Chapter 13 "Where to?" "Where to?"

Ji Tong felt that she might also be poisoned by the orange grove's fumes, which was why she was watching this nonsense instead of sleeping.

The short video platform was shut down, but the phrase "Why didn't you just say one word and leave?" keeps lingering in my mind.

Ji Tong rolled over, lying face down, her cheek pressed against Gu Lin's pillow, creating a soft curve.

Ji Tong had always thought that, like the people in the video, what he most wanted to know was why Gu Lin left without saying a word, what his difficulties were, and why he couldn't tell him.

But it wasn't until today, until the moment he applied the medicine to Gu Lin, that he truly realized that, more than the reason, what he wanted to know was whether Gu Lin had been doing well for the past six months, why he had stayed in Jiangcheng for thirty-two days, and why he had returned with a body full of injuries.

Ji Tong didn't want to investigate; it would be impolite.

But once the thought arises, it's like driftwood at sea; once it's there, it can't be suppressed.

He took out his phone again and opened WeChat.

[JT: Dad, could you help me check the current operating status of Cinda Energy? I need detailed information.]

[JT: By the way, could you also help me find out who owns Villa No. 5 in Beishan now?]

Cinda Energy is a subsidiary of Gu Linjia. Its focus is not in Anjing, but in Germany, but it also has production lines in Anjing.

As for No. 5 Beishan, the villa of Gu Lin's family, Ji Tong mentioned it because he remembered that one day in July, his father seemed to have mentioned at the dinner table that a villa had been built in Beishan.

He didn't think that way at the time, and he was still angry, so he just listened to the general idea.

Gu Lin said that he couldn't report on time because of some family issues. Since his aunt and uncle are both fine, the problem might be with the company's operations.

There were so many things he wanted to know, which made Ji Tong increasingly clear-headed.

The moon outside the window hangs high like a pendulum, reminding people that it is already late at night.

Ji Tong lay on Gu Lin's pillow, her thoughts wandering.

Was his wound already bleeding when you carried him on Friday?

That's why Gu Lin's lips were so pale that day; he looked more like a patient than him.

It wasn't just my imagination.

Will it leave a scar?

Ji Tong couldn't sleep again, so he picked up his phone for the third time and searched for scar removal gels on the platform.

After studying for about ten minutes, Ji Tong made a phone call.

It's an overseas call.

"Tongtong," my cousin answered quickly on the other end of the phone.

Ji Tong feigned innocence: "Sister."

Before Ji Tong could speak, her cousin on the other end spoke first.

"Don't speak yet, guess where your sister is?"

Ji Tong was stunned for a moment, then shrunk the call screen and opened her cousin's WeChat Moments.

"Isn't it London?"

Last night, my WeChat Moments was still filled with posts about the after-party.

My cousin chuckled and said, "I miss my aunt."

Aunt, also known as Ms. Song Jiahe.

That means we're going to Rome.

Ji Tong wasn't surprised at all; her cousin was always traveling all over the world.

After chatting for a while, the older cousin got down to business: "But it's almost 11 o'clock in Anjing now, isn't it? What urgent matter do you have to call your older sister in the middle of the night?"

"Sis, how effective was that scar removal gel you bought for your girlfriends last time?" Ji Tong asked without hesitation.

"Which scar gel? Oh, you mean the one I bought for my friend who had a C-section?"

"..."

Is it for use during a C-section?

"Whatever it's for, as long as it works, it's a good thing," Ji Tong replied, "Mm."

Cousin: "The effect is quite good, my girlfriends find it very comfortable to use."

Ji Tong: "Can I have two?"

"What's wrong?" His cousin became anxious when she heard him ask for "scar removal cream." "You're injured? When did this happen? Do your aunt and uncle know?"

Afraid that the person outside the door would hear, Ji Tong buried her face in the blanket: "It wasn't me, I brought it for someone else."

My cousin was taken aback: "Others? Classmates?"

Ji Tong: "Mm."

My cousin paused for two seconds.

Ji Tong thought it was a bad signal: "Sis, are you listening?"

Cousin: "Yes."

"Okay," my cousin suddenly chuckled strangely, "just scar removal cream?"

"What?"

"Besides scar removal gel, do you need anything else?"

Are there any other things that help wound healing?

"what else?"

Cousin: "There are also many fragrant bags, skincare products, jewelry, perfumes, and dresses. What does she like?"

This time, it was Ji Tong who remained silent.

"He doesn't like any of them."

cousin:"?"

Is this about a fairy who doesn't eat the food of mortals?

Cousin: "So what does she like?"

Ji Tong casually said, "Then you should bring a razor."

cousin:"?"

Whose fairy-like figure uses a razor?!

My cousin finally realized: "A boy???"

Ji Tong: "Mm."

"What kind of guy would ask you to call me in the middle of the night? What kind of special scar removal cream would a guy need? What's wrong with a guy having two scars?" My cousin raised her voice on the spot.

"No way," Ji Tong blurted out.

Cousin: "Why not?"

Ji Tong remained silent for a long time before finally managing to say, "...He loves to look good."

cousin:"…………"

After a long silence, Ji Tong asked, "Sister? Is it inconvenient to bring her along?"

My cousin pinched her philtrum for a long time.

"Convenient, okay, I'll take care of it, sister."

Ji Tong was happy, but after thinking about it, she felt that two weren't enough. Instead of bringing more next time, she decided to get the best one at once, and so she spoke up—

"Do you need five branches?"

cousin:"??"

They just asked for two more, how come they need five now?

Just as my cousin, who had just landed, pinched her philtrum to hang up the phone, Ji Yuanfeng and Song Jiahe came down to pick her up.

Seeing the complicated expression on her face, Song Jiahe asked, "Whose call was that?"

My cousin was still in shock: "Tongtong."

Song Jiahe: "?"

Why did you suddenly call me?

My cousin confessed: "She asked me to bring him two tubes of scar removal cream, saying he was going to give them to someone."

Song Jiahe was taken aback, then chuckled, "You also asked me for aromatherapy, saying you wanted to give it as a gift."

Song Jiahe seemed to suddenly remember something and turned to look at Ji Yuanfeng.

Ji Yuanfeng: "He didn't ask me to bring anything, he just asked me to look up some information for him."

The three looked at each other in bewilderment.

-

After the three of them finished their mission, sleepiness finally crept in, and Ji Tong's eyelids grew heavier and heavier until she buried herself in the blankets and fell into a deep sleep.

I fell asleep at 11:05.

I was awakened by a nightmare at 3:07 a.m.

Ji Tong was covered in cold sweat and sat up in bed.

He dreamed of Gu Linlin.

Perhaps because he kept thinking about Gu Lin's back wound before going to sleep, he dreamed that Gu Lin was also injured, lying on the bench where it often sheltered from the rain, its back covered in blood.

Ji Tong knew that dreams were just a processing mechanism of the brain, generalizing real-world factors to new situations, but they did not represent reality and had little scientific basis.

But what if...

Ji Tong's heart was pounding.

No, I have to go and take a look.

His pajamas were soaked with cold sweat, and the air conditioning felt like a leaky net covering him. Ji Tong's breathing was tight, and he felt uncomfortable all over, but he couldn't care less.

The lingering fear from the dream felt tangible, seeping into the flesh.

He thought he heard Gu Linlin calling out.

Ji Tong couldn't hold on any longer. He rolled over and scrambled out of bed, throwing off the covers and trying to run downstairs. His mind was still a mess, and all his movements were somewhat reckless, until he smelled a familiar fragrance.

It's an orange grove.

Perhaps because the aromatherapy wasn't in the room, the scent had been diluted quite a bit, but it was this faint, almost imperceptible orange fragrance that strangely calmed Ji Tong's heart.

Orange grove.

Gu Lin.

He's still with Gu Lin.

It's fine.

Ji Tong's breathing gradually calmed down. He sat quietly by the bed for more than ten seconds before finally calming down.

Ji Tong turned on her phone; the time was 3:15.

We still need to go and see him; he won't be able to sleep tonight if we don't.

But we can't disturb Gu Lin; he's still injured and can't run around.

Ji Tong let out a deep breath, unlocked his phone, pulled "XX" out of the blacklist, and opened the message box.

I dreamt that Gu Linlin was injured, it was in a lot of pain, and it was looking for me. I couldn't sleep and wanted to go see it. If you wake up and see this message, don't worry, just call me, and I'll be back soon.

After editing, Ji Tong read it over twice.

Everything that needed to be conveyed has been conveyed, so there shouldn't be any problems.

Ji Tong moved her finger to the "send" button, then paused.

Has Gu Lin turned off the ringer?

If he sends it like this, will it bother him if WeChat pops up a message notification?

Ji Tong pondered for a moment, then cleared the message he had edited. He took out paper and pen from his backpack, bent down and half-knelt beside the bedside table, copied the words he had just typed onto the white paper without missing a single one, signed his name, and folded it up.

Ji Tong didn't know if any light could get through the crack in the master bedroom door, so she didn't even turn on the lights, only using her phone's flashlight.

He didn't change his clothes, but took off his quick-drying pants and put on a pair of Gu Lin's black trousers.

Gu Lin's trousers were a bit too big at the waist, so Ji Tong pulled the drawstring very tight.

Ji Tong didn't want to go out in his pajamas either, but the clothes he had brought with him had been thrown into the washing machine by Gu Lin, so only the pajamas he was wearing had Gu Lin's scent on them.

Although Gu Linlin is wild and cannot be kept as a pet, it recognizes people and only lets him and Gu Lin hold it.

Saying he recognized him... doesn't seem quite right. It's more like he recognized his scent than his person, because Li Yuan once hugged him while wearing his school uniform. Gu Linlin obediently let him hug him for two minutes, then suddenly "woke up" and gave Li Yuan a big slap.

In the past, if his school uniform was washed, he could just wear Gu Lin's as a replacement, but Gu Lin hadn't seen it for so long, and Ji Tong was afraid it wouldn't recognize his scent.

After finishing everything, Ji Tong stood up from the bedside table, walked to the door, and unlocked it while holding her breath.

With a click, the door unlocked.

Ji Tong was about to turn on her phone's light when she pushed open the door, and slivers of light rushed in through the crack.

The living room wall lamp is on.

Ji Tong was slightly taken aback.

The wall lamps cast a dim, yellowish light, just the right amount of brightness—enough to not disturb people's rest while still illuminating the living room floor.

Ji Tong remembered that Gu Lin used to sleep without the lights on, but this wall lamp seemed to be on on purpose.

But that's perfect.

Ji Tong quietly walked to the sofa, stepping into the dim light.

Gu Lin lay on his side, with his back to him.

Thankfully, he hasn't woken up.

Ji Tong placed the note on the coffee table, and worried that Gu Lin wouldn't see it, so she deliberately placed the only thing she had brought—her backpack—next to the note.

Gu Lin is always meticulous; he couldn't possibly miss such a large backpack.

Ji Tong kept the dream in mind. After putting down her bag, she turned to look at Gu Lin again to make sure she hadn't woken him. Then, barefoot, she walked quickly and quietly toward the entrance.

He put on his shoes, opened the door, and closed the door, keeping his voice as low as possible. The moment the door was locked, he sprinted to the stairwell.

Gu Lin said that apart from room 2104, the other three rooms on the 21st floor were unoccupied, so they wouldn't disturb others.

The elevator stopped on the first floor late at night. Because he was in a hurry, Ji Tong pressed the down button three times in a row.

Why is it so slow?

Ji Tong frowned, his gaze fixed on the elevator floor display screen.

10…13…17…20.

21st floor.

With a "ding," the notification sound finally rang, indicating that we had arrived at the floor.

The elevator doors slowly opened.

Without hesitation, Ji Tong gripped her phone and rushed into the elevator. Just then, the motion-sensor lights in the 21st-floor corridor seemed to detect something and lit up one by one as they approached. Ji Tong heard a slight sound and was about to turn around to look.

With a soft "bang," a large hand reached in from the outside and pressed against the elevator's sensor-operated door panel.

The elevator, which was about to close, sensed the obstruction and returned to its original open state.

Ji Tong's fingers trembled, his gaze sweeping over the back of the hand with its distinct knuckles and prominent blue veins, before he turned away—

"Where to?"

A gloomy, low voice echoed in the elevator.