Villain Boss Chapter 182
Translated by Digitalian (ko-fi)
Chapter 182: Identifying The Culprit
Feeling the murderous intent, the vines behind Shen Youyou swayed their leaves vigorously, instinctively alert to the approaching danger.
Shen Youyou stood at the door, without answering Si Xu's question, her eyes fixed on Shen Lang.
Zheng Li had already moved the man who was pressing on Shen Lang and placed him on a chair.
With the help of his subordinates, Shen Lang struggled to stand up straight, clutching his lower back.
"A117." Before Shen Lang could speak, Shen Yang spoke first. His tone was flat, and one couldn’t tell whether he was happy or angry. "Why are you with Ranran?"
"I ordered her to." After glaring at his eldest grandson sternly and warning him not to meddle, Shen Lang cleared his throat. "Before Xiaobai went on a mission, he left A117 in Ranran’s custody. A117 has been following Ranran recently. It was after I saw the footage that I ordered A117 to bring Ranran here."
Shen Lang glared at Si Xu coldly and asked Shen Youyou, "A117, the fact that you brought Ranran here means you’ve been with her, right?"
Shen Youyou nodded.
"Let me ask you. Was it Ranran who opened the base's north gate?"
Without hesitation, Shen Youyou nodded again.
Satisfied, Shen Lang looked at Si Xu. "Professor Si, what else do you have to say?"
With A117's testimony, Jiang Ran's suspicion seemed to have increased.
Everyone waited for Si Xu's response.
The young leader of the laboratory simply looked down at the girl in his arms. His eyes were gentle as he whispered her name.
He didn't even... listen to what Shen Lang said.
But his refusal to listen didn't mean Jiang Ranran’s suspicion could be cleared.
If she was truly the one who opened the north gate and let the zombie horde in, she might be chased out of Xiling base.
"Jiang Ran, Jiang Ran, wake up..."
As if in response, Jiang Ran smacked her lips and nuzzled into his arms.
She was sound asleep.
Si Xu was relieved.
He looked up at Shen Lang. "What did you just say?"
Si Xu asked as if it was a matter of course. Shen Lang was rendered speechless after his impassioned words, and wondered if he should repeat himself.
Without waiting for his answer, Si Xu retracted the gentle glint in his eyes, replacing it with impatience. "You guys."
His eyes swept over everyone present, and he enunciated, "From now on, you aren’t allowed to leave the conference room. Otherwise..."
He curled his lips in a smile.
"Crack!"
After a loud crack, the mahogany conference table in the center of the conference room snapped into three pieces.
Si Xu asked sinisterly, "Do you understand?"
The group of people nodded. "Yes, understood."
Si Xu carried Jiang Ran out.
Just as everyone heaved a sigh of relief, they heard Si Xu’s cold voice from outside.
"Gu Yunqing, have the first team cordon off the conference room. If anyone dares to force his way out, kill them."
"Got it."
Everyone's hearts sank again.
Shen Lang ignored Si Xu's orders and beckoned to Shen Youyou. "A117, come here."
As long as A117 was here, the superhumans in the first team were nothing to fear.
Once A117 had dealt with them and the people in the conference room had left, word would spread throughout the base that Jiang Ranran had opened the north gate and let the zombies in.
At that point, Si Xu would have only two choices: abandon Jiang Ranran and watch her die, or follow Jiang Ranran, endure the public outrage, and return to his old life.
Or...
He wished Si Xu could risk his life for his beloved and kill all those who spread the rumors.
In this way, he would have an excuse to unite all the forces in the base to get rid of Si Xu, who was the plague of the base.
Upon hearing the order, Shen Youyou walked toward the old man.
However, the little girl had barely taken two steps before she was pulled back by an irresistible force.
Trapping the little girl and the vines behind her in a small space, Si Xu left the military command building without looking back.
Shen Lang, "..."
……
From dusk to late at night, the superhumans guarding outside the conference room took turns to change shifts, leaving no intervals.
Fang De would still moan a couple of times at first, but then, the sound gradually died down.
Perhaps his miserable death acted as a deterrent, and those who originally wanted to take the opportunity to flatter Shen Lang tried to keep their distance from the Shen family.
Shen Lang stood by the window, watching the situation outside.
He looked calm.
"Grandpa," Shen Yang whispered, stepping behind the old man, avoiding the gazes of those in the corner. "You've completely fallen out with Si Xu. It seems that you've already got a full plan."
"Hah." Shen Lang sneered after hearing his eldest grandson's question. "Yang, who do you think I did this for today?"
Shen Yang smiled faintly. "Don't tell me you did it for me."
The young man's casual sarcasm rekindled the old man's fury.
Shen Lang stared at his junior, his eyes filled with disappointment. "Luo Rui has already told me everything that happened—Shen Yang, don't you have anything to explain to me?"
Shen Yang smiled indifferently. "If you believe Luo Rui, then anything I say is nonsense."
He turned and pulled up a chair, sitting down. He rested his legs on the table, which was twisted beyond recognition, and closed his eyes.
He didn't argue fiercely, nor did he plead for Jiang Ranran. Shen Lang was suddenly unsure whether Luo Rui's words were true or not.
Luo Rui said that Shen Yang's love for Jiang Ranran wasn't a brother's love for his sister, but rather a man's love for a woman.
He found it absurd—a man like Yang was emotionless like A117. How could he possibly love someone?
He wouldn't hesitate to manipulate and betray even Pei Wan'er, who trusted him immensely, let alone Jiang Ranran, whom he rarely saw.
However, reflecting on Shen Yang's actions since Jiang Ranran's return, the old man was completely unable to refute Luo Rui's words.
He had always believed that Shen Yang's kindness to Jiang Ranran was based on exploitation and deception.
But what if he was sincere?
No, even if there was only a one in ten thousand chance, he would nip that possibility in the bud.
He agreed to Luo Rui's plan, using A117, who was with Jiang Ranran, to carry out the frame-up.
Shen Bai had entrusted A117 to Jiang Ranran before he left, purely to find someone he could trust to care for her.
He forgot that A117 was a puppet created by the Shen family and would never disobey the orders of the Shen family’s patriarch.
Obviously, Jiang Ranran wasn’t on her guard against A117 either, which facilitated the implementation of their plan.
Now, everything was under his control—it was beyond doubt that Jiang Ranran opened the north gate and let the zombie horde in, and so many people in the conference room saw and heard it.
The only thing Si Xu could do to protect Jiang Ranran was to silence everyone here.
And once he had this idea, Team Z, which had been waiting nearby, would immediately take action to encircle Si Xu.
If Si Xu died, Jiang Ranran would naturally not be able to live either.
No matter what feelings Shen Yang had for Jiang Ranran, they would fade with Jiang Ranran's death.
What he wanted was Shen Yang, who would uphold the position of the head of the Shen family in the future. The head of the Shen family shouldn’t indulge in personal affairs.
That was his plan.
However, judging from Shen Yang's current behavior... could it be that he didn't really like Jiang Ranran, and it was all just a show?
"Yang." After hesitating for a moment, the old man finally gave in. "No matter what, our ultimate goal is to deal with Si Xu. In that case..."
"In that case?" The old man had no idea what a dangerous situation he had been pushed into. Shen Yang opened his eyes and looked at the person who raised him. "Grandpa, have you forgotten what happened to the Yu family?"
