Chapter 153: Bitter Past

This time, it hadn’t merely damaged property.

It had attacked and injured one of the residents.

Mo Beichan began taking the matter seriously.

His instincts told him that someone was deliberately setting a trap for him, and he was slowly but surely falling into it.

As it turned out, his suspicions weren’t entirely wrong.

The very next day, a formal complaint landed on Su Yao’s desk.

After reading it, she immediately summoned Mo Beichan to appear before the Justice Department.

Of course, she made sure not to accompany him publicly.

If she appeared beside her husband, people would assume she was supporting him. By staying away, she could protect her reputation while distancing herself from the controversy.

She had even prepared an excuse in advance.

Mo Beichan was made to sign a letter stating that he had personally requested Su Yao’s absence from the hearing.

That way, if anyone questioned her decision later, she could simply claim that she had been unwell and that her husband hadn’t wanted her to attend.

The Justice Department itself had been established in a hurry. It barely had any qualified professionals, and its procedures were far from thorough.

Unsurprisingly, the hearing ended with Mo Beichan being cleared of any illegal wrongdoing.

The officials even defended him.

"Lord Mo Beichan has done his best to maintain security in the residential district. Although there have been a few unfortunate incidents, occasional failures are unavoidable."

Their explanation left several elite residents dissatisfied. However, after some discussion, most reluctantly accepted the ruling.

After all, preventing every single mutated beast from entering the residential area was nearly impossible.

They could only hope that the base would strengthen its security.

Fortunately, Burning Star Base had recently announced plans to construct an electronic defensive fence.

According to the announcement, the fence would release powerful electrical currents capable of burning zombies or monsters to ashes the moment they touched it.

The project had attracted considerable attention.

Almost every resident was looking forward to its completion, especially since their base leader, Su Yao, was personally involved in the research.

Meanwhile, Mo Beichan felt utterly defeated.

When he returned to his villa that afternoon, he received a message from Su Yao.

His entire monthly allowance had been canceled.

She also informed him that he would have to manage his expenses on his own.

Reading the message, Mo Beichan felt a wave of grievance wash over him.

His wife hadn’t even bothered to comfort him.

Instead, she had pushed all the responsibility onto his shoulders, cut off his allowance, and left him to face the angry residents alone.

If it weren’t for his ability to manipulate situations and defend himself, he might not have escaped the hearing so easily.

The more he thought about it, the more aggrieved he became.

..............................

Meanwhile, Meng Xiaoni stood before the large electronic bulletin board in the center of the elite residential district.

The screen displayed the latest announcement concerning Mo Beichan’s hearing.

After reading it, Meng Xiaoni smiled faintly. However, there was no warmth in that smile.

His expression remained so emotionless that the slight upward curve of his lips looked almost mechanical.

’Mo Beichan is finally learning.’

For the past few days, Meng Xiaoni’s mother had been encouraging him to rest and watch movies instead of spending all his time inside his laboratory.

He had complied occasionally, but his plans had never stopped progressing.

And tonight, he had decided to carry out the most important part.

He turned away from the bulletin board and headed toward his villa.

Just as he crossed an intersection, he encountered Lance.

Their gazes met briefly, but neither of them spoke.

They simply walked past each other as though they were complete strangers.

About an hour later, Meng Xiaoni quietly approached the rear of his villa. He examined the surroundings carefully.

Only after confirming that no assassins were nearby did he let out a soft whistle.

A moment later, a section of the fence surrounding the villa shifted slightly.

A figure dressed entirely in green crawled through the narrow opening.

The person’s clothes were designed to blend into the surrounding vegetation, while a dark green cloth concealed most of his face.

Meng Xiaoni watched him enter without changing his expression.

Nevertheless, he extended a hand and helped the man climb inside.

Once they were safely within the villa, Meng Xiaoni led him into his private laboratory.

The man finally pulled down his face covering and a smile appeared on his face.

"Boss, it’s been a long time."

It was Lance.

Meng Xiaoni gave a faint nod.

Lance continued, "The first task has been completed, and the second one is already in progress. As for the third task, everything depends on tonight."

He hesitated before asking, "Boss, are you really sure you want to act today?"

"I think we should wait a little longer. We’ve already done quite a lot in such a short period. If we continue without taking a break, we’re bound to attract the base leader’s attention."

His expression became serious. "And if Su Yao discovers that we’re behind everything..."

He didn’t finish his sentence. However, Meng Xiaoni understood his concern.

He gave a faint hum of acknowledgment. "Don’t worry about her."

His voice remained calm.

"Su Yao cares more about her reputation than anything else. Even if one of her husbands were beaten to death, she might still try to suppress the news rather than allow it to damage her image."

After saying that, Meng Xiaoni suddenly fell silent.

He didn’t elaborate further. However, Lance understood what he meant.

There had been an incident in the past that had revealed just how far Su Yao was willing to go to protect her reputation.

Back when Chu Lin had been relentlessly pursuing Meng Xiaoni, she had once attempted to grope him without his consent.

Unfortunately for her, Meng Xiaoni was physically stronger.

He had immediately caught her hand and broken it.

Instead of admitting what she had done, Chu Lin had turned around and filed a complaint against him, accusing him of molesting her.

The accusation had caused an enormous uproar.

For a while, almost everyone seemed to be against Meng Xiaoni.