Not a Traitor

This woman's physical appearance was truly outstanding. The perfume she wore was alluring without being vulgar. Every frown, every smile, every move she made caused men's testosterone to surge rapidly.

"Hey there, handsome."

She seemed a bit forward, taking the initiative to strike up a conversation with Yan Anqing. "My name is Ye Aida. Even though you're wrapped up like a dumpling, your aura is completely different from ordinary people..."

"I'm very interested in you."

This woman with golden, wavy long hair had a slender figure. Every word she spoke came out as a nasal murmur, dripping with seduction.

The moment a stranger suddenly approached Yan Anqing, the two security personnel in plain clothes who were following him immediately focused their attention.

But after seeing her behavior, they withdrew their gazes and continued checking for other potential safety hazards.

Back at the base, rumors about Yan Anqing were circulating everywhere—

Because of his good looks, he'd been taken under Dongfang Zhi's wing through improper channels, recommended from being unemployed to the Yaoguang Section. Recently, he was even rumored to be cohabiting with Dr. Jiang Xinyue, and so on...

Rumors stop at the wise, but most people in the world can only see the surface.

The two bodyguards responsible for Yan Anqing's safety were no exception.

In their view, Yan Anqing was just a playboy. Chatting up a strange beauty on the street, or even going all the way for a one-night stand if the mood struck, wasn't entirely out of the question.

After all, researchers were human too. Yan Anqing, who could hole up in the base for over a month without going out, was already considered quite patient.

"Heh."

Yan Anqing looked the woman who called herself 'Ye Aida' up and down for a moment, then let out a cold laugh. "But I'm not interested in you."

After completing Main Quest 1, aside from the soul binding, he'd also gained the [Cross-Sectional Mapping] function.

With a single glance, he could see the muscle striations and nerve atrophy levels beneath her smooth skin.

Artificially enhanced cheekbones, cheekbones ground down by instruments, overuse of slimming injections, a standard snake-chin jaw...

A nose bridge built with hyaluronic acid, who knew how many Botox neurotoxin injections around her eyes, the orbicularis oculi muscles a complete mess...

Setting aside these clearly observable flaws, from an overall surface perspective, her plastic surgery was quite successful. At the very least, it had boosted her looks by three or four points.

Yan Anqing had no prejudice against women who loved beauty. But someone like the woman in front of him, running around with a face that didn't belong to her, hitting on men—he really couldn't muster much goodwill.

Regardless of gender, Yan Anqing respected people who kept themselves clean and self-disciplined.

Hearing Yan Anqing's words, Ye Aida's smile froze on her face.

A flush appeared on her face, as if she were quite angry, but her facial muscles weren't cooperating. Her expression was a strange mix of crying and laughing, eerie and abnormal.

Suddenly, Ye Aida leaned close to Yan Anqing, her voice low and cloyingly sweet. "Dr. Yan, someone in Virginia is very interested in you."

"If you're willing to contribute to freedom, democracy, and global public authority, we'll ensure your safety while giving you treatment you could never enjoy in China."

"Don't rush to refuse! I know, people from your country care a lot about face and hate being labeled traitors, right?"

"We'll use our media influence in your country, leveraging celebrity scandals and explosive news, to minimize the impact of your defection to democracy."

"Besides... your country's higher-ups won't want to publicize this kind of negative news either."

"As long as you're willing to come to America, you'll get top-level research funding, the most advanced equipment. Outstanding graduates from Stanford, Cambridge, MIT, Boston, California, Hollins, Columbia—even master's students—you can pick anyone you want as your assistant!"

"As for the specific process, you needn't worry! We have a complete and thorough procedure!"

Hearing this, Yan Anqing raised an eyebrow.

So that was it.

This woman calling herself Ye Aida was clearly a secret agent. She'd mentioned "Virginia"...

That was an olive branch extended from the Lighthouse Building.

"Your country?"

A look of confusion appeared on Yan Anqing's face. "You're not Chinese?"

From her bone structure, he could roughly tell—there was no sign of mixed blood in her. She was a standard member of the Yellow Race.

And her Mandarin was very fluent, without any foreign accent.

Ye Aida's red lips curled upward as she sidestepped the issue. "I was born in China, grew up in China, but I have a sincere heart that yearns for the lighthouse."

"I see..."

Yan Anqing crooked his finger at her. "Come, come closer. Let's talk in private."

An opportunity!

Overjoyed, Ye Aida immediately leaned toward Yan Anqing's ear, trying to put on an intimate posture.

Her handler had told her countless times how important Yan Anqing was.

This was a monumental achievement!

Once she returned to America, her future would be limitless!

A sharp pain suddenly shot up from her lower abdomen.

Bang!

Ye Aida was kicked flying into the air. She landed on the ground, writhing in abdominal pain, dry heaving twice, unable to get up for a long time.

"I've never hit a woman in my life."

Yan Anqing stared at Ye Aida with a blank expression. "You made me break that rule."

Was a female undercover agent not a woman?

There was no such thing as mental victory here.

Yan Anqing never made excuses for what he did.

Descendants of Yan and Huang do not become traitors.

That was one of his few remaining bottom lines.

Watching the scene unfold, the two security personnel nearby quickly closed in.

Now, Yan Anqing understood the full picture.

This was likely what Xie Zhe meant by "trouble brewing."

The conflict wasn't internal—it came from other forces.

"Damn it!"

Ye Aida gritted her teeth against the pain, pulling out what looked like a lipstick from her pocket and aiming it at Yan Anqing.

Before she came, she had been given many instructions.

Recruiting him was the best outcome; if that failed, eliminate him.

A Yan Anqing who refused to defect, as long as he lived, was a disaster and a hidden threat to America!

The "lipstick" in Ye Aida's hand was actually a miniature firearm. Its caliber was small, but if it hit the right spot, it could still kill in one shot.

"Die!"

She aimed the lipstick gun at Yan Anqing's left eye and abruptly pulled the trigger.

Click!

A hollow sound echoed from the disguised lipstick gun's mechanism.

Ye Aida was tackled to the ground by the two security personnel who lunged at her.

"Impossible!"

"Why did this happen?"

Ye Aida's sneer froze on her face.

She had checked her weapon repeatedly before coming—there was absolutely no problem with it!

A jammed bullet shouldn't have been possible...

"Damn it! Damn it!"

Ye Aida glared at Yan Anqing with pure hatred.

If this country hadn't banned civilians from owning firearms, how could she have lost to such a trivial detail!

Damn China, where citizens didn't even have the right to freely own guns—it really couldn't compare to the Lighthouse Nation!

Full of resentment, Ye Aida was pinned down by the two security personnel, unable to move.

"Dr. Yan, let's head back to the base first..."

"Mm."

Yan Anqing gave a slight nod.

Why had Ye Aida's lipstick gun malfunctioned?

Naturally, he had tampered with it.

With his [Cross-Sectional Mapping] perspective, he had long spotted her backup plan.

The outside world was indeed unstable now. It was better to stay in the base and remaster the world, developing steadily.