Chapter 120: Ningning, I Know There’s Something Special About You

“Ningning, do you suspect anyone?” Seeing Gu Jianing deep in thought, Sheng Zexi asked.

Gu Jianing hesitated, gazing at him. “There is someone I suspect, but I don’t have any proof.”

“Who is it?”

Gu Jianing pursed her lips and said, “Li Shuyao.”

“I’m not saying this just because she likes you,” she explained. “Do you remember that performance on New Year’s Eve? Even though Li Shuyao didn’t talk to me or interact with me at all, my intuition told me she harbored ill will toward me. As for where that malice came from—whether it was because of you or something else—I’m not sure.”

In reality, that malice had been detected by the Malice Detector, so there was no way it could be wrong.

But Gu Jianing couldn’t mention the Malice Detector, so she could only say it was her intuition.

She took Sheng Zexi’s hand. “Brother Xi, trust me. My intuition is never wrong.”

Seeing how anxious she was, as if afraid he wouldn’t believe her, Sheng Zexi quickly patted her hand to reassure her. “Ningning, of course I trust you.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll let the police know about your suspicion and have them look into Li Shuyao. It’s just…”

Sheng Zexi paused. “Li Shuyao’s background isn’t easy to investigate. Unless there’s solid, easily obtainable evidence, otherwise…”

Gu Jianing nodded. “I understand.”

“I’m only telling you this so you’ll be more alert around Li Shuyao. It’s not because I’m jealous or anything.”

Gu Jianing didn’t want Sheng Zexi to misunderstand and think she was accusing someone out of jealousy.

Sheng Zexi smiled. “I know. I still trust you, and I’ll be careful.”

With that, he pulled Gu Jianing into his arms.

Gu Jianing leaned quietly against Sheng Zexi, her mind preoccupied with the matter.

The fact that there was someone behind the human traffickers, someone who hired them, had caught her off guard—but at the same time, it wasn’t entirely unexpected.

She felt there was a high chance it was Li Shuyao.

But just as Brother Xi said, even if the police investigated, it would be very difficult to find any evidence pointing to Li Shuyao.

After all, she had gone to such lengths to disguise herself and had never shown her face when contacting the traffickers. There was no way she’d leave any evidence behind now.

Still, Gu Jianing became even more wary of Li Shuyao, and used this opportunity to make Sheng Zexi wary of her as well.

Otherwise, she worried that one day Li Shuyao might stab them in the back without them even realizing it.

But Gu Jianing was also curious.

Why was Li Shuyao so intent on targeting her, wishing for her to be disfigured or even disappear? Was it really just because she had become Sheng Zexi’s wife, out of a woman’s jealousy?

If someone could go so far as to hire people to ruin a girl’s face—or even have her kidnapped—just because of jealousy, then Li Shuyao was truly terrifying. But if it wasn’t just that, then what other reason did Li Shuyao have for treating her this way?

Before she could figure it out, something happened that forced Gu Jianing to set these thoughts aside.

Sheng Zexi was about to go on a mission.

The two months of heavy snow that had sealed off the mountains were finally over, and Sheng Zexi had already resumed his full training schedule. Now, he was being sent on a mission.

As a military wife, Gu Jianing had always known that one day she would have to face Sheng Zexi being deployed.

The fact that he had been able to stay home with her for so long was already a blessing.

But every time she thought about him going on a mission, Gu Jianing couldn’t help but recall the bloody and tragic scenes she’d glimpsed in her visions of the future.

When she chose Sheng Zexi after her rebirth, it was partly to avoid repeating her past mistakes, and partly because Sheng Zexi had loved her in both past and present lives.

She knew that, back then, she hadn’t felt much for Sheng Zexi, and he knew it too.

So after their marriage, he had always tried his best, hoping she would fall in love with him.

It was Sheng Zexi’s open and honest strategy.

In truth, Gu Jianing had to admit that after these months together, she had indeed grown to love him, even to deeply depend on him.

Sometimes, just the thought of losing him would fill her with panic.

She couldn’t live without him anymore.

She was already hopelessly entangled in the web of love he had woven.

That’s why she was so afraid of those future scenes coming true—she wanted him to be safe.

Gu Jianing packed Sheng Zexi’s clothes, making sure to include the five rolls of universal hemostatic bandages, as well as other essential pills—anything she could think of, she packed for him.

Sheng Zexi quietly watched her busy figure. Ever since he told her about the mission, he could clearly sense Ningning’s unease.

He could feel her anxiety, but didn’t know how to describe it. It was as if Ningning already foresaw that something might happen to him on this mission.

Sheng Zexi didn’t go over to help. He knew that maybe only by keeping busy could Ningning calm her nerves and feel less anxious.

When Gu Jianing finished packing, she pulled Sheng Zexi to sit on the kang bed. “There’s something I need to explain to you.”

Sheng Zexi sat quietly as she opened the bundle and introduced each item inside.

Finally, she took out five rolls of something that looked like bandages.

“These bandages have a name: universal hemostatic bandages.”

Universal?

Sheng Zexi looked a little puzzled.

“No matter if you’re shot or stabbed, even if you’re bleeding heavily—as long as you’re not dead on the spot and still have a breath left, using this universal hemostatic bandage will instantly stop the bleeding and keep you alive until you get medical help.”

“I’m giving you five rolls. Take them—you might need them.”

As Gu Jianing introduced the bandages to Sheng Zexi, she felt like she was taking a huge risk.

After she finished, she instinctively closed her eyes, waiting for Sheng Zexi to question her.

But to her surprise, he didn’t ask anything. When she opened her eyes, she saw Sheng Zexi pick up the five rolls and solemnly put them back in her hands. “Keep these. Don’t let anyone see them.”

Gu Jianing stared blankly at the bandages in her hands, stunned. Did Brother Xi mean…

“No, you have to take them,” Gu Jianing insisted, pushing the bandages back to him.

Sheng Zexi got up and made sure the doors and windows were tightly shut.

He returned to the kang bed, looked deeply at Gu Jianing, and took a deep breath. “Ningning, I know there’s something special about you.”

His words made Gu Jianing’s pupils widen, and she visibly became anxious.

Sheng Zexi placed his hands on her shoulders, trying to calm her. “But Ningning, if you don’t want to say, I’ll never ask.”

[Author’s note: Regarding the malice detector, a reader pointed out something very reasonable—thank you to ‘Mo Ye Bai Shan’ for the suggestion. So I’ve made some changes in earlier chapters: it’s now bound to the family in Huaishu Village. After all, with someone as bad as Wen Zhuqing around, if she harbors malice toward the Gu family within 100 meters, the heroine will know and can warn her family in time.]"