Ji Linlin looked at Jiang Xueli and answered, “He’s my uncle, Ji Shutang.”
Jiang Xueli didn’t dare let her gaze linger on Ji Shutang’s face. She only glanced at him quickly before looking away.
“Thank you for saving me.”
“You’re welcome.”
Ji Shutang looked at Jiang Xueli and nodded slightly. “You can call me Little Uncle, like Linlin does.”
Jiang Xueli nodded shyly. “Ji Shutang.”
Ji Shutang nodded to her, then turned to Ji Linlin.
“Linlin, I already called your mother and told her you’re all right now.”
“Come on. I’ll take you both to get something to eat, then drive you home.”
As he spoke, he headed toward the car.
“Okay,” Ji Linlin replied.
She took Jiang Xueli’s hand and got into the car. “Jiang Xueli, let’s get in first.”
“Okay.”
…
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
Huo Jiulin and the others left the abandoned factory.
Huo Jiulin took the crushed listening device from his pocket.
He held it before his eyes, turning it over in his fingers.
Everything in Bangkok had been taken care of. He had time now to go find that little one and have some fun.
Qiaoke noticed what Huo Jiulin was doing and asked, puzzled, “What are you fiddling with?”
Before Huo Jiulin could answer, Qiaoke got a phone call.
After hanging up, he looked at Huo Jiulin, speaking faster.
“Lin, something’s happened to Tia.”
At that, Huo Jiulin’s gaze instantly turned sharp.
Qiaoke continued, “Tia was attacked on the road. She was shot in the chest, and she’s still unconscious.”
Huo Jiulin’s eyes narrowed, his voice icy. “Who did it?”
“We don’t know yet,” Qiaoke said. “We’re still investigating.”
Huo Jiulin lifted his eyes, anger flaring in them. “Back to Rome.”
“Okay.”
*
At the restaurant.
Though Ji Linlin’s stomach was growling with hunger, she had no appetite at all.
After seeing such a bloody, terrifying scene, how could she possibly feel like eating?
When Ji Shutang saw that Ji Linlin hadn’t touched her chopsticks, he asked, “Linlin, why aren’t you eating?”
Ji Linlin managed a faint smile. “Ji Shutang, I’m not very hungry.”
Using the serving chopsticks, Ji Shutang picked up two pieces of meat and put them on Ji Linlin’s plate.
“Eat at least a little.”
“Okay.”
Ji Linlin forced herself to put the food in her mouth.
After the meal, Ji Linlin and Jiang Xueli went to the restroom together.
Jiang Xueli said, “Linlin, your uncle, Ji Shutang, is so good to you.”
Ji Linlin readily agreed. “Mm. Ji Shutang is a really good person. And he isn’t just good to me—he’s good to lots of people.”
Jiang Xueli pouted. “I’m so jealous you have such a wonderful uncle, Ji Shutang. He’s got a good temper, and he’s so handsome, too.”
“Oh,” Ji Linlin said. “I guess he really is.”
“Linlin.”
Ji Linlin finished washing her hands and pulled off a paper towel to dry them. “Mm? What is it?”
Jiang Xueli summoned her courage. “Could you give me your uncle Ji Shutang’s phone number and social media accounts?”
Ji Linlin froze for a moment. “…Jiang Xueli, don’t tell me you like Ji Shutang?”
Jiang Xueli pressed her lips together, neither confirming nor denying it.
After the two girls left the restroom, Ji Shutang asked Akai to take Jiang Xueli home, while he drove Ji Linlin home himself.
When Ji Linlin got home, she quickly showered and went to bed.
But she tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.
The things she’d been through over the past two days had been terrifying.
As soon as she closed her eyes, she saw the bloodied corpses she’d encountered in the private room.
In the end, she gave up on sleeping and sat up in bed.
She turned on the light, then went to her computer, hoping to find something else to distract herself.
After turning it on, she checked her email out of habit. A new, unread message appeared.
She clicked it open and saw that it was—
!!!
An admission offer from the art department of the Rome Academy of Fine Arts!!!
The moment she saw the email, she wondered if she was seeing things.
She rubbed her eyes and looked again.
She hadn’t misread it.
The email had arrived three hours ago.
She had really… received an admission offer from the Rome Academy of Fine Arts.
She covered her mouth, struggling to hold back a cheer.
Ji Linlin was an art student and had loved painting since she was little.
Besides, stories from the Italian Renaissance had profoundly influenced her throughout her schooling.
So studying at the Rome Academy of Fine Arts had always been her dream.
That was exactly why she had taught herself Italian.
She was so excited she wanted to call Jiang Xueli right away and share the good news.
She moved the mouse and began searching for information about the Rome Academy of Fine Arts.
The more she looked at the European castles and architecture on the screen, the more excited she became.
But as her excitement mounted, another thought suddenly came to her.
…That terrifying man.
He and his friend had been speaking Italian.
Could he… be Italian?
Oh my God!
Surely it couldn’t be that much of a coincidence, could it?
If she ran into him again, would he really snap her neck?
The things he’d said in the private room had been so embarrassing…
And he’d forcibly kissed her, like some kind of thug.
She’d only gone into the private room to deliver drinks, and somehow she’d lost her first kiss.
She’d also witnessed two groups of people fighting right in front of her.
So many people had died.
The scene had been terrifying.
The thought sent another chill through her.
Wait, was that even a kiss?
He’d been sucking and licking at her.
Was he a vampire?
Good thing she’d run fast. If he’d caught her, who knew how he would have tortured her?
She took a deep breath.
She kept trying to reassure herself.
Even if he really was Italian, Italy was so big—
There was no way she’d run into him again there, right?
She couldn’t be that unlucky, could she?