Chapter 15
Chi Xia got out of the car and stood quietly to the side, a little timid. Xin Ran rolled down all four windows, got out of the car, opened the trunk, and smiled almost obsequiously, "Sirs, please check."
The cold-looking man in black glanced at him and followed him to the back to check the trunk filled with wine, food, and drinks. Xin Ran explained with a smile, "I came to visit my sick grandma. She couldn't finish it all, so she asked me to take it home."
Chi Xia looked up, surprised that Xin Ran could lie so easily.
The other person checked the car, and the two looked at each other and shook their heads.
Let's go.
Xin Ran smiled and nodded, "Sir, what are you investigating?"
"It's none of your business, get out of here."
Xin Ran still smiled, "It's like this, my grandma just transferred from the nursing home and was traumatized, so she's not feeling well here." Xin Ran pointed to her head, "She often stands by the window looking around, and I'm worried that she'll be scared if she sees the adults. I was thinking of calling her later to let her know so she's aware of the situation, otherwise the hospital will be in chaos if something goes wrong."
Chi Xia was utterly astonished. Xin Ran's improvised story was logically clear and interconnected. How could this fabricated grandmother have become the key to his information gathering?
The man in black beside him coughed lightly, and after checking that no one was paying attention, leaned over and whispered a few words. Xin Ran immediately nodded, "I see, thank you for telling me."
After saying that, Chi Xia saw Xin Ran run to the back and take out two unopened bottles of whiskey from the trunk. She quietly handed them to the man in black, saying, "I'm not used to strong liquor. Thank you for your hard work, gentlemen. Please accept this."
The man glanced around again, reached out and took the item, placed it on the ground, and gestured for the gatekeeper to let him through.
Once the car was on the elevated highway, Chi Xia was still a little confused. "What are they investigating?"
"They said they were investigating suspects in the nursing home bombing."
Chi Xia immediately sensed something was wrong with what he said. She saw Xin Ran raise his left hand and open the bracelet communication, "Hide Xiao Di well. Those people outside are looking for him. It's not clear whether they are friend or foe."
"Okay, you're home?" It was Xun Jiang's voice.
"No, she just got out of the car for a check-up. Is Xiao Di asleep?"
"No, he woke up as soon as the cartoon was turned off. I changed it for him now while I was doing my rounds. Um, was Teacher Xia scared?"
Xin Ran glanced at Chi Xia with amusement, then exaggeratedly said, "Of course! Teacher Xia is such a well-behaved and good girl. She was so scared when those men in black pointed guns at her that her eyes were red with fear..."
Chi Xia reached over and abruptly shut down Xin Ran's communication. "Lies are your native language, aren't they?"
Xin Ran laughed shamelessly, "You found out."
"How do you know they're looking for Xiaodi?" Although Chi Xia herself thought so too, she wanted to hear what Xin Ran had to say.
Xin Ran sat up straight, pulled the steering wheel, accelerated, and exited the elevated road. Neon was left far behind by the dilapidated little hospital van with special markings.
"It's not hard to guess. Xiao Di went missing first, and those people demanded to get out of the car and show the inside. They would only use those places they carefully checked to hide the child. Besides, investigating suspects in the bombing is the police's job, and the police need to show their credentials when conducting searches."
As night fell, the air outside the window suddenly became much fresher. Xin Ran's explanation was very down-to-earth and something any normal person could think of, which was indeed the case.
Chi Xia still subconsciously looked at him. Xin Ran seemed to be a very open person. He told her the hidden secret of his self-healing talent on their first meeting and also mentioned that he had bribed doctors. He was straightforward and honest when they got along, but Chi Xia always felt that she couldn't really see this person clearly.
When they saw the bright streetlights again, the road was several times wider, and they entered an upscale residential area. Looking at the changing scenery outside the window, Chi Xia wondered, "Are these houses for rent? 3000 yuan a month? Are you kidding me?"
"Your friend's apartment is in Moon Bay? Prices here start at 100,000 yuan per square meter. Are you sure we're staying here tonight?"
Xin Ran grinned, "Isn't it great to have a rich friend?"
Chi Xia fell silent. Xin Ran became mysterious in her eyes. How could someone like him "live in seclusion" at the Magic Fishing Academy and be a teacher who gets bullied and beaten?
"Teacher Xin, you've been working at the Magic Fishing Academy for two months, right?"
Xin Ran turned the steering wheel and entered an intersection. "Yes, you have a good memory."
Two months, the timing is also quite coincidental.
"What did Teacher Xin do before?"
Xin Ran smiled and glanced at Chi Xia in the car mirror. "Why are you suddenly so curious about me? Didn't you like Dr. Xun, so you're trying to make a move on me?"
"You're overthinking it."
In front of the last detached villa at the very end of the last district, Xin Ran parked the car neatly. "Get out of the car. Since you're so curious, let's have a few drinks and sit down to chat."
Xin Ran opened the door, took out a pair of new slippers from the small storage cabinet by the door and asked Chi Xia to change into them. He also changed into a pair himself. Then he put the two pairs of shoes he had brought from outside into the cabinet, led Chi Xia through an archway, and asked Chi Xia to wash her hands at a stone-carved washbasin.
Severe obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)?
Chi Xia glanced back at the dilapidated little hospital van at the entrance. It wasn't that it couldn't drive in, nor that the van was too small to fit inside; it simply didn't deserve it. The interior was spotless, every brick, every tile, every plant, every lamp was a testament to creativity and money. If the van had come in, it would probably have been bullied to tears.
Chi Xia suddenly wondered if Xin Ran didn't actually have any wealthy friends, and that the house was his own.
But his age doesn't seem to match. Could he be a hidden rich kid?
The usually stingy Xin Ran unusually turned on the brightly lit nightlights in the front yard for a stranger who was visiting for the first time. Chi Xia glanced at it and realized that without comparison, there would be no harm done. She thought Li Yao's house was big, beautiful, and enough, but who knew that Xin Ran's "friend's mansion" was even more magnificent.
Each nightlight is unique, a holographic landscape full of design sense, adorning the front yard like a galaxy fantasy.
"So? You're not losing out on 3000 a month, are you?" Xin Ran asked happily.
Chi Xia shook her head, "Your... friend is willing to rent it out? Doesn't he come back usually?"
"Yes, just pay me the rent. My friend lives in a much bigger mansion."
Chi Xia confirmed it: the wealthy friend was fictitious; this was Xin Ran's own house.
Xin Ran showed Chi Xia around, including the garden, fountain, swimming pool, and relaxation area. It took half an hour just to walk around the outer yard of the house.
The space covers several hundred square meters, and the hard and soft furnishings are incredibly luxurious. It must cost over 100 million. What is his identity?
Why are you looking at me like that?
"Teacher Xin, what does your friend do?"
Xin Ran led her onto the carpet and towards the main entrance. "My friend is really something. He owns four hospitals, eight supermarkets, ten entertainment companies, and three technology parks."
Fingerprint unlocking produces a crisp, pleasant sound as the door opens, a sound that comes from the mechanical lock decoding.
"Please come in."
"Teacher Xin, what were your friend's requirements again?"
"No guests are allowed, no cooking is allowed, and cleaning must be done every day."
Chi Xia turned around and looked at Xin Ran, who was carefully closing the door. "Such a big house, and you don't even have a cleaner?"
Xin Ran's eyes lit up, and she smiled brightly, "Here you are."
Chi Xia immediately tried to leave, but Xin Ran grabbed her shoulder and said, "I remember my friend has a five-figure whiskey. Shall we drink it tonight?"
Five-figure whiskey, haven't had it in ages.
Chi Xia lowered her arched eyebrows. "I'm fine with drinking, but can you answer one question seriously?"
Xin Ran put his arm around the person and walked towards the wine cabinet, saying, "Speak, I'll tell you everything I know."
"How old is your friend? Is he/she male or female? Is he/she alive or dead?"
After hearing the second half of the sentence, Xin Ran unconsciously withdrew her fingers from Chi Xia's shoulder. Most people would ask the first two questions, but the last one…
Chi Xia laughed. "I was just kidding."
Xin Ran laughed, "The living, male ones are my close friends despite the age difference."
The story sounded very plausible, and then Chi Xia thought of another possibility, "Teacher Xin, how long can I stay?"
Xin Ran paused almost imperceptibly, opened the wine cabinet and took out a bottle of wine. "It's really hard to say. What if you die? What if I die? What if the landlord dies?"
These words also struck Chi Xia as odd. Her eyes lit up as she watched Xin Ran open the bottle of whiskey that she used to drink often but could no longer afford. "Do you think it's possible that we're both cleaners?"
Xin Ran stopped handing the wine to Chi Xia, then burst into laughter, took a sip, and continued laughing, pointing at Chi Xia with the finger holding the wine glass.
"I've discovered that it's a very good thing that my attending physician likes you, hahaha."
Chi Xia almost laughed until she cried when she saw him. She smiled and sat opposite him, also taking a sip of the long-awaited whiskey. She confirmed that the whiskey was genuine and had a very smooth taste.
"You're incredibly bold to drink your employer's five-figure sum of alcohol."
Xin Ran refilled their glasses and clinked them together with hers. "Who cares? Let's live for today."
Chi Xia looked at the young man in front of her, scrutinizing him from head to toe. If this really wasn't his house, then he was in too much danger. How strong must one's mental fortitude be to eat, drink, relieve oneself, and sleep in someone else's house without any worry about being caught?
Xin Ran looked at her and asked, "What question were you curious about just now? What did I do before?"
"Um, may I say?"
Xin Ran looked at her, slowly leaned closer, took off the disguised glasses, and looked at her with eyes that didn't match her age. "Before answering your question, could you please tell me, Ms. Xia, what did you do before?"
Two equally unpredictable gazes clashed in the clear air. Xin Ran's high brow bone blocked most of the vertically radiating light, and his eyes were like a bottomless abyss.
Chi Xia avoided his gaze, also taking off her large-framed glasses. Her cold, sharp eyes were equally piercing. "It seems we both have a secret we can't tell each other. Thank you for taking me in tonight and treating me to such good wine. I'm a little sleepy and want to rest."
After speaking, Chi Xia stood up, downed the wine in her glass in one gulp, and prepared to leave, leaving the glass behind.
"Teacher Xia?"
"Anything else?"
Xin Ran looked at the wine glass she had used. "Could you please wash the wine glass? The kitchen is on the left. Remember to put it in the sterilizer after you're done. Thank you."
Most people would be a little angry after hearing such a request, and it would be somewhat offensive to tell someone directly that used cups need to be disinfected.
Ke Xinran smiled childlikely, her eyes, which had just been radiating murderous intent, crinkling into a pair of perfectly clean dimples.
Chi Xia laughed, "I have reason to suspect that your friend's four hospitals, eight supermarkets, ten entertainment companies, and three technology parks have all gone bankrupt."
The implication is that they can't afford to hire cleaning staff for such a luxurious mansion.
Xin Ran shook her head, "No, no, no, his business is doing very well, he manages it well. He doesn't hire a cleaner to save money. Such a big house has amazing expenses, where would he get the money if he didn't save? He can't just steal or rob, right?"
Chi Xia picked up her empty glass and refilled it. "You're right, this wine is so good, I should drink more to save it for my stomach."
Xin Ran couldn't stop laughing and toasted Chi Xia, "Seriously, Teacher Xia, you're very funny."
"You too, you've taken on so many jobs, it must be tough. Since you're staying here, I'll help you clean."
"I am extremely grateful."
The two weren't very close. After finishing a whole bottle of wine and washing their glasses, Xin Ran took Chi Xia to the guest room. Before leaving, she told Chi Xia that Xun Jiang's room was right next to hers.
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