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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 141: Stunning Beauty
"You... are here?"
Rong Ying said joyfully, looking at Xiao Mu, who had carefree, flowing curls that resembled the person from her dreams every night.
Xiao Mu was momentarily surprised, then smiled. Rong Ying looked like a shy little girl who had suddenly dressed up beautifully, so beautiful that he almost didn't recognize her. In his moment of astonishment, Rong Ying felt embarrassed and covered her face, saying, "Stop looking at me like that."
"Well, I just didn't recognize you right away... What's up? Why were you in such a hurry to call me?" Xiao Mu entered the room.
As Rong Ying closed the door, she replied, "It's nothing."
"Nothing?" Xiao Mu paused for a moment. When he turned back to look at her, Rong Ying smiled and said, "Yeah, it's not a big deal. Come... have a seat."
They sat at the table. This was a shared apartment; a single unit had been divided into several small rooms. It was cramped and narrow; even pouring a glass of water had to be done carefully. There were only two cups, both cartoon-themed. After Rong Ying set one down for Xiao Mu, she sat across from him, resting her chin on her hand and looking at him with curiosity as if they were meeting for the first time.
"I do have something to discuss," Xiao Mu said.
"There are too many things going on, so I guess you could say there's nothing," Rong Ying replied.
Her gaze was somewhat intense. If this were in the past, Xiao Mu would have easily understood the unspoken feelings behind it. He had never been this patient with a woman before—so patient that he had forgotten that there could be more between a man and a woman. So when this electric tension surged between them, instead of feeling desire, he felt nervous. He quickly changed the subject and said, "Isn't working at the bakery a bit tiring? If it's too much, I can help you find another job. The pay won't be too high; it's really hard to find work these days."
He was talking about the job for making a living. Rong Ying had changed jobs seven or eight times in a year and hadn't managed to stick with any of them for long. However, it was getting better; at least she was lasting longer now compared to when she first started—back then, she would quit within a week. Hearing this, Rong Ying smiled and said, "I'm doing quite well; my boss is even considering giving me a raise... Thank you for worrying about me, but I won't be so willful anymore."
"Oh, that's great." A sour feeling rose in Xiao Mu's heart. Maturity and understanding come at such a cost, especially for someone like Rong Ying who once found spending money troublesome.
"You know, you're just like my brother—always nagging. But thankfully you're not him; he’s always so strict with me," Rong Ying said as her fingers fidgeted nervously together. Inside, she felt just as awkward as her movements suggested.
Xiao Mu began to feel even more awkward than her, his face contorted in a way that resembled someone suffering from a toothache. He held back and said, "I'm still not on the same level as your brother."
"No, you're better than him... He only cares about his brothers and never considers what I think. I've always felt a bit scared of him; since we were young, he has always scolded me," Rong Ying pouted, but there was clearly a hint of affection and happiness in her expression. This left Xiao Mu stunned; her charmingly naive demeanor was a bright spot in a tragic story, making it particularly unforgettable.
He was mesmerized by her—her playful antics, her heart-wrenching cries, her self-destructive moments, and now, her blissful smile. What kind of torment had this ordinary woman endured to reach this point?
"What's wrong?" Rong Ying noticed Xiao Mu lost in thought and asked playfully. When he responded, she shyly added, "I haven't worn makeup in a long time; was I particularly ugly before?"
"Nonsense! You're beautiful; I'm even a bit nervous," Xiao Mu replied with a smile.
"Then I..." Rong Ying slowly moved closer to him and shyly asked, "Have you ever liked me?"
"Of course, I've always liked you," Xiao Mu said.
"No, that's just being dismissive... I don't mean like taking care of me... I mean..." Rong Ying suddenly found herself at a loss for words. In her fierce life, it seemed she had never experienced such tender feelings. She gazed at Xiao Mu dreamily, completely tongue-tied.
"I was just thinking about that, but how do I put it..." Xiao Mu scratched his forehead. Teasing women was his forte; one-night stands were second nature to him. But when it came to feelings, he found it difficult to articulate. Why did it feel so hard to say? Rong Ying wasn't unattractive, but whenever he saw her, the shadow of his brother loomed over him—a shadow that had always intimidated Xiao Mu from crossing any boundaries.
He hesitated, felt nervous, and even blushed slightly. This inexplicable excitement filled Rong Ying with a sense of happiness. She reached out and touched Xiao Mu's hand, holding it firmly while looking at him seriously. Xiao Mu tensed up and stammered, "You... know something?"
"Of course I know; do you think I'm foolish?" Rong Ying replied earnestly.
Xiao Mu's heart skipped a beat; he felt a chill run through him. He had mustered the courage a thousand times but never managed to voice it. Betrayal and deceit were not honorable acts, even if the one being betrayed was a bad person.
Once again feeling nervous and swallowing back his words, Rong Ying curiously asked, "Are you afraid of me?"
"Ah." Xiao Mu replied absentmindedly.
Rong Ying's expression suddenly darkened, a hint of frustration crossing her face. The image she had left behind was likely not a good one, and it seemed irreparable. She grasped Xiao Mu's hand tightly and asked, "What are you hiding from me?"
"Well..." Xiao Mu attempted to pull his hand away, but Rong Ying held on even tighter, looking at him seriously. He murmured, "It's nothing much."
"Then what does 'nothing' mean?" Rong Ying pressed on relentlessly.
Xiao Mu glanced sideways and asked, "What do you know?"
"I know everything. Do you believe me?" Rong Ying replied.
"You..." Xiao Mu looked at Rong Ying in panic. Nie Qifeng and Li Derli had already been sentenced; visiting them was now an option. If this former leader's sister came to visit, she would surely learn everything. That serious expression on her face confirmed his fears.
She stared at him, deeply and solemnly. Xiao Mu realized that beneath her rebellious exterior, Rong Ying was sharper than he had imagined. As the sister of Rong Wu, she was no fool. There was no love or hatred without reason in this world. After more than a year of ambiguous care, she had questioned him countless times, all of which he had managed to deflect. This time, he knew it was likely time for the truth to come out.
"What do you want to say?" Rong Ying asked with watery eyes.
"This is a... long story. I..." Xiao Mu whispered, preparing to lay everything bare. He had been ready for this day.
"Wait a moment." Rong Ying suddenly released him and stood up nervously, moving to the window with her back turned to Xiao Mu.
Xiao Mu got up and slowly walked behind her, speaking softly, "I don't care how you see me or what you'll think of me after you know the truth. Carrying this heavy burden in my heart isn't easy... It's time I told you."
"I know, I know..." Rong Ying turned around, nervously covering Xiao Mu's mouth with her hand before realizing it was inappropriate and letting go. Her voice trembled as she said, "I know it's like this... It's all my fault for being so foolish and always suspecting you of having ulterior motives... I..."
Her breathing became rough, and Xiao Mu finally understood: it was bad, she had gone too far.
It was too late, there was no turning back. Rong Ying wrapped her arms around him, feeling both excited and nervous as she slowly brought her red lips closer. As they neared, she closed her eyes in happiness. The slight flutter of her eyelashes, the delicate tip of her nose, and the fragrant strands of hair made Xiao Mu feel that familiar rush of emotions. He gently kissed Rong Ying's red lips but dared not let his thoughts wander further.
The coolness of her lips lingered, and when they were almost out of reach, she opened her eyes to see a pair of loving eyes gazing at her. She smiled and whispered, "You've chased me for over a year, and you still can't even kiss me?"
Xiao Mu felt a wave of relief wash over him, but then his body tensed again; he was lost in thought. Just as he was about to explain himself, those red lips came crashing onto his, losing all semblance of ladylike decorum. She kissed him fiercely, pressing herself against him as if trying to melt into his body. It was like a famished beast pouncing on a feast. As their lips and tongues intertwined in a wet embrace, she sensed Xiao Mu's desire and returned the kiss with equal fervor. That happiness transformed into excitement—a long kiss igniting the suppressed flames between them. When Xiao Mu regained some clarity, he found Rong Ying blushing deeply as she began to loosen his belt.
"Now? In broad daylight?" Xiao Mu protested weakly.
"I finally got the day off," Rong Ying said gleefully as she pulled away his belt and cupped his face, kissing him fervently. "Come on, hurry up; you're so slow."
Xiao Mu felt heat coursing through him as he peeled off Rong Ying's clothing. When her fair skin began to reveal itself, she shyly buried her head in his shoulder. He caressed her delicate skin that felt like silk and murmured through gritted teeth, "I'm such a scoundrel; I never even got the chance to be a good person."
"I only know scoundrels, and you're the most timid one," Rong Ying teased as she bit his ear. After saying this, she let out a sharp gasp as the last piece of her clothing was torn away. Like a lamb, she found herself thrown over Xiao Mu's shoulder. She squealed and playfully slapped his back, but her cries were filled with joy.
With a thud, they fell onto the bed. Xiao Mu propped himself up and looked down at Rong Ying, who shyly covered her face. He forcefully pulled her hands away and said seriously, "You were wrong earlier; among the scoundrels you know, I'm the worst—the most reckless and daring... but I don't want to be a scoundrel anymore. If you kick me off this bed right now, I'll leave immediately."
"Not a chance," Rong Ying said as she clung to him and kissed him again, wrapping herself around him like an octopus.
Ahhh~~~~~~~
A cry filled with pain, pleasure, excitement, and passion marked the beginning of this scoundrel's descent into oblivion...
The phone rang several times with the cheerful ringtone, but no one answered. Aeming slammed his phone down on the table in frustration.
At that moment, he was in Anhui Province, part of an economic investigation team under the Economic Investigation Bureau. In this environment, his looks were out of place. The large room was filled with project personnel, each equipped with a computer, most of whom could sit for hours without moving as they stared at their screens. Across from him, Fan Saili was intently watching a video feed from a remote interrogation sent by a brother unit. She casually asked, "What's wrong? Can't get through?"
"Damn it, that brat won't answer my call," Aeming cursed. As soon as he finished speaking, Fan Saili shot him a glare, and he barely had time to stop himself.
"Let’s put that aside for now... Look at this person, Zhang Ge. He used to be an accomplice of Wang Shou. They met while working at an electronics factory in Dongguan..." Fan Saili said seriously. The two seemed to have a tacit understanding as they leaned over the table, watching the screen where a middle-aged man was being interrogated.
Trafficker King Wang Shou had previously been a criminal involved in a prostitution case and had served his sentence. He was now being interrogated by the Zhuhai Police at the request of the Anhui Provincial Task Force due to his recent conviction for forging fake passports.
"Ah, King Guai... I remember that case we worked on together. It was just introducing female workers to go into prostitution; the entertainment venue owner gave us a few hundred yuan as a referral fee... That trip abroad? Everything about it has been cleared up; he was the main culprit, and I was just an accomplice..."
"Can you clarify? Doing it this way... the referral fee for introducing female workers is low; some owners do overseas business and pay fifteen thousand Australian dollars for each introduction. However, those coastal working girls have seen enough of the world to be hard to convince. If you introduce them out there, they know what they're getting into; locally they might sell themselves okay, but if you take them abroad, they definitely won't go... So King Guai wanted to backtrack and return to his hometown to hook up with some prettier young women; better quality means more money out there..."
"What about in the factory? What could possibly happen there? Working over ten hours a day without coming out for food? They'd be exhausted inside! Who would do that? Most female workers are doing this because they can't support their families... Oh come on, what's so shameless about it? There are husbands cooking and taking care of kids at home while their wives sell themselves outside; it's quite normal..."
"Ah, let's not talk about that; let's talk about King Guai... Everyone calls him King Guai; he has quite the way with words. Those unwilling female workers can be persuaded by him to happily become escorts... Seriously, we managed to introduce three or two girls a month back then; he did ten times that or more... He must have kept introducing new ones; old ones replaced by new ones. Some female workers who had been in it for a while figured things out and just ran away on their own. So there's always demand for this kind of thing..."
"What about King Guai's preferences? Do I even need to say? Women... He would first sleep with them before introducing them for sale. Tsk, that's impressive! Some even earned money and came back to give it to him. Really, if it weren't for one female worker's boyfriend getting furious and chasing him down with a knife, he wouldn't have left..."
Fan Saili noted the key points, her face displaying a look of astonishment as she flipped through the notes from Binhai. She murmured to herself:
"Initial motives and incentives could stem from parental divorce, feelings of abandonment; disappointments in love, being cast aside; sweet words are certain, having charm with women is certain, yet his victims are also women. This contradiction suggests he may have been hurt by women or that a woman he cared about was harmed, leaving him powerless..."
Aeming continued, "Then Wang Shou's investigation back home is correct. Wang Shou was rejected by the woman's family, and the bride price of eight hundred eighty-eight was not refunded. In his first crime, the abducted victim was neither violently attacked nor sexually assaulted... The incentive might lie here. The information from Zhaoyuan Town indicates that he grew up with his target, Yao Yuxia... and the first person he abducted was Yao Yuxia's cousin."
"This is purely out of a sense of revenge," Fan Saili remarked. "Xiao Mu said this; the consequence of serving time in prison is that his moral standards plummet while his criminal skills improve rapidly... Going to work in the south might have frustrated him even more. He must have struggled but belongs to that type who can't break free. He quickly found common ground with Zhang Ge and then started introducing female workers for illicit activities."
"The motives and incentives are completely accurate; this little rascal," Aeming said sternly. Years later, he still couldn't help but feel incredulous about Xiao Mu.
Fan Saili still found it hard to accept. She had never encountered a situation where one could infer personality traits from case situations. Immersed in her astonishment, she awkwardly asked an off-topic question: "Party Instructor, what kind of person is this? Initially, I thought it was a bit mystical, but after this investigation, everything seems so logical."
The incentives were clear, and the motives were simple: he had been hurt by women and sought revenge. Even terms like sweet words and charm with women were heavily noted by Fan Saili. Her comparisons yielded results that were shockingly accurate.
At that moment, Aeming interjected confidently, "What kind of person do you think he is? My brother! I knew he would succeed; he has more insight than others. Even the most cunning suspects seem foolish compared to him."
"Then do you think he can guess... their whereabouts?" Fan Saili asked doubtfully.
"Most likely," Aeming replied, thumping his chest.
"I'll book you a flight; you need to go to Binhai today and make sure to bring this person back... Ah, don't worry about expenses; we have plenty of funds in our economic investigation unit. Just find me Wang Shou and any clues—this credit will go to your Criminal Investigation team..."
As Fan Saili spoke, she had already opened her phone to book a flight for Aeming, who had just returned not long ago. Meanwhile, Aeming kept dialing Xiao Mu's number repeatedly, but for some reason, he wouldn't answer...
The phone lay in the pocket, the pocket rested on the pants, and the pants were tossed on the floor, ignored by everyone.
Gasping for breath, Xiao Mu lay back, feeling both exhilarated and exhausted. He never expected that in a moment of carelessness, he would have done something he least wanted to do in his life.
"Hey... want some water?" Rong Ying turned to him, propping her chin on her hand as she looked at Xiao Mu closely.
Her eyes were filled with affection. From their first meeting to now, from strangers to intimacy, it felt like a dreamlike distance. Xiao Mu remained silent as she smiled and said, "You got tired so quickly after just a little while?"
Xiao Mu chuckled lightly. When he laughed, Rong Ying playfully pinched him, though she didn't want to do it too hard. She gently squeezed his hand, and he held her soft hand in silence, feeling a complex mix of emotions rising within him. He looked at Rong Ying, delicate and beautiful; her sorrowful thinness only added to her charm. Leaning closer, she lightly kissed him and asked, "What's wrong?"
"I'm a bit scared," Xiao Mu admitted, rare for him to speak such truth.
"Scared that I might cling to you?" Rong Ying teased.
"Will you cling to me?" Xiao Mu asked.
"Of course, unless you stop liking me... I used to have many friends, but they all disappeared overnight. Luckily I have you; otherwise, I don't know if I could have gotten through this. I want to ask you something, and you have to answer honestly," Rong Ying said, almost whispering as she leaned in closer. Xiao Mu noticed how warm and soft she felt against him at that moment; he thought that discussing morals was quite foolish. He caressed her flat stomach below and joked, "Honesty is hard."
"Don't touch there," Rong Ying shyly pulled his hand away but then playfully pressed herself against him and asked, "Have you been taking care of me because you like me? Or out of pity?"
"Neither. Do you believe that?" Xiao Mu replied.
The answer surprised her. After thinking for a moment, Rong Ying said, "I believe that; it's just..."
Rong Ying smiled, revealing two charming dimples and a row of sparkling white teeth. Xiao Mu chuckled and asked, "What is it?"
"Is it that you want to be with me?" Rong Ying replied playfully.
Xiao Mu let out a laugh, and Rong Ying pinched his cheek, scolding him, "Did you think I wouldn't notice? You've wanted to say something several times but didn't dare to... Do you expect me to chase after you while pretending to be cultured? Once the facade drops, you're just a rogue."
This was truly Rong Ying's real personality, which seemed to have been unleashed. However, seeing Xiao Mu laugh uncontrollably made Rong Ying blush a little. Wrapping herself in a blanket, she got out of bed and tossed her ringing phone to Xiao Mu like a startled deer before darting into the bathroom. Xiao Mu glanced at the screen; it was Baldy's call. He had no mood to answer and simply pressed the power button, letting out a long sigh of relief.
"Damn it, if I had to choose a way to die... then this is how I would choose."
Xiao Mu quietly comforted himself; that kind of death felt like the bliss he was experiencing right now.
"Xiao Mu... I'm going to the shop this afternoon. Can we eat outside for lunch? You can wash up," Rong Ying asked.
"Sure, sounds good," Xiao Mu replied, suddenly energized as he sat up.
"Also, Brother Nie's verdict has come down. Can you find some time to visit him? After all, he used to be your big brother," Rong Ying added.
Thud! Xiao Mu fell straight off the bed. He realized that with everything he had done, wanting blissful death wouldn't be so easy...
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