The next day, Pei Yujang slept in until the sun was high in the sky.
Despite being in peak physical condition due to long-term training, which set her on a different level from an Omega like Yu Zhiwan, she had been careful to restrain herself. Even though it was their first time and emotions were running high, she made sure to stop when Yu Zhiwan showed signs of exhaustion.
Yu Zhiwan lay on her shoulder, panting. Her legs were still not fully recovered, so after a brief rest, Pei Yujang lifted her into a wheelchair and brought her into the bathroom to bathe her. However, as she washed her, her mind began to wander. Despite her efforts to stay composed and avoid tiring out the Omega, Yu Zhiwan gently turned her head, wrapped her arms around Pei Yujang's neck, and whispered in her ear:
"If you want to, just go ahead. I'm fine."
The passion of youth was like a relentless tide, heating up the steam-filled bathroom. Pei Yujang was excited for a long time, but after, she remembered that she hadn't been prepared. Fortunately, she was meticulous about personal hygiene, having trimmed her nails just a few days ago, and didn't have the habit of growing them long.
In the middle of the night, the exhausted Omega fell asleep soundly, but Pei Yujang couldn't sleep. She lay beside Yu Zhiwan, secretly inhaling the scent that clung to the Omega. The fragrance of roses, mingled with the sweetness of raspberries, lingered in her nostrils, filling her with an intense sense of attachment.
Countless thoughts swirled in Pei Yujang's mind. She held her breath and carefully grasped the Omega's soft hand. Afraid of waking Yu Zhiwan, her movements were gentle as she intertwined their fingers. Just this small act was enough to make her feel content.
Yu Zhiwan's eyelashes fluttered slightly but, in her drowsiness, she didn't open her eyes.
"So, the two of you officially got together because of Liu Huanran?" a few days later, Ji Laoban asked.
Ji Laoban had returned to Xiangcheng after finishing a business trip and arranged to meet Yu Zhiwan for a meal. After hearing Yu Zhiwan's recount of the events over the past few weeks, she couldn't help but roll her eyes.
Yu Zhiwan didn't have many close friends—only Ji Laoban and Zhao Manlin. Zhao Manlin had known for a while about Yu Zhiwan's feelings for Pei Yujang and wasn't surprised by any of this. Ji Laoban was aware of Liu Huanran's existence but hadn't known about the time when Yu Zhiwan and Liu Huanran had "lived together." At that time, Ji Laoban had been extremely busy abroad, and by the time she returned, Yu Zhiwan had already moved in with Pei Yujang.
Ji Laoban was well aware of how despicable Liu Huanran was, and hearing that she had resorted to kidnapping an Omega only deepened her disgust.
"She'll have a hard time getting out of this," Ji Laoban remarked. "Her urine tests came back positive for drugs three times, indicating long-term, low-dose use. She'll likely be sent to compulsory rehab."
Yu Zhiwan didn't have any sympathy for Liu Huanran, someone she had once shared a roof with. On the contrary, she found her repulsive.
Especially when she recalled the premonition dream in which she had gotten pregnant before marriage with someone like Liu Huanran and had even given birth to a daughter. The thought of it made Yu Zhiwan feel sick.
When Liu Huanran used to call her "wife" so affectionately, Yu Zhiwan had often fantasized about ways to silence her, but unfortunately, she had to remain a law-abiding citizen and couldn't do anything too drastic.
"By the way, Zhiwan," Ji Laoban began cautiously. Although she was close to Yu Zhiwan, they weren't so close that they shared everything. Some things Yu Zhiwan hadn't even told Zhao Manlin, so naturally, she hadn't mentioned them to Ji Laoban either. With a slight frown, Ji Laoban finally asked, "Have you offended someone?"
The case involving Liu Huanran's kidnapping of Yu Zhiwan was linked to the influence of the A Organization. If this had happened in Yi City, it would have been quickly covered up.
The authorities had anticipated the possibility of exposure, so they hadn't sent anyone important—just someone to run errands and make connections. The public security bureau in Xiangcheng, after consulting higher-ups, decided to use the incident as a case study in anti-fraud campaigns.
Ji Laoban, after paying some attention to the situation, realized it was far from simple.
The root cause could be traced back to the two women they encountered at Chen Lulu's fan meeting. One of the women, taking advantage of Yu Zhiwan's supposed blindness, had installed a mini-tracker on her phone after pretending to take photos with it. This allowed them to later find Yu Zhiwan alone, knock her out, and abduct her.
The Xiangcheng police were now warning the public about recent scams, advising people not to accept suspicious items, especially those with fragrances, and not to hand their phones to strangers. Instead, they should seek help from staff or police officers.
Yu Zhiwan met Ji Laoban's concerned gaze and, after some thought, decided to answer honestly:
"Yes."
"But it's not something you need to know." She quickly added.
"You…" Ji Laoban was exasperated but knew this was just how Yu Zhiwan was—straightforward and honest about what she could or couldn't share. If Yu Zhiwan didn't want to tell her, it meant she couldn't help anyway. Resigned, she cautioned, "Alright, just be careful."
Yu Zhiwan nodded.
After seeing Ji Laoban off, Yu Zhiwan texted Pei Yujang, asking if she was busy.
Pei Yujang was currently tied up with Xiangcheng's mayor.
After moving against the orphanage, the mayor hadn't entirely ignored the water plant but had been quietly monitoring their movements. When it was discovered that the water plant was relocating, no action was taken to stop them, but hidden cameras were installed at their new location.
One move triggered a whole chain of events. The water plant was being handled, and the mayor vaguely remembered something about the organization Pei Yujang had mentioned. Over the years, those well-versed in national politics knew that several factions had been covertly battling each other, with the A Organization being a product of one such powerful combination of wealth and politics.
Within Xiangcheng, the mayor could largely act autonomously. Her intervention in Yi City was mainly due to having clear leverage against them. But beyond Xiangcheng, things didn't always go as she wished.
"The water plant will likely complete its relocation in the next couple of days. They've continued their sewage operations at the old site, but all their equipment has been moved. I plan to keep them under surveillance and report any evidence we gather to the central government immediately," the mayor explained, rubbing her temples in frustration.
Pei Yujang suddenly asked her:
"Mayor, are you aware of the missing persons cases in Yi City?"
The mayor froze.
"Recently, I found a cage containing a corpse in Wing Lake. It was one of their failed experiments. Where did the test subjects come from? Over the past two years, there have been many trafficking cases across the country, which have largely gone unnoticed. Some involve financial transactions, but others might not."
Pei Yujang's gaze was meaningful as she looked at her.
The mayor quickly caught on, and a chill ran down her spine.
Missing persons, human experiments—could it be that her missing citizens were being used as a constant supply of free "material" for these people? The A Organization had been so brazen, conducting such operations right under her nose. If they were active in so many cities, what would that mean?
In truth, the situation wasn't as dire as it seemed. In the previous life, the zombie virus outbreak had been concentrated in a few cities, with other areas being affected only later. The A Organization didn't have the power to control everything.
But Pei Yujang didn't intend to ease the mayor's concerns.
She still held a grudge against the mayor for not properly dealing with her husband's misconduct, so she made a pointed remark:
"Who knows, as long as no one's allowing these transactions to happen."
The mayor's face flushed with embarrassment.
"Alright, there's no progress to discuss right now, so I won't keep you. Let me know when there's an update," Pei Yujang said, stretching her arms to relieve the tension. She stood up, glanced at the message Yu Zhiwan had sent her twenty minutes earlier, and decided to call her:
"Where are you right now? I'll come pick you up."
Yu Zhiwan gave her location, and Pei Yujang told her to wait there, promising to arrive in half an hour.
Yu Zhiwan knew that Pei Yujang and the mayor had been busy recently. As soon as they met, the Omega eagerly asked her how the discussions had gone. Pei Yujang briefed her on the progress and then asked for Yu Zhiwan's thoughts. In the end, they decided to return to Yi City for the time being.
One reason was to resume work at Yuetong, and the other was to gather more information in Yi City. Pei Yujang's concerns weren't unfounded—she was still unsettled by the corpse she had found.
With the leadership in Yi City undergoing changes, it was an opportune time for Pei Yujang to take bold action.
After spending two more days in Xiangcheng and completing her tasks, Pei Yujang took Yu Zhiwan for a follow-up check-up at the hospital. When they learned that the next check-up wouldn't be for another month and a half, she felt relieved and booked tickets back to Yi City.
However, Yu Zhiwan's leg still required moderate exercise and couldn't bear too much weight, or it might cause damage to the bones.
Since regaining her vision, Yu Zhiwan had become more cheerful. On her first day back at Yuetong, she greeted many people with a nod as they passed by in the morning.
Pei Yujang entered with Yu Zhiwan and was now chatting with the head of after-sales at the entrance. Yu Zhiwan, in a good mood, tapped her wheelchair armrest, while Zhao Manlin stood behind her. Seeing that Yu Zhiwan's gaze hadn't left Pei Yujang, Zhao Manlin couldn't help but feel exasperated:
"Aren't we supposed to go upstairs together? What's so interesting about Pei Yujang?"
It wasn't like she hadn't seen her before. While Pei Yujang was undeniably beautiful, Zhao Manlin had seen her so often that she was used to it. The only ones who still stared at her were the new receptionist and Yu Zhiwan, who had just regained her sight.
Yu Zhiwan countered:
"Don't you think she has a great figure?"
Zhao Manlin rolled her eyes and playfully flicked her fingers toward the back of Yu Zhiwan's head. Yu Zhiwan quickly stopped her:
"My head's been hurting lately, not sure why. Maybe I didn't sleep well."
Hearing "didn't sleep well," Zhao Manlin rolled her eyes even harder.
"I don't think it's a lack of sleep—you're probably just lovesick."