Cheng Jin stood by the ice-blue sedan parked in the garage, knowing he would never drive it again. He hadn’t apologized to his husband, Lu Tao, for using it without permission, but it seemed Lu Tao had also forgotten about it, as he never mentioned it. Instead, Cheng Jin took the circular city line directly to the train station to meet his elder brother and father.

The circular line wasn’t crowded that morning, and the car’s screens played the news. Though Cheng Jin wasn’t paying much attention, he couldn’t help but hear the name “Yingdila” mentioned several times. When the train reached the station, he stepped off, carrying only light luggage, and found his father and brother waiting for him. Their reunion was marked by a collective sigh of relief. Cheng Xu ruffled his hair and asked, “Is everything handled?” Cheng Jin nodded, trying to suppress the lingering reluctance in his heart.

Today was significant; Lu Tao was at the Military hospital undergoing surgery to erase his derived personality. After today, the affectionate husband who had always smiled at him might cease to exist. The hope Cheng Jin had harbored for months had shattered, leaving him devoid of the courage to face what came next. Deep down, he knew his husband could never truly love him.

Cheng Xu squeezed his hand and said, “Let’s go.” As they entered the station, they found it unusually crowded. Trains were not typically the preferred travel method on the Imperial Planet, where residents favored more private modes of travel. For instance, the Cheng family usually traveled via their spaceship, utilizing folded space to save time. The congestion at the station was unexpected and puzzling. It was not just crowded but noisy as well. Cheng Jin learned that the trains were delayed and some tickets had been inexplicably voided, allowing others with later train tickets to board early.

“This is too strange,” Cheng Jin murmured, eyeing his ticket anxiously. “Could ours be voided too?”

“Let’s try,” suggested Cheng Xu.

They made their way through the crowd to the ticket checkpoint, now manned instead of automated. Cheng Jin politely handed over his ticket. “Can I board with this?” The staff scanned it and nodded, “Yes, you can go in.” The gates to the inner station opened, and Cheng Jin quickly added, “And my father and brother’s too.” After a brief hesitation, the staff member allowed them through.

Inside, the station was quieter. Cheng Jin remarked, “We’re really lucky to have gotten through.”

Cheng Xu, however, felt uneasy. His gaze swept over the crowd and settled on a group of passengers boarding the train. Something didn’t feel right. They boarded their train, which was surprisingly full, and barely found three seats together. As they settled, Cheng Jin fetched some warm water for his father to take his medicine and mused, “Today is really strange. It’s not a holiday, so why are there so many passengers?”

Cheng Xu, now deeply concerned, looked around. “Xu’er, have you noticed something?”

“On the way here, I overheard some passengers discussing. Some people’s destinations don’t even match this train. Also, Father, do you recognize any familiar faces?”

Cheng Zheng, who had become reclusive since the bankruptcy, replied uneasily, “I didn’t notice.”

“I did,” Cheng Xu’s tone grew grave. “Those two ladies diagonally opposite us are from the Qi family, and that middle-aged man is an official from the Ministry of Finance. The passenger in seat number ten in this car is the director from the Ministry of Education…” He listed several influential names, drawing a stark picture of the unusual assembly on the train.

Cheng Jin’s eyes widened as he realized the gravity of the situation. “What’s going on? Even on the Imperial Planet, it’s not usual to see officials everywhere…”

“Including you, actually, your status is not ordinary,” Cheng Xu added, turning more serious.

“Me?” Cheng Jin was puzzled.

“Yes, before your divorce application is approved, you still hold the title of ‘General Wife,’” Cheng Xu explained, his voice thick with concern.

Cheng Jin was stunned, “That’s really strange. Have we…are we caught in some trap? Should we get off?”

“It’s too late,” Cheng Xu slowly shook his head, staring out the window as the landscape began to blur with speed. “The train has started.”

Cheng Jin felt a chill run down his spine. “What should we do? I… If only we hadn’t boarded…”

“It would’ve been the same,” Cheng Xu spoke quietly. “You might not have noticed, but when we entered the station, no one was leaving.”

Cheng Zheng also started to panic, “What on earth is going on?”

The situation escalated when the train’s intercom crackled to life. A man’s voice replaced the usual sweet female tone: “Ladies and gentlemen, please calm down, please calm down.” The crowd quieted momentarily before the Ministry of Finance official, now identified as Mr. Philip, voiced everyone’s fear: “What is happening? Who are you? Are you intentionally gathering us together?”

The mysterious voice chuckled softly, “Correct, you are a specially selected list. Please remain calm and stay seated for a while. In two hours, we will arrive at our destination.”

“What destination? Where are you taking us? And who are you exactly?” Philip demanded.

“We are subordinates of the wise Yingdila.”

The name Yingdila reignited panic across the cabin. Cheng Jin remembered Lu Tao’s warning about Yingdila being the lead on human experiments and having escaped. The implications were horrifying, and as realization dawned on Mr. Philip, he shouted, “We are… your hostages?”

The voice on the intercom replied with unsettling cheerfulness, “Exactly, Mr. Philip is quite intelligent. So, now that you know your situation, please behave. Rest assured, we do not intend to harm you, just to exchange you for something.”

“This is terrible, we’ve been tricked!”

“If only we hadn’t hurried to board the train, I want to get off!”

“How can you not harm us, you even dare to conduct human experiments!”

“Are we also going to be taken for human experiments? Will I merge with some monster? Perhaps those hideous bugs?”

The cabin erupted again, louder than before, as fear and outrage filled the air. In a desperate attempt to take control, Mr. Philip shouted, “Quick! Stop the train from entering folded space! We still have a chance to escape!”

His urgent tone caught the attention of nearby passengers, who immediately asked, “How do we stop it?”

Philip, discarding his impeccable tie, began searching the train windows for the emergency hammer, a tool designed to break the sturdy, bulletproof glass that could trigger the train’s automatic safety system to stop if any damage was detected. Trains capable of entering folded space were precisely constructed, and in an emergency, even a woman with less strength could break the window with the special-material hammer. However, to prevent intentional damage, the hammers were secured behind a panel requiring a ten-digit password.

Philip found the hammer, stepped onto a seat, and started calmly entering the code. The crowd, silent now, watched him with hopeful eyes. Just as he was about to enter the last digit, a clicking sound was heard, and he swayed, his fine suit suddenly stained with bright red blood. His expression froze, his fingers paused in the air, and then he collapsed to the ground, lifeless.

A piercing scream echoed through the cabin as chaos ensued.