Qi Mu
Wen Xubai had a rare good night's sleep, but woke up the next day to the sound of his alarm clock...
"Ring ring—ring ring—"
The alarm clock rang incessantly, and the vibration of the phone woke Wen Xubai right out of his sleep!
Wen Xubai: "???"
Still dazed, Wen Xubai subconsciously picked up his phone from beside his pillow and glanced at it.
It's not his.
The alarm clock kept ringing, annoying him.
Amidst deafening snoring, Wen Xubai turned his head and, sure enough, saw Qi Zui lying sprawled on the floor, his blankets and pillows scattered haphazardly somewhere in his sleep.
Wen Xubai: "·······"
He scratched his head in frustration, his throat still hoarse from just waking up.
"Qi Zui..."
He's not awake.
"Qi Zui!"
Still not awake.
Tsk.
Wen Xubai yanked off the blanket and found the phone wrapped in it on the floor.
Without the soundproofing of the blankets, the sharp and piercing alarm clock sounded even more deafening!
Wen Xubai covered his ears, then shoved the phone to the person on the ground's ear and shouted:
"Qi Zui!!!"
"Ahhhhhh! What happened? What happened?!"
Qi Zui jumped out of bed in shock, his hair a mess that looked like it had just been "bounced" and his face full of panic!
"What's wrong? What's wrong??? Is there a fire?"
Wen Xubai said calmly, "There was an earthquake."
Qi Zui: "Huh?"
Qi Zui was completely bewildered, but finally breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the phone that the other person had brought close to his face.
I yawned suddenly and turned off the alarm clock without thinking.
Then, he went back to sleep.
Wen Xubai: "·······"
The next second, Qi Zui seemed to suddenly realize something, and suddenly sprang straight up from the bed like a "zombie"!
"Holy crap..." Qi Zui exclaimed in horror.
Wen Xubai: "???"
Before he could even ask, Qi Zui had already snapped to attention, and within three seconds he had put on his clothes, pulling up his pants and putting on his shoes, his hand already on the doorknob.
Wen Xubai: "???"
Surely not. He was just trying to scare Qi Zui. He wouldn't actually believe it was an earthquake, would he?
Meanwhile, Qi Zui had already dressed as quickly as possible.
"I'm late! I'm late!!!"
"What do you mean by late?" Wen Xubai asked, puzzled.
Thankfully, at least I haven't gone mad.
"I'm going to be late for work! I promised to help Boss Wang at the alley entrance move goods today!"
Before Wen Xubai could react, Qi Zui's figure had already dashed out like a bolt of lightning!
Half a second later, it rushed back!
Wen Xubai: "???"
Qi slammed fifty yuan on the table with a "thud" and hurriedly shouted:
"I don't have time to cook, go buy breakfast yourself!"
With that, he dashed off as fast as the wind!
Wen Xubai: "·······"
Slowly standing up from the ground, Wen Xubai yawned softly.
He already needed little sleep, and after all this commotion, he couldn't fall asleep at all.
Wen Xubai glanced at the fifty yuan on the counter, shook his head helplessly, and ultimately did not take it.
It was still early. When Wen Xubai finished dressing and walked out of the room, he saw that Qi's mother's door was still closed, so she must not have gotten up yet.
I thought to myself for a moment and figured there shouldn't be anything important happening this morning.
Since he had nothing better to do, Wen Xubai went downstairs to buy some breakfast.
Breakfast in the alleyways mostly consists of steamed buns and fried dough sticks; early in the morning, wisps of smoke rise from the chimneys, filling the air with the aroma of oil and flour...
When they returned to the Qi family home, they found that Qi's mother had already woken up.
"Good morning, Auntie," Wen Xubai greeted politely from the doorway.
"Ah...it's you."
Mother Qi seemed to be in much better spirits today, unlike her erratic behavior yesterday. Her hair was styled up instead of being disheveled, and she even had a slight smile on her face.
However, they never asked about Qi Zui's whereabouts.
Wen Xubai assumed that Qi's mother was unaware of the situation, so he took the initiative to say, "Qi went out to work early this morning, and he asked me to buy you breakfast."
As he spoke, he shook the steamed buns and fried dough sticks in his hand.
"You're so thoughtful."
Qi's mother smiled, quickly came forward, took the bag from his hands, and placed it on the table.
"You haven't had breakfast yet, have you? Why don't you sit down and have something to eat with us?" Mother Qi invited.
"good."
Wen Xubai didn't hesitate and sat down in a very natural and generous manner.
Mother Qi picked up a steamed bun and put it in Wen Xubai's bowl, smiling as she asked, "Is this from the steamed bun shop downstairs?"
“Yes,” Wen Xubai replied.
"Their steamed buns are the best..."
Wen Xubai listened silently, giving the smiling woman in front of him a subtle glance.
Although the wrinkles around her eyes betrayed her age, it was still clear that Qi's mother must have been a beautiful woman in her youth.
At this moment, Qi's mother's expression was gentle, and her tone was soft, just like a gentle and quiet mother, serving food to her child. She was completely different from the disheveled and crazy woman from yesterday.
Wen Xubai silently took a bite of the steamed bun.
He knew that people with mental disorders don't stay in a state of madness all the time; in fact, most of the time, they are no different from normal people. They only suddenly go crazy when they encounter a trigger.
Unless explicitly told or witnessed firsthand, many people would find it hard to believe that someone they spend every day with could be insane…
Just like Qin Yalin, just like Qi's mother...
But Qin Yalin's source of stimulation was him, so what was Qi's mother's source of stimulation?
Is it Qi Zui?
Just as Wen Xubai was deep in thought, Qi's mother suddenly stuffed another steamed bun into his mouth.
"You're too thin, you need to eat more. When Qi was your age, he was almost 1.8 meters tall..."
"ah?"
Wen Xubai's thoughts were immediately pulled back. After hesitating for a long time, he decided to explain:
"Auntie... Qi and I are the same age..."
And he's also two months older than Qi Zui...
"Ah?" Mother Qi was startled and quickly said, "Oh dear, I'm so sorry, I was just thinking you were younger than me because you have such fair skin..."
"It's alright," Wen Xubai replied with a gentle smile, reassuringly saying, "If we're talking about youth, it's your aunt who really looks young. Who would guess that you have such a grown son?"
Upon hearing this, Qi's mother's earlier embarrassment vanished instantly, and she burst into laughter.
"You're quite the talker, kid."
"No, I'm just telling the truth. Besides... I'm not as good at sweet-talking as Qi Zui. Auntie, you're probably tired of hearing these kinds of things all the time."
"Ha, yes, Xiao Zui has a sweet tongue, she's always had a sweet tongue since she was little..."
At this point, Qi's mother's expression seemed somewhat complicated, and a hint of ambiguous emotion flashed in her eyes.
Wen Xubai took in the other person's unusual behavior.
"Ring ring, ring ring—"
Just then, his phone rang. Wen Xubai naturally stood up and nodded to Qi's mother in apology.
Excuse me.
Mother Qi shook her head, indicating that everything was alright.
Seeing this, Wen Xubai quickly turned and went to the balcony, his gaze sweeping over the newspaper rack next to the balcony.
Looking down, I saw a familiar figure downstairs.
Wen Xubai was taken aback and leaned forward slightly, wanting to see more clearly.
Unfortunately, the building was too tall, and the people downstairs were being directed by a man who looked like a "nouveau riche," so their faces were completely obscured.
The ringing of the cell phone still echoed in his ears, pulling Wen Xubai back to reality.
I took out my phone; it was an unfamiliar number.
Wen Xubai didn't dwell on it too much, assuming it was just another new number Tan Yu had gotten from somewhere, so he swiped the screen and answered.
"Hello."
"Hello, are you... Wen Xubai?"
The voice that came from the other end was that of a woman.
They were all carefully disguised using a transformation device, so it was impossible to determine their identity simply by their voice.
Wen Xubai was taken aback, his brows furrowing slightly.
He doesn't use this phone often; he only got it when he returned to China. From the day he returned, it's only been no more than four days.
But this person not only found him, but also knew who he was, so he must be someone extraordinary.
After a moment's hesitation, he replied in a low voice, "I am. Who are you?"
There was no answer on the other end of the phone for a long time, only a series of noisy electronic sounds.
Downstairs, the man who had just finished moving a batch of goods suddenly looked up, wiped his head with his arm covered in hemp gloves, and shouted, baring his teeth and shaking his aching hand.
It is Qi Zui.
As if sensing something, the man looked up in his direction.
They looked at each other from a distance.
Even knowing that at such a distance, it was unlikely the other person could see him, much less recognize him...
Hearing this, Xu Bai couldn't help but feel his heart skip a beat.
However, the man's gaze did not linger for long. The next second, he was called back by the shouts of the people behind him, and he hurriedly ran back, picked up the boxes that were almost piled up like a small mountain, and walked laboriously towards the warehouse.
Just then, after a long silence, the person on the other end of the phone finally gave a reply:
"You don't need to know who I am, you just need to know... I have what you want."
What I want?
Wen Xubai paused, his hand that was pointing at the railing.
"Oh? What I want?"
"The whereabouts of the real third young master of the Wen family, and... the truth behind the car accident eighteen years ago."
"Why should I believe you?" Wen Xubai frowned.
Another long silence followed...
Just when Wen Xubai thought the other party wouldn't answer, the woman suddenly spoke:
"You can only trust me, Chen Che."
Wen Xubai's pupils suddenly contracted.
His fist clenched unconsciously...
After a long while, Wen Xubai finally raised his head again, looking at the blazing sun on the horizon, which was dazzling and eye-catching.
He said in a deep voice, "What do you want?"
"I will tell you in person when we meet."
"The day after tomorrow at 3 pm, 'Engraved Cemetery', the top row of independent tombs, you come alone."
"Also, be careful of the people around you..."
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