"Don't worry, I won't disturb Madam," Lan Yu Xi said, taking a photo with her phone and then uploading it to her computer to use software to age the face by ten years for each decade.
Lan Yu Xi handed the scanned image to Elder Hong. "Take a look and see if this resembles Madam forty years from now."
Elder Hong trembled as he took the photo. Upon seeing the woman with graying temples, his eyes immediately reddened.
"Zhi Rou has grown old too."
Mu Mu reached out and wiped the tears from his eyes. "Even if Grandma is old, she's still very beautiful!"
Elder Hong affectionately patted her head. "Indeed, your Grandma was the prettiest flower in the East City."
Lan Yu Xi smiled. "I'll send out the news now. Just wait for my good news."
"Ah! The disreputable things I did back then will finally be exposed."
"If it's to be exposed, you'll expose it yourself. I certainly won't say a word," Lan Yu Xi typed rapidly on the computer, soon publishing the news.
After finishing her master's business, she picked up her phone and called Lan Xiao Liu. Learning that Jinsong's father was still unconscious but otherwise fine, she felt relieved.
In the evening, before Nan Xiao and Lan Hao Lin went to the palace for a banquet, they repeatedly warned her to be careful. Annoyed by his persistence, she finally pushed him into the car.
Less than two hours after Nan Xiao left, Lan Yu Xi, along with Ying and Nan Yi, changed their disguises and, hidden by the darkness, infiltrated the First Prison.
Having done her homework beforehand, Lan Yu Xi proceeded unimpeded into the First Prison Sector. A few simple operations on the computer were all it took to disable the sector's surveillance footage.
Lan Yu Xi nodded to Ying.
Ying produced a silver needle and, in less than two seconds, unlocked the door to a prison cell.
Lan Yu Xi raised her hand slightly, and a golden needle flew out. The inmate in that cell promptly lost consciousness.
Nan Yi slung the person over his shoulder, and the three of them were ready to withdraw in less than five seconds. As they passed the last cell on the way out, Lan Yu Xi cast a cold glance and saw a middle-aged inmate with a knife scar on his face staring at them with icy eyes.
Lan Yu Xi was momentarily stunned, but her hands moved faster than her mind. She raised her hand and flicked out two golden needles.
The middle-aged man squinted and nimbly dodged the two golden needles. Seeing that the opponent was skilled, Lan Yu Xi raised both hands simultaneously, sending out eight golden needles at once.
Ying, ensuring the person inside had been hit, quickly opened the cell door, retrieved the scattered golden needles, and hoisted the person up.
Lan Yu Xi nodded slightly, covering their retreat while restoring the surveillance footage to normal operation.
The three of them quickly returned the way they came, silently transporting the person to the car.
Lan Xiao Wu, seeing them return, let out a sigh of relief. "Did you encounter any trouble?"
"No. Let's go," Lan Yu Xi said, glancing at the middle-aged man sleeping beside her. Her brow furrowed slightly.
Lan Xiao Wu asked, puzzled, "What's wrong?"
Lan Yu Xi raised her hand and patted the man's face. "Stop pretending."
As the middle-aged man opened his eyes, he suddenly punched towards Lan Yu Xi's face.
Lan Yu Xi let out a cold laugh, extending a single finger to deflect his hand. "Your physique is better than I expected; you can still lift a fist."
The man tried to exert force several times, finding that he truly couldn't even lift his hand. He then asked sinisterly, "Who are you? Why are you taking us out?"
Lan Yu Xi scrutinized him from head to toe. "Do you know Bai Zhi Rou?"
The man's pupils contracted sharply. "No."
Lan Yu Xi raised an eyebrow slightly. "And Hong Yuan Ze?"
The man's eyelids twitched slightly. "Don't know him!"
Lan Yu Xi let out a cold laugh and backhanded him. It wasn't a heavy blow, but it was loud. "You use Hong Clan martial arts flawlessly, and now you're telling me you don't know my master?"
The man frowned and asked, "You're Lan Yu Xi?"
Lan Yu Xi removed her mask, revealing a face of peerless beauty and the iconic teardrop-shaped birthmark. "It seems you really came here targeting me and Nan Xiao. Otherwise, you wouldn't have been able to say my name so quickly."
The man lowered his head, no longer speaking.
Lan Yu Xi pouted, grabbed his head, and pulled it back forcefully. "Playing dead is useless. You'll talk sooner or later!"
Lan Xiao Wu's mouth twitched at his sister's violent display.
Lan Yu Xi gave him a look and subtly slipped something into his hand.
Lan Xiao Wu turned, wrapped what she gave him in a tissue, and put it in his pocket.
Lan Yu Xi mentally counted to ten, and the middle-aged man lowered his head and fell asleep.
Lan Yu Xi produced a golden needle and sealed several of his important acupoints. Then she said to Lan Xiao Wu, "Fifth Brother, find someone reliable to take us to the safe house. You take the hair and quickly go home to get a few hairs from Master, then send them to Sixth Brother to expedite the DNA test results."
Lan Xiao Wu was slightly taken aback. "You suspect he's related to Uncle Hong?"
"I used software to create a composite image, and his adult appearance matches seventy percent of my master's child's image. Most importantly, when I questioned Bai Zhi Rou, his reaction was very strong. When I mentioned my master's name, he tried hard to control himself, but his micro-expressions betrayed him."
"No way! What a coincidence. Uncle Hong just told you he was looking for his wife and child, and his son just walked into our hands?"
Lan Yu Xi knocked on the door. "Just do as I say for now."
"Alright." Lan Xiao Wu gave a few instructions to his bodyguard, then had the driver stop the car. He switched to another vehicle and returned to the manor.
Thirty minutes later, the car stopped in a picturesque location surrounded by mountains and water. Lan Xiao Wu's bodyguard led them into a villa by the water.
Lan Yu Xi had the middle-aged man settled in a guest room, while she, Ying, and Nan Yi took another person to the basement.
In the basement, Lan Yu Xi removed the golden needle and firmly slapped the black man's face with the back of her hand.
As Lan Yu Xi wiped her hands, the black man slowly opened his unfocused eyes.
Lan Yu Xi raised an eyebrow slightly. "Tell me, what's your name?"
"Paul," the black man replied very slowly.
Lan Yu Xi stood on a chair, gazing down at him. "Who sent you?"
"...Cannot say."
Lan Yu Xi rolled her eyes in exasperation, took out a small medicine bottle from her embrace, and placed it beneath his nose. After a moment, she asked,
"What is your mission here?"
"Kill Nan Xiao!"
Lan Yu Xi clenched her fist and continued, "Who sent you?"
"Sha Kun."
Lan Yu Xi raised an eyebrow slightly. "Pirate King Sha Kun?"
"Yes... *sob sob*, I can't say. If I say, my mother will die..."