Next Morning, 11:00 a.m. ; "Get up, you sleepyhead!", Mo Zixuan strode inside the girl"s bedroom and pulled her blanket away. Xi Yuan followed behind him helplessly. "Can"t we let her sleep for an hour more?", the man sighed, as he looked at the girl rubbing her eyes tiredly.
"No!", the man squinted his eyes at the Xi Yuan, "I am getting married a week later. And as the groom"s sister, she has certain responsibilities to take care of. How can she have her beauty nap at such a crucial time!?"
"Who will select the groom"s tux and the bride"s gown? And I am still not done with the wedding vows. The entire family is preparing for the big day, but her."
"Hey! It"s not my fault I have Six brothers.", the girl complained grumpily, "At some point, you get bored of weddings!"
Mo Zixuan flicked the girl"s forehead, and twisted her right ear, "Rong Xinghe, I am not going to repeat myself. Get down the bed. Now!"
"Ow! Ok, ok okay!", the girl shrieked, akin to a little bird, "Fine! Wait for me down there. Let me shower and change, at least."
The man released the girl"s ear and smirked triumphantly at her. He then turned around to leave the room, hauling Xi Yuan along with him, "Let"s prepare breakfast for her, until then. I have something to talk to you about as well."
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While the girl was selecting clothes for herself, the two men chopped the vegetables in the Kitchen downstairs, silently. By this time, Xi Yuan was more than sure that the man wasn"t here just for his wedding preparations. There was something else bothering him. So instead of poking him about it, the man decided to keep his mouth shut for the time being. There were very few things in this world, that could trouble Media Magnet Mo Zixuan, after all.
"Try to keep her away from TV, or newspapers, or phones for today.", the man said after a few minutes.
"What"s going on, Bro Mo?", the man questioned. He knew there was something more to this surprise visit!
Mo Zixuan pulled his phone out and swiped thrice before he tossed it over to the man. Xi Yuan glanced at the screen and furrowed his brows. "Country I? Is the girl-"
"No. She died hours before the localites carried her to the hospital.", the man took a shaky breath, his tone soft and low, "What worries me the most me is the similarity of this incident with the one that took place years ago. Xinghe should never know about this."
"I agree.", Xi Yuan nodded, "Any idea about the perpetrator, though?"
"No. Why?"
"The way this matter escalated, not to mention, how the media is actively reporting it, makes me suspicious. It"s like the mastermind wants Xinghe to see this.", Xi Yuan explained his theory.
"Do you think-", a name flashed in front of Mo Zixuan"s eyes.
"Rong Yufan. Yes.", Xi Yuan smiled, "There is a possibility of his involvement. Don"t worry. I"ll hire someone to look into it."
"I will leave that to you then.", Mo Zixuan smiled back, "By the way, you are invited to my wedding, you know?"
"Even if I wasn"t, I would"ve shown up as Xinghe"s date.", the man chuckled, eliciting a laugh from Mo Zixuan. "For the love of G.o.d, wear something "non-black or non-grey" that day. I would hate to kick your a.s.s in front of all the guests."
"I don"t wear those colors "all the time", Bro Mo.", Xi Yuan countered.
"If there is any other color in your wardrobe right now, it would s.h.i.+ne like a diamond in the coal mines. So give me a break, young man.", the man looked at the man meaningfully.
"Bro Mo is right!", at this time, Rong Xinghe walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge, "Come with me. We will select something for you too."
"Alright. I will join you later this afternoon.", the man promised, as he placed a kiss against the girl"s cheeks, "Until then, help your brother customize the groom"s suit. Send me the address of the designer"s office, so I can pick you up from there, after you"re done. Bro Mo can go to work directly then."
"Done."
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Meanwhile, MCO ;
"We can not let this news reach Military Chief. Do you guys understand it?!", Ashfakh switched off the TV in his office and turned to look at the Military Officials standing behind him. "Spread the word to every officer present here."
"Lieutenant General Ali, Military Chief has seen thousands of dead bodies till date. This girl"s death would be of least concern to her. Trust me.", a young soldier, named Song Wen argued, "Why would you be so specific about this case?"
"Contrary to that, officer, this case can trigger the memories of her horrifying past.", Ashfakh replied sternly, "Follow my orders. That"s all you have to do."
"Alright, Sir.", the officers bowed down and left the man"s office, leaving him with Shou Wu.
"You seem to be anxious ever since this news was leaked, Soldier.", the old man exacted his question, "Why are you so worried?"
Ashfakh Ali contemplated for a minute before he lifted his head up and smiled wryly at the girl"s a.s.sistant, "Mr. Shou, have you heard about "Alqatil"?"
The moment the term left the man"s mouth, Shou Wu"s eyes widened, and he looked back into the man"s eyes. Ashfakh could tell he was terrified, just by the mention of the name. Poor old man, he thought.
"That"s right. Alqatil wasn"t a man. It is a woman. Rong Xinghe.", Ashfakh spoke up as the silence filled the room, "Rong Xinghe without humanity. Rong Xinghe without emotions. So it"s better to not push her over the edge. Keep this news away from her. Okay?"
Alqatil. The word meant "Killer" in Arabic. Ashfakh had seen that beast. He had seen the ruthlessness she radiated years ago. Underworld used to call her "The Walking Death", then. "Ripper". That was another way they addressed her. This was a secret that was supposed to be a secret. Buried in his heart, and his mind. Other than him, only those nine Silent Soldiers knew about the Ripper. And it was better that way. Because that side of Rong Xinghe"s was better untouched. At least, until Country X was to be pushed into the state of immediate emergency.