After Setting Me Up With My Ex, The Aloof Alpha Regrets It - Chapter 36

Chapter 36: But She Never Wanted Wen Yue to Die.

Zhu Yunqi finally caught up at the moment Wen Yue’s mech touched the ground.

Even someone as composed as her couldn’t help but curse under her breath.

Wen Yue’s mech operating skills were terrible, but her dive-bombing skills were top-notch.

It was practically a death wish.

Zhu Yunqi’s mech arm felt like it was rusting as she grabbed onto the mech’s cockpit door just before it hit the ground.

Zhu Yunqi wasn’t sure if a mechanical arm had the strength to stop a rapidly falling mech. She guessed it didn’t, so she instead grabbed the cockpit door, and using inertia, tore the door off. She then yanked Wen Yue, along with her pilot’s seat, out of the cockpit as if she were pulling up a green onion.

And as she completed all of this, her mech was still about to hit the ground. But in the nick of time, Zhu Yunqi pushed the ascent lever to its maximum, pulling the mech up a few meters just before impact.

The mech was shoddily made for an exhibition. After the rapid dive and reverse thrust, it was instantly totaled.

Zhu Yunqi quickly opened the cockpit door and leapt from mid-air, rolling on the ground to absorb the impact. She landed steadily.

After all that, her hair was only slightly askew, with a few stray strands by her ears.

Against the backdrop of the explosion, she looked like a goddess of war born from hell.

Wen Yue, by contrast, was in a much more pitiful state. She was yanked out of the cockpit with her seat, and the arm that grabbed her swung her in an arc through the air. Since she hadn’t fastened her seatbelt, she fell directly from mid-air.

It wasn’t a fatal fall, but her arms and legs were bent at odd angles. She lay looking at the sky, unconscious.

It was a major accident!

The teachers involved quickly evacuated the panicked crowd of onlookers and told those who were live-streaming to stop immediately.

The event was originally meant to attract new students. Compared to other universities, military schools actually had lower tuition, along with federal subsidies. However, because military school graduates had a hard time finding work, the best option for ordinary students was to join the military. The Federation’s major military corps were either in the Black Star Belt or the Lower Star Domain—places so hostile even a dog wouldn’t want to go there.

How many parents who could afford tuition would want their children to suffer in such places?

Yet the Federation refused compulsory conscription.

Other universities had long passed the need for promotional recruitment. Only military schools were still struggling to enroll students.

And now this. The recruitment brochure had become a de-recruitment brochure.

Hai Yao was dumbfounded.

She had been hovering high in the air and watched the entire thing. She was too shocked to speak on the communication channel. She then piloted the only surviving mech and landed next to Zhu Yunqi, hopping out to look at the unconscious Wen Yue on the ground. “Was there something wrong with her?”

Zhu Yunqi’s mind was also in chaos. She couldn’t understand why Wen Yue would attempt something so close to suicide.

Her impression of Wen Yue had always been that of a slightly selfish but obedient child who listened to her parents. What kind of heavy dose of reality had been dealt to her to make her attempt to kill herself in public?

If it hadn’t been for Shi Li’s quick reaction, she might have had to first assess Wen Yue’s intentions before attempting a rescue. But given the gravity of the situation, if she had been half a second later, Wen Yue would most likely have been in pieces.

Zhu Yunqi’s thoughts raced, and in hindsight, she broke out into a cold sweat.

The only daughter of a federal major general mysteriously dies. If a headline like that were to trend on the star-net, it would be an absolute explosion.

Zhu Yunqi went to help Wen Yue up and check her injuries. In the chaotic crowd, she saw a frantic Shi Li running toward them.

Shi Li’s hair was undone, and she was out of breath, clearly terrified.

She was about to tell Shi Li that Wen Yue wasn’t dead when she saw Major General Wen Lirong with a somber expression, walking purposefully toward them from the same direction, accompanied by what looked like a secretary.

Zhu Yunqi instantly realized: she couldn’t let Wen Lirong know about Shi Li’s presence. If Shi Li were to rush over and cry for Wen Yue, it would surely raise Wen Lirong’s suspicions.

She changed her mind at the last second, forming words with her mouth to tell Shi Li: “Don’t come over.”

…

Shi Li’s momentum carried her forward for two more steps.

She was close enough to clearly see Zhu Yunqi’s silent words and solemn expression.

Usually, you only tell a deceased person’s loved ones “don’t come over” if the death was gruesome, out of fear that they’ll break down at the sight of the body.

Could it be that Wen Yue is really dead?

The last thing Wen Yue had said to her before going on stage was: “You like it? I can operate it and show you.”

Could that have been her last words…?

Wen Yue got on stage to show her something. Shi Li knew that Wen Yue hadn’t touched a mech in a very, very long time.

But Shi Li hadn’t stopped her. She hadn’t even called for a halt when Wen Yue made her first mistake, nor had she realized that Wen Yue’s emotional state was already unstable at that time.

She wanted Wen Yue and Zhu Yunqi’s engagement to be called off. She had exhausted all her love for Wen Yue.

But she never wanted Wen Yue to die.

Shi Li processed what Zhu Yunqi had said.

Don’t come over.

Shi Li slowly stopped. She looked at the stage, feeling frightened and helpless. It had already been surrounded, and the crowd was being dispersed. Zhu Yunqi seemed to say something to Lan Yang, and then Shi Li saw Lan Yang walking toward her.

Lan Yang grabbed Shi Li’s arm and led her in the opposite direction.

As they turned, they brushed past two tall men in suits.

It was only after the dust had settled that Shi Li remembered that the two men she had passed were Wen Yue’s father, Wen Lirong, and his personal secretary.

Lan Yang pulled Shi Li to the edge of the field. She herself was confused, but she repeated Zhu Yunqi’s exact words to Shi Li: “Wen Yue isn’t dead, she just broke a few bones and passed out. Don’t worry, just go home first. Once you get home, text Team Leader Zhu that you’ve arrived. Don’t overthink it. As long as Team Leader Zhu is there, nothing bad will happen.”

Then, Lan Yang rubbed her arm. “Ugh, Team Leader Zhu’s words are so sappy.”

She gave Shi Li an encouraging pat on the shoulder. “Listen to Team Leader Zhu and go home now.”

Shi Li’s mind was a complete mess. She couldn’t think straight, and since Zhu Yunqi’s words always held weight with her, she obeyed and started walking toward the station.

Just as she left the field, a rescue helicopter from the War Department’s affiliated hospital hovered and landed at the scene.

Shi Li looked back and saw Wen Yue being lifted from the ground by a humanoid medical robot. The robot cradled her in its arms, then transformed into a four-wheeled stretcher, carrying Wen Yue into the helicopter.

Zhu Yunqi and Wen Lirong boarded the helicopter one after the other.

When she reached the station, the cold sweat on her body had dried in the wind, and Shi Li shivered all over.

Her thoughts were gradually returning.

She remembered Wen Yue had taken a call from Wen Lirong midway through the event. Although Wen Yue denied speaking with him, Shi Li had already guessed it was him from her body language. Wen Yue didn’t want to talk about it, so Shi Li pretended that Wen Yue had been talking to someone else.

What kind of emotional blow did Wen Yue suffer that would make her want to kill herself by piloting a mech in public?

…

Zhu Yunqi followed Wen Yue to the hospital. The final diagnosis was only a few fractures. The technology for treating fractures was very advanced. Modern medicine had developed artificial bone cells that could divide rapidly and accelerate healing. In less than a week, Wen Yue’s bones would be as good as new.

Outside the examination room.

Wen Lirong’s expression was grim. The first thing he had to do wasn’t to worry about his daughter’s health, but to deal with the public outcry and stop the issue from escalating as quickly as possible.

Someone had already uploaded videos and photos of the accident to the star-net. Zhu Yunqi’s face inevitably appeared, but the A+ level information protection Colonel Cheng Yin had applied for on her behalf was active. Any photos and videos uploaded to the network automatically blurred her face. Fortunately, the teachers on site were quick to react, and even in the video, Zhu Yunqi’s leap from the mech lasted only two seconds, with most of her being obscured by the wrecked mech that had already crashed.

After giving instructions to his secretary, Wen Lirong walked over to Zhu Yunqi and extended his hand.

Zhu Yunqi had no choice but to shake it.

Wen Lirong had already been briefed on the entire incident, so he didn’t ask Zhu Yunqi how Wen Yue had crashed. He was well aware that without Zhu Yunqi’s brilliant grab, no matter how advanced the Federation’s medical technology was, it couldn’t turn a corpse back into a living person.

“Yunqi, thank you. I didn’t expect you and Wen Yue to attend the event together. Please, also tell your mother a message from me: no matter what happens, I will not postpone the engagement again.”

At his words, Zhu Yunqi was stunned for a few seconds.

She pointed at the examination room. “Major General Wen, Wen Yue is still lying in there. There’s no need to bring up the engagement right now.”

Wen Lirong stared straight ahead, without the slightest hint of wavering. “Last time, Wen Yue was acting immaturely. I told you, it won’t happen again.”

Zhu Yunqi paused. She was beginning to understand.

The timing of Wen Yue’s suicide attempt was very precise, happening just as Wen Lirong was arriving. It was as if she had done it deliberately for him to see.

She said, “Major General Wen, with all due respect, Wen Yue might be having some psychological issues. She is not suitable for an engagement in her current state.”

Wen Lirong acted as if he hadn’t heard her, stubbornly repeating, “Wen Yue has no problems. The engagement ceremony will proceed as planned.”

Why doesn’t he listen to a single word I say?

Zhu Yunqi felt a sense of powerlessness.

She stood up, no longer planning to save face for Wen Lirong. What if he is a major general? His authority doesn’t extend to the Silver Snake Corps. He can’t do anything to her.

“I have something to do. Major General Wen, please deliver those words to my mother yourself.”

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