Chapter 378: Chapter 378

They had originally thought that discovering Matsumoto Mina’s residence would lead them to Li Tianyao. However, after thoroughly searching several of Matsumoto Mina’s residences, they found nothing. There wasn’t even a trace of Tianyao in the Matsumoto Group’s underground research facility on the small island. Under these circumstances, following Matsumoto Mina was the only possible way to find Tianyao.

The car moved slowly forward. Luolie’s gaze scanned like two searchlights, looking for Matsumoto Mina’s car.

No, no, nowhere to be found.

It was as if the car had vanished into thin air in the blink of an eye.

But in reality, Matsumoto Mina’s car was right behind his.

"Did you find out who it is?" Matsumoto Mina asked.

The assistant hurriedly replied, "It seems like someone from the Edo Family!"

Matsumoto Mina frowned, annoyed. The Edo Family bought a few Revival Dans from me, and now they’re going to hound me relentlessly for it?

"Miss, shall we eliminate them?"

"Forget it," Matsumoto Mina rejected the suggestion. Eliminating a few bodyguards wouldn’t be difficult, of course. The hard part would be explaining it to the Edo Family. Before the Matsumoto Group rose to prominence, the Edo Group was Country R’s largest pharmaceutical conglomerate. The two families had always been competitors. She wasn’t ready to confront the Edo Family head-on just yet!

"There’s a parking lot ahead. Drive the car to Area A."

The car entered the parking lot and stopped at the spot Matsumoto Mina indicated. She quickly got out, slipped into a nearby car—a girlish pink one—and drove off. The assistant drove the original car in a loop around the parking lot before rejoining the main road.

Minutes later, Luolie’s men spotted the car.

"It’s out! It’s out! That car must have just made a turn," one of the bodyguards exclaimed excitedly.

Luolie also breathed a sigh of relief!

Just as he was chasing that car towards the outskirts, Matsumoto Mina’s car had already entered downtown Xijing, heading straight for the most bustling mall in the city center.

She took the elevator down to the fifth basement level. This was Matsumoto Mina’s true residence!

She entered, took off her shoes, walked into the living room, and after freshening up, Matsumoto Mina knelt by the carpet and lifted it. Crawling down in an almost deranged fashion. She must have triggered something, because the wooden floor beneath changed color, transforming into a circular pane of glass two meters in diameter. Through the glass, a dark, seemingly bottomless pit was visible below. In the center of the pit was a rectangular platform.

A man lay flat on his back on the platform. His long legs were wrapped in black trousers. His dark gray shirt was tucked into his trousers, accentuating his smooth, elegant waistline. His collar was open, revealing a sensual Adam’s apple. His skin was translucent white, like the finest alabaster jade, without a single flaw! Ignoring the dense iron chains binding him, it was undoubtedly an image of exquisite, sleeping beauty.

Indeed, the man wasn’t sleeping; he was merely fixed to the rectangular platform by iron chains. His arms were spread out, his wrists encircled by iron rings four fingers wide, leaving not even the slightest room for movement. The same went for his ankles. Even his shoulder blades were restrained. He resembled a delicate doll fixed in a display window, with a dark, forbidden, almost hysterical sense of beauty.

"Brother Nine, I failed. But I won’t keep failing. Please, bless me so that next time I can kill An Yan, alright?"

"Only if she dies can I transform into her likeness, and stay with you forever and ever!"

A tear escaped her eye. She reached out, pressing her hand against the glass, her fingertips slowly tracing his outline.

"Brother Nine... no, I shouldn’t call you Brother Nine anymore. I should call you... Husband?"

Matsumoto Mina’s spirits lifted. She got up, ran into her room, and emerged half an hour later dressed in the blue clothes An Yan often wore. She smoothed her clothes, then leaned down onto the glass, smiling and tilting her head, "Husband, open your eyes and look. I’m your little girl!"

The man lay there unresponsive. Like a silent audience member admiring the performance on stage!

Matsumoto Mina gazed, intoxicated, at Li Tianyao’s form through the glass, then slowly closed her eyes. Even though there’s a pane of glass between us, and even though he’s nearly ten meters below it... if I look down from here, it’s like I’m lying in his arms, isn’t it?

「At eight o’clock in the evening.」

An Yan disembarked from the cruise ship. A driver recently hired by the Yuri Family jogged over to take her bag and opened the car door for her.

"The makeup is well done!" An Yan said in praise as she settled into the car.

The female driver instantly blushed, "Matsumoto Mina shouldn’t recognize me, right?"

The voice was unmistakably Wen Ya’s!

"She shouldn’t recognize you," An Yan said. I disguised myself as Matsumoto Saori, and Matsumoto Mina didn’t even recognize me. That proves she primarily recognizes people by sight. And eyes are the easiest to deceive.

Little Squirrel excitedly scurried onto An Yan’s shoulder and wrapped its little hands tightly around her neck.

An Yan lifted it from her shoulder, placed it on the small table in the car, and gently stroked its little head. "Wen Ya can just change her disguise, but you..."

Little Squirrel’s shoulders drooped unhappily. After a moment, it picked up a pen and began to write furiously.

"I can get mice to investigate many things for you."

An Yan thought for a moment, then said, "That’s reasonable. In that case, you can’t stay by my side as a pet. At most, you can be an accessory—a motionless one. Can you do that?"

Little Squirrel tilted its head and pondered. An accessory can’t move, but it can always stay by Master’s side. If I’m not an accessory, I’ll have to stay by Luolie’s side all the time. And Luolie isn’t nearly as nice-smelling as Master!

Little Squirrel curled up and then gave its bushy tail a flick. It obediently clutched the clasp of An Yan’s purse.

"So lifelike!" Wen Ya exclaimed in admiration.

An Yan rubbed its big tail. "Let’s have Wen Ya dye your fur later, a color with more contrast!"

Little Squirrel immediately straightened up, its tiny finger pointing to the tuft of bright purple fur on its head! I want this color! Dıscover more novels at novᴇlfire.net

But An Yan rejected the idea, "Matsumoto Mina would recognize you immediately with that color! Better to dye it pink!"

Little Squirrel: "..."

An Yan explained, "Saori has a gloomy disposition, but Mrs. Yuri is fond of buying her pink, girlish items, so dyeing it pink would be the least likely to give anything away."

Little Squirrel shook its head repeatedly. I’m a boy!

But its protests were futile.

Finally, after it threw a full-blown tantrum, An Yan relented and agreed not to dye it pink, opting for white instead.

I don’t really like white either, but compared to pink, it’s much more acceptable.

The next day, An Yan took Little Squirrel to work. As she was about to board the ship at the dock, Matsumoto Mina stopped her, "Saori, let’s talk!"

Wen Ya’s first reaction was to step forward to shield An Yan, but she quickly remembered An Yan’s instructions: unless An Yan called for help, Wen Ya and anyone else with her were not to intervene, no matter the circumstances. So Wen Ya merely glanced over before returning to her task of polishing the car.

An Yan looked at Matsumoto Mina expressionlessly, silent.

Matsumoto Mina laughed, "Saori, where did you get the courage to take my place while I was away?"