Chapter 226 Same Person?
On this Saturday night at the Golden River Club, many young members were present, and it happened to be a time when a male member had meticulously planned to propose to his girlfriend, making the atmosphere particularly lively.
Although the Golden River Club usually operated in an elegant and leisurely style, reflecting Wan Yue’s personal character, there were occasionally bursts of excitement, like now, as lively DJ music echoed in the first-floor hall, adding to the festive atmosphere for customers celebrating successful proposals.
Handsome men and beautiful women bounced around the golden hall, even Jiang Yan, who was slightly unwell due to her upcoming period, was infected by the energy.
Now, the dark-haired girl in a flowing white dress sat on the side with a cup of hot drink, smiling as she watched the festivities and occasionally clapped to cheer. At times, a female colleague would pull her to join in the merriment, but Jiang Yan could only shyly decline.
The sounds of laughter, songs, and upbeat music echoed in the first-floor hall, but deep in the staff area, in a closed resting room, Meng Huai lay on the bed, feeling unsettled and even subconsciously covering his ears as if he were unaccustomed to the atmosphere outside.
Although today was his day off, Meng Huai had returned to the club’s makeshift dorm early in the afternoon after breaking up with Han Jie Li, isolating himself to the point of skipping dinner.
This deviation from his usually composed demeanor caught Liang Tai’s attention.
Usually elusive, and appearing honest and simple, Liang Tai, like Huang Gu, was quite adept at reading people’s moods, a habit borne from his job responsibilities.
After Wan Yue arranged for Meng Huai to partner with him, Liang Tai quickly understood her intentions. On the surface, they were working together to handle the daily security tasks of the Golden River Club, but in reality, there was an underlying purpose of quietly observing Meng Huai, especially since his identity before the blood invasion was extremely sensitive.
After pondering, Liang Tai felt compelled to privately check in with Jiang Yan.
“His character is like that; he doesn’t like crowds and has no hobbies. He can’t do anything on his days off… Is it that he’s nearing blood thirst?”
In a corner of the golden hall, Jiang Yan, having learned that Meng Huai had returned early in the afternoon, did not think highly of Liang Tai’s insinuations.
“Blood thirst? Doesn’t seem likely… It’s strange he came back early, and now he didn’t even have dinner and just holed up in his room. Xiao Yan, did you two have another argument?”
Liang Tai glanced toward the staff passage, feeling that something was off.
“He didn’t eat dinner?”
Jiang Yan was taken aback, realizing something was amiss.
Since getting to know Meng Huai, she remembered him as someone whose emotions were consistently stable. No matter the weather, even when facing huge challenges, his routine remained rigidly disciplined.
Jiang Yan contemplated what had happened to Meng Huai today that would lead to such a break from his usual demeanor, making him behave so strangely.
Soon, Liang Tai quietly disappeared. In the golden hall, the music suddenly shifted to elegant salon dance tunes, and everyone’s interactions began to change pace.
Jiang Yan sat dazed in the corner, watching the dancing couples, her mind preoccupied with her conversation with Liang Tai.
Should I ask Meng Huai?
Jiang Yan stood up, took a few steps, then hurried back, realizing her body was again in a sensitive period, but getting too close to Meng Huai would only create awkwardness between them.
Especially since she wasn’t as emotionally stable as Wan Yue envisioned. Over the past few months, entangled in complex feelings with Meng Huai, their relationship oscillated between hot and cold, leaving her in a flurry of thoughts.
…
Until one o’clock in the morning when work ended, Jiang Yan had not set foot in the corridor leading to Meng Huai’s temporary dorm, except to change her dress.
Starving, when most of the girls from the hyacinth group had left, Meng Huai quietly appeared in the first-floor hall like a ghost, checking on and tidying up tasks related to daily work, while also searching for leftover food in the fruit and beverage area to satisfy his hunger.
In the dimly lit golden hall with the main lights turned off, Meng Huai spotted Jiang Yan’s silhouette, sitting alone near the glass wall, staring blankly at the street view, presumably waiting for a ride.
Meng Huai was already familiar with Jiang Yan’s overall visual image, yet at this moment, he still couldn’t take his eyes off her, seemingly searching for more in her slender and graceful figure.
Jiang Yan stood up, pulling out her phone to check something, her body slightly turned away from Meng Huai’s line of sight. The light brown shirt dress made Jiang Yan’s demeanor more intellectual, though her plain and simple canvas shoulder bag felt somewhat out of place.
From her long hair, forehead, to her nose and chin, and then down to her neck… In the dim light, Meng Huai’s gaze followed the contours of Jiang Yan, lingering slightly on her chest before continuing downward, as if it were a fleeting, casual observation.
Perhaps sensing something, Jiang Yan looked up, and her gaze met Meng Huai’s.
Why is he staring so intently at my body? Could it be that he can sense the fluctuations of my physiological state from so far away?
Jiang Yan felt her sensitivity heightened today, as if she could perceive the peculiar focus of his gaze scanning her body’s curves.
The back of her ears felt slightly warm for reasons unbeknownst to her, and her heart raced. Her body involuntarily shifted slightly away, seeking to evade Meng Huai’s rigid and piercing stare.
One second, five seconds, ten seconds… After a minute, Jiang Yan turned back, only to find Meng Huai had already left the hall without her noticing.
What am I thinking? He has hugged me countless times. When did he start being interested in my body… Jiang Yan wiped her flushed face and quickly exited the club.
…
Another business day ended, and Liang Tai’s routine inspection and concluding tasks began again, while Meng Huai returned to his temporary dorm.
The door was tightly shut, and a newly purchased password suitcase was placed on the bed by Meng Huai.
After hesitating for a few seconds, he opened the suitcase, rummaged through it, and pulled out an item wrapped in a vacuum plastic bag.
This was a gun that had been rendered useless by high temperatures—many non-metallic components were missing, leaving only a rough outline recognizable as a handgun.
After weighing the gun for a moment, he placed it on the table and opened his notebook, reconnecting to the data obtained from the support center, scrolling and clicking until he found Xia Yan’s entry.
In the photo, it was the familiar, stern-faced young officer with distinct facial features and cold eyes.
“Xia Yan, born August 25, 1996, Rh-negative blood type. Abandoned at a rescue station in City C before turning one, later adopted by the W District Welfare Institute in City C… Diagnosed with leukemia at twelve and underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplant therapy; bone marrow donor was Gu Yao.”
“…Enlisted in 2014, secretly conscripted in 2016 into the Western Surveillance Zone’s Xuanjia Brigade Assault Team. Went missing on April 30, 2019, during a combat mission after a blood invasion, officially recorded as a martyr…”
Murmuring the familiar information from the documents, Meng Huai’s hand trembled slightly on the mouse.
Minutes passed, and Meng Huai opened Gu Yao’s data again.
This time, he skimmed through it in five minutes, at least two-thirds of his attention focused on Gu Yao’s photo, which displayed obvious facial asymmetry due to congenital reasons from childhood.
In this world of vampires, or should we say within China’s borders, could it be true that there were several individuals who had been blood-invaded by Grandmother Meatball, all conveniently protected by the Wang family?
This was the source of Meng Huai’s increasingly complex emotions since his breakup with Han Jie Li yesterday afternoon. Learning about Zhen Guangquan had fully opened a line of thought he could not evade, keeping him restless all night.
“Zhen Guangquan is the mole planted by the behind-the-scenes enemy within the Western Surveillance Zone, so from the actions at 907 Military Hospital and the 1101 Wan Qiaoli incident, he has been leaking and interfering with the Dark Arrow’s pursuit of Xia Yan, which makes sense…”
This conclusion aligned with the character of the Dark Arrow’s intelligence bureau or, as labeled under Han Jie Li D, was now definitive. As he rambled to himself, Meng Huai’s gaze fell on the ruined handgun.
His firsthand experiences after becoming a vampire made him increasingly aware of the vast differences between the interpretations of events by Dark Arrow and by the vampires—like reflections in a mirror that seem identical yet are oppositely reversed.
If Zhen Guangquan’s identity as a mole had been confirmed, it meant that he was involved from start to finish in the control struggle against Xia Yan and Gu Yao orchestrated by behind-the-scenes forces, the opposing side being Dark Arrow, and potentially the Wang family as well.
But intriguingly, throughout Zhen Guangquan’s actions as a mole, neither Xia Yan nor Gu Yao ever made an appearance. They were like black holes that consumed all information—one could see the people and events surrounding them, yet fail to perceive their very existence.
“At the 907 Military Hospital, Zhen Guangquan leaked the action plan to behind-the-scenes forces, blocking the Xiu Yi Brigade’s capture of Xia Yan. In the 1101 Wan Qiaoli incident, Zhen Guangquan deliberately misdirected the investigation of Xia Yan’s firearm clues and concealed the identity of an unknown vampire woman, Xiao Hong.”
“`txt
These two incidents share a common point… Rather than saying Zhen Guangquan obscured Xia Yan’s whereabouts, it would be more accurate to say he was concealing someone else’s identity…
Zhen Guangquan’s critical actions as a mole were effectively blocking Dark Arrow’s inquiries into Jiang Yan!?
Meng Huai muttered, suddenly feeling a shiver, as if his bare body had plunged into an ultra-cold environment, his blood freezing in an instant, icy and chilling, causing a rush of dread.
Meng Huai’s hand holding the mouse began to uncontrollably tremble, and a trace of barely perceptible fear appeared in his eyes.
He quickly clicked on a folder on the computer, opening a poorly discernible photo that had been digitally processed—that was Jiang Yan’s silhouette from the night of the military hospital operation, bathed amidst a hail of bullets.
The body contour, the distinctive combat attire of the hyacinth group, Meng Huai couldn’t identify anyone else apart from Jiang Yan.
He shudderingly pulled out his phone, opened the album, and flipped to a photo from over a month ago, showing Jiang Yan as she decisively slaughtered Baron Ganges in a street in Northern Myanmar.
The photo was captured at that moment by Xiao Guo, with Jiang Yan wielding a Tang knife, elegantly and decisively, exuding a strength and ruthlessness that contrasted with her delicate demeanor, leaving a profound impression.
Perhaps, during my unconsciousness in the Wan Qiaoli incident, she faced more than a dozen black bloods alone, bravely advancing yet quietly retreating…
The tremors from his hand gradually spread to his shoulders, then his whole upper body. Meng Huai closed his eyes, took deep breaths to adjust the fear brought by his racing thoughts.
“Xia Yan, being blood-invaded by Grandmother Meatball, will possess overt multiphasic abilities… Jiang Yan also possesses overt multiphasic abilities… Jiang Yan, and her sister, are clearly being protected by Wan Yue and the Wang family…”
“How could this be…?”
A hoarse and deep growl escaped Meng Huai’s throat.
With a muffled crash, the wireless mouse shattered in his grip, and the tall young man slowly stood up, staring fixedly at the photo on the computer screen, pale-faced.
In his mind, another version of Meng Huai seemed to emerge, bearing a frustrated expression, sarcastically recounting every detail through his interactions with Jiang Yan over the past half a year.
All interpretations of thought seemed to overturn everything he conjectured about Jiang Yan’s mysterious background and pointed toward a terrifying and absurd new conclusion—that Jiang Yan was not another person blood-invaded by Grandmother Meatball other than Xia Yan, but the same person.
“Xia Yan and Gu Yao were adopted by Director Jiang, the elderly head of W District Welfare Institute in City C… Director Jiang, Jiang Yan, Jiang Yao… Welfare Institute volunteers… She even knows some of my habits, but claims it’s a coincidence…”
“Ha, there must be an information error, that’s impossible!”
Meng Huai pushed his notebook computer away as if dodging a plague, retreating several steps until his back hit the door.
Closing his eyes, his mind was filled with a chaotic jumble of images.
There was the moment Xia Yan joined the team, and his training and suppression of her…
There were the intricate coordination between him and Xia Yan during missions…
“`
There was the moment during the D City 430 operation when Xia Yan injected herself with medication for his critical condition during the blood invasion…
There was the memory of him in a deep coma at the Army General Hospital, with Jiang Yan anxiously embracing him from behind…
There was his awakening, with Jiang Yan giving him meticulous care…
There was the intimacy of Jiang Yan nestled in his arms by the shores of Dianchi Lake…
“This is wrong, something must be mistaken!” Meng Huai pinched himself hard and burst out of the door; it was already two o’clock in the morning.
Ignoring the curious glances of the two attendants on night duty in the first-floor hall, Meng Huai walked straight out of the Golden River Club and into the greenbelt across the street.
Looking at the two familiar resting benches not far away, Meng Huai took out his phone.
He opened Han Jie Li’s contact list but hesitated, his finger hovering over the screen without pressing down.
After a minute, Meng Huai put the phone back and took out a secure line.
“Hello, this is the Special Security Operations Group, Strategic Task Support Center; now verifying identity code…”
In his ear, a monotonous female voice droned on with no emotion.
“…I need all archived information regarding the Western Surveillance Zone’s 907 Military Hospital operation last year and the 1101 Wan Qiaoli incident, along with all related information, including but not limited to audio, video, images, and meeting minutes… Additionally, collect and organize the following information about the Children’s Welfare Institute in City C, W District of Province S…”
The night breeze caressed his face, dispersing the anxious and absurd unease within his heart and mind. After a ten-minute call, Meng Huai sat down on the bench with closed eyes, entering a state of calm as he once did while waiting for Jiang Yan to finish work…
…
Sunday morning at eight, in a private villa estate at Longquan Mountain, on the eastern outskirts of City C.
“…Sister Wan, it’s like this; something’s off with Meng Huai. After more than ten hours, he went alone to the greenbelt outside past two this morning— I don’t know who he was on the phone with, and then he sat outside for more than two hours.”
The phone conversation was on speaker, and Wan Yue leaned against the head of her bed, listening to Liang Tai’s report while fiddling with a lighter.
“Hmm, I see. You need to be careful not to let him notice you’re monitoring him.”
After hanging up, Wan Yue walked to one side of her bedroom, drew back the curtains, opened the window, and lit a cigarette. In the swirling smoke was a slightly weary expression on her face.
“Sigh, this child, even at this hour, is still so stubborn. Is he looking for answers for Dark Arrow or for himself?… His headstrong nature remains unchanged; the Han family’s criteria for choosing seeds has always been consistent…”
Looking at the lush mountain view in the distance, Wan Yue let out a self-deprecating sigh.
At that moment, her phone, abandoned on the bed, beeped with a new message.
The sender was Old Jin, and the message was succinct, just a short sentence: April 22, next Wednesday, afternoon, D City Guanyin Mountain Forest Park.
