Transmigration; Married to My Ex-Fiancé's Uncle-Chapter 178; Making the first step (h)

"Come on, Xiao," Yuyan said gently to the five-year-old, taking his small hand in hers. "Let’s look at the view while we wait. You can see almost the whole city from here. See those tall buildings? That’s the financial district where all the important business happens."

Chen Xiao followed her without protest, his small face serious and watchful.

He seemed overwhelmed by everything, the scale of the building, the obvious wealth, the rapid changes in his circumstances, the violence he’d just witnessed, but he trusted his twelve-year-old companion completely.

Shuyin watched them settle into the comfortable chairs, making sure they were positioned where she could see them from her desk.

"Tank," she said quietly, her voice carrying the easy familiarity of someone who’d survived hell with these women, "keep an eye on them while I’m working. If they need anything before the supplies arrive, handle it."

"Of course, princess," Tank said with a grin that was partly affectionate and partly amused.

Her large frame somehow seemed less imposing as her expression softened toward the children, she may be hard, cold, but not heartless.

Blade wandered closer to the seating area as well, her movements casual as she examined the artwork on the walls, but clearly positioning herself where she could chat with the kids if they seemed bored or anxious.

Razor remained by the secondary door, leaning against the wall with the kind of relaxed vigilance that came from years of watching her own back in a place where a moment’s inattention could cost you everything.

The three of them, Tank, Blade, and Razor, were Shuyin’s people in a way that went beyond employment.

They’d survived together, planned together, dreamed of freedom together in the darkness of their cells.

She’d promised them jobs, real positions with real futures, when they got out.

And she’d kept that promise.

They weren’t just bodyguards, at least not officially, but they were loyal in a way that money couldn’t buy, bound by shared trauma and the knowledge that Shuyin had fought for their freedom as hard as she’d fought for her own.

The sight of them now, women who’d been branded criminals, written off by society, now standing in a corporate office helping care for children, created an odd sense of satisfaction in Shuyin’s chest.

This was what freedom looked like.

Not just for her, but for all of them.

Within twelve minutes, there was a soft knock at the door.

Tank opened it to reveal a nervous-looking assistant wheeling in a cart laden with supplies, fresh fruit cut into child-friendly pieces, crackers, cheese cubes, juice boxes, two brand-new tablets still in their boxes, and a small stack of books ranging from picture books to early Chapter books.

There was even a container of art supplies, crayons, colored pencils, markers, and pristine paper.

"The bookstore delivery will arrive in about twenty minutes with additional selections," the assistant said, her eyes carefully avoiding looking directly at Shuyin or the three women who’d emerged from prison with her, clearly having heard about what happened earlier. "These were what we had immediately available in the executive resource center."

"Perfect," Shuyin said. "Leave everything on the table by the windows. And send my thanks to whoever pulled this together so quickly."

The assistant nodded, quickly arranged everything on the low table near the children, and practically fled.

Yuyan immediately began opening the tablet boxes with careful precision, reading the instructions with the kind of focus that suggested she was determined to do this right.

Chen Xiao’s eyes had gone wide at the sight of the snacks and books, his small hand reaching tentatively for a juice box.

"Go ahead, little man," Blade said warmly, crouching down near his chair with an easy smile. "All of this is for you two. Princess made sure you’d have everything you need."

She selected a picture book from the stack, something with colorful illustrations of dragons and castles, and held it up. "Want me to read to you while we wait for the tablets to charge? Or would you rather have your sister do it?"

"Yuyan," Chen Xiao said shyly, and Blade nodded approvingly.

"Good choice. Big sisters are the best storytellers."

Yuyan opened the juice box for Chen Xiao with practiced ease, then settled the picture book on his lap.

"Want me to read to you?" she asked softly.

Chen Xiao nodded, settling back against the chair with his juice box, and Yuyan began to read in a soft voice that carried surprising warmth for a twelve-year-old.

Blade remained nearby, occasionally making comments about the illustrations that made Chen Xiao smile, while Tank sorted through the snacks with the air of someone taking inventory.

Razor watched from her position by the door, her expression softer than it had been moments before.

Shuyin watched them for a moment longer, her fellow survivors from prison now helping care for children, finding small moments of normalcy in the middle of corporate warfare, and felt something settle in her chest.

This was what she’d fought for.

Not just revenge, not just reclaiming what was stolen.

But the freedom to build something new, to create spaces where people who’d been cast aside could find purpose again.

Where children could feel safe even in the midst of her war. 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

She turned back to her desk, to the empire she was going to reclaim, but this time with the quiet knowledge that she wasn’t just fighting for herself anymore.

She was fighting for all of them.

She settled into the executive chair behind the desk, testing its feel, its weight, its symbolic authority.

The leather was soft, broken in by years of use but still maintaining its structure.

The height was adjustable, she raised it slightly, wanting to command the room properly when people entered.

This was power.

Real, tangible, earned power.

Not the borrowed influence of being Lu Zeyan’s fiancée, not the reflected status of Lu Yuze’s contract wife, but the actual authority she’d claimed through leverage and ruthlessness and comprehensive strategic thinking.