He knew she wasn't interested in Zhou Che. He hoped she wasn't. But as far as Zhou Zhichen was concerned, the girl used to still miss him. He was once her friend, after all. 

"I don't know. Yuan, it's Zhichen.", the girl held onto the letter tightly, her tone nervous, "He wrote this minutes before his death. I don't think I will be able to read how he couldn't control his urge to gulp down those d.a.m.ned pills. I can't read how he couldn't fight the drug cravings."

"Hey, Xinghe. Honey, it's okay.", Xi Yuan whispered, softly, "You don't have to if you don't want to. Okay? Take all the time you need."

The girl just nodded at the man obediently and placed the letter in the drawer of her side table, and closed it. She then picked up the laptop from the coffee table and sat down on the bed.

"One h.e.l.l of a day it was, wasn't it?", the man quipped, after some time, "Two encounters. Qui Chin is in City A. A normal day for the Military Chief."

"And... running into the ex-boyfriend.", the girl remarked.

"What about him?", the man smiled, trying his best to not give away anything that was going on in his heart.

"Come on, Yuan. You know you want to talk about it.", the girl rolled her eyes, "Do you really think I didn't notice you clenching your jaws when I mentioned him earlier? What is it?"

Xi Yuan stared at the girl with surprise before he let out an inaudible scowl, "Why do you know me so well?"

"What is it, Bub?", the girl asked, her voice soft and mellow. She knew how to melt him just right!

"Okay. I might be a tad bit jealous.", the man confessed.

"I get it.", the girl smiled, "But there is nothing for you to feel jealous about. You have me. He doesn't." And he never will have me, the girl pledged to herself. And to him. 

"What if he tries to impress you? I am not even there to put up a fair fight.", the man complained.

"He isn't worthy, for you to compete him."

"What if he tries to win over your family?", the man posed another situation.

"This relations.h.i.+p requires my consent. Not my family's."

"So there is no chance for him.", the man grinned, his eyes ebullient.

"In my heart? Nope. In my life? Never.", ensured Rong Xinghe.

"I can't believe I have made the most amazing woman in this world fall for me!", the man laughed his small deep laugh. The laugh that was music to her ears.

"Well. What can I say? I tend to fall for my bartenders. A lot.", the girl winked.

And then, the couple laughed some more. Next, they talked and discussed, about his work and her new book collection. About the lifestyle in Mexico, and about the girl's plans for the next day. It was things like these that helped them feel close, even though they were miles apart from each other. They never used to get bored. And they never ran out of topics to talk about. 

Soon, as they talked for roughly two hours, the man realized that there was nothing for him to feel insecure about. Zhou Che was her past. And he was her present. He knew her. He knew the best version of her. Like no one ever could. 

She could hold onto her past for a long time, but once she let go of it, she would never turn around and look back at it. Just like what happened with Rongs. She never even talked about those monsters, those psychos, anymore. 

When it came to moving on from someone, his Xinghe was one ruthless and insensitive individual. She never bothered to make the same mistakes again. 

______________________

Next Morning, 8:00 a.m. ; 

Rong Xinghe woke up in the early morning and changed into a tank top and yoga pants. Shortly after, she headed towards her brother's private gym. She knew she had to start working out someday eventually. Not to mention, one week more and she had to take over as the Military Chief again. It was better to regain her lost physical strength as soon as possible, in that case. 

The girl plugged in her AirPods and climbed up on the treadmill. She adjusted the speed before she checked up on Qui Chin's location. She had already asked Sun Cheng to plant a tracking chip in her phone.

Apparently, the woman was staying put in a hotel near the Elite Premises. She seemed to have a.s.sumed that Rong Xinghe was living in the Elite Diamond Penthouse, her private residence. 

For some unknown reason, that impressed the girl. As she jogged, she couldn't help but appreciate Qui Chin's research skills. Not many people knew about Rong Xinghe's personal properties. Yet, she was able to discover something like that. In such a short span of time. It was a shame she had to die so soon. 

At this time, the woman's phone rang up and she tapped her right AirPod to get through, "Who is it?"

"It's me, Military Chief, Shou Wu.", the old man's voice came through the other end. 

"Good Morning, Mr. Shou! Did you get to know anything about those two men? Who the h.e.l.l were they?", the girl asked.

"Yes. They weren't terrorists, Military Chief. And none of them hailed from ISI. The one who attacked you at the Lus' was indeed trained under the Islamic State, but had escaped from there years ago. That's why you were able to recognize him. You've had seen his photo from eleven years back.", the man reported.

"I see.", the girl muttered, "So who were they exactly?"

"I know this is odd, but they both had one thing in common. They had their left ear pierced, twice. And there were three dots tattooed below the nape of their necks."

"How is it even possible?", the girl furrowed her brows, "Didn't the organization vanished years ago? And how are they related to me?"

"I don't know about any of that, Chief. But I am afraid that this has the 'Bleeding Avenues' written all over it. As unbelievable as this sounds, it's clear they never vanished. They hid.", the man stated the matter-of-factly, "The real question is, why are they targetting you?"