Chapter 6

When the thirtieth line was drawn on the calendar, Iris still hadn't returned; when the thirty-first line was drawn, she still hadn't returned; and when the fortieth line was drawn, Iris was still in England. Zhuang Zhuoyuan was almost discouraged, and he was sullen every night during video calls. The roles were reversed, and now it was Iris who was comforting him.

But comforting her from afar wouldn't solve his immediate worries. Knowing his girlfriend's struggles were also difficult, Zhuang Sheng didn't "make things difficult" for his Shi Shi, instead venting his frustrations on physical training. Since his physical fitness also needed improvement, seeing his dedication, Captain Zhan Sir naturally didn't slack off either, diligently and tirelessly training their team's sharpshooter. After all, if they needed someone to be the spearhead in the attacking team, A Yuan was definitely capable.

After finishing training that day, the team emerged from the bathroom, laughing and joking as they changed. Just as they were discussing their happy hour plans, they caught a glimpse of Zhuang Zhuoyuan deep in thought, his phone in hand. Their attention was immediately drawn to him: "What's up, Zhuoyuan? Another riddle from Iris?" For over a month, this couple's riddle-solving game had become more than just a pastime for them; it had become a popular pastime for the entire A Team. Reading detective novels usually only allows you to follow the protagonist's perspective, with limited clues and never enough fun. But participating in a game to solve a riddle is different. The sense of accomplishment after solving it is immense, even better than drinking a dozen beers! And the clever and kind Iris, knowing the others were participating, would thoughtfully add a guide to nearby food stalls on the back of the prize card, satisfying both their hunger and their desire for delicious food—she was practically the perfect sister-in-law and brother-in-law!

Xingzai was right next to Zhuang Zhuoyuan, so he was the first to lean over and check the text message. When he saw the familiar string of numbers on the screen, he blinked and his expression was just as surprised as Zhuang Zhuoyuan's: "Isn't this the location of our base? Iris shouldn't have the ability to hide things in the base, right?"

He instantly realized what was happening, glanced around at everyone, and reached out as if to point: "Could it be that one of you was Iris's accomplice? Inspector Chan? Or Madam? Or Ah Kwong who took money? Quickly tell the truth."

Everyone shook their heads, still wondering what was going on, when suddenly Zhuang Zhuoyuan began to quickly put on his clothes. He said, "I feel like Iris is back. She might be at the door."

A SUV was indeed parked not far from the entrance, but the driver wasn't Iris; it was another man who looked like Oscar, the rising star on television. He recognized Zhuang Zhuoyuan, and seeing their large group emerge from the base, Oscar greeted them quite naturally, like old friends meeting. Inside the car was a beautifully wrapped small gift box, but Oscar wasn't in a hurry to give out the prize. Instead, he made a phone call before looking up to speak with Zhuang Zhuoyuan: "Hello, I'm Oscar, a friend of Iris's friend. She asked us to deliver something to you; we can hand it over when Elaine arrives."

"Elaine?" Zhuang Zhuoyuan had heard his girlfriend mention her name, but he had never met her. He had already given up hope of Iris returning to Hong Kong today, but the appearance of this important figure rekindled a glimmer of hope in his heart. As long as it was confirmed that this Elaine was indeed Elaine from the Shanfeng Group, then he would probably be able to see his girlfriend soon.

As soon as he finished speaking, the sound of roller skates rolling on the ground came from afar. The young lady from the mountain wind was riding a skateboard, seemingly oblivious to everything in front of her, and rushed towards their group at high speed, as if she had no intention of braking.

"Yi!" Oscar stepped forward and blocked her way as if it were a common occurrence, then put his skateboard away with a stomp of his right foot. He stepped aside and pointed to Zhuang Zhuoyuan for her to see: "The person you're waiting for is right here."

Elaine was clearly very interested in Zhuang Zhuoyuan, her gaze fixed on him from the very beginning, as if she were appraising an item for sale. She was also quite honest, immediately apologizing for her somewhat impolite behavior: "I'm sorry for staring at you like that, but I really want to know what kind of charm this man possesses that makes Iris want to turn all of Hong Kong upside down. It's an honor to hear from you, Mr. Zhuang! I'm Elaine, a good friend of Iris's, nice to meet you!"

She extended her hand, and Zhuang Zhuoyuan politely shook it. Unexpectedly, this girl was quite strong; taking him by surprise, she suddenly pulled him closer. Zhuang Zhuoyuan instantly understood why there were so many news articles about this young lady in the newspapers. Elaine's face was full of mischievous amusement as she casually revealed the true purpose of her action. She had a small suggestion for Zhuang Zhuoyuan, so her voice was only audible to her, Zhuang Zhuoyuan, and Oscar, who was closest to her: "I'm just a level NPC; the prize is yet to come. I think you'd better go collect it alone later."

"Is Iris back?" Zhuang Zhuoyuan asked anxiously.

Elaine simply shrugged, revealing nothing of the inside story, and handed him the gift box, saying, "Sorry, I don't know." She then turned and waved to the crowd behind her before taking Oscar's seat and speeding away in her car. The impression she left on Team A was truly that of the poem, "Waving her sleeves, she leaves without taking away a single cloud."

Zhang Jiguang was now even more certain of her identity. He clapped his hands and shouted, "There's no doubt about it! The one who dares to drive so arrogantly at high speed in front of a group of police officers like us is definitely Miss Hao, the regular feature in the weekly magazine from the Shanfeng Group. And her Hummer, the news also said it was only shipped to Hong Kong last month!"

"So it's the heiress!" Granny Long exclaimed in realization. "Didn't Ah Yuan say before that Iris's works were all produced in collaboration with their group? This time she's going to join their company as a consultant, no wonder we know each other. But to be able to get her to run errands, Iris is quite capable. Ah Yuan... wait, where's Ah Yuan?"

“She probably drove there.” Zhan Hantao patted Granny Long’s shoulder, gestured for everyone to disperse, and took out his phone to make a call. Seeing his mother looking at him, he smiled and showed the selected number on the screen: “Tell the guys outside to keep an eye on things. Although this young lady wasn’t speeding, it’s rush hour now, and her car is driving dangerously fast.”

The box was elaborately packaged, but inside it only contained a hotel business card and a room key that was almost hidden away. Zhuang Zhuoyuan drove to his destination and went straight to the 43rd floor. Only when he pressed the elevator button did he realize how high the apartment was. And when he opened the door, everything that greeted him confirmed that Iris's words were not an exaggeration at all; he really didn't need to worry about her accommodation. This suite could easily accommodate a whole family.

"BB?" Zhuang Zhuoyuan looked around and called out softly, but no one in the room answered him. His gaze fell on the half-person-high pink and blue gift box in the middle of the living room. He called again, but still received no response, so he decided to open it.

The enormous gift box was simply closed with a lid, and the surrounding ribbons were all adhesive decorations; it would be easy for Iris to hide inside. Zhuang Zhuoyuan tapped the top corner with his knuckles, while simultaneously saying, "Knock, knock," before opening the box.

In an instant, more than a dozen balloons flew out and soared to the ceiling. Each balloon had a card tied to the end of its string. Zhuang Zhuoyuan quickly grabbed one, and saw that it read "Don't look back" in delicate handwriting. It really was Iris!

She didn't want him to turn around, but Zhuang Zhuoyuan already sensed someone approaching from behind. A smile played on his lips, and after silently counting to two, he abruptly turned around, startling Iris into a scream. "Hey!" his girlfriend stomped her foot and pouted, clearly unhappy with his disobedience. "How do you know when I'm closest to you?"

As a member of the SDU, if you don't even have this much awareness, you probably shouldn't be in the team. Zhuang Zhuoyuan deliberately teased Iris: "If I said this was a coincidence, would you believe me?"

Iris immediately wrinkled her nose and shook her head. Although she still looked annoyed, her hands were already clasped together with Zhuang Zhuoyuan's. Of course, she wanted to take things further, but Zhuang Zhuoyuan needed to give a reasonable explanation.

"So, it's because your boyfriend is the best of the best. Does that reason hold water?" He moved closer and closer as he spoke, and by the time he finished the last word, Iris had almost no room to speak, because if she moved, she would automatically kiss him.

"This is too much!" Iris accused him with her eyes, but Zhuang Zhuoyuan didn't understand. The hand-holding gesture had been changed to an embrace, and Iris felt someone's restless hands moving around her waist, clearly trying to force her to submit. She deliberately dodged back, not letting him kiss her: "You naughty baby, tell me what was written on that card first."

“Oh—Kiss me.” Zhuang Zhuoyuan didn’t even blink.

Iris immediately punched him, both angry and amused: "Nonsense, I didn't write that!"

“That is, hold me, I miss you, I love you, or…” Zhuang Zhuoyuan swayed Iris with his arm around her, making up a story with a straight face. Iris heard him say “I love you” and waited to see what else he could come up with as “or”. Her look of watching the show was so obvious and so cute that Zhuang Zhuoyuan couldn’t resist and stole a kiss from her when she wasn’t looking, which could be considered a small compensation for the delayed redemption of the prize.

Iris was clearly taken aback by his attempt to cheat, and her eyes widened as she was about to protest, but her slightly parted lips conveniently provided Zhuang Zhuoyuan with the opportunity. He went straight in, and although he wasn't as gentle as before, he made Iris feel the longing he had shown her over the past month.

"Ah Yuan..." she called out to Zhuang Zhuoyuan during a moment of breath, but soon fell into the sweet net of kisses he had woven. Iris forgot what she was going to say and just followed her heart, hugging Zhuang Zhuoyuan's body even tighter.

I love you, I miss you, or I really really need you.