Chapter 65: Their Ending Has Nothing To Do With Others

When the man asked that question, Jiang Se was trembling and panting in his arms, his words brushing past her ear, but she didn’t register them at all.

It was only after everything was over, when he held her and relentlessly asked again, “Are you mad at me?” that she finally heard him.

This time, Jiang Se paused, momentarily stunned.

She had indeed been a little upset just now.

Not because of the photo of him with Guan Jiayi, but because of that video, because of the song he played.

She wasn’t just upset with him—she was also a little upset with herself.

Today, Guo Qian had said that she wasn’t seriously in love with Lu Huaiyan.

Maybe that was true.

From the start, she had never planned for any kind of future with him, always maintaining a “take it as it comes” attitude.

Later, Guo Qian asked her, “So when does it end for you two?”

Jiang Se had never thought about this question, but deep down, she always had a clear answer.

She told Guo Qian, “I’ll know when that day comes.”

Perhaps because she understood Jiang Se’s stance, Guo Qian didn’t bring up Guan Jiayi or Lu Huaiyan again.

She was WeChat friends with the Guan siblings and followed them on social media.

To make her position clear, after their call, Guo Qian unfollowed everyone from the Guan family and even sent Jiang Se a screenshot, making her both amused and exasperated.

Between her and Lu Huaiyan, there was never room for a third person.

Their ending, whatever it might be, had nothing to do with others.

Seeing her stay silent, Lu Huaiyan flicked on a bedside lamp, tilted her chin, and looked into her eyes. “Tell me clearly what you’re mad about, so I don’t have to deal with you bringing up old grudges later.”

They were sweaty and clinging to each other, sticky and warm. Jiang Se lowered her gaze and licked her lips. “I’m not mad.”

She pushed at him, impatient. “Get off already.”

Lu Huaiyan didn’t move. He leaned down to lick the blood on her lips and said, “You bit me so hard—really not mad?”

His breathing was uneven, hot and damp against her lips. Jiang Se blinked and said, “You hurt me just now.”

That excuse always worked in moments like this.

The man laughed. “Getting more delicate, huh? Do you know how much I was holding back? I didn’t even use a tenth of my strength.”

He paused, studied her for a moment, then kissed her cheek firmly. “Alright, I’ll be gentler next time.”

Jiang Se closed her eyes and gave a soft “mm.”

—

Zheng Huan had returned to Beicheng a few days early, and Jiang Se went straight to her studio to meet her.

Calling it a studio was generous—it was more like a shabby, rundown basement.

The air was thick with the musty smell of a place that hadn’t seen sunlight in ages.

“Uncle Mo and the others are still in Bo County. They won’t be back until the end of the month as planned,” Zheng Huan said.

She pulled a pack of cigarettes from the pocket of her jacket, intending to light one, but remembering Jiang Se’s dislike for smoke, she pushed it back and popped a mint candy into her mouth instead.

“The crash site in Fu Jun’s case did show signs of skidding, and the dump truck driver had indeed been driving fatigued for two days. It really does look like an accident. But I found something interesting.” Zheng Huan opened a document on her phone and showed it to Jiang Se. “This is the medical record of the driver’s daughter, twelve years old, with a heart condition. A month before the crash, the girl was on the verge of death because they couldn’t find a matching heart, and the family had no money. Guess what happened?”

Jiang Se sipped her coffee and said calmly, “After Fu Jun’s death, she miraculously found a matching heart, and a kind soul donated money to save her life. Right?”

Zheng Huan, chewing her mint, snapped her fingers. “Close, but not quite. The heart transplant happened a few days before the crash. The girl survived, and the driver probably went to his death with some sense of relief.”

“Can you trace who donated the money?”

“The girl was already on a charity list, but there was a glitch with the paperwork, so the family wasn’t notified. Quite the coincidence, huh?” Zheng Huan said. “If that information gap was deliberately created by Fu Yun, he sure knows how to exploit the despair of poor families. Because of that small discrepancy, the driver thought his daughter had missed her chance and willingly went to his death. Before leaving, he even told the girl, ‘Daddy’s going on a long trip, so listen to your mom.’”

The tragedies of poor families often come down to money. A single serious illness can destroy a struggling household.

“Did the driver ever meet Fu Yun?”

“No clue. The guy’s dead, so even if they met, there’s no proof. From the driver’s call records and statements from people around him, there’s no connection to Fu Yun.”

Old Master Fu had investigated the crash for over six months without finding any leads. Three years later, digging up new clues was predictably difficult.

“This guy’s clever,” Zheng Huan said. “From a nobody in a small county to the heir of a major conglomerate. So many cases, and he’s managed to keep himself squeaky clean. Uncle Mo says he moves through the jungle of crime effortlessly, never getting a speck of dirt on him.”

Zheng Huan leaned back, a cold smirk tugging at her lips. “I heard his old man’s about to kick the bucket? Tsk, he’s set to inherit billions. Probably won’t risk killing again.”

Her words hung in the air, and both fell silent.

After a moment, Jiang Se set her coffee down and showed Zheng Huan the list Mo Jichen had sent her, mentioning the matter with Butler Yu.

“Butler Yu only passes messages, so he probably doesn’t know much,” Jiang Se said. “But Zhu Mingli definitely knows a lot about Fu Yun’s affairs.”

Zheng Huan stared at the list and suddenly asked, “This came from Captain Mo Jichen at the criminal investigation team?”

Jiang Se glanced at her. “You know Officer Mo?”

Zheng Huan smiled, her nicotine craving kicking in again. She popped another mint instead.

“Know him? He was my senior in college. When I was interning, I helped him crack a case. He’s been investigating a massacre case recently, so for him to find time to dig up these two lists for you is pretty efficient. Still, I’m better. His list only covers purchases from two months before New Year’s Eve. I got the full list from June to December last year.”

She pulled out her own list, circling a name with a pen. “This is the Zhu family’s butler. On September 7 last year, he personally bought a batch of rose rock candy.”

September 7.

On September 7 last year, Jiang Se had already reclaimed her original surname, completely cutting ties with the Cen family.

She had also ended her engagement with Fu Yun and was about to leave Beicheng for Tongcheng.

Had Zhu Mingli been preparing that jar of rock candy since then?

Cen Yu had said Zhu Mingli was constantly stirring trouble between her and Cen Yu, trying to use Cen Yu to keep Jiang Se from returning to Beicheng and the Cen family.

Jiang Se stared at the name circled in red. “She’s afraid of me coming back to the Cen family.”

Everyone thought she couldn’t bear to leave the Cen family.

At the Cen family’s New Year’s Eve banquet, Zhu Mingli assumed Jiang Se wanted to return, so she drugged her.

That night, if Jiang Se hadn’t noticed in time, if someone with ulterior motives had found her first, she might have been utterly ruined.

But that night, when Lu Huaiyan knocked on her door, her phone had rung.

Fu Yun had called her.

If Lu Huaiyan hadn’t shown up that day, if she had answered the call, would Fu Yun have been the one to find her?

Did Zhu Mingli know Fu Yun was also looking for her?

Jiang Se’s gaze lingered thoughtfully before she slid a book from Dr. Gina across the table to Zheng Huan. “Dr. Gina asked me to give you this. She says you should visit her for treatment when you have time.”

Zheng Huan glanced at the author’s name on the book and smiled. “This is Gina’s mentor, a titan in criminal psychology. I wrote to him for a year once.”

She looked up at Jiang Se. “I’m not getting treatment. Like you, I won’t heal until we catch that person. Five years ago, I took your case because you and I have the same look in our eyes—do or die.”

Jiang Se wasn’t surprised. She smiled. “Then don’t.”

She picked up her coffee and stood. “When Uncle Mo gets back, remind him to bring me two cans of Jiashi Brewery beer.”

Zheng Huan raised an eyebrow. “What, you’re drinking now?”

Jiang Se nodded. “With someone else.”

Zheng Huan didn’t ask who. She nodded briskly. “Alright, I’ll have Uncle Mo bring you a dozen.”

—

Leaving Zheng Huan’s dim, damp studio, Jiang Se looked up at the clear, mirror-like sky and let out a slow breath.

She pulled out her phone.

In the half-month since returning to Beicheng, her phone had been flooded with messages every day.

From Jiang Chuan and Yu Shiying, Jiang Ye and Jiang Tang, Zhang Yue and He Miao, her aunt and Guo Qian, and Cen Li.

Cen Li had returned to Australia shortly after the Spring Festival. Somehow, he heard she was back in Beicheng and had been calling and texting her incessantly.

Jiang Se didn’t answer his calls, only occasionally replying to one or two of his WeChat messages.

She told him she was back in Beicheng for treatment.

The night she sent that message, Cen Li called her over ten times.

When she refused to pick up, he sent her a WeChat message: 

[Se Se, please don’t be mad at your brother anymore, okay?]

Jiang Se never replied to that message.

Back at Xinhe Mansion, she dug a piece of building block from a tin box.

It was the only thing she had taken from the residence that was related to Cen Li when she left last year.

The half-person-high castle at the residence was a gift from Cen Li. The siblings had built it together, piece by piece.

When it was finished, Cen Li had patted her head and said, “Our Se Se will always be the princess living in a castle.”

The building block in her hand was a long piece. Jiang Se toyed with it for a moment before tossing it back into the tin box.

Now wasn’t the time to use that piece.

As April approached, the late spring chill passed, and the weather grew warmer by the day.

Lu Huaiyan hadn’t been to Xinhe Mansion these past few days. The Guan brothers had arrived in Beicheng earlier, and with the collaboration between two major families from the north and south, it was no small affair. Work often kept him busy until late at night.

Jiang Se received his messages several times in the middle of the night.

Usually, they were voice messages, his low voice tinged with alcohol as he spoke to her.

They were mundane, everyday things.

Asking if she’d eaten the food he had sent over, if she’d gone out that day, or if she wanted him to bring Garo over for her to play with.

When she replied in the middle of the night, he’d call her right away, sitting in his car, chuckling as he asked if she couldn’t sleep well because he wasn’t there.

In the days he was absent, Jiang Se indeed slept poorly in the latter half of the night, often waking up.

He’d stay on the phone with her, talking until she fell asleep before hanging up.

That evening, Lu Huaiyan still didn’t come to Xinhe Mansion. He had the housekeeper deliver a small bowl of bird’s nest soup and left her a WeChat message, saying he’d come see her tomorrow night.

The housekeeper said, “Young Master Lu wanted to bring the bird’s nest soup himself, but Old Master Lu called him away at the last minute, so he sent me instead. Eat it while it’s hot.”

Jiang Se didn’t have much of an appetite. The bowl was small, just the right amount for her to finish in one sitting.

She didn’t ask what Old Master Lu wanted with Lu Huaiyan. After eating, she replied with a simple “Okay.”

That night, the lights at the Lu family’s old residence stayed on all night.

Jiang Se had no idea.

The next day at noon, when she hadn’t received a message from Lu Huaiyan, she started to sense something was off.

Every morning, he would say, “Good morning, my lady.”

Even when he wasn’t by her side, he’d send a lazy voice message on WeChat to greet her.

Missing it suddenly one day felt strange.

Habits formed unconsciously like this were the most dangerous.

She had picked up plenty of habits because of him.

Some were deliberate on his part, others were the subtle result of time and routine.

She didn’t want to overthink a delayed “good morning.” Just as she was about to set her phone down, the screen lit up.

It was a WeChat message from He Miao: 

[Miss Jiang, something’s happened to Master…]

Previous

Next