SES Chapter 94 Part 1

Chapter 94

Comparison shows the gap—that was the truth Uncle Zheng felt deeply.

Compared to Luo Ren, Mu Dai was far too well-behaved. As soon as he hinted at something, she immediately rushed off to help Phoenix Tower with this and that. But Luo Xiaodao? Even after Uncle Zheng spelled things out clearly, he still just said the same two words: Not going.

He said, “It’s just a lightbox. Why should I drive over to haul it back? Have you even considered how my Hummer would feel about that? Why not just have them rent a car and deliver it? I’ll even cover the rental fee.”

Uncle Zheng was so angry that he nearly coughed blood. He picked up the phone to complain to Mu Dai.

He hadn’t even realized that lately, he’d been constantly tattling on Luo Ren to her.

Mu Dai said, “I’ll talk to him when I get back.”

Uncle Zheng fumed: “You’d better! He’s full of bad habits—won’t get up in the morning, won’t sleep at night, dodges work. If we don’t break his arrogance now, he’ll be climbing onto the roof next!”

On the other end, Mu Dai laughed. The background was noisy, scissors snipping, the sound of cutting paper.

That reminded Uncle Zheng of the real matter: “How are things going over there? Almost done?”

Mu Dai said, “Almost. We’ll head back in a bit.”

After hanging up, she went to check on the workers packing wallpaper. The rolls were neatly wrapped in bubble plastic. Worried she might not have ordered enough, she had ordered extra and even discussed with the shop owner whether she could return any leftovers.

A small van was parked outside. Fortunately, Lian Shu had a good relationship with the shop owner, who agreed to use the store’s vehicle to deliver the goods.

When the workers finished loading the wallpaper, it was nearly lunchtime. Mu Dai asked Lian Shu if she wanted to stop for a meal first. Lian Shu said that would waste time—better to grab something to eat in the van.

Just then, the smell of barbecue drifted over from a stall across the street.

Lian Shu suggested they get some.

Mu Dai started toward the stall, but the shop owner called her back to settle the bill. Lian Shu smiled and went to buy it herself. Suddenly Mu Dai remembered: “No spicy for me!”

But Lian Shu had already gone too far to hear, if she heard at all.

Once everything was set, they got in the van. The driver headed first toward the outskirts—he had another delivery to make before theirs.

While explaining this, Lian Shu handed Mu Dai a plastic box of skewers.

Mu Dai opened it: bright red with chili powder everywhere. She winced inside but didn’t want to make a fuss. She picked up a skewer and shook it hard to get as much chili off as possible.

Even so, the spice hit hard. After just two bites, she was sucking in air, lips burning. When Luo Ren called, she was fanning her mouth with one hand.

Amused, he asked, “Why do you sound so funny?”

Mu Dai said, “I ate barbecue. It’s so spicy.”

She blew out air while talking. Lian Shu handed her some water, and she gulped down a huge mouthful.

Luo Ren didn’t know what to say. In his mind, he pictured her face flushed red from the heat and found it oddly cute.

He thought for a moment, then asked, “Did you go alone?”

“Miss Lian knows the seller, so she came along.”

Lian Shu? So she was with her? Luo Ren felt uncomfortable. Considering Lian Shu might be right beside her, he didn’t say much more, only told Mu Dai to hurry back. Before hanging up, he added, “Don’t get too close to that Lian Shu.”

Why? Mu Dai wanted to ask, but didn’t.

She gripped the handle by the backseat, watching the scenery change outside, and thought again of Uncle Zheng’s words:

—Luo Ren doesn’t seem to get along with Miss Lian.

There’s always a reason not to like someone, isn’t there?

She sneaked a glance at Lian Shu, who sat with eyes closed, resting her head on the seat cushion. The window beside her was cracked open, wind lifting her hair, revealing her delicate, refined face.

She was beautiful. Why had Luo Ren pulled her into that room that night, locked the door, and drawn the curtains? Mu Dai had meant to ask, but Luo Ren had sweet-talked her so quickly that she forgot.

When she got back, she would interrogate him thoroughly.

The van jolted, and Mu Dai yawned, feeling drowsy.

Her eyelids grew heavy as lead. She rubbed her neck, shifted into a comfortable position, and leaned against the seat cushion with her eyes closed.

Slowly, Lian Shu opened her eyes.

That day, Phoenix Tower had only two jobs: put up wallpaper and install the lightbox.

The lightbox would come later, and the wallpaper was still on the road. Taking advantage of the break, Wan San, Cao Yanhua, and Yan Hongsha went to find Luo Ren for news about Zha Ma.

The answer: “Everything’s normal.”

Was it really? The third deadly bamboo slip—they hadn’t even managed to trace a shadow of it yet.

The group sat in the room, troubled. Cao Yanhua pointed at the blurred slip and then at the faint pink phoenix in the water. “Logically, with three slips recovered—that’s half—the phoenix should’ve grown more. How come there’s no change at all?”

He suggested, “Maybe we should ask a fortune-teller?”

But even fortune-tellers don’t know everything. Luo Ren thought for a while and shared his morning’s deduction:

If the wild woman’s companion had been a normal person, then the trail would have been nearly impossible. Who knew where the villagers had migrated over the years? China was vast—it could be anywhere.

Yan Hongsha sighed: “That’s like looking for a needle in a haystack.”

Yes, that was the exact phrase.

Luo Ren gave a bitter smile. He looked at the map, where the four villages were still pinned in blue, and absentmindedly replaced one with a red pin.

Cao Yanhua fiddled with Luo Ren’s computer, opening comparison photos, then a folder of videos neatly sorted by date.