Chapter 11
Chapter 11
Inside Li Que’s office…
“Yes.”
Leng Qingyan forced herself to continue.
“A former colleague of mine is coming to inspect the school.”
“Without a plausible excuse, she may start questioning why I transferred here…”
This was the solution she’d reached after turning the problem over and over in her mind.
Her unexplained transfer from the influential Municipal Administration Bureau to this school was suspicious in itself.
But if she’d come here for love, wouldn’t everything make sense?
The bureau had been urging her to find a boyfriend for years. It was the perfect explanation.
Li Que immediately understood.
Leng Qingyan had moved from an influential government department to become the dean of discipline at a neglected school. In a sense, she’d been demoted.
She must feel humiliated at the prospect of meeting her former colleague.
That was why she wanted Li Que to play her boyfriend. She could save face by claiming she’d chosen the transfer for her partner rather than being looked down upon.
Adult life wasn’t easy for anyone.
“All right.”
Li Que agreed without a second thought.
They were colleagues now, so helping each other was only natural. Besides, without Leng Qingyan’s help, Li Que might not even have kept his job.
Leng Qingyan heaved a sigh of relief.
“Don’t worry, Teacher Li. You won’t have to do anything. Just follow my lead!”
…
Not long afterward, Li Que and Leng Qingyan arrived at the school gate. Two cars rapidly approached.
Leng Qingyan’s expression grew solemn. Almost unconsciously, she slipped her arm through Li Que’s.
Li Que stiffened as an image of the button bursting off her blouse flashed through his mind.
Suggestive thoughts flickered through his head.
“A warm welcome to Team Leader Zhao!”
Zhu Jiayan hurried forward with an enthusiastic greeting.
He had no idea what department this Team Leader Zhao belonged to, but the Education Administration Bureau had repeatedly stressed that she must be treated with the utmost respect. Her rank had to be exceptionally high.
Zhao Xueru stepped out of the car without sparing Zhu Jiayan a glance. Her gaze immediately landed on Leng Qingyan and Li Que.
“Hmm?”
Surprise flashed across her face. Who was this man?
How had he earned the right to have Leng Qingyan clinging to his arm?
“Sister Qingyan, it’s been a long time.”
Zhao Xueru smiled. “And this is?”
“Li Que, my boyfriend. He’s also a teacher at Mingjiang No. 7 Special School,” Leng Qingyan answered directly.
Zhao Xueru grew even more surprised.
Leng Qingyan had been renowned throughout the Anomaly Suppression Bureau for both her beauty and her single-minded devotion to fighting anomalies. She had never shown romantic interest in any man.
Had she changed?
Had this man really been the reason she’d transferred to Mingjiang No. 7 Special School?
Zhao Xueru betrayed none of her thoughts.
“I see. Then you have my congratulations, Sister Qingyan.”
“I only just arrived and have a few things to investigate. When I heard you were working at this school, I thought I’d come take a look around.”
Zhu Jiayan hurriedly led the way, and the group entered the campus.
He delivered a running report as they walked, but Zhao Xueru barely listened. She kept observing Leng Qingyan from the corner of her eye.
Leng Qingyan acted perfectly natural, showing Li Que constant affection. They truly looked like a couple deeply in love.
Before long…
“So this is your office, Sister Qingyan?”
Zhao Xueru looked around and smiled. “It’s been so long since we had a private conversation. Principal Zhu, why don’t you take the others elsewhere? You don’t need to worry about us.”
Zhu Jiayan nodded repeatedly and led everyone else away to continue touring the campus.
“Zhao Xueru, what are you doing here?” Leng Qingyan asked with a frown once the others had left.
Zhao Xueru smiled. “I told you. I came to see my dear Sister Leng.”
Leng Qingyan regarded her coldly.
“Don’t look at me like that, Sister Leng.”
Zhao Xueru continued, “I’m merely curious. How did the formidable woman who once swore to fight every anomaly under heaven until her dying breath fall in love with a useless man who isn’t even an anomaly wielder?”
She laughed.
During the tour, she had already sensed Li Que’s presence. He was nothing more than an ordinary person.
Yet from what she’d observed, Leng Qingyan’s feelings toward him didn’t seem entirely feigned.
“Everyone has the right to choose their own life. That’s none of your concern, Team Leader Zhao,” Leng Qingyan replied coldly, making it clear she wouldn’t tolerate further questions about her private affairs.
But the more guarded she became, the more Zhao Xueru began to wonder…
Could Leng Qingyan truly have fallen in love with Li Que?
Had she abandoned her future for love?
Zhao Xueru suddenly felt like laughing. The most dazzling and formidable woman in the Anomaly Suppression Bureau had turned out to be a lovesick fool?
For some reason, Zhao Xueru lost interest.
She held a lofty position now. One major reason she’d deliberately sought out Leng Qingyan was to look down on her from above and recover the pride she’d lost in Leng Qingyan’s presence all those years ago.
But Leng Qingyan now…
She was pathetic.
After all these years, she was still only a B-minus-class anomaly wielder. Worse, she’d begun pursuing that ridiculous thing called love.
Someone like that was no longer worth showing off to.
She couldn’t provide Zhao Xueru even the slightest sense of satisfaction.
“Very well. I won’t disturb you any longer.”
Zhao Xueru rose indifferently.
Not long afterward, she left the school with her team.
Leng Qingyan heaved a long sigh of relief as she watched them go.
She replayed the visit repeatedly in her mind. Nothing should have been exposed.
Most importantly, she’d tidied Li Que’s classroom in advance and had him put away the ruler and everything else suspicious.
As long as Li Que and the four students didn’t reveal themselves, no one else could detect anything unusual about them.
“Teacher Li… thank you!”
She turned toward Li Que, an inexplicable blush coloring her face.
“There’s no need. We’re colleagues. It was hardly any trouble.”
Li Que smiled, then turned and left.
But the word colleagues kept echoing through Leng Qingyan’s mind.
A trace of disappointment entered her eyes.
That was right. They were only colleagues.
…
Inside the car…
“It seems Leng Qingyan is no longer worth our attention,” Zhao Xueru said flatly.
“Find an opportunity to kill her and extract the Tear of the Charm Demon from her body. My Vengeful Infant of the Blood Coffin has been away from its mother for too long. It’s already hungry. Feeding it is the foundation of my advancement to A-class.”
“Once I contain the Vengeful Infant of the Blood Coffin and advance to A-class, I can use the infant to find Rain. After all, it came from the same place she did.”
She gently stroked her flat abdomen.
A wisp of red mist suddenly passed over her belly, accompanied by the faint, piercing wail of an infant.
“Be good. It won’t be long before you have something delicious to eat.”
She rubbed her belly, but the Vengeful Infant of the Blood Coffin continued crying.
Zhao Xueru took out two silver needles and stabbed them into her abdomen.
Something struggled inside her twice, then fell silent.
“Team Leader, there’s something strange about that school,” a man in the front suddenly said.
“I used the restroom during the visit. When I passed the school’s garbage collection area, I detected an extremely powerful anomalous presence.”
“I recorded the data.”
He handed her a device.
Zhao Xueru took it and scanned the display in surprise.
Anomaly Reading: 999+
Characteristics: Mental influence; anomalous aura amplification
Dossier Search Result: Based on the anomaly’s combined characteristics, the system has identified a high probability of Anomaly A-059, Crimson Netherworld, and a low probability of Anomaly S-019, Pure Land Beyond.
Zhao Xueru abruptly sat upright, disbelief filling her eyes.
Crimson Netherworld was an A-class anomaly, while Pure Land Beyond was S-class.
Crimson Netherworld had appeared in the country before. Its red earth spread without end and ultimately caused hundreds of thousands of deaths.
Several domestic A-class anomaly wielders had joined forces to defeat it, yet a portion of its remains still escaped.
Anomaly S-019, on the other hand, came from a dossier published by the International Joint Office and had never appeared in the country.
Zhao Xueru therefore concluded almost instantly that the anomalous presence belonged to Crimson Netherworld.
In addition to confusing the mind, Crimson Netherworld could nourish other anomalies.
“So this is the real reason Leng Qingyan came to this school?”
Understanding dawned on Zhao Xueru, and she laughed in fury.
“Fine. Fine! That bitch Leng Qingyan nearly fooled me!”
“She thinks she can obtain Crimson Netherworld and surpass me?”
“Impossible!”
Obsessive madness flashed in her eyes.
…
As their vehicle sped away, a figure followed at an unimaginable speed, moving too quickly for passersby to see clearly.
It was a pale-faced woman. Her pupils were clouded white, like the eyes of a corpse.
Layer after layer of bloodred mist rose around her as she murmured the same words over and over.
“My child…”
…