Chapter 21: Who Dares Stand in the Young Lady’s Way?

“Is there anyone else among you who wishes to avenge Miss Qiong or Lady Gong?”
“Step forward, I’m giving you the chance now.”
Shen Chaoxi casually held the gun in her hand, her gaze sweeping over the people blocking her path.
She let out a soft laugh, her tone intriguing and laced with a slow, deliberate amusement.
“So, is that all?”
Gazing at the crowd packed into the building before her, Shen Chaoxi raised an eyebrow and spoke with a calm, gentle cadence.
Those standing in front of her dared not say a word.
They exchanged glances, each seeing fear and hesitation mirrored in the other’s eyes.
Though both sides were at a standstill, Qiong Yi had died at Shen Chaoxi’s hands.
How could any of them dare challenge the eldest lady of W Group within their own walls, unless they had grown weary of living?
“If there’s no one else, shouldn’t you all clear the way for me?”
Her radiant, enchanting face was like that of a beguiling fairy—so beautiful it could drive people mad. With the faintest smile in her eyes, no one present could look away.
All felt a chill of dread within their hearts.
The dense throng blocking Shen Chaoxi’s path fell silent after her words, not a soul daring to oppose her.
The black-clad bodyguards parted to form a passage, each bowing their heads, unwilling to meet the gaze of the young woman exuding such cold intensity.
They belonged to Qiong Yi and were meant to follow her orders, not fear Shen Chaoxi.
Yet the woman before them was the eldest daughter of W Group, and ultimately, they too were part of the organization.
Who would dare stand in her way?
“Open your eyes and remember well—within this group, know clearly who you should obey,” she declared. “If there’s a next time, there will be no mercy.”
“Yes, Miss!” the black-clad men responded in unison.
In the past, W Group had been split into factions—one loyal to Qiong Yi, another to Gong Shenxi.
Now, however, the entire organization belonged to Gong Shenxi, the heiress recognized by the Old Matriarch.
Even a fool could see which way the wind now blew; none dared block Shen Chaoxi’s path any longer.
She walked through the lobby on the first floor, but the W Group building was vast, with deep, interconnected wings; it could take twenty minutes just to walk from inside to out.
A bodyguard approached and whispered in her ear, “Miss, though Qiong Yi was the one who provoked us, she still died by your hand. What about the Old Matriarch…”
He hadn’t finished before the young woman halted in her steps, looking up. Her alluring eyes narrowed, as though she could see straight into a person’s heart, and she smiled, lips curving as she asked,
“What, are you questioning my decisions too?”
Her gaze fixed on his face, and the bodyguard trembled, quickly bowing his head.
“Forgive me, Miss! I wouldn’t dare.”
Their eldest lady was infamous for her ruthless methods and unstable temper; who knew if a careless word might provoke her and lead to a grisly punishment?
Such things were not unheard of from Gong Shenxi.
With her temperament and means, there was no telling what she might do.
Once the bodyguards had stepped aside, Shen Chaoxi led her people toward the lobby entrance.
But just as she approached the revolving glass doors, she seemed to sense something and paused.
She lifted her head, her cool gaze tinged with curiosity, settling on two men ahead, both clad in deep blue electrician’s uniforms, preparing to enter the building.
Each carried a maintenance kit, both wore baseball caps and black face masks, keeping their heads bowed as they passed Shen Chaoxi.
But as they brushed past her, the young woman called softly,
“Stop.”
The two maintenance workers, faces obscured, halted in their tracks.
Shen Chaoxi’s voice turned icy, but then she smiled. “Who are you?” she asked, walking toward them.

“I don’t recall seeing you before. Take off your masks.”
Security was strict at W Group headquarters—even at the turnstiles, identities were checked.
Yet these two had concealed themselves too thoroughly as they entered, far more than necessary.
Something wasn’t right.
Of the two, the younger man walking on the inside looked especially youthful. His face and eyes were hidden beneath the brim of his cap, but his pale skin was evident, and the long sleeves of his uniform revealed slender, ivory fingers clutching the maintenance kit.
His grip tightened slowly.
When Shen Chaoxi stepped before them and demanded they remove their masks, the young man’s movements stilled.
He kept his head low, but then raised his hand and pulled off his black mask, meeting Shen Chaoxi’s gaze.
Chen Yu’s face was revealed under the dazzling lights of the building; Shen Chaoxi arched an eyebrow, her enchanting eyes lingering on him with a hint of amusement.
Yu Mo frowned, staring at the scene before him, tension suffusing the air.
Chen Yu swallowed.
“Miss, we’re here to fix the group’s electrical wiring. This afternoon, someone reported an outage in the central file storage room on the thirty-third floor. We’re here for repairs!”
“Hmm?” she replied, as though unconvinced.
Shen Chaoxi crossed her arms, then lazily propped her chin on one pale hand, looking at him with great interest. “Funny. Your face looks familiar.”
Chen Yu frowned slightly.
“Perhaps you’ve seen me before, Miss,” he said earnestly.
Shen Chaoxi nodded, as though considering.
She stroked her chin, responding lightly, “Children your age shouldn’t be coming to places like Yingdu.”
Yingdu was, after all, the most extravagant and decadent place in all of Eastern Zhou—
A den of underground markets and entertainment, the region’s foremost den of vice.
“A city so steeped in sin and temptation—what business does a child have here?”
Her musings were difficult to follow, leaving Chen Yu frowning, his delicate face creased in confusion as he regarded her.
“Enough,” Shen Chaoxi said with lazy indifference. “I’ll stop teasing you.”
“If you’re really with our internal maintenance team, I trust you. No problem, then.”
As she spoke, her lips curved in a faint smile, though her eyes held a subtle, inscrutable emotion as she finally looked away from the young man.
“Let them through,” she instructed in a low voice.
With the heiress’s permission, the two men slung their toolkits over their shoulders and left, heading toward the B wing of the building.
Shen Chaoxi watched them leave, her gaze eventually withdrawing.
She had no idea that, in another section of the building outside, dozens of sniper rifles were trained on everyone in the lobby, each move observed through a scope.
Fortunately, it had only been a false alarm just now.
“Miss, bad news!”
At that moment, the hurried footsteps of an employee echoed through the hall as he rushed to report to Shen Chaoxi.

“Several of our group’s major projects in Yingdu have just been raided by the police!”
“They claimed there were reports of us being involved in illegal auctions—”
In short, several of their strongholds had been hit all at once tonight.
“What did you say?”
Shen Chaoxi’s brow furrowed, her face turning cold as she heard the news.
For years, their business in Yingdu had never been targeted, so for multiple locations to be struck on the same night—something was clearly amiss.
“Miss!”
Just as Shen Chaoxi was preparing to head out to investigate, Yu Mo grabbed her arm, stopping her with a low and slightly cold voice.
“Let me handle this, Miss. You’re still recovering from a serious gunshot wound in Shacheng. I can’t let you investigate in person.”
But as their hundred-strong contingent of black-clad bodyguards stepped out of the W Group building and moved toward the fleet of cars parked along the curb,
There was a sudden, deafening boom, a rolling wave of fire and heat surging toward them as the vehicles exploded right before their eyes!
Those about to board were instantly obliterated, incinerated beyond recognition.
The others were stunned by the sudden carnage.
Panic and confusion reigned.
The next instant, a