Chapter 253: Mission

Zhang Wenda stared with a complicated expression at the pixelated blur before him—the blur that had once been Tang Xingxiong.

He watched as she faded away like a mob in an online game, vanishing as if she had never existed.

However, she left two things behind on the spot where she died: the moon she had used, and an old, pink flip phone.

Zhang Wenda was still trying to process the meaning of her final words.

Suddenly, a dark figure rushed past, snatching up the two items. "Haha! They're mine!"

It was Song Jianguo. She held her head high, gazing exuberantly at her loot as if she'd just won a great victory.

She suddenly clutched the two items to her chest and looked at Zhang Wenda warily. "Finders keepers! They're mine now! If you dare try to take them, I'll kill you!"

Zhang Wenda said nothing, while Hu Maomao, standing beside him, looked as if she wanted to speak but was holding herself back.

Seeing that neither of them intended to fight her for the items, Song Jianguo didn't bother wondering about their reactions. She simply retreated to a corner with the Black Cats and began to examine her new loot.

Meanwhile, Zhang Wenda and Hu Maomao stood at a distance, watching in silence.

As he watched Song Jianguo, Zhang Wenda quietly asked the girl beside him, "Besides what she said out loud, what else did Tang Xingxiong tell you?"

With a wave of Hu Maomao's hand, the tinfoil pot on the ground floated over and settled back onto her head.

"When people are about to die, their life flashes before their eyes. She remembered many things. What do you want to ask?"

Zhang Wenda's expression was deeply conflicted. He thought for a long time before finally asking the question that mattered most to him.

"Why did she kill my uncle? Was she really being coerced by Qianxi?"

'If she was forced to do it, have I been seeking revenge against the wrong person all this time?'

But Hu Maomao shook her head. "No, it wasn't coercion. She genuinely wanted to kill Biaozi. In her mind, didn't a man who couldn't even protect his own daughter deserve to die?"

"Hah!" An angry retort was on the tip of Zhang Wenda's tongue, but he stopped himself. No matter what, the person responsible was dead. There was no point in saying anything more now.

Hu Maomao glanced from Song Jianguo to Zhang Wenda, then said in a comforting tone, "You know, Jianguo might not actually be your cousin. If you really like her, it wouldn't have to be so..."

"What?!" Zhang Wenda whipped his head around in shock. He grabbed Hu Maomao by the arms and lifted her clean off the ground. "What the hell are you talking about? Was Tang Xingxiong just making that up?"

"No! Keep your voice down, don't let Jianguo hear you," Hu Maomao's voice boomed inside Zhang Wenda's mind.

In the distance, Song Jianguo heard the commotion and glanced over at them before going back to looking through the phone in her hands.

Zhang Wenda set her down and looked at her intently, waiting for her to explain further.

"It's certain that Jianguo is her daughter. She carried her to term and gave birth to her. But there's a small chance that she isn't your uncle's, if you know what I mean."

"What do you mean, a small chance she's... Ohh." Zhang Wenda stopped mid-sentence as a look of dawning realization spread across his face.

"Your uncle played the field, and your aunt wasn't much better. How else do you think those two hit it off?"

Once he understood, Zhang Wenda sighed. 'My uncle's love life was a real mess. I'm his nephew; I should probably stay out of it.'

"What a mess. If they didn't like each other, why couldn't they just split up?"

"It's not that hard to understand, actually. Even though they were both unfaithful, they were also deeply in love with each other. Maybe that's what true love is."

Hu Maomao said wistfully, "Lao San always used to say they were a bitch and a dog, a match made to last. But in the end, they both met a grisly fate."

Just then, a cheer from Song Jianguo echoed from the distance, followed by the excited meows of the Black Cats.

The two then watched as Song Jianguo, who had been standing there looking at the phone screen, suddenly split into seven black cats. The ability was strikingly similar to Tang Xingxiong's.

The seven cats merged and overlapped with the other Black Cats, forming a "kitty-plane" one moment and a "kitty-boat" the next, clearly having the time of their lives.

"Haozi! Look! That woman's stuff is a perfect match for me! I've gotten so much stronger! I should've offed her ages ago, hahaha!!"

A flicker of worry crossed Hu Maomao's face. "Do you think... when she gets back, she might start putting the pieces together? If she ever figures things out and remembers saying something like that... can you imagine how devastated she'd be?"

Zhang Wenda thought for a moment before replying with absolute certainty, "Not a chance. She's not smart enough, nor does she have the patience."

"I'm more worried about the computer virus on Jianguo's wrist. With that thing, doesn't it mean Qianxi can kill her with a single command?"

"Not necessarily. These viruses are usually pre-programmed. Just like with Tang Xingxiong, it only triggers if the host says something they aren't supposed to."

"But you said she has amnesia, right? If she can't remember what she isn't supposed to say, then she can't trigger the virus."

'So the amnesia is actually a form of protection? So that's how it works,' Zhang Wenda mused.

He wondered how Song Jianguo had managed to escape all those years ago when she was so young.

"About you and Jianguo, you don't need to worry. If you're really concerned, you could always take her for a blood—"

"What did Tang Xingxiong mean with that last string of words?" Zhang Wenda abruptly changed the subject.

"Which part?" Hu Maomao, quick on the uptake, smoothly followed his lead. They both tacitly moved on, as if the previous topic had never been broached.

"The string of numbers. The one that started with thirteen-something."

"If I'm not mistaken, it's some kind of code. Tan Yougen must have assigned her to investigate something, and that string of numbers represents what she uncovered over more than a decade."

Zhang Wenda sank into thought for a moment, replaying the scene in his mind. The virus Qianxi had planted in Tang Xingxiong activated before she could even begin to speak. That meant this information had to be crucial to Qianxi; otherwise, they wouldn't have used such a lethal virus to guard it.

Zhang Wenda looked at Hu Maomao. "Don't tell me Old Tan set this plan in motion over a decade ago just to deal with Qianxi."

But Hu Maomao shook her head decisively. "That's impossible. Qianxi wasn't that powerful back then. If Director Tan wanted to deal with them, he could have just done it himself. It must have been for a different mission."