Chapter 38: Passing Performance

“Name?”

“Jiang Sui.”

“Age?”

“Eighteen.”

“You’re not a native of Lan City?”

“My ancestral home is in Central City.”

Although these questions had already been asked once before, the officer in charge of the interrogation still recorded the basic information again as a matter of routine.

After a week, returning to the interrogation room at the Police Station, this place was still as dim as ever. Even in broad daylight, the only source of light was the single ceiling lamp, casting a harsh white glow that made Jiang Sui’s face look even more pale.

“What were you doing on the night of the incident, that is, last night?”

“I was at the Luo Family Manor, had just taken a shower, and was getting ready for bed. My colleagues can vouch for me.” Jiang Sui spoke, her expression tense and her voice trembling a little, “Then I heard that the Young Master had an accident.”

“What’s with your dark circles?” The interrogator pointed at her eyes.

“I was afraid the danger would affect me, so I was so scared I couldn’t sleep all night.”

“Why?” the interrogator asked.

“Because…” Jiang Sui hugged herself, her shoulders shaking, her expression pitiful, “I don’t want to get hurt again. It hurts so much. I don’t want to die, I don’t want to be hospitalized.”

“Please calm down. The same thing won’t happen a second time.”

The interrogator knew that this maid in front of him had almost lost her life in the Police Station. Seeing her like this, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy.

Besides, since last night, he and his colleagues had been busy with interrogations. Every servant in the manor had to be questioned, and they still hadn’t finished by now. He was so tired he could drop.

When Wang Xu arrived with his team, the rain had already stopped. Aside from the thugs who hadn’t managed to escape, they only found the severely injured Lu Yunze and the terribly mutilated Li Ren.

Li Ren’s body was brought back, while Lu Yunze was quickly sent to the Hospital.

The thugs who woke up knew nothing, Li Ren was dead, and Lu Yunze still hadn’t woken up. The Police Station could only question those around them, hoping to find some clue.

The thugs and Li Ren might have relatives in Lan City, and there were also the servants in the manor. The scope was huge and could only be narrowed down slowly.

“Alright, sign here, and you can leave.”

“That’s it?” Jiang Sui asked, puzzled.

“You’re barely a suspect, unless you lied.” The interrogator yawned. “Go on, the servants in your manor are endless, damn, we still haven’t finished questioning them all. I just want to go home…”

After politely thanking him, Jiang Sui stood up and left. The moment she stepped out of the interrogation room, all the worry and weakness on her face vanished, replaced by calmness.

“So this is the end of it. The rest of the aftermath can be left to the police.”

Walking down the corridor, Jiang Sui rubbed her slightly empty stomach.

“Dragged here for questioning so early in the morning, I didn’t even get to eat breakfast.”

Jiang Sui firmly believed that people need food to survive, especially after working in those soul-crushing companies in her previous life. The energy from a single meal was all the more important.

Fortunately, there was a breakfast shop on the street near the Police Station. She’d buy some buns first, and then…

When she entered the lobby, Jiang Sui heard a loud scolding that drew everyone’s attention. She stopped and turned her head, seeing a very familiar scene.

“If something happens to Lu Yunze and you still can’t catch the culprit, isn’t that just useless, Director?”

“Ahaha, Miss Luo, you don’t need to worry about that. Didn’t the culprit get killed by Young Master Lu? The body is still in our custody. As for Young Master Lu, don’t worry, the hospital director is a good friend of mine. I contacted him early on to take care of Young Master Lu.”

“What use is that kind of ‘taking care’? If the case was solved sooner, none of this would have happened!”

The director of the Police Station was a man with a third of his hair already white. He looked dignified, but in front of Luo Yao, he was as soft as a kitten.

In contrast, Luo Yao, though her height only reached the director’s shoulder, was full of presence, giving the impression that she could have the director replaced with just a word.

Scenes like this were all too familiar to Jiang Sui.

Managers who usually strutted around like roosters turned into pushovers in front of the big boss. The boss’s smile was their smile; the boss’s anger, their doomsday.

Ah, the workplace.

“There are so many people in the Police Station, yet in the end, it still had to be my Brother Lu who solved things. You lot are all useless.”

Luo Yao had been venting her anger for nearly an hour.

“What are the people from the Execution Department of Arcane Arts doing? Just taking money and not working—what’s the point of having you?”

“Yes, yes, Miss is right about everything.”

No matter how much she raged, the director remained humble. When Luo Yao finally felt parched and decided to let him go, he was spared.

From Jiang Sui’s angle, she could clearly see the director’s expression when his back was turned to Luo Yao—full of dissatisfaction, bitterness, and helplessness. He looked every bit the overworked office drone.

“Jiang Sui, what are you doing here?”

Luo Yao’s voice called out, drawing Jiang Sui’s gaze to her. Jiang Sui immediately reverted to her little maid persona.

“Good day, Miss. I just came out of the interrogation room.”

“I see. They didn’t give you a hard time, did they?”

“No.”

“That’s good. If you’re fine, hurry back. The house still needs cleaning. Also, tell the cook to prepare more dishes. If Brother Lu wakes up hungry, that wouldn’t be good.”

“Yes, Miss.”

Jiang Sui bowed slightly, then, after a moment’s thought, spoke up.

“Miss, how is Young Master doing?”

“Hmm?”

Luo Yao glanced over, her tone clearly unhappy.

“I’m asking about the Young Master’s condition. Aren’t you going to visit him?”

“I already have. That’s not something you need to worry about.” Luo Yao’s tone was stern and brooked no argument. “And don’t go near Brother Lu on your own. It’s for your own good.”

“Understood.”

For my own good?

She says it with such conviction.

Jiang Sui had originally wanted to volunteer to bring food to the patient, but seeing Luo Yao’s attitude, she gave up. If Luo Yao got suspicious, she’d just have to find another way to clear herself.

Leaving the Police Station, Jiang Sui didn’t head back to the manor. Instead, she went the opposite direction, bought a few buns, and ate as she walked.

When she passed a small alley, she heard a cat meowing. A black cat came out, and she tossed one of her buns to it.

“What filling?”

“Char siu.”

“Forget it, I don’t like it.”

The black cat disdainfully pushed the bun away.

“So, how is it?”

“Don’t worry, he’s fine. With me watching him, nothing will happen.”

“That’s good.”

A smile curled up at the corners of Jiang Sui’s mouth.

Directly asking Luo Yao for Lu Yunze’s hospital room number was out of the question. Fortunately, she had another reliable partner.

Luo Yao probably wouldn’t return to the manor so soon, so Jiang Sui took this chance to hurry to the Hospital, found Lu Yunze’s room, and saw him lying on the bed.

Jiang Sui pulled up a chair and sat down, hands resting on her knees, quietly watching his face.

“You really snatched your life back, huh.”

After a while, she started talking to herself.

“I’ve avenged you. When you wake up, shouldn’t you thank me properly?”

Knowing Lu Yunze couldn’t hear her, she could speak as freely as she liked.

“To be honest, your actions really surprised me, but I don’t dislike it.”

At least, Lu Yunze’s foolish actions had answered a long-standing question in her heart.

So there really was someone willing to save her, even risking his life to do so.

“But you can’t just die here for my sake. I still need you as my tool.”

If she had to grade Lu Yunze’s performance last night, he barely passed when he first took down Li Ren, but after everything that happened, Jiang Sui was willing to raise that score to a level she was satisfied with.

She took out the four-leaf clover necklace and tucked it into Lu Yunze’s palm, then lifted his hand and gently pressed it to her cheek.

It was this hand that had pushed her away. Such a strong and solid hand.

“Your hands, in the future, will become my best tool, clearing all obstacles for me.”

What no one else could do, only I can accomplish.

Even though this wasn’t her first time interacting with Lu Yunze, Jiang Sui had never realized how sturdy his body was. Just his thick palm was enough to fascinate her.

Slim in clothes, muscular underneath—what an enviable body.

Jiang Sui’s breathing grew rapid, her cheeks flushing red. She stuck out her little tongue, gently licking his palm and the back of his hand.

You can’t die here. You have to get stronger, more robust—otherwise, how can you satisfy me?

The girl squeezed her thighs together, twisted her body, and kept rubbing her face against his hand, savoring the warmth and masculine scent he brought.

“What… are you doing?”

“Hmm?”

At some point, Lu Yunze had opened his eyes, his pupils trembling with the reflection of the girl’s entranced expression.