Chapter 3: The First Move

Mo Liang scrolled through her phone, reading through all the material Xu Lingxue had sent from start to finish. She finally had the full picture.

The pink-haired girl was Su Xiaoyou, Miss Xu’s business rival.

The white-haired woman was Shen Zhiyi, Su Xiaoyou’s girlfriend. Su Xiaoyou was due to go abroad for half a year because of work, and Shen Zhiyi, who came from a regular family, refused the money she’d been left. She’d found work at a restaurant to support herself.

Coming out of Xu Lingxue’s big villa, Mo Liang breathed in the fresh air and set off on her assignment, full of confidence.

The first thing to deal with was her stomach.

She hadn’t eaten in a day and a half, and hunger had long set in.

She took out her phone and ordered a ride, telling the driver to take her straight to the restaurant where Shen Zhiyi worked. Since it was noon, she could grab a meal and scope the place out at the same time. Two birds with one stone.

“Let me see. Su Xiaoyou should have four more months before she comes back, right?”

Mo Liang leaned back in the car seat. Four months. Plenty of time for her to work on this slowly.

She already had a rough plan.

When she got there, she got out and stood in front of the restaurant, sizing it up.

The place wasn’t big, but the decoration was clean and warm. Looking through the floor-to-ceiling windows, she could see customers filling a little over half the tables.

Walking in, she spotted Shen Zhiyi at first glance.

That head of white hair gleamed with a soft luster, and her features were fine and delicate.

Mo Liang glanced around. Most of the customers in this restaurant were men. Whatever they were here for went without saying.

Mo Liang didn’t care about that.

She picked a spot by the window. No sooner had she sat down than Shen Zhiyi walked over with a menu, movements brisk and courteous, and set it down in front of her.

At this distance, Mo Liang could see her face even more clearly. Cool and aloof, but not arrogant. No wonder Su Xiaoyou had fallen for her.

Right now, though, she was genuinely hungry. She’d deal with her stomach first and think about the rest later.

She flipped open the menu, checked off a few items at random, and handed it back.

“All right.” Shen Zhiyi took the menu, nodded seriously, and turned toward the kitchen.

Mo Liang killed time scrolling on her phone. It wasn’t long before Shen Zhiyi came back carrying the food and a drink.

The drink was, naturally, a very deliberate choice.

“Can you help me open this?” Mo Liang took the bottle and gave the cap a fake twist. It didn’t budge, of course.

She took the opportunity to pull her sleeve up, letting the mess of purple and green bruises on her forearm show.

Shen Zhiyi’s gaze did pause on it, just as intended.

She took the bottle, turned the cap with a flick of her fingers, heard it open with a pop. But instead of returning it right away, she frowned slightly and looked at Mo Liang’s arm, which hadn’t been covered yet.

“Excuse me. What happened to your arm?”

“Nothing, it’s fine!” Mo Liang quickly pulled her sleeve back down. The gesture was fast, and she flashed a slightly awkward smile.

Seeing this, Shen Zhiyi didn’t push further. But her gaze lingered on the tightened cuff for a moment before she silently let the matter go.

Exactly what Mo Liang was hoping for.

Kind, just like the file said. She thought this without a hint of guilt.

Sorry, Shen Zhiyi. But for my five million, you’re going to be the sacrifice here.

Guilt? She didn’t really have any. This wasn’t her first time doing this kind of job, and she had it all down pat.

And honestly, you could only blame those couples for being stupid. If someone had a boyfriend or girlfriend, and still got stolen away by an outsider, it was clearly their own fault, right?

Even if she, Mo Liang, hadn’t been the one to do it, eventually someone else would come along and do the same thing.

At least she was in it for the money, not the body. That made her practically a model professional and, frankly, quite merciful.

She wolfed down her meal in no time. Wiping her mouth in satisfaction, she stood up and pushed open the restaurant door.

She’d only taken a couple of steps when the smell of alcohol punched her in the face. It was so strong that she covered her nose without thinking.

A man with unsteady footsteps staggered her way, his bleary eyes sweeping over her in a way that made her skin crawl.

“Hey, pretty girl. All alone? Keep me company, why don’t you?”

Mo Liang felt her heart jump. But she put on a scared look and tried to sidestep him, shaking her head.

She wanted to run, but her arm was grabbed. She lost her balance and was pulled forward. She was about to fall flat on the ground.

The next second, she fell into a pair of arms that carried a faint, clean, cold scent.

Shen Zhiyi had somehow gotten in front of her and caught her, holding her steadily.

Mo Liang curled up in her arms like a frightened kitten, her shoulders trembling uncontrollably.

Shen Zhiyi looked down, confirming that she wasn’t hurt, and felt relieved for a moment.

She raised her gaze to the drunk man. “If you make any more trouble, I’ll call the police.”

The passersby around them noticed the commotion and started to gather. The drunk man, startled by the situation, sobered up most of the way in an instant. He muttered a few drunken curses, but didn’t dare push his luck, and fled with his tail between his legs.

“Are you all right?” Shen Zhiyi turned her attention back to Mo Liang and spoke softly to the little yellow-haired thing still in her arms.

Good thing she had come in time. If this girl had hit the ground without anything cushioning the fall, she’d have probably scraped her face.

The girl in her arms looked up at her, eyes slightly red.

Shen Zhiyi met that watery gaze. A little awkward, she looked elsewhere.

She eased Mo Liang gently out of her arms. Not making a show of it, she took a step back, putting a bit of distance between them.

“Thank you so much, sis! Can I treat you to dinner?” Mo Liang said, pulling out her phone, clearly trying to add her on WeChat.

Her gaze was full of admiration.

Shen Zhiyi took out her phone and let her scan the code, but declined the meal. “No need. Just be more careful next time.”

And with that, she turned and left, not lingering.

Mo Liang looked at the back that didn’t turn around and curled her lip. “There’s still a lot of work to do.”

She knew you couldn’t rush these things. The more difficult the goal was, the better it felt when you got it, anyway. And since she had time, she could take it slow.

She lifted her sleeve, looked at the bruised arm, and pressed the bruise with her fingertip. The pain made her draw a sharp breath.

She now had a rough outline for the plan. All that remained was time.

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