They found the person who livestreamed the contents of the doll?
Xiang Wan suddenly cheered up, but it did not last for more than 10 seconds when she began to worry instead.
In the previous cases, the situations were never quite as favorableâŚ
âAre we going over?â She asked Bai Muchuan.
Bai Muchuan took a look at Xie Wanwan who was almost unconscious. He nodded his head then walked toward Xie Wanwan.
âLeave the remaining matters to me. Go and have a good rest. Donât listen to anything and donât think of anything.â
Xie Wanwan lowered her head as if she had not heard him. She did not even lift an eyelid.
Bai Muchuan remained silent for a while and talked to the SWAT team members. At this time, Xie Wanwanâs manager and female assistant had come up to the rooftop.
The female assistant burst into tears and dashed toward Xie Wanwan and hugged her. She cried so miserably that it sounded heartrending. The manager also came up and offer her comfort as she sobbedâŚ
âItâs over.
âItâs over now!
âNo one can hurt you again!â
A flock of birds flew past, making shrill cries.
Xie Wanwan looked at the sky. A tear slowly rolled down her cheek as she closed her eyes slowly.
âI think she will not try to kill herself again.â Entering the elevator, Xiang Wan heaved a sigh. âHowever, I think you need to let them know to never let down their guard. Itâs best to keep her under a 24 hour surveillance, once she tides over this most difficult period, sheâll get betterâŚâ
âMm.â
Bai Muchuan replied casually and suddenly turned to her. âThank you for earlier.â
âMe?â Xiang Wan raised an eyebrow and laughed. âI didnât do anythingâŚâ
Bai Muchuan pursed his lips to a straight line, placed a palm on her shoulder and gave it a squeeze but did not explain anything.
Xiang Wan looked at him, puzzled, but chose to keep quiet.
There was so much going on that day. That voice recording was as though she had used the few minutes of time to experience the pain of Xie Wanwanâs childhood as well as her teenage years. She had not entirely gotten herself out of the heavy feelingâŚ
She was thinking if Bai Muchuan was the same as well?
âŚ
After leaving the building, the sunlight had kept itself into the clouds.
When the wind blows, it actually felt cold.
It was autumn now.
The cars were driving on the roads where leaves were slowly falling from the trees alongside them.
Xiang Wan seemed distracted throughout the journey till a familiar sight appeared before her eyes.
âEh? Why are we here?â She stared at the surroundings.
Green Garden Estate.
The neighborhood that she used to live in.
She had stayed there for slightly more than a year and was familiar with every detail here. Due to this, the horrific scenes she witnessed there was especially clear to her as well.
Watching the car nearing the neighborhood, Xiang Wanâs heart started to beat wildly.
âBai Muchuan, that personâs staying here?â
Bai Muchuan turned to her. âYes.â
No wonder Tang Yuanchu had used such a tone earlier on.
Xiang Wan wondered at the strange coincidence and the police car finally arrived at the neighborhood.
The security guard, Uncle Wang, still recognized them and received them warmly but he seemed to be nervous as well.
âDetectives, why are all of you here again?â
As he said so, he pointed ahead where there was another police car as well as an ambulance. âYouâre together with them? Geez, something big happened in our estate again, right?â
Bai Muchuan nodded his head at him, parked the car and walked directly inside without saying a word.
It was the familiar stairway.
Right in front of them.
Xiang Wanâs heart missed a beat and pointed upward.
âGoodness, that personâs living on the same block as me, huh?â
Bai Muchuan only gave her a glance.
The result, however, was even scarier than she had imagined.
That person not only lived at the same block as her, that person was also living at the tiny apartment she used to rent.
Tang Yuanchu and Xie Hui had arrived before them and was waiting.
At the corridor, there were two paramedics who were preparing to go downstairs.
Upon seeing Bai Muchuan, Tang Yuanchu seemed downcast and a little depressed.
âCaptain Bai, weâre a little too late.â
When Xiang Wan heard that, she had a feeling that her fear had become reality.
She asked nervously, âDonât tell me⌠the person ran away again?â
Tang Yuanchuâs eyes seemed to be still for a moment. âSheâs dead!â
The door creaked open, and the smell of blood immediately dashed toward the nose.
Xiang Wan took a step back out of reflex; her nerves were tense and her heart was pounding furiously.
It was still that house. The layout, the way the furniture was arranged, everything was still the same.
A girl was lying on the bed that she had slept on before, quietly.
She had slashed her wrist.
Blood flowed from her wrist and along the edge of the bed where it dripped down to the floor, giving a strong visual impact.
Xiang Wan did not feel good.
Seeing that girl was as though she could see herself who had once slept on that very same bed.
âHow could this happen? How could this happen?â
She muttered to herself, asking the same question twice.
Bai Muchuan patted on her shoulder to comfort her. âHave you informed the forensics team?â He turned to ask Tang Yuanchu.
Tang Yuanchu took a look at the girlâs corpse and nodded his head. âCaptain Cheng will be arriving any moment!â
âMm.â
Let the professional do what they specialized in. Letting Cheng Zheng come and handle the matter was the most suitable. Prior to this, Tang Yuanchu and Xie Hui had already done the preliminary scene investigation and had gotten ahold of the ID card of the girl as well as some other personal identification documents.
The girl was actually the female university student who went missing in Grand Orchid Pavilion, Cao Mengjia.
Her ID card, student card, as well as her bank card were inside her purse.
No one knew how she managed to get out from Grand Orchid Pavilion and how did she come to stay in this neighborhood.
That voice recording doll⌠Xie Wanwanâs doll, was sitting quietly on a pillow.
It was a very old doll, though it seemed to have gotten new clothes. However, the face of the doll could not cover up the fact that it had been around for many yearsâŚ
The doll had a sweet smile which was a contrast against this bloody sceneâŚ
Bai Muchuan walked up to it and picked up the doll. After examining it, he put it inside an evidence bag and passed it to Tang Yuanchu.
âTake it back!â
Tang Yuanchu took a peek at him. âYes.â
The doll involved Xie Wanwanâs privacy. Earlier on, he was contemplating if Captain Bai would submit it as evidence or he would directly take it away with him. He had wanted to ask him about it, but it was not easy to openly ask something like this. Bai Muchuanâs professionalism in his job made Tang Yuanchu, a new detective, could not help but feel dignified in his heart.
âCaptain Bai, you taught me another lesson.â
He scratched the back of his head awkwardly and grinned. âI thoughtâŚâ
Bai Muchuan gave him a casual look and did not comment on that.
The few of them did another round of checks and made some notes when Cheng Zheng and Mei Xin arrived.
Bai Muchuan gave Cheng Zheng a glance and talked to Tang Yuanchu. âYou can leave the rest to Captain Cheng. Iâll go back first to rest. Tomorrow morning, weâll have a meeting to go through the case.â
Tang Yuanchu nodded his head heavily. âOkay, leave it to me.â
As if worried that Bai Muchuan would not believe that, he even gave him a salute, as solemn as he could. âI promise Iâll complete the mission!â
Bai Muchuan grunted a laugh and gave a soft blow on his chest. âYou little weasel.â
âHeheh!â
As all the windows in the house were closed, the bloody smell could not dissipate.
Cheng Zheng wore a mask, furrowing his brows and putting on the gloves that Mei Xin handed to him.
Bai Muchuan nodded at him as greeting and walked past him.
âLetâs get going, you still want to feel the nostalgia here?â he asked Xiang Wan who was standing at the entrance of the house.
Eh? Xiang Wan was surprised. âIâm coming with you too?â
âYouâve seen for yourself,â he said emotionlessly. âYou are not needed in any of the work later on. You should go back and take a good rest. Tomorrowâs morning will be the analysis of the case, do a good job.â
âOkay.â Xiang Wan looked at his bloodshot eyes. âAlright then, Iâll go back now. You donât need to send me back.â
Across the street, it would be Bai Muchuanâs house.
She felt that she could just hail a cab back. She need not trouble him at all.
After all, he had been working for the past few days without much rest, so he needed to rest more than her.
However, Bai Muchuan gave her a look and directly took her wrist without any explanation.
âHeyâŚâ Xiang Wan felt awkward but not appropriate to struggle too much, so she followed along.
âAhem, cough!â Behind them, Tang Yuanchu had a sneaky look and cleared his throat. âBoss, Teacher Xiang, you both need to go back and have a good nightâs sleepâŚâ
ââŚâ
It was just a normal sentence.
But when their names were being mentioned together, wouldnât it just sound a little weird?
Xiang Wan turned around for a look and happened to meet Tang Yuanchuâs gaze where he blinked his eyes meaningfully, darting between her and his boss. Not only that, he also gestured an âokayâ sign which made Xiang Wanâs face instantly turn red.
She returned him a glare and while turning away, she noticed Cheng Zheng was also looking at them.
His chilly line of sight had no temperature, no emotion, but followed them for as long as he could see themâŚ
Xiang Wan was so embarrassed that her ears were burning, while Bai Muchuan felt nothing wrong at all.
He did not even look back. He walked very fast and Xiang Wan tried to follow him with some difficulty.
D*rn, donât you know you have a pair of long legs?
She was displeased, but seeing that he was not in a good state, she kept quiet.
When they reached downstairs, Bai Muchuan pulled open the car door for her to get in.
Xiang Wan was somewhat hesitant. âCaptain Bai, you really need not send me home. Youâre already so exhaustedâŚâ
âWho said Iâm going to send you home?â Bai Muchuan puffed a sigh wearily. âIâm hungry, you need to make me some foodâŚâ
Ah? So this was just to get her to make him food?
But Xiang Wan had a bad experience at that house before.
âItâs not that I donât want to help out, but⌠itâs not appropriate. Why not I help you order some takeouts?â
As she said so with hesitation, her fingers were constantly stroking her bag strap, revealing her inner emotionsâŚ
Bai Muchuan glanced at her from the sideways and held her shoulders. In the next instant, he âliftedâ her onto the seat, buckle the safety belt and went back to his driverâs seat.
âMy comrade, havenât you learnt about the Eight Honors and Eight Shames⌠at all? How can you have the heart to let me sleep with an empty stomach?â
ââŚâ
What?!
Hats off for such an accusation!
Xiang Wan looked at him in displeasure. âThe heart is obvious to all!â
Bai Muchuan smiled and looked at her with a complicated gaze. âOh, so you can read what I want now. Good!â
With that, he stroked Xiang Wanâs head as if he was patting a little puppyâs head. Then he stepped on the accelerator and left the neighborhood.
Uncle Wang waved goodbye at them.
The familiar scenes, the long, narrow alley seemed to shadow Xiang Wanâs heart.
âBai Muchuan, this is too much of a coincidence!â
Did this female student, Cao Mengjia, had a deep hatred or grudge toward Xie Wanwan?
Why did she want to kill Xie Wanwan? Why did she happen to live in the house Xiang Wan used to rent? Why did she expose Xie Wanwanâs privacy on a livestream and then commit suicide by slashing her wrist?
All these unsolved questions were left to the police.
Xiang Wan could feel her head aching just at the thought of it.
âThereâs too many things that I could not figure it out. No, I need to go back and go through the clues of the case once again. Otherwise, Iâm going to suffer from having a split personalityâŚâ
She was talking to herself, and did not mind even though Bai Muchuan did not answer her.
âWhen did you get to know Xie Wanwan? Did you know about her past since long ago, thatâs why you have always been tight-lipped about this? Thereâs more, Xie Wanwanâs starting line in her recording: âI am Xie Wanwan, but Xie Wanwan is not me.â What does this mean?â
Bai Muchuanâs gaze was fixated on the road. âWhy is this red light taking so long?â
âAh?â Xiang Wan turned to look at his side profile. âYouâre not listening to me at all?â
Bai Muchuan returned a glance. âI heard it, but thereâs too many questions. I donât know how to answer them.â
âJust answer me one by one!â
âMy Queen, Iâm tired.â
His gaze lingered on her face; hot, warm, tired, but tender. His innocent look somehow reminded Xiang Wan of the police dog, Xiao Tian. She suddenly felt an urge to pat him on the head, to smooth his furâŚ
âIâm dead-tired. Shouldnât you be thinking of what you will be making for me?â
Xiang Wan: ââŚâ
Well, this was a depressing story after all.
Xiang Wan felt that Bai Muchuan had a reason for not talking about it, apart from being tired.
Nevertheless, the story was indeed too distressing and not suitable to continue talking about it.
She should let him get away from it for a while.
Xiang Wan did not ask about the case again.
Soon, they arrived at his house.
It was a mansion where Nanny Li was not around to take care of it. It felt unusually empty without a tinge of noise.
Upon entering the house, Xiang Wan noticed that a bachelor living alone was more miserable than a bachelorette living alone.
The kitchen seemed to have never been touched. Even the covers for the sofa that Nanny Li put on were never removed.
âBai Muchuan, are you a ghost? Itâs like nobody lived inside the houseâŚâ
âTake it that Iâm a ghost then.â Bai Muchuan puffed a sigh casually. When Xiang Wan turned back to look at him, he was already lying on the sofa with his eyes closed, like an exquisitely carved face with a laid-back attitude. His brows were slightly furrowed, several wisps of his slightly ruffled hair rested on his foreheadâŚ
Xiang Wanâs heart skipped a beat.
Fine then!
This is a world where appearances matter.
Xiang Wan admitted that she was one of them as well.
She was unable to reject the request of this man who wanted to eat a meal prepared by her.
Ironically, she might not even be willing to cook for herself even when she was dead-tiredâŚ
âŚ
There was a supermarket just up ahead.
In no time, Xiang Wan returned after purchasing some vegetables, meat and fruits.
She took a peek at Bai Muchuan who was still asleep and she went to the kitchen quietly.
The sky gradually got darker.
The sky outside the windows was dark, as though a black curtain had covered it.
In a huge house like this, there were only the two of them.
She washed and rinsed in the kitchen alone. Not long after, the aroma of food filled the kitchen.
He was sleeping soundly on the sofa with a very peaceful demeanorâŚ
Maybe a peace and quiet life could be used to describe this?
Before she had finished cooking dinner, Xiang Wan went to check on Bai Muchuan once.
He had a good sleeping posture. How he was like when he lied down was exactly how he looked now. He did not even move his hands and legsâŚ
However, Xiang Wan felt a little worried seeing him sleeping so soundly. She was thinking when dinner was ready, would he be able to get up and eat dinner?
She returned to the kitchen and started to drift into her thoughts as she looked at the kitchen topâŚ
While preparing the meal, she thought a lot.
She thought about Xie Wanwanâs story as well as her story with Bai Muchuan.
If she still felt single mindedly that Bai Muchuan and Xie Wanwan were in a romantic relationship, that would simply mean she was too stupid or too unreasonable.
She could tell that they were not in love.
At least, Bai Muchuan was not in love with Xie Wanwan.
This guy⌠how should she say this?
Just like her, he also had a sense of insecurity which was brought about living in this era.
Perhaps he was steady, practical, clear-headed, and methodical in his work. But it was not the same for his inner heart. He seemed to have grown up without much love. At first, his attitude toward her was hot and cold, but in actual fact, it was a problem amongst many modern men and women.
One by one, the dishes were laid on the table.
The last one was the soup which would be ready soon.
Xiang Wan lowered the flame and went to check on Bai Muchuan again.
This guy sleeps like a log! she thought.
Maybe he will only wake up after three days and three nights of sleep?
As Xiang Wan thought so, she slowly squatted beside him and looked at his eyebrows. She raised her finger and touched his eyelashes playfully.
âGet up! Dinnerâs ready!â
She spoke very softly, the sensation she felt on her fingertips were unusually soft.
âDonât fool aroundâŚâ Bai Muchuan wrinkled his nose in irritation but did not open his eyes. His hand waved around as if chasing a fly away and continued to sleep.
âBai Muchuan?â Xiang Wan chuckled softly.
Why is he so adorable when heâs asleep? she thought.
When he was quiet again, Xiang Wan used her finger to touch his eyelashes.
âDo you still want to eat dinner?â
Bai Muchuan groaned uncomfortably and used a hand to cover his eyes.
âTry again and Iâll beat you up!â
Pffft! Xiang Wan could not help laughing, even her shoulders were trembling in laughter.
âBai Muchuan?â
Nobody answered her.
She did not know if he knew she was pranking him.
After thinking for a moment, she called his name again. âBai MuchuanâŚâ
Bai Muchuan was as if he had heard nothing. Obviously, he was still sleeping.
âSigh, if you donât get up to eat, then Iâll make a move then?â
Xiang Wan puffed a sigh and wanted to get up by holding onto the sofa but was suddenly grabbed by the wrist.
She was startled and had no time to say anything as Bai Muchuan quickly go around her waist and pulled her to him. She fell helplessly into his arms.
âBai MuchuanâŚâ She said his name softly.
His eyes were now half-opened, and he did not give her any chance to speak by directly giving her a kiss on the lips.
Xiang Wan stared into his eyesâŚ
After a short nap, his eyes recovered quickly. It was now clear without exhaustion. However, the scary part was that because of this hug, his âwolfâ side was rapidly recovering, making such close contact extremely ambiguous.
âDonât be like this!â Xiang Wan hurriedly struggled to get up by using his shoulders as support.
But he simply refused to let her goâhe sighed and kissed her lips again. After which, he tightened his grip and held her in his arms.
âDonât move! Iâll just hug you for a little while,â he murmured in a hoarse voice while breathing heavily.
Just a little while⌠Just a little whileâŚ
Then why was he panting like this? He seemed so nervous, and his heartbeat was beating really fastâŚ
Xiang Wan felt awkward as she was practically lying on top of him. The unexpected hug by the âwolfâ as well as the kisses had flustered her.
âBai Muchuan, youâre hungry, right?â
âYeahâŚâ He inhaled and seemed to be gritting his teeth. âIâm a little hungry.â
âThen why donât you get up and eatâŚâ
âMm.â He responded gently but did not get up. Instead, he hugged her even tighter. âI want to bath first then eat dinnerâŚâ
Through his words, he seemed to totally treat her as a family memberâŚ
Erm no, he was treating her as though she was his closest family.
He wanted to obtain her tenderness, so he gave her gentleness without qualms.
Xiang Wanâs palms started to get moist, and her scalp started to get numb. She ignored the sexy and charming Bai Muchuan as her eyelids fluttered faster than her heartbeat.
â⌠Go ahead to take a bath then?â
âIâm too tired to moveâŚâ he said innocently, his chin rested on her shoulder, where she could feel his warm breath.
Xiang Wan was utterly confusedâshe had never felt this way beforeâŚ
As though her mind did not belong to her, everything was in a state of confusion.
âDonât tell me you want me to help you with that? Are you a three-year-old?â
âEh? Youâre willing?â
ââŚâ Xiang Wan looked at him in a dazeâthat confused and innocent look made Bai Muchuan amused. He laughed and touched her nose. âIâm just teasing you. Iâm not willing even if youâre willing.â
ââŚâ
Did he have to be so arrogant and behave like a young master?
âBut, you need to help me fill the bathtub and get me clothesâŚâ
D*rn! Xiang Wan facepalmed.
âBai Muchuan, do you need a mom?â
Her unintentional joke made Bai Muchuan suddenly turned stiff.
Xiang Wan could sensitively feel the change. She looked at him and found that his eyes had dimmed tremendouslyâŚ
âI need a wife. You want to give it a try?â
ââŚâ Xiang Wan grinded her teeth. âAre you getting up or not?â
âYouâre angry?â Bai Muchuan said slowly and laughed when he saw Xiang Wanâs face flushed red. âYouâre lying on me, how can I get up like this?â He tapped on her back.
⌠This guy!
Xiang Wan hurriedly got up from him and dashed straight into the kitchen.
Behind, she could hear Bai Muchuanâs laughter.
âŚ
Bai Muchuan took a bath and changed his clothes quickly.
When the soup was ready, he had finished bathing and come back.
âSmells really nice!â After taking a bath, he seemed to regain his energy and all of the exhaustion on his face had vanished without a trace. He directly went up to her, hugged her from behind, and rested his chin on her shoulder. âWhat did you make for me?â
His warm breath were just next to her ear.
His tall stature enveloped her like a big bear holding a rabbit.
Xiang Wan felt really warm and poked him using her elbow.
âGet off me! The soup is ready now. I need to find a bowl to contain itâŚâ
âLet me do it.â Bai Muchuan gave a peck on her ears and found a soup bowl in no time. âLet the men handle such chores!â
Xiang Wan felt her cheeks getting warm.
Why did this feel like weâre a young married couple? She thought.
She softly cleared her throat and found her wits, shooting a frown at him.
âCut it out, why are you pretending to be nice? If youâre so capable, why donât you cook for yourself?â
âWell, Iâm really worn out.â Bai Muchuan gave her a pleasant smile. âIâll prepare a feast for you one day to thank you for your help today. How does that sound?â
âHur! A feast?â Did I hear wrongly?
Xiang Wan showed an incredulous expression: she shook her head and pouted her lips.
As Bai Muchuan scooped the soup into the soup bowl, he glanced at her as well. âJust believe me!â
After putting down the bowl of soup, he walked up to her again unexpectedly and kissed her forehead without warning.
âYou can eat whatever you want. I can promise that!â
Uh! The warm feeling made Xiang Wan woke up from her daze and touched her forehead in a confused expression where Bai Muchuan just kissed her.
âI got kissed by a wolf?â
âHurhur!â Bai Muchuan gave her a cold look. âYouâre taking it for granted!â
âWhat the? Better make this clear, who took advantage of who?â
âIâm such a heartthrob. You must be feeling so happy inside?â He glanced at her with a teasing manner before walking past her while carrying the soup. âHer Majesty, dinner is ready!â
Liked it? Take a second to support Novels on Patreon!