Otherworldly Affairs Office

Following closely behind Gu Shenghui, Pei Yan, who had taken advantage of the situation, was secretly pleased but dared not show it openly. From the story Gu Shenghui shared with him about the mysterious fruit, he learned that Gu had also gained his current abilities by secretly keeping the spoils, in violation of regulations.

This time, he wasn't just fulfilling a promise to that little girl; if it were just that, he indeed could wait a few more days as Gu Shenghui suggested, without exposing himself in front of the whole hall. What he aimed to do was to test his value in the hall and the true bottom line of the hall, and it seemed this gamble had paid off.

As he thought this, the two were about to exit the prison hall when, glancing at the cells on either side, Pei Yan suddenly remembered something. He quickly walked up and whispered to Gu Chu, "Gu Chu, I wonder if I could meet someone here?"

Feeling complicated, Gu Shenghui halted and looked back at Pei Yan with a puzzled frown, "You have acquaintances here?"

"Not really acquaintances, and I don't even know if she's still here. I just want to see how she's doing; otherwise, I can't let it go," Pei Yan said, scratching his head uncertainly.

Five minutes later, with a prison guard summoned to lead the way, Pei Yan arrived at an office door. He opened the door and saw the person who had been on his mind.

The other person, upon hearing the door open and seeing Pei Yan, was startled, stood up blankly, wiped her hands, and said awkwardly, "Why are you here?"

Pei Yan carefully scrutinized Qi Youting, whom he had only met once before. She seemed to be in good spirits and wasn't too restrained, suggesting that what she had told him earlier was probably true. Satisfied, he nodded, smiled at her, and said, "I came to handle some matters here and thought of you, so I came to see how you are doing."

"Well, what can I say, getting by!" Qi Youting said, gesturing for Pei Yan to sit down, then turned to open a small fridge nearby, casually asking, "Want something to drink, coke, Sprite, iced tea?"

Pei Yan sat down in front of the desk, casually directing the electric fan towards himself, enjoying the gentle breeze on his face, and said comfortably, "Coke, please. I'm indeed a bit thirsty! It's stuffy and hot here, and you guys don't even have air conditioning."

"What kind of treatment do you expect in prison? Having this little fan is already pretty good," Qi Youting said, handing the coke to Pei Yan and sitting back on her chair, self-mockingly.

Pei Yan took a sip of coke and continued to ask, "Has your matter been cleared up? Why are you still staying here?"

"Yes, it's been cleared. The hall was fair enough to investigate for two months and confirmed that I wasn't involved in the Shen Desire illegal events," Qi Youting said, recalling the tough days waiting for the results in the cell. Even in the stuffy room, she felt a chill and shivered as she continued, "But since I had joined Shen Desire, they couldn't just release me so simply. Sealing abilities and altering memories to make me an ordinary person again posed the risk of Shen Desire coming for me once more. Director Wei talked to me, and after some consideration, I agreed to temporarily work in the prison, handling some routine management tasks for which I also receive a salary, much like working in a foreign land. They said if I perform well this year, I could have a special leave to visit home next Chinese New Year."

As she spoke, Qi Youting's face was filled with anticipation for future life. Because of the damned Shen Desire, she couldn't reunite with her family last Chinese New Year, and it was not until she was distanced from family and lost her freedom that she realized the value of family and freedom. Compared to those so-called superiors she once had within the cells, she was much more satisfied with her current life.

Listening to Qi Youting's account, Pei Yan silently drank his coke, stared at her with a peculiar expression, and said nothing. After she finished speaking, Pei Yan capped the coke and placed it on the desk, and amidst Qi Youting's astonished gaze, he got up and walked out of the office.

Watching Pei Yan's departing figure, Qi Youting was puzzled. Did she say something wrong? This person came to find her inexplicably, chatted for a bit, and then left just as inexplicably?

Waiting outside the office, Gu Shenghui smiled teasingly at Pei Yan, who was walking towards him with a gloomy face, "Done sympathizing with the damsel, huh? I didn't see it before, you're quite the romantic."

"If they cleared her of any wrongdoing, be genuine and don't play those little tricks, okay?" Pei Yan didn't respond to the banter, rubbed his eyes, and sighed.

Hearing this, Gu Shenghui was in shock when he saw Pei Yan's serious expression, realizing he wasn't joking, "What are you talking about?"

"You really don't know? Could it be something done by the Secret Prison itself?" Pei Yan looked at the old fox's face, uncertain if he was putting on an act for him.

"Explain clearly what's going on!"

"She has nano-scale monitoring devices inside her, once I sat down and the signal was emitted, I sensed it."

"Are you sure?"

"I'm sure!"

"Stay here and don't move!"

With a drastic change in expression, Gu Shenghui instructed Pei Yan and then quickly left. Shortly, members of the investigation hall handling follow-up affairs and several leaders from the Secret Prison arrived.

After listening to Pei Yan explaining the situation again, an old man in black beside Director Wei said with a serious expression, "If what he says is true, then we have overlooked something. That mentioned nano-device was not installed by us. Although every prisoner is subjected to thorough physical checks before being admitted, the focus is more on monitoring capabilities and detecting high-tech devices is our weak point."

"Director, should we take Qi Youting back into custody for further examination?" Director Wei stepped forward and asked softly.

Seeing that his words might push Qi Youting back into the abyss, Pei Yan quickly interjected, "I think she might not know about this! It may not have been her intention."

The prison director nodded at Pei Yan, "What you said is possible; all inmates undergo psychological screening, and we found no such experience in her memory. Hence, it's quite likely that someone acted in secret. However, given what's happened, she must undergo investigation. Rest assured we will handle it appropriately. There's a question I'd like to ask: you met her before, didn't you notice anything then? I'm not blaming you; I'm trying to determine if the device was implanted before or after admission."

After speaking, the prison director's eyes flashed coldly. If it was the former, it could be oversight; if it was after detainment, it would mean there's an internal traitor within the Secret Prison.

Hearing this question, Pei Yan tilted his head back to recall and then shook his head, "I didn't notice it back then. But it might be my issue since I wasn't as sensitive to controlling technological products and monitoring signals then. It was only after I advanced that my abilities in this area improved significantly."

Upon hearing this, the prison director exchanged glances with the members of the investigation hall. Elder Lin pondered for a moment and spoke, "Re-interrogate the offenders involved in the Chinese New Year attack mission and have Pei Yan examine them again."