The richest man's parents were kidnapped, and his adorable son captivated the entire family.

Xie Yumin's chest trembled slightly as a thought became increasingly clear in her mind: he was not a simple protector. He was a "double agent." On the surface, he was under orders from Gu Yinshen, but secretly he sided with Gu Hongtao.

Perhaps it was their past loyalty, or perhaps they were bought off again.

His two rescues of her... might have been merely to "preserve the key witness" so that Gu Hongtao could exploit her to the fullest extent at the right time.

A few nights later, Xie Yumin finally won the right to "breathe" once.

She stood on the rooftop of the building housing the safe house, the night wind howling, and the city's neon lights spreading out below her.

She could hear the wind and her own heartbeat. Her body trembled slightly, not from the cold, but from a long-suppressed anger and clarity.

Ten meters behind me were mountain eagles.

He stood silently in the shadows, watching her every move.

She didn't turn around, facing the night sky, her voice cold yet sharp: "The scenery here is nice, but the wind is strong, making people... uneasy."

She turned around abruptly, her gaze meeting the mountain eagle's intense eyes.

"Tell me, what exactly does Second Uncle want from having you by my side? That draft contract? Or... to deliver the fatal blow after Gu Yinshen and I find more evidence?"

In the city lights of the night, the wind howled across the rooftop, its chill like a whispered prophecy.

When faced with Xie Yumin's interrogation, Mountain Eagle's gaze suddenly tightened, his eyes sharp as a knife cornered against a wall. His back was taut like a bowstring, his posture still steady, but the tension he held back almost seemed to tear the surrounding air apart.

“Miss Xie,” his voice was still low, but it carried an undeniable firmness, “I told you, don’t ask questions you shouldn’t ask. Go back to your room.”

Xie Yumin didn't back down an inch. Her eyes were piercing as she pressed on: "I recognize the ring on your hand. It's in that old photo in Gu Hongtao's study! That silver ring, that person, isn't that you? You're not an ordinary bodyguard, you're Uncle's man! The tactics you used when you rescued me from the warehouse were military-grade, not techniques that civilian bodyguards could learn! You've been acting all along!"

The mountain eagle's expression finally changed.

It wasn't panic, nor anger, but an extremely complex emotion that flashed across his face.

Pain, struggle, resolve, even... a hint of sorrow. His Adam's apple bobbed as if he were suppressing something about to explode.

"Go!" he suddenly roared, his voice rough and hoarse like tattered cloth being torn apart. "Get out of here immediately! They're here! They're after you! Hurry..."

The words have not yet fallen.

With a barely perceptible thud, accompanied by a very slight fluctuation in air pressure, the bullet under the silencer pierced through the air.

Mountain Eagle's body jolted violently, his movements stiffening. A vibrant bloom of blood erupted from his left chest, leaving a dark crimson trail in the cold wind. He stared down at himself in disbelief, his eyes trembling violently—a mixture of shock and a sense of final reckoning.

His lips twitched slightly, as if he wanted to say something, but nothing came out.

His body, having lost its balance, staggered backward. He tried to steady himself, but it was too late.

Behind me was the unobstructed edge of the rooftop.

"Mountain Eagle!" Xie Yumin screamed in terror, lunging forward to try and grab him, but her fingers only touched the edge of the air.

A dull thud came from the ground dozens of meters below, slamming heavily into the depths of her eardrums.

Xie Yumin stood frozen, her mind blank. The image of the mountain eagle seemed to linger before her eyes, its voice still echoing in her ears: "They're here...their target is you..."

Who fired the shot? Why at this moment? Did Mountain Eagle really want to save her, or... did he just betray her at the last minute?

The wind grew stronger, her hair flew wildly, and her heart felt as if it had been struck hard by a blunt object, making it almost impossible for her to breathe.

Soon after, through the machinations of certain individuals, the rooftop fall was quickly classified as an "accident" in the police files.

Not long after the cordon was removed downstairs at the Gu's Building, a cold, hard case closure notice was delivered to Xie Yumin.

At the scene, technicians "accidentally" found a shell casing in a corner of the rooftop. The casing belonged to an old-fashioned pistol without a silencer and did not "completely match" the wound. It was classified as "possibly left behind by previous construction workers or at an unknown time".

But this in itself is already highly suspicious, after all, what construction worker would stack one bullet casing at a time?

Upon closer inspection of the autopsy report, it was discovered that the eagle had a "penetrating wound on its chest, suspected to be caused by impact with sharp metal," which made sense in relation to its fall path.

Shockingly, the report noted in tiny print that traces of gunpowder and gunpowder residue were found on the skin around the gunshot wound, and trace amounts of nerve-paralyzing substances were detected in the body.

The annotation hastily explained it as "possibly due to cross-contamination caused by the deceased's personal medication history or the environment at the scene."

The only eyewitness at the scene was a cleaner who was "smoking" downstairs.

When questioned by the police, he simply stated indifferently that he "saw the bodyguard slip and fall, as if his legs went weak."

The testimony was vague and ambiguous, yet it was listed by the police as "supplementary eyewitness material."

Ultimately, the police classified the case as an accidental death from a fall from a height, and no further criminal investigation was initiated.

When Xie Yumin submitted a request to the police to view the original forensic report and ballistic trajectory analysis, the only reply she received was: "The case has been filed. Your access is inappropriate. Ms. Xie, please do not interfere with official business."

She stood outside the police station, clutching the faded piece of paper in her hand, her knuckles turning slightly white.

This wasn't an accident; it was a cover-up. And the mountain eagle's dying words, "They're here," already explained everything.

In this game, even the chessboard itself was set up by the enemy.

Before the shock caused by the death of the mountain eagle had subsided, Ruolan, in order to quickly seize the high ground in the discourse, immediately decided to take the initiative and hold a press conference first.

On that day, the press conference was bustling with activity, the flashbulbs flashing and the crowd buzzing.

Ruolan wore a black, fitted long dress, her makeup restrained yet exquisite, a subtle, controlled smile playing on her lips, as if she were struggling to overcome her emotions. She walked onto the stage, raised the microphone, and spoke in a gentle yet incredibly penetrating voice.

"I feel deeply sorry for the bodyguard who tragically fell from the building." She lowered her eyes slightly, took a deep breath as if to calm her grief, "but there are some things I have to say."

She looked up at the entire room, her tone gentle yet sharp: "Ms. Xie Yumin, your persistent, baseless so-called 'investigation' has become a farce that has spiraled out of control! Now, an innocent person has lost their life because of your 'persistence'! Can you face this outcome? Is this the price you pay for your so-called pursuit of 'truth'?"