After Crossing Over, I Marked the Empress

At 3 PM, Li Jianye and his wife returned to the First Retirement Home.

‘Zhang Qi’ had a particularly vibrant bunch of small yellow flowers on her lap.

She gently cupped the stems with both hands, protecting the delicate petals from the harsh wind.

Li Jianye carefully pushed the wheelchair behind her, occasionally reaching out to adjust his ‘wife’s’ scarf that had been disheveled by the wind.

Beside them was a young man with a kind face, carrying a toolbox and potting soil.

The young man was around 25 years old, with a round face and thick upper lip. When he smiled, he gave off an impression of simplicity and honesty.

Upon seeing Li Jianye and his companions, their old neighbors began greeting them from afar.

“Old squad leader’s back! Among all us old fogies in this courtyard, you’re living the healthiest life, squad leader!”

“Not just healthy living, the old squad leader’s devotion is what we should all learn from. Look, Little Qi’s attitude is so positive, she’s getting younger by the day.”

“Zheng Xiang is a good kid too! Even on his rare day off, he doesn’t forget to come help his mentor and mentor’s wife.”

“…”

Li Jianye smiled warmly, nodding in acknowledgment to everyone.

“Why are you all gathered outside? It’s windy today, aren’t you cold?”

An old man wrapped in a padded jacket and wearing a fur hat with ear flaps said, “The power distribution box burned out earlier, just like last month. The electricity just came back on not long ago.”

“We haven’t finished our game of chess yet. Jianye, want to join for a round?”

Li Jianye waved his hands repeatedly, “Not today. Little Qi isn’t feeling well. I need to go back and brew her some ginger tea to prevent a cold.”

Hearing this, the group of old neighbors immediately chorused their admiration.

As soon as the three returned to their residence, Li Jianye’s smile vanished.

He first stood in the yard filled with landscape pots, surveying to ensure all ornaments were exactly as he had left them. Only then did he begin issuing orders in a low voice.

“You two split up. Black Rat, check if there are any signs of someone climbing over the courtyard wall.”

“White Ant, go inside and scan for any surveillance equipment installed in the house using the detector.”

Zheng Xiang took the lead, walking to the corner of the yard in a few steps and thoroughly inspecting up and down.

‘Zhang Qi’ stood up directly from the wheelchair and quickly went to the bedroom to fetch the equipment.

Li Jianye went straight to his study, turned on the computer, and began checking the surveillance footage.

The tense atmosphere persisted for over half an hour.

Only when everyone’s inspections turned up no issues did they all breathe a sigh of relief.

Zheng Xiang bowed 90 degrees to Li Jianye: “Teacher, I’ll take my leave now.”

The fake wife ‘Zhang Qi’ handed Li Jianye a cup of hot tea.

Seeing no further instructions from him, she turned and went to the kitchen.

Li Jianye set the hot tea aside, walked into the yard, and picked up the bunch of small yellow flowers that White Ant had dropped on the ground during her inspection.

He carefully blew the dust and dirt off the petals, then walked towards the storage room.

In the basement.

Zhang Qi lay quietly on the bed, looking thin and frail, like a light feather in deep slumber.

Li Jianye sat sideways on the bed, gently stroking his wife’s forehead: “It was very windy today. Many of your favorite small yellow flowers were damaged. I could only pick a small bunch.”

“By the way, that woodland area we used to visit has started development. In a few years, it will become a scenic spot.”

As he spoke, Li Jianye gently lifted Zhang Qi from the bed and placed her in a nearby wheelchair.

He carefully gave her a full body massage, tirelessly recounting what he had seen and heard during his outing.

After quite a while, the fake wife’s voice suddenly came from the entrance of the basement.

“Sir, you have a phone call. It’s from your gardener friend.”

“I see. I’ll be right there.”

“Come down and continue her massage.”

White Ant was the codename for Li Jianye’s fake wife, and her real name had long been discarded.

Before Zhang Qi’s accident, she was an apprentice who loved the art of bonsai and often came to the villa to help.

Afterward, she became a medical miracle awakened by love in the eyes of outsiders, a perfect tool to assist Li Jianye’s actions.

Under the guise of being the mistress of the villa, she could even freely enter and exit Li Jianye’s study.

Yet she was strictly forbidden from entering the basement where Zhang Qi stayed without permission.

After Li Jianye left, White Ant meticulously carried out her superior’s orders.

She didn’t slack off; in fact, her massage technique was even more proficient than Li Jianye’s.

However, the words that came out of her mouth were as biting as the winter wind.

“A few days ago, I accompanied the commander to the White Egret Hotel to deliver a bonsai to the Empress. Oh right, that’s the little girl you used to like so much.”

“She’s so much like her grandmother in temperament, and they’re both incredibly lucky. The commander has set up several deadly traps for her, but in the end, none succeeded in killing her during the turmoil.”

“I have another piece of good news to share with you. In the past year or so, a huge amount of funds have flowed from within the Federation to Yin Country.”

“Do you remember your former comrade, Aunt Zhang? Her son became addicted to gambling, lost all the family’s money, and even sold their house. To help pay off her son’s debts, Aunt Zhang, at her age, was looking everywhere for work. Just half a month ago, she was run over by a car on her way home from a night shift. The commander took me to attend her funeral.”

The half-hour massage finally ended.

White Ant carefully moved Zhang Qi back onto the bed, then left the basement with a smile.

In the dim room, a bunch of small yellow flowers on the bedside table emitted a faint fragrance.

Zhang Qi lay with her eyes tightly closed, breathing steadily.

Only when she heard the sound of the wooden cover closing at the entrance of the basement did a turbid tear silently roll down the corner of her eye, wetting her hair roots and the pillowcase beneath her head.

……

After finishing the call with his gardener friend, Li Jianye remained silent.

Though he couldn’t pinpoint why, he had an uneasy feeling in his heart.

A large number of his gardener friend’s potted plants had died, and he wanted Li Jianye to come to his garden to take a look.

The friend’s voice sounded quite urgent, and the audio wasn’t clear, so they switched to a video call midway.

Li Jianye eventually agreed to help but postponed it by a day.

They arranged to meet the day after tomorrow.

The next day.

After getting up, Li Jianye once again reviewed all the events that had occurred since meeting Gu Junwan.

The power outage during his outing and the old friend’s invitation – these two coincidences happening on the same day made him feel wary.

At noon, he gave Black Rat a task.

“Immediately contact Chen Yihe and Sun Xianglong. Tell them to prepare two million in large cash bills, as well as the withdrawal identity and password for their two billion virtual currency on the be-q trading platform. It must be in your hands by 10 PM tonight at the latest!”

At 4 PM.

Gu Junwan received intelligence that Chen Yihe and Sun Xianglong would be secretly meeting someone at Yusheng Manor in the suburbs that evening.

Gu Junwan couldn’t directly arrest these two high-ranking officials.

Without more crucial and definitive evidence, she also couldn’t reveal the intelligence to Gu Yuwei yet.

Those two were not only meritorious officials after Gu Yuwei’s coup but also currently held positions of power in the Northern jurisdiction.

If she couldn’t nail those two down, Gu Yuwei knowing the information in advance would cause major problems.

No ruler would cut off their right and left arms over ‘trivial’ matters.

Perhaps this time, even heaven was on Gu Junwan’s side.

Yusheng Manor, known throughout the Federation for its low-key and mysterious nature, was Yihe’s property.

That middle-aged man with fiery red hair would dare to do anything when it came to matters related to Gu Qianqiu.

It was the same when he led his private armed forces to rescue his friend and love rival in the past.

Now, it was the same in cooperating with Gu Junwan’s secret operation.

The arrest operation against Li Jianye was scheduled for tomorrow, with more than half of the initiative in Gu Yuwei’s hands.

So, for tonight’s operation, Gu Junwan could free herself to follow in real-time from the hotel’s command room.

The Empress was as composed as ever, issuing orders methodically, but in ways others couldn’t easily perceive, her nerves were extremely taut.

In the narrow alley where short weapons clash, killing is as silent as mowing grass!

This was a crucial confrontation between Gu Junwan and the hidden enemy leader. How could she truly take it lightly?

“Ma Haoyu and Jiang Xinyue will disguise themselves as manor staff. Your task is to confirm if there are any awakened individuals among Chen Yihe and Sun Xianglong’s team.”

“Shen Han and the other high-ranking Alphas, pay attention to concealment. Keep a close eye on the main figures at tonight’s meeting. Whether to make arrests is to be determined. Confirming the enemy’s identity and gathering evidence are the key points of the mission.”

Hearing the Empress’s final emphasis before the operation, the guard team members led by Shen Han immediately straightened their backs, raised their hands in unison, and gave a standard military salute.

Yusheng Manor had regulations prohibiting private aircraft or flying cars from taking off, landing, or passing within a 60-kilometer range.

The guard team members had to depart now, taking ground transportation to enter the manor early and coordinate with Yihe’s private armed forces.

“All team members, listen up. Follow me and move out!”

At Shen Han’s command, she immediately led the members of Group 1 out of the command room.

Xu Zhao watched as the guard team members in plain clothes filed out one by one.

Shen Han was the last one, and after her figure disappeared, the door wasn’t closed behind her.

Special Assistant Xu shook her head, stepped towards the door, and was about to close it when a fair and slender hand pressed against the side of the door.

She widened her almond-shaped eyes, staring at the Alpha who had suddenly returned after ordering the departure. For a moment, her brain short-circuited.

Shen Han made a gesture for her to be quiet, then slipped into the room, quickly walking towards where Gu Junwan had been.

Seeing her Alpha return alone, Gu Junwan was also very curious.

Light shimmered in her clear and beautiful golden eyes as she asked, “What’s wrong?”

Shen Han didn’t answer. She walked straight to her Omega, picked her up, and carried her into an inner room.

The temporary command room they were in was also a suite, divided into a living room, bedroom, and study.

Shen Han carried Gu Junwan from the living room to the bedroom, then closed the door with her heel.

“Bang!”

Hearing the forceful door closing, Special Assistant Xu thought of the bold Alpha ‘bullying’ her Empress at such a time and suddenly felt her face heat up.

She poked her head out to look at the empty corridor outside, then took off her glasses and fanned herself, physically cooling her face.

Inside the bedroom, after closing the door, Shen Han didn’t continue towards the bed. Instead, she turned around and gently pressed the Omega in her arms against the wooden door.

Finding those red lips that were slightly parted due to nervousness, she tilted her head and kissed them.