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Chapter 57: Were You Just Thinking Of Something Inappropriate?

After the Lunar New Year, Yu Shiying and Jiang Chuan quickly returned to their busy routines.

It wasn’t until February 28th that they finally hung a “Closed for the Day” sign and took Jiang Se with them to Shanghai to watch Jiang Ye’s competition.

It only took about two hours to drive from Tongcheng to Shanghai.

The three of them headed straight to the venue and met up with Jiang Tang.

The entire season would last more than a month, and since everyone had their own schedules, they had agreed that for Jiang Ye’s first match, the whole family must attend — the rest would be left to fate.

As Jiang Chuan put it, “Who knows how far Xiao Ye can make it? For all we know, the first match could be the end, and we’ll have to pack up and go home.”

The Jiang family had a special group chat called “Courtyard No. 48, Liyuan Street.”

Jiang Chuan had said those words directly in the family group chat, sparking a flood of voice messages from Jiang Ye, all frantically protesting.

Jiang Se wasn’t very familiar with the e-sports industry.

Back when she was in Beicheng, she had heard of a few rich heirs throwing money into running clubs and nurturing e-sports teams to compete.

Among them was that Gu family classmate who once shamelessly claimed he used her as a “fantasy object.”

Jiang Se glanced around but didn’t see his team’s logo anywhere.

She figured it must have already disbanded. The Gu family, along with the Zhang and Hu families, had been having a terrible two months. Repeated scandals about data fraud and product safety issues had surfaced. Banks that had originally agreed to provide loans withdrew their offers.

Once their cash flow broke down, their stock prices began to nosedive dramatically.

Last week, Jiang Se had sold off all her options investments, and her stock account balance multiplied several times as a result.

Guo Qian had mentioned more than once over the phone that Guo Song and the others were all guessing who exactly these families had offended.

“My brother said whoever’s behind this had definitely planned it long in advance. Otherwise, the timing wouldn’t have been so precise. The methods are ruthless too — they cut off every single escape route.”

Jiang Se not only knew who it was, she also knew why he had targeted those families.

Her tone was calm as she said, “Their products had issues to begin with. In the field of biomedical research, every piece of data must be authentic. They falsified data to boost their success rates and stock prices. Since they chose to plant that kind of hidden danger, it’s only right that they now swallow the consequences.”

Guo Qian said, “My brother said the person who exposed their data tampering must be from the biomedical field too. It’s just industry competition.”

Industry competition?

The Lu Group did operate a few specialized hospitals and affiliated research institutes focused on tackling rare diseases.

But those institutes were charitable in nature — their research findings were shared freely with the medical community, and they never sought profit.

It couldn’t really be considered competition. Still, thanks to Lu Huaiyan tripping them up, today Jiang Se didn’t have to run into anyone disgusting.

Thinking of this, Jiang Se took out her phone and sent a WeChat message to Lu Huaiyan:

[Thank you.]

Their seats had been specially reserved by Jiang Ye’s coach, arranged directly by the event organizers. They were right in front of the stage with a perfect view.

After sending the message, Jiang Se put her phone back into her pocket and began quietly observing the stage below.

Several young girls were seated in the row in front of them, clearly e-sports fans. They waved small colorful flags printed with the logo of Jiang Ye’s team.

A girl with a high ponytail shook her flag excitedly and said to her friend, “Did you see Xiao Ye’s interview a few days ago?”

“Yeah! The reporter asked him what he would do if he won the championship. He said he already discussed it with his family — he’s going to buy a luxury car for his sister first!”

“I saw it too! Isn’t Xiao Ye just the sweetest? I wish I could be his sister!”

Jiang Ye was the ace of their team and had always been very popular.

Part of it was his skill; the other part was his face.

A good-looking, highly skilled, and sweet young man — it was hard not to like him.

He had especially many “big sister fans.”

The interview they mentioned was something neither Jiang Se nor Jiang Tang had watched, but they both knew Jiang Ye was referring to Jiang Se.

In their family, Jiang Ye was the one who most disliked her little electric car.

After entering the venue, Jiang Tang had removed her mask.

Hearing the girls in front competing to be Jiang Ye’s “sister,” she chuckled and said to Jiang Se, “Quite a few people envy us, huh?”

Thinking of the boy who once solemnly promised to earn lots of money for her, Jiang Se’s eyes curved into a smile as well.

“It really is a blessing to be Xiao Ye’s sister. I don’t blame them for being envious.”

Just then, her phone vibrated again — a new WeChat voice message had come in.

The venue was extremely noisy. Jiang Se lowered her eyes for a glance, took out her earphones, and put them on. Soon, she heard Lu Huaiyan’s low, magnetic voice in her ears: “Thank me for what?”

He had been quite busy these past few days while in Hong Kong, but he still made sure to call her every day — sometimes they would chat for half an hour if he had time; when things were tight, it might just be a few minutes before he hurriedly hung up.

Today, he was supposed to fly back to Beicheng.

Jiang Se glanced at the time.

He should still be on the plane right now.

As she was thinking this, the lights in the venue suddenly dimmed. A burst of intense, passionate music erupted, and the players from both teams began making their entrance one by one.

At a glance, Jiang Se spotted Jiang Ye.

She hurriedly took off her earphones and tucked her phone back into her pocket, ready to watch the match seriously.

The seat immediately to her left was empty, but a little further left, someone was already seated.

Resting her hand lightly on the armrest, she furrowed her brows slightly and looked at the big screen, listening carefully to the host explaining the rules. At that moment, from the corner of her eye, she saw the person sitting across the empty seat suddenly stand up.

Someone was approaching.

With a faint “squeak” of the chair, that person sat down in the empty seat beside her — and very naturally reached out and held her hand.

It was that familiar interlocking grip, fingers tightly intertwined.

When their hands locked together, he habitually rubbed his thumb against the delicate skin between her thumb and forefinger. The moment her skin felt the slight roughness of his fingertips, Jiang Se froze.

For no reason, she thought of a Republican-era drama she had watched as a child.

In it, on the day of the protagonists’ wedding, the bride was blindfolded and asked to recognize her groom by touch among a group of men.

After holding hand after hand, the moment the groom’s hand reached hers, she immediately recognized it as him.

Right now, in the dimly lit audience seating, the instant Lu Huaiyan held her hand, she didn’t even need to look — she knew it was him.

She knew the thin calluses on his fingertips too well.

Jiang Se turned her head to look at him.

He was already looking at her.

That same deep, chiseled face, his whole cold and aloof aura softened slightly by the faint smile in his eyes and at the corners of his lips.

Jiang Se blinked, opened her mouth to ask why he was here — but the words stopped at her lips.

There was no need to ask.

He hadn’t come to watch Xiao Ye’s match.

He had come for her.

Last night during their call, she had casually mentioned she would be coming to watch the match today.

The man gently squeezed her fingertips. The smile in his eyes deepened even more, as if he was silently asking her: “Are you stunned, my princess?”

Jiang Se calmly looked away, turning her head back to focus on the match.

But she let him keep holding her hand.

The match lasted almost an hour, and they stayed like that — hands clasped — the entire time. The venue was crowded and stuffy, and by the end, Jiang Se’s palm was a little damp and sticky.

Jiang Ye’s team won the match.

The girls in front of them were so excited they waved their flags and kept shouting “Xiao Ye!” over and over.

The whole venue erupted in cheers.

Lu Huaiyan gently squeezed Jiang Se’s fingertips again. When she turned to look at him, he leaned over and whispered softly in her ear: “I’m heading to the airport now.”

Jiang Se’s gaze paused.

There were direct flights from Hong Kong to Beicheng — yet he had purposely made a stopover in Shanghai, just to spend two hours with her watching Xiao Ye’s match?

She gave a barely audible hum of acknowledgment.

Perhaps he really was in a rush—Lu Huaiyan merely brushed a kiss on the back of her hand, light as a dragonfly skimming the surface, before letting go and walking out through the narrow aisle.

The room, already buzzing, exploded with excitement the moment his figure disappeared.

Jiang Se slowly withdrew her gaze.

The back of her hand, where he’d kissed her, still tingled faintly.

—

After the match, the five of them picked a restaurant in Shanghai and had a big meal together.

Once the meal was over, Jiang Ye returned to the hotel to prepare for the next match, and Jiang Tang got in the assistant’s car to head back to Pingcheng.

Jiang Se returned to Tongcheng with Jiang Chuan and Yu Shiying.

March was just around the corner. After a spell of cold spring weather, the city began to show signs of renewed life, and the temperature grew warmer day by day.

That night, just after returning to her apartment, Jiang Se received a call from Zheng Huan, who said she had found the owner of the brewery.

“A woman in her early fifties, named Tian Xiangyi. She’s a widow. The brewery originally belonged to her husband, Shen Qiang—he was the one who acquired the place. Three years ago, after Shen Qiang died, Tian Xiangyi took over. The couple weren’t locals; they followed Shen Qiang’s older sister, Shen Su, to Bai County. The previous owner of the brewery, Lian Shen, was Shen Su’s lover. People in that area say when Shen Su was with Lian Shen, she also had a child in tow—a burden.”

Jiang Se’s eyes flickered. “A burden?”

“Shen Su’s son, Shen Tuo. Uncle Mo took the photo you gave him and asked some old residents near the brewery. While they couldn’t be certain, the young man in the photo is very likely Shen Tuo. Thirteen years ago, someone came and took Shen Tuo away. He never returned. He was sixteen then, which matches both his age and appearance. That same year, Shen Qiang suddenly came into money and acquired the brewery.”

Uncle Mo was a retired police detective with years of investigative experience.

If he said it was likely, then it was close to certain.

Jiang Se asked, “Has Uncle Mo looked into Lian Shen’s case?”

“He has,” Zheng Huan replied.

“Lian Shen was a heavy alcoholic. When he wasn’t drinking, he was normal, but once he started, he became a brute. During those years with him, Shen Su was frequently beaten—it wasn’t even a secret in the area. Lian Shen once got so drunk he nearly drowned in a pond. When the police responded, they ruled it an accidental drowning. There are very few case files. Uncle Mo says we won’t get much unless we can find an eyewitness to prove it wasn’t an accident.”

“Where’s Shen Su now?”

“Dead. She died of illness a year before Lian Shen’s accident.”

Jiang Se wasn’t surprised by the news of Shen Su’s death.

“What about Zhao Zhi? Any leads on him?”

“He’s actually harder to track. He only worked at the brewery for a few months before leaving. In Bai County, a lot of outsiders come and go every year. Even if some locals remember the name Zhao Zhi, they don’t recall his face. Uncle Mo is currently trying to track down former employees from fifteen years ago. If we can find someone who worked with him, we can confirm whether Zhao Zhi is really Zhao Zhicheng.”

Zhao Zhicheng was different from Shen Su and her son, Fu Yun.

If Old Master Fu had taken notice, then even without knowing what Shen Su looked like, Jiang Se could guess she must have been a beauty. Fu Yun was also handsome—such a mother and son duo would naturally draw attention.

But Zhao Zhicheng had a plain appearance and was quiet and reserved.

If he really had only worked at the brewery for a few months, it was understandable that no one would remember much about him.

Jiang Se narrowed her eyes slightly. 

“If Tian Xiangyi is Fu Yun’s aunt, can we get anything from her?”

“Uncle Mo said she appears very honest—actually, more like extremely timid. She and Shen Qiang have a daughter who’s currently in high school. Her entire life revolves around her daughter. The brewery isn’t doing well, but she doesn’t seem short on money. I suspect her wealthy nephew has been supporting them. Because of this, we haven’t approached her. If Fu Yun really is who we think he is, even the slightest disturbance on Tian Xiangyi’s end could alert him that someone is investigating him.”

Jiang Se responded with a faint “mm.”

Ten years ago, Fu Yun was nineteen and attending university in Beicheng, chauffeured daily by the Fu family’s driver.

With Old Master Fu’s strict ways, sneaking out of Beicheng wouldn’t have been easy for Fu Yun at the time.

The incident in Rongcheng—very likely, Shen Qiang had handled it on his behalf.

And unfortunately… Shen Qiang was dead.

Zheng Huan had clearly thought of this too: “Ten years ago, regarding that case, we never managed to find out who the mysterious client was behind that large order, right? Now we might have a new lead—Shen Qiang.”

Jiang Se made a small sound of acknowledgment, licked the corner of her lips, and asked the final question of the night: “How did Shen Qiang die three years ago? Was it another ‘accident’?”

Zheng Huan gave a strange laugh.

“Exactly what you guessed—an accident.”

—

By the time she finished the call with Zheng Huan, it was already past midnight.

March had arrived.

Jiang Se couldn’t sleep.

There were dozens of unread messages in the family group chat, mostly red envelopes sent by Jiang Chuan and Yu Shiying.

Every time they said it was a race to grab them, but they always set it to only three recipients—ensuring that the three siblings would each get one.

She clicked in and read through each message, opening the red envelopes one by one.

Just as she exited the group chat and was about to open Lu Huaiyan’s conversation, she noticed he had also sent an unread message.

It was right then that a call came in.

Seeing the name on the screen, Jiang Se couldn’t help but wonder if he was calling to “demand an explanation” for her ignoring him.

She already had a good guess what that unread message was: probably telling her he’d arrived in Beicheng.

Jiang Se answered the call, and before she could say anything, she heard him ask, “Too excited to sleep after winning the match?”

He was talking about Jiang Ye’s match.

Jiang Se responded vaguely, “Why did you go watch Xiao Ye’s match?”

“Yesterday when we spoke on the phone, you mentioned twice that you were going to Shanghai to watch him play—you sounded quite excited,” Lu Huaiyan said lazily, “So I thought I’d come along to keep you company.”

His voice was a little hoarse—low and deep—as if it had been ground through gravel.

Jiang Se knew this particular tone came out of him only under two conditions.

She lowered her eyes slightly.

“You’ve been drinking?”

Lu Huaiyan chuckled softly.

“You can even tell that? Yeah, how could I come back here and not have a drink? But don’t worry, princess, I’m not drunk.”

Though he said he wasn’t drunk, he was clearly a bit tipsy.

The man switched on the walk-in closet’s wall light, slowly walking in while tugging at his tie and undoing his shirt buttons.

The line was so quiet that besides each other’s soft breathing, there was only the faint rustling of his movements. Jiang Se heard the click of a belt unfastening and the friction of a zipper being pulled down—and only then realized he was undressing.

The sounds were far too familiar.

She had personally undone those clothes before.

She paused, then asked, “Lu Huaiyan, are you changing clothes?”

“Yeah. I picked up a scent I don’t like at the dinner party,” Lu Huaiyan said, tossing the perfumed shirt aside and slowly pulling on a cashmere sweater.

“I’ll let you listen to something fun in a bit.”

“…”

Jiang Se stayed silent for a moment and asked, “What are you planning to let me hear?”

Lu Huaiyan laughed again, as if reading her mind: “Were you just thinking something inappropriate?”

Jiang Se didn’t respond.

Lu Huaiyan continued, “Were you thinking I got drunk, got aroused, and now I’m hiding in the closet wanting to have some phone s*x with you?”

Jiang Se: ”…”

“It’s not that I wouldn’t,” he said lightly. “Does the princess want it?”

“Lu Huaiyan.”

Lu Huaiyan didn’t tease her further.

He pulled on a coat and left the room, strolling leisurely through the first floor’s back door toward the glass conservatory where Old Master Lu kept his birds.

The purple-blue parrot that Old Master Lu treasured was almost asleep but snapped awake the moment it heard someone coming in, fixing its sharp gaze on the intruder.

The old man’s collection of little animals were all ridiculously clever—none of them were the least bit afraid of Lu Huaiyan.

The parrot, considered quite majestic among parrots, flapped its wings flatteringly the moment it caught his familiar scent.

Lu Huaiyan put the call on speaker and said to Jiang Se, “Say the name ‘Fu Jingyao’.”

Fu Jingyao was the name of Old Master Fu.

Before Jiang Se could say anything, the purple-blue parrot had already launched into an excited tirade: “Shameless old man! Hypocrite! King of nonsense!”

Jiang Se: ”…”

He had actually called her just to make her listen to a bird scold Old Master Fu in the middle of the night?

The corners of Jiang Se’s mouth curved up slightly as she said, “Lu Huaiyan, do you ever get tired of being so childish?”

Her voice was still on speaker.

The moment she said “Lu Huaiyan,” the purple-blue parrot piped up again: “Little wolf cub! Devil little wolf cub!”

Jiang Se let out a soft laugh.

“Does Grandpa Lu’s parrot know how to say anything other than insults?”

Lu Huaiyan pulled out a rattan chair, lazily sitting down with his legs stretched out.

“I’m about to start teaching it how to compliment people,” he said, utterly at ease. “When it hears your name, how do you want it to praise you?”

“Let me think,” he leaned lazily back against the chair, his gaze drifting across the transparent glass ceiling toward the sickle-shaped moon in the night sky.

He spoke slowly and unhurriedly: “Heartless young lady? Ungrateful young lady? Grumpy girl? The grumpy girl who can’t be bothered to respond to people—which one do you like?”

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