Three seventeen AM.
The mobile phone on the bedside table vibrated.
Su Nanyin, sleeping on her side, immediately opened her eyes and picked up the phone.
The caller ID showed one of the two subordinates she had dispatched.
She answered, put the phone to her ear, and asked in a weak voice, "Are her remains properly interred?"
Still half asleep, Su Nanyin felt a pang of sadness as she asked the question.
She knew very well what kind of men the Li family had.
From Li Nanfang to Li Xiao, every man in the Li family was a seed of "universal love" yet deeply devoted.
Once they set their heart on a woman, they would guard her with their lives for a lifetime!
Li Nanfang was like that.
Li Xiao was like that.
Li Qianfan was exactly the same!!
Especially when she recalled Li Qianfan's momentary daze when she proposed to eliminate Dai Paipai preemptively, Su Nanyin felt a faint ache in her heart as she thought about it now.
An ache for that little fellow—
But.
Alas.
To put it in a disrespectful way, it was like saying, "Your Majesty, your concubine has no choice but to do this."
However, Su Nanyin had no regrets.
Even if given a chance to do it again, she would still make that difficult choice without hesitation.
The benefits of eliminating Dai Paipai early would be shared by everyone.
She would be the villain!!
"Dai Paipai is not dead."
However, a woman's voice came from the phone.
"She's not dead?"
Su Nanyin, with her brows still heavy with sleep, casually asked the question, then her body suddenly trembled.
The two subordinates she had sent to kill Dai Paipai were both men.
But the person calling her now was a woman!
Su Nanyin's sleepiness vanished instantly. She turned over and sat up, softly asking, "Who are you?"
The woman replied, "I am Bai Du Niao."
Bai Du Niao?
Su Nanyin was stunned. Just as she was about to accuse her of lying, she suddenly understood.
This was true high intelligence.
If it were someone else, they would never have realized within such a short time that Bai Du Niao was composed of four people.
Li Qianfan.
Besides Du Junlin and Bai Ziyan, there was a mysterious woman!
Su Nanyin quietly took a deep breath and asked, "You are Bai Du Niao's shadow?"
The Bai Du Niao's shadow replied, "Yes."
Su Nanyin continued to ask, "Where is Dai Paipai?"
The shadow replied, "She left."
Su Nanyin immediately understood and asked, "You stopped my two subordinates and let Dai Paipai go."
The shadow replied, "Yes."
Su Nanyin frowned and asked again, "Where are my two subordinates?"
The shadow replied, "Unconscious. But they will definitely wake up before dawn."
Su Nanyin still asked, "You didn't harm them?"
The shadow replied, "Bai Du Niao would never kill someone who shouldn't be killed."
Su Nanyin snorted coldly, "Then do you know that Dai Paipai should be killed?"
The shadow replied even more directly, "As long as Li Qianfan doesn't kill her, none of you can kill her."
Su Nanyin sternly demanded, "Do you know why I wanted to kill Dai Paipai?"
The shadow replied, "I know."
Su Nanyin said grimly, "Then do you know the potential hidden dangers of letting Dai Paipai go?"
The shadow replied, "I know."
Su Nanyin exclaimed angrily, "Then why did you let her go!?"
The shadow replied, "Because Li Qianfan doesn't want her to die. Li Qianfan wishes for her to leave Qingyun alive."
"You—"
Su Nanyin paused, then changed the subject, "Do you only care about Li Qianfan's wishes?"
The shadow replied, "You could also say that I am only loyal to Li Qianfan."
She was only loyal to Li Qianfan!
As long as it was something Li Qianfan wanted to do, whether it was good or bad, she would do it and go all out!!
Once Su Nanyin understood this, she asked, "Who exactly are you?"
The shadow replied, "Bai Du Niao's shadow."
Su Nanyin—
Could not help but curse inwardly and patiently continued to ask, "Then tell me, what is your relationship with Li Qianfan?"
Before she asked this question, she had suspected that this woman might be the Great Demoness Yang.
After all, the two hidden blades she had sent out were considered top-tier experts.
A woman who could subdue two elites would not be someone from the Dark Web who had already targeted Dai Paipai.
Because Qingyun was guarded by the Great Demoness Yang, it was forbidden territory for the Dark Web!
Currently in Qingyun, the only woman who could subdue two hidden blades seemed to be Yang Xiao.
And the Great Demoness Yang was certainly capable of putting on a facade.
However, Yang Xiao would never admit to being loyal to anyone!
Loyalty meant being someone's lackey.
In response to Su Nanyin's repeated questioning, the shadow replied, "Madam, it's getting late, you should rest."
Beep—
The call ended.
Su Nanyin stood foolishly holding her phone, then got out of bed and put on her slippers.
She walked to the window and pushed it open.
Whoosh!
The early winter air at dawn was fresh and dry, and cold.
Su Nanyin shivered, but her mind immediately cleared.
She immediately called Li Wujiang.
Last night.
After Li Qianfan went to "kill" Dai Paipai, Li Xiao quickly bid farewell to Yang Xiao with Shen Piaomiao and took a red-eye flight back to Longxu.
Li Wujiang accompanied them.
The couple needed to discuss Su Ziyu's planned arrival in Longxu on their way.
Su Nanyin, on the other hand, stayed behind to await news of Dai Paipai's demise.
Soon, Li Wujiang's voice came from the phone.
It was heavy and clearly tired, "Dai Paipai, is she gone?"
After all.
Dai Paipai was her son's woman, and she had even given Dai Paipai a gift the last time she visited Qingyun.
Now, under the severe threat of future repercussions, Li Wujiang had to cruelly allow Su Nanyin to play the villain and eliminate Dai Paipai, who had never done anything wrong before. She felt extremely uncomfortable.
Su Nanyin countered instead of answering, "Did your old Li return to Longxu?"
"Mm."
Li Wujiang replied truthfully, "I am currently staying at the Zhizhi Club in the provincial capital. After you come tomorrow, we will return to Sijiu together."
"Dai Paipai is not dead."
Su Nanyin then explained in detail to Li Wujiang about Bai Du Niao's shadow subduing the two hidden blades and calling her to inform her.
Ah!?
Li Wujiang was also very shocked after hearing this.
"You said, who exactly is that Bai Du Niao's shadow?"
Su Nanyin said, "How can she be so impulsive?"
"How should I know?"
When Li Wujiang spoke again, her tone was noticeably lighter.
This was because she had learned that Dai Paipai had not been killed, and the discomfort in her heart instantly vanished.
"Just keep going. You've let the tiger return to the mountains today, and sooner or later you'll regret it. Hmph."
Su Nanyin knew that discussing further with Li Wujiang would not help her figure out who Bai Du Niao's shadow was.
With a cold snort, she ended the call.
Su Nanyin crossed her arms, lowered her head, and paced back and forth by the window, frowning.
She was contemplating whether to mobilize other hidden blades to search for and kill Dai Paipai within Tiandong while she hadn't fled too far.
"I can't do this privately. At least, I need to get the little fellow's opinion."
Su Nanyin quickly dismissed her thought.
She stopped pacing, grabbed a windbreaker, draped it over herself, and quickly walked out of the guest room.
She arrived at Mo Hongti's office door and knocked.
Although it was early morning and Mo Hongti, who was nocturnal, had likely just gone to bed, the situation was urgent, and Su Nanyin couldn't afford to wait.
The door opened.
It was Zhanxin, the secretary Li Qianfan had assigned to Mo Hongti.
Zhanxin had met Su Nanyin before. Upon seeing her, she quickly bowed slightly, "Madam."
"Where is Mo Hongti?"
Su Nanyin asked directly.
Zhanxin replied truthfully, "President Mo and Miss Ziye both went to Director Su's house last night and are not in the club at the moment."
Today afternoon, Su Ziyu and the others would depart for Longxu.
Mo Hongti, in her excitement, went to Su Ziyu's house to envision a bright future, which was understandable (except for a few people like Su Nanyin, no one knew Dai Paipai was about to be eliminated).
Su Nanyin asked again, "Where is Li Qianfan? Did he also go to the Su residence?"
Zhanxin shook her head, "No, he's in the club."
"Which room?"
"Over there—"
Just as Zhanxin pointed to a room on the west side of the corridor, Su Nanyin turned and walked away.
She arrived at the guest room door and instinctively reached for the handle.
If the handle wouldn't turn, she would knock.
But the door opened.
Su Nanyin saw Li Qianfan at a glance.
Li Qianfan was leaning against the headboard, with one leg bent, holding a wine bottle in his left hand, and staring blankly out the window.
The ashtray on the side table was full of cigarette butts.
The smell of tobacco mixed with alcohol was overpowering.
It almost made Su Nanyin dizzy.
Upon hearing the door open, Li Qianfan instinctively turned his head to look.
Seeing it was Su Nanyin, he didn't say anything, nor did he show any expression, and turned back to look out the window.
Su Nanyin stood at the doorway, stunned for a moment, before stepping inside.
She didn't close the door.
For one thing, it was to avoid suspicion.
More importantly, the smoky smell in the room was too strong.
She couldn't bear it, so she walked to the window and opened it.
The same fresh, dry, and cold air rushed in like a torrent.
Su Nanyin quickly adjusted her windbreaker before going to the bed and sitting on a chair.
She, a grown woman, sat right in front of Li Qianfan.
Yet he kept looking out the window, completely treating her as if she were invisible.
Su Nanyin didn't rush to speak.
She took a bottle of wine from the cabinet, opened it, and took a big swig directly from the bottle.
Under the influence of the alcohol, her blood immediately boiled.
The chill dissipated.
She then picked up a cigarette and expertly lit one.
She never smoked in front of others.
Only after her daughters had grown up and flown the nest, and Shen Yue couldn't stay by her side due to "too many homes," did she find herself alone in the backyard of their old mansion in Lingnan, guarding an empty room.
Many sleepless nights, Su Nanyin would hold a bottle of wine and a pack of cigarettes in the small pavilion, gazing at the stars, quietly waiting for dawn, and reminiscing about her youthful exuberance.
After half a bottle of wine, Su Nanyin felt invigorated.
She kicked Li Qianfan lightly with her toe, "Kid, are you blind and can't see me?"
Only then did Li Qianfan look at her and ask, "She's gone?"
"Mm."
Su Nanyin nodded, "She's gone."
Although Li Qianfan had guessed immediately upon seeing Su Nanyin that she had already anticipated him "privately" letting Dai Paipai go and would surely send someone to pursue her, resulting in Dai Paipai's inevitable death.
However, when Su Nanyin personally confirmed that Dai Paipai had "gone," Li Qianfan's heart still ached sharply.
His breathing became difficult.
He quickly took a sip of wine to calm himself.
He looked at Su Nanyin and his voice, when he spoke again, carried a hint of a sob, "Did she leave peacefully? Where is she buried?"