Who Is That Person

"It's taken care of." Inside the room, Lola's voice rang out.

Mrs. Penny led her team in, landing lightly and quietly as they entered the room. She saw that Lola had already subdued the spy, tying him up securely.

Lola was once a shadow guard, her skills formidable—an ordinary spy was no match for her.

Seeing the situation, the spy instantly realized he'd walked right into a trap.

But he still hadn't figured out that "Greta" was an imposter. He thought Greta had betrayed them, glaring and shouting, "Greta, you traitor! Pah! What did they offer you to make you sell out your own master? I'm not like you—I won't say a word!"

Lola gave the male spy a calm glance. "No one's waiting for you to talk. Take him away."

The male spy was bound tightly, gagged, and secretly loaded onto a carriage, heading to the location Greta had revealed in her confession—the place where he lived.

Disguised as Greta, Lola brought the spy to his room. There, she lay in wait, hoping to catch the spy's handler when they came to meet him.

This time, they managed to capture two handlers.

Not every spy was tight-lipped, so as they caught them, they questioned each one—not about anything else, just how they made contact with their handlers and accomplices. Using this method, by following the trail all night, they ended up catching over a dozen spies.

Before dawn, the dozen or so spies were all tied up together and brought into the Palace of Qin, thrown into a secret dungeon.

Catching the spies meant half the mission was done; Lola and Mrs. Penny went together to report back to Lily Evans.

It was still early, and Lily Evans and Prince Alexander Hayes probably hadn't gotten up yet. After walking for a while, Mrs. Penny suddenly grabbed Lola's hand and said, "The King and Queen aren't up yet, so there's no rush to report. Why don't we wait until they're awake?"

Lola thought for a moment and said, "That's fine. We've caught everyone, so there's no hurry."

"Then, shall we go sit over there?" Mrs. Penny suggested, nervously glancing at Lola, afraid she might refuse.

But Lola nodded cheerfully. "Sure, let's go sit."

The two sat down in a lakeside pavilion. It was a good spot—open on all sides, impossible for anyone to hide nearby, perfect for a private conversation.

Mrs. Penny chose this place, and Lola knew she had something important to say.

"Lola, you said you're getting married—that's so sudden... Who is he?" Mrs. Penny asked carefully.

"You should have met him before, Mrs. Penny, though I'm not sure how well you know him," Lola replied easily. "He's Zhao Nian, the new patriarch of the Zhao clan."

"Zhao Nian!?" Mrs. Penny was shocked. She knew of Zhao Nian but had never dealt with him directly.

But Mrs. Penny had heard about Zhao Nian's tragic background. He lost his father young, his family's assets were seized by relatives, and his mother, trying to protect him, was abused for years before dying in grief.

When Zhao Nian finally began to turn his life around, he married and his wife soon became pregnant. Just as things were looking up, disaster struck again. The villains in his clan targeted his wife while he was away. She was strong-willed and couldn't bear the humiliation, so she took her own life—dying with their unborn child.

Since then, Zhao Nian had hated the Zhao family. After Prince Alexander Hayes arrived in Qin, Zhao Nian pledged his loyalty to the Palace and swore revenge.

Mrs. Penny couldn't help but wonder—could someone so consumed by hatred truly bring Lola happiness?