Chapter 145 Silver Mark
She couldn't help but reach out and gently tap the tip of Yantai's damp little nose, asking softly, "Yantai, do you want to go out and play? Tomorrow, Mommy will set up a stall and take you there, okay?"
As if it truly understood, Yantai immediately rubbed its little head against Su Xiaonuan's finger, making a satisfied "gurgling" sound in its throat. It also clearly nodded its little head, meowed, and its tail wagged more noticeably, appearing very happy.
Looking at its incredibly intelligent appearance, Su Xiaonuan couldn't help but smile. The heaviness in her heart caused by recalling and planning her tasks was also dispelled by this little guy.
She gently stroked the smooth fur of the inkstone and chuckled softly, "Alright, it's settled then. We'll take our inkstone out to town tomorrow!"
After playing with the inkstone for a while, Su Xiaonuan suddenly realized that Fu Lilian seemed to have been taking a little too long to take a shower.
She looked up at the wall clock; nearly forty minutes had passed.
The only sound in the bathroom was the rushing water; there was no other noise.
A nameless worry welled up in my heart.
Fu Lilian is so weak, could she have fainted inside?
Su Xiaonuan's heart sank.
She immediately got up, walked quickly to the bathroom door, knocked, and raised her voice to ask, "Fu Lilian? Are you alright? Are you done showering?"
There was no response from inside the door.
Only the continuous sound of flowing water.
Su Xiaonuan knocked again and called out twice, but there was still no sound from inside.
My bad feeling is getting stronger.
Without further hesitation, she turned around and walked to the drawer in the entryway, where she found the spare bathroom key.
Holding the cold key, she took a deep breath, inserted it into the lock, and gently turned it—
“Clatter.”
The door opened.
A thick cloud of steam instantly hit me, carrying the scent of shower gel, but it was also a bit stuffy.
The scene in the bathroom came into view through the hazy steam—Fu Lilian had her eyes closed, her brows slightly furrowed, and her cheeks flushed an unnatural red from the heat. She leaned against the edge of the bathtub, motionless.
She's asleep!
In such a hot and humid environment with little oxygen!
Su Xiaonuan's heart tightened, and she quickly walked in. First, she turned the bathroom exhaust fan to its maximum, and then she turned on the bathtub drain valve to release some of the hot water and steam, allowing the air to circulate.
She picked up a clean bathrobe hanging nearby and gently covered Fu Lilian's shoulder, which was above the water. Then she shook Fu Lilian's arm and said with concern, "Fu Lilian? Wake up, don't sleep here, you'll catch a cold and lose oxygen."
Just as she bent down to shake Fu Lilian, because of the angle and the dissipation of the water vapor, her gaze inadvertently caught sight of the area below Fu Lilian's left shoulder blade—there seemed to be a very faint, silvery mark there.
Because of the poor lighting in the bathroom and the lingering steam, the mark was not clearly visible; it was hazy, like a blurred symbol or a special pattern.
A sense of curiosity arose in Su Xiaonuan's heart, and she was about to move closer to take a closer look at what it was...
"Mmm..." Fu Lilian let out a soft moan, her long eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she slowly opened her eyes.
She first looked at Su Xiaonuan, who was standing close to her, with a dazed expression, as if she hadn't fully woken up yet.
But soon, she realized where she was and how she was almost completely naked. Her face flushed bright red instantly, like a ripe shrimp. She gasped and instinctively shrank into the water, leaving only her panicked eyes showing.
Seeing that she was awake, Su Xiaonuan breathed a sigh of relief. She quickly sat up, looked away, and stuffed the bathrobe into her hands, saying in as natural a tone as possible, "It's good that you're awake. Get up and put your clothes on quickly, don't catch a cold. I'll wait for you outside."
After saying that, she turned and left the bathroom, gently closing the door behind her.
Leaning against the closed bathroom door, Su Xiaonuan let out a soft breath.
The fleeting glimpse of that silver mark left a small question mark in her mind.
What could it be? A tattoo? A birthmark? Or... something else?
She shook her head, temporarily suppressing the question.
The most important thing now is to ensure Fu Lilian's safety and rest. As for the rest, perhaps Lu Zheng and the others will make a more professional assessment when they arrive tomorrow.
The next morning, as dawn broke, Su Xiaonuan's biological clock woke her up.
She slipped on her fluffy slippers, still half asleep, and walked into the kitchen to begin her daily, unwavering breakfast preparation.
Mince fresh pork foreleg meat into a fine paste, add a little minced ginger, salt, light soy sauce and a little sugar to enhance the flavor, and stir in one direction until it becomes sticky; soak the seaweed in warm water to soften it slightly, and tear it into small pieces; wash and drain the dried shrimp; chop the scallions into fine pieces.
With everything ready, she was about to drop the wrapped, ingot-shaped wontons into the boiling broth when the doorbell rang crisply.
The first time the door opened, An Ran and Qin Haochu came in.
An Ran was dressed in a neat business suit with a beige trench coat over it, looking capable and energetic, but there was a hint of fatigue in her eyes.
Qin Haochu remained as meticulous as ever, his suit impeccably pressed, his expression calm, but when he looked at An Ran, his eyes held a hint of cautious inquiry.
Su Xiaonuan smiled at them, gesturing for them to sit down first, and then went back into the kitchen.
Less than two minutes later, the doorbell rang again.
Su Xiaonuan wiped her hands and ran to open the door.
This time, standing outside the door was Lu Zheng. He was dressed in casual clothes, a dark jacket that accentuated his broad shoulders and back. His brows and eyes showed a hint of weariness from staying up all night, but his gaze remained sharp and clear.
He nodded slightly to Su Xiaonuan as a greeting.
"You're all here? Perfect timing. I made breakfast, let's eat first and then talk business." Su Xiaonuan stepped aside to let him in, her voice soft and gentle in the morning, but her tone left no room for argument.
Thus, a somewhat peculiar scene unfolded in the living room: An Ran and Qin Haochu sat on the left side of the sofa, with a subtle distance between them; while Lu Zheng sat alone on the right side of the single sofa, his back ramrod straight, his hands on his knees, in a standard military posture.
Fu Lilian, who had just been taken in by Su Xiaonuan, sat timidly on a chair at the dining table like a frightened deer, her big eyes darting around nervously as she secretly observed the uninvited guests in the living room, each with a different aura.
The three groups were clearly separated, and a silence filled the air, a mixture of awkwardness, scrutiny, and expectation. Only the gurgling sounds coming from the kitchen and the gradually spreading aroma maintained a superficial harmony.
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