◎No Third Person◎
The car sped down the empty road. Qiu Zhan Bin summarized, “It’s obvious, the mysterious person tampered with things. He doesn’t want us to know his identity. I don’t know why he chose to show himself for Meng Yu this time, but if we push too hard now, it could backfire.”
Xing Chu thought for a moment. It made sense, and he nodded in agreement.
Recalling Zhong Yao’s every move that night, Qiu Zhan Bin furrowed his brow, a trace of worry lingering in his eyes. “Still, I can’t shake the feeling that the person with foresight isn’t this little girl, there’s someone else.”
The two had been master and disciple for decades, their tacit understanding was extraordinary. When Qiu Zhan Bin spoke, Xing Chu immediately grasped his meaning. “Master, you mean… she was always looking at her phone, maybe someone else was contacting her?”
Qiu Zhan Bin nodded, letting out a sigh. “The director is very concerned about that mysterious person. In any case, we follow this lead. At least now we aren’t completely in the dark. Even if we have to follow a trail bit by bit, we can uncover the mysterious person’s identity. Once we do, no matter how hard he tries to hide, he’ll be in our hands.”
Xing Chu suddenly realized a problem. “Master… did you add her contact information?”
Qiu Zhan Bin froze, realizing they hadn’t even exchanged WeChat before leaving. He forced out, “It doesn’t matter, we at least know her name.”
Xing Chu spoke unexpectedly, “We never asked her name.”
The words left both of them pale, wishing they could turn back immediately, and in fact, that’s exactly what they did.
By the time they returned, the delicate figure at the community gate was long gone. This was expected, so they weren’t disappointed. Instead, they went straight to the guard, hoping he had noticed the name on Zhong Yao’s ID card.
The guard’s eyes widened like copper bells. “It was just the two of you who came earlier. Where would a third ID card come from?”
Xing Chu froze. “Impossible, there was a girl who went in with us.”
The guard, having been bothered by them several times that night, had grown impatient. “Come on, I’ll show you the surveillance.”
Qiu Zhan Bin felt a bad premonition, but Xing Chu stubbornly followed. They entered the guard’s office and fast-forwarded the past three hours of footage at the community gate, watching repeatedly. All they saw were Xing Chu and Qiu Zhan Bin, there was no third person at all.
The guard bellowed, “I told you, no one was there! You don’t believe me? Young man, maybe you got caught in a ghost trap. Want me to recommend a Taoist to read your fortune? Not kidding, he’s pretty accurate.”
Xing Chu worked in an investigative bureau specializing in supernatural abilities and mysticism, he didn’t need a Taoist to read fortunes.
The idea of a ghost trap was even more absurd. Ordinary spirits wouldn’t dare approach him. Even if a powerful one tried to deceive him, it wouldn’t fool Qiu Zhan Bin too.
He shook his head as he left the guard’s office.
Suddenly, Qiu Zhan Bin remembered something and ran urgently toward the car. “Hurry back to the bureau! There’s surveillance there.”
They had already lost a lot of time back and forth, and now hoped to get there quickly, before the footage at the bureau was destroyed.
Half an hour ago, Zhong Yao stood at the community gate, watching Xing Chu’s car gradually merge into the night. Dou Dou had escaped from her restraint and was crawling straight toward the outside of her pocket.
The guard was still glaring at her from behind, so Zhong Yao quickly turned and walked away. Only after reaching a shadowy spot did she pull Dou Dou out, cradling it in her palm and poking its tiny body fiercely, baring her teeth.
“Why do you keep pawing at me?”
Dou Dou, prodded so hard, collapsed in her hand and couldn’t even stand.
It glared at her angrily, but it was useless. All it could do was bare its teeth and express its indignation: 【I’m tired. Let’s go back and sleep.】
Zhong Yao frowned, slightly annoyed. “So needy.”
She placed it on her shoulder. “It’s too late to go back to the dorm now. I’ll check for a hotel near school, just for one night.”
She took out her phone and walked while scrolling through hotel information. Not paying attention to where she was going, she suddenly walked straight into someone’s arms.
“Sorry, I wasn’t looking where I was going,” she said instinctively.
“Yao Yao?”
A familiar voice rang in her ears. Zhong Yao looked up and saw Si Ning Qing’s face. “Ah Qing!”
She immediately shrank into his embrace, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist and rubbing against him. “What are you doing here?”
Si Ning Qing winced as one of his wounds was inadvertently poked. His face turned pale from the pain, and he pressed his lips together to make his complexion look normal. “Came to find you.”
He looked her over carefully. Seeing her completely unharmed, he finally relaxed.
He knew that when the life-saving device he had once placed on Zhong Yao was activated, it had terrified him into an instant panic, pulling him abruptly out of unconsciousness and driving him here.
Speaking of which, Zhong Yao suddenly remembered the call she made that afternoon. She stepped out of Si Ning Qing’s embrace, her bright eyes full of grievance. “Have you been hiding another dog outside from me?”
Si Ning Qing froze, suddenly recalling someone he had seen when he first opened his eyes, and curled his lips in disdain. “No!”
“You’re lying. When I called you, a stranger answered and even said you were asleep.”
Si Ning Qing’s disdain grew. He didn’t expect Su Luan to make such a small move while she was unconscious.
He narrowed his eyes, a dangerous glint flashing in them as he calculated how to get revenge.
“It’s someone I knew before. I’m not close to him, and he’s annoying, so I didn’t tell you.” He draped Zhong Yao’s shoulder around his arm and led her toward a nearby hotel. “Don’t take what he said seriously, it was just to tease you.”
Zhong Yao couldn’t help smiling with an indulgent, auntie-like grin. “Ah Qing, do you think he likes you?”
Si Ning Qing froze. Following that line of thought for a moment, if Su Luan liked her…
She shuddered all over. Just imagining that possibility gave her goosebumps from sheer disgust. “Please no. I don’t want to have any kind of relationship with him at all.”
Zhong Yao still wasn’t satisfied and kept pressing her about how the two of them had met.
For all these years, she and Si Ning Qing had been inseparable. When exactly had that person quietly inserted himself into the picture? Zhong Yao was genuinely curious.
Si Ning Qing was pestered to the point of having no choice but to change the subject.
She hooked a finger around the red cord of the small Buddha pendant hanging at Zhong Yao’s neck, her gaze darkening. “This cord is old. Take it off later, I’ll change it for a new one.”
A cord like that could only save a life once, once it had been used, it was no longer effective. She needed to replace it as soon as possible.
Now that Dou Dou, the big troublemaker, had appeared by Yao Yao’s side, one cord probably wouldn’t be enough. Si Ning Qing discreetly sized Zhong Yao up. Her wrists were bare, there was room for a bracelet too.
Her gaze drifted lower. Maybe an anklet as well?
Zhong Yao was completely unaware of what she was thinking. Following her words, she touched the cord, which she had only replaced during the New Year. “I don’t think it’s that old, but if you want to change it, I’ll listen to you.”
Si Ning Qing patted her head and smiled in satisfaction.
Once they got back, she’d start designing the bracelet and anklet.
The two of them hailed a late‑night taxi, booked a room at a hotel near the school, tidied up briefly, and then fell asleep.
Zhong Yao was sleeping soundly when she felt a familiar sensation on her face. She cracked her eyes open slightly and, sure enough, saw Dou Dou recklessly stomping on her face like it was dancing at a club.
She was so angry she immediately widened her eyes and sat bolt upright. The sudden movement sent the unprepared Dou Dou tumbling straight off her face and onto the floor.
Zhong Yao grabbed Dou Dou by its little leg, leaving it hanging upside down, and shook it hard to vent her anger. “Is there something seriously wrong with you? I didn’t fall asleep until nearly dawn last night, and I haven’t slept long at all. And you come mess with me now? Do you believe I could slap you straight to the Southern Hemisphere?”
Dou Dou hung there head‑down, completely unbothered, even giggling: 【If you’ve got that kind of ability, I’ll recognize you as my boss.】
【And you’ve already slept for a long time. If you don’t wake up soon, you’ll turn into a pig.】
Zhong Yao looked around and realized she had somehow returned to the place where she had signed the contract with Dou Dou, a voidlike space with no sense of time at all. She had no idea what time it was in the real world now.
She frowned slightly, set Dou Dou back on the ground, and asked, “What do you want with me?”
Dou Dou’s eyes curved into a smile, looking like the little Fu娃 dolls stuck on walls during the New Year, only much smaller this time. 【Of course it’s great news.】
【The merit points from saving Meng Yu have been credited, 100 in total. You get 70, I get 30.】 Dou Dou was so happy it just wanted to wiggle its legs. It had expected that after giving away seventy percent of the “cake,” what it received in the future would be negligible. But to get this much on the first try was a delightful surprise.
Zhong Yao was a little surprised too. “Credited? Where do I check?”
Dou Dou waved its tiny hand, and Zhong Yao’s phone appeared in her palm as if out of nowhere. Dou Dou crawled into the screen and navigated to the app store, downloading an app called “Ji De.”
With Dou Dou around, it didn’t matter whether this space had internet, within moments, the app was installed on her phone.
【Open the app and complete the identity verification, that’s all.】
Zhong Yao followed the instructions, filling in her name and ID number. Absurdly, the app also requested access to her photo album, storage, location, and other permissions.
She shot Dou Dou a sidelong glance. “This app sure knows how to make things complicated.”
【It only asks for permissions so it doesn’t seem too unusual, it doesn’t actually use them.】 Dou Dou positioned itself in the middle of the screen, pointing at the top with its tiny hand: 【See? Your total earnings now: 70.】