SDT 61

Chapter 61: Not Just One Person’s Secret

The training ground lay on the outskirts of Manjing. After exiting the military control zone, Ye Yisan steered the car onto a narrow road flanked by makeshift shacks. There were no surveillance cameras here.

Shortly after, Ye Yisan parked behind a secluded grove and swiftly stripped off his Military Intelligence Bureau uniform with visible distaste. He then turned to Yu Xiaowen in the passenger seat, where bottles of suppressants and nutrient solutions hung from his IV drip.

“Get out.”

Yu Xiaowen didn’t move.

Ye Yisan got out of the car, walked to the passenger side, pulled open the door, and yanked the needle stuck to the back of his hand: “Get out now.”

Yu Xiaowen: “Ah! Ah! My vein! My vein!”

Ye Yisan dragged him out of the car: “Let’s go.”

Another car arrived just in time. Ye Yisan immediately pulled the hesitant Yu Xiaowen into the backseat of this vehicle.

Once inside, Yu Xiaowen recognized the driver as Dai Jingxi. The car started moving the moment both passengers settled into their seats, heading deeper into the outskirts.

After a while, Ye Yisan said to Dai Jingxi, “Sorry to trouble you again.”

Dai Jingxi: “No problem.”

Silence fell over the car once more.

Yu Xiaowen felt things were taking a particularly bad turn. Let’s sort this out: he was back, he was Yu Xiaowen, no longer Hao Dali, and his capture had nothing to do with Ye Yisan or Dai Jingxi. Yet Ye Yisan and Dai Jingxi suddenly appeared and took Yu Xiaowen away, plunging his identity back into a Schrödinger’s cat state and dragging everyone else into it all at once.

He’d been on edge the entire way, fearing that Lu Qifeng’s agents or the military training ground personnel might mobilize to pursue them, even sparking a shootout in the streets. Now, it seemed he could finally relax his guard a little.

He let out a heavy sigh and asked Ye Yisan, “Fuck, what the hell are you doing here?”

Dai Jingxi watched this foul-mouthed Omega ex-cop in the rearview mirror, clearly not impressed.

Ye Yisan replied, “I didn’t want to come either. I heard through the grapevine that you were captured by Lu Qifeng in S Country. I figured you returned for my safety.”

Yu Xiaowen: “Bullshit. Who cares about you? I came back for Second Young Master Lu. What does that have to do with you?”

Ye Yisan: “……”

Ye Yisan: “Then why did you break up with him in M Country?”

Yu Xiaowen: “I hesitated back then, afraid he’d arrest me. But I regretted it, life on the run was too hard. Since he said he wanted me to stay by his side, I came back to find him.”

Ye Yisan: “…I heard everything during your interrogation. You confessed to that superior alpha who publicly toyed with you from above, right in front of all those people. But Lu Kongyun isn’t a good person. He’s just like Lu Qifeng, a top-tier Alpha who doesn’t treat others as human beings. He’ll only humiliate you with pheromones. He won’t ever love you.”

Yu Xiaowen flushed. “You heard… No, who needs him to like me? So what if he doesn’t? Does that mean I can’t like him? I’ll like him if I want to!”

Ye Yisan: “Just because of pheromones? Are you stupid? He saw right through you on the ship but still played along. What he did to you in the car just now was the same.”

Yu Xiaowen: “So what? I’m just an inferior Omega. Responding to the finest pheromone is instinct. Smelling him makes me feel like I’m floating on air. Being humiliated by his pheromones makes life worth living. Mind your own business. Let me out of the car. I’ll walk back myself.”

“…Fine.” Ye Yisan felt unable to look this shameless Omega in the eye. He turned to Dai Jingxi and said, “Pull over. Let him ascend to heaven.”

Ye Yisan looked out the window again. “This whole mess happened because you wore that dangerous wristband and then acted like a love-struck fool on the ship, exposing yourself. I shouldn’t have come in the first place.”

Yu Xiaowen’s face flashed a hint of guilt, but he quickly added, “I appreciate it. But some things really aren’t your business. Didn’t we go our separate ways long ago?”

Ye Yisan addressed Dai Jingxi again: “Mr. Dai, pull over.”

Dai Jingxi ignored him.

Dai Jingxi thought to himself, Ye Yisan must have transferred all his talent points from his brain to his body to be this skilled.

If this fallen officer had returned to his homeland for matters of the heart, he would have done so long ago. Yu Xiaowen must have realized he was cornered, fighting desperately to return to S Country to bury his past in M Country, all to distance himself from Ye Yisan at the last possible moment.

But it was precisely because Ye Yisan couldn’t think outside the box that he clumsily pulled off this stunt of snatching someone right from under the Lu family’s nose.

The consequences were too terrifying to contemplate.

Dai Jingxi felt a pain in his temples.

“Stop arguing. We’re all in this together now. No one can leave.” Dai Jingxi said, pressing the accelerator a bit harder.

As he accelerated, a vehicle suddenly shot up alongside him. The contrast in speed created an illusion that stepping on the gas actually slowed him down. He turned his head in surprise to look at the car.

His expression changed slightly.

The military jeep roared to a halt in front of their car, skidding to a screeching stop with a sharp tailspin. Dai Jingxi was forced to slam on the brakes as well.

Ye Yisan reacted quickly, bracing himself against the front seat with his arms to avoid smashing his face flat. Yu Xiaowen was so weak he could barely sit upright; the sudden jerk nearly threw him forward. His head slammed into the seat, leaving him seeing stars.

“Ouch!”

Yu Xiaowen didn’t bother rubbing his head; he immediately peered out the front windshield. A man stepped out of the Jeep, dressed in a smart, full military uniform, just like Lu Kongyun had been earlier that day. He advanced with fierce momentum, his expression hard and menacing, walking forward with long, urgent steps.

He raised both hands high and slammed them down hard on the hood of Yu Xiaowen’s car, producing a startlingly loud thud.

“Ye Yisan! You liar, get the hell out of the car!”

It was Dai Lanshan. His voice was loud, clear as day even through the car window.

The three people in the car fell silent for a moment, none uttering a word as they all stared at Dai Lanshan in front of the vehicle. Stretching both arms, he lowered his head, poised and ready to strike, like a stag defending its territory, horns raised, determined to knock down any foes today.

After a long enough silence, Dai Jingxi said, “You don’t need to worry about it. Wait for me in the car.”

Then he opened the door and stepped out.

The moment the buck saw who had stepped out, his expression changed instantly. His eyebrows, previously arched in fierce defiance, now turned inward in a pout of hurt and frustration. As Dai Jingxi approached, the expression deepened with each step.

Ye Yisan watched Dai Lanshan’s facial transformation outside the window for a moment.

He turned to look at Yu Xiaowen: “If only Dai Lanshan liked you.”

Yu Xiaowen：“？？？”

Ye Yisan: “Aren’t you easily swayed by top-grade pheromones? His pheromones are S-class, not as potent as second young master Li’s, but more than enough for you. If you get together with him, you won’t have to obsess over that cruel scumbag Lu’s pheromones anymore. His brother won’t have to be hounded by his own kid, constantly holding prayer beads to atone for his sins. And he himself won’t have to act like a pathetic puppy dog, instead, he’ll get a dumb Omega who’s completely devoted to his pheromones.

Yu Xiaowen: “…Fine. Then make him like me. Go tell him to test if his magazine’s fully loaded.”

Ye Yisan fell silent.

“I don’t understand. Isn’t there a suppressant for heat cycles? Does your brain go into heat too, leaving you unable to think?”

Yu Xiaowen: “…San’er. You’re not saying that because you think your own brain is particularly good at thinking, are you? If so, you shouldn’t be here.”

Ye Yisan: “…”

They turned their gaze back to the two people in front of the car.

Over there, Dai Jingxi ran a hand through his hair and whispered to the buck in front of the car, “We’ll talk about it when we get back. Move your car first.”

Dai Lanshan’s mouth tightened for a moment before he suddenly drew his pistol. He aimed it through the windshield at the backseat, his gaze locking with Ye Yisan’s, who was watching him. Suddenly, the hurt look in those eyes vanished, replaced by the steely glare of an adversary. His voice was now gritted and venomous.

“Ye Yisan, get out of the car! Stop hiding behind my brother like a coward. Have you forgotten what you promised me? How dare you drag my brother into this? You’re untrustworthy and ungrateful. I should have had you arrested and executed back then, you fucking bastard!”

Dai Jingxi’s voice tightened as he shouted to stop him: “Dai Lanshan! Have you lost your mind? Put that gun down!”

Ye Yisan opened the car door and stepped out. Yu Xiaowen had no choice but to follow him.

Dai Lanshan froze upon seeing Yu Xiaowen. “Who’s this?”

“Hao Dali before his disguise,” Yu Xiaowen replied.

Dai Lanshan: “…You’re fake too? Turns out you’re all cut from the same cloth.”

“My apologies,” Ye Yisan offered no defense. “I broke my promise.”

Dai Jingxi immediately stepped in front of Ye Yisan to shield him. “Lanshan, don’t lose your temper again. It’s not what you think. This time, I reached out to him first.”

This explanation did little to calm his younger brother. Upon hearing it, the hand gripping the gun seemed to tremble. “You never once reached out to me when I was on a mission.”

“…Why would I contact you during a mission? To interfere?” Dai Jingxi repeated firmly, “Put down the gun.”

Soon, Dai Lanshan recovered from the blow and pressed Ye Yisan again: “Tell me, what did you promise me? Huh? Why did I help you in the first place?”

“My apologies. I broke my promise,” Ye Yisan admitted once more.

His apology came as casually as a dead pig fearing no boiling water. Dai Lanshan drew a cold breath and chambered a round: “Fine! Then pay the price.”

“…Enough! What time is it now? Why are we still wasting time on this?” Dai Jingxi said to Ye Yisan and Yu Xiaowen, “Get in the car. Let’s go.”

“Think you can just walk away? Dream on! Ye Yisan, take one step and I’ll shoot you dead,” Dai Lanshan gritted out. “I’ll kill you today to eliminate any future trouble!”

“Dai Lanshan. If you shoot, we divorce.” Dai Jingxi could only say.

Dai Lanshan froze in place.

Dai Lanshan pressed his lips, which were gradually losing color, but did not lower his hand. “Dai Jingxi. You won’t get divorced. You’ll only become a widow. You’ll never divorce. Brother, do you want it?”

Dai Jingxi frowned: “…”

In the desolate wilderness, this farce appeared all the more vivid.

Yu Xiaowen glanced around and scratched his face. “Ah, it’s all my fault. You’re family, go home and talk it out properly.”

No one responded. The tension hung thick in the air, growing ever tighter like a balloon stretched to the point of transparency.

He tugged at Ye Yisan’s arm again. “San’er… you should leave while no one’s watching you yet. I’m Yu Xiaowen now, not Hao Dali. You’re not connected to me, no need to get involved and drag yourself into this. None of you should waste your energy on me. Besides, Lu Kongyun brought me here on official business. If I go missing, he’ll be held accountable too… So going back is best for everyone.”

Dai Lanshan was somewhat surprised. He’d assumed Hao Dali had approached the Lu family to reel in Lu Kongyun, but never imagined he was such a love-struck fool. Perhaps an omega of such low rank inevitably turns into this when encountering a top-tier alpha.

He scoffed. “Why are you worrying about Lu Kongyun? Even if he dumps you, who can touch a Lu family member? If Lu Qifeng catches you, you’re dead meat. Are you stupid?”

“Xiao Shan,” Dai Jingxi sighed. “Don’t you understand? Causing trouble here now benefits no one. I promise you, once we send them away this time, we’ll never contact each other again. We’ll be strangers.”

Dai Lanshan remained silent, but his eyes flickered with hurt once more.

After a moment, he only murmured softly, “Brother.”

Dai Jingxi studied him for a moment longer, then tilted his head and motioned for Dai Lanshan to step aside for a quiet word.

After a moment, Dai Lanshan spoke.

“I don’t need it,” he said coldly. “I don’t want you to use yourself as a bargaining chip for his favors, nor do I want you to be kind to me for his sake. Whatever I promise you, it’s only because I love you.”

Dai Lanshan embraced his brother tightly. Dai Jingxi glanced over, his expression strained.

“…” Yu Xiaowen and Ye Yisan turned their heads away, returning to silence.

The two walked back together, with Dai Lanshan trailing behind, his expression stern and reluctant. Dai Jingxi said to Yu Xiaowen, “Your escape route out of S Country is ready. The night after tomorrow, at nearby Banana Mountain, the exact location is here. You’ll split up then, minimize your profile, and stay safe.”

Dai Jingxi pulled out his phone and showed him a message. After confirming he’d seen it, he deleted it and slipped the phone back into his pocket.

“We just need to wait two more days. Yu Xiaowen’s identity is now high-profile, he can’t be seen with Ye Yisan. I’ve arranged two hiding places for you. Xiao Shan will take you to yours, and I’ll take Ye Yisan.”

Dai Lanshan immediately said, “I’ll take Ye Yisan.”

Dai Jingxi remained silent.

Dai Lanshan said, “What? Are you afraid I might harm him?”

Dai Jingxi turned to Dai Lanshan: “I’m afraid Ye Yisan might harm you.”

Ye Yisan: “I wouldn’t, Mr. Dai. He’s your brother.”

Dai Lanshan snorted coldly at Ye Yisan: “What brother? I’m his husband. Besides, what makes you so sure you can touch me? Want to try?”

Dai Jingxi said, “Try nothing. That’s his line of work. No matter what you do, he still can’t fly a plane.”

Dai Lanshan: “Not just any plane, a fighter jet. Passenger planes and helicopters are planes too. But your husband is an active-duty fighter pilot in the nation’s elite air force unit.”

Dai Jingxi: “…Can we go now?”

Dai Jingxi turned and walked toward his own car first: “Yu Xiaowen, follow my car.”

Yu Xiaowen’s expression was complex, but he ultimately said nothing and turned to follow.

……

Dai Jingxi drove Yu Xiaowen to the safe house.

After driving for a while, he pulled into a mountain hollow and stopped in front of a simple, inconspicuous building. The rain began again, falling with a clamorous roar. The sky darkened, and distant landscapes and mountain roads were shrouded in mist, leaving only faint silhouettes.

After Dai Jingxi stopped the car, he glanced back at Yu Xiaowen. He didn’t know much about this former detective, but he could sense that he hadn’t relaxed despite his brief rescue.

After a moment, Dai Jingxi said, “I saw Lu Kongyun at noon today.”

“…Oh.” Yu Xiaowen looked at him.

Dai Jingxi: “My company has a new drug development project that requires approval from the Institute of Life Sciences. That’s why I went to the institute for a meeting today. During the session, Lu Kongyun entered the conference room carrying a document seeking the head of the Medical Ethics Committee’s signature. He stated that relevant evidence and reports had already been submitted, and that an immediate oversight of the Intelligence Department’s operations was required today.”

Yu Xiaowen’s expression seemed to shift slightly. Dai Jingxi asked, “Was it for you?”

“…” Yu Xiaowen recalled Lu Kongyun’s words from the car ride. She shook her head and replied, “It’s his work. He’s incredibly driven. He’s the type who, if blackmailed by crooks, would negotiate to finish his meeting first before they could extort him.”

At this critical juncture, Yu Xiaowen couldn’t help but smile as he pictured Lu Kongyun, like a pure ice cube perpetually frozen in the refrigerator, incapable of melting.

Dai Jingxi recalled his impression of meeting Lu Kongyun in person at noon, it seemed to be just like that.

“Yeah, physical fitness tests in the morning, official duties at noon, escorting a fugitive to a work report in the afternoon, that’s pretty intense, just like the Lu family’s style. But leaving the prisoner hooked up to an IV drip in the car while he walked away… well, that was pretty… At first, I never thought Ye Yisan could pull it off.”

Yu Xiaowen paused thoughtfully, his voice tightening slightly as he said, “Sometimes, he’s surprisingly easy to fool.”

Dai Jingxi added, “Stay here these next couple of days. When the time comes, go on your own. I won’t get involved in the rest.”

Yu Xiaowen: “Thank you, Mr. Dai.”

“Don’t thank me. I’m not doing this for free,” Dai Jingxi said. “I’m just a businessman who doesn’t get up early without a profit. Ye Yisan is also a desperate agent who follows Mr. Ye’s orders to the letter. You’re probably the most innocent person here.”

Since it was so close anyway, Yu Xiaowen declined Dai Jingxi’s umbrella. He got out of the car, raised his arms to shield himself from the rain, and ran toward the house standing in the darkness.

Though his body was weak, he still pushed himself to run as fast as he could in the rain. When he reached the door, he brushed the water from his arms, retrieved the key from beneath the flowerpot by the entrance, and inserted it into the keyhole.

Before he could turn the key, the door suddenly swung open. It seemed to be unlocked.

Yu Xiaowen froze for a moment, pulled out the key, and slipped it back under the flowerpot. Then he pulled open the gate and stepped inside silently.

The interior was shrouded in darkness. Sparsely furnished and cavernous, it carried a musty, earthy stench, suggesting long disuse. The rain’s cacophony poured in through the open gate and sealed windows, creating two distinct soundscapes that made the room seem eerily quiet, yet hinted at something else entirely.

He stood for a few seconds, then took a few more steps into the room, carefully muffling his footsteps.

After these few steps, his skin tightened, and his breathing nearly stopped. He thought he heard faint, indistinct sounds coming from deeper within the room, from one side of the hallway.

It was exceptionally faint and indistinct. It sounded like a human voice, yet it was distorted, making it instinctively clear that no one was speaking. Instead, it resembled the sound of a broadcast.

A solitary house in the wilderness, a room long uninhabited. Why would a broadcast be playing in the gloom?

Most people would have been scared out of their wits and ran for the door. But Yu Xiaowen was a detective who had nearly died once, fear was foreign to him. He merely held his breath more carefully, eyes wide, ears pricked. Fists clenched, he advanced step by step toward the hall beyond the porch.

The “voices” seemed to grow clearer as the sound of rain outside gradually faded.

“…I love you… I had nothing to begin with, no ties to hold me back, I really didn’t care much about my life. But the thought that… if, someday, I couldn’t see you again… it would break my heart. It hurts more than my body ever could. Do you know that…”