After the Early-Deceased White Moonlight of a Wealthy Family Returns (GL) - Chapter 24.1

Meng Dongdong’s heart skipped a beat. “An-an, don’t do anything rash! This is the fourth floor!”

“Or, let’s just explain everything to Sister Su Wu. If all else fails… if all else fails… I’ll just say we were passing by! Ahhh… but passing by here is too ridiculous… What do we do?! What do we do?!”

“I’m leaving through here first.” Shen You’an squeezed Meng Dongdong’s wrist firmly, forcing her to calm down immediately. “Just tell Su Wu you came here to play. If she doesn’t ask, don’t mention me—not a single word.”

“Meng Dongdong, don’t panic, I’ll be fine. I used to… I used to practice free solo climbing abroad. The fourth floor is nothing; it’s easy. I’ll message you once I’m down. Don’t panic.”

“Whatever happens today, Su Wu must not find out.”

From any perspective, Shen You’an didn’t want her to.

Deep down, she even felt that after hearing Meng Dongdong’s words, she wasn’t ready to face Su Wu.

A giant question mark floated in her heart.

Aren’t Su Wu and her sister friends? Why would she do those things to the Shen family, as Meng Dongdong claimed? If Su Wu held such a prejudice against the Shen family, why did she save her? And why has she been so good to her lately?

And why was it such a coincidence that Su Wu appeared here today?

Shen You’an’s mind was a complete mess.

The only thing she could do now was repeatedly instruct Meng Dongdong—

Today’s events must be kept a secret.

Meng Dongdong agreed, but was this something she could hide just because she wanted to? Tears were nearly falling; she sniffled, afraid that speaking loudly would be noticed by those outside. She asked softly and worriedly, “The fourth floor, Xiao An, can you really do it?”

Shen You’an raised her hand and patted her head. “Don’t worry, I won’t die.”

Meng Dongdong’s soul nearly left her body upon hearing those words.

Won’t die?

Is that even something a human says!

She clutched Shen You’an’s clothes, wanting to say more, but heard footsteps stop at the locked door.

Su Wu was asking, “Whose preparation room is this?”

Ji Lan answered in her usual casual tone, “Just a fighter.”

Su Wu said, “Can I take a look?”

Ji Lan laughed. “CEO Su, I’m afraid that’s not quite appropriate, is it? I didn’t know when you planned to dabble in the boxing industry. If you’re interested, we can talk in my office first.”

The hair on Meng Dongdong’s neck stood up, and excuses began flashing through her mind one by one. After cycling through her thoughts, she finally found a lead and turned to speak to Shen You’an. My God. She turned around to find the room empty; the fourth-floor window was wide open, and the sea breeze was howling even louder.

Meng Dongdong hurried to the window, clutching the sill to look out.

October nights in Lingang turn dark very early. Looking down, it was pitch black, like an abyss; she couldn’t see a thing. Occasionally, fine droplets of rain drifted by, quickly sinking into the darkness.

She was gone.

Truly gone.

Meng Dongdong’s legs went weak; she leaned against the window sill, barely able to stand.

After an unknown amount of time, there was a knock on the door—three long and one short.

Meng Dongdong didn’t dare speak.

Until Ji Lan’s voice came through the locked door: “Meng Dongdong? She’s gone.”

“Meng Dongdong? Open the door.”

Meng Dongdong replied tearfully, “Auntie, my… my legs are numb.”

Ji Lan: “…”

After stalling for nearly five minutes, Meng Dongdong opened the door.

Ji Lan’s gaze swept over her from head to toe. After confirming she was unharmed, she looked into the room, searching left and right, but didn’t see another living soul.

“Where’s your friend?”

The thought of it terrified Meng Dongdong. She glanced at the window, not daring to say, only stating, “She… she ran off first.”

Ji Lan raised an eyebrow noncommittally, walked to the window, and shut the glass tight.

“Let’s go,” Ji Lan said. “I’ll take you home.”

Meng Dongdong followed behind her, nodding twice. She couldn’t resist looking back and then pulled out her phone.

A while ago, Shen You’an had sent her a message.

Youan: I am safe.

Youan: Stay safe, let me know when you get home.

Only then did Meng Dongdong’s racing heart settle back into place. She raised her hand and patted her chest. Thank God, thank God, she’s alive.

They were halfway out when they ran into an acquaintance.

Meng Dongdong’s expression soured.

Shen Run walked up, dressed in a suit, looking every bit the refined gentleman.

“Miss Ji,” Shen Run called out.

Ji Lan instantly shielded Meng Dongdong behind her. “Mr. Shen.”

“I wonder why Mr. Shen is here instead of watching the matches in the ring?”

Shen Run said, “I have business, of course.”

He continued, “That fighter just now—I admire her greatly. I wonder if Miss Ji could part with her?”

Ji Lan feigned ignorance. “Many fighters went up just now. I wonder which one Mr. Shen is referring to?”

“The Rabbit,” Shen Run said. “The one with the little girl behind you.”

Meng Dongdong was so scared she gripped Ji Lan’s forearm tightly. Ji Lan patted her hand in comfort.

“I’m sorry,” Ji Lan said. “She isn’t a signed fighter of our ring. I can’t make decisions for her.”

“Then would it be convenient for Miss Ji to provide a contact method?”

“I don’t have one.”

Shen Run smiled, unfazed. “A pity.”

Ji Lan said, “Mr. Shen has already taken quite a few excellent fighters from us. What, are they still not enough?”

Shen Run replied, “Fine steeds are rare; I always cherish talent.”

He pulled a business card from his suit pocket, gesturing to hand it to Meng Dongdong, who was hiding behind Ji Lan. She refused to take it, so Ji Lan took it for her.

Shen Run: “Please have this little girl give this card to that fighter. Just tell her, Shen Run, the head of the Shen Group, would like to discuss some cooperation with her.”

Meng Dongdong: “Hmph.”

Ji Lan: “Is there anything else, Mr. Shen?”

A blatant order to leave.

Shen Run shook his head. “Sorry for the intrusion. I’ll take my leave.”

After Shen Run had walked a few steps away, Meng Dongdong couldn’t resist spitting in disdain.

Ji Lan found it funny. “Do you hate him that much?”

Meng Dongdong: “I hate everything associated with that house!”

Ji Lan: “And this card?”

Meng Dongdong: “I wouldn’t give it to Xiao An even if I had to eat it!”

Ji Lan understood. With a flick of her fingers, the textured business card was crumpled into a ball in her palm.

She tossed it into the trash can.

Outside, beneath the fourth floor in a deserted dark alley, the girl retracted the phone she held in her mutated palm.

Even for the line of text she just typed, she had laboriously used the sharp tip of her blade, pressing it out bit by bit like “one-finger zen.”

She should have used voice-to-text.

Shen You’an leaned against the wall, breathing softly.

The current situation was slightly beyond her expectations.

Shen You’an looked up. The boxing ring venue was built by the sea. Jumping from the lounge on the fourth floor, if she walked outward, she would hit the bustling, brightly lit areas crowded with people. She didn’t dare, so she had to retreat. This retreat led her into a dead end.

Before her, there was nothing but the vast sea and the harbor.

Above was a deep blue, almost black sky. The rain wasn’t heavy—just a drizzle, the kind an old person would say wouldn’t amount to much. The clouds were thin, and a pale yellow moon peeked through with a hazy face.

It was very round, like a pancake.

Shen You’an realized in hindsight that today was around the fifteenth of the lunar month, which explained the moon.

Not good.

Shen You’an bit her lip, staring at her claws that she couldn’t retract for the time being. She could even feel that beneath this eerie full moon, a monster that had been dormant at her shoulder blades for days was awakening. Beneath her pale skin, an extraordinary presence was gradually growing within her normal flesh. Bones were being shattered and reconstructed; the pain was no longer worth mentioning.

She took a few steps back, huddling in the shadows.

The wind carried the unique scent of Su Wu.

Shen You’an heard someone shouting at the alley entrance: “CEO Su, have you found the person you were looking for?”

Su Wu didn’t speak.

“CEO Su, should we look around outside? We haven’t checked the perimeter yet.”

Shen You’an immediately tightened the alarm in her mind and quickly entered a state of vigilance.

She glanced at the sea behind her. At night, the sea became silent and mysterious, with the tide surging with the wind—splash, splash—emitting terrifying sounds one after another. The rain suddenly intensified, pitter-pattering down.

If someone came over, she had no choice.

Shen You’an secretly moved two steps toward the sea. The bone wings hidden beneath her skin were already beginning to grow under the moonlight. Like a flower blooming, there was a sudden, bloody, tragic beauty—having lost flesh and feathers, leaving only a slender, sharp skeleton, like a fossil weathered for a thousand years. Its surface was cold, with a deathly luster. Even the raindrops passing over the joints were sharply sliced in half.

She felt the muscles all over her body changing as the wings continued to expand. They tore, snapped, and reconstructed in a cycle.

On the other side of the sea, an unnamed storm seemed to be brewing.

Shen You’an was considering whether to jump into the sea.

“No need.” Su Wu’s voice came like a life-saving antidote, so timely. “I’ve found the person I was looking for. Thank you for your hard work; you can head back first.”

“Then CEO Su, we’ll head off?”

“Mhm.”

The sea breeze was very cool, carrying a faint fishy scent.

Shen You’an curled up in the corner, using her bone wings to circle out a cage for herself.

At the exit of the alley, the place closest to the light.

A black Maybach blocked the entrance. The woman was dressed in a slate-grey jumpsuit, her white-gold belt exuding a strong sense of old money. She looked down at her phone, indifferent to the gazes of passersby.

On the screen, the watch data showed abnormalities; too many red warnings covered the notification bar.

On the mini-map of Lingang, behind her, a tiny red dot was flickering slightly.

Su Wu leaned against the car and looked up at the moon. For the first time, she hated that the moon was so bright, and for the first time, she felt an urge to smoke.

After an unknown amount of time, Shen You’an heard Su Wu seemingly on the phone: “I’ve arrived. I found the person you asked me to look for. Where are you? …Fine, I’ll head over first.”

Thud—the sound of a car door closing. Vroom—the sound of the engine starting.

Su Wu left.

Shen You’an breathed a sigh of relief. She restrained herself with all her might, gritting her teeth as she forced the bone wings back into her body. She hunched her back, pulled her denim jacket tight, pulled up the hood of her hoodie, and walked out in her sneakers.

At the alley entrance, an umbrella that someone had forgotten to take was leaning open under the eaves.

“Miss, is this your umbrella?” someone asked.

Shen You’an buried her head and shook it.

“Then I’ll borrow it for a bit! This rain is too heavy!”

Shen You’an moved aside to give some space, pulled her hood tight, and ran quickly into the rain.