Having stayed up late the previous night, Yan Tuo slept until almost eleven the next day.
He didn’t wake up naturally—he was jolted awake by a loud banging on his door. In that moment of shock, cold sweat broke out on his back, and his first thought was: It’s over, have they found out?
Then he recognized Lv Xian’s voice: “Yan Tuo, Yan Tuo? Dead asleep? Going to turn into a pig?”
Yan Tuo let out a long breath and got up to open the door for Lv Xian. If this continued, he’d develop anxiety disorder sooner or later.
When the door opened, Lv Xian’s fist hit empty air, and he nearly stumbled into the room.
Steadying himself, he straightened his clothes: “What’s wrong with you? Getting up so late.”
Yan Tuo yawned: “Watched videos, stayed up late.”
Lv Xian stormed in aggressively: “Know why I’m looking for you? Borrow someone’s car and don’t return it—becoming a deadbeat, huh? And my phone—you know I’m making do with an iPhone 6? A 6! They’re up to 12 now, and I’m still on 6!”
That’s quite something, lucky I took care of things last night.
Yan Tuo gestured toward a new phone bag on the sofa: “Didn’t forget. And the car’s just downstairs. That piece of junk—you think it’s worth keeping?”
The new phone’s here?
Lv Xian’s eyes lit up. With a yelp, he rushed over, not even bothering to snap back at Yan Tuo.
Yan Tuo took the opportunity to sit in the computer chair, watching Lv Xian gleefully unpack and test the phone. He also noticed that Lv Xian was dressed unusually formally today.
He smirked: “Wearing a tie? And hair gel on that head?”
Lv Xian didn’t look up: “Meeting my goddess, got to be formal.”
“When’s the meeting?”
“Already met. You think everyone’s like you, sleeping till noon?”
Damn, already met?
If Lin Xierou was looking for Lv Xian, it was probably about matchmaking, trying to set him up with Lin Ling. If they’d already met and he was still in high spirits, then… did things work out?
He cautiously probed: “So… did you agree?”
That was the wrong thing to bring up. Lv Xian immediately got angry: “Yan Tuo, you’re not being a good friend! You knew about this all along and didn’t give me any warning. God, trying to set me up with Lin Ling—it was so awkward, you know? I wasn’t prepared at all.”
Yan Tuo couldn’t care less about his awkwardness: “Did you agree or not?”
Lv Xian leaned back on the sofa, crossed his legs, and got animated: “We’re in a new socialist era now. You rich people still think you can buy the love of an upright man like me with money?”
Damn it, can’t you speak plainly? Yan Tuo was getting a headache.
Lv Xian went on and on: “At first, I thought about being tactful, but then I realized no, I need to nip this in the bud. I told your aunt straight up that matters of the heart depend on feelings. So many things in this world aren’t pure anymore, but I hope at least my feelings can be completely chosen by my heart…”
Yan Tuo had no time for his grand theories: “What about Aunt Lin? How did she look? Not too happy, right?”
“How could that be,” Lv Xian gave him a disdainful look. “The goddess was… completely impressed by me. She probably didn’t expect me to be such a principled person. I feel like I’ve caught her attention…”
Yan Tuo had too many complaints to voice. He stood up and strode over, towering over Lv Xian: “Lv Xian!”
Lv Xian spread his arms across the back of the sofa and looked up: “What?”
Yan Tuo chose his words carefully, trying to keep his tone gentle: “Even if you don’t like Lin Ling, you should agree for now and go along with Aunt Lin’s wishes temporarily, understand?”
Lv Xian didn’t understand: “Why?”
He looked at Yan Tuo, his expression gradually becoming peculiar: “I get it now. Lin Xierou, and Lin Ling—same surname, they’re closer to each other. Keep the benefits in the family. Your aunt wants you to date Lin Ling, and strengthen family ties, but you don’t want to, so you’re pushing it onto me, right?”
Yan Tuo was speechless. Why was everyone he’d met these past two days so fond of playing detective?
“Fine, Yan Tuo, this move to shift the conflict is unfair. Throwing your friend under the bus to save yourself, huh? I can’t believe I fell for it!”
He snorted, grabbed the new phone, and stood up: “For the sake of the phone, I won’t hold it against you. I’m busy anyway, tomorrow I’m going to the farm with the goddess to inspect work…”
The word “farm” sent a jolt through Yan Tuo: “Why are you going to the farm?”
Lv Xian gave him a look: “What’s with that expression? Isn’t it normal for me to go to the farm? Since it’s in the countryside with many employees, they need more medical support. I’m going to evaluate their existing medical room and make suggestions for upgrades and staff increases.”
He was about to leave when a figure blocked his path—Yan Tuo had moved to stop him.
Lv Xian grew wary: “What trick are you planning now?”
Yan Tuo lowered his voice, his expression serious: “Lv Xian, I’m serious. Next time you see Aunt Lin, tell her you’ve thought it over and are willing to try getting to know Lin Ling—this is very important. Worst case, you can break up after spending some time together. You won’t lose anything.”
Seeing Yan Tuo’s expression, it didn’t seem like he was joking. Lv Xian was puzzled: “Why?”
Yan Tuo avoided the main point: “Have I ever set you up? Trust me on this one. It saves face for everyone, and it’s good for you too.”
He emphasized the last sentence.
Lv Xian felt uneasy at his words, nervously licking his lips.
—Yan Tuo rarely acted like this.
—Looking back, Yan Tuo had never really set him up before.
—Though he kept calling her “goddess,” he hadn’t interacted much with Lin Xierou, nowhere near as much as with Yan Tuo. So, should he listen to the person he knew better?
Lv Xian hesitated: “But, changing my mind like this—it’s hard to say.”
Yan Tuo breathed a sigh of relief: “This isn’t changing your mind, it’s called careful reconsideration.”
After sending Lv Xian away, Yan Tuo went to find Lin Xierou.
From a distance, he saw Xiong Hei coming out of Lin Xierou’s room. Yan Tuo habitually observed his expression: Xiong Hei had raised eyebrows and a look of disdain.
Nothing must have happened, or at least, nothing detrimental to himself had occurred.
Yan Tuo greeted him: “Brother Xiong.”
Suddenly seeing Yan Tuo made Xiong Hei recall last night, immediately making him uncomfortable. But seeing Yan Tuo’s natural manner, showing no embarrassment about having his secret exposed, he couldn’t help but sigh: those internet quotes were right—if you’re not embarrassed yourself, it’s others who feel embarrassed.
Yan Tuo studied his eyes: “Didn’t sleep well? All bloodshot. Were you up waiting for Feng Mi’s report last night?”
At the mention of Feng Mi, Xiong Hei got angry: “That woman, being all mysterious, kept me up half the night insisting some taxi was suspicious.”
Yan Tuo smiled: “So you went to check the car?”
“Of course, checked both the car and the people, even pulled up traffic surveillance footage from after they left the city,” Xiong Hei yawned so big tears came to his eyes, “But it was nothing.”
The surveillance outside the city was divided into sections, with only major roads covered, so cars would disappear from one road and appear on another later—in the first few sections of footage, you could see two cars one after another, both driving very fast, which was a bit suspicious, but since rural traffic police weren’t as strict, many drivers speed once they leave the city. More importantly, the taxi soon appeared in surveillance footage on another road section. Based on the distance calculations, this car had been driving continuously without stopping, while Chen Fu’s car had simply vanished.
They’d found the driver’s number too. When called, the driver thought for a while before saying: “That day I was heading to the countryside, and wasn’t in a good mood. There was a car trying to pass me, and I even raced with it… Later that car fell behind, don’t know where it went. I picked up a passenger and headed back to the city.”
After explaining the situation, Xiong Hei asked Yan Tuo: “Don’t you think this woman’s just trying to make trouble for me?”
Yan Tuo said: “You can’t say that—she’s just being thorough, not wanting to miss any suspicious points.”
Xiong Hei was impressed: “You are Sister Lin’s protégé, talking just like her.”
Yan Tuo frowned: “This is troublesome now, how are we going to find them?”
Xiong Hei snorted: “In Sister Lin’s eyes, nothing’s troublesome.”
He lowered his voice, pointing toward Lin Xierou’s door: “Says to use the most basic method—start from where the car was last seen, check every road, every direction, meter by meter, like combing through with a fine-toothed comb. So you see, the higher-ups just give orders, while those below run their legs off—she doesn’t have to busy herself, but A Peng’s group will be worked to death.”
He shrugged, wearing that look of disdain again, and sauntered away.
Yan Tuo stood there for a moment.
This was indeed the most basic method, but it would surely yield results. At least that pump house wouldn’t stay hidden.
While lost in thought, he heard Lin Xierou’s voice: “Xiao Tuo.”
Looking over, Lin Xierou was as elegant as ever. Her aesthetic was that of a noble lady, but because her face naturally carried charm, she could pull off any difficult-to-wear clothes—floral prints, velvet, mink—all suited her perfectly.
She wore a simple-cut natural pearl mink half-coat, lined with a warm cashmere bodycon dress, stockings, and ankle boots with diamond-studded edges made of deerskin.
Yan Tuo smiled: “Aunt Lin, dressed so beautifully, going out?”
Lin Xierou smiled too: “Yes, have to go back to the farm tomorrow to work, so taking advantage of this half-day to take Lin Ling shopping for clothes. She’s going to be dating now and should dress up a bit prettier. Want to join us?”
Going to be dating now…
Sure enough, Lv Xian’s opinion didn’t matter at all.
Yan Tuo begged off: “No thanks, Aunt Lin, I’d die of boredom shopping with you. By the way, I need to go away for a few days.”
“What for?”
“It’s year-end, and many partners have sent invitations for appreciation dinners or annual parties. Can’t attend them all, but need to make an appearance at one or two important ones.”
Lin Xierou understood—these social occasions had always been Yan Tuo’s responsibility.
She nodded slightly, then seemed somewhat emotional, murmuring to herself: “Another year has passed.”
Yan Tuo glanced at her.
Yes, another year had passed.
Nie Jiuluo got up early in the morning. Last night, Yan Tuo had told her he would come to take her home.
The thought of going home was always pleasant.
By the time Yan Tuo arrived, she was already dressed and ready. Out of boredom, she had been walking back and forth in the living room with her crutch several times.
Yes, she had specifically bought a crutch—a four-footed anti-slip one meant for elderly people.
When Yan Tuo pushed open the door and came face to face with her, he was instantly shocked by her mismatched style.
She wore white cotton socks, slippers, and pajamas. The slippers and pajamas were ones he had bought, a matching set with cute patterns on the shoe tips and clothes. That was fine, but because one arm was in a sling, she couldn’t properly wear clothes and could only drape a coat—she had on a very boss-like, cool black overcoat, and then, was using an elderly person’s crutch.
Yan Tuo: “You’re going like this?”
For an artist, how could she let herself look so “disheveled”?
Nie Jiuluo: “I’m a patient, should I wear high heels and a tight dress instead?”
Fair point.
Yan Tuo looked at her luggage: a carry-on travel bag and a… suitcase.
The suitcase containing Chen Fu’s belongings—that was his.
Important conversations could wait until they were on the way. Yan Tuo carried the suitcase down first, while Liu Changxi helped with the travel bag. On the way down, Liu Changxi wore a worried expression: “Xiao Tuo, please talk to Miss Nie. She bought so many small appliances these past few days and says she doesn’t want any of them. Young ladies don’t understand how hard it is to manage a household, they can’t be so wasteful.”
Yan Tuo said: “That’s just how she is. You keep them—it’s not good to let appliances sit unused anyway.”
When he went back upstairs, it was to help her down.
The auntie had also packed up. After caring for someone, it was proper to see them off. She took off her apron and wiped her hands, suddenly remembering something: “Miss Nie, do you want to take one last look around the room? Don’t forget anything.”
That made sense. Nie Jiuluo walked to her room’s doorway and looked inside.
The past few days, she had been somewhat dissatisfied with the place, thinking the room was cramped, poorly lit, old-fashioned, and had that stale smell of old residences. But now that she was leaving, she felt a bit reluctant.
After looking around, she did find something. Nie Jiuluo pointed to the bedside: “That, please get it for me.”
The auntie quickly went over and brought it to her. Nie Jiuluo took it and turned to show Liu Changxi: “Uncle Changxi, can I have this?”
Liu Changxi quickly nodded: “Take it, it was bought for you anyway.”
What was it? Yan Tuo was curious and turned to look.
Well, it was a Ludo board.
Who knew who she was going to torment with it next?
…
The four of them went downstairs in pairs, Yan Tuo and Liu Changxi in front, the auntie supporting Nie Jiuluo behind.
Just as Yan Tuo reached the last flight of stairs, he felt a cold wind—it was an old residential complex with old buildings, no door at the bottom of the stairwell, and bicycles lined up from the bottom of the stairs outside.
He instinctively turned around.
Nie Jiuluo had just reached the stairwell and was about to turn the corner when she saw Yan Tuo’s hand reach toward her. Before she could react, he had grabbed the two sides of her open coat and fastened a button with one hand, saying: “It’s windy, don’t leave it open.”
The coat looked stylish when worn open, but buttoned up it looked somewhat plain, and Yan Tuo had hastily buttoned it just to block the wind—he’d even misaligned the button with the wrong buttonhole.
Nie Jiuluo looked down at the button, then at Yan Tuo.
He had already gone down.
The auntie smiled beside her, saying with feeling: “Of all the homes I’ve worked in, your partner treats you the best.”
Nie Jiuluo remained silent. As she turned the corner, the cold wind hit her face. Her body wrapped in the coat felt more constrained, moving quite awkwardly.
At that moment, she felt that herself, covered in the coat, was like a warm but clumsy bucket.