Chapter 31 Lin Jingru, the White-Haired Witch Carrying a "Nuclear Bomb"

A cool, high-end office connected to a reception room.

Two women sat facing each other at opposite ends of the coffee table.

"You're asking me for someone? All I have here are animals, robots, and 'virus' employees. Who do you need?"

Ji Fenglan sat upright with her hands folded on her knees, her posture relaxed yet graceful.

Across from her, the white-haired girl with a high ponytail said expressionlessly, "S04. I know she's here with you."

“S04?” Ji Fenglan looked confused, then lowered his eyes, pretending to be thinking about who this person was.

“If I remember correctly, S04 is the personnel number for the ‘Firethorn Rose’ department. You should ask Manager R.”

Lin Jingru's eyes turned cold instantly, but she maintained the last shred of politeness: "Manager G, please hand over S04 Qi Shuihan as soon as possible."

"I'm sorry, Miss Lin, I really don't have such a person here."

Ji Fenglan's expression remained gentle, but she suddenly asked curiously, "Why are you tracking S04? What did she do to anger the group? I've been focusing on researching the new virus here and haven't been back to the group for two months."

“G Management.” Lin Jingru’s tone was cold and hard, clearly losing patience: “I’m sorry I can’t tell you! Just hand the person over to me.”

Ji Fenglan sighed, treating Lin Jingru like a child throwing a tantrum. She sighed and rubbed her forehead in exasperation: "Why are you so sure she's here with me? Please provide a reasonable explanation."

“Before I came here, I had already spoken with R management. S04 never went back after the mission failed. I suspect she fled here to avoid punishment.”

Lin Jingru took out a folded electronic device, unfolded the full screen, placed it on the coffee table, tapped it a few times, and then pushed it.

"This is the tracking record."

The electronic device slid to Ji Fenglan's side and stopped.

Ji Fenglan picked it up and looked at it.

"The records show that she vanished without a trace after arriving here. You have special shielding devices here, which are fully capable of concealing her movements."

Ji Fenglan meticulously tapped the screen, as if conducting virus research, completely ignoring Lin Jingru's sophistry.

She looked for two minutes, and Lin Jingru waited for her for two minutes.

"How was it? Have you come up with a reasonable excuse?" Lin Jingru's face was cold, but her tone was mocking and made people feel hot.

"So it was her." Ji Fenglan suddenly realized, her amber eyes softening.

“My base does have shielding devices, but that doesn’t prove I actively harbored S04. You said you asked R management before coming here, right?”

She paused, adjusted her gold-rimmed glasses, and continued, "Can I suspect that Manager R is protecting S04? After all, his relationship with S04 goes beyond a superior-subordinate relationship. Manager G has done a lot of outrageous things to protect her, even giving up 6% of the shares."

When it came to giving up shares, she shook her head slightly in disapproval.

Lin Jingru stared at her, her eyes flashing with a cold light as if she were wavering.

"Does G management mean that R management lied to me?"

Suddenly, his eyes flashed, and he let out a cold snort.

Ji Fenglan thought she was going to say something more.

However, Lin Jingru remained silent, sizing up Ji Fenglan with a predatory gaze, her cold eyes watching the show as if waiting for her to reveal a flaw.

Anyone would get impatient being repeatedly convicted by a willful girl in her early twenties.

Ji Fenglan was known for his good temper. After frowning and thinking for a moment, he decided to bring out the private communications between the management team.

"You said that R management told you the person was with me and even provided proof. What a coincidence, just three days ago, R management mentioned that I needed to strengthen security around the base and even specifically transferred and installed the latest system..."

Lin Jingru's eyes flickered.

"...As for S04, or the recent changes in the group, there was no mention of it at all. I don't think R management would tell me about their department's affairs either. — Little D, instruction 856, replay."

The reception room was dimly lit. A chandelier with round, tentacle-like heads lit up, projecting a virtual screen. A straight voice line in the center began to ripple and vibrate, and then a man's voice appeared.

A few minutes later, the sound stopped, and the reception room returned to normal.

Ji Fenglan pushed up her glasses: "So, which of you two is telling the truth?"

"Hmph." Lin Jingru said coldly, "Maybe you two are putting on an act together?"

"Lin Jingru!" Ji Fenglan's gentle expression instantly turned serious. She stood up and glanced at Lin Jingru, who was sitting there. Her expressionless appearance exuded an air of authority.

"I don't have time to play around with you right now. If you don't want me to report today's events to General Manager Lin, or to say that I'm siding with outsiders—please take your time."

She turned around and opened the door, her imposing demeanor replaced by a gentle smile: "Excuse me, I won't see you out. Please."

Upon hearing the name "President Lin," also known as Lin Zhijun, Lin Jingru's phoenix eyes widened slightly. Her dark, bright eyes stared intently at Ji Fenglan, and her hands, which were in her pockets, clenched into fists, making a slight cracking sound under the fabric.

The quiet reception room was filled with an undercurrent of tension.

After a while, Lin Jingru slowly stood up and walked towards the door as if nothing had happened. As she passed Ji Fenglan, she suddenly said, "Arrange rooms for me and my people."

Ji Fenglan looked at her strangely. She wondered to herself if the other woman wasn't afraid Lin Zhijun would find out she had helped…

"As the future successor of the group, it's time to take on some responsibilities, familiarize myself with the various departments of the group, and learn how to handle various affairs. So, let's start with G management."

Ji Fenglan's gaze froze for a second behind her glasses, then she maintained her flawless smile: "President Lin will be very pleased when he finds out."

Lin Jingru said coldly, "Tell Dad, make him happy. Also, tell him that the person he was talking to has been tacitly acknowledging that I'm doing things that are disloyal to outsiders."

Ji Fenglan's smile remained unchanged: "I will teach you well during this time." Behind the anti-violet lenses, her eyes narrowed slightly.

Over two days, Lin Jingru used the excuse of familiarizing herself with the base to enter and exit almost all the rooms and the artificially cultivated natural area, but she found nothing.

She stubbornly stayed for two more days, turning the base upside down, but still couldn't find the person.

Ji Fenglan was busy entertaining guests and conducting experiments. On the fifth day, Lin Jingru suddenly left without saying a word, taking everyone with her.

As she pondered what drastic move Lin Jingru would make next, a private old number she hadn't been able to reach in years called.

The person on the phone was a young woman who spoke with the distinctive accent of the Normec family, a century-old European family. The moment she heard it, she thought of her mentor who had passed away a few years earlier.

The young woman didn't exchange pleasantries with her, but instead got straight to the point and talked about two things.

These two events are like two swords combined, their blades aimed directly at the actual controller of the Rose Group.

They had a pleasant conversation and both got what they wanted.

Area B, artificial bamboo forest breeding area.

In the lush green forest, a banyan tree, as thick as two people could hug, stands tall on the hillside, its thick roots spreading several meters through the soil.

A woman emerged from the bamboo grove swaying in the wind. She approached the banyan tree and walked into the shady spot on the hillside.

Parting the long, drooping tree roots, Ji Fenglan ventured deeper into the woods, where a rusty iron gate appeared.

She stood still for a few seconds, the iron gate recognized her, and she entered the room.

The room isn't large; you can see the entire living area at a glance. It's a two-bedroom, one-living-room layout, enough for one person to live in.

All the furniture was pushed to the sides and placed against the walls, and a large rug was laid in the center of the room.

A woman wearing only briefs sat cross-legged on the carpet, her back to Ji Fenglan. A jar of ointment was placed to her right, and her long, straight, black hair was swept to her right shoulder.

Just a few days ago, her beautiful back was smooth and delicate, but now it was marred by a horrifying, swollen, purplish-red wound that ran diagonally from her left shoulder down to her right waist. Under the overhead light, a silver line gleamed within the wound.

"Hmm? What brings you here?" Qi Shuihan turned her head, her captivating fox-like eyes smiling. "Aren't you afraid she'll find out?"

Ji Fenglan moved a chair over and sat down on the edge of the carpet.

"If we find out, we'll hand you over."

Adjusting his glasses, his gaze fell on Qi Shuihan's action of applying medicine.

Qi Shuihan smiled coldly, scooped out a large piece of ointment, folded her hand and placed it on her back. The silvery liquid, like a small ant carrying the ointment, gradually covered the wound.

"Lin Jingru is so persistent in looking for you, could it be that you've deceived them about something?"

Upon hearing the words "them," Qi Shuihan, who had her back to her, sat up straight without her hands trembling, only subtly moving her eyes.

"Why would I lie to my future boss?"

“S04, I advise you to be honest with me. I’ve wasted too much of my time on you and them.”

“I wouldn’t dare to deceive you. However, during the mission with the group, I offended Lin Jingru quite a bit. After all, she adores her sister so much, and as Misike’s mistress, I couldn’t help but do intimate things that made her jealous.” Qi Shuihan chuckled to himself as he spoke.

Ji Fenglan looked at her calmly: "I have something to ask you."

"Oh?" Qi Shuihan asked curiously, "Even someone as learned as you, Manager G, needs to consult someone like me who has killed many people? Do you want to kill someone? Let me handle the professional matters; why dirty your hands?"

Ji Fenglan shook his head with a faint smile.

"I'd like to ask you, what is a system? What is a host?"

With her back to her, Qi Shuihan's eyes darkened, and she gently combed her beloved, soft, black hair with both hands.

"System, Master Su, names? Who are they? Are they the people you want to kill?"

"Yes. There are two people."

"Oh, is G in a hurry? I'm not fully recovered yet, but if it's urgent, Shui Han will definitely not let you down."

The chair legs moved backward.

"Is G management leaving so soon?"

Qi Shuihan turned to the side and saw that Ji Fenglan had already walked to the door.

"Take good care of yourself and recover. I'll go back and check the information first, then I'll give it to you."

Ji Fenglan stepped out the door. "Oh!"

Suddenly she turned around and smiled warmly: "It just so happens that the person called 'Host' is in the base."

After speaking, she took a step back and let the iron gate close. She saw Qi Shuihan's face turn dark instantly as he turned to the side, his fox-like eyes flashing with a fierce light.

The white walls turned transparent, a door opened, and a woman with her hands in her coat pockets and a short robot walked in.

"Dr. Ji, how's the virus handling in the lab going? You didn't inhale any, did you?"

Li Nai turned to look at Ji Fenglan.

"Thank you for your concern."

Ji Fenglan smiled, and the entire room seemed to shine.

"It's been taken care of a long time ago. It's just that some people have been visiting the base these past few days, so I haven't been able to come and see you."

Ji Fenglan bent down, propped himself up on the bed, and faced Li Nai, his amber eyes carefully examining her pale, listless face.

"You've been very stressed these past few days, haven't been sleeping well, and haven't been eating much? This won't do; your body needs plenty of sleep and nutrition to recover."

Li Nai blinked her heavy eyelids. She also wanted to sleep and eat, but...

"Dr. Ji." She bit her lip, a little embarrassed.

Ji Fenglan sat down on the edge of the bed, using the ballpoint pen he always carried to lift her chin, revealing her face to his eyes. "What's wrong?"

Distracted, Li Nai didn't notice the details of her movements. She looked around and leaned closer, saying, "I always feel like someone is watching me from the shadows." After saying that, her body trembled.

Ji Fenglan pondered for a moment, then grasped her cold hand.

"Hmm. It's possible that the toxins from the virus carrier have damaged the brain nerves, causing hallucinations and auditory hallucinations during the recovery process. I'll prescribe some medication to aid your recovery. Try to relax as much as possible and avoid falling into hallucinations."

I took out a small notebook and wrote on it with a ballpoint pen.

"Thank you, Dr. Ji. I've been afraid to say this because I was worried you'd think I was mentally ill."

Ji Fenglan turned around and smiled, then continued writing the order.

"Li Nai, do you know what a system and a host are?"

Li Nai's face stiffened, and she stammered, "Why is Dr. Ji asking about this?"

"Oh, she's a guest who came these past couple of days. She kept asking me about this, and even asked if I believed that the settings in novels could appear in reality. She said that if there are zombies, how could there not be systems and hosts? She has a system called Mimi. Sigh~ a perfectly good female college student."

Ji Fenglan glanced at Li Nai out of the corner of her eye; the other woman's gaze was blank, as if she were caught in some kind of shock.