Chapter 40 Belongs Because Zhang Minglang appeared before me at this moment.
Because she had to work early the next morning, Tang Yi said goodbye to Xu Xiaoxiao and returned to her apartment building alone. The elevator ascended smoothly, and the subtle sound of its operation inside the metal box was particularly clear in the silence.
The elevator doors slid open with a "ding," and she slowly stepped out, leaning wearily against the door frame, her body slightly swaying, as she reached into her bag to retrieve her keys.
Tang Yi's fingertips touched the cool keychain, and she unconsciously poked at it in the keyhole, absentmindedly thinking about what Xu Xiaoxiao had told her at the bar.
Her phone vibrated in her bag, the vibrations sending a tingling sensation through the leather onto her leg. Startled, she quickly put down her keys, pulled out her phone, and held it to her ear.
Tang Yi gripped the doorknob tightly; the cool touch of the metal cleared her muddled mind considerably.
"Yiyi..."
On the other end of the phone, Xu Xiaoxiao's voice came through, trembling with tears.
Tang Yi's brows furrowed instantly, all distracting thoughts vanishing, her voice tense: "Xiaoxiao? What's wrong? Where are you now?"
Even though it was nearly midnight, City A was still incredibly bustling. The windows of the towering office buildings along the roadside were lit up, and there was even some traffic congestion on the streets.
The taxi struggled through the sea of cars and stopped in front of the police station in the darkness. Tang Yi stepped out and walked straight into the station.
She anxiously looked around the lobby entrance and finally spotted that familiar figure in a corner, which made her feel a little relieved.
"Smile!"
Xu Xiaoxiao, who was sitting with her head drooping, heard the familiar voice, looked up, and finally grinned and waved at her.
Tang Yi, in her high heels, walked quickly and steadily. She hurried up to Xu Xiaoxiao: "What happened? Didn't I tell you before I left that if you've been drinking, you absolutely must call a designated driver!"
Xu Xiaoxiao waved her hand as if fanning her: "No, no, no, I didn't drink and drive. Didn't I tell you I just got my driver's license? I just accidentally scratched someone's car..."
"Accidentally? Scratched? You practically flipped my car over!"
An urgent male voice came from afar, and Tang Yi and Xu Xiaoxiao turned their heads to look at the same time.
Xu Xiaoxiao rolled her eyes at him.
After Tang Yi saw the other person's face clearly, she and the other person froze on the spot.
"Secretary Tang?"
"Cheng He?"
Their incredulous voices overlapped.
So the three of them sat down, and amidst the chaotic arguing and police attempts to reconcile them at the police station, the scene appeared strangely harmonious.
Xu Xiaoxiao nudged Cheng He beside her with her elbow and winked at him: Where are your people?
Cheng He blinked and shrugged: I don't know, I called him!
Tang Yi saw the two of them secretly exchanging glances for the nth time, and finally couldn't help but press her brows and ask helplessly, "Can someone tell me what's going on?"
Xu Xiaoxiao temporarily withdrew from her eye contact with Cheng He, turned around, hugged Tang Yi's arm, and shook it: "This is a long story..."
An hour earlier, Tang Yi had left Heaven. Xu Xiaoxiao saw her off at the bar entrance, watched her get into a taxi, and then turned back to the bar.
The flame that had ignited in her heart because of her sister's injury did not die out with Tang Yi's departure; instead, it burned even brighter amidst the bombardment of the bar's DJ music.
My best friend is such an outstanding person, yet she has been forced to remain silent and suffer for so long because of these unfortunate and trivial things!
Her boss didn't even think to ask Tang Yi's opinion; he just buried himself in his investigation and didn't consider Tang Yi's feelings at all! And Tang Yi even had feelings for him!!
Although she knew she was being a bit too harsh on Zhang Minglang, after all, he didn't understand Tang Yi's personality as well as she did. She also knew that some of her accusations were absurd.
But when she thought of the grievances and tears Tang Yi had suffered because of this, Xu Xiaoxiao, as her best friend's only die-hard fan, couldn't care less about logic and just wanted to invite Zhang Minglang out to give him a good scolding.
Filled with such anger, she couldn't drink a drop of alcohol. She picked up her handbag and walked out, causing the chair to spin several times as she suddenly stood up.
The lights outside the bar were dim, and cars were weaving haphazardly through the crowd. These rich second-generation hooligans parked their cars everywhere, ostentatiously. She struggled to get into her pink sports car, wearing high heels.
As a novice driver, Xu Xiaoxiao was already nervous, and with her still simmering anger, coupled with the congested traffic, she lost control and stepped on the gas, resulting in a loud crash from the rear of the car.
She was stunned, and even her anger subsided by half. She quickly pushed open the door and got out of the car to check.
In the trunk, a black mountain bike lay mangled and wrecked on the ground, with shattered rearview mirror glass scattered everywhere.
More accurately, he was lying under her sports car.
Xu Xiaoxiao scratched her hair in frustration, squatted down to examine the car closely, and suddenly noticed that the car body was also flashy with colorful paint sprayed on it.
In a flash, she recalled the day she and Tang Yi met on their way to Heaven after shopping at the supermarket, when the blond-haired guy on the mountain bike tried to strike up a conversation with her.
It's truly a case of enemies meeting on a narrow road.
Xu Xiaoxiao put her hands on her hips and snorted contemptuously, "What bad luck! Why do we have to run into all sorts of monsters and demons!"
She glanced down at the car lying quietly on the ground, and the slight guilt that had lingered just moments before vanished without a trace.
All night she had been holding back her anger at Tang Yi, and now, having unfortunately crashed into Huang Mao's car, she got up in a fit of rage, kicked the car on the ground with her toe, and muttered, "Who told you to park like that? You deserve it!"
Are you crazy?! Why did you kick my car?
Just as Xu Xiaoxiao angrily withdrew her foot, a furious shout came from behind her.
She sneered, and without a second thought, turned around and unleashed a torrent of abuse: "Are you the one who's sick? Why are you yelling so loudly? It's your own fault for parking so badly, and you have the nerve to blame me for kicking your car? So what if I kicked it! I'll pay you back, okay?!"
"Is this about losing money? Do you think I need your little bit of money?"
The two argued fiercely in the dark until they were standing close enough to finally recognize each other.
"It's you?!"
The two voices, both at the same high volume, echoed in the empty alley, the sound lingering for a long time.
Cheng He's previously furious face clearly transformed into surprise. He forgot his anger and reached out to pat her shoulder: "You should have said it was you earlier, then I wouldn't have cursed you out. You don't need to pay for the car, I don't want it anymore anyway. Last month I sold it to some blond bastard, he scratched the paint and still had the nerve to return it to me..."
Xu Xiaoxiao angrily slapped away Cheng He's hand, which was trying to get close to her. She hadn't forgotten that Cheng He was Zhang Minglang's good brother, Tang Yi's boss.
Birds of a feather flock together; two people who are so close, what good things could they possibly be?
With old and new grudges intertwined, Xu Xiaoxiao yelled at him, "Don't pretend to be so generous! I want compensation! I'm calling the police right now!"
So the two of them, one clueless and the other unhappy, sat together in the lobby of the police station.
"You're really funny, woman. I already told you you don't need to pay, but you insisted on paying and even called the police. Have you never been to a police station before and want to experience a day trip?"
Xu Xiaoxiao crossed her arms, turned her head and glared at him fiercely: "Mind your own business!"
Good buddy?
Xu Xiaoxiao had calmed down a bit. Hearing his muttering, she suddenly remembered something, turned around and asked, "Who's your good buddy? The one surnamed Zhang?"
Cheng He was taken aback by the speed at which her expression changed, and nodded slowly.
Xu Xiaoxiao understood immediately. Her eyes darted around, and she tentatively asked, "Then do you know anything about him and Tang Yi...?"
"You have good taste!" Cheng He slapped her thigh, her eyes shining. "You're a fan of their pairing too?"
"What utter nonsense..."
Once the two started gossiping, they became completely absorbed and forgot all their personal grudges and squabbles, discussing the ins and outs of the "love-hate relationship between Tang Yi and Zhang Minglang."
Amidst the constant arguing and noise around them, this perfectly harmonious corner seemed out of place.
After listening to Cheng He's vivid account, Xu Xiaoxiao immediately had an idea. She stopped him, saying, "Alright, what else is there to say? From now on, we're sworn enemies."
Cheng He: "?"
Xu Xiaoxiao: "The two of us are arguing so fiercely that it's completely out of control. You call your friend and I'll call my friend. We need to sit down and have a proper talk."
After explaining the background setting, Kuku cleared her throat, pouted, and dialed a number.
Cheng He, who was still confused, suddenly understood. He smiled with narrowed eyes, immediately took out his phone, and dialed the number he had sent to Zhang Minglang.
"Yiyi/Brother, I've been in a car accident!"
And so, the scene that unfolded was this: in the bright hall, the three of them sat side by side in a strange manner, not knowing what to say.
After listening to Xu Xiaoxiao's embellished, roundabout explanation that deliberately omitted some of her true intentions, Tang Yi sighed and facepalmed, "Since they're all friends, why couldn't they resolve this privately? Why did they have to take it all the way to the police station?"
Xu Xiaoxiao stammered, not quite sure what to say, when she looked up and suddenly caught sight of a travel-worn black figure outside the door behind Tang Yi.
It's finally here!
Xu Xiaoxiao immediately jumped up from her seat and squeezed next to Cheng He.
Tang Yi was puzzled by her sudden movement. She looked up at her and leaned back in response, but the person in question had already buried her head in guilt.
"What a coincidence."
As a deep voice sounded behind her, Tang Yi also felt a cool breeze gently brush against the back of her neck.
Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, a small ripple stirring in her heart. She slowly turned her head away.
The incandescent light in the hall shone from behind the man, outlining his tall and broad figure in a blurred and soft silhouette. His all-too-familiar face, backlit, appeared almost unreal.
Tang Yi's heartbeat seemed to have found its home, and suddenly calmed down.
Because Zhang Minglang appeared before them at that moment.
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