Meanwhile, in Gu Si’s car.
“How is Sis Lin doing?” Gu Si looked at He Yidu, who was sitting across from him. “From what I found out about Devil Prison, the people inside…” Are all felons who committed all sorts of crimes, and they’re mostly men. There was a female agent who assassinated a president and was sent to the Devil Prison. It’s like sending meat into a wolf’s den; she ended up dying tragically there. Country D’s cabinet members seem to see Sasha as their next president. Does that mean Sis Lin attempted to assassinate the president?
At the mention of the Devil Prison, He Yidu’s eyes became gloomy. “According to Lin Shuang’s elder cousin, he sent his men there. She won’t get into any trouble for the time being, but as to how long that will last, he has no idea either. So we have to get her out as soon as possible.”
Looks like we can only wait until we get to the President’s House. Gu Si pursed her lips and changed the topic. “Who will be fetching my sis later?”
“Lin Shuang’s elder cousin.”
“Can he be trusted?” Gu Si carefully asked.
He Yidu nodded. “Lin Shuang said we can trust him.”
Gu Si opened his mouth to say something, but he changed his mind at the last second and leaned back into his seat instead. “Never mind, my brother-in-law is around anyway. Only a half-wit who’s tired of living would dare to provoke him.”
He put his mind at ease at the thought of that, only to realize the next second that he had just cursed. He closed his eyes in frustration before turning his head to see Tang Yi looking at him with wide and round eyes. He sternly told her, “No cursing! Don’t learn that from me!”
“Okay,” Tang Yi obediently replied as she continued to stare at him.
With a poke at her face, Gu Si pushed her head away.
…
An hour later, at the President’s House.
No matter how young Gu Si was, he was ultimately the owner of Jijing Island—a figure who everyone in the Country couldn’t afford to offend. Meyett thus hurriedly arranged the grandest welcome ceremony for him with all the cabinet members personally waiting to receive him at the entrance.
It didn’t take long before the motorcade arrived at the front of the lawn, and it was unavoidable that both parties would exchange pleasantries when they met. Gu Si didn’t skim off the necessary courtesy, but at the same time, he also didn’t waste his breath on talking nonsense.
After both parties shook hands and greeted one another, they entered the President’s House.
At the bouleuterion.
“Take a seat, Director Gu,” said Meyett politely. “My wife is currently taking care of my youngest daughter, so she can’t receive you. I hope you can understand.”
Gu Si didn’t say anything and simply sat down on the single sofa.
Elder Bai sat next to Gu Si and went straight to the point right away. “Mr. President, let’s not beat around the bush. Just state your terms and hand Princess Xixi over to us.”
“Well…” Meyett let out a bitter laugh. “Elder Bai, Xixi is my daughter after all. How do you expect us to gain a foothold in the international political arena if word gets out that you guys came here to rescue my daughter?”
Holding a cup in his hand, Gu Si looked at Meyett with a smirk on his face. “So you do realize that the person you locked away in Devil Prison is your eldest daughter.”
With the way he spoke, it was like each of his words had become invisible whips that slapped the cabinet members in their faces. Sitting in front of them was just a little kid, but the moment he spoke, his presence overwhelmed them—people who had years of experience in the political arena.
For a moment, dead silence lingered in the air.
Elder Bai then smiled and broke the silence. “As far as I know, Princess Xixi and Princess Sasha are sisters. Does the cabinet have the right to meddle in the president’s family affairs?”
The Secretary of State clearly didn’t feel that way, however. His tone was cold and hard, although his words couldn’t believe his lack of confidence. “Director Gu, Elder, the president’s family affairs concern the country as well. What’s more, the person Princess Xixi hurt is Princess Sasha, who’s the intelligence department’s director as well as future successor.”
The cabinet members felt like an invisible hand was gripping their hearts when they felt Gu Si’s eyes on them.
Another cabinet member spoke up. “Princess Xixi has done nothing over the years. As the eldest princess, she not only made no contributions to the country, but she even hurt the second princess. I’m sure everyone knows what exactly she was trying to do without me stating the obvious. From what I see, she’s jealous that her sister is capable enough to become the director of the intelligence department and gain everyone’s respect.”
“Jealous?” He Yidu scoffed. “Why would my fiancée need to be jealous of your second princess?”
Everyone was rendered speechless, for they couldn’t be any clearer about the background He Yidu had. The latter was in the same camp as the Lu family, and the reason why he didn’t resort to brute force and showed them some face was only because of the Deiss family.
The current head of the intelligence bureau calmly said, “People are greedy. With your support, it’s not hard to understand why all the more the eldest princess wants to suppress the second princess.”
“That’s right, everyone knows how much she dislikes the First Lady and the second princess.”
“The second princess has done her utmost for the country over the years, while the eldest princess was happily squandering money outside. Putting aside the issue of sisterhood, the fact that she injured the second princess has inconvenienced the intelligence department!”
“If the second princess’s hand can’t fully recover, the eldest princess has basically destroyed her future!”
“Not just the cabinet members, but even everyone from the technical division is jointly demanding a severe punishment for the eldest princess.”
“We—”
Thud!
The cup landed heavily on the coffee table, putting a halt to the angry voices.
The entire conference hall was filled with silence for a moment as everyone from the President’s House looked in the direction where the sound came from.
Gu Si was putting down the cup and leaning back against the sofa. The smirk on his face and the hostility in his eyes sent chills down their spine. He lightly rapped his fingers on the sofa’s armrests. “Don’t bother making a mountain out of a molehill. I’m not interested to hear about your country’s internal affairs. I just want to hear an answer; are you releasing her or not?”
“No!” The guard pushed open the conference hall’s doors for Miraine to walk in.
The cabinet members bowed slightly at her. “Madam.”
Miraine took a seat next to her husband, who asked her, “How is Sasha?”
“She just woke up.” Miraine’s face was pale. “The doctor said that her hand can’t recover and that he can only guarantee that it won’t affect her daily life. I’m afraid that it’ll be very difficult for her to do something that requires agility and speed.”
Meyett frowned.
The Secretary of State looked at He Yidu. “Mr. He, why would the eldest princess go so hard on the second princess if she wasn’t jealous of her? She was out to destroy the second princess!”
“Everyone saw how the eldest princess threw the second princess down the stairs! I bet she couldn’t stand the fact that the second princess is much more capable than her.”
Clap, clap, clap.
Gu Si raised his hands and clapped while smiling cynically with raised eyebrows. “Sis Lin is jealous of your second princess? That’s news to me.”
Nobody understood what Gu Si meant. They stared blankly at him. Finally, Meyett asked, “What do you mean by that, Director Gu?”
“Shadow League’s Nine Tails isn’t as capable as your second princess?” Gu Si sneered. “When has Country D’s intelligence bureau gotten so capable such that a small director can be compared to a veteran member of Shadow League? They can’t even come close.”
Nine Tails is Lin Shuang? As soon as the thought appeared in Miraine’s mind, she immediately dismissed it. Impossible… If Lin Shuang were so capable, she would’ve come back long ago to vie for her position with us.
Meyett froze and seemed to be shocked by what Gu Si said as he unconsciously asked, “Xixi… is Shadow League’s Nine Tails?”
Elder Bai asked in mock surprise, “Don’t tell me that you weren’t aware of your own daughter’s affairs, Mr. President?”
Meyett’s gaze flickered out of guilt and embarrassment while Miraine squeezed her fingers tightly, her eyes lowered and filled with disbelief.
Just the fame of Shadow League’s mysterious hackers was enough to strike fear in people. Arctic Fox was the top hacker. The others included Nine Tails, Black Eagle, Ghost, and Scorpion. They were all top-level hackers themselves. Among the female hackers, Nine Tails’ skills were considered terrifying, and she was an expert at invading systems with viruses.
Nine Tails… is Lin Shuang? The cabinet members stared dumbly at Gu Si in their seats.
For a while, nobody spoke.
Gu Si looked at the time impatiently. “My time is very precious. I’ll ask you one last time. Are you releasing her or not?”
Why didn’t ‘he’ tell us about this? Miraine hadn’t expected that Lin Shuang to be Shadow League’s top hacker, Nine Tails. Upon hearing Gu Si’s voice, she gathered her thoughts and said coldly, “What does her being a Shadow League member have to do with her pushing my daughter down the stairs?”
Gu Si frowned.
“My daughter is now injured! She’s still so young, and yet her future has been destroyed! Who’s going to take responsibility for this?” Miraine refused to give up. Her eyes rimmed red as she said, “If she’s that capable Nine Tails, then why can’t she even tolerate her own younger sister?”
“Madam is right. No matter what, the eldest princess caused the second princess to suffer such heavy injuries!”
“First, you claimed that Lin Shuang did it out of jealousy because she was incompetent, but now that you found out that she’s Nine Tails, you’re saying that she couldn’t even tolerate her own sister.” He Yidu swept his glance over at the people standing opposite him. His brown eyes were cold and serious. He said lightly and slowly, “We’re already showing you some face, yet you refuse to accept it?”
The air seemed to be frozen, and a murderous aura seemed to weigh down on the cabinet members. Even Meyett couldn’t help but be frightened by this side of He Yidu.
Elder Bai stepped in. “Let’s not make things too ugly. If we take action, there’ll be no room for turning things around again. Don’t you agree?”
“Jijing Island is also getting involved with this matter?” The Secretary of State squeezed his fingers.
Elder Bai politely smiled back. “We can’t waste this trip after all.”
In other words, he was saying, “Don’t blame us for taking action when you refuse to cooperate.”
The Secretary of State’s expression darkened.
“You probably still want Devil Prison around, don’t you?” He Yidu had completely lost his patience. “Devil Prison is known to have impenetrable defenses. Do you want to test it to see how many minutes it can last against my attacks?”
“He Yidu!” Miraine’s expression became strained.
Gu Si hooked the corners of his lips. “You people know very well how the stairs incident happened. Who are you even trying to fool?”
Miraine glared at them as she heaved heavily.
The Secretary of State looked at Miraine and whispered, “Madam?”
Miraine didn’t respond to him.
Meyett moved his fingers. It was only after a few seconds of silence that he finally said, “Director Gu, Xixi is also my daughter, but Sasha’s hand is seriously injured. I’d like to ask Young Madam Lu to treat her hand.”
Gu Si looked at him.
Miraine inhaled deeply. “Fine, I can release Lin Shuang on the condition that you guys can make Sasha’s hand fully recover.”
Gu Si raised his eyebrows slightly.
Miraine continued, “As long as the Miracle Doctor can treat Sasha’s hand, I won’t hold this matter against Lin Shuang. But I want her to promise that she won’t ever step into Country D’s political arena!”
It was no different from expelling Lin Shuang from the President’s House.
Gu Si and He Yidu exchanged glances.
“Director Gu, when will the Miracle Doctor arrive?” Miraine asked.
Gu Si blandly replied, “I’ll tell you when she’s here.”
Miraine didn’t ask for the time. Instead, she squeezed her fingers and said, “Okay, all I want is for my daughter to be safe and sound.”
“In that case, please have your lunch first, Director Gu, Elder Bai,” Meyett said before looking at He Yidu. “What about you, Yidu?”
His attitude toward He Yidu remained polite.
“I’ll just stay here,” answered He Yidu.
…
Miraine returned to Sasha’s ward and told her about Lin Shuang.
“She’s Nine Tails?” Sasha’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Miraine nodded as she poured a cup of water for her daughter. “Don’t move. Your hand is badly hurt this time.”
Sasha’s eyes drooped blankly, and she seemed to be out of it.
For a while, the ward was extremely quiet.
Sasha calmed down and looked at her own hand, her voice somewhat gloomy when she asked, “Will Dad let Lin Shuang replace me?”
Miraine took a straw for Sasha. “Don’t worry, we made our move just in time. Lin Shuang won’t get the chance.”
When she heard that, Sasha heaved a sigh of relief.
“You don’t have to worry since Mr. Xu is around,” Miraine added.
“Mm.” Sasha’s eyes were serious when she looked up. “Mom, where’s Gu Si?”
“Having lunch at the President’s House.” Miraine placed the cup down. “We’re waiting for Lu Chengzhou and Gu Mang to arrive.”
Sasha sneered. “Lin Shuang thinks those people can save her? They’re helpless themselves.”
…
When Gu Si and the others finished their lunch, Meyett said, “I’ve arranged guest rooms for you. You can go take a short rest first.”
“No need,” Elder Bai politely declined. “We’ll just stay in the living room.”
Meyett didn’t insist on it. Thus, everyone returned to the living room.
While Meyett and Elder Bai talked about some political issues and the intention to work with each other, Gu Si held his phone and texted Yun Ling about the situation on his side.
[Yun Ling: I don’t get it. With that foul temper of hers, she obediently let herself get locked up at Devil Prison?]
Gu Si couldn’t figure it out either. [Gu Si: Let’s just wait until my sis arrives.]
[Yun Ling: It’s strange.]
Miraine walked over just then and asked, “Is the Miracle Doctor not here yet?”
Gu Si and the others didn’t reply, while Meyett simply shook his head.
Miraine glanced at the doorway before taking a seat.
Gu Si continued to chat with Yun Ling for a little longer before putting his phone away and thinking about the events that happened earlier.
All of a sudden, Tang Yi, who was sitting next to him, suddenly yawned.
Gu Si returned to his senses and turned to look at her, only to see her dense and moist eyelashes. “Feeling sleepy?”
Tang Yi nodded her little head and met his gaze while explaining softly, “I didn’t play games last night.”
She didn’t stay up last night, yet she’s suddenly feeling sleepy? Gu Si narrowed his eyes.
Miraine asked, “Is Ms. Tang feeling sleepy? I’ll get the butler to prepare a room for you. You can go take a nap.”
“Want to nap for a while?” Gu Si asked Tang Yi.
Tang Yi shook her head. “No, I’ll stay here and wait for Sis Gu.”
As soon as she said that, she yawned again. Her eyes became even wetter and redder.
Gu Si looked at Miraine. “Thank you.”
Miraine smiled and nodded before ordering the butler to take Tang Yi upstairs.
Gu Si held Tang Yi’s hand, stood up, and looked at He Yidu. “Brother Du, I’ll come down later.”
It would take at least three hours for Gu Mang to arrive.
He Yidu nodded.
…
The butler pushed open the guest room. “Please enter. You can press the pager to summon me if you need anything.”
Gu Si nodded and politely thanked him.
The room was filled with a faint Peace Lily scent, which stimulated sleep.
Gu Si raised his eyebrows slightly and pulled Tang Yi inside, making her sit on the bed before squatting down to remove her shoes. He then pulled back the blanket and lifted his chin. “Go sleep.”
“Okay.” Tang Yi obediently lay down on the bed and covered herself with the blanket. She stared at Gu Si and said in a childish voice, “Brother Gu, you don’t have to care about me. I’ll take a little nap and then go down to look for you.”
“Don’t talk. Sleep.” Gu Si smoothed out the creases of the blanket for her.
“Okay,” said Tang Yi once more before closing her eyes and soon dozing off. It didn’t take long before her breaths became long and even.
Gu Si sat on the edge of the bed for a while and soon began to yawn as well. After yawning for the fifth time, he decided to set an alarm on his phone so that it would ring an hour later. Thereafter, he got up and took a small blanket, and lay down on the sofa.
Meanwhile…
In another bedroom, Shadi and the butler were watching a monitor screen that showed Gu Si and Tang Yi fast asleep. They exchanged looks with each other, and the butler said in trepidation, “I heard that the people from Jijing Island have unique constitutions, so I was really afraid that the drug wouldn’t work on them.”
“The drug was provided by Mr. Xu, so there’s no way that it wouldn’t work.” Shadi then removed her earphone. “Take action.”
As soon as she said that, the screen showed the bathroom door opening and a few tall and burly men in black walking out of it with a child.
Light footsteps sounded in the room, and the dim lighting fell onto the child’s face, which looked almost exactly the same as Gu Si.
