Chapter 48: Taking the Bait

Wen Li was woken up by a knock on the door. Having spent half the night recording data, she felt as if she were floating when she finally got up.

Wen Jinnian's voice came from behind the door: "Xiao Li, wake up and put on your makeup to welcome the Ji family."

She sat up abruptly, her long blonde hair cascading forward, and gave a feeble response.

"Alright, brother." Her voice was as weak as a dying dragon's.

The sentry outside the door paused for a moment, then chuckled softly and said, "Staying up late yesterday means suffering today. Hurry up and get up."

His younger sister truly was getting more and more adorable.

Wen's father was currently chatting with a woman dressed in a black suit.

This person was none other than the head of the Ji family, Ji Lin.

Rising above all the other Ji descendants, she had ruthlessly slaughtered her brothers and sisters to seize the ultimate right of succession.

Even a person of such stature was willing to grant the Wen family some face.

Amidst the mingling guests, a young woman wearing a black velvet qipao instantly captured the gaze of everyone present.

Wen Li's blonde hair was swept up into an elegant chignon, revealing her slender, fair neck. The form-fitting qipao made her look all the more gentle and poised.

Wen Li was still somewhat unaccustomed to the futuristic, modified version of the qipao, and her heels were rather high; she had to lean on Wen Jinnian for support.

The appearance of the siblings pushed the atmosphere of the banquet to its climax.

Ji Lin looked at the young woman with satisfaction and pulled her into a warm embrace.

"Miss Wen is truly a beauty of national renown. My son is hardly worthy of you."

"You flatter me too much," Wen Li replied.

Ji Lin continued, "I heard Miss Wen works at the White Tower. A goddaughter of mine from a collateral branch is also there."

"You two should have a chance to get to know each other."

Wen Li maintained a polite smile throughout.

Wen Jinnian smoothly steered the conversation away from the topic, and Wen Li did not utter another word.

A silver-haired young woman dressed in a white satin qipao stood quietly by her father's side.

Ji Lin offered only brief and perfunctory praise, clearly paying little attention to Wen Baisha, the S-grade guide.

Wen Li's status within the family was obvious to anyone with discerning eyes.

Logically, Ji Lin should have paid more attention to Wen Baisha. What could a disabled guide like Wen Li possibly have that warranted a second look?

Unless, she knew the true value of Wen Li.

That venomous snake of a Ji Lin, hiding her tail, definitely had ulterior motives.

Wen Li made up the excuse that she was feeling unwell and needed to rest, but before leaving, she gave her brother's palm a subtle squeeze.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the leaves, casting dappled shadows over the tranquil back courtyard.

A blonde girl sat quietly on a swing, lost in a daydream.

Her toes gently nudged the ground, setting the swing in motion.

The surrounding air was suffused with the faint fragrance of wild roses.

A bodyguard dressed in a black suit stepped forward and said, "Miss, Young Master Wen asked me to inform you to wait for him in Guest Room Number 2."

Seeing that the man's attire matched that of her brother's subordinates, Wen Li stood up and followed him without suspicion.

As they walked, she casually asked where Wen Jinnian was right now.

The bodyguard remained silent, lowering his head as he led the way.

Feigning an adjustment to her shoe, Wen Li secretly pressed a button hidden in her palm.

Total demolition mode: activated!

An explosion echoed from outside the reception hall, and by the time the bodyguard reacted and turned to grab Wen Li, the young woman had already vanished.

Furious, the bodyguard roared into his comm-piece.

"Didn't you say there wouldn't be any demolition operations?"

The voice on the other end replied, "We had to create a distraction. The target has been secured."

The chaos at the scene was so overwhelming that the bodyguard completely failed to notice that the voice on the comm sounded slightly different.

Just as he was about to retreat, his path was abruptly blocked by a towering white tiger.

A sentry's spiritual beast?

Wen Jinnian picked up the comm-piece from the ground and said flatly, "The target has been secured."

Ever since the explosions began, the important guests had already departed via spacecraft.

Ji Lin glanced at the silver-haired girl by Wen's father's side. Noticing Wen Li's absence, her eyes darkened slightly before she left with her subordinates.

While Wen's father was running around the front hall in a frantic sweat, Wen Li was busy planting bombs in the back courtyard.

The young girl's operations at the White Tower were strictly classified, but the situation at the Wen household was entirely different.

Since the Ji family had used the pretext of calling off the engagement, the Wen family had to handle the aftermath with utmost decorum for the sake of their reputation.

In such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, even a fool could guess that something was bound to go wrong.

Taking advantage of the crowded and chaotic banquet to secretly kidnap a few people was the most ideal plan.

Having accumulated rich experience in kidnappings and assaults, Wen Li had warned her brother early on that someone was bound to target either her or Wen Baisha.

Therefore, Wen Li had deliberately strayed from the crowd to act as bait, and it wasn't long before the little fish took the hook.

As for the bombs, they were naturally meant to confuse the enemy—she certainly wasn't petty enough to deliberately retaliate against her father.

By the time the banquet concluded and the suspects were captured and interrogated, Wen Li was already snuggled under her blanket, happily eating melon seeds and watching the drama unfold.

Wen Li was currently on a video call with Pei Xinghe.

The young friend Pei Xinghe exaggeratedly exclaimed, "Xiao Li, that gift of yours really got unboxed!"

Bursting into laughter at some amusing memory, Pei Xinghe couldn't stop giggling.

"Hahaha, do you even know what that stuff is?"

"It's a specialty blue dye from the Misu Sea in the eastern federation—the kind that can't be washed off, hahahaha!"

Pei Xinghe was rolling around with laughter, tears streaming down his face.

"One by one, those lab researchers turned into little blue men, and even An Kui's face is blue, hahahahaha!"

Wen Li burst into hearty laughter as well. Just imagining them anxiously tearing open the gift box thinking it was some rare treasure, only for it to blow up right in their faces.

Seeing them transform into a group of Smurfs was genuinely hilarious.

Wen Li also shared the events of the day with him.

Pei Xinghe asked with concern, "Did you get hurt anywhere?"

Watching Wen Li roll around on her bed full of life and vigor, it was obvious she was completely unscathed.

"Why is it that wherever you go, danger follows? Maybe you should keep a few more sentries around you," Pei Xinghe suggested.

Wen Li shook her head and replied, "Depend on the mountains and they will crumble; depend on people and they will run. It's always best to depend on oneself."

As a person of the future, Pei Xinghe heard such a novel perspective for the first time. His carefree personality suddenly paused in deep thought.

It seemed... to make a certain amount of sense.

The collision of thoughts from different eras sparked a dazzling flame.

Wen Jinnian sent a message asking Wen Li to come downstairs for a meeting.

Wearing a soft, pink rabbit pajama set and fluffy slippers, the young woman clattered down the stairs.

Her father sat on the sofa, weighed down by utter exhaustion.

"Baisha, you go back to rest first." The silver-haired girl obediently left.

As soon as Wen Li sat down, her father slammed his hand heavily onto the table.

"You have some nerve! You actually started playing with bombs?" The man seemed genuinely furious, and the solid stone tabletop cracked down the middle.

Wen Li sat up straight, adjusted her composure, and said, "Father, the blast radius was very small, and no one was injured."

"Shut up! Going to the White Tower really gave you a backbone, didn't it?" Her father's voice was ice-cold.

Wen Li's heart began to ache again. She frowned, not bothering to argue further with this unreasonable man.

"I will compensate for the losses to the Wen family. I'm leaving tomorrow. Is there anything else Father wishes to say?"

Hearing that his daughter was leaving tomorrow, a turbulent mix of emotions surged within Wen's father.

He wanted to look at his daughter a little longer, but it felt as though she truly no longer wanted him.

Wen Xincheng averted his gaze, swallowing the words that were on the tip of his tongue, and walked away with a blank expression.

Only Wen Jinnian and Wen Li remained in the spacious living room.

Though the young woman put on a facade of indifference, the slight tremble in her body as she stood up betrayed her true feelings.

With a heart full of anguish, Wen Jinnian hugged her and said, "Father only..."

Wen Li interrupted him, cutting straight to the root of the suppressed emotions buried deep within the original owner's heart.

"I am not a disaster star. It's simply because I was their very first child."