Several bodyguards had probably already received instructions in advance. After clearly seeing Ji Xu'an's face, one of them reached out and pushed open the private room door.
Of the two bodyguards Ji Xu'an had brought, one remained guarding outside the door, while the other turned and walked back in the direction they had come from.
Secretary Zhao followed Ji Xu'an into the private room. The moment he stepped inside, his brows furrowed deeply. He subconsciously turned to look at Ji Xu'an and, as expected, found that her expression was also completely cold.
For no other reason than that the two people sitting inside the room were both very familiar to Secretary Zhao.
One of them was Zheng Zhouzhou, and the other, a tall foreign man with blue eyes and blond hair, was considered a mortal enemy of Linghai Group and had clashed unpleasantly with Ji Xu'an herself several times.
"Arkle."
While Secretary Zhao was still wondering when this man had come to Z Country, Ji Xu'an had already calmly spoken his name.
At the same time, Arkle's low laughter sounded.
"Long time no see, Eucalypt." Arkle spoke fluent Chinese, his pronunciation especially standard.
As he spoke, he shrugged at Ji Xu'an. "The last time we met was in June, wasn't it?"
"It's been a few months. I've missed you. But looking at your expression, it doesn't seem like you're particularly welcoming me." At the end, Arkle even sighed helplessly.
Just listening to his tone, one might think he and Ji Xu'an had a very good relationship.
Ji Xu'an cast a sidelong glance at Secretary Zhao and gave him a look, then turned and walked out without saying an extra word, nor did she respond to Arkle's teasing remark.
Secretary Zhao smiled at Arkle and said, "Mr. Zhou, Miss Zheng, why don't we sit down and have some tea first? President Ji suddenly has an urgent matter to handle. It may delay her for a while."
Arkle's mother was from Z Country and her surname was Zhou, so he also had a Chinese name following his mother's surname. By calling him Mr. Zhou, Secretary Zhao was deliberately reminding him that he was currently in Z Country. B City could even be said to be Ji Xu'an's territory. He hoped Arkle would not do anything foolish.
Arkle raised his brows. "An urgent matter?"
He let out a sneer, seemingly not noticing Zheng Zhouzhou's somewhat stiff expression, nor paying attention to Secretary Zhao's subtle reminder. Instead, he said directly, "Eucalypt is worried that I'll harm her little fiancée, isn't she?"
Secretary Zhao smiled good-naturedly. "You're overthinking it."
"President Ji would not think that way. I also believe you would not do such a thing."
Arkle merely smiled without speaking. He lifted his teacup and took a sip, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Eucalypt really has no trust in me at all. I'm so heartbroken."
Though he said this, there was not a trace of heartbreak on his face. Zheng Zhouzhou, sitting beside him, felt extremely uneasy listening to his strange tone.
On the surface, this man appeared gentle and polite, but in reality he had deep ties with gang organizations in M Country and had personally shot subordinates who betrayed him.
Zheng Zhouzhou knew this because in her previous life, Ji Xu'an had almost been kidnapped by Arkle. Later, although Ji Xu'an successfully escaped, her arm had been shot by Arkle with a handgun, nearly injuring the bone.
At that time, Zheng Zhouzhou's patron had somehow heard about the matter and casually mentioned it in front of her. Zheng Zhouzhou had secretly memorized Arkle's appearance.
Two days ago, Zheng Zhouzhou had secretly run away from home. She already knew that Ji Xu'an had people following her. The reason everything had gone wrong for her recently was all thanks to Ji Xu'an.
Zheng Zhouzhou was unwilling to accept it. She wanted to make one last effort. If it truly did not work, she would have to use her greatest secret to make a deal with Ji Xu'an.
That was the worst possible strategy, because Zheng Zhouzhou was not sure whether Ji Xu'an would believe her. Ji Xu'an might even treat her as mentally ill and forcibly send her to a psychiatric hospital.
If it really came to that day, it would be even harder for Zheng Zhouzhou to escape.
She was so anxious that her hair fell out in large clumps.
That useless Ji Heyuan could not help at all. Ji Xu'an had already pushed her to this extent, yet Ji Heyuan still insisted that her sister had not done it on purpose.
Zheng Zhouzhou did not know what to do anymore.
Meeting Arkle had been purely accidental. Even Zheng Zhouzhou herself had found it sudden.
She had merely seen someone on the street who looked very much like Arkle and casually called out his name. She had not expected it to truly be Arkle himself. She had not expected that he would hear her voice and be so cautious that he had someone kidnap her that very day.
The people Ji Xu'an had sent to monitor her were also controlled by Arkle. After Arkle asked clearly about the grievances between her and Ji Xu'an, he generously expressed that he could help her.
Zheng Zhouzhou did not know how he would help her. She had an impulse to smash the pot and gamble everything, but she was also worried she was seeking the skin of a tiger, because Arkle did not care about human life at all.
Just as she was trapped in this dilemma, unsure of how to choose, Ji Xu'an happened to inform her that He Xinyao had secretly broken into Liang Junsheng's hospital room.
He Xinyao was Zheng Zhouzhou's big fan. The two of them were in frequent private contact. If what He Xinyao had done were exposed online, Zheng Zhouzhou would not escape the fate of being cyberbullied either.
Zheng Zhouzhou was very afraid. Hardening her heart, she agreed to Arkle's proposal.
She could not defeat Ji Xu'an, but Arkle definitely had methods.
At that time, Zheng Zhouzhou even had a new idea. She was someone with memories of rebirth. She knew more than both of these people. Why could she not sit on the mountain and watch the tigers fight?
Arkle was very crazy. Otherwise, in the later period, he would not have kidnapped Ji Xu'an. But Ji Xu'an was not someone easy to deal with either. The two were evenly matched in strength. Neither could shake the other's foundation.
But if she were added, perhaps the situation would be different.
Zheng Zhouzhou weighed it and felt that Ji Xu'an was relatively safer. At least Ji Xu'an did not kill people.
So she planned to stabilize Arkle first, then secretly attempt to cooperate with Ji Xu'an. If Ji Xu'an was willing to invest in promoting her, she was not unable to help Ji Xu'an deal with Arkle.
Zheng Zhouzhou's plan was beautiful, but she had not expected to fail at the first step. Arkle simply refused to let her meet Ji Xu'an alone and insisted on coming along.
That was why Zheng Zhouzhou was so nervous at this moment. She did not know how she was supposed to speak to Ji Xu'an later. Was she supposed to say in front of Arkle that she had been reborn?
Would Arkle directly send her to a laboratory?
Zheng Zhouzhou shuddered.
—
Ji Xu'an did not walk far.
She herself was not afraid of Arkle. But just as Arkle had said, Ji Xu'an did not trust his character. She was worried that Arkle would take the opportunity to make a move against Jiang Jiang.
The call she dialed was not answered immediately. Listening to the busy tone on her phone, Ji Xu'an's expression grew increasingly tense, and the worry in her heart deepened.
She hoped Jiang Jiang was only eating at the moment, which was why she had not answered.
What was Jiang Jiang doing?
This morning they had no classes. Instead, they had gone to the auditorium for the military training mobilization meeting. When it ended, it was only a little past 10:40.
He Jingjing sent Jiang Jiang a message asking her to go with Fu Xihe to the Hanfu Association office to collect some items.
The results of several rounds of interviews last Friday had already come out. Jiang Jiang had successfully passed the interview without surprise.
Ji Heyuan had other matters and could not help it. She had to separate from Jiang Jiang and act separately.
Jiang Jiang and Fu Xihe chatted while walking. The Hanfu Association office was located on the first floor of the Innovation Park. Few people came to this area. The further they walked, the quieter it became.
After collecting the items, the two were originally going to the cafeteria. Fu Xihe suddenly received a call. After greeting Jiang Jiang, she hurried away.
Jiang Jiang could only walk toward the cafeteria alone.
It was not that there was no one at all on this road. Not far away, there were still a few students walking together.
After walking not far, Jiang Jiang suddenly heard a very light sound of footsteps several meters behind her. She glanced with the corner of her eye. Behind her appeared a woman wearing a long white dress.
The woman did not look at Jiang Jiang. She kept her head lowered, looking at her phone. But Jiang Jiang inexplicably had a hunch—she felt the other party was coming for her.
To reach the cafeteria, she still had to turn and pass through a small path. The roads at S University were lined with trees on both sides. This area was relatively remote. If the other party wanted to do something, this was the most suitable place to act.
Thinking of this, Jiang Jiang's pace quickened slightly.
The woman seemed to speed up as well. Only two or three seconds after Jiang Jiang's figure disappeared around the corner, the woman followed.
According to the information they had obtained, this girl named Xie Xiao had not received any training. She was thin and weak, and her strength was not great. One person alone would be enough to deal with her.
The woman was calm and composed, already thinking about how to take Xie Xiao away later.
There was only one stretch here that was a surveillance blind spot. Her car was parked nearby.
To avoid alerting the enemy, she had come in alone. The others were waiting outside the school.
Later, she only needed to knock Xie Xiao unconscious and take her to the agreed location.
In the woman's imagination, this should be a very easy matter. She alone was more than enough. It was even somewhat overkill.
But she never expected that after turning the corner, what greeted her was not Xie Xiao's terrified face, but a tree branch charging at her aggressively.
This branch was not thick, at most as thick as a little finger. Yet the sound of wind as it cut through the air was alarming. The woman could even imagine what kind of wounds it would cause when it landed on a person.
She dodged with slight surprise, thinking the target was more alert than she had imagined. Unfortunately, she was too naive. Not only had she not immediately run away, she even attempted to counterattack.
The woman sighed regretfully in her heart, thinking that Xie Xiao would soon understand that her choice was gravely wrong.
At this moment, the woman had not realized that just a few minutes later, the one who would understand that everything was gravely wrong would actually be herself.
Missing the first strike, Jiang Jiang did not find it strange.
This branch had been casually picked up from the ground just now. It was not straight enough nor thick enough, but temporarily using it as a self-defense weapon was sufficient.
She did not give the woman much time to react. She used the branch as if it were a long sword. The woman had just twisted her body to dodge when Jiang Jiang's next move had already arrived in front of her.
The woman hurriedly retreated again. She had not even found an opportunity to make a move and could only keep dodging.
After two moves failing to hit, Jiang Jiang thought to herself that her swordsmanship had regressed somewhat. But the woman was slightly angered by Jiang Jiang's two consecutive attacks.
The prey she had originally thought was weak and unable to withstand a single blow had instead forced her to retreat repeatedly.
The woman knitted her brows and struck ruthlessly, both hands clenched into fists as she swung at Jiang Jiang.
Jiang Jiang tilted her head to dodge. The loose strands of hair by her ear swayed slightly from the wind of the punch. She silently gathered her focus and energy, finally finding an opportunity to close the distance.
While sidestepping the woman's punch, Jiang Jiang's wrist flipped swiftly. A palm strike carrying internal force hit the other party's left shoulder fast, precise, and ruthless.
The woman's body flew backward uncontrollably, like a leaf falling from a branch, almost without any ability to resist.
In the blink of an eye, her body slammed heavily onto the ground. When her back hit the surface, it even made a dull sound.
"Damn!"
The woman cursed instinctively. Her whole body felt numb. The pain in her back was secondary. The main thing was her left shoulder. The piercing pain felt as if her bone had been shattered. It was hard even to move.
The woman coughed with difficulty, feeling her chest roiling. She almost coughed up blood.
Her reaction was not slow. Even though she felt extremely uncomfortable, she quickly climbed up, staring at Jiang Jiang with widened eyes, filled with shock and uncertainty.
What had just happened?!
She had been sent flying by a single palm strike from this slender girl in front of her?!
It was like acting in a television drama. Although the pain in her body reminded her that what had happened was not a dream, the woman still found it hard to believe.
Subconsciously, she reached back toward her lower waist, but her hand grasped nothing. The woman abruptly looked at Jiang Jiang, her gaze exceptionally sharp.
Jiang Jiang stood several steps away. Seeing the woman staring at her fixedly, Jiang Jiang brought out her left hand from behind her back.
"Are you looking for this?" Jiang Jiang asked.
In her open palm lay a small silver handgun.
The woman tugged at the corner of her lips. The pain in her chest and the missing handgun both reminded her that their intelligence had been wrong, and she had paid the price for underestimating her enemy.
"Can we talk properly now?" Jiang Jiang's tone was calm.
"Who sent you?"
—
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