The next morning, Xiao Mei woke up feeling uneasy and restless. The mysterious message from the night before lingered in her mind, disturbing her sleep. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching her, and every step she took felt heavier than usual.
Despite her anxiety, Xiao Mei got out of bed, showered, and dressed neatly for work. She decided to take extra precautions—changing her home security password, hiding important files in different secret locations, and using an alternative route to the office to ensure she wasn't being followed. Her instincts screamed that she was being tracked.
When Xiao Mei arrived at the office, she immediately noticed something unusual. In the lobby, a well-dressed man, clearly not an employee, was asking about her. Mrs. Tang spotted him too and quickly sent Xiao Mei a discreet message, urging her to exit the building using the back door. Xiao Mei obeyed, her heart racing.
Confused and suspicious, Xiao Mei knew she had to follow up on the old photograph she found in the archives. She reached out to an old photo editor who had previously worked with Zeyan Media. She met him at a small studio, handing over the photograph with the obscured face. After some time working on the image, the editor revealed the face behind the blur: Tan Sri Zhi Wei, a prominent businessman who had once been tied to high-profile corruption scandals in 2014.
Xiao Mei's heart pounded. What connection did Lu Zeyan have with someone like Tan Sri Zhi Wei? Without delay, she left the studio and booked a taxi to meet the same old IT staffer who had helped her access the company's internal system. When she mentioned Tan Sri Zhi Wei, the man's face turned pale. He reluctantly whispered a single phrase: "Project Aegis."
"What is it?" Xiao Mei asked, her voice barely a whisper.
The man glanced around nervously, then simply said, "I've said too much," and left her alone on the street.
Later that night, Xiao Mei received a message from Lu Zeyan himself. He asked her to meet him at a quiet, upscale restaurant. She arrived to find the place almost empty, the silence hanging heavy in the air. When Lu Zeyan sat across from her, his face was calm, but there was tension in his eyes.
"I know what you're doing, Xiao Mei," he said. "And you're not wrong. But you're not safe either."
Xiao Mei leaned forward. "So it's true. You're trying to bring them down too?"
Lu Zeyan nodded. "I've been working from the inside, gathering what I can. But if you take the wrong step, I won't be able to protect you. These people… they don't forgive."
Xiao Mei was silent for a moment. "What is Project Aegis?"
He paused. "It's not just corruption. It's deeper. A web of influence, power, and cover-ups. And you've already gotten too close."
When Xiao Mei returned home that night, she immediately sensed something was wrong. Her front door was slightly ajar. Cautiously, she stepped inside to find her apartment ransacked—files missing, drawers thrown open. Her paper documents were gone. Luckily, her digital backups were stored securely in a high-level encrypted cloud system.
But what truly chilled her was the note on her desk. It was written in the same style as the message she had received before. This one read: "You've gone too far. There's no way to turning back now."
Xiao Mei sat on her couch, gripping the note tightly. Her world was spinning. The risks were rising—but so was her resolve. Whatever this web of secrets was, she was already tangled in it. And she knew there was no turning back.
With a deep breath, Xiao Mei whispered to herself, "Let them come. I'm not stopping now."