Hearing He Yuan’s voice, Ji Shuyu’s tense nerves instantly relaxed.
She walked out and saw He Yuan hanging his coat on the door hook.
“How can it be you?”
“Didn’t you ask Mom to come find you?”
He Yuan was confused by Ji Shuyu’s question.
Ji Shuyu frowned slightly, walked over to him, and looked outside, glancing left and right.
“On your way here, did you run into anyone strange?”
Hearing her question, He Yuan immediately realized what she was implying.
“No, but we’ve already started door-to-door investigations in the area. No matter where he’s hiding, this island is only so big. We’ll definitely root him out.”
Ji Shuyu quietly retracted the stun gun into her space, took a deep breath.
“On my way home just now, I felt like someone was watching me. The gaze was very hostile, it made my back feel cold.”
“So I thought about luring the snake out of its hole. I had Mom go find you, while I waited here for him.”
Hearing this, He Yuan’s expression immediately turned grave.
He took her hand and only then noticed her palm was sweaty, her hand still slightly cold.
“Don’t do something so dangerous again. You’re heavily pregnant now, it’s inconvenient for you to do anything. What if he’s hard to deal with and something happens to you?”
He Yuan’s concern wasn’t unfounded. None of them knew exactly who the person who stole the research results was.
After hearing Ji Shuyu’s words, He Yuan felt that for this period, he needed to find someone, or personally ensure her safety himself.
If anything happened to Ji Shuyu, he would hate himself forever.
“I know. I have protective weapons. I just feel that person has definitely set his sights on me.”
“Maybe he wants to take me hostage, or has some other plan. But in any case, I’m his target now.”
He Yuan nodded, fully agreeing with Ji Shuyu.
“By the way, our initial investigation found that someone is missing from your research institute.”
There were only a handful of people in Ji Shuyu’s research institute.
Some were recommended by He Yuan, about to be discharged from the military. Some were recommended by Auntie Qin, and a few were found by Ji Shuyu herself.
Not many personnel, just over twenty people in total.
“Who?”
“A person responsible for recycling your materials. Your assistant told me. He said he hasn’t shown up for a long time. It seems it started the night the research results were stolen.”
“So I had Zhao Qiang check his information. We found his name, age, and place of origin were all fake.”
Not only that, but even the photo on the records was disguised.
This person was clearly a professional, his goal was likely the contents of Ji Shuyu’s research institute from the start.
He had probably been lying low for a long time.
Ji Shuyu, however, became calmer. She nodded, indicating her agreement with He Yuan’s words.
“I think, since I’m his target, he will definitely come for me. Why not use me as bait?”
Just as He Yuan was about to refute, Ji Shuyu took his hand.
“He Yuan, listen to me. This person is hiding in the shadows, we’re in the open. Constantly being on guard against him is too passive. Right now, I’m the target he most wants to strike. This is our opportunity.”
“Only by luring him out can we completely resolve this threat, retrieve the data, and let everyone on the island feel at ease.”
He Yuan frowned deeply, his gaze fixed on his wife’s noticeably rounded belly, filled with a hundred reservations.
“No! It’s too dangerous! I absolutely cannot risk you and the child! Apprehending him is my job. I’ll find a way, but you absolutely cannot act as bait!”
Ji Shuyu’s tone softened but grew even more resolute. “The investigation will take time. The longer this drags on, the more variables there are. What if he’s cornered and lashes out, harming other islanders?”
“Or what if he finds another way to escape with the data? I know you will protect me, right?” She shook He Yuan’s hand slightly, with a hint of a coaxing tone.
He Yuan looked at her, knowing it was hard to change her mind once it was set. He struggled internally, torn between his duty and everyone’s safety on one side, and his beloved wife and child on the other.
Finally, he let out a heavy sigh, tightly clasping her hand in return, his voice hoarse. “…Alright, I agree. But you must promise me, you will follow my arrangements every step of the way, and absolutely cannot act on your own initiative! If anything seems wrong, we terminate the plan immediately!”
Even if he disagreed, Ji Shuyu would likely find another way to act. It was better he agreed; at least by reporting it, more people could protect her.
“I promise,” Ji Shuyu immediately nodded.
The two carefully discussed the plan details. He Yuan mobilized his most trusted personnel, setting up a tight net around the house, and prepared to protect her personally from the shadows.
Ji Shuyu only needed to live as usual, but she had to let the person in the shadows know she was home alone, seemingly reducing outings out of fear.
Everything was set, waiting for the fish to take the bait.
That evening, the sky was overcast, a storm brewing.
Ji Shuyu was in the kitchen, following the plan, preparing a simple dinner alone, intentionally leaving the door unclosed.
Suddenly, two figures rushed in from outside the courtyard gate, moving extremely fast. They closed the courtyard gate behind them.
Ji Shuyu’s heart jumped. She tightened her grip on the stun gun hidden in her pocket and looked up.
It was actually a man and a woman.
“Li Cuihua? Zhang Zhiyuan? How is it you?”
Ji Shuyu frowned, her heart sinking heavily. Their posture suggested they meant trouble.
Li Cuihua placed her hands on her hips, speaking with resentment. “Ji Shuyu, didn’t expect us, did you? We’re back! I knew it was you and He Yuan who found people to trick us, telling us there were easy, well-paying jobs outside.”
“Turns out it was just to send us off to some poor, remote mountain gully to suffer! You nearly got us killed!” They had even ended up in debt because of it.
Having finally managed to escape, their first priority was to settle the score with Ji Shuyu and He Yuan.
Zhang Zhiyuan’s eyes also turned vicious. “Exactly! Did you really think we were made of mud? We came back specifically to settle this with you! We heard He Yuan is doing pretty well for himself now?”
“Perfect. We’ll take you and make him pay a ransom! Let’s see if he can still act so high and mighty!”
The two had suffered greatly outside. After finally finding out that He Yuan had deliberately sent them away, they saved up enough for travel expenses and sneaked back, burning with the desire for revenge.
They had heard about the heightened security upon returning, seeing it as a heaven-sent opportunity to strike amidst the chaos.
They never expected Ji Shuyu to be so bold as to leave her door unclosed – wasn’t that just giving them an opportunity?
Ji Shuyu slowly backed away while trying to calm them. “Don’t do anything rash. The island is under strict security now, there are patrols everywhere. You won’t get away!”
“Stop trying to scare us!” Li Cuihua shrilled. “Once we have you, why would we fear He Yuan not obeying? Zhiyuan, get her!”
Zhang Zhiyuan immediately lunged forward!
Ji Shuyu pulled out the stun gun, but Zhang Zhiyuan was prepared. Just as he was about to kick out…
In the midst of this chaos…
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