“What are you doing?” Ye Luo walked over as he looked at her strand of actions.

  “You’ll see.” Qin Shu patted Boss’ head, pointed at the lounge a few meters away to indicate it to go over. Looking at the familiar device on its leg, Boss had acknowledged its mission. It had stared into her eyes before wandering into the darkness in stealth. Fu Tingyu and his people might have been at the lounge, Ye Luo thought, as he watched Boss heading in the direction of the lounge.

  Cats possessed high intellectuality among other house pets. When it had sensed someone was there, Boss started to move at a slower pace, and it was submerged within the shadows as he approached the lounge. Meanwhile, Qin Shu took out her laptop from her pocket inside her tailor-made suit—she had it especially sewn for this purpose—then she put it on her lap, booted the device, and turned on the surveillance software.

  It was pitch-black at first, and the camera was shaking before it finally subsided after a second. The first person that appeared on the camera was a man sitting on a chair—tall and bulky, and his skin tanned. His hair was cropped short and his face ferocious. He had an army green horse riding outfit on, and his muscles had popped through the tight apparel.

  Qin Shu was definite that this man was Xiye Ze, the equestrian’s owner—though she had never met him—and standing behind him were a dozen gigantic men with well-built bodies and bronze skin, who had menacing and frightening looks on them.

  Though Boss could not hear Qin Shu, she blurted out, “Turn around! Ugh, c’mon, Boss.”


  Ye Luo could not help watching the screen as he finally sat down beside her. He was too eager to know how Fu Tingyu was doing, and none other people mattered.

  As if it had heard Qin Shu’s plead, Boss turned in another direction, and the camera went out of focus before they could see a visible image.

  Through the lens, Fu Tingyu wore a light green, well-fitted horse riding suit as he sat across Xiye Ze. Yet, he had seemed pale and his lips blue and discolored. Shi Yan and his other men were standing behind him, and they all looked alarmed and on guard.

  It was quiet. Too quiet. Qin Shu could almost hear their hearts throbbing and their stomachs churning. The hostility in the air was distinct, but no one was speaking.

  Qin Shu had inferred that both Fu Tingyu and Xiye Ze were still on good terms as they had gone horseriding in the afternoon, but something must have happened in between and broke the harmony.

  Being silent the whole time, Ye Luo concluded, “It looks like Lord Fu is hurt.”


  It was possible. Qin Shu had thought that it was peculiar no parties had broken the stalemate when the silence had already stretched for so long, and one of the reasons could be because Fu Tingyu was injured, plus his strength had depleted. If not, he could have dealt with Xiye Ze without effort.

  That, or his poison was going into effect.

  She could not sit just still anymore, and she demanded, “I have to distract them.”


  Time was running short, and they had the best chance to strike when Xiye Ze had thought they had the upper hand.

  Ye Luo frowned. “No. You can’t go.”


  “You’ve seen the footage.” She continued, “They’re at their limits, and they couldn’t hold on any longer. Do you want them captured?”


  Clenching his jaw as he stared at Fu Tingyu on the screen, Ye Luo tightened his lips. “It’s too dangerous.”


  “The situation is out of control. Now is the right time, and we could still save Fu Tingyu. We can’t just sit here and do nothing.” Ye Luo was out of words, and Qin Shu knew his heart wavered, “Don’t worry. I won’t get hurt.”


  Ye Luo could not help but doubt the petite girl in front of him—their enemy was cold-blooded and brutal. Can she make it?

  “It’s settled then.” Qin Shu handed the laptop to Ye Luo, and he subconsciously took it. Then, she took out two black devices from her other pocket and gave them to him. He had recognized them. Qin Shu leaned closer as she whispered something in his ears, but Ye Luo seemed perplexed about her plan.

  At this moment, Boss had returned in its agile steps. As it stared at Qin Shu, she leaned down and held it in her arms. Before leaving, she reminded, “Just stick to the plan.” And she had walked towards the stables with Boss.

  With the laptop in one hand and the two explosive golf balls on the other, Ye Luo watched as her shadow merged into the night. He had thought that she was a completely different person tonight—dauntless and resourceful. Even if she knew she was walking on thin ice, she did not back out. He was too much in awe of her new image, but soon he had gotten to work following her instructions.

  ***

  There was a pungent smell coming from the stables. But to have Qin Shu’s plan succeed, she had to bear with it. She began to pick out her desired ride among the horses, while Boss had widened its eyes, looking disgusted because of the unpleasant odor. The air was unbreathable, but Qin Shu had not noticed the revolted look on its face. She was busy looking at the horses.

  She was almost at the end of the stables, but none was her preference—the tamed horses were not robust enough, and they lacked spirit though they were tall. She thought she would make do with the remaining two horses and make an unambiguous entrance.

  As she was ready to untie the rope of the last horse, she had noticed a single horse stable from the corner of her eye, and inside was a beautiful, shiny horse. The tuft of red hair from its forehead stood out under the dim light.