The night was quiet, the faint hum of the city drifting through the large windows of Jichen's office. The darkness outside mirrored the storm of thoughts in his mind. The dim light from the desk lamp cast long shadows over the room, but Jichen sat unmoving, his gaze cold and focused.
He had never been a man who allowed sentimentality to cloud his judgment, but Xiaoxing's innocent face kept flashing in his mind. The moment she had called him "Daddy," something had shifted. He didn't know why or how, but he was responsible for her now. No one had asked him to be, but in that abandoned basement, with dead children surrounding her, something within him had clicked.
And now, her family. Who were they? Why was she there, and how did she end up in the hands of those monsters? These questions lingered in his mind, and it was time for him to find answers.
Jichen picked up his phone and pressed a number on speed dial. A moment later, the familiar voice of his most trusted operative, Ghost, came through.
"Sir?" Ghost's voice was sharp, always ready for an order.
"I need you to start a search," Jichen said, his tone as cold and decisive as ever. "Find out everything about Xiaoxing's family. I want to know who they are, where they come from, and how she ended up in that lab."
There was a brief pause on the other end. "Understood, sir. Any specific leads to start with?"
Jichen leaned back in his chair, tapping his fingers lightly on the desk. "Start with the orphanage records. I want to know if she was registered anywhere, and if not, trace her from the medical data we recovered from the lab. Those people were experimenting on children—they must have kept some kind of records."
Ghost, ever efficient, responded immediately. "I'll have my team on it right away. Anything else?"
Jichen's eyes narrowed slightly as he thought. "Yes. Keep it quiet. I don't want anyone to know we're looking into this, especially the board. They have eyes everywhere."
"Got it," Ghost replied, and the line went dead.
Jichen placed the phone back on the desk and stared out at the sprawling cityscape before him. The question of Xiaoxing's origins weighed heavily on his mind. Whoever her parents were, they had either abandoned her or something had happened to them. But the fact that she had been in that facility, surrounded by dead children, meant there was more to the story. He needed to find out who her family was, and why she had been targeted.
As he sat in thought, his mind drifted back to his recent encounter with the board members of HD Group. He had dominated the meeting, asserting his authority, but something about their reactions had been off. There had been an undercurrent of tension, of fear, as if they knew more about his father's accident than they were letting on. The sabotage of his father's car had shaken him, not because of the danger but because it was a sign that the enemy was far closer than he had anticipated.
He stood up, his movements sharp and deliberate. He needed answers, and soon.
---
In a nondescript building across town, Ghost was already working. The room was dimly lit, multiple computer screens flickering with streams of data. His team, a group of elite operatives skilled in intelligence gathering, worked silently, their fingers flying over keyboards as they began piecing together the puzzle that Jichen had handed them.
"Focus on the medical data first," Ghost ordered, his voice cutting through the quiet hum of the room. "Cross-reference it with any orphanage records, hospital admissions, or missing child reports."
One of the analysts, a young man with sharp eyes and quick hands, nodded. "On it, boss."
Ghost watched the data appear on the screen, his mind racing through possibilities. Jichen didn't make personal requests often, and when he did, they were always connected to something critical. Xiaoxing was important to him—Ghost could tell by the tone in his voice.
"Found something," another analyst spoke up, breaking the silence. "A series of encrypted files from the lab we raided a few weeks ago. It looks like medical reports on several children, including one with a matching description to Xiaoxing."
"Decrypt them," Ghost ordered, stepping closer to the monitor. "I want to know what they were doing to her."
It took a few minutes, but eventually, the files opened, revealing detailed reports, lab results, and grim photographs of the experiments conducted on the children. Ghost's eyes scanned the documents, his expression darkening as he read.
"They were experimenting on her," he muttered, his voice low. "Trying to enhance physical abilities, but they didn't care about the consequences."
Another analyst, scrolling through the data, looked up. "There's something else. The records mention a possible family connection… a mother, but the name's been blacked out."
Ghost leaned over the analyst's shoulder. "Keep digging. I want that name."
As the team worked, Ghost's phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen—it was Jichen.
"Sir," Ghost answered.
"Any progress?" Jichen asked, his voice sharp.
"We've decrypted some of the lab data. It's not good. They were running extensive experiments on Xiaoxing. But we've found mention of a possible family connection—there's a mother, but her name was blacked out."
Jichen was silent for a moment. "Keep searching. I want everything on this woman, and find out why Xiaoxing was targeted."
Ghost nodded, even though Jichen couldn't see him. "Understood. We'll have more for you soon."
The call ended, and Ghost turned back to his team, his voice firm. "You heard the boss. We need to find out who this woman is. Run facial recognition on Xiaoxing's photos, cross-reference it with any possible familial matches. Start with the hospitals, and then expand to private clinics."
The team went to work, their focus unbreakable. Ghost knew Jichen wasn't a man to be kept waiting.
---
Back in his office, Jichen paced. His mind was a battlefield, filled with thoughts of revenge, power, and now, for the first time in a long while—concern. Xiaoxing had wormed her way into his life, and whether he liked it or not, she mattered.
But who was her mother? And what kind of person allowed their child to fall into the hands of monsters like the Syndicate?
He would find out. He would pull every string, turn over every stone, until the truth was laid bare. And if someone had betrayed Xiaoxing, if her mother was involved in this nightmare, Jichen would make sure they paid.
Because no one—absolutely no one—was allowed to harm what was his. And now, Xiaoxing was his to protect.
The game was just beginning.