Chapter 44: Deeply Hidden

Chapter 44: Chapter 44: Deeply Hidden

Song Yao watched the scene unfold, but instead of getting angry, she laughed.

She’d understood long ago that in this web of connections, only the words of the powerful held any weight.

What choice does a carpenter have?

She looked up at Sheng Hui and gave a cold smile.

"So, it turns out Sheng Hui is just a well-dressed dog on Shen Shuangshuang’s leash."

Sheng Hui’s expression remained unchanged.

"My job is to root out the criminals hiding among the people and clean them up."

With that, he waved his hand.

"Take her away."

Two of his men immediately stepped forward and flanked her, each grabbing an arm.

As Song Yao was shoved forward, a firestorm of anger raged in her chest.

’Sheng Hui, you better pray you never fall into my hands!’

’And then there’s Ji Xianbei, who tried to kill me before, and Ling Qinghan.’

’As for Ling Qinghan...’

’He’s halfway decent, I suppose. If he hadn’t shown a sliver of mercy, I never would have escaped.’

’I’ll put a pin in him for now. He can live... for the moment.’

Once in the car, Song Yao sat in silence, not saying a single word.

Sheng Hui wasn’t surprised.

Even the most defiant troublemakers knew to retract their claws in his presence.

The car stopped in front of the Special Operations Department building. Sheng Hui pushed open the door and got out.

He failed to notice the vicious glint surging in Song Yao’s downcast eyes.

The moment the car door opened, Song Yao was unceremoniously thrown out.

She immediately started screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Sheng Hui! Is this how you use the authority you were given? To bully ordinary citizens?"

In an instant, everyone walking near the entrance stopped in their tracks, their gazes snapping in her direction.

"What’s going on over there?"

"Minister Sheng? Are they talking about Sheng Hui?"

"But isn’t he not officially the Vice Minister yet? Why is there a scene at the main entrance?"

"No idea. Let’s go check out the drama."

As the crowd grew, Sheng Hui, still in the car, felt his gaze turn cold.

"Don’t play these little games."

He lowered his voice and grabbed the back of Song Yao’s collar, intending to drag her inside and put an end to the spectacle.

But Song Yao suddenly burst into tears, wailing loudly.

"Shen Zhenwu! You lied to me! You said you were bringing me to Beijing to live a good life, but I haven’t even found my footing and I’m already being bullied by this man! Shen Zhenwu! Come back!"

Sheng Hui’s face went completely dark.

He’d planned to handle this quietly. Now, with a single outburst, Song Yao had dropped the name for all to hear.

"Director Sheng, what is the meaning of this?"

A middle-aged man blocked his path, his brow furrowed as he stared at Song Yao.

Sheng Hui gritted his teeth and forced himself to answer.

"She is Mr. Shen’s new goddaughter, Song Yao. I suspect she’s a spy, so I brought her in for questioning."

"Absurd!"

The man’s expression changed instantly.

"Shen Zhenwu’s goddaughter, a spy? Do you have any idea how serious that accusation is?"

But the glint in his eyes was impossible to miss.

Some people were just waiting for an opportunity to catch Mr. Shen slipping up.

The more power one has, the more enemies one makes.

After his public rebuke, he leaned in and whispered.

"Do you actually have any solid evidence?"

Before he could finish, Song Yao shrieked.

"Oh, so you’re in this together! Sheng Hui, you’re only framing me to get to my father! You’re all trying to take down Shen Zhenwu! I’ll report you! I’ll let the whole world know—MMPH!"

Her accusations grew more and more outrageous. Sheng Hui clamped a hand over her mouth, hissing a harsh warning into her ear.

"Don’t push me."

Song Yao continued to struggle, her heels scraping loudly against the pavement.

In the end, Sheng Hui had to drag her away by force.

The middle-aged man hesitated for a few seconds, his eyes darting between the pair and the interrogation room, but he ultimately followed them.

No one wanted to miss such a golden opportunity.

But within the Special Operations Department, most people were on Mr. Shen’s side.

He had earned his stripes with life-and-death struggles, and everyone respected that.

Even if there were daily frictions, they wouldn’t kick a man when he was down.

Song Yao kept shouting until her voice grew hoarse, refusing to cooperate in any way.

By the time they reached the interrogation room door, she finally fell silent.

The woman who had been trembling in fear moments ago was suddenly transformed, eerily calm.

The middle-aged man’s eyes widened. He held his breath, staring at her in disbelief.

"Weren’t you just trembling like a leaf?"

Song Yao casually flicked her hair, walked over to a chair, and sat down.

Sheng Hui narrowed his eyes, his tone sinking.

"You’re full of surprises."

A corner of Song Yao’s mouth lifted into an icy smile.

"I’m nothing compared to you. I only use my wits to protect myself. I’ve never abused public authority to settle a personal vendetta. But you, Director Sheng, are a different story."

"I offended your precious little darling, so you’ve had me followed since the day I set foot in Beijing. You even intercepted a bed I tried to buy. And now you’re just using your authority to crush me outright? Is this official business, or are you just a dog in heat?"

The middle-aged man finally snapped his jaw shut, which had nearly hit the floor. His chest rose and fell erratically.

He whirled around to glare at Sheng Hui, fury blazing in his eyes.

"You dragged me into this to be your scapegoat over some personal squabble with a girl? And you wanted to frame Mr. Shen in the process?"

Sheng Hui’s gaze remained locked on Song Yao, but his words were for the other man.

"I didn’t ask you to come. You’re the one who insisted on sticking your nose in."

The man was so furious his teeth ground together, his face turning pale and then red.

He spun on his heel and stormed toward the door.

He slammed the door so hard it went BANG, shaking dust from the walls.

The interrogation room fell silent. Only the two of them remained.

Sheng Hui sat on the iron chair, back ramrod straight, hands resting on his knees.

Song Yao sat opposite him. The iron cuffs on her wrists were chained to the table, but her posture remained straight, her head held high.

Sheng Hui stared at her, his eyes scanning her face, inch by inch.

"You’re far too eloquent. You don’t sound at all like a girl who grew up getting beaten and cursed in the countryside."

And she wasn’t.

’Her identity was real. Her experiences were real. But the knowledge in her mind was not.’

’The book smarts, the legal knowledge, the psychological gambits—all of it had been bought with blood and time in her past life.’

’In that life, she had lived in utter misery—schemed against, framed, and humiliated. In the end, she died in a fire, her body burned beyond recognition.’

"Is that so important?"

She looked up at Sheng Hui, her tone flat.

Her question wasn’t really for him; it was a challenge to the entire system.

’Must someone from a humble background be forever denied the ability to think for themselves?’

’Must someone who grew up being beaten and scorned remain meek and submissive their entire life?’

She had never cared for the rules others set, and she immediately went on the offensive.

"Forget that. What I’m more curious about, Director Sheng, is what you’re really after. Is a little puppy love really worth risking your entire future?"

"Are you really that infatuated with Shen Shuangshuang? So infatuated you can stand by while she laughs and flirts with other men? So infatuated that you’d dare provoke a formidable man like Mr. Shen for her sake?"

"Or..."

Her voice dropped to a whisper.

"Is it that to you, she’s not a woman at all... but something else entirely?"

Sheng Hui remained seated, motionless, his shoulders straight and his breathing even.

But in the next second, he lunged forward and wrapped his hand around her throat!

The chains CLANKED as the legs of his chair SCREECHED against the floor.

The back of her head slammed against the wall with a dull THUD.

His fingers tightened, and a hint of satisfaction flickered in his eyes as he watched her face flush red.

"I don’t tolerate loose ends. Not people, and not situations."

There wasn’t a hint of panic in Song Yao’s eyes. Instead, she smiled.

"Then kill me. Right now. If you have the guts."