Mo Junyi’s brow twitched. He suddenly understood Su Xingtong’s attitude from earlier. He didn’t speak, but simply turned his head to look at Su Xingtong.
With an indifferent expression, Su Xingtong pushed the door open, acting as if he hadn’t heard a word the woman said.
Seeing no reaction from him, Mo Junyi remained silent and followed him inside.
However, once he entered, he frowned immediately. It wasn’t for any personal reason, but rather because the scene inside was… difficult to describe. The house was decorated in a very exquisite style, yet the expensive flooring was littered with messy sunflower seed shells. Near the table sat various beverage bottles filled with grain of unknown vintage. On the European-style sofa lay various tattered scraps of cloth, and its tassels had turned so black they were painful to look at.
Mo Junyi swept his gaze over the room before discreetly withdrawing it; this truly pushed the limits of his imagination.
The apartment, over a hundred square meters in size, was a total wreck. Furthermore, there were six or seven people crowded into the living room, making the space feel even more cramped and narrow.
Two middle-aged men sat on the sofa; with their beer bellies and yellowed teeth from smoking, they looked like they had been cast from the same mold. Nearby, a young boy was playing with the radiator. Mo Junyi watched with his own eyes as the boy wiped his snot onto the heating unit.
Four women sat around the coffee table: two middle-aged women and three younger women in their thirties who looked exceptionally haggard. Two little girls were playing beside them.
It must be said that those two little girls were perhaps the only bright spots in that entire oppressive space.
One of the middle-aged women was cracking sunflower seeds while frowning as she sized them up. Seeing that Su Xingtong remained silent, she casually tossed a seed shell onto the floor and spat, “Are you mute or deaf? Didn’t you hear your elder speaking to you?”
Although Mo Junyi appeared cold and distant, he wasn’t someone who angered easily. Yet, hearing this, he couldn’t help but frown.
However, Su Xingtong—who had been full of righteous indignation in the car—seemed like a different person now that he was home. He calmly introduced her to Mo Junyi: “This is my aunt.”
Suppressing the displeasure in his heart, Mo Junyi nodded. “Aunt.”
Su Luoxia cracked a seed nonchalantly. “Mm.”
Su Xingtong introduced the rest of the family one by one. The other middle-aged woman by the coffee table was his mother, but the relationship between the two of them looked no different from that of strangers.
Among the remaining three women, two were Su Xingtong’s sisters, and the other was his sister-in-law. The men on the sofa were his paternal uncle and his father.
Mo Junyi addressed each of them in turn. Su Hongchao, sitting on the sofa, gave a self-assured nod. “Mm.”
Then, the atmosphere in the room fell into a stagnant silence once more. There wasn’t even a place to sit.
Seeing this, Mo Junyi set the liquor aside and stood to the side with his arms crossed, as if watching a show.
Su Xingtong couldn’t help but frown. Growing up in such a family, he was actually long accustomed to this. To say he was “submissive” might be inaccurate, but there was certainly an element of just going with the flow.
But that was for himself. Right now, Mo Junyi was here to help him deal with his parents, yet he was receiving this kind of treatment. For the first time in a long while, Su Xingtong felt a wave of disgust.
“Where is Su Yuan?” Su Xingtong asked in an unfriendly tone.
Su Yuan was his younger brother, and the father of the little boy currently wiping snot on the radiator.
Hearing Su Xingtong’s questioning tone, Father Su frowned with dissatisfaction. “That’s your brother. What kind of tone is that? Second son’s wife, why hasn’t your man come out yet?”
The woman sitting by the coffee table raised her voice: “He hasn’t woken up yet. Probably won’t be up until noon.”
Su Xingtong felt nauseated, but he suppressed it, grabbed a chair from nearby, and placed it in front of Mo Junyi. “You sit first.”
In just a few minutes, Mo Junyi had already figured out the dynamics of this family.
A phoenix truly flown out of a chicken coop, Mo Junyi thought as he reached out and pressed a hand onto Su Xingtong’s shoulder. “I’m comfortable standing. You sit.”
With that, he pushed Su Xingtong down into the seat with an air that brooked no refusal.
Su Xingtong looked up at him in surprise. Mo Junyi’s hand was still resting on his shoulder, while his gaze swept across the room with a sharp, piercing intensity.
Father Su, who had been blustering just a moment ago, suddenly felt his whole body stiffen under that gaze. Once he snapped out of it, he felt a surge of humiliated rage, but for a moment, he was so angry he didn’t know what to say.
Seeing the situation, Su Xingtong’s uncle suddenly spoke up: “The young man has a good spirit. What line of work are you in?”
Mo Junyi withdrew his hand from Su Xingtong’s shoulder, his tone flat. “Criminal investigation.”
Likely having never dealt with the police before, the people present took a few seconds to process what he meant. Uncle Su couldn’t help but be struck with sudden respect. “Oh, a police officer! Yuyu, hurry up and bring a stool for the officer.”
“Yuyu” was the little boy playing with his snot. He heard the command but acted as if he were deaf, continuing to pick at the radiator. It wasn’t until his mother frowned and scolded him that he turned his head impatiently. Just as he was about to say something, he met Mo Junyi’s cold eyes. He froze instantly, then scrambled off the sofa in a panic, diving into his mother’s arms and nearly bursting into tears.
Su Xingtong suppressed a smile and said, “Junyi, don’t scare the child.”
Hearing the way Su Xingtong addressed him, Mo Junyi paused for a split second before cooperatively withdrawing his gaze. “Mm.”
The others in the room looked at each other, unsettled by this display of authority. Seeing this, the boy’s mother hurriedly nudged him. Ultimately, he crawled out of his mother’s arms reluctantly, fetched a small folding stool from the balcony, placed it in front of Mo Junyi, and fled as if running for his life.
Su Xingtong reached out and tugged at Mo Junyi’s sleeve. “Sit down.”
Ever since Su Xingtong had returned here, his entire being exuded an aura of being well-behaved, gentle, and submissive.
Mo Junyi looked down at him. From this angle, he could see Su Xingtong’s fair neck tucked inside his scarf, and his heart gave an unbidden stir. However, Mo Junyi didn’t show any outward sign of it, insisting, “I’m fine standing.”
Su Xingtong didn’t try to persuade him further. He nodded and turned his head. “The partner you wanted—I’ve brought him back.”
These words were directed at his parents, and his tone was none too polite.
Su Xingtong’s aunt frowned upon hearing this and set down her sunflower seeds, intending to scold him. However, wary of the silent Mo Junyi beside him, she cast a cautious glance at the man and sullenly held her tongue.
Mo Junyi was tall and well-built; years of field duty meant his physique was naturally imposing. Compared to this group of elderly men, women, and children, the contrast was immediate.
Under Mo Junyi’s cold gaze, everyone in the room—except Su Xingtong—felt as if they were sitting on needles. Finally, Father Su could bear it no longer. After several coughs, his voice rang out like a bell: “Are you women not going to cook? What are you doing just sitting here?”
The women sitting around the coffee table set down their sunflower seeds. After saying something to the two little girls, they stood up and walked into the kitchen.
Mo Junyi frowned but said nothing for the time being.
Once the women had left, Father Su suddenly flashed a somewhat fawning smile. “Xiao Mo, is it? Sit, sit, sit. Don’t stand.”
Su Xingtong’s heart skipped a beat; he had never seen his father smile like that. He knew his parents were shallow and snobbish, but he hadn’t expected their attitude to change quite this fast.
Mo Junyi didn’t answer Father Su; he just looked down at him.
Su Xingtong withdrew his gaze and said, “Sit down. Standing is tiring.”
Mo Junyi finally sat, but the smile on Father Su’s face froze.
He might be short-sighted, but he wasn’t blind to others’ attitudes. Anyone could see that Mo Junyi was not someone to be trifled with.
While the adults in the room were occupied with their own thoughts, a sob suddenly broke out from the side.
“Waaah—” One of the two little girls was crying softly. Standing before her was the little boy named “Yuyu,” who held a greyish doll in his hand, an indifferent smirk on his face.
Seeing this, Father Su barked, “What are you crying for! Your brother is just playing with your toy. You don’t act like an older sister at all!”
Hearing this, the little girl actually didn’t dare to cry anymore, but her face turned a flushed, painful red from holding it in.
Su Xingtong couldn’t help but reach out and beckon her. “Yingying, come here.”
Su Xingtong was handsome, and the younger children in the family all liked him. The little girl wanted to come over immediately, but thinking of the snot and tears on her face, she became frantic and embarrassed.
Mo Junyi saw through the little girl’s thoughts at a glance. He took two tissues from nearby and handed them to her. The little girl took them timidly, wiped her face, and whispered, “Thank you, Police Uncle…”
Su Xingtong let out a light laugh and pulled her to his side. “What did you call him?”
The little girl blushed. “Uncle…”
Su Xingtong teased her on purpose: “Then what should you call him?”
Led by him, the little girl—despite the tear stains on her face—had already forgotten what just happened.
“Um…” While thinking, the little girl peeked at Mo Junyi. Seeing how handsome he was, she said cautiously, “Police… Big Brother?”
Su Xingtong smiled and looked at Mo Junyi. “Captain Mo, you’ve dropped a whole generation in her mouth?”
The little girl’s face turned even redder. Mo Junyi reached out and ruffled her hair. “Ignore him. You can call me whatever you like.”
Su Xingtong arched an eyebrow, saying half-jokingly, “One attitude for the little girl, and a different one for me?”
Yingying couldn’t help but laugh at their banter, having completely forgotten her previous distress.
Su Yu stood to the side holding the doll, ignored by everyone. Seeing that his sister had stopped crying, it suddenly felt boring. He silently rolled his eyes and threw the doll onto the floor.
The little girl heard the sound and turned her head. Seeing the toy on the ground, the grievance that had just faded surged back into her heart. She rubbed her eyes, wanting to go pick up her doll.
Seeing this, Mo Junyi gently pulled her back. “Things he’s touched, we don’t want them anymore. Later, I’ll have your uncle buy you a new one.”
Su Yu stared at them blankly. Though he was young, staying with busybodies all day meant he understood more or less what was meant by “good or bad” words.
However, while these words were an indirect insult to him, they were even more of an indirect insult to the two men sitting on the sofa.
The two middle-aged men’s faces darkened instantly.
Su Xingtong blinked and looked up at Mo Junyi.
Mo Junyi acted as if he didn’t feel the gazes around him. He ruffled the little girl’s head and said, “In the future, don’t fight with a dog for things. Even if you win the fight, it’ll be covered in dog spit. There’s no need.”