Chapter 96: Zhou Jiayan, Sometimes You’re Quite Annoying

Listening to Hui's explanation, Jiang Zao nodded with quiet indifference, picked up the fruit-flavored drink from the cabinet, inserted a straw, and began to sip.

Zhou Lichuan answered Li Baixiu's call and drove straight to the agreed meeting place.

Seated in a shop thick with the cloying sweetness of dessert and syrup, his severe black suit looked almost absurdly out of place. Nearby, young female students kept craning their necks, cheeks flushed, stealing furtive glances.

A man so refined and striking would be the center of every gaze wherever he went.

After making the last drink, Li Baixiu came over with a tray.

"Extra-strong Americano, and some water. Dark circles under your eyes too—didn't sleep well last night?"

Zhou Lichuan rubbed at his brow. "Jiang Zao keeps saying I smell funny and making me sleep on the sofa."

Li Baixiu's hand paused as he set down the cup. He truly could not picture Zhou Lichuan sleeping on a sofa. How could a man so noble and proud willingly curl up inside something so cramped?

Suppressing his gaze, Li Baixiu unfastened his apron and sat down across from him.

"Yesterday I asked a friend at the police bureau to help out. Zhao Luyi's case was sent to Changzhou for handling. They'll hold her for fifteen days first."

A trace of caution flickered in Zhou Lichuan's eyes. "You... have friends at the police bureau? What kind of friends?"

Li Baixiu was not surprised by Zhou Lichuan's sharpness. A man like him ought to possess exactly that kind of keen instinct.

"In middle school, I got into fights a lot. I was always ending up at the police bureau."

Zhou Lichuan arched a brow. "So that's how you learned to fight?"

Li Baixiu smiled faintly. "I don't have a father. I was bullied at school ever since I was little. Then one day I decided I wasn't going to take it anymore, so I stood up and fought the people who'd been tormenting me to the death. One broke a bone, two were injured, and the last one was so scared he wet himself and caught a cold for three days. I came away without a scratch. The officer handling the case happened to be my neighbor. That's when I started learning judo."

Zhou Lichuan took a sip of the coffee in front of him. "The Li family's affairs aren't something you can settle just by acting tough. Showing off your record to me is useless. Say something that interests me."

Li Baixiu lowered his head, weighing his own leverage. If there was anything that could draw in the man before him, it was probably only...

"The Li family has a shipping route for building materials. It played a major role in last year's cross-sea bridge project in Country J. They're still living off the profits from that project."

At last, Zhou Lichuan lowered the leg he had been casually resting over the other and looked properly at the young man before him.

"Go on."

Clenching his fist, Li Baixiu said, "I know a man named Lin Rui. Zhou Jiayan said the police believe he used that shipping route to escape out to sea. If we have that route, finding him will be much easier."

Zhou Lichuan was silent for a moment before finally nodding in approval.

The chill in Li Baixiu's eyes gradually faded. In terms of presence alone, he was no match for Zhou Lichuan.

He was still only a university student who had not yet graduated. The hard-won experience of all those fights had given him a hint more ruthlessness and calculation than others his age, but he still could not compare with Zhou Lichuan, who had been carving out a place in the business world for years.

Zhou Lichuan was all cutting edge and restrained force, his features sharp as a blade. Ruthlessness was hidden well beneath that stern exterior, and with only a few breaths he could make others feel as though they could not breathe.

Zhou Lichuan took another sip of coffee. "Although Li Mingyi isn't clever, he's not an idiot. He knows failing to propose to Zhou Jiayan is partly your doing. He didn't come after you?"

Li Baixiu gave a cold laugh. "A paper tiger full of bluster but weak inside. I had someone find a few regulatory loopholes in his shops, and after reporting fire hazards and hygiene violations, two of his stores were already done for. Now only the immersive murder mystery venue and the bar are left."

Zhou Lichuan looked amused. "Not bad. At least your methods are legal. Jiang Zao is soft-hearted, and even if she has ways of fighting back, she won't step outside the bounds of decency. Spending more time with you will help her stay alert to the irrational things in this world. That's no bad thing for her."

Before Li Baixiu could respond, Zhou Lichuan's phone suddenly rang.

"Zaozhao, I'm outside."

Li Baixiu's hair stood on end. Someone tell him: who was this man with the lovestruck expression, practically radiating pink bubbles? What did he have to do with the icy, untouchable President Zhou from a moment ago?

"Fresh crucian carp? Where can I buy some? I'll go right now."

Li Baixiu raised a hand to show he understood.

Zhou Lichuan nodded. "All right. I've asked around and found someone who knows. Wait for me. I'll be back as soon as I buy it."

After hanging up, Li Baixiu asked, "Does Sister Jiang want fish soup?"

Zhou Lichuan's entire aura had been softened into something almost sweet by the phone call. "Yes. And tofu and ginger too."

Li Baixiu pulled the car keys from his pocket and stood. "Then let's go together. I might as well buy some eggs and sugar while I'm at it."

The two of them headed out, chatting idly about the market near Jiang Zao's neighborhood.

It seemed neither of them noticed that not far from where they had just left, a man wearing glasses had quietly lifted his coffee cup, hiding the hostility in his eyes.

If any of the people involved had been present, they would have gasped in fear at his name, the very name just spoken in the conversation between the two men: Lin Rui.

After getting into the car, Zhou Lichuan followed behind Li Baixiu's vehicle, while the voice in his earpiece relayed the report.

"He doesn't seem to have noticed. He's still sitting in the shop. Should we call the police?"

Turning the steering wheel, Zhou Lichuan said softly, "Isn't he supposed to be 'at sea' right now? If the police come, we'll alert him. Then it'll be hard to trace him again. He'll go there again sooner or later. First find someone reliable to keep watch."

"What about Sister Jiang? With Lin Rui showing up now, it's far too unsafe for her to stay in Changzhou."

"Think of a way to bring her back to Jingzhou."

"Then you come. I'm afraid I'll get beaten."

"..."

Li Baixiu made no attempt to hide his "respect" for Jiang Zao. He had always struck fast and hard; if he accidentally hurt even the slightest thing, he would probably have to come back with his head in his hands. He still wanted to live a few more days.

Zhou Lichuan didn't dare either. He was the one who dared least of all.

Jiang Zao was still angry. With a child in her belly, she could not be touched or jostled. They would have to keep the matter of Lin Rui from her and find a way to bring her back to Jingzhou. It would be difficult in every possible way.

After buying the crucian carp and tofu, Zhou Lichuan stopped at the grocery shop by the neighborhood entrance, picked out a piece of ginger, and carried everything back upstairs.

As he climbed, he could not help thinking that only a few days ago he had been kept outside the door, and today he could openly buy groceries and return home. Home—the word itself sounded so lovely.

Before long, he was so delighted that he scarcely knew up from down, humming a tuneless little melody as he climbed the stairs with a light step. He was thinking of Jiang Zao's soft, fragrant, sweet body, wondering whether today he might be able to hold her again, maybe even beg for a kiss.

The more Zhou Lichuan thought, the more excited he became, until he seemed ready to float into the air.

But the moment he knocked and the door opened, most of that joy drained away at once.

"Zhou Jiayan, sometimes you're really annoying."

Zhou Jiayan stood in the doorway, still biting on a milk tea straw. "Zhou Lichuan, you've always been pretty annoying."

With that, she rolled her eyes and turned back inside.

Du Bin had been sitting on the sofa. Seeing Zhou Lichuan enter, he quickly stood, took the things from his hands, and carried them to Hui in the kitchen, where she was preparing ingredients.

"President Zhou, let me handle it. Wash your hands and rest for a bit."

Zhou Lichuan let out a faint sigh. "When you have time later, I need to talk to you about something."

Du Bin froze for a moment, then nodded. "All right."