CHAPTER 28
The elevator doors closed just as Yunxi's breath began to steady, but her heartbeat refused to slow. Her reflection in the mirrored wall looked pale—eyes wide and unsettled.
He can't know. He can't.
She pressed a hand to her temple.
Three years ago was supposed to be buried forever.
She had done everything to ensure that night disappeared—changed her name, avoided every connection to that city, refused to seek child support, worked quietly, lived quietly.
But Mu Lingchen was not a man who let loose ends lie.
If he investigated too deeply…
No.
She couldn't let that happen.
⸻
Meanwhile, inside the office
Mu Lingchen didn't sit down immediately after Yunxi fled his office.
He stared at the closed door for a long moment, jaw tightening, then slowly returned to his desk.
A faint shadow crossed his expression.
"Song," he said curtly.
His assistant entered immediately. "CEO Mu?"
"There was a woman brought into my hotel room the night I was drugged three years ago."
Song stiffened. This topic was forbidden, dangerous, a landmine few dared mention.
"Yes, sir."
"I want every detail of that night re-examined. Discreetly. Quietly."
Song hesitated. "Do you suspect Miss Shi?"
Mu Lingchen didn't answer immediately.
He remembered the way her voice trembled. Her pupils shrinking. The panic she tried—and failed—to hide.
"…No," he said at last, voice low. "Not yet. But something about her is wrong."
His hand curled around his pen.
"And I intend to find out what."
Song bowed. "Understood."
After the assistant left, the office fell silent again.
Mu Lingchen leaned back in his chair, eyes narrowing.
Why did she react like that?
The door closed behind her minutes ago, but her hurried footsteps still lingered in his memory.
Her denial had been too quick.
Too sharp.
Too defensive.
And then—Mu Rui.
His son's inexplicable attachment to her was the puzzle piece that made everything feel… off.
Two strangers should not connect so easily.
Unless—
No.
He dismissed the thought immediately. It was too far-fetched. Too coincidental.
Still, certainty escaped him.
And more importantly—
He hated loose ends.
⸻
On the film set
By the time Yunxi returned, filming had paused for lunch. Her friend and co-star, Jiang Roulan, spotted her from across the lot and immediately walked over, her heels clicking sharply.
Her eyes narrowed. "Where did you disappear to? The director was looking for you."
Yunxi forced a small smile. "Sorry. I was called away for a bit."
Roulan studied her pale complexion, noticing the unease she couldn't quite hide.
"Called away… by whom?"
Yunxi didn't answer.
Roulan's lips curled in realization. "Ah. CEO Mu."
Yunxi's fingers tightened around her script.
Roulan tapped the folder in her hand lightly. "You do understand he's out of your league, right?" Her voice dripped with condescension she didn't bother hiding. "Don't get ideas. You're just a minor actress with no background. Getting close to him is impossible."
Yunxi blinked once.
"I never intended to get close."
Roulan scoffed. "Good. Keep it that way."
She turned and walked off in swaying confidence.
Yunxi exhaled softly.
No one could know.
No one could suspect.
Not Roulan.
Not the crew.
Not Mu Lingchen.
Especially not Mu Lingchen.
Her children's safety depended on it.
⸻
That night, at the Mu residence
Mu Rui sat cross-legged on his bed, hugging his stuffed dinosaur. His little brow furrowed deeply.
"Auntie Song," he asked the nanny, "why was Daddy talking to Mama today?"
"Hmm?" she blinked. "Mama?"
He nodded earnestly. "The pretty lady."
"Oh…" The nanny smiled gently. "Did you like her that much?"
Mu Rui nodded again, vigorous this time. "She smells nice. Like… like warm milk and flowers."
The nanny chuckled. "Children's intuition is something else."
But Mu Rui wasn't laughing.
He whispered to his dinosaur, "I want Mama."
⸻
And in another part of the city
Shi Yunxi sat beside her sleeping daughter, brushing a soft strand of hair away from the little girl's cheek.
She watched her chest rise and fall, peaceful and safe.
No matter what happens,
I will protect both of you.
But as her eyes drifted to the city skyline outside the window—
She felt it.
Something was shifting.
Something dangerous.
Something that could tear apart the careful life she had built.
And tomorrow…
Tomorrow—Mu Lingchen would not let her escape so easily.