Dong Luorong's talk about "investing in posthumans" was probably just an excuse.
As Xie Feng descended the stairs, her thoughts drifted in a haze.
Back when she was still in school, she had to squeeze into the subway or bus every day. After spending so much time on public transportation, unpleasant encounters became inevitable. She remembered one time in middle school, still looking like a child. One day, while leaning against the handrail by the subway door and reading a book, a girl wearing a nearby high school's uniform frowned and called out to her.
"Stand here with me," the older girl said, grabbing Xie Feng's elbow and pulling her over without explanation.
Confused, Xie Feng glanced back to see what the girl had noticed. But nothing stood out—every man in the crowd looked perfectly ordinary.
"Don't go back over there," the unfamiliar girl said.
It was like an unspoken code between them, exchanged without words. Two girls—one about thirteen, the other seventeen or eighteen—shared everything they needed to know in silence.
From then on, whenever Xie Feng took public transportation, she stayed close to other female passengers.
There was really no need to ask why Dong Luorong had saved her; the answer was just that simple.
Watching the numbers on the elevator display count down, Xie Feng thought about Dong Luorong's suspicion toward the warning film. She couldn't understand why evolution would inevitably lead people to destroy the world. Did their nature change along with their powers? Did they all become monsters?
If she herself ever evolved—gaining power beyond ordinary human resistance but staying true to herself—she swore she'd be the best investment Dong Luorong had ever made. She would return to this hotel, knock on Dong Luorong's door, and put an end to her days of being used as an object forever.
'If only I could evolve,' Xie Feng thought, recalling the makeshift baton she carried—a broken and humble dining chair leg. Even holding that simple object gave her a sense of power. If she really evolved, what a free and fearless life would that be?
"Do you think I'm dirty?" Dong Luorong had asked offhandedly before leaving.
Lucky charm or not, personality flaws or not, at the end of the day, Dong Luorong was still a woman—a woman with beauty like hers. That wouldn't stop Qiu Chantian from using her however he pleased.
The thought of what she might have endured felt like a blow to Xie Feng herself. She had always dreaded seeing news about women being assaulted, abused, or killed. It was as if, on some level, those horrors also happened to her—some experiences were simply too easy for women to relate to.
In a low voice, Xie Feng had answered, "If someone doesn't bathe, brush their teeth, and is covered in filth, then sure, I'd think they're dirty. But other than that, I don't know what would make me see a living, breathing person as dirty."
Dong Luorong pressed her red lips together slightly, as if she wanted to smile.
She had only told Xie Feng a very small part of her story, and Xie Feng didn't dare ask more. A woman as clear-minded as Dong Luorong couldn't have arrived at such a fate without pain.
As Dong Luorong turned to leave, Xie Feng suddenly rushed forward and grabbed her arm. When Dong Luorong turned back, Xie Feng gently embraced her.
"I never got the chance to say thank you," Xie Feng murmured, burying her face in Dong Luorong's black hair, inhaling her scent. "I hope we'll meet again."
Xie Feng kept her plan and her intentions entirely to herself. From Dong Luorong's perspective, it probably seemed like Xie Feng just wanted to put some distance between herself and Qiu Chantian for safety's sake. Xie Feng had intentionally left things vague to create that impression.
Whether what she was doing was right or wrong, Xie Feng didn't know.
"Be careful," Dong Luorong said softly, lowering her head as she stroked Xie Feng's hair, her touch a mixture of comfort and a command.
After Dong Luorong left, Xie Feng stood by the door for a long moment, lost in thought.
The plan had already been set in motion—there was no stopping it now, nor did Xie Feng have any reason to stop it. When she reached a parking lot near the hotel, she felt as if she had been swept into a powerful vortex, one that would only spin faster from here on out.
The young man who had spoken with her on the phone hadn't given his real name, only told her to call him "Ah Cheng." When Xie Feng saw an old gray car with its headlights on, she quickly approached and peeked inside—four young people sat in the car, all boys.
"You're Xie Feng, right? Get in," Ah Cheng said from behind the half-open window. She recognized his voice instantly.
Should she get in? Like any girl would, Xie Feng hesitated for a moment.
But she climbed in anyway. The two boys in the backseat scooted over, making room for her.
"Did you bring the keycard?" Ah Cheng asked.
"Got it." With the keycard, they could access the hotel's underground parking lot. As Xie Feng answered, she noticed her voice trembling slightly. She took a silent breath, deliberately exhaling slowly to calm herself.
The more complex a plan, the more likely it was to go wrong, so their plan was extremely simple—calling it a "plan" might even be overstating it. It was more of a spontaneous ambush, so straightforward that Xie Feng found it hard to believe it could really succeed.
The entire operation could be boiled down to a few sentences: Before leaving the hotel, Qiu Chantian would undoubtedly notify his driver and security team to prepare. For example, the security team would temporarily clear the lobby and block access, going upstairs to escort Qiu Chantian, while the driver would move the car to the hotel entrance to wait.
Their task was to stake out the elevator in the underground parking lot and follow Qiu Chantian's driver when he came down.
After all, while Qiu Chantian might have entered the hotel alone, it was hard to imagine him leaving without an entourage. Even though this wasn't Tear City, as an imperial official, it was second nature for him to be wary of the public—and besides, having a grand exit was good for appearances.
"With five pairs of eyes watching these two elevator exits in the parking lot, we've got more than enough coverage," Ah Cheng said.
When they smoothly drove into the parking lot and parked across from the elevator, Ah Cheng turned to the others and said, "Looks like Qiu Chantian is spending the night here. You can all rest for an hour or two. I'll keep watch. We'll start paying closer attention around four or five in the morning—there's still time."
"But none of us have seen his driver before," Xie Feng couldn't help but say. "How will we recognize him?"
There was a way.
First, they could ignore any women exiting the elevator—Qiu Chantian would never use a female driver, for obvious reasons. Second, they could also rule out men who looked too young or too old, or those who had put too much effort into their appearance.
Based on what they had gathered through various sources and rumors about imperial officials, the driver was most likely a man in his thirties or forties—plain-looking, serious, and modest. As soon as someone matching that profile appeared, at least one of them would need to follow him.
It turned out that finding the driver was much easier than expected.
At 5:30 in the morning, one of the parking lot elevators opened, and out walked a man in his thirties or forties. Beside him was a burly man who was unmistakably a plainclothes security officer.
The moment the security officer stepped out of the elevator, he scanned the area with a sharp, cautious gaze. Fortunately, they had ducked low in their seats the second they heard the elevator chime, avoiding detection from inside the nearby car.
"The driver even has security with him," muttered the short boy in the passenger seat, nicknamed Shorty. "There are four of us—we could take two guys down, but it'll probably make a lot of noise, right?"
The boy next to Xie Feng, who was wearing a headband, whispered nervously, "The problem is, what if the security guy has a gun?"
"They don't carry guns when they're chasing us-" The fourth boy, nicknamed Black Dog, started to say, only for Ah Cheng to correct him.
"That's to keep us from grabbing their weapons. But it's definitely different when they're protecting a high-ranking official."
As the driver and the security officer turned a corner and continued walking forward, a spark ignited in Xie Feng's chest. Suddenly, she leaned forward and slapped Ah Cheng on the shoulder. "Drive!"
Ah Cheng froze.
"Crash into them," Xie Feng said through gritted teeth. "First, knock down the security guy down with the car. That way, we'll have a better chance of taking him down, right?"