Tang Jie spent the entire meal chatting with Qin Yue about various pieces of gossip from S City, and even after the meal ended, she still felt there was more to discuss.
When the server came to settle the bill, Tang Jie and Qin Yue fought over who would pay, but in the end, experience prevailed, and Tang Jie admitted defeat.
As they were leaving, Tang Jie casually asked Officer Qin for his phone number, saying cheerfully, “We’ll remember this meal. When Officer Qin has time, Dr. Lu and I will treat you to a proper meal in return. You must give us the honor.”
Qin Yue shared his phone number, his face beaming as he looked at Tang Jie. “You’re too kind. I’m a simple man who just enjoys making friends. Besides, my wife might bring our child to the clinic for a dental checkup in a few days. We’ll need to trouble Dr. Tang about that what was it… ‘pit and—'”
“Dental pit and fissure sealant,” Tang Jie smiled, showing her teeth as she took out a business card for ‘Jierui Dental Hospital’ and handed it to Qin Yue. “When my sister-in-law brings my nephew, if I’m not at the clinic, just mention my name, and you’ll get our lowest internal discount.”
Qin Yue accepted the card with a warm smile.
While they were talking, Jiang Chengyi had already gotten into the police car and was sitting in the driver’s seat, starting the engine.
Lu Yan stood at a distance, looking ready to leave at any moment.
Tang Jie glanced at the two of them and gave Qin Yue a subtle look.
Qin Yue immediately understood and quickly sent Jiang Chengyi’s phone number to Tang Jie.
Everything was understood without words.
Still needing to return to the station, Qin Yue couldn’t delay any longer after sharing the number. He said goodbye to Tang Jie and Lu Yan, then opened the car door and got in.
Tang Jie turned and linked arms with Lu Yan. “You’re off tomorrow, right? I’m staying at your place tonight. I want to have a good chat with you.”
Lu Yan glanced at her. “What is there to chat about? I need to review literature tonight.”
Tang Jie wasn’t buying it. “Oh please, can you write an SCI paper in one night? Don’t give me that.”
Lu Yan’s home was in the adjacent alley, visible just around the corner ahead.
The weather was getting colder, with a penetrating wind blowing against their faces, making their noses feel cold. Their high heels clicked against the hard, cold ground, creating crisp, rhythmic sounds.
At the entrance to the alley, Lu Yan stopped, looking hesitantly toward the corner where she had encountered the girl before.
Tang Jie asked curiously, “What’s wrong?”
After a moment of silence, Lu Yan said, “Do you think two people can look very similar without being related?”
Tang Jie blinked. “Well, it depends on the situation. Twins look alike, don’t they? Brothers and sisters, uncles and nephews, aunts and nieces—anyone with blood relations might look similar.”
“I mean people without blood relations.”
Tang Jie was puzzled. “In this vast world, anything’s possible. It’s not impossible, but the probability would be very low. Why are you suddenly asking about this?”
Lu Yan hesitated for a moment before deciding to tell the truth: “The night before last, when I was heading to work at the hospital, I met a girl here who looked very similar to Deng Man.”
For a moment, Tang Jie’s expression went blank before quickly turning to shock.
“How is that possible? Deng Man passed away eight years ago, and she didn’t have any siblings. Are you sure your eyes weren’t playing tricks on you?”
Lu Yan put her hands in her coat pockets, walking forward in deep thought.
That night, everything had happened so suddenly, and the alley was too dark. To be honest, she hadn’t gotten a clear look at the girl’s face.
But the girl’s posture and movements were so similar to Deng Man’s that she had felt an overwhelming sense of familiarity the moment she saw her. Not to mention those similar hairpins.
After walking a short distance, she sensed Tang Jie’s mood had dampened, so she adopted a lighter tone: “Actually, I didn’t get a clear look that night, I just thought their silhouettes were similar—”
“There are plenty of people with similar silhouettes,” Tang Jie interrupted. “Are you working too many night shifts lately? Or are you shocked by Jiang Chengyi’s return? And you’re supposed to be a doctor, always overthinking things.”
Lu Yan was successfully distracted by this comment and gave an exasperated look. “Who’s shocked?”
This was the first time Lu Yan had been willing to discuss anything related to Jiang Chengyi.
Tang Jie was momentarily stunned, the last traces of grief and fear dissipating from her heart. She quickly tightened her grip on Lu Yan’s arm and narrowed her eyes, saying, “I tell you, you and Jiang Chengyi, I’m done with both of you. If it weren’t for chatty old Qin at the dinner table tonight, I would have suffocated from your silence.”
Lu Yan pressed her lips together, refusing to engage further.
Tang Jie had expected this response. She was well acquainted with Lu Yan’s stubborn attitude, but tonight she had plenty of time. She was determined to understand Lu Yan’s true thoughts.
They reached the apartment, and Lu Yan took out her access card to open the building’s main door.
It was an old neighborhood with poor property management and environment. The alley below was constantly busy with people coming and going, leaving no peace for the residents.
Perhaps the only advantage was its convenience for commuting to work.
When they reached Lu Yan’s third-floor apartment, Tang Jie rushed in first, kicked off her shoes, and lay down on the sofa.
Just as she was about to stretch comfortably, she noticed Lu Yan hadn’t come in yet.
“What are you doing?” She got up curiously to look and saw Lu Yan bent over, staring at the wall beside the door as if carefully examining something.
She went over: “What’s wrong?”
Lu Yan turned on her phone’s flashlight and wiped her finger across the wall surface.
Tang Jie then noticed a children’s sticker next to the door lock, butterfly-shaped, with smooth, intact paper and vibrant colors, obviously recently applied.
“What’s this?”
Lu Yan shook her head and peeled off the sticker. “Probably some kid playing pranks.”
They went inside, and Lu Yan changed into slippers, went to the bedroom to find pajamas and toiletries, and handed them to Tang Jie.
Since she had bought this apartment, Tang Jie had frequently stayed over, so often that she had brought a set of her things to keep there.
Tang Jie sat on the sofa mysteriously fiddling with her phone, and as soon as Lu Yan came over, she held out her hand: “Give me your phone, I need to use it.”
Lu Yan was puzzled but handed over her phone.
Feeling thirsty, she went to the kitchen to get water, bringing a glass for Tang Jie as well.
Tang Jie entered Jiang Chengyi’s number into Lu Yan’s contacts, then accepted the water from Lu Yan with a mysterious smile: “I got Jiang Chengyi’s number for you.”
Lu Yan was stunned, then showed an expression of headache: “Who wanted his number?”
Tang Jie pulled her to sit down: “It’s just a phone number, having it doesn’t hurt. If it bothers you, just pretend it doesn’t exist. Guess who I ran into while shopping at Aoheng Mall today?”
Lu Yan lazily hugged a cushion while drinking water, showing no interest in talking.
Tang Jie had to continue on her own: “I ran into Ding Jing and her girlfriends shopping for clothes. As soon as she saw me, Ding Jing deliberately mentioned she was going to have dinner with her parents at Jiang Chengyi’s house today. They must have arranged it already. She even called Jiang Chengyi right in front of me, though I don’t know if he was busy or didn’t hear it, but he didn’t answer in the end.”
Lu Yan: “…”
Tang Jie was determined to get Lu Yan to talk and exclaimed: “Ding Jing hasn’t changed her feelings all these years. Even though she was dating a returnee boyfriend at the beginning of the year, as soon as Jiang Chengyi came back, she immediately dumped the returnee and focused all her attention on Jiang Chengyi. But it’s obvious—if Jiang Chengyi liked her type, wouldn’t he have gotten together with her in high school?”
Lu Yan: “…”
Tang Jie tilted her head to look at Lu Yan: “Tell me, you two were so close back then, so close that you almost prioritized each other over friends, what exactly made you break up in the end?”
Lu Yan’s expression changed, and she jumped up: “Are you going to take a shower or not? If not, I’m going first.”
Tang Jie called after her: “So what if you broke up? Is it necessary to not even speak to each other when you meet?”
By midnight, Tang Jie still hadn’t managed to get any details about the breakup from Lu Yan.
After performing her one-woman show for most of the evening, even with her high energy, she was inevitably feeling parched.
Beside her, Lu Yan had been pretending to sleep for quite some time, and her breathing was becoming increasingly steady. Even if she wasn’t truly asleep yet, she wasn’t far from it.
She sat cross-legged nearby, her face full of frustration.
Actually, besides Jiang Chengyi’s matter, she had several other things she wanted to discuss with Lu Yan, but she had wasted the entire evening and was still completely in the dark.
Oh well, it was getting late, better sleep first. After all, Lu Yan wasn’t working tomorrow, so she could always stay another day if needed.
She put on slippers and got out of bed to find water in the kitchen.
As soon as she left, Lu Yan opened her eyes and touched her ears. Finally, the chatty woman had quieted down.
She closed her eyes again, but unlike before, this time she was genuinely trying to fall asleep.
However, not long after, she heard Tang Jie’s hurried footsteps, followed by Tang Jie shaking her shoulder and whispering urgently: “Yan, wake up quick, there’s someone at your door.”
Tang Jie’s voice was as taut as a wire, with a slight tremor.
Lu Yan quickly opened her eyes and stared at Tang Jie.
Tang Jie swallowed and spoke in a low voice: “It’s true. First, there were footsteps, I thought it was just a passing neighbor and didn’t pay attention, but then whoever it was stopped at the door and wouldn’t leave. I shouted once, but that person was still there. Damn, I’m scared to death. What if they’re trying to break in?”
Lu Yan suddenly remembered last night’s incident, her expression becoming extremely unpleasant. She quickly grabbed her phone from the bedside table, preparing to call the police: “There were footsteps outside my door last night too.”
“What?” Tang Jie’s face turned pale. “Could it be some kind of pervert?”
The emergency call had already connected, and Lu Yan quickly explained the situation and address.
After hanging up, she and Tang Jie stared at each other wide-eyed, neither daring to go to the living room.
Finally, Tang Jie found two dumbbells that Lu Yan used for exercise on the bedside table, and they each grabbed one for self-defense.
Then they closed the bedroom door tightly and sat by it, their hearts desolate as they prayed for the police to arrive quickly.
Time passed excruciatingly slowly.
After a while, Tang Jie suddenly remembered something and took Lu Yan’s phone from the bed, about to make a call.
“What are you doing?” Lu Yan watched Tang Jie’s actions nervously, barely daring to breathe.
“Calling Jiang Chengyi.”
Lu Yan startled: “Are you crazy? He won’t answer.”
Tang Jie argued firmly: “I bet when the police arrive, that pervert will have already run away. What about when I’m not here? We only know two police officers—either we call Old Qin or Jiang Chengyi, you choose one.”
“I choose Old Qin.”
Tang Jie wanted to hit Lu Yan’s head with a pillow: “You stubborn woman.”
As they spoke, she had already dialed Jiang Chengyi’s number. Lu Yan couldn’t stop her in time and could only hold her head in her hands and let her proceed.
After three rings, the call connected: “Hello.” A young man’s cold voice came through.