The hairy crab dinner was quite enjoyable.
It was crisp autumn weather, and the dining room was filled with the savory aromas of various dishes. Lin Youhe pushed open a window, and the cool night breeze dispersed some of the food smells while carrying in faint, cheerful laughter and conversation from outside.
The atmosphere was warm and cozy, but Xi Shi couldn't shake her old habit—even while eating food someone had personally cooked for her, she found ways to slip in questions and update her target's profile database.
Lin Youhe was a good cook, a real homebody, and had no particular guard up. Whatever Xi Shi casually brought up in conversation, he would honestly follow along and discuss.
He spoke gently about how he had met Chen Chen while studying abroad—he was the senior, Chen Chen the junior, and they'd gotten familiar after running into each other a few times at gatherings for Chinese students.
Later, Lin Youhe returned to China, and in this unfamiliar city, he was practically alone with no relatives to turn to. It was only thanks to the help of Chen Chen, whose family was well-off, that he was able to settle down here quickly.
As he spoke, he unhurriedly used the crab-cracking tools to open the crab, rich with roe and fat, deftly separating out a dish of crab meat and a dish of crab roe. Then he took a wet napkin and carefully wiped each of his ten fingers clean, one by one.
Xi Shi glanced at Lin Youhe's slender fingers, then said casually, "Your junior and his father look quite alike."
"They do look a bit alike."
Lin Youhe smiled when he spoke of Chen Lintian. He said that Chen Chen rarely came back to China since he was in graduate school, but during holidays or weekends, he would visit this "Uncle Chen" on Chen Chen's behalf, bringing gifts and such.
Uncle Chen…
What right did Chen Lintian have.
With a crack, Xi Shi snapped open a hefty hairy crab with her bare hands. She held the half-crab, lowered her eyelids, and bit into the crab roe at the center with a cold, detached gaze.
Xi Shi didn't notice that Lin Youhe's smile didn't reach his eyes, nor did she catch the faint trace of sarcasm mixed into his gentle tone when he said "Uncle Chen."
She only thought, tastelessly: This garbage world has never been fair, and God is garbage too—pure blind stupidity.
Creamy crab roe seeped through the seam of Xi Shi's lips, red oil staining the corners of her mouth.
Lin Youhe pulled out a tissue and wiped Xi Shi's lips for her. His movements were so gentle and slow that she froze for a moment, but he simply took the leftover crab from her hand and pushed all the prepared crab meat and roe toward her, telling her to eat more.
Xi Shi was silent for a moment, then stopped trying to pry for information. She chatted idly with Lin Youhe about trivial matters and finished the rest of the meal.
Perhaps because she'd talked so much during dinner with Lin Youhe, hearing such a similar voice made her inevitably relive past events in her dreams again.
She still woke with a start in the cold, quiet early morning. Xi Shi climbed out of bed and filled her large thermos with red wine.
Biting the straw, she silently compared the two in her mind and found that apart from their similar voices, they had almost nothing in common.
Lin Youhe was too gentle and refined—soft, warm, and innocent. Someone with that kind of personality becoming a teacher… he seemed like the type who, as long as a student didn't commit a fundamental violation, would patiently praise them for being "creative" even if they caused utter chaos, standing in the same trench as the students first before guiding them on what was right and wrong.
A good-natured pushover like him might even stand up for his students over certain administrative decisions or unfair treatment—gently but firmly arguing for justice under the weight of authority, rarely angry but fiercely protective of his students…
Thinking of this, Xi Shi suddenly paused. Her contact with Lin Youhe wasn't nearly that deep yet.
Maybe he wasn't as righteous as she imagined.
She simply hoped, because of her own experiences, that such a teacher could exist in the world.
And that person—the one whose voice resembled Lin Youhe's…
He was very calm, very intelligent. When Xi Shi, utterly despairing, had held a knife and wanted to take Chen Lintian down with her, he had suddenly appeared, barging in unreasonably—domineering, sharp, yet pulling her out of the fire and water.
That person carried a wildness and madness in his bones, with not a shred of reverence for life or death, yet he was also a paradox of cold rationality and unshakable composure.
Sometimes Xi Shi thought he was completely insane.
But the fact that she was still alive today was entirely thanks to that madman's uninvited meddling—like a dog catching mice.
Over the years, Xi Shi had never been able to find any recent information or news about Chen Lintian.
Seeing Chen Lintian's recent photo last night, and hearing Lin Youhe talk about him, filled Xi Shi with both the joy of a clear path ahead and a subtle sense of resistance and discomfort.
Xi Shi spent an entire day painting all the decorative patterns on a bra.
By evening, the red wine in her thermos was empty. The repetitive motions of mechanical sketching and detailing had calmed her down, and suddenly she began to feel that something was off.
It had taken Xi Shi a full year and a half to gain the trust of her previous target.
Wasn't the process of getting close to Lin Youhe going a little too smoothly?
But before Xi Shi could figure out what was going on, someone knocked on the door. She walked over and was slightly surprised to see Lin Youhe's figure on the smart peephole screen.
Xi Shi glanced at the mirror in the entryway—good, even her mascara hadn't smudged, and her slip dress was clean and neat. She pulled out the pencil she'd used to pin up her hair, letting her fluffy, fragrant curls tumble loose, and opened the security door.
Lin Youhe was standing at the doorway, smiling at Xi Shi.
He was holding a box of soft-boiled abalone in one hand and a bag of vegetables in the other, his white shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing a forearm with faint blue veins. He first mentioned that a colleague had given him a box of abalone, then said he'd bought a bit too much at the supermarket, and finally asked with a smile if Xi Shi would like to have dinner with him.
Seeing that Xi Shi didn't react for a moment, Lin Youhe asked gently, "What's wrong? Are you busy? Am I disturbing you?"
It was just…
So sincere that it was impossible to refuse.
For the first time in her life, Xi Shi experienced what it meant to be "paid back in one's own coin."
She was dazed for half a second before recovering her seductive composure. Leisurely smoothing her hair over her shoulders, she accepted Lin Youhe's invitation with all the charm she could muster: "No, I just finished up. I was just missing a free dinner that fell from the sky."
After a pause, she added, "Having a neighbor like Mr. Lin is truly a blessing."
Lin Youhe let out a laugh. "I don't deserve such praise."
Xi Shi smiled but said nothing.
Lin Youhe said, "I just got back, so dinner won't be ready for a while. Would Miss Xi like to come over first and sit down for some fruit?"
Xi Shi nodded. "Sure."
Lin Youhe made a gesture for her to go ahead.
Xi Shi had nothing to prepare, so she simply followed Lin Youhe to his security door and watched, without him making any attempt to hide it, as he entered the door lock passcode.
Xi Shi didn't point it out.
She silently memorized it.
It wasn't just the season for hairy crabs now—it was also the season for autumn persimmons, pomelos, and grapes.
While Lin Youhe washed the fruit, Xi Shi stood quietly behind him.
On the kitchen wall was a half-meter-long magnetic track, with a full twelve knives of different shapes neatly attached to it.
Xi Shi stared at one of the slender, elegant knives, then reached out to stroke its cold blade. "What's this one for?"
Lin Youhe tilted his head. "A filleting knife, I think. Careful—it's very sharp."
A certain voice had said something similar once.
Except he'd said, "Pretty sharp, huh," with a teasing, mischievous lilt at the end.
Xi Shi suddenly smiled a wicked smile, as if remembering something. "I'm very good with knives, you know."
Lin Youhe probably didn't catch her meaning. "Miss Xi doesn't seem like someone who cooks much."
Xi Shi took down the slender knife, twirled it cleanly between her fingers in one fluid motion.
Then, as if joking, she pointed the knife at Lin Youhe. After three seconds, she returned it to the magnetic track with a click and asked with a smile, "How come Mr. Lin isn't afraid of me at all?"
Lin Youhe placed the washed fruit into a bowl. "Actually, I am afraid—"
Xi Shi was about to say, right, after all, it's just the two of them here now, and if she really had some bad intentions, that would be pretty scary for an honest man.
But then Lin Youhe took off his glasses and wiped them with a tissue. "—afraid you'll get hurt."
His tone was a bit cold, and his voice was eerily close to that of a certain troublesome madman.
Lin Youhe was looking down, so Xi Shi couldn't see his expression.
When he put his glasses back on, he pushed the frames up with his index finger and suddenly took on the air of a teacher. With a helpless yet gentle demeanor, he began to lecture Xi Shi—
"I already told you that knife is very sharp. If Miss Xi really wants to play with knives, why not help me open the packaging on the abalone? There's a dedicated box cutter in the drawer."
Xi Shi hadn't heard words like that in years. She thought to herself: Is this what caring looks like?
She found it novel and amusing. When Lin Youhe reached out to pick up the fruit, she pretended to reach for it too, then unhurriedly placed her hand over his.
Xi Shi let out a perfunctory "Oops," turned her head, and looked up at him from below. When her eyes met his, she fluttered her lashes and smiled like a charming, bewitching little fox.
She tapped the back of his hand with her fingertip. "Mr. Lin, let me carry that."
Xi Shi carried the fruit bowl to the living room. She had just set the heavy bowl down on the coffee table when she turned around and saw Lin Youhe following her out of the kitchen.
Without a word, he walked over, took Xi Shi by the wrist, and led her toward the bedroom.
Just as she hadn't asked why someone who habitually ordered takeout would suddenly want to cook at home, Xi Shi didn't ask Lin Youhe why he was suddenly taking her to the bedroom.
It couldn't be for a tour, after all.
Xi Shi obediently let herself be pulled along behind Lin Youhe, a confident curve forming at the corner of her lips.
Lin Youhe's bedroom matched the impression he gave—plain-colored bedding, clean and tidy, a few books on the nightstand, and the same cool, faint fragrance in the air as on his person.
Lin Youhe released Xi Shi's wrist, licked his lips, and opened the wardrobe with a slightly flustered air. "Miss Xi, I was thinking of finding you a coat to put on, but I…"
"Hm?"
This development was unexpected for Xi Shi.
Lin Youhe explained gently, "Your hands are cold. I'm worried you might catch a chill."
Xi Shi's sleep schedule and eating habits were both absolutely terrible—the former due to her nervous exhaustion, and the latter because she simply couldn't be bothered.
She'd only had a single glass of red wine all day. To get close to her target, she'd prioritized style over warmth, skipping a shawl and wearing only a slip dress. It would be strange if her hands weren't cold.
So… he hadn't been speaking earlier because he was upset?
Because she wasn't dressed warmly enough?
Xi Shi actually did follow Lin Youhe's words and took a look. Perhaps Lin Youhe wasn't the type to care much about his appearance—there weren't many clothes in the wardrobe.
Lin Youhe said, "Which one do you like?"
Xi Shi pointed at one at random, and as Lin Youhe draped the coat over her shoulders, she absentmindedly glanced at his bed.
Xi Shi couldn't quite figure out why her target seemed to care about her so much.
It was as if…
Xi Shi shot Lin Youhe a look of complicated emotion.
She had a feeling he'd be pretty easy to get into bed.