After ninety-nine online romances, I finally met my ex in person when school started.

Inside the abandoned basement, Zhu Xun Chuan stared at the photos that had been scratched all over the walls.

He turned and walked out of Factory Building No. 3 of the Red Star Textile Factory. The night wind carried away the musty and gunpowder smell from him. He returned to his Audi A8L parked in the weeds.

The lights were off in the carriage. He leaned back in his leather seat and lit a cigarette. The dim red light from the dashboard illuminated his profile, giving him a chilling and menacing aura.

He wouldn't allow Bai He, that stubborn, crazy girl, to go to her death. Since she had chosen a dead end where not even a fly could get in, then he would shatter the heavens of this city.

Zhu Xun Chuan took out the satellite phone with military-grade encryption and accessed the absolutely secretive communication layer provided by the system.

Tap your finger. Create a new encrypted group chat.

[You have invited "Little Candy" to join the group chat.]

[You have invited "Dark Rose" to join the group chat.]

[You have invited "Starry River" to join the group chat.]

[You have invited "Qingfeng Mingyue" to join the group chat.]

The system notification sounded continuously inside the car as four people joined the group.

At this moment, he ruthlessly and forcibly combined the most elite and secretive power network in Beijing—the military region, the underworld, the municipal bureau, and the municipal party committee—into one channel.

The group chat was silent for a full ten seconds.

Clearly, these four women, who were of high status and usually arrogant, were staring at the completely unfamiliar IDs on the screen.

The first to break the silence was Shen Tianxi, the granddaughter of the commander of the Tianjin Military Region.

[Little Candy]: Brother Chuan? Who are these aunties? [Cat tilting its head and peeking emoji]

[Dark Rose]: Auntie? You little brat, you haven't even grown your hair yet, who are you calling auntie? When I was wielding a knife and cutting people down in the North, you were still playing in the mud. Brother Chuan, what kind of shady wild women are these?

[Qingfengmingyue]: Jiang, watch your words and manners. Also, Zhu Xunchuan, why are you creating this group in the middle of the night? What is your motivation? I hope you can provide a reasonable explanation.

Gu Qinghan keenly noticed the words "Northern Border" and immediately identified Jiang Yao as the person in question. At the same time, she used the tone of a counselor to exert pressure, attempting to gain the upper hand in the group chat.

[Starry Sky]: Gentle breeze and bright moon, Teacher Gu? It seems that your strict teacher demeanor in the ward is only for show.

Fu Xinghe, with his keen insight, instantly saw through the other three's true nature. The atmosphere in the group chat exploded with tension. These four women, usually admired by countless others as wealthy heiresses, now found themselves all in Zhu Xun Chuan's territory, their fierce protective instincts clashing violently. The intense jealousy was palpable even through the screen.

Zhu Xun Chuan did not give them time to continue their rivalry.

He directly accessed the group management interface and enabled a one-minute mute for all members.

The screen went clean instantly.

Zhu Xun Chuan pressed the voice button, his voice deep and cold, carrying an undeniable domineering presence.

"Shut up, all of you."

"I'm facing a dead end. It involves top-tier security, a first-rate assassin, and a life I owe. This is a very dangerous situation; one wrong step and it's all over."

"Put aside your personal grudges. I need the combined efforts of all four of you."

"If you're willing to help me, type 1. If you feel it's dangerous and want to quit, quit now; I won't force you."

Voice message sent.

Zhu Xun Chuan's ban is lifted.

In less than a second, four replies popped up on the screen in unison.

[Little Candy]: 1! Hmph, I'll do your bidding first, and you'll have to make it up to me double in bed when we get back! You're not allowed to get hurt at all!

[Dark Rose]: 1. Brother Chuan, tell me, who should we cut down? I'll immediately transfer the elite troops from the North to the capital.

[Qingfengmingyue]: 1. What authority from the Municipal Bureau is required?

[Starry Sky]: 1. The government intranet interface is ready. Be careful, I'll be waiting for you to come back for tea.

This is the true nature of these four women. Jealousy aside, and bickering aside, when Zhu Xun Chuan is truly in danger, they reveal the strategic vision of top-tier heiresses and an extremely unreasonable instinct to protect their own.

Zhu Xun Chuan's eyes revealed admiration. He had a cigarette in his mouth and his hands rapidly tapped the screen, issuing commands.

"Qinghan, investigate the flow of batches of 'Zero Point' nerve agent smuggled through customs over the past two years."

"Yaoyao, use the Jiang family's dark web channels to investigate the source of the overseas payment account for that 'god-killing' bounty."

"Sweetie, follow the accounts Yao Yao found out and use the military's internal network to expose their Haihe Shell Company's true colors."

"Xinghe, take the list of shell companies that Tianxi finally extracted and go to the government archives to check and see who the political backer behind this conglomerate really is."

The four directives were clearly structured and well-defined, perfectly unifying the previously separate lines of police, gangsters, military, and government. From within the train carriage, he directly controlled the city's highest intelligence network.

The carriage fell into dead silence. Only the occasional flicker of a cell phone screen could be heard.

Twenty minutes later.

[Qingfengmingyue] sent an encrypted file: "The poison entered the country six months ago via a smuggling ship from Southeast Asia. The final recipient was a ghost account codenamed 'Sea God.' The Municipal Bureau's technical investigation team cannot find the actual controller."

[Dark Night Rose] followed up with a message: "Brother Chuan, I found it. The one hundred million US dollar smuggling for 'Godslayer' was also paid for by the Swiss bank account linked to 'Poseidon'. These people are really rich."

[Little Candy] sent a structure diagram: "Too simple! I used the military region's first-level algorithm to follow the clues. The parent company of this account is 'Dragon Offshore,' registered in the British Virgin Islands. This company has dozens of shell companies in China and is a long-established conglomerate's cash pool."

[Starry River] followed up: "Although the list of actual controllers of 'Dragon Soaring' has been encrypted and erased, I found that it wholly owned a security group ten years ago. And that tycoon who is about to return to Beijing for recuperation was a specially appointed honorary consultant of this security group back then. The clues are now complete."

At this moment, Zhu Xun Chuan held the confidential information from all sides in his hands, completely tearing away the deep-seated fog of mystery.

Zhu Xun Chuan typed out a line of text.

"Target confirmed. Next Tuesday, Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, 70th birthday banquet. Retired bigwig."

The group chat fell silent instantly.

Gu Qinghan, Fu Xinghe, Shen Tianxi, and Jiang Yao—these four women with incredibly powerful backgrounds all felt a chill run down their spines upon seeing the words "Diaoyutai State Guesthouse."

The security level at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse is legendary in Beijing. For the birthday banquet next Tuesday, even the waiters will have their family histories checked for three generations. For Bai He to carry out an assassination in such a place isn't a mission; it's pure suicide.

Zhu Xun Chuan's fingers flew across the screen, and an overwhelming sense of dominance emanated from the words.

"Yao Yao, use all of the Northern Territory's underground channels in the capital to shut down the black market for arms and medicines. Cut off all of her supply lines for the next few days."

"Qinghan, under the guise of joint stability maintenance with the Municipal Bureau, set up informants and plainclothes surveillance points three kilometers outside Diaoyuntai. Remember, only monitor, do not arrest anyone."

"Xinghe, use the municipal party committee's quota to get me a VIP invitation to my birthday banquet next Tuesday."

"Sweetie, use the highest level of military network access to monitor all abnormal communication frequencies around Diaoyutai 24 hours a day."

He took full control of the entire defense network of Beijing, laying a vast net to trap Bai He, who was determined to die.

The group chat responded in unison with "Received".

Everything was arranged. Zhu Xun Chuan rolled down the car window and flicked the cigarette butt into the weeds outside. He reached for the start button, preparing to start the vehicle and leave the abandoned factory area.

Just then, the phone screen suddenly lit up.

Jiang Yao sent her last message in the group chat.

[Dark Rose]: "Brother Chuan, I just looked up some information about that retired tycoon. His name is Zhao Tingzhi."

[Dark Rose]: "Wait..."

[Dark Night Rose]: "Isn't that the grandfather of Zhao Taizi of Guangying Media, the one who forced Pei Yanyu to pay an exorbitant breach of contract fee two years ago and was forced to retire from the entertainment industry and go overseas?!"