Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
“Master Jiang,” squeaked Ah Wan timidly.
He sniffed loudly. It sounded as though he had caught a cold that night.
“What’s the matter, you found out anything, Ah Wan?”
Ah Wan turned toward his young master. With a serious look on his face, he said, “That Z-person seems to have fallen for you, Big Boss.” No doubt, she was a scoundrel through and through.
He felt that the rest of the information he discovered should be best discussed with Jiang Zhi in private.
Qiao Nanchu raised his eyebrows and chuckled. “And what led you to that conclusion?”
Thinking back to what had happened just now, a slightly annoyed expression appeared on Ah Wan’s face. “She took off my coat and placed it over Big Boss.” This professional runner must’ve been a b*tch in heat, blatantly discriminating against non-attractive people!
At that moment, the young master shot a cold glare at Ah Wan. However, due to his sickly condition, Jiang Zhi unconsciously tilted his head to one side, making him appear even cuter despite his angered expression.
“Get out.”
“Okay.” Ah Wan turned around and left the room, full of hesitation in his every move.
At ground zero, the clouds in the sky had long scattered, exposing the pointy crescent shining down dimly from the heavens above.
Zhou Xufang made it safely back to her home in Yuquan Bay. After changing into her indoor clothes, she applied some medication to her wounds before retrieving two cold cans of milk from the fridge. Waiting for her on the computer screen was Spongebob, Shuang Jiang’s avatar.
“Is the injury on your shoulder serious?”
Zhou Xufang pressed around her shoulder and swung it around a few times. “It’s fine already,” she confirmed.
Outside their mission, Shuang Jiang stopped using the voice-alteration software when communicating with Xufang. She switched back to the good ol’ reliable keyboard to convey her message. “It’s safer if you applied some medication.”
“I did that.” She pulled open the tab of the can. “Used two bottles of medicinal wine.”
Her regenerative ability far exceeded that of regular humans by almost eighty times. Naturally, the medicine used by regular humans wasn’t suitable for her. In comparison to regular people who required just a single pill whenever they caught a cold, Xufang needed almost half a bowl full of pills.
“Ah Fang.” These words remained on her screen for quite a while before another line of words popped up. “Are you feeling a bit weaker?”
She took a sip of milk. “Yeah.”
Shuang Jiang did not ask any more questions about her condition. Instead, she sent a handful of warning icons in succession. “Don’t tell me nor anybody else about this. No one should know about this.”
“Right.”
Her regenerative abilities were too good owing to her unique constitution. If people in the medical field knew about her existence, the somewhat tranquil life she had would undoubtedly come to an end…The milk tasted exceptionally good that night. One was simply not enough, so she cracked open another.
“I’ve already installed a bug near Zhou Qingrang’s place. There are policemen standing guard there too. Tian Xing’s men shouldn’t be able to bother him any further. For the time being, we don’t need to dirty our hands with this matter. I’m concerned about our safety.” Shuang Jiang then reminded her. “The Crime Investigation Bureau have already got their eyes on you.”
Zhou Xufang nodded silently, popping a marshmallow into her mouth from time to time while enjoying her milk. Her mood tonight wasn’t too bad. She swung her legs playfully, accidentally kicking one of her pink rabbit slippers underneath the table.
Something unexpected seemed to have floated into Shuang Jiang’s mind. “Who was the person you bumped into earlier?”
“He’s Jiang Zhi.”
‘Jiang Zhi?’
Shuang Jiang knew a little about the man. She knew that Zhou Xufang had met him several times after abducting him in one of her missions. “Are you familiar with him?”
Zhou Xufang put down the box of marshmallows. This particular brand tasted a bit too greasy…the one she used to buy was far better in every aspect.
“Not really.” She replied before finishing what was left in the can. “But I find him really attractive.”
Shuang Jiang replied with a smiling emoji. “Ah Fang. If you manage to get a sweetheart in the future, would you settle down with him at Moonlight Bay?”
‘Sweetheart?’
There was virtually nothing on that deserted island. Definitely not a good place to live on especially with the person in her mind.
As such, Zhou Xufang decided. “I’ll only bring a dog with me.”
Moonlight Bay was a deserted island somewhere beyond their nation’s territory. From what she had heard, the place was the closest point on Earth to the moon. Surrounded by water in every direction, Zhou Xufang planned to purchase the entire island once she got herself enough capital. Then, she would live out the rest of her life in isolation there. The island provided unrestricted access to both land and water which was suited to her abilities as she could live in either. She would be able to hide in the sea whenever people came. In this regard, a big city like the imperial capital was an unsuitable place for her to live in due to its layout.
She could also have a pet dog on the island. If she tried, she may even be able to pull off a duck farm there. Another human, on the other hand, might just be a tad too troublesome.
“Someone’s tracing my IP address, gotta go now!” Shuang Jiang typed.
“Right.”
At the headquarters of the Crime Investigation Bureau, the lights were still on despite the time.
It was already deep into the night, but several technicians remained in their workspace, all because of the incident involving Tian Xing, the shady entertainment company.
“Team Qiao,” Yu Fang pushed his glasses up his nose. “I’ve got the address.”
Qiao Nanchu walked up to the computer’s monitor. “Where is it?”
“Jiang Feng Mansion, Block 7, Room 208.”
Qiao Nanchu laughed. He pulled out a cigarette from the box on his table. Pulling over a chair to sit on, he lit up the cigarette. Drawing in a puff of smoke, his hair seemed slightly messy under the ceiling lights. “Jiang Feng Mansion, Block 7, Room 208.” Licking his lips, he said, “That’s where I live.”
“…”
They had gotten punked by this Shuang Jiang fella again!
It was close to an hour past midnight when Qiao Nanchu finally made it back to Jiang Feng Mansion.
The security officer working the night shift was woken up by the sound of Nanchu’s car. He then hurried over to open his door. “It’s pretty late innit, Mister Qiao?”
“Yep.” He replied as he got down from the patrol car. Qiao Nanchu said something to his colleague in the car and with a pack of cigarettes in hand, he entered the villa area.
“Oh right.” The security officer seemed to have remembered something urgent. “The lady who came looking for you last week came over again at noon.”
Qiao Nanchu inhaled a mouthful of smoke from his cigarette. “Did she leave a message?”
“No. She left a carton of eggs here, though.” The officer went into his cubicle and retrieved exactly that. “She said these were farm-fresh eggs from her home.”
An envelope was pasted on top of the case.
Qiao Nanchu pulled the envelope off and opened it. Tucked inside was a piece of paper made specifically for letter-writing, the sort you’d find back in the 80s or even 70s. He unfolded the paper to find three lines written across, the handwriting appeared neat and pleasant to read.
“Dear Mister Qiao,
I wish you good health and prosperity.
Yours truly.”
‘Yours truly?’
Qiao Nanchu grinned.
“Your girlfriend, Mister Qiao?” Having worked at the Jiang Feng Mansion for several years now, the old man had never seen Mister Qiao bring back any women. Mister Qiao was blessed with good looks and the car he drove was pretty expensive. Quite a handful of single women living there had their eyes on him but never once did Mister Qiao speak to them. Perhaps that was because he already had a girl with him.
“Not a girlfriend.” Qiao Nanchu tossed the letter back into the carton of eggs. “A student whom I’m funding.”
The next day.
It was still early in the morning when Ah Wan brought some soup over to Jiang Zhi’s ward. The young master had just woken up. Judging from his face, it was likely that he hadn’t had a good night’s sleep yesterday. He wore a lethargic look on his face, almost as if his soul had escaped through his mouth.
Ah Wan placed the thermo-insulated container down, his eyes shifting over to the phone on the table.
“Boss, the screen protector of your phone was busted.” Ah Wan’s cold was still around. As the young master’s condition made him extra-susceptible to such diseases, he made sure to wear a surgical mask to prevent infecting Jiang Zhi. “Should I get you a new one?”
“Leave it be.”
“Oh.”
Ah Wan still felt a pain in his side. The injury had happened the night before but the real pain had only set in when he woke up this morning. He grabbed a chair nearby to sit down before twisting open the lid of the thermos.
The smell quickly spread throughout the room. With furrowed brows, Jiang Zhi asked, “Chicken soup?”
“Uh-huh.” Ah Wan wasn’t asking for any credit though. “My mom heard that you were hospitalized. She got up extra early today and added lots of medicinal herbs. It’ll help you get your strength back. I drank a tiny bit too just now. It’s not too overwhelming in taste, you’d like it I think.”
He drank just a tiny bit because momma had stopped him from finishing the entire thing by himself.
Ever since Jiang Zhi had paid for his mother’s kidney transplant two years ago, she had started treating the young master as her own son. The lady would always save whatever tasty morsel she came across just for Jiang Zhi. Yesterday, when she heard that the man was hospitalized, she even lectured Ah Wan 30 minutes straight for letting his guard down when it was his job to protect Jiang Zhi. She even went as far as to call him a pinhead and all sorts of other nasty names.
Ah Wan had been scolded to the point where he started doubting whether or not he really was her true son.
“You butchered that chicken?” Jiang Zhi’s sleepy look faded away.
“No. My mom bought an old hen for this.” Ah Wan explained.
Mumbling a response, Jiang Zhi stretched out a delicate arm. “Pour a bowl for me then. I just want the soup, no meat.”
“Okay.”
Jiang Zhi was discharged that evening. Ah Wan was waiting patiently with a car at the entrance for the young master. Because of the incident yesterday, Jiang Zhi only gave him nasty looks the entire time. His expression was dark, like rain clouds that covered up the entire sky just before a rainstorm.
Their car headed in the direction of Bayi Bridge.
The man in the backseat who was originally resting his eyes got up and ordered, “Find a parking spot.”
Ah Wan stepped on the brakes. Turning around to look at the young master triggered the pain in his side. “What are ya’ gonna do? I’ll do it for you, boss.”
“Wait for me in the car.”
Jiang Zhi got out of the car after saying that.
Around that time, the area underneath Bayi Bridge was packed with stalls, selling everything you could ask for. The square opposite the marketplace was blaring out noisy dance music with its broken speakers, nearly triggering a migraine in Jiang Zhi’s head.
Jiang Zhi impatiently walked around the marketplace for a while before pausing in his tracks. Why was he here? His fingers brushed across the cracks on the screen of his phone. Right, he needed a new screen-protector.
He walked to the front of a random stall. “Where is Zhou Xufang’s stall?”
Right on the spot where Zhou Xufang would frequently set up her stall was a man in his forties. He was hungrily digging into a box of fried noodles when Jiang Zhi approached him. Wiping off a bunch of sweat from his forehead, he peered up at the passerby who had spoken to him.
His eyes were met with two arching brows that looked like streaks of smoke. Moving his line of sight downward, he locked gazes with a pair of eyes teeming with inexplicable emotions…Godd*mn! For a man, he sure looked d*mn fine!
The middle-aged man looked at him longer than you normally would at a stranger before asking, “Who is Zhou Xufang?”
There were many visitors underneath the bridge tonight, squeezing past each other like salmon up a river come mating season. Quite a number of street food stalls were set up alongside the walkway, filling the air with a myriad of different smells. Jiang Zhi pulled out his handkerchief to cover his mouth as he coughed. Finally arriving at a more secluded area, he explained, “The one selling screen-protectors here.”
The man scanned Jiang Zhi’s clothes which appeared out-of-place in this area. In a courteous tone, he replied, “There are different people setting up stalls here every day so I have no idea which one you’re referring to.”
Jiang Zhi was holding a black handkerchief woven from silk which contrasted against his pale-white skin. He still wasn’t used to the chaotic vibe of this marketplace which explained the blush on his face as well as his heavy breathing. “The lady who wears a baseball cap every time you see her. She also exclusively wears black-colored clothing.”
The man took a bite of his fried noodles. “Ohh, I know who you’re talking about now. She ain’t here today.”
“Why isn’t she here, then?”
“How would I know? She’s a rival stall. We ain’t even familiar with each other.” Looking at Jiang Zhi, he figured that this man must be one of the nobles. “Why are ya’ lookin’ for her?”
At that moment, a small child walking by knocked into Jiang Zhi.
The corners of his mouth immediately curled downward, showing a look of disgust.
The child, scared shitless by Jiang Zhi’s expression, immediately ran for his life.
His face was exceptionally unfriendly. “I need her to get me a new screen-protector.”
The man instantly put down his fried noodles and offered, “I do screen-protectors too! Whatever phone you have, you name it, we have it.” ‘
‘This guy must be a rich dude,’ he thought.
Rich people didn’t usually bring small change with them so they would often say “keep the change”. This was a prime chance to strike!
With this in mind, the man forced a hearty laugh. “Screen-protector, huh? We’ll throw in a phone case for free as well!”
Jiang Zhi ignored him.
This prompted the man to declare, “She charges twenty yuan, I’ll do it for fifteen!” Seeing the man beginning to turn around, he slapped his thigh. “Ten yuan! What about ten yuan!? This is a slit-throat price you’ll never find elsewhere! No less than that, though!”
“No thanks.”
F*ck!
“You crazy or sumthin’!?” The man’s facial expression changed within a split-second.
“…”