Chapter 265: Similarity

The hotel.

Su Yan, who had already gone to sleep, suddenly opened her eyes in the darkness.

The room was so quiet that there wasn't a single sound.

This kind of silence was far too familiar to her.

She did not get up, but instead chose to close her eyes again.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

A knocking sound rang out.

The sound was very light, one after another.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

The person outside seemed extremely patient, as if they were determined to make her open the door.

"Who is it?"

Su Yan still had no intention of getting out of bed, so she chose to ask.

She was destined to receive no answer.

*Knock, knock, knock.*

The sound continued.

Su Yan let out a cold laugh.

After this highly rhythmic sound continued for over ten minutes, she unhurriedly pulled back the covers, got out of bed, and went to open the door.

As she slid back the door latch, the originally smooth door unexpectedly emitted a piercing, rusty screech.

A dim, yellowish candlelight flickered in the hallway outside, but there was no sign of anyone.

"Who is it?"

Su Yan had originally intended to feign panic, but she found that doing so was quite difficult for her.

Since she couldn't fake it, she wouldn't.

Seeing no one, she prepared to close the door again, but at that moment, a shadow emerged behind her.

Before Su Yan could react, a pungent fragrance caused her to fall into unconsciousness instantly.

In the darkness, the figure that emerged was actually Liu Yiyi.

However, at this moment, Liu Yiyi was a completely different person from usual; her entire body exuded a cold, sinister aura, and she seemed to merge entirely with the darkness.

She slowly crouched in front of Su Yan, looking at Su Yan's face with her eyes tightly shut. After patting her twice with a bit of force, she revealed a satisfied smile.

"With you, I won't have to worry about Gu Yang not behaving himself."

As her voice fell, Liu Yiyi raised her hand, and both she and Su Yan vanished without a trace.

The first ray of dawn broke over the horizon.

Looking at that sliver of light, Du Jinsong's expression was extremely grim.

Daylight meant that their plans and deployments had failed.

"Withdraw the teams. Return to the Zhou family."

The ten teams they had arranged all gathered at the Zhou residence.

Every face bore a hint of fatigue, but more so, a sense of disappointment and frustration.

After reviewing the lapses in the night's operation, Du Jinsong let everyone return to rest.

They had long anticipated such a situation; if one night didn't work, they would try two, then three—eventually, they would find a way to draw out that menace.

Ma Chulan walked straight toward Kong Nian.

"Does Senior Sister Kong have time? I would like to treat Senior Sister Kong to breakfast, if you wouldn't mind?"

That she would actually take the initiative to invite Kong Nian was something Ma Chulong had not expected.

Kong Nian glanced at Ma Chulan, intending to coldly refuse, but Kong Xiang, who was behind her, spoke up first.

"Miss, weren't you also just about to go eat breakfast?"

Kong Nian raised an eyebrow. She understood his meaning perfectly well, but she did not like people making decisions for her.

However, everyone was watching. If she still refused, it would be equivalent to slapping her own family's face, so she had no choice but to agree.

Ma Chulan waved at Ma Chulong, her face full of playfulness.

"Brother, let's go eat breakfast together."

Ma Chulong strode up to them, looking at Ma Chulan with a doting gaze.

"Alright."

"You all go ahead. I want to go back and rest first," Gan Hua proactively withdrew.

Kong Yueling also looked toward Kong Yueqing, clearly intending to follow her lead.

Originally, she thought Kong Yueqing would also withdraw, but to her surprise, Kong Yueqing had not said a word from beginning to end.

Half an hour later, Ma Chulong, Ma Chulan, Kong Nian, Kong Yueqing, and Kong Yueling were seated at the dining table.

Ma Chulan enthusiastically ordered a table full of breakfast items and greeted them warmly, "I didn't know what my senior sisters preferred to eat, so please, don't be polite."

Kong Nian casually picked up a bun, and Kong Yueqing followed suit, picking up a bun as well.

Although the Ma and Kong families were both among the four great families, the two families rarely had dealings with one another.

The reason Kong Nian had ultimately agreed was because of Ma Chulong's status.

"Senior Sister Kong, I have often heard of your great name in the past. I didn't expect to meet you in the capital this time; it is truly my honor." Ma Chulan seemed very admiring.

Kong Nian smiled slightly. "I have also heard the elders mention the two of you."

"I didn't realize my brother and I were so famous, though of course, we cannot compare to Senior Sister. Senior Sister is exceptionally gifted, a darling of the heavens, whereas my brother and I can only achieve a tiny bit of success through constant, bitter training." At first glance, Ma Chulan's words seemed fine, but upon closer inspection, they were implying that Kong Nian's current strength was merely because the heavens had handed her a living.

Kong Nian naturally heard the implication, but she showed no sign of dissatisfaction. Instead, she casually echoed, "Indeed, sometimes being favored by the heavens is a skill in itself."

Ma Chulan curled her lip inwardly. They were all the same kind of people; who was really any more noble than the other?

"Senior Sister makes a valid point. In the past, we had only heard of your skills. I wonder if there will be an opportunity this time to witness your prowess with my own eyes?"

Kong Nian was the pride of their younger generation, but she and her elder brother were not far behind.

Furthermore, she felt that no matter how amazing Kong Nian was, she might not necessarily be able to compare to that other person.

"That certainly won't be a problem," Kong Nian replied with full confidence.

Ma Chulong, who had remained silent throughout, had been observing Kong Nian. It wasn't until her conversation with Ma Chulan ended that he spoke: "As far as I know, is Senior Sister Kong's ability located within her eyes?"

The expression on Kong Nian's face froze for an instant, and a trace of coldness surfaced in her eyes.

"Brother Ma is quite concerned about my affairs. That is correct."

"I presume Senior Sister Kong is also very familiar with my and my younger sister's situation." Ma Chulong answered candidly. The reason he asked such a direct question was entirely because he had thought of Su Yan.

Kong Nian's situation was remarkably similar to Su Yan's.

However, he had not actually seen Su Yan use the energy of her dual pupils, so he could not judge the difference or the gap between the two of them.

Kong Nian remained noncommittal.

Kong Yueqing listened absentmindedly, trying to find any weakness regarding Kong Nian.

Although Kong Nian and Ma Chulong were constantly testing each other, every word they spoke was measured and subtle.

The breakfast ended under the tug-of-war between both sides.

Ma Chulan watched Kong Nian and the others leave, then drew a conclusion.

"Brother, have you noticed that this Kong Nian is very similar to Su Yan in certain aspects?"

Ma Chulong's brow immediately furrowed. He had originally thought it was just his own illusion, but he hadn't expected even his little sister to notice.

"Brother, do you think it's possible that Su Yan's mother really is a member of the Kong family?"

Ma Chulan was increasingly feeling that this was a possibility.

Ma Chulong did not answer directly, merely letting out a heavy breath.

As the saying goes, two tigers cannot inhabit the same mountain.

Through the brief contact with Kong Nian just now, he could clearly sense Kong Nian's disdain for Kong Yueqing and Kong Yueling.

If Su Yan truly was a member of the Kong family, then given the Kong family's way of doing things, they would inevitably force Su Yan to acknowledge her lineage. Most likely, the first person who would not tolerate Su Yan would be Kong Nian.

(End of Chapter)