Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1219: Nan Xiaonan’s Self-Rescue Strategy

It’s said that the activity of neurons in the cerebral cortex can generate thoughts that transcend the laws of time — the so-called “an eternity in a glance.” Of course, that’s impossible.

Right now, Nan Xiaonan’s mind was running at full speed, crazily accelerating. She had temporarily surpassed the limits of physical reaction, reaching a state where only a few seconds passed in the real world, yet she had already thought through several minutes — even tens of minutes — in her mind.

There was no doubt: Nan Xiaonan didn’t believe this danger was targeting Ren Ziling.

The reason was simple. If the danger were meant for Ren Ziling, the Child of the World, then it would have been a trial arranged by the world itself. But if that were the case, why would the world’s will directly intervene to save her while keeping her completely unaware? That made no sense.

Since it wasn’t aimed at Ren Ziling, there was only one possibility — the danger was aimed at her, more precisely, at the identity of “Nan Xiaonan.”

Because of the fusion process, she hadn’t inherited many of the original Nan Xiaonan’s memories. Those fragments were too incomplete to form any useful clues. So, who was trying to assassinate this Nan Xiaonan?

Thinking back, when she merged with Nan Xiaonan, that woman had been in a near-death state after a car accident. It now seemed likely that the “accident” wasn’t an accident at all — but a planned murder.

She had assumed her luck wasn’t too bad for finding a dying body to merge with right away. But now it appeared her so-called “luck” was actually misfortune — because this Nan Xiaonan was already a target marked for death.

Who was behind this? How powerful were they? She had no idea. The assassination attempt had failed this time, but would there be more to come?

This sub-world was far too dangerous. She had already sensed more than once the presence of beings that could easily destroy her with a thought. And if whoever was after this identity had supernatural power as well…She only had 0.003 units of power left!

She’d even spent 0.008 units earlier at Wang Liang’s crime scene — a decision she bitterly regretted.

She needed to survive — no matter what. She had to find a way out of this world and return to her true body.

To survive, she needed protection.

Ren Ziling!

Her mind raced, burning through her body’s energy reserves.

Ren Ziling was a Child of the World, directly protected by the world’s will — an unbreakable shield. Before the will of the world, even immortals were nothing.

No force inside a sub-world should be able to defy the world’s will.

If she stayed close to this woman, she would be protected too. Yes, it might draw the world’s attention to her, but for some reason, she hadn’t yet felt that gaze. Maybe the world was deliberately ignoring it.

She didn’t know why — the world’s will followed its own mysterious logic that even she couldn’t fully comprehend. But one thing was clear: right now, the world wasn’t opposing her staying near Ren Ziling.

Gritting her teeth, Nan Xiaonan decided to spend 0.002 units of her remaining power to activate one of her soul’s innate abilities — True Sight.

True Sight allowed her to observe everything within fifty meters.

Through it, she immediately spotted the source of danger — across the street, in the opposite building.

A gunman was lying in a pool of blood, his skull blown apart.

Seeing the fatal wound and remembering that bullet which vanished mid-flight, Nan Xiaonan instantly understood what had happened — and the realization terrified her even more.

Not only had the world neutralized the threat to Ren Ziling, but it had erased the gunman entirely from existence. That was beyond unreasonable!

Ren Ziling… she wasn’t just lucky — she was the golden elephant leg of fate itself!

But wait. The world’s will only erased the assassin, not the people or organization behind him. Since their real target was Nan Xiaonan’s identity, they would likely try again once Ren Ziling left. The world wouldn’t intervene then.

“You okay?”

Nan Xiaonan’s mind snapped back to normal speed. Ren Ziling was looking at her with concern.

“Your face is pale, you’re sweating… Don’t tell me you’re anemic again?” She fished out a packet of chocolate beans of uncertain expiration. “Here, have some.”

Still exhausted from the energy drain, Nan Xiaonan forced herself to stay calm. She suddenly thought of a plan for self-preservation.

“Sister Ren, could you do me a favor?” she asked, forcing a weak smile.

Ren Ziling blinked, shivering slightly — not from fear, but because the way Nan Xiaonan said “Sister Ren” gave her goosebumps.

“Uh… what kind of favor?”

Nan Xiaonan quickly walked to the window and drew the curtains shut. Looking at the thick black drapes, a spark of inspiration lit up in her mind.

“Sister Ren, do you know why my place is covered with these heavy black curtains?” she asked quietly.

Ren Ziling thought for a moment. “Hmm… You’re a forensic doctor, right? It’s normal to have weird quirks. I once knew a forensic doctor who liked to nap on the autopsy table — said it helped him ‘get closer to the dead.’”

“…”

Nan Xiaonan sighed and sat down, lowering her head. “No, that’s not it. The truth is… I’ve been stalked lately.”

“Stalked?” Ren Ziling’s eyes brightened with curiosity. “What kind of stalking?”

Nan Xiaonan looked frightened, clutching her sleeve. “I don’t know. It just feels like someone’s watching me all the time. And sometimes I find strange gifts left at my door — flowers… and even worse things.”

“That doesn’t sound so bad. Maybe someone’s got a crush on you,” Ren Ziling said.

Nan Xiaonan shook her head. “If only it were that simple. They send weird things… even men’s used underwear. And you know I’m a forensic doctor — I can tell exactly what’s stuck on it.”

“That’s disgusting!” Ren Ziling slammed the table. “Unacceptable! You should call the police!”

“It’s useless,” Nan Xiaonan said helplessly.

Ren Ziling, righteous as ever, stood up. “You’re a forensic doctor! How can you not know how to protect yourself when something like this happens?”

Nan Xiaonan sighed again. “Do you know why I was transferred here? Because I couldn’t shake off whoever’s behind this. I’ve already changed jobs several times, filed police reports, but they never caught anyone. What else can I do?”

“I see…” Ren Ziling frowned. “So the stalker’s that good? Okay then — what do you want me to do?”

Nan Xiaonan said softly, “I don’t want to keep running. I really like this job and the people here. So… Sister Ren, could I stay at your place for a few days? Lately I can hardly sleep from fear, that’s why I took today off.”

“Huh? But didn’t you just go to a murder scene earlier?” Ren Ziling asked curiously.

Nan Xiaonan smiled bitterly. “Yeah, I wanted to make a good impression after transferring here. Besides, it’s daytime — that guy wouldn’t dare do anything then. And he’s never shown his face.”

“Then…” Ren Ziling said thoughtfully, “Come to my place? But will that really help… Oh, it’s not that I’m scared or anything. If that pervert dares to show up at my house, I’ll make him kneel and beg for mercy! But from what you said, this pervert just hides in the shadows doing disgusting things and never shows himself. So even if you come to my place, it probably won’t change much, right? How about this—you should still file a report. I’ve got some connections; I’ll also look into who’s behind this pervert for you… Don’t worry, in this city, there’s no one I can’t find!”

“Thank you, Sister Ren!” Nan Xiaonan grabbed Ren Ziling’s hand.

Ren Ziling thought for a moment. “But it’s true, living alone is a bit dangerous. How about this—you come stay at my place for a couple of nights. I’d like to see just how crazy this pervert really is.”

“Thank you, Sister Ren!” Nan Xiaonan said happily. “You’re the first friend I’ve made since I came here!”

“Women should help each other.” Ren Ziling patted Nan Xiaonan’s shoulder. “You’re a young woman trying to make it on your own—it’s not easy. The people at your department are all rough men, they won’t look after a girl. Don’t worry, just stay put and do your job. If anyone at work dares to bully you, come tell me!”

“Sister Ren, you’re so kind,” Nan Xiaonan said sweetly.

Ren Ziling said, “But you still have to report it. We can’t just let that pervert keep acting so arrogant because he hasn’t been caught yet!”

“Mm, I’ll listen to you.” Nan Xiaonan nodded obediently.

After another round of comforting words, Ren Ziling checked the time—it was almost lunchtime. “How about this,” she said, “pack a few clothes, and later we’ll go eat, then drop your things off at my place. I’m free this afternoon anyway, no need to go back to the company—I’ll stay with you.”

—That’s exactly what I want, for you to stay with me.

—At least until I figure out who’s really hunting Nan Xiaonan’s identity.

Nan Xiaonan smiled. “By the way, Sister Ren, will it be inconvenient if I stay at your place?”

“Not at all.” Ren Ziling shrugged. “It’s just me and my son at home. He’s well-behaved, does all the housework, good-looking and studious. He won’t mind.”

“That’s good.” Nan Xiaonan nodded. “I was just worried your son might not like it.”

“I’m having dinner with him tonight. You should come too!” Ren Ziling said directly. “Once you see him, you’ll know I’m not exaggerating! But I’m warning you, my son already has a girlfriend—don’t get any ideas!”

Nan Xiaonan thought, How old could your son even be…? Still, she was curious. Ren Ziling clearly didn’t have any signs of having given birth—could he be adopted?

She smiled without saying anything, afraid that Ren Ziling might suddenly change her mind, and quickly went into the bedroom to pack her things.

…

At the top floor of a skyscraper, an elderly white man with silver hair sat in a large executive chair.

A young man in a suit entered the office.

“Boss!” he said respectfully from behind the chair.

The old man coughed twice, turned the chair around, and said calmly, “How did it go?”

The young man’s face was grave. “Boss, Number Seven is dead. The heartbeat sensor we implanted in his body stopped, so we sent people to check—it’s confirmed. Shot in the back of the head. Number Seven was about to kill the target but was ambushed and killed instantly.”

“What?!” The old man’s eyes narrowed. “Nan Xiaonan has someone protecting her?”

“We don’t know yet,” the young man replied. “I’ll send more people to investigate.”

“Don’t be rash,” the old man said. “Last time, we already recovered the USB drive Qin gave her. But I didn’t expect her to survive that car crash. And now Number Seven has failed too—someone must be protecting her. It could even be…”

“You mean… Qin?” the young man asked.

“After all, we never found his body, did we?” The old man snorted coldly. “You people are getting more and more incompetent.”

“I’m sorry, Boss.” The young man lowered his head.

The old man waved his hand. “Since Number Seven is dead, the people behind him will be aware of us. We already got the data from the USB drive, but Nan Xiaonan must have seen it too. We can’t allow that information to leak. Eliminate her—and whoever’s protecting her.”

“What should we do now?”

“Send someone to keep watch first. Let’s see if her protector shows up.” The old man’s voice turned cold. “I’ve waited too many years for this. I won’t let it all go to waste.”

“I understand,” the young man said, nodding. “I’ll take care of it right away.”

After the young man left, the old man let out a long sigh, then started coughing violently again. He covered his mouth with a handkerchief, and when the coughing stopped, red specks of blood stained the fabric.

(End of Chapter)