Reborn Heiress: Seeking Revenge-Chapter 586 Crisis 3(1)_1

"Sister Lan, don’t you welcome me?" Shangguan You asked with a faint smile. She was already standing before Li Lan, observing her joyful, excited, yet conflicted expression as she spoke softly.

"No, no, Miss! How could I not welcome you? I’m very happy, truly happy." As Li Lan spoke, the tears she had been holding back finally welled up and streamed down her face.

"Thank you all for everything you’ve done this past month." Shangguan You gently hugged Li Lan. After waiting for Li Lan’s emotions to settle, she slowly released her and then looked at the five of them with a smile.

She was genuinely happy to see all of them here. These were the first to follow her, the ones she had employed certain methods to make them stay, yet now, she saw deep affection in them.

"Miss, it’s what we should do."

"Miss, for an entire month and three days, without your calls, without your voice, we’ve been through hell. Now that we finally see you again, I see hope, I see sunlight again!" Li Qing exclaimed, his face alight with excitement. Seeing Shangguan You, they all felt that no difficulty was insurmountable. This was their trust in her, their affirmation of her.

"I’m sorry to have worried you all. Something like this won’t happen again," Shangguan You said to the five people before her with a faint smile. Besides family and friends, she also had companions like Zhong Mingyang and the others—people who were closer than ordinary friends yet not quite family, comrades who would always be by her side, appearing when she needed them most.

Shangguan You’s promise came from the heart, but some things couldn’t be guaranteed by her assurance alone. Some matters were preordained by fate, and destiny was difficult to change.

"Miss, you should have more people around you from now on. How about I transfer some of my men to protect you?" Long Hua asked, seeking Shangguan You’s opinion. Her fainting without any warning had scared them to death.

"Yes! I have quite a few good men too; they’d make excellent bodyguards," Chu Yi quickly chimed in.

"Young Master Long, Young Master Chu, are you kidding?" Zhong Mingyang looked at Long Hua and Chu Yi as if they were idiots. "With the Miss’s abilities, who could even get near her? Why would she need protection? Besides, anyone following her would probably need *her* to spend effort protecting *them*. It would be a completely thankless task." Have their brains gone soft?

A year ago, the Miss could have knocked them all down. Now, a year later, she was even more unfathomable. Having been by her side, he naturally knew just how formidable she was. If even the Miss couldn’t handle something, then anyone else sent would just be courting death.

"Heh, those men should stay by your sides and look after you. I don’t need anyone with me. Besides, the Hidden Guard at home is quite strong." Shangguan You shook her head. She didn’t need anyone else’s protection.

If even she couldn’t handle it, then the attacker must be one of the world’s top experts. Against such a person, even a hundred more like Zhong Mingyang would be useless. Why send them to needlessly die?

"But, Miss..." Li Lan began, still unwilling to give up. Even if they weren’t always around, having a few people for protection would be good. At least it would give them some peace of mind.

"Sister, with the Miss’s skills, if even she can’t handle something, those bodyguards would be even more useless," Li Qing said quietly after a moment’s thought. He, too, now understood that the Miss truly didn’t need their protection.

"Alright, tell me. What’s happened to make every single one of you look so worried and dejected?" Shangguan You asked with a faint smile, lounging lazily on the sofa as she looked at the five people before her.

She had overheard their earlier conversation. She wouldn’t believe for a second that nothing was wrong—not even if they swore it on their lives.

Long Hua, Chu Yi, and Li Qing exchanged glances. Chu Yi was the first to speak, his expression grave. "Miss, the underworld has been restless lately. Bloody incidents are happening everywhere—not just in our territory, but in others’ as well. It’s very chaotic."

"That’s right," Long Hua added. "Beijing might seem peaceful on the surface, but there’s considerable unrest brewing underneath. If it weren’t for the military keeping things in check, the entire underworld would be in complete disarray."

Li Qing continued, "These bloodthirsty individuals often resort to violence at the slightest disagreement. They don’t fear bloodshed or pain; they’re utterly reckless. They aren’t even afraid when guns are pointed at them."

"What’s strange is their behavior," Chu Yi elaborated. "They cause a major disturbance at night, but during the day, they’re unnervingly calm—even more composed than ordinary people. They seem perfectly lucid. Yet, come nightfall, they won’t stop until they see blood."

"The entire underworld sees bloodshed every night. Even among our own men, some have become quick-tempered and prone to outbursts," Li Lan added, her voice filled with concern.

Hearing their accounts, Shangguan You’s brow furrowed. The condition of these people... it’s so similar to what she had seen with Luo Xiao. Could these bloodthirsty individuals be another batch of failed experiments?

"Miss, you have no idea," Long Hua said, his voice tinged with frustration. "It used to be that if we just stood there, everyone would behave themselves; they wouldn’t even dare to breathe too loudly. But now, they look at us without a shred of fear. They’re not even afraid of the cops—oh, I mean, the police."

"As long as blood is drawn, things calm down. But if there’s no bloodshed, these people just get even more frantic," Chu Yi added.

"How long has this been going on?" Shangguan You asked slowly, her brow furrowing deeper. She connected the reports of impersonations within the Security Bureau’s upper echelons with this chaos in the underworld. It felt like a massive conspiracy was unfurling, enveloping not just Beijing but potentially the entire nation—a scheme so insidious and unexpected it made the crease on her forehead deepen. The thought that the people closest to you could suddenly become someone else, that your dearest kin could turn into an enemy aiming a gun at you at any moment... it was a deeply unsettling, a truly awful feeling.

"In B City, it’s been about a month," Li Qing replied.

"It’s about the same timing in other places too," Long Hua added. "Initially, it was just a few minor scuffles, so we didn’t pay too much attention. After all, things like that happen from time to time. But by the time we noticed and recognized the crisis, the situation had already escalated significantly."