Chapter 65: Arrival

The man who entered the lounge looked like any other first-class passenger.

He wore a casual shirt and carried a small backpack, his handsome, refined features making him look like some wealthy young heir.

After entering the lounge, Shen Yanqing swept his gaze across the room before taking a seat beside the bar and ordering a specially mixed drink from the bartender.

He then took a small laptop out of his backpack and began working, making it look as though he were busy with paperwork.

But Xia Jiuwei and Lu Nian’an had noticed his supposedly subtle glances long ago.

Xia Jiuwei, however, paid him no attention and simply continued leisurely enjoying her meal.

It was only after nearly all the food on the table had been eaten that she began to feel a little bored. She rested her chin on her hands and leaned lazily across the table, looking up at Lu Nian’an sitting opposite her.

“Nia, isn’t it about half an hour until we board?”

“Mm. Why?”

Xia Jiuwei lowered her voice and complained quietly.

“I still had a little appetite, but after being disturbed by ‘someone,’ I suddenly don’t really feel like ordering anything else.”

“How about a drink from the bar?”

“The bar…”

Xia Jiuwei thought about it for a moment, then her eyes suddenly lit up as though she had come up with an interesting idea.

“What do you want to drink? I’ll order it for you.”

“You choose.”

“Okay.”

Shen Yanqing sat beside the bar, tapping away at his laptop as though he were writing a report.

But rather than actually writing one, he was merely typing out something he had memorized long ago.

Most of his attention was actually focused on Xia Jiuwei some distance away, observing her inconspicuously from the corner of his eye.

Although he had no idea why a seemingly harmless young woman like her had been designated by the higher-ups as their highest-priority surveillance target, “Subject 0,” as a veteran intelligence operative, he understood perfectly well that all he needed to do was carry out his assignment.

He casually logged the current time and Xia Jiuwei’s current status in one of the tabs on his laptop.

Just as he was preparing to continue pretending to work, the girl in the corner of his vision suddenly turned her head and stared directly in his direction.

A sudden sense of unease washed over him, and Shen Yanqing’s heart sank.

Did she see through me?

In less than a second, however, he had already regained his composure.

To anyone else, he was nothing more than an ordinary-looking passenger quietly using a laptop, and even his surveillance consisted of nothing more than discreet glances from the corner of his eye. There was no way he could have given himself away.

Yet as Xia Jiuwei continued looking in his direction for longer and longer, a thin layer of cold sweat gradually formed across Shen Yanqing’s back.

Before he could think of a response, Xia Jiuwei had already gotten to her feet and started walking toward him.

Could she really know that someone is watching her?

If he blew his cover and compromised the higher-ups' years-long plan, he knew he wouldn't get off lightly.

For a moment, his mind went almost completely blank.

It was only when the girl’s voice came from behind him that he suddenly snapped back to reality.

She had not been coming for him at all.

“Could you make me two fruit cocktails? One strawberry, and one passion fruit.”

The bartender quickly prepared two brightly colored fruit cocktails.

Xia Jiuwei carried the drinks back to their table.

“This one’s for you. Strawberry.”

She placed the pink cocktail in front of Lu Nian’an, then picked up her own passion-fruit cocktail and took a sip.

“Mm, not bad. I feel better already after a little drink.”

Lu Nian’an took a small sip as well, her gaze naturally sweeping over the man sitting beside the bar, who was pretending to remain calm.

She had not missed that brief moment of panic just now.

“Don’t tease him so much.”

“It’s pretty fun.”

Xia Jiuwei lowered her voice, a mischievous smile curling at the corners of her lips.

The next second, Lu Nian’an suddenly reached out and took the fruit cocktail right out of Xia Jiuwei’s hands.

“Hey!”

Lu Nian’an gently swirled the glass, a faint smile lingering on her lips.

“It’s pretty fun.”

On the other side of the table, Lu Nian’an still looked as elegant and composed as ever, but she could no longer hide the amusement in her expression.

The man sitting beside the bar continued to observe the two girls from the corner of his eye, yet an indescribable sense of unease lingered in his mind.

They clearly looked like nothing more than ordinary girls.

And yet, at the exact moment Xia Jiuwei had turned her head and looked at him, he had felt as though he had suddenly fallen into an icy abyss.

Thinking back on it now, what had happened just then was hardly troublesome at all.

But why, at the time, had he felt such inexplicable fear?

The sensation was far too abnormal. Perhaps this was precisely why the higher-ups had sent someone to monitor her.

With that thought, he gathered himself once more and continued watching the two girls as though nothing unusual had happened.

And for the rest of their time there, nothing else happened.

At 2:15 in the afternoon, an airline staff member entered the lounge.

“Ladies and gentlemen, please follow me for boarding.”

There were fewer than ten passengers in the lounge. Under her guidance, they made their way through the dedicated first-class priority boarding passage.

Once they stepped into the cabin, spacious seats were arranged neatly along both sides. One by one, the passengers took their seats along the aisle near the aircraft door.

Xia Jiuwei frowned slightly when she saw the seating arrangement.

She had been assigned to the row behind Lu Nian’an, which left her feeling a little sulky. However, the moment she saw the plane begin taxiing, that small annoyance was quickly replaced by anticipation.

She leaned forward slightly and whispered to Lu Nian’an in the row ahead.

“The plane’s about to take off! I’m so excited.”

Lu Nian’an turned around and asked with an utterly serious expression,

“Shouldn’t you fasten your seat belt before takeoff?”

“Oh, right!”

Xia Jiuwei immediately sat back down and obediently buckled her seat belt.

However, after the plane taxied for a short distance before coming to a stop, she slowly realized that she had probably been tricked.

Through the gap between the seats, she could still see Lu Nian’an’s shoulders trembling slightly in the row ahead, clearly trying to suppress her laughter.

“Lu Nian’an!”

Lu Nian’an did not answer. Instead, she pointed toward the window.

“Look.”

Xia Jiuwei followed her finger.

Outside, the jet bridge was slowly connecting to the aircraft’s lower boarding door, and through the large glass windows, she could see ordinary passengers lining up and boarding one after another.

“……”

Xia Jiuwei silently puffed out her cheeks.

More than ten minutes later, the plane finally began taxiing again.

This time, the seat-belt sign finally came on.

As the engines roared, the plane accelerated faster and faster before finally racing down the runway.

Soon, Xia Jiuwei felt the aircraft begin to lift beneath her.

The airport below grew smaller and smaller as the view expanded, gradually revealing the entire city.

The plane continued climbing until the city was slowly obscured by the clouds, after which the aircraft gradually leveled out.

The flight to South Korea was not particularly long.

Along the way, Xia Jiuwei only ordered a few light snacks from the flight attendant. It felt as though she had barely settled into her seat before the plane hit a little turbulence and began its descent. toward the airport.

By the time they cleared immigration in South Korea, it was already 5:10 p.m.

Xia Jiuwei looked around the airport terminal before taking Lu Nian’an by the hand.

“Let’s go!”

The two of them took a taxi to Seomyeon and arrived in less than half an hour.

Standing amid the crowds on the streets of Seomyeon, Xia Jiuwei looked up at the tall building in front of them, then turned toward Lu Nian’an.

“Are you saying… this is the hotel we’re staying at?”

“Mm.”

The two of them entered the hotel.

To Xia Jiuwei’s surprise, the hotel lobby was actually located on the top floor.

After taking the elevator directly to the thirteenth floor and completing the check-in process, Xia Jiuwei immediately pulled Lu Nian’an toward the outdoor terrace.

It was already close to six in the evening, and the winter sky had long since darkened.

Standing on the rooftop, surrounded by the carefully designed garden and looking out over the brightly lit city below, felt strangely cozy.

“This hotel’s pretty nice!”

“I’m glad you like it.”

They checked the room number on their key cards and headed to the ninth floor, where they found Room 909.

After unlocking the door with their key card, they were greeted by a simple and spotless room.

A bathroom with separate wet and dry areas occupied the space to the right of the entrance, while farther inside stood a double bed. The room itself was not particularly large, but it was exceptionally comfortable.

The moment the door closed behind them, the two exchanged an understanding glance and instinctively took each other’s hands before their figures disappeared from the room.

When they reappeared, they were already back at home.

Xia Jiuwei dropped onto the sofa and stretched comfortably.

“It’s still more comfortable here.”

Not long afterward, Lu Nian’an walked over after taking a shower.

Xia Jiuwei turned her head and looked at her wrapped in a bath towel, her eyes narrowing suspiciously.

“Don’t tell me you’re planning to stay home until tomorrow and only go back to Korea then?”

“Mm. Is that not allowed?”

“Of course not!”

Xia Jiuwei immediately got to her feet.

“We can still go downstairs at the hotel for dinner later, and then walk around Seomyeon.”

“Wouldn’t tomorrow be the same?”

“Tomorrow works, but today works too!”

With that, she pushed Lu Nian’an into the dressing room without giving her a chance to argue.

After changing clothes, the two returned to their hotel room in Korea once again.

They took the elevator down to the first floor, and Xia Jiuwei’s eyes were filled with anticipation.

“Let’s go explore Seomyeon together!”

Lu Nian’an gave an exasperated but smiling nod.

“Okay, okay.”