Chapter 28: Barbarians

Cen Li stood frozen in place.

A flash of an image appeared in his mind: Jiang Se, dressed in a hospital gown, lying on a hospital bed.

Since she was young, Se Se had been independent and capable. No matter what happened, she always managed to handle things effortlessly and perfectly.

Seven years ago, during the kidnapping incident, she was only sixteen. For days, she had not eaten or drunk anything, and her body became so weak that she had to be hooked up to an IV.

Even so, when she saw Cen Li in the hospital, the first words she said were calm and composed: “Brother, I’m fine.”

She was so strong, strong in a way that made it unimaginable for Cen Li to comprehend how much vulnerability and hope were hidden in the “brother” she called out when she was rescued.

Lu Huaiyan was not interested in the emotions surging within Cen Li’s heart at this moment. He himself was not a good person either.

If the person involved tonight had not been Jiang Se, he wouldn’t have wasted his time with small talk with Cen Li.

Having said what needed to be said, he ignored Cen Li and walked straight towards the bathroom where Jiang Se was hiding.

It was still a mess in there, with broken glass all over the floor. Lu Huaiyan looked at the scattered irregular shards and remembered Jiang Se’s blood-soaked palms.

At that time, she had been holding the sharpest and longest piece of glass.

With one forceful thrust to someone’s neck, it could take a life.

The glass was never meant to keep her awake; it was meant for self-defense and to kill if necessary.

The pure white marble floor was stained with a few half-dried blood spots, besides the broken glass.

Lu Huaiyan stared at those dark red dots and said to Mo Jichen, “Take all the glass away.”

Mo Jichen looked at him as if he were some rare creature, and, unafraid of death, said, “It’s been so long since I’ve seen you angry. I thought your temper had mellowed after all these years of cultivation, but I guess not. Tsk tsk.”

Lu Huaiyan’s gaze shifted slightly, his face indifferent as he looked at him.

The two of them had “survived” under the hands of the same devilish instructor. They had sweated and bled together, and Mo Jichen was not afraid of Lu Huaiyan in the slightest.

He shrugged and said, “I’ll have someone clean up the glass. But first, tell me about the kidnapping case from back then, so I don’t have to go and check the case files myself.”

“You won’t find anything,” Lu Huaiyan replied. “The Cen family never filed a report. As soon as Jiang Se was taken, the Cen family immediately contacted my grandfather. When Uncle Mo and I found Jiang Se, two of the kidnappers were already dead. They were killed by the mastermind of this kidnapping case, and later, that mastermind also died.”

Mo Jichen asked, “How did the mastermind die? Why did he kill the other two accomplices?”

“The mastermind was injured at the time. After Uncle Mo’s people brought him back to the police station, they discovered that he had swallowed a razor blade. By the time they got him to the hospital, it was too late to save him. As for why he killed the other accomplices…” Lu Huaiyan’s voice was cold, “He never explained, even before he died.”

Mo Jichen seemed to think for a moment, then asked, “Since the victim was successfully rescued, the mastermind wouldn’t necessarily get the death penalty, even if he was caught. Why did he choose to kill himself, especially in such a painful way by swallowing a razor blade?”

He stroked his chin thoughtfully for a while. “Did Miss Jiang mention any specific details?”

Since the kidnappers were dead, there was no need to investigate further.

To protect Jiang Se and the Cen family’s reputation, this kidnapping case had remained a secret in North City. Besides the Cen family, the only people who knew about it were Old Master Lu, Lu Huaiyan, and Mo Jichen’s father, Mo Xian.

Lu Huaiyan lowered his eyelids and glanced at the bloodstains on the ground. “No. She was kidnapped for less than a day. Other than some minor abrasions, she wasn’t harmed in any other way. She was discharged from the hospital after a few days, and then this incident was buried.”

The moment he finished speaking, the man recalled the cool sensation of Jiang Se gently sniffing his collar.

He frowned slightly and looked up at Mo Jichen. “The only reason I’m bringing this up is so that you can take over tonight’s case. But remember, don’t mention anything about seven years ago in front of her.”

When Jiang Se woke up, the sky had already brightened.

She grabbed her phone and saw that it was just past 10 AM. Although she had slept for less than five hours, she didn’t feel bad at all. In fact, she felt unexpectedly refreshed, with a surprising sense of clarity and energy.

She had thought she would definitely have a dream, that she would surely return to that abandoned factory.

But she didn’t dream at all.

After speaking with Lu Huaiyan, she almost immediately fell into a deep sleep as soon as she closed her eyes.

A whole night without dreams.

The room was filled with the scent of incense, the warm and rich aroma of sandalwood filling the air, even stronger than the scent of Lu Huaiyan’s own presence.

Jiang Se sat up in bed, burying her face in the soft blanket and taking a deep breath.

This was the unique sandalwood scent of the Lu family, the only warm tone that remained from that stormy night.

She had once had an almost obsessive fascination with this scent.

In the past, she often went to the old Lu family home, not just to win Old Master Lu’s favor or to see Lu Huaiyan, but also, to some extent, to experience this warm fragrance.

Later, she naturally rid herself of the obsession with the sandalwood scent.

But there was no denying that her body still remembered the fragrance.

Jiang Se raised her eyes and looked around. The clothes sent to her yesterday had already been washed, neatly folded at the bedside.

The clothes were the new autumn and winter collection from her usual luxury brand, in colors she liked.

She picked a green, round-neck dress, took off the men’s T-shirt she was wearing, and carried the clothes into the bathroom.

As the shower sprayed water, and the bathroom filled with white mist, she unexpectedly recalled the scene from last night, with Lu Huaiyan half-kneeling in front of her.

Looking down, she saw dark purple marks all over her body starting from her collarbone.

On the inside of her left thigh, there was a red mark, looking like a thumbprint.

Last night, he had gripped her right wrist with one hand and her left thigh with the other, the pressure so strong that this thumbprint was left behind.

Jiang Se licked her one and only wisdom tooth on the side of her mouth, unsurprised to find the gum behind it swollen.

Tch, barbarian.

After finishing her shower, Jiang Se walked out of the master bedroom while checking her phone.

After scanning through all the WeChat messages and deleting dozens of missed calls from Cen Mingshu and Cen Li, she had already reached the first floor.

Lu Huaiyan was sitting at the small dining table near the garden, still dressed in the shirt and trousers he had worn when he left last night. One hand rested casually on the touch screen of a laptop, while the other held a small palm-sized metal bottle of alcohol.

His two hands seemed remarkably skilled at doing different things at the same time.

Last night, and now, it was the same.

The man sat directly across from the staircase. As soon as Jiang Se came downstairs, he lifted his eyelids and looked at her, quietly watching her descend one step at a time, walking toward him.

Although they had just been intimate last night, neither of them showed any hint of awkwardness or discomfort.

Jiang Se had returned to her usual calm and graceful demeanor, her gaze toward him as cold and rational as before.

Everything that happened last night felt like a dream.

She didn’t act like a helpless little animal, sniffing his collar and asking him to take her away. He also didn’t do things in the dimly lit cloakroom that he had never done before.

“I’ve already made the black tea you like to drink after you wake up,” Lu Huaiyan lightly tilted his chin and gestured toward the kitchen counter. “I only added a piece of crushed rose rock sugar, no rose salt, and no lemon.”

When the assistant delivered the items, a smile appeared in Lu Huaiyan’s eyes, which had been tired from staying up all night.

This girl was really quite picky with her tastes.

She liked black tea, but at different times of the day, she wanted different flavors—truly a demanding person.

He wondered how she satisfied such a discerning palate in Tong City.

The fine china cup had a thin layer of mist rising from it. Jiang Se wasn’t surprised that he had learned about her preferences regarding food and drink. What she was curious about was who had made this tea.

She picked up the cup and took a sip. “Did you make this tea?”

Lu Huaiyan nodded. “How does it taste?”

“Very good, thank you,” Jiang Se said politely, her gaze sweeping over his computer. “Are you holding a morning meeting?”

“Watching surveillance footage,” Lu Huaiyan replied, uncapping the metal bottle and slowly taking a sip. “Mo Jichen sent me some interesting footage.”

He said it was interesting, but his eyes were cold, like ice cubes floating in strong liquor.

Jiang Se slowly stirred the crushed rock candy in her tea, and the reflection of her almond-shaped eyes in the deep red liquid began to swirl. “What kind of ‘interesting’ are you talking about?”

“Do you know the second-generation heirs of the Hu, Zhang, and Gu families?”

Jiang Se slowly raised her eyes. “Vaguely. If I’m not mistaken, I was in the same year as them in high school. Why? Did they mention me in the video?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, what did they say?”

Lu Huaiyan spoke slowly, his tone calm. “They said you were the first object of their sexual fantasies, and they were discussing how to win you over and get you into bed, to hear you moan on the bed.”

These people had been reckless in high school, living lives of indulgence and excess, so it wasn’t surprising that they would say such things. Jiang Se had guessed as much.

She drank two more sips of tea to soothe her throat, then walked over, picking up the high-backed chair to the left of Lu Huaiyan. Her gaze fixed on the laptop on the table.

“Do you mind if I listen for myself?”

Lu Huaiyan smiled, not at all surprised that she would ask such a thing.

He gently spun the computer, took off his wireless earbud from his right ear, leaned forward, and put the earbud in Jiang Se’s ear. “Feel free to listen.”

The surveillance footage on the screen was paused. Jiang Se thanked him, moved the progress bar back to the beginning, and pressed play.

To be honest, Lu Huaiyan’s description had been quite polite.

The men in the video spoke in vulgar terms, making crude remarks about her, commenting on everything from her hair to her feet.

Often, the worst rumors that could ruin a person were said by these vile people, but they always masked it with jokes.

Jiang Se listened attentively to every word, her eyelashes lowered in calm, her brows not even twitching.

Lu Huaiyan rested his chin on his hand, watching her, waiting for the progress bar to finish, and then asked leisurely, “Do you want to take it out on them?”

Jiang Se tilted her head slightly, took off the earbud, handed it back to him, and smiled faintly. “Not in a hurry. Maybe later.”

Right now, she had more important things to do. These scoundrels could be dealt with later.

Lu Huaiyan placed the earphones she handed him on the table and looked at her, saying lightly, “Why wait for later? There’s no need to wait.”

If it hadn’t been for encountering Ji Yunyi halfway yesterday, those people were actually planning to go to the pavilion to hit on Jiang Se.

Jiang Se met his gaze and smiled, changing the subject. “Apart from these surveillance videos, did Officer Mo find anything else?”

Lu Huaiyan glanced at her, adjusted the computer’s angle, closed the video, and opened a document from a folder.

“Mo Jichen said the triazolam you drank wasn’t directly put in the tea. It was dissolved in the rose rock candy,” Lu Huaiyan said as he opened a photo. “Not all the rose rock candies in the jar were contaminated. Only two of the remaining candies had the added substance, and the one in your tea was one of them. In total, there were three.”

The photo showed a dozen or so irregularly shaped rose rock candies. Jiang Se stared at the photo for a while before raising her hand and pointing at two of them. “Let me guess, is it these two?”

“Yes. There were many people who went in and out of the tea room that night, but the only ones who touched this jar of rose rock candy were your former housekeeper, Uncle Tong.” Lu Huaiyan glanced at her, and seeing her calm expression, he continued, “Mo Jichen asked Uncle Tong why he specifically picked a candy with the added substance. Do you want to guess what Uncle Tong said?”

“Because I don’t like rose petals floating in my tea,” Jiang Se said. “In this photo, only these two pieces of rock candy have no impurities.”

Jiang Se’s gaze moved from the computer screen to Lu Huaiyan. “The person who drugged me understands me well. They knew I would go to the pavilion, knew Aunt Zhang and Uncle Tong would come to see me, and even knew exactly what kind of tea Uncle Tong would brew for me. The moment I attended the dinner at the Cen family’s, it was impossible to avoid falling into this trap.”

Lu Huaiyan stared at her dark eyes.

It was true that Uncle Tong had said the same thing to Mo Jichen, that the young lady wouldn’t like rose petals in her tea.

Mo Jichen’s original words were nearly the same as Jiang Se’s. It seemed like someone who truly understood her habits had done this.

But Jiang Se’s tone was more certain than Mo Jichen’s.

Not only certain, but… excited?

Excited?

Lu Huaiyan’s gaze fixed on her as he asked in an indifferent tone, “Se Se, what are you excited about?”

Jiang Se’s expression froze for a moment. She glanced at him, then calmly replied, “Am I?”

Lu Huaiyan nodded slightly, a faint smile curling at the corner of his lips, his tone deliberately teasing as he said, “When you’re excited, your pupils shrink sharply. Just now, when you said the person who drugged you understands you well, your pupils contracted.”

“Se Se,” he said with a knowing look, “you’re excited.”

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