was the fragrance of roses.
Bai Xinjian’s fingertips, gripping the door panel, began to turn white. The monster’s sharp teeth pierced his neck, and he felt the blood within his body flowing slowly out through the two wounds.
“Mistress? Mistress!” A sound of windows being struck suddenly rang out from the other side of the restroom. Then, a loud crash echoed, as if someone had violently smashed open a window and climbed in from outside.
The heavy weight pressing down on Bai Xinjian vanished. As the black shadow agilely broke through the window, the monster darted out swiftly like a gust of wind, vanishing into the night.
With a loud bang, the restroom door was pushed open from the outside. Two Special Task Force members, dressed as banquet guests and wearing earpieces, stared at Bai Xinjian, who had fallen to the floor with two round holes in his neck and blood flowing uncontrollably. Their faces turned pale with terror.
“Where is he? Which way did he go?” one of the members asked, finally regaining his senses.
Claude, dressed in a well-tailored new suit, reached out to support the blood-depleted Bai Xinjian and turned his head abruptly. The member who had asked the question was nearly frightened by Claude’s hideous face and empty left eye. The other member soon realized that the monsterized Shen Yuhuai had likely fled through the window, so he hurriedly dragged his colleague to pursue him.
“Mistress, are you alright?” Claude braced the blood-depleted Bai Xinjian, helping him stand up by leaning against his own body.
“I am fine.” Bai Xinjian was still shivering slightly. The faint sense of excitement that had surfaced in his heart earlier echoed in his mind, refusing to dissipate. He did not even want to cover his wound to stop the bleeding.
Claude, however, was deeply concerned for him. He wanted to take off his own coat to help Bai Xinjian stop the bleeding, but remembering that this suit was a gift from Bai Xinjian, he could not bear to ruin it. After fumbling around in his pockets, he finally pulled out a clean handkerchief and carefully pressed it against Bai Xinjian’s neck. He felt Bai Xinjian’s body trembling as he leaned against him, and thinking he was still terrified by what had just happened, he hurriedly comforted him. “It is alright, it is alright, Mistress. He has run away.”
“Can you stand?” Claude asked, one hand pressing against his wound while the other supported him. “Shall I help you up?”
“Claude.” Bai Xinjian choked out a sob. He finally regained his composure and began to act again. “I was so scared. Was I almost killed?”
“That will not happen, Mistress,” Claude comforted him. “You are fine. You only have a minor injury; a simple bandage will do.”
The commotion in the restroom finally attracted the attention of the banquet guests, and many rushed over to investigate.
“What happened?”
“Why is he injured?”
“Is that Mr. Bai? Where is General Shen?”
“Did he encounter an Unfortunate One?”
“What? There is an Unfortunate One here?”
The surroundings were in chaos. Jiang Dingcheng, as if he had received news from somewhere, hurried over with his cane. “Quick, someone get the first-aid kit and bandage Mr. Bai! Everyone, please rest assured; there are guards everywhere in our villa. If there is indeed an Unfortunate One, the Jiang family will be responsible for protecting everyone’s safety!”
Bai Xinjian was taken to a quiet, secluded area to have his wound bandaged. Because of this incident, the banquet came to an end. The guests said their goodbyes to Jiang Dingcheng in an orderly fashion and left. Once his wound was dressed, Bai Xinjian was supported by Claude to the villa entrance. Jiang Dingcheng stood there, accompanied by Jiang Sui, who was dressed in formal wear and looked grave.
Bai Xinjian did not say anything and bade farewell to Jiang Dingcheng before leaving. Shen Yuhuai’s situation was a classified matter, and how to handle communication with the Jiang family was a problem for the Alliance, not for him. If they were sensible, they would not tell others about this, as it concerned the stability of the Alliance.
Bai Xinjian stood outside the villa gate while Claude went to fetch the car. Many people were leaving the Jiang villa, and Bai Xinjian waited for quite a while until he heard a car horn behind him. Turning around, he realized it was not the car he had arrived in, and the person in the driver’s seat was not Claude, but Gu Yue.
“Mr. Bai,” Gu Yue poked his head out of his car. “Who are you waiting for? Do you need a ride?”
Bai Xinjian tilted his head slightly and looked at him. Claude had helped him bandage the wound on his neck. Claude was indeed an attentive gardener; he had not only perfectly stanched the bleeding but had also tied the bandage into a bow. At that moment, Bai Xinjian’s neck looked like he was wearing a cute white bow-tie collar. When he tilted his head, even Gu Yue was almost charmed by him.
“Sorry, I have a driver,” Bai Xinjian said. “Thank you, Captain Gu.”
Gu Yue said, “Your driver is that gardener?”
He frowned. Because of a sudden matter at the military department, Gu Yue had arrived late today. As soon as he arrived, he heard that this had happened at the birthday banquet. According to Jiang Dingcheng, it might even be related to Shen Yuhuai. He immediately thought that if Shen Yuhuai was the one who attacked Bai Yu, and the Alliance had not captured him tonight, what would happen to Bai Yu? Would he be in danger?
He immediately went out and, sure enough, saw Bai Yu waiting for his car outside the villa. He had previously seen that the person accompanying Bai Yu to the banquet was the strange gardener he had seen in the garden of the little mansion. He had been in such a rush to leave that day that he had not thought about it seriously. Upon reflection, if the Black Baccara roses in Bai Yu’s garden were truly problematic, the first suspect should be the gardener. He had been far too inattentive, keeping his focus entirely on the flowers and never considering that the problem might lie with the person.
If the gardener was problematic and Shen Yuhuai had become an Unfortunate One, then Bai Yu, as an ordinary person, would truly be in danger in that little mansion. As an officer of the Alliance, Gu Yue had a responsibility to protect the safety of ordinary citizens.
“Get in,” Gu Yue said to Bai Xinjian in an uncompromising tone. “The Unfortunate One has not been caught yet; you are likely still in danger. I will take you.”
“Alright.” Bai Xinjian had already seen Claude driving the car over. He waved at him from a distance, opened the passenger door of Gu Yue’s car, and sat in. “Then thank you, Captain Gu.”
After saying this, he turned his head and smiled at Gu Yue.
Gu Yue gave a light cough, and after Bai Xinjian buckled his seatbelt, he started the car.
“Host, I can see it; it seems Gu Yue has taken a liking to you,” 0048 said in Bai Xinjian’s mind.
“What did I do to make him like me?” Perhaps due to the previous blood loss, Bai Xinjian’s face was slightly pale. He looked lazy, leaning against the seat with a bewildered expression. “I did nothing.”
“Perhaps it is precisely because you did nothing that Gu Yue has developed a good impression of you?”
Bai Xinjian chuckled. He did not understand these human emotions. It did not matter. He was just a worker anyway.
Bai Xinjian’s consciousness drifted. He struggled to open his eyes and said to Gu Yue, “Captain Gu, I am sorry, I am a bit sleepy. Can I take a nap in your car?”
“It might be because of the blood loss,” Gu Yue nodded and lowered the car window slightly. “Sleep. I will call you when we arrive.”
Bai Xinjian did not stand on ceremony and soon closed his eyes. The dim lights from outside the window shone on Bai Xinjian’s face, flickering on and off. Gu Yue drove the car, his gaze unable to help but drift toward Bai Xinjian’s face. His skin was very fair. His eyelashes were long, like brushes, covering his eyelids. His body rose and fell with the rhythm of his breathing. He was truly very thin; despite having a capable servant at home, there seemed to be no extra flesh on his body.
Gu Yue thought of Jiang Sui involuntarily. Jiang Sui was also thin, but not in the way Bai Yu was. He had practiced swordsmanship since childhood and later joined the Combat Department at the Imperial Capital University, where he underwent intensive physical training. Gu Yue had no doubt that the current Jiang Sui must have a body of solid muscle.
He then remembered hearing some guests discussing Bai Yu at the Jiang house. “It seems the young master of the Bai family is truly pitiful. The Bai couple has been here for so long, and yet they did not greet him even once.”
“Didn’t they chat with General Shen?”
“That was General Shen. Did you see the Bai couple’s gaze linger on Bai Yu for even a single second?”
“When Bai Yu was in trouble, they did not even care. I really do not know what they are thinking.”
Gu Yue turned to look at Bai Yu, who was sleeping in the passenger seat beside him. Perhaps the fate between people is, in the end, different.
After some time, the car arrived at the little mansion and came to a stop. Gu Yue’s house was only a few steps away, but he did not stop there. After he hit the brakes, the headlights kept flickering. Gu Yue did not wake Bai Xinjian up immediately but waited for a while. It was only when he saw another car slowly pull up behind his own in the rearview mirror that he reached out and gently patted Bai Xinjian, who seemed to be fast asleep.
“Mr. Bai, Bai Yu, wake up, we are home.”
“Hmm?” Bai Xinjian opened his eyes, feeling dazed. Feeling a sharp pain from the wound on his neck, he immediately realized he had fallen asleep in Gu Yue’s car.
Bai Xinjian was about to thank the other man when he suddenly heard someone knocking on the window. Bai Xinjian and Gu Yue turned their heads simultaneously.
“Mistress,” they heard Claude say as he bent over outside the car window. “We are home. Let me help you get out.”
He reached out to open the door, only to find that Gu Yue had not unlocked it. Gu Yue pushed open the driver’s door, got out, and walked around to the passenger side to open the door for Bai Xinjian.
“Thank you.” Bai Xinjian bent down and got out, standing between Claude and Gu Yue.
“Be careful,” he heard Gu Yue say in his ear. “After an infected person is tainted by pollutants, many different symptoms can appear. It is not just humans; flowers, grass, and animals can also become Unfortunate Ones.” He stuffed a business card into Bai Xinjian’s hand. “This is my contact information. If anything happens, remember to contact me.”
Claude’s scarred and sunken cheeks moved, and finally, he said in a deep, hoarse voice, “Mistress, it is time to go home.”
“Alright.” Bai Xinjian put away the business card and placed his hand into Claude’s palm. “Thank you for taking me back, Captain Gu.”
After saying this, he turned back and smiled at Claude. “Let’s go, let’s go home.”
Claude’s teeth clenched, and his cheeks puffed out slightly. He said to me, let’s go home. Home. Home.
In Gu Yue’s line of sight, Claude’s originally light gold right eye began to glow. Then, it turned into a dark, deep blue. He curled his lips into a wicked smile, looking at Gu Yue.
He is going home with me. Not with you. You are unworthy! He is mine; only I can eat him! Or be skinned, chopped into pieces, and have my bones broken and devoured by him. Only I can be his food!