Chapter 20
The rear door slammed shut with a creak of its hinges.
Pei Huai sat between the two men, caught between two pairs of gazes. He casually asked the person on his left, "You have calluses on your left hand where you hold the pen." This was what he felt intuitively when shaking hands. There were several flat, thin calluses on the base of his thumb and on both sides of his index finger. These were obviously gun calluses.
The left hand is the dominant hand of the person in front of me. There is no doubt about that.
However, the writing style on the card cannot be connected with single gift.
Whether it was the gun calluses or the coincidence of his dominant hand, both hinted to Pei Huai that this man was peculiar. Shan Li might not be as he knew him to be, just a wealthy son who had returned from studying abroad and inherited the family business.
[Be careful around you, brother.] These words kept lingering in his mind.
He must do everything possible to find out the truth about Yu Mingrui's suicide.
"This is a habit I developed as a child, and my father corrected me many times. I still couldn't correct it even when I went to boarding school. It's not an exaggeration to say that I'm left-handed. Mr. Pei, do you think this is impolite?" The towels prepared in advance were stacked in the storage compartment, dry, with a slight smell of being dried in the sun. "I don't mean anything else. It's just a habit." Pei Huai didn't respond to him, but silently accepted the towel and wiped his hair until it was half dry.
"Would you like to change clothes first? Mr. Pei, since your home is quite far away, we'd better take care of this matter first. Otherwise, getting sick will be more trouble than good."
"Just put it down in front." He responded calmly.
"It seems that asking too much about your privacy would offend you." Shan Li did not continue the previous topic and changed the subject, "I want to ask you, what are your thoughts on the piano performance?"
"Okay." His gaze suddenly turned to the car window.
It's a way to end the conversation.
The heavy rain flowed in several streams on the glass, trickling down and blurring the street scenes along the way for a moment.
Pei Huai didn't want to reveal his real address. He also knew that with the means of Jingshan Real Estate Company, it would not be difficult to find out his address.
However, if he wanted to get close to this person and ask even a little bit about the cause of his brother's death, this performance would be an opportunity.
At the moment of making his decisive response, Xiang Mingqi, who had remained nonchalant throughout, froze. His eyes widened in slight surprise as he glanced at Pei Huai. He had something to ask, but before he could speak, a heavy burden of worry was reflected in Pei Huai's profile. Xiang Mingqi froze for a moment, then extended his left hand, tentatively grasping the other's lingering fingers.
"Brother, you want to be with him..." He gritted his teeth and couldn't continue.
Shan Li also noticed this detail that was ignored out of the corner of his eye.
Xiang Mingqi turned around, his gaze etched on him. All his emotions exploded the moment he locked eyes with the man. His eyes were as complex as a dog's betrayal, driven mad with jealousy, nearly burning him to the bone.
Fortunately, the next second, the Bentley passed through a branch line of an underwater tunnel. Darkness enveloped him, and his nails finally couldn't help but dig into the leather under the seat.
"Since Mr. Pei doesn't want me to talk too much about your privacy, then I'll take you to the hotel." Shan Li turned his face back, his expression brightening as he smiled. "All expenses can be paid through my account. This will be a thank you gift for Mr. Pei's visit."
"No need." Squeezed between the two men, Pei Huai felt increasingly uncomfortable with the atmosphere inside the car. Not only did Xiang Mingqi, uncharacteristically, frequently touch his hand, even wrapping his palm around his knuckles. Shan Li's gaze was especially intense, sometimes too long until he couldn't stand it anymore and glanced back, only to smile and ask insignificant questions.
for example.
"Mr. Pei, the sweatshirt you were wearing last time I saw you was also of this brand. Do you like the style, or do you prefer this manufacturer?"
"Oh, he just took this from me. I always carry a few pieces in my bag. I change into them after exercising. Do you like it? It's mine." - There was no time for answer.
For example.
"Excuse me, Mr. Pei, is there anything you like?"
"He likes me to massage him, especially his shoulders. He reacts strongly to every press. Oh, and he's a little ticklish. He won't let me touch his waist or neck."
"...Thank you very much for your explanation."
"You're welcome. What else do you want to know? Food, clothing, or daily necessities? I definitely know more than you."
Being able to avoid direct communication with two men at loggerheads was certainly a welcome development. The only surprising thing was Xiang Mingqi's reaction. From the moment he boarded the car, not only was every word he spoke laced with venom, he also proactively provoked the argument, refusing to yield an inch and pressing the issue aggressively. Pei Huai had to look at him twice.
Noticing the senior's gaze, he immediately looked over with a grin on his face.
"What are you looking at?"
"Nothing." Pei Huai didn't want to explain and turned his face away. A strange feeling spread in his heart. Xiang Mingqi, he thought about the name for a moment, thinking that maybe he was just a little easier to bully and talkative in front of him.
"Come to think of it, I don't think I've seen him before. Mr. Pei, is this kid your colleague?" Shan Li regarded the two men with a half-smile. As he met Pei Huai, his gaze softened with concern. His eyes shifted to Xiang Mingqi, then passed by him again, like a cat disdaining a ball of fur on the ground.
Pei Huai responded indifferently: "Yeah."
"I see, so we're colleagues." He emphasized this deliberately, exclaiming with a hint of boasting. Shan Li placed a hand on his knee and glanced at the window seat. "It seems I was overthinking it."
Pei Huai no longer wanted to respond to his incendiary words.
"I'm new to the company. Since I'm new here and nothing has been arranged yet, they've let me stay at his house temporarily." Xiang Mingqi gave a typical fake smile, emphasizing the last few words. "To be more precise, we're in a cohabitation relationship."
"If we're living together, you shouldn't show your attitude to others. It will cause trouble for Mr. Pei."
Xiang Mingqi's smile persisted: "If he's troubled, he'll usually tell me directly. If not, then you're meddling."
...Forget it. Pei Huai thought speechlessly. Go ahead and argue, he doesn't care about any of them anyway.
The original plan was to get off the bus at the nearest block, but the rain only intensified. The downpour washed out rows of buildings within sight, and the raindrops fell so densely that they formed torrents along the upper street.
Shan Li invited him again, and this time, Pei Huai had no choice but to consider his proposal. After a moment, he relented and agreed to stay with only one condition: he would pay for the hotel himself, without asking anyone for favors.
The former had no choice but to compromise. However, the premise was that no matter which price range Pei Huai chose, he would provide the best service and the best room.
The hotel they stayed at was luxuriously decorated in a classical style. From the lobby to the upscale rooms, every floor was brightly lit. The corridors were designed like world-class galleries, and Nordic-style art decorations were everywhere. At first glance, it was quite impressive.
The assigned rooms were next to each other, for example, Pei Huai lived in 1407 and Xiang Mingqi lived in 1406 or 1408, and Shan Li personally led them to the door.
"I live in another suite upstairs." He only looked at Pei Huai when he said this. "If you need anything, you can call the front desk. They will do their best to meet your needs. Mr. Pei, I wish you a fulfilling and wonderful night." Before leaving, he seemed to remember something, glanced quickly at Xiang Mingqi, and nodded. "You too."
The man's receding figure was exactly what Xiang Mingqi wanted.
He didn't get angry as quickly as before. Instead, he ran closer to Pei Huai, stuck his head out and stared at his profile as he adjusted his smart bracelet, smiling brightly: "I secretly brought a power bank, let's do it together..."
Pei Huai slammed the door shut.
The first thing I did when I got back to the room was take a shower.
After getting caught in the rain, change your wet clothes and immerse your whole body in a bathtub full of water. This experience is so comfortable that you want to try it a second time.
Pei Huai leaned his elbows on the edge, the water flowing along his spine to his tailbone. His back stretched and undulated, radiating an indescribable wildness. He closed his eyes in a somewhat comfortable manner.
He soaked until the alarm went off. He stepped out of the tub, expertly wrapped himself in a bathrobe, fastened his belt, and left the bathroom. He only wiped the towel over his shoulders, neck, chest, and back muscles. The ends of his hair were still wet and dripping with water.
There were several knocks on the door. He glanced at the clock and, with a sullen expression, opened the door a crack.
A hand holding a power bank reached in and shook it twice with pride. Xiang Mingqi stood outside the door, but the moment his eyes touched Pei Huai's calf, they darted around and he exclaimed sincerely, "Brother, you have a great figure. Can I touch it?"
The towel was pulled down from the top of his head. Pei Huai turned his head away and stopped looking at him, fearing that the door would be closed in the next second.
"Hey, I'm just kidding. Can I come in?"
"What's the matter?" Pei Huai didn't move, and his meaning was very clear: let him say what he wanted to say now.
The other party was also very understanding: "I was worried that you couldn't sleep at night and that you needed my company, so I came here specially to care about you."
Pei Huai frowned and prepared to close the door, which made Xiang Mingqi anxious. He quickly changed the subject, "I, I'm here to hang out with you. Do you want to play games? Please, I don't want to stay in a big hotel alone. I just saw a lot of ghost stories on Weibo. They're really scary."
"——I'm afraid that when I turn over in my sleep, I'll see a ghost face. I'm also afraid that there is a ghost under the bed. What if I kick off the quilt in the middle of the night and wake up to find myself hanging from the ceiling with my blood drained? What should I do?"
“I am a materialist.”
"But what if I really die? If the next day you see me with a stiff expression and a neck that can turn 360 degrees, I might as well die on the spot—" He kept looking into the corridor and stamped his feet nervously in fear.
Pei Huai thought for a while, of course, not thinking about how true or false what he said was.
I remember Yu Mingrui's reaction to ghost stories from the older kids as a child. He'd absentmindedly fiddle with his chopsticks during dinner, even after being spanked. Even when his favorite glutinous rice chicken was placed before him, he couldn't muster the slightest appetite.
Whenever it was time to sleep or go to the bathroom, he would cling to him stubbornly and no matter how hard he tried to get rid of him, he wouldn't leave. Plus, this guy already had a high body temperature, so waking up in the same bed with him would surely make Pei Huai sweat profusely.
Obviously, getting rid of him now would not be an easy task. Fear can make a person extremely difficult to deal with. Thinking of this, Pei Huai patiently asked.
"What do you want to play?"
"How about playing mobile games? I brought a power bank and several charging cables, enough to last until my phone breaks. Bro, do you want to play PUBG?" Xiang Mingqi rushed in without a care in the world, forgetting to take off his coat. As Pei Huai turned to get his phone, his elbow accidentally knocked over a photo frame on the table. "Then sign up for an account first, and I'll help you rank up. We won't go to bed until we win tonight."
The sound gradually faded away, and the entrance returned to its proper silence. Meanwhile, within the layer of the fallen photo frame, a faint red light flickered regularly.
-
The rain continued to fall outside the three French windows on the top floor of the hotel. From this height, every corner of the city seemed like a million cracks, so small that it could be conquered with just the eyes.
The ice cubes clinked in the red wine glass.
Looking at the tablet on his knees and the dark surveillance footage inside, the man leisurely shook his wine glass and smiled with a hint of regret.
"I warned you. Not everyone can covet the princess."
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