0070 Police

When Song Ning opened her eyes, the bedside was empty, but there was a transparent glass vase on the bedside table.

There were a dozen or so flowers in the vase, the ones she had given me last night, and a note was pressed under the vase.

Song Ning pulled out the note; it was in Shen Yuxiu's handwriting.

The calligraphy used is in running script, and the characters are written with vigor and flowing grace. Just looking at them is a pleasure, not to mention the love words written on them.

Falling in love with you is the greatest happiness of my life.

I didn't expect Professor Shen to be so romantic.

Feeling relaxed and happy, Song Ning picked up the note, intending to store it with her dried flowers.

She got out of bed, and as soon as she stood up, she felt an excruciating backache.

Song Ning's first thought was, "Could I have kidney deficiency?" Isn't it said that women need to be nourished? If anyone should have kidney deficiency, it should be Professor Shen.

Despite her aching back, Song Ning took the box containing dried flowers from above the TV cabinet, put the note inside, and left the bedroom.

The house had been carefully tidied up; there were no clothes she had left lying around on the floor last night, and two bouquets of flowers, the same as those in the bedroom, were placed on the coffee table and dining table in the living room.

She put her bag on the entryway cabinet from the sofa, took out her phone from the bag, and made a call to Shen Yuxiu.

The call was answered as soon as the phone rang.

"woke up?"

"Hmm. Where did you go so early?" Song Ning leaned against the entryway cabinet and glanced out the window.

It was still dark outside.

"I had a meeting this morning, and I didn't wake you since you were still sleeping." As he spoke, he seemed to remember something. "Breakfast is in the pot, it should still be warm. If it's still warm, you can microwave it. Don't eat it cold."

Song Ning walked towards the kitchen and saw the flowers on the dining table: "Did you take care of all my flowers?"

"Hmm, let's see how it goes."

"You almost killed Dad's orchid last time, are you sure you can take good care of it?" Song Ning lifted the pot lid, and a waft of steam hit her face. Breakfast was placed on a steamer rack inside the pot, and hot water was used to keep it warm underneath.

Hearing no response from the other end, Song Ning assumed Shen Yuxiu was worried about not being able to raise the baby properly, and comforted him, "It's okay, even if it dies, I'll buy you another one. The money from the last race has arrived, enough to buy you a lifetime's worth of food."

Song Ning heard a clear, cheerful laugh from across the room: "Ningning, do you know what this flower means?"

Song Ning took out the still-warm breakfast: "Didn't you say that last night?"

However, she wasn't quite sure. When she placed the order, she saw the seller's title say "Give me a kiss," so she assumed it was the meaning of the flower.

"Did you see the note I left this morning?"

Song Ning walked to the dining table, put down her plate, and vaguely felt that she might have misunderstood something that morning.

"I saw it."

"It's the meaning of champagne roses. This flower is given to a beloved, signifying that you will love only one person for life."

Shen Yuxiu slowed his speech: "Do you want to keep giving gifts for the rest of your life?"

"Yes." Of course I want to. I dream about it.

Silence fell on the other end of the line. Song Ning suddenly felt a little short of breath, and her chest thumped.

She wanted to hear Shen Yuxiu's answer.

"Then I'll give it to you for life."

His voice was soft, yet powerfully pierced her beating heart. Song Ning felt dizzy and didn't speak for a moment. When she regained her voice, she reminded him, "I sent 33 roses last night."

Shen Yuxiu chuckled: "I know."

He knew, but he didn't say it.

Not getting what he wanted to hear, Song Ning didn't mind. She teased him a few more times, then let him go to the meeting, ate breakfast, and went back to school.

Song Ning only had two classes in the morning. She first went back to her dormitory to get her books, and then went to class with Lin Qianqian.

Lin Qianqian has convinced herself and is slowly accepting this "illicit" relationship. However, she occasionally shows a confused and puzzled expression, and then mutters to herself, "I never thought of this, I really never thought of this."

Song Ning knew, of course, what she couldn't think of, and let her not think of it. However, Song Ning did make a hypothetical assumption: if Shen Yuxiu were her own brother, would she still have a chance to fall in love with him?

The answer is yes.

During class, a call came in from an unknown number. Song Ning didn't answer. It wasn't until after class, when she was leaving the teaching building, that she called back.

"Hello, Changli Street Police Station."

Song Ning remembered making a phone call last night on Changli Street.

"This is Song Ning. You just called me. What's up?"

"Song Ning, I called you earlier but you didn't answer. I'd like to ask if you know Li Zhiheng?"

"I don't know him."

"At 10:47 pm last night, you placed an order online for a bouquet of flowers. Li Zhiheng was the deliveryman who delivered the flowers to you."

Song Ning said "Oh," somewhat confused. Was it illegal for her to buy a bouquet of flowers?

The other party continued, "After he delivered flowers to you last night, he was attacked near your neighborhood."

Song Ning's hand trembled, and she almost dropped her phone.

She looked around. There were students and school staff coming and going, and a few cars passing by occasionally. In this bright and sunny day, Song Ning suddenly felt a chill down her spine, as if a pair of eyes were watching her in the dark.

"You were his last delivery. We'd like to ask if you noticed anyone following him last night, or if you..."

“I didn’t see him last night,” Song Ning interrupted calmly. “I was taking a shower, so I asked him to leave the flowers at the door.”

"Li Zhiheng has already told us about the situation. We'd like to know if you've received anything else besides the flowers?"

"What is it?" Song Ning asked.

"That's good. Do you live alone or with your family?"

Song Ning didn't like revealing her privacy and wasn't sure of the other person's identity, so she remained silent.

The other person seemed to know her concerns and advised, "Try to spend more time with family and friends these days, reduce the number of times you go out, and take good care of yourself."

"Is that delivery driver alright?" Song Ning asked.

She wasn't sure if the person who hurt him was Fu Cong, but if it was, then that person was implicated because of her.

"He was slightly injured, but was found in time and taken to the hospital. He has already regained consciousness."

Song Ning wanted to ask which hospital it was, but she was afraid that if the other party was really a police officer, they would suspect her, so she didn't dare to ask any more questions.

Besides, she couldn't be sure if it was related to her. Maybe that person had offended someone else. So Song Ning just said "Oh" and didn't say anything more.

The other party gave a few more instructions to be careful, and then mentioned contacting the police before ending the call.

Song Ning suddenly remembered the cardboard box from last night. She rushed home but couldn't find it anywhere.

She called Shen Yuxiu, who replied with a text message and then called her back a few minutes later.

"Did you see a cardboard box when you were tidying up this morning?" Song Ning tried to keep her voice calm so that Shen Yuxiu wouldn't overhear anything.

"I threw it away, so what?" Shen Yuxiu said calmly.

"Is there nothing inside?"

Song Ning's hands trembled slightly, whether from running or from nervousness, it was hard to tell.

"No, I checked it was empty before I threw it away."

Song Ning's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.

Thankfully, he wasn't; she was afraid he'd be frightened. He'd had a smooth life from birth, and had never encountered a madman like Fu Cong.

The thought of what Fu Cong had done made Song Ning feel her blood run cold and her whole body shiver.

“You need a cardboard box? I’ll go find one and bring it back for you,” Shen Yuxiu said.

"No need. I was just asking casually."

Two seconds later, Shen Yuxiu finally spoke: "If something's wrong, tell me. Don't try to be brave on your own."

"Okay," Song Ning replied, then realized this wasn't like her usual self, and added, "Who's being stubborn?"

Shen Yuxiu smiled, but his laughter sounded different from usual: "Shall we leave it at that for now?"

"Um."

"Are you sure you don't want me to bring a cardboard box back? You seem like you really want one." Shen Yuxiu rarely joked.

"Then bring it back. I want the exact same one."

"It's difficult, but if you need it, I'll try my best to find it." Shen Yuxiu seemed troubled.

Song Ning laughed out loud: "Professor Shen, aren't you busy? You still have the mind to joke with me."

"Yes, it's really time to go back this time."

Why aren't you happy yet?

Song Ning felt a little more relaxed because of his reluctance to part: "I'll be back later tonight."

"good."