Transmigration; Married to My Ex-Fiancé's Uncle-Chapter 242; Kidnapping 15

His face pressed into her hair and he inhaled deeply, breathing in the jasmine scent that clung to her skin, sweet and alluring in a way that was uniquely hers, that combination of floral warmth and something indefinably oceanic that shouldn’t have worked together but somehow did. The gesture was intimate and claiming simultaneously, marking her as his in ways that went beyond words or contracts or legal arrangements, his body communicating possession and relief and acceptance all at once through the simple act of holding her close.

They stood like that for a long moment, wrapped in each other while the corpse cooled on the floor and Yuyan’s monitors beeped their steady rhythm in the background, creating a bubble of intimacy in the middle of violence and chaos. Neither of them spoke; the silence carried more weight than any additional words could manage, their bodies saying everything that needed to be said about what had just transpired and what it meant for their relationship going forward.

Finally, reluctantly, Lu Yuze loosened his grip enough to pull back and look at her face, his eyes searching hers with lingering possessiveness that suggested the jealousy hadn’t entirely dissipated even with her reassurances. "We should check on Yuyan before Ah Ling arrives. And you need to wash the blood off your hands."

Shuyin glanced down at her palms, still stained with dark smears from where she’d gripped Dr. Zhang’s throat, evidence of violence that would raise uncomfortable questions if anyone noticed. She moved to the small sink in the corner of the examination room and scrubbed her hands thoroughly with soap and scalding water, watching the blood swirl down the drain in pale pink spirals until her skin was clean again, all physical evidence of murder washed away like it had never happened.

Lu Yuze had moved to Yuyan’s side during those brief moments, checking the monitors with careful attention even though he clearly had no medical training beyond whatever basic knowledge wealthy parents picked up through necessity, his hand finding his daughter’s wrist to confirm her pulse was steady and strong.

The cleanup team arrived with exactly the kind of professional discretion that made Ah Ling worth every yuan of her substantial salary.

She swept into the examination room seven minutes ahead of Lu Yuze’s twenty-minute deadline, followed by three men in hospital maintenance uniforms who looked entirely too competent and dangerous to actually work in maintenance, their movements carrying the kind of smooth coordination that suggested this wasn’t their first discreet body removal and certainly wouldn’t be their last.

"Sir," Ah Ling acknowledged Lu Yuze with a minimal nod before her sharp eyes took in the scene with systematic thoroughness that missed absolutely nothing. The corpse on the floor was still positioned where it had fallen, with its neck bent at an unnatural angle. Shuyin was standing beside the examination table with her hands clasped and her expression carefully neutral, looking exactly like a concerned stepmother rather than someone who’d just committed supernatural murder. Yuyan was still unconscious on the exam table, her vitals steady and undisturbed, completely oblivious to the violence that had occurred in her presence.

If Ah Ling had any reaction to the situation beyond professional assessment, her face revealed absolutely nothing, maintaining the same composed neutrality she probably used when coordinating quarterly reports.

"Natural causes," Lu Yuze said, his tone making it clear this was instruction rather than suggestion, command rather than request. "Heart attack, stroke, whatever the medical examiner will find most plausible for a man of Dr. Zhang’s age and medical history. Nothing suspicious, nothing that invites investigation or uncomfortable questions that could create problems for the family."

"Understood completely," Ah Ling confirmed, already pulling out her phone to coordinate whatever documentation needed to be manufactured or altered to support the narrative they were constructing. "The replacement physician is Dr. Lin from the private clinic on the east side. She has no connection to your family history, no knowledge of the Chen situation, and asks exactly zero questions when handling wealthy clients who value discretion over curiosity. She’ll be here in fifteen minutes to complete the toxicology screening and discharge paperwork."

One of the maintenance team members was already photographing the scene from multiple angles with clinical detachment, documenting positioning and details with the kind of attention that suggested these images would be used to recreate something that looked appropriately natural when the body was eventually discovered in whatever location they planned to stage it.

Another was preparing a medical transport gurney, the kind used for moving patients between floors, complete with a sheet covering and official hospital tags that would make the transport look entirely routine to any security cameras or witnesses who might notice the movement through corridors.

The third was doing something with the examination room’s security camera, his movements quick and precise as he accessed the feed and presumably edited or deleted footage that would show anything problematic, replacing it with manufactured images that showed nothing unusual happening during the relevant time period.

Shuyin watched the choreographed efficiency with detached fascination, recognizing professional criminals when she saw them even if they were currently dressed in hospital maintenance uniforms and working for her husband’s assistant rather than operating independently. This was clearly not the first time Ah Ling had coordinated this exact type of cleanup operation, and probably wouldn’t be the last time she’d need to make inconvenient bodies disappear without leaving traces that could be followed back to the Lu family.

How many bodies had Lu Yuze made disappear over the years through this same efficient system? How many problems had been solved with this same ruthless pragmatism disguised as administrative competence?

The thought should probably have been disturbing, should have raised questions about what kind of man she’d married and what kind of family she’d entangled herself with through their contract. Instead, it was oddly reassuring, confirming that her husband understood the practical necessities of operating in morally gray spaces where conventional solutions weren’t viable, and violence sometimes became the most efficient path to resolution.