Ten minutes later, the taxi stopped at the abandoned factory.
The driver, puzzled, was about to ask where her friend was when Song Xi, with quick reflexes, scanned a code. "I WeChat-paid you, Uncle. Thank you."
What? Hadn't she just said her phone was out of power?
The driver didn't think much of it, only finding the person odd for coming to such a desolate place in broad daylight. He immediately drove away, not wanting to linger for a second longer.
Song Xi glanced at the time. The police had said it would take at least an hour from departure to deployment, so she needed to buy them that hour.
She took a deep breath and entered the factory.
This factory looked old, its stairs were broken.
Song Xi ascended cautiously. Just then, the other party called.
"Seventh floor."
With that, the call ended.
Along the way, Song Xi was lost in thought.
She felt something was strange, and it wasn't until she saw Mi Xuan, her hands bound in front of her, her eyes pleading for help, that she finally understood something. Her steps faltered.
Mi Xuan's expression froze.
Across the air, Song Xi gazed at her calmly.
"Mi Xuan," she began slowly, her voice unwavering, "where did I offend you?"
As soon as she spoke, Mi Xuan's pupils widened in shock, and the person hiding behind the wall, preparing to ambush, also froze.
Mi Xuan's mouth was covered with tape. She whimpered, unable to speak.
But seeing this, Song Xi found it utterly absurd.
She pierced through the facade without mercy: "Are your hands tied behind your back? Why can't you just tear off the tape?"
Song Xi clearly saw Mi Xuan's body stiffen for a second.
Awkwardly, her eyes darted around. Finally, she clumsily found an excuse – she shakily raised her hands, a pained expression on her face.
Song Xi, a master of fill-in-the-blanks since childhood, gave Mi Xuan a knowing explanation: "Ah, your hand is injured."
Mi Xuan nodded profusely.
Song Xi smiled. "Do you think that's all you've revealed?"
Under Mi Xuan's shocked gaze, Song Xi stepped up the stairs, one by one. "Given our current relationship, why would you call me if you were kidnapped?"
"This shows that, from the very beginning, their target was me."
"And you."
As she reached the last step, she stopped abruptly, leading the person hiding behind the wall to believe she had arrived. A wooden club swung at her.
A sharp gust of wind lifted Song Xi's stray hairs.
When the club was still more than ten centimeters from her face, it abruptly stopped due to the wall.
Song Xi looked at the wooden club before her, unexpectedly yanked it out with her hand, and the assailant, pulled by her sudden force, stumbled out.
But Song Xi hadn't expected this person to be her!
"You!"
Anna thought she had landed a hit, only to find that face completely unharmed.
She was furious, her beautiful features contorted, making her look hideous and terrifying.
Song Xi never imagined that Mi Xuan would team up with Anna to deal with her. Did she hate her that much? Hate her to the point of death!
Seeing that her plan was exposed, Mi Xuan stopped pretending. She stood up, removed the restraints on her hands, and tore off the tape from her face.
She walked to Anna's side. "Song Xi, don't blame me."
Song Xi gave a bitter smile and shook her head. "I just didn't expect things to escalate to this point between us."
Mi Xuan sneered, "Didn't expect it? Did you really not expect it? If Miss Anna hadn't told me you were Lou Yuming's lover, I would have truly believed you climbed your way up on your own merit. Hmph, Lou Yuming. You've really latched onto a good patron. Why are you so lucky? Clearly... we're the same kind of person."