Chapter 44: Indulging in Evil

Later, she lost track of how long they had walked. It wasn’t until voices rang out ahead that Shen Chaoxi, carried on the man’s back, finally lifted her gaze to look toward the people in front. Dawn was breaking; the world was still hushed and still. In the depths of these mountains, rescue had finally arrived.

“Sister!” A young man in a black outdoor jacket, strikingly handsome, caught sight of the girl carried on the man’s back along the dark mountain path. His expression changed, and he rushed forward.

“Shen Yuan?” Shen Chaoxi’s lips were drained of color. She frowned and fixed her gaze on the boy charging toward them, momentarily doubting her own eyes.

His anxious face drew closer, running up to her. The light from his flashlight was a small warmth, illuminating the distant ridge and lending a touch of heat even to the gloomy wilds.

“Sister,” the boy came to stand before Lu Yunzhou, nervously watching the girl on his back, his breath quick, sweat beading on his handsome face.

“I heard you met with trouble on your way back from Sanqing Peak to the capital, so I hurried here,” Shen Yuan said, worry clear in his voice.

“They said you fell from the cliff?” he pressed, urgent, his brows furrowed, his dark eyes locked deep on hers.

Shen Yuan wanted to ask why she had ended up like this.

“Was it Shen Xin…?” he began.

“There was rain on the mountain, the ground was slippery—I slipped and fell,” Shen Chaoxi replied in a hoarse whisper, smiling faintly at the boy. Even feverish and muddled, she managed to interrupt him in an orderly fashion.

He paused, stunned for a moment, noticing the blood-smeared, coldly beautiful face of the man carrying Shen Chaoxi.

“I’ll carry my sister now,” Shen Yuan said, reaching out, his face tense in the night. Lu Yunzhou’s dark eyes glanced at him, then handed Shen Chaoxi over.

After all, Shen Chaoxi was a member of the Shen family. And now, Chen Yu had come looking for him.

“Thank you for taking care of my sister,” Shen Yuan said politely to the man, who, despite his aristocratic air, looked rather disheveled, his shirt soaked through.

Lu Yunzhou’s gaze darkened momentarily, but he only watched as Shen Yuan carried Shen Chaoxi, lips pressed, silent.

She was now on the boy’s back. Once, pitiful and small, she had brought him home. That frail child had grown up. He was slender but tall, at least 185 centimeters, his shoulders broad, warmth radiating through his black jacket.

Shen Chaoxi smiled, comforted, resting against him.

The car was just ahead.

Shen Yuan carried her toward the parking area.

After Shen Chaoxi’s accident, the Shen family sent many people to search for her. But once Shen Yuan found her, everyone could return.

On the way back,

“Shen Yuan,” Shen Chaoxi suddenly called.

“I’m here, Sister,” he answered, pausing briefly before continuing.

“Did you see Shen Xin?” Shen Chaoxi finally mentioned her, having interrupted the boy earlier.

Shen Yuan replied, “Yes. When she got back to the Shen family, she seemed quite shaken. Grandfather asked where you’d had your accident, but she only shook her head and said it was her fault, that she hadn’t grabbed you in time.”

“Grandfather was very worried, but seeing her state, he let her rest and told us to come find you.”

That was when Shen Yuan learned what had happened to Shen Chaoxi and rushed here with help.

Shen Xin was truly clever. She knew that as long as no one saw her true face, suspicion wouldn’t fall on her. Living under the Shen family’s roof, always cautious, always playing the victim for sympathy—how could she possibly be so ruthless as to push someone off a cliff?

Even if they searched, they might only find Shen Chaoxi’s corpse. No one would know what really happened at the edge. With the dead unable to testify, no one would know it was her.

Perhaps those ten years abroad were torment for her—enjoying the family’s money while resenting that everything Shen Chaoxi had wasn’t given to her.

Such a person—ambition boundless and insatiable. Now that she had a chance to return to the Shen family, how could she not harbor murderous intent?

But Shen Chaoxi thought, Shen Xin’s return must have filled her with both joy and fear. Knowing that Shen Chaoxi had fallen from the cliff, she likely believed she wouldn’t survive. Yet, despite the courage to kill, Shen Xin couldn’t remain fully composed after the act.

Anyone who does evil cannot be so strong as to leave no trace.

“Sister…” Shen Yuan’s voice was cold, brows furrowed as he carried her. “Was it her?”

The Shen family had an adopted daughter, Shen Xin, but since she was sent abroad ten years ago, few knew her well. But Shen Yuan had heard about what she did back then.

Even without seeing the boy’s face, Shen Chaoxi knew he was angry.

“All right, Shen Yuan,” she said softly with a reassuring smile, soothing his tense thoughts. “Don’t worry about Shen Xin—I’ll handle it.”

Ten years ago, when Shen Xin was just a child, the Shen family forgave her misdeeds.

But now, ten years later, with Shen Xin returned to the capital, Shen Chaoxi would forgive nothing she did.

To forgive too easily is to endlessly indulge her evil.

Shen Yuan heard her words, his gaze lowered, lips pressed tight, like a loyal dog protecting his sister, worried but silent.

He knew she was the pride of the First Military District—capable of anything, always shielding others. Yet she was still flesh and blood, still a woman.

After he left with Shen Chaoxi,

Chen Yu faced Lu Yunzhou, frowning, staring at the man whose gaze lingered not far off.

“Captain? What happened?” Dawn was near.

He had received word that after returning from Sanqing Peak, the captain was to handle some military affairs. But Chen Yu had waited in vain—his captain never returned.

Later he learned that the captain had met disaster on the road back from Sanqing Peak during a storm. Rushing over by car, he caught up with the group from the Shen family, their vehicles parked atop the ridge.

“Call Gu Suizhou,” Lu Yunzhou said quietly, watching the distant cars.

“Have him come to the Shen family.”

Chen Yu was stunned. “Huh? Call Dr. Gu?”

He was bewildered.

“Captain, you’re not going back?”

His question was met only with a deep voice and a final instruction.

“Leave military affairs to Chen Zui.”

With that, Lu Yunzhou strode toward the ridge.

So, in the middle of the night, before dawn, while even the dogs were still asleep, Gu Suizhou was awakened at home by a phone call.

“What?” he muttered. “Go to the Shen family?”

Sitting on his gray bed, Gu Suizhou ruffled his messy hair, rose, and upon hearing the request, was left speechless.

Lu Yunzhou certainly knew how to summon people.