Her temperament and appearance were completely out of place in this smoky, chaotic internet café.
It was like a beautiful canary mistakenly placed in a sparrow’s nest.
The girl scanned the first floor but didn’t find the person she was looking for, so she headed straight up to the second floor.
The sound of her high heels striking the ground, combined with her graceful waist, made all the single young men gaze at her in a daze.
Upon reaching the second floor, the girl remained as captivating as ever; aside from a few men engrossed in their games, nearly all eyes were on her.
She looked around, and this time, she easily spotted the person she wanted to find. She walked straight ahead and gently tapped Zuo Si on the shoulder.
The surrounding heated gazes turned a bit envious.
But then, Zuo Si’s next words struck them like a bolt from the blue.
“Don’t f*cking disturb me while I’m gaming! Today is just f*cking weird! Every time we start a team fight, someone messes it up!”
Zuo Si pounded the keyboard, and this time, they finally won the team fight.
A smile crept onto his lips, and only then did he remember someone had tapped his shoulder.
Irritated, he turned around, and when he saw the person standing behind him, Zuo Si was instantly stunned.
Wasn’t this the girl he saw at the Police Station?
What was she doing here?
Slowly getting up, Zuo Si scratched his head awkwardly; he felt flustered whenever he saw a beautiful girl, especially one who was made up.
“Y-you looking for me?”
“Mm~” Ding Ruxiao nodded.
“W-what’s up?” Zuo Si wiped the sweat from his palms on his pants.
“Are you free? Come out with me for a late-night snack, my treat.” Ding Ruxiao looked visibly uncomfortable with the smell in the internet café.
“Uh… okay!” Zuo Si rubbed his growling stomach, not caring whether he would betray his teammates, and quickly packed his things to leave.
He had never had a meal with a beautiful girl in his life; how could he refuse, especially since he wouldn’t have to spend any money?
“Hey, hey, hey~ why did you go AFK?” Lu Tao, who was gaming with him, grabbed his arm when he noticed Zuo Si was about to leave.
“My friend is looking for me; I’m going out to eat, I’ll be back later.”
“Your friend? Do you have other friends besides me?” Lu Tao turned back with a hint of suspicion, and when he saw Ding Ruxiao standing next to Zuo Si, he was stunned.
Gulp! He swallowed a mouthful of saliva, nearly choking, his loser mentality fully exposed.
“T-this is your friend?” Lu Tao asked, a bit incredulous, his outstretched finger trembling.
“Uh… I guess so.”
“Hello.” Ding Ruxiao smiled politely and said to Zuo Si, “I’ll wait for you downstairs.”
Then she turned and left; she really couldn’t stand the smell in the internet café any longer.
Just as Zuo Si wanted to chase after her, Lu Tao grabbed him again.
“She, she, she, you, you, you…”
“What’s with the you you you? Can’t you see she’s waiting for me? I’ll be back soon!”
Zuo Si shook off Lu Tao’s hand and chased after her, feeling a bit smug at the heated gazes around him.
At the night market’s barbecue stall, Zuo Si and Ding Ruxiao sat facing each other.
Zuo Si looked a bit awkward; it was normal for a guy like him to feel nervous around a girl like her.
They first introduced themselves, and then Ding Ruxiao explained her purpose for coming.
“I heard from Captain Niu that my brother’s case was largely thanks to your help, so I came here specifically to thank you.”
“Ah? Me?” Zuo Si was a bit surprised; he didn’t think he had helped with Hero Ding’s case at all. The help he provided was from fifteen years ago with a few cases.
If he hadn’t provided that surgical document, Captain Niu might not have inquired about Lu Liangyuan and Meng Miaoxue’s cases, and this unsolved case that had been silent for fifteen years would never have seen the light of day.
As for Hero Ding’s case… whether he was involved or not, the Xu Shan Police Station would have arrested Lu Liangyuan anyway; how could it have anything to do with him?
‘Could it be that Captain Niu is deliberately saying this to set us up, hoping we’ll become a couple?’
Zuo Si thought to himself, his face turning red.
“What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?” Ding Ruxiao looked at Zuo Si, surprised by his changing complexion.
“No, no, actually I didn’t help much with this.”
“You don’t need to be modest; I have to thank you no matter what.”
Ding Ruxiao took a bite of the steaming hot skewers that had just been served and sipped a bit of beer.
The two of them hit it off, chatting and eating.
An hour passed just like that.
“By the way, what do you do for work?” Zuo Si suddenly asked.
“I’m a nightclub hostess~” Ding Ruxiao chuckled self-deprecatingly, taking a big gulp of beer, feeling quite ashamed of her job.
The atmosphere became a bit awkward.
Zuo Si cursed himself for asking such a stupid question, but he couldn’t help but think more.
A nightclub hostess? Could it be that she does that kind of work?…
“What? Do you look down on me?” Ding Ruxiao, having drunk a bit too much, had a flushed face that made her even more alluring, her impressive curves so tempting.
“No, how could I? Don’t think too much.” Zuo Si said sincerely; he was just a loser himself, what right did he have to look down on others?
Moreover, Ding Ruxiao was so beautiful; even if she really did have a special job, it must have been forced upon her. Because his intuition told Zuo Si that Ding Ruxiao wasn’t that kind of person.
“Hehe, am I beautiful?” Ding Ruxiao, her eyes slightly glazed, rested her chin on her hand, swaying a bit.
“Beautiful, beautiful, you’re drunk; let me take you home.”
Zuo Si didn’t expect Ding Ruxiao to treat him anymore; he paid the bill with the few hundred yuan he had left.
Following the address Ding Ruxiao provided, he took a taxi and sent her home.
It was an ordinary residential complex, but it wasn’t in the southern suburbs; the surrounding area was quite prosperous, and the rent must be expensive.
Zuo Si brought Ding Ruxiao into the bedroom, tossed her onto the bed, and checked the time—it was already four in the morning.
He didn’t have enough money to take a taxi back to the internet café, so he could only spend the night at Ding Ruxiao’s place.
“I wonder if she’ll mind.”
“I’m just sleeping here for a bit; it should be fine, right?”
Zuo Si glanced at Ding Ruxiao, who was lying on the bed; due to the angle, he accidentally saw something he shouldn’t have.
He swallowed hard, his heart racing.
‘If I miss this great opportunity, am I still a man?!’
Zuo Si slowly leaned closer to Ding Ruxiao, supporting himself on the bed with both hands.
Slap! He suddenly slapped himself.
‘If I do that, am I still human?!’
In his inner turmoil, he ultimately just covered Ding Ruxiao with a blanket and obediently left.
At the moment he turned off the lights, he didn’t notice the faint smile that crossed Ding Ruxiao’s lips.
After washing up, Zuo Si collapsed onto the sofa; he was utterly exhausted. Although he had napped at the Police Station during the day, it was far from enough to restore his energy.
In a daze, he soon fell into a deep sleep.
He didn’t know how long had passed when he woke up.
Stretching lazily, he rubbed his eyes and opened them, only to find the surroundings pitch black.
“What’s going on? Did I sleep for so long? Is it night again?”
He fumbled around his body but only found the Black Mobile Phone.
He turned on the light and was instantly frozen in place.
This place, this place is You Ren Hospital!!?