Chapter 108: Gained Without Any Effort (First Update)

Numbers in themselves hold no meaning; it is humans who subjectively imbue them with special significance. One is just one, and two hundred and fifty is simply two hundred and fifty. At some point, however, people began to label these numbers, much like categorizing people into groups or things into classes—labels that can be good or bad, ranging from the mocking “two hundred and fifty” to the hopeful “wholehearted.”

Hou San sat in the back seat, gently holding Zhu Dachang, who was driving the electric scooter. The breeze whispered past his ears, warm winter sunlight streamed ahead, and they glided through the mottled shadows of trees as he mockingly recounted the story of “two hundred and fifty.”

Zhang Xiaoman sat on a park bench, holding Huang Xiaoxiao tightly as she rested her head on his shoulder. Beneath their feet, lush green grass spread out; before them, fish played in the water. Amid the fluttering pigeons, he remained steady as a rock, softly and tenderly telling tales of wholehearted devotion.

“Xiaoxiao, you know me well. No matter how things change, my love for you is like the sum of squares of sine and cosine—constant and unchanging.”

Zhang Xiaoman glanced at the pink letter in Huang Xiaoxiao’s hand, sent by He Yao, swallowed nervously, and quietly reached out with his other free hand to snatch the letter away. “Those who abandon me belong to yesterday, which cannot be kept. Those who disturb my heart bring today nothing but troubles... It’s all in the past; let it drift away with the wind!”

“Drift away? You want it to drift away, but others want it to drift too...” Huang Xiaoxiao raised her eyes, giving Zhang Xiaoman a sidelong glance, playfully pursing her lips like in their youth. She tore open the envelope, pulled out the letter, and placed it in Zhang Xiaoman’s hand. “And don’t think I don’t know—sin and cos are symbols of trigonometric functions. Triangles, triangles... you’re not done scheming yet, are you?”

“Don’t joke around. The most important thing for a married couple is affection. We’re so in love that there’s no room for her to wedge herself in...” Zhang Xiaoman gave the letter a cursory glance, his face twitching slightly as he lowered his head. “He Yao did it on purpose—absolutely on purpose!”

Huang Xiaoxiao glanced sideways at the letter, her expression indifferent as she scoffed coldly. “Flirting with you again, huh? You must be feeling pretty good inside—old as you are, someone still remembers you. Perfectly satisfies your restless heart.”

“It’s the unattainable that stirs restlessness. I already have you; I won’t be tempted...” Zhang Xiaoman felt her fingers tightening on his waist, cleared his throat lightly. “She’s not stirring up trouble. If you don’t believe me, look yourself. That woman is old but still crafty. The materials she sent me were things I asked her to check, yet she insisted on putting them in a pink envelope. Isn’t that deliberately inviting all sorts of wild imaginings?”

“I’m not looking!” Huang Xiaoxiao turned her face away but glanced at the letter in Zhang Xiaoman’s hand with a cold smile. “She just wants to test me, see how big my heart is, ha! If I really look, it would be beneath me. I, Huang Xiaoxiao, have never lost to anyone before, and I never will.”

“Really not looking?” Zhang Xiaoman nudged the letter closer to her eyes, a slight smile playing on his lips. “Just one glance, to avoid any misunderstanding.”

“No!” Huang Xiaoxiao pushed the letter away. “Misunderstandings exist precisely because of looking too much and thinking too much. I’d rather be a fool who neither sees nor hears. Nowadays, they call it ‘love brain.’ I think it suits me well... Love makes one blind, and I’ve been blind for nearly a lifetime—I can’t look!”

“Just one glance, just one,” Zhang Xiaoman laughed heartily. “You really ought to see this letter. It’s connected to you, after all.”

“Connected to me?”

“To be precise, it’s related to your half-brother on your father’s side...”

“Jiujiang?” Huang Xiaoxiao took the letter and examined it carefully, her brow knitting tighter. “Impossible! Jiujiang was so focused on revenge back then... how could he have had time to father a child?”

“It wasn’t him giving birth,” Zhang Xiaoman scratched his nose. “For a man, having a child is just a matter of minutes—it doesn’t take much time... Everything still needs verification, but if that’s true, it makes sense. Jiujiang left so resolutely back then partly for your sake, but perhaps also to give that child a clean future. After all, people love to label others, and if that child were branded as ‘the son of a murderer,’ his life would be truly ruined.”

Suddenly, Huang Xiaoxiao seemed to recall something, covering her mouth in surprise. “It really could be. During the time he spent with Nie Yi, he often said to me: ‘Children are the hope bestowed upon humanity by heaven...’” Narrowing her eyes, she looked at Zhang Xiaoman puzzled. “Why did you suddenly think of asking He Yao to help check if Jiujiang had a child?”

“A few days ago, Yin Heng’s daughter came to the teachers’ dorm late at night looking for me. You can probably guess what she wanted...” Zhang Xiaoman sighed, not answering Huang Xiaoxiao’s question directly. He spoke softly, “Then I thought seriously: there’s no love without cause, nor hatred without reason. I’ve solved many cases in my life, stopping many criminals; but I’ve also inadvertently destroyed many families. You never know, when punishing a villain, if a child’s home might be shattered as a consequence...”

He paused, then continued, “Some want me dead, others want me to suffer worse than death—mostly from these broken families. But someone has to do this work, and I don’t regret it. Rotten branches must be pruned; we can’t spare them just because we fear damaging the nearby twigs... Realizing this, I began reflecting on how many children lost their homes because of me. But I’ve offended too many to list them all... Until one day, I saw someone in the hospital who also bore the surname Wang.”

“Seeing someone who catches your eye isn’t always a good thing,” Huang Xiaoxiao said in shock. “Could it be that child is also...?”

“It’s too early to say, but it is connected to the case I’m investigating,” Zhang Xiaoman exhaled heavily. “The little branches have indeed grown crooked! If only we’d known sooner, maybe we could have done something...”

Huang Xiaoxiao was silent for a long time before letting out a deep sigh. She handed the letter back to Zhang Xiaoman, pouting. “My surname is Huang, not Wang. You can handle these things yourself; you don’t need to consider my feelings. Let’s not talk about other people’s children. You really should mind your own family’s affairs.”

Zhang Xiaoman looked puzzled. “Our family is pretty upright. Don’t listen to those rumors outside. Nie Yi and Li Jun got into some trouble, but they’re not the real culprits...”

Huang Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes. “Am I discussing case details with you? I’m talking about love!” She pointed to the pigeons at their feet. “She loves him, but he doesn’t know she loves him. He, knowing he loves her, still loves her. She doesn’t know he loves her, nor that she loves him. He knows she loves him and knows she loves him, but refuses to say he loves her. Now it’s all a mess, tangled beyond repair.”

“It certainly is...” Zhang Xiaoman twitched at the corner of his eye and cleared his throat. Pointing at a pigeon pecking on the ground, he said, “Actually, I’ve already talked to him,” then gestured to another pigeon, “and hinted at him, but he didn’t seem to understand and thought it had nothing to do with him. He understood perfectly but pretended it didn’t concern him.”

“You can’t just manage your apprentice,” Huang Xiaoxiao frowned, pointing at two other pigeons. “It takes two hands to clap. You have to deal with her and her as well.”

“It’s not appropriate for me to talk to those two,” Zhang Xiaoman said reluctantly. “It’s easier for you women to chat it out. But I think we shouldn’t interfere too much—fate in love is heaven-ordained. It’s no longer the old feudal times demanding arranged marriages. Let the kids work it out themselves.”

“We’re just too hands-off, which is why things have gotten so awkward,” Huang Xiaoxiao shook her head. “Since you won’t go, then I’ll have to take action. I’m going to Green Vine City for a few days anyway, so you won’t feel like I’m in the way here.”

“Where did that come from?”

“Don’t think I’m really love-stricken. You got this letter days ago, yet today you put it back in the mailbox outside your door—just waiting for me to open it, right? You want to see how I react. When women get serious, each one’s a detective. Don’t think you can fool me. If I don’t expose it, it’s because I don’t want to.”

Zhang Xiaoman smiled sheepishly, pretending to receive a call. He hurriedly stood, pulling out his phone and holding it to his ear. “What? Okay, okay... I’m coming right now...” He looked at Huang Xiaoxiao apologetically and smiled weakly. “Xiaoxiao, there’s something going on at the police station. I have to go over now. How about... after I’m done, we go home and talk?”

“The screen is black. Are you answering the phone with your mind? Do you think I’m blind?” Huang Xiaoxiao laughed scornfully. “If you want to leave, just leave. Stop pretending you’re swamped!”

Zhang Xiaoman forced a dry laugh and argued, “It’s real. Nie Yi and Li Jun have been taken by the prosecutor’s office. I need to show my face, or it’ll look suspicious.”

“Get lost,” Huang Xiaoxiao stood up, chin raised. “I’m not idle either, busy with a pile of things. If I weren’t worried about saving your face, who would sit in the park in the freezing cold, drinking the northwest wind? What era is this? Meeting in a park to count ants?”

Zhang Xiaoman awkwardly rubbed his nose and quickly turned to leave. “It’s because the money’s with you; I couldn’t afford to meet anywhere else...”

“Wait!” Huang Xiaoxiao called after him, beckoning with her finger. “Did I say you could go?” When Zhang Xiaoman hung his head and came back, she pulled a tissue from her pocket and pressed it into his hand, speaking flatly, “The jewelry store opened, and I went along for the excitement. I also picked up something for you—might come in handy. I’m not helping you; I just don’t want those two fools to stay in jail. My birthday’s coming up soon; we should celebrate together.”

Zhang Xiaoman stared at the bloodstains and a long strand of hair on the tissue, his eyes shining brightly. “After searching high and low, it comes without effort!”

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