Chapter 18
Although the shopping mall where the Victoria's Secret slimming training camp is located looks deserted, there is a very popular alley not far to the east, which can be called a late-night canteen for the locals in Jinshi.
Every time when the sun sets, this small alley begins to be filled with smoke and the aroma of various foods intertwined in the air, accompanied by the continuous shouting of vendors and business owners, forming a very unique city business card.
Luo Jingyao came here under the guidance of Xiao Ping. The two of them walked through the crowded crowd and finally stopped outside a food stall.
The kid's coach scratched the back of his head sheepishly and said in a muffled voice, "The spicy stir-fry here tastes pretty good."
"Then let's go with this one!" She decided readily.
They walked into the restaurant one after another and chose a relatively quiet corner at the back to sit down. Then Luo Jingyao ordered several signature dishes of the restaurant without blinking.
They say people who eat people's food are always grateful for their kindness. Xiao Ping, standing opposite him, looked increasingly timid. "There's just two of us. We don't need to spend so much, right, Sister Luo?"
The offensive of money was effective immediately, and the way Coach Xiaohai addressed her had made a qualitative leap.
"It's not a big deal. I've been so grateful for your care since the interview started yesterday. Otherwise, how could I have adapted so quickly?" Luo Jingyao smiled sincerely, and her dimples that were faintly visible under the dim light made the other person a little dazzled.
A suspicious blush quickly crept onto his face, which still held a hint of youthful childishness. His small eyes, beneath his thick eyebrows, unconsciously looked away. Xiao Ping stammered, "That's what I should do."
The two of them exchanged meaningless words for a while, and finally the dishes that had been ordered were served one after another.
The fresh, fragrant and spicy aroma suddenly rushed into his nose, and coupled with the cool beer, Xiao Ping's eyes began to become blurry after a few drinks.
"Sister Luo, don't worry! No matter what happens at work in the future, just come to me!" Before he had even finished his meal for half an hour, he pounded his chest as if swearing.
Luo Jingyao naturally nodded in agreement, and glanced uncertainly at the empty wine bottles standing at the foot of the table. After repeatedly checking that there were only four bottles in total, she held her forehead with a complicated expression. She didn't expect that the kid's alcohol tolerance was so outrageous.
Seeing that the time seemed to be ripe, she casually said, "Xiao Ping, do you think Sister Jiang is easy to get along with?"
"Jiang Jie..." The kid frowned, as if searching carefully for everything about this person in his mind. "She's okay, but she likes to make empty promises and is a bit too strict. As long as she's in the training camp, we can't even think of slacking off."
Is that so?
Luo Jingyao raised her eyebrows. If what Xiao Ping just said was true, could it be understood that Boss Jiang's earlier behavior was not directed only at her, but was directed equally at everyone?
"How long have you worked here?" she asked again.
The person opposite raised a finger solemnly and replied emphatically, "More than a year."
After silently calculating the time in her mind, Luo Jingyao raised her glass again to be on the safe side.
When the number of empty bottles at her feet reached six, she tentatively opened her mouth and said, "I have a friend who lost weight in our training camp before. Her name is Zhuo Meiling. Do you remember her?"
"..." Xiao Ping seemed to be really drunk at this moment, with one elbow resting on the table and the other hand supporting his head.
After several seconds, just when Luo Jingyao was wondering if he had fallen asleep, he slowly shook his head.
After shaking his head as if he felt something was wrong, he nodded again: "I have some impression, Zhuo Meiling... She stayed here for almost two months. In the end, I think she left the camp because she didn't lose weight to her ideal weight due to health reasons."
"Speaking of which, it seems a while ago a student dropped out of the camp halfway through. He only stayed here for a few days."
"Oh? Do you remember the name of that student?" Luo Jingyao had a bad feeling.
Unfortunately, Xiao Ping tried to recall it for a long time but couldn't remember it. Finally, he waved his hand helplessly and said, "I forgot it a long time ago. I have to face dozens of students every day. That person left the camp before I even got to know her."
"I see." To avoid arousing suspicion, Luo Jingyao chose not to ask too much. She shrugged and changed the subject: "By the way, don't we have one day off every week? There shouldn't be anything to do at night, right? Is it okay if I go out and do some other part-time work?"
"Why not? Jiang Qi is no longer in charge of us after work! At the beginning of the month, we didn't get paid on time, so Jiang Qi even asked a few of us to go out and do part-time jobs together."
"But we're not completely idle at night. Once you become a regular employee, you'll be on duty. You'll have to check on the students in the dormitories and distribute medicine to them."
There were so many key points in this conversation that Luo Jingyao could only grasp the one that interested her the most and asked back, "Shall we share the medicine?"
"It's... it's a multivitamin to supplement nutrition." Xiao Ping mumbled in a daze, and the next second he fell down uncontrollably.
"So what part-time jobs did you two do together before?" She reached out her hand and touched the furry head on the table in despair.
The only response she got was the slightly uncomfortable groan from the little brother, who had obviously fallen into a drunken sleep.
After staring helplessly at Xiao Ping's head for a long time, Luo Jingyao reluctantly accepted the fact.
After paying the bill, she picked up the man, staggered to a nearby hotel, booked a room, and threw the man in. She gave the hotel owner some extra money, and after asking him to help take care of the man, she left.
Because the subway station was near the shopping mall, Luo Jingyao walked back along the same route and took the time to use her mobile phone to send some information that she had just obtained from Xiao Ping to Lin Jiafan.
The man quickly responded and said that he would ask Pang Guang to check the medical history of the two victims. This was indeed a blind spot that the police had not noticed before.
Are you home?
Luo Jingyao stared at the four words that suddenly appeared in the dialog box with a complicated expression.
What flashed before his eyes was Lin Jiafan's handsome face, which could be elegant or annoying, but no matter which one it was, it had nothing to do with the nagging in front of him.
immediately.
When she typed these two words on the screen, she had already returned to the vicinity of the shopping mall. The building under the night sky looked even more eerie than during the day. The light and shadow of the street lamps were reflected on the dark exterior walls, outlining all kinds of imaginative outlines.
Seeing this, Luo Jingyao put her cell phone in her pocket and subconsciously quickened her pace.
Although she was confident, the boundless darkness always easily aroused the fear hidden deep in people's hearts. There was no conflict between being afraid of the dark and having high fighting power.
All she could hear was the sound of her own breathing and footsteps. After turning a corner, Luo Jingyao finally arrived at the main entrance of the shopping mall. From here, she could vaguely see the dazzling lights from the subway station a few hundred meters away.
But before she could breathe a sigh of relief, a painful-sounding gasp came from the side.
She slowed down her pace in surprise, squinted her eyes slightly and looked in the direction of the sound, and found a person leaning against the wall.
The man lowered his head and his face could not be seen clearly. He was just covering his right arm and making intermittent gasping sounds in extreme pain.
In the faint moonlight, Luo Jingyao could barely make out the dark blue uniform the man was wearing, the kind worn by mall employees. She bravely stepped forward and asked, "Hello?"
The man didn't seem to expect that someone would pass by here at this time, and quickly raised his head.
A familiar face, a little distorted by pain, appeared in front of her. It was Brother Zhao, who worked in the logistics department of the shopping mall and had repaired the spotlights in the training camp in the past two days.
"Brother Zhao? I'm an employee under Sister Jiang. We've met before." Luo Jingyao raised a kind smile.
Perhaps recognizing her, Brother Zhao's expression brightened considerably: "Little girl, why haven't you gone home yet so late? You should be careful walking alone at night."
Luo Jingyao responded politely, then said with concern, "You don't look well. Do you want me to call an ambulance for you?"
"No, no," Zhao Ge hurriedly refused. He tried to wave his hand, but it seemed to cause pain in his right arm. He could only helplessly explain, "It's an old problem left over from an accident. I'll go back and take some medicine later and it'll be fine."
"Where do you live then? I'll take you there."
I wanted to continue to refuse, but after Zhao Ge struggled to get up several times without success, he could only accept his fate and smiled bitterly: "I also work part-time as a night security guard in the building, and I live on the first floor of the mall."
"Please go slowly." Luo Jingyao bent down and lifted the person up with a little force on her hands.
Compared to Xiao Ping not long ago, Brother Zhao was much smaller in both height and body shape, so she didn't feel any effort at all.
Following the man's instructions, they entered the mall smoothly through the side door.
As soon as you enter the door, you can see a corridor outside the mall. After walking along the corridor for two minutes, you will see a door with the word "warehouse" on it.
On the left side of the warehouse door, there was an inconspicuous small wooden door. Brother Zhao raised his hand and pointed tremblingly towards that direction.
"I'm here, thank you, Coach Luo."
"The room is a mess, so I won't invite you in for tea."
Luo Jingyao did not insist, and obediently let go of the hand that was supporting him, watching quietly as he unzipped his work clothes and took out a key from his pocket.
Suddenly, her eyelids twitched uncontrollably.
Under the flickering light of the sensor light above her head, she could clearly see the dark woolen sweater that Brother Zhao was wearing underneath.
The style is ordinary and unremarkable.
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