Chapter 1103: Perplexed and Smitten (163)
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
It was practically impossible to hail a taxi at this time and place.
To make things worse, she did not have her mobile phone or wallet with her.
Yan Ge thought that there was no way she could go back without him.
However, he had underestimated the amount of fear Fang Erlan had toward Xiao Chenyang.
Fang Erlan felt that even a thousand Yan Ges could not hinder Xiao Chenyang from doing what he wanted.
She did fancy Yan Ge, but she did not want to get him and herself into trouble because of it.
“Okay.” She walked back inside the apartment in a bid to leave.
Yan Ge stepped forward to stop her. “Do you know how far Qingyuan Estate is from here!?!”
“I want to go back.”
Seeing that she was bent on going home, he decided to give in. “Let’s go together,” he said, seemingly having considered her words carefully.
They were both dead silent on the journey back, just like before.
When they arrived in Qingyuan Estate, they caught sight of a figure from afar even before pulling over.
Fang Erlan was frightened out of her wits the moment she saw Xiao Chenyang.
As soon as the car stopped, she immediately alighted and sprinted toward Xiao Chenyang. She chuckled wryly and asked, “Why have you come down? Is the movie over?”
Xiao Chenyang seemed to have sensed something unusual from the forced laughter that she had let out. He turned around and entered the lobby without uttering another word.
Fang Erlan hurriedly chased after him, not turning back once to look at Yan Ge.
Fang Erlan was filled with uncertainty the moment she realized that he was still refusing to speak even after they had entered the apartment. “Um, Xiao Chenyang, why aren’t you saying anything?” she asked.
“I’ll buy a mobile phone tomorrow.”
Fang Erlan initially thought that he would hit the roof and interrogate her about her absence. She could not get used to Xiao Chenyang being so calm all of a sudden.
—
The sky had been gloomy ever since morning.
“According to the weather forecast, it’ll be drizzling in A City today and pouring heavily in B City. Hence, I’ve already prepared some umbrellas and raincoats that I had left inside the car.”
“How’s No. 8?”
“His recovery is going well. He’s been putting himself on the drip daily at the clinic in the estate. Ms. Mo has also quit her job at the bar to focus on taking care of No. 8. I’m such a jealous loner.”
“I’m envious of him too.”
No. 5 gaped and looked at Fan Shixin, who was in the passenger’s seat. “Chief Fan, stop agitating me any further. We all know that Mr. Jin has organized a mass recruitment for you to find a girlfriend, and more than 80 thousand women have signed up. I bet all of those women who have signed up did so because they’re lusting for your handsome good looks and your attributes. It won’t hurt to let me have eight out of those 80 thousand candidates you have.”
“Some of the people who have signed up didn’t do so out of their own accord. Their parents are the ones who have signed up on their behalf.”
“Their parents? How did you know?” No. 5 asked.
“Isn’t that obvious? It can’t be that all of them had signed up out of their own accord.”
“Sis, what’s going to happen to Chief’s blind dates now that he’s going to B City with us?”
An Xiaoning answered, “Since those people have signed up, they’re definitely not going to get a boyfriend any time soon. We’ll just let Shixin take some time out of his schedule to meet some women in B City. He met the ones in A City yesterday. If he meets the right one, distance won’t be a problem.”
“You have a point. Chief, all the best.”
Fan Shixin leaned against the seat with a deadpan expression on his face.
To be exact, he was not in the least bit interested in matchmaking at all; neither did he want to go on blind dates.
However, the sign-ups are still open. Wouldn’t he be making a fool out of those single ladies if he were to bail on them?
“Let’s stop the sign-ups.”
An Xiaoning looked up abruptly and asked, “Why?”
“I just suddenly feel like there’s no point in matchmaking if fate does not want me to meet my Ms. Right yet.”
“But you have to give fate a chance to bring you to her.”
Fan Shixin said in a tone of melancholy, “Young Madam… I think… I’m going to end up alone for the rest of my life.”
“Why do you think that way? Have you spared a thought for No. 5, Xiao Bai, Xiao Huang, and the rest of those singletons? Have you considered their feelings?”
“…”
“Exactly, Old Chief, have you ever spared a thought for our feelings?”
Fan Shixin gave him the side-eye and rebuked, “What? Old Chief? You rascal!”
He then smacked No. 5, causing No. 5 to shriek in pain and exclaim, “Please have mercy on me, Chief! I’m still driving!”
An Xiaoning shook her head.
They arrived in B City at ten o’clock in the morning.
Just like they had expected, it was raining cats and dogs, which was also the reason why pedestrians were scarce on the roads at the time.
They soon arrived at a luxurious estate.
Clad in surgical masks, the three of them alighted and headed to the fourth floor.
It was a three-bedroom apartment that was well furnished and fully equipped with the necessary furniture. An Xiaoning had rented the apartment at a high price the day before, so as to settle their accommodation for today. She chose this unit because she felt that it was situated in the best possible location.
“No. 5, go to the supermarket downstairs to buy some food and drinks. Shixin, let’s get the things prepared,” An Xiaoning instructed.
The two subordinates did as instructed. No. 5 left the apartment with some money while An Xiaoning and Fan Shixin began opening the cardboard box that they had brought and took out the pair of telescope inside. They then set it up and placed it on the balcony.
The telescope gave them a clear view of the house that was located Southwest of the apartment they were in.
They could clearly see the people entering and exiting from each and every single one of the main doors.
On top of that, the telescope had a recording function that could be switched on for 24 hours a day.
She had purchased it at an exorbitant price.
Apart from allowing them to monitor their targets closely, the strategic location of the apartment also made it extremely easy for them to ambush the house via a suspended cable.
What a brilliant location.
Those two advantages were all she needed.
After they finished setting up the equipment, No. 5 had also returned with the groceries, as well as some food for lunch. “I decided we should just not cook for lunch, so I bought some takeout.”
“Doesn’t matter. Let’s get to work after lunch.”
“Okay.”
The three of them sat together around the table. No. 5 asked, “Sis, what do we do next?”
“We’ll try to get the rough floor plan and layout of the house today. I’ll go inside tomorrow night to take a look. The Yin family appears to be running a simple business on the surface, but they’re actually dealing in a different field. In fact, I feel like there’s more than meets the eye.”
“Why don’t I go inside to take a look instead? It’s too dangerous,” said Fan Shixin.
She disagreed, “We can’t just go inside together, precisely because we’re not very clear about the exact situation inside. I had a similar experience in the Autumn Palace. The security definitely isn’t as tight in the Yin family home compared to the Autumn Palace. My only concern is that we’re unsure if there are booby traps or hexes inside. After all, they’re a family of mediums. Hence, you guys can’t enter.”
“Young Madam, you must be very careful, then. We’ll try to sketch a rough floor plan and layout of the mansion later.”
“Shixin, remember the data I showed you previously? Although there had been major changes to society, the Yin family still preserves their family tradition that had been around for centuries. The elders hold the highest authority in the patriarchal family, and there’s a clear inequality between the sexes. For now, the person who holds the highest power in the Yin family is still the old patriarch.”