Top-Tier Omega: Chasing Alpha to the Crematorium – Chapter 59

So Cruel

Song Qingpei stood beside Ming Yu, her gaze blank as she watched Murong Ruixue being escorted into the vehicle in the distance.

Her heart felt as though it had been torn in two—half consumed by worry for Murong Ruixue, the other half by bewilderment toward Ming Yu. She couldn’t understand why Ming Yu had appeared alongside Wu Lan. Just how much had she been hiding from her?

            

Ming Yu looked at her with concern. She gently opened the car door and said softly, “Qingpei, let’s go home first.”

She didn’t respond. She merely climbed mechanically into the car, Murong Ruixue’s words continuously echoing in her mind—

“Your mother is Rong Cen, the Former President of the Federation.”

            

“Your adoptive mother, Song Yin, is Song Zhuohua. She is currently locked up in the Military High-Level Prison.”

“The people at Military Headquarters are all cut from the same cloth¹. Don’t trust them.”

Every word, every sentence, felt like it was carving her heart out alive.

            

At this moment, she couldn’t help but seek escape in the thought: If I were just a simple, abandoned infant, wouldn’t that have been luckier than facing all of this?

The car slowly started. Silence filled the cabin.

Ming Yu’s hands trembled slightly on the steering wheel. She knew she had to confess everything to Song Qingpei, otherwise the trust between them would completely collapse.

            

“Qingpei.” She shot a nervous glance at Song Qingpei, speaking carefully. “I know you have many questions right now, and that all of this is hard to accept.”

Song Qingpei still didn’t respond. She simply turned her head toward the window, her empty gaze fixed on the rapidly passing streetscape.

Ming Yu took a deep breath and continued. “The reason I hid this from you is because your identity is far too sensitive. You are the daughter of Rong Cen and Song Taoyao, and Rong Cen is the Former President of the Federation. Her death back then… has a great deal to do with the current President, Zhan Li. Once your identity is exposed, Zhan Li will absolutely not let you go. I didn’t want to put you in danger, so I chose to hide it.”

            

Song Qingpei’s fingers trembled slightly. She finally turned her head and looked at Ming Yu. “Then why are you telling me now? Is it because Murong Ruixue already exposed everything, so you had no choice but to confess?”

A trace of pain flashed through Ming Yu’s eyes. “Qingpei, I know what I did wasn’t right, but I truly only wanted to protect you. I thought I could buy some time. I didn’t expect Murong Ruixue to act so suddenly.”

All of these matters were too complicated for her. Song Qingpei tried hard to parse the connections between them. A moment later, she seemed to finally grasp a key point.

            

“Wu Lan is Zhan Li’s person. Why didn’t she just arrest me directly?”

“Because… I made a deal with her.”

Ming Yu didn’t elaborate on the deal. She merely said vaguely, “Wu Lan isn’t just Zhan Li’s right-hand woman. She has her own motives. As for what exactly she wants to do, I’m still not sure. But at the very least, she won’t lay a hand on you for now.”

            

Song Qingpei’s mind was in total chaos. She couldn’t comprehend these intricate power struggles.

Right now, she only cared about one thing—

Her adoptive mother, Song Yin—who was also Song Zhuohua—was currently locked up in the Military High-Level Prison.

            

“Ming Yu,” Song Qingpei said, her voice carrying a note of pleading. “I have to save my Auntie. She’s locked up in the Military High-Level Prison being tortured. I can’t just watch her suffer.”

Ming Yu explained helplessly, “Qingpei, only a Marshal has the clearance to enter the Military High-Level Prison. We… we have absolutely no way to get in.”

“We can go find Marshal Song.” A glimmer of hope flashed in Song Qingpei’s eyes. “She is Auntie’s mother. She will definitely have a way.”

            

After a moment of hesitation, Ming Yu finally nodded. “Alright. I’ll take you to see Marshal Song.”

By the time the car stopped in front of Old Marshal Song’s Residence, the sky had already grown dark.

Song Qingpei pushed open the car door and hurried toward the gates. Ming Yu followed closely behind, trying to catch her wrist, but was gently shaken off.

            

“Qingpei, calm down a little,” Ming Yu reminded her softly, a trace of unease in her tone.

Song Qingpei halted her steps, her eyes full of anxiety. “My Auntie is being tortured in the Military High-Level Prison. I really can’t calm down.”

Ming Yu opened her mouth, seemingly wanting to say something, but ultimately just sighed and silently followed behind her.

            

The residence’s main gates slowly opened. The butler came out to greet them. Seeing the two, she paused in surprise. “Admiral Ming, Miss Song. It’s so late, is something the matter?”

“I need to see Marshal Song,” Song Qingpei said straightforwardly.

The butler hesitated for a moment, but still nodded. “Please wait a moment. I will go announce you.”

            

The wait felt as though it had been stretched into infinity.

Standing in the living room, Song Qingpei’s mind continually summoned the face of her adoptive mother, Song Yin—or rather, Song Zhuohua.

The person who had spent countless nights keeping her company on the Garbage Planet, the woman who always called her gently by the name ‘Peipei’—was now locked up in a dark, sunless prison, suffering endless torture.

            

Her heart felt as if it were being tightly gripped by an invisible hand. Even breathing had become difficult.

“Marshal Song invites you to come in.” The butler’s voice pulled her back to reality.

In the study, Marshal Song was seated behind her desk, seemingly reviewing documents. Her expression was calm, as if she had anticipated their arrival all along.

            

“Marshal Song,” Song Qingpei said, stepping swiftly up to the desk. Her voice carried thinly veiled anxiety. “My Auntie—Song Zhuohua—she’s locked up in the Military High-Level Prison. You have to save her!”

Marshal Song slowly raised her head. Her gaze lingered on Song Qingpei’s face for a moment before turning to Ming Yu. “Ming Yu, how much of these matters does she know?”

Ming Yu stepped forward and said in a low voice, “Marshal Song, Qingpei already knows about her background. Her adoptive mother, Song Yin, is your daughter Song Zhuohua. She is currently locked in the Military High-Level Prison, and the situation… is very bad.”

            

Marshal Song remained silent for a long time, as if weighing something.

“Marshal Song,” Song Qingpei said, her voice choked with emotion. “She is your daughter. You can’t just watch her suffer. You must have a way to save her, right?”

Marshal Song’s expression was complex and hard to read. It took a long while before she spoke slowly. “Qingpei, I understand how you feel. But this matter… is not as simple as you think.”

            

“What do you mean?” Song Qingpei’s voice suddenly rose, her emotions nearly slipping out of control. “You are a Marshal! You must have the clearance to enter that prison, you must have a way to save her! Are you really going to just watch her die in there?”

Marshal Song’s face darkened slightly, but quickly returned to its calm state.

She stood up and walked to the window, turning her back to the two of them. Her voice carried a trace of exhaustion. “Qingpei, do you know what kind of person Zhan Li is? Do you know to what lengths he will go for power?”

            

“I don’t know!” Song Qingpei’s voice trembled. “All I know is that my Auntie ended up in this situation for my sake. I can’t abandon her, and neither can you! She is your own flesh and blood!”

Marshal Song’s silhouette stiffened slightly. Her fingers gripped the window frame tightly, her knuckles turning white.

Her voice was low, as though suppressing something. “Qingpei, do you think I don’t want to save her? She is my daughter, the child I watched grow up from infancy. But… the current Song Family cannot weather any more storms.”

            

That single sentence caused Song Qingpei to freeze abruptly. “You… What do you mean by that?”

Marshal Song slowly turned around, a flicker of anguish in her eyes. “Zhan Li now holds all the power, and the Song Family has already declined. If we act rashly, not only will we fail to save Zhuohua, we will drag the entire Song Family into an abyss from which we can never recover.”

Song Qingpei looked at the elderly woman in front of her in sheer disbelief. She seemingly couldn’t process that she would actually say such a thing. This was Auntie’s biological mother—how could she speak such cruel words?

            

Choking on her words, Song Qingpei pleaded, “I’m begging you… You’re the only one who can save Auntie. You can’t just ignore her and let her suffer endless torture in that prison.”

“Qingpei, I… I have no choice but to make a decision.”

Marshal Song’s lips trembled slightly, as if trying to persuade herself, and also trying to persuade Song Qingpei. “The Song Family cannot make an enemy of Zhan Li again, otherwise everyone will be dragged back into it. I cannot sacrifice the entire family for the sake of one person.”

            

Song Qingpei’s face instantly went pale. Her voice dropped low, as though she were holding something back.

After a long moment, she could no longer hold it in. Her emotions verged on total collapse. “You’re afraid of Zhan Li, afraid of losing everything you have now, so you chose to abandon your own daughter. You’re unfit to be a mother…”

“Enough!”

            

Marshal Song’s voice abruptly rose. Her chest heaved violently, as though suppressing a powerful surge of emotion.

A moment later, her voice lowered, laced with deep exhaustion. “Qingpei, you’re still young. You don’t understand these complicated power struggles. I can only tell you to forget all of this. Live a peaceful, good life with Ming Yu.”

“Forget?” Song Qingpei’s tears finally broke free, streaming down her face. Her voice caught in her throat. “How can you ask me to forget? She is my only family. She ended up in this state because of me. How can I be so ungrateful? How can I abandon her?”

            

A flicker of anguish flashed in Marshal Song’s eyes, but it was quickly replaced by resolute finality.

She turned around, facing away from them, her voice low. “Leave. This matter… ends here.”

Song Qingpei stood rooted to the spot, tears slipping silently down her cheeks. Her heart was filled with disappointment and fury. It felt as though an invisible hand had wrapped around it, making every breath an agonizing effort.

            

Ming Yu gently took her wrist and murmured, “Qingpei, let’s go back for now.”

Song Qingpei didn’t respond. She just mechanically followed Ming Yu out of the study.

And then, completely despondent, she followed Ming Yu back home.

            

She sat on the sofa, staring blankly ahead. Marshal Song’s words echoed relentlessly in her mind. She could not accept that her only family member had been forsaken by their own clan, while she herself was entirely powerless.

“Ming Yu,” Song Qingpei said, her voice hitched with a sob. “Is that what you think too? Do you also want me to forget all this and just live a peaceful life?”

Ming Yu fell silent for a second before saying with difficulty, “Qingpei, I just want you to be well.”

            

Song Qingpei’s tears finally broke loose again. “But she’s my adoptive mother. She’s my only family. She ended up like this because of me. How can I be so ungrateful? How can I abandon her?”

Ming Yu wrapped her arms around Song Qingpei, a note of helplessness in her voice. “Qingpei, I know you’re in pain, but we truly don’t have the power to do anything right now. The Military High-Level Prison isn’t a place you can just casually enter. We can only wait for an opportunity.”

Song Qingpei leaned helplessly against Ming Yu’s chest. She couldn’t accept any of this, yet she was powerless to change it.

            

In this moment, she finally realized just how insignificant her own strength was.

“Why?” She covered her face, on the verge of a breakdown. “I’m so useless. What else can I even do?”

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