Chapter 19
With the new year comes new beginnings, and naturally, new people join as well. Iris had heard about the Flying Tigers' selection of new recruits early on, and while she was curious, she took it very seriously. Little did she know that this would inadvertently upset someone who was extremely jealous, causing her to lose her source of information and be tricked into signing several unequal agreements.
When Ding Huihui finally had a chance to confide in her best friend, she laughed heartily: "Is A-Yuan really threatening to drag you running every day? Is he planning to do weight training every night?" Having had the chance to see the two of them exercise at the sports field, Ding Huihui recalled Iris's persistent pleading and Zhuang Zhuoyuan's helplessness during their last lap of bargaining. She guessed that A-Yuan, this devoted boyfriend, was ultimately not good at being a weight loss supervisor. If Iris's weight loss plan were restarted, Zhuang Sir would probably be the one who lost even more weight in the end.
While Iris was annoyed by Zhuang Zhuoyuan's childishness, she was also furious that he had her completely under his thumb. She took a big bite of the cookie in her hand and continued to complain: "That's not all! He also threatened to cut off my snacks and confiscate my source of happiness, so I refused the dinner he made and came to your house to freeload, just to show my dissatisfaction with him!"
"Oh—" The two were playing games, and you could only believe a fraction of what they said. Then, thinking about the two sets of bowls and chopsticks that had been added downstairs, Ding Huihui's level of trust dropped to only one percent. "So you came here because you had a fight with A Yuan. I thought you came to ask me for information."
Iris blinked and immediately looked at her: "You have inside information?"
Ding Huihui suppressed a laugh and spread her hands: "No." As expected, Iris looked disappointed. Ding Huihui rested her chin on her hand and leaned closer, jokingly asking, "Do you really have a new boyfriend?"
"Go away!" Iris said coquettishly, putting down her snacks and putting her hands on her hips. "You've joined forces with A-Yuan. He's jealous for no reason, you should understand me better."
"How so?"
How so? Iris couldn't deny her own selfish motives. Her enthusiasm for this new recruit selection stemmed entirely from her hope that the SDU would recruit a few more skilled individuals. After all, Inspector Zhan's assessment of Zhuang Zhuoyuan was that he could be both a sniper and an arrowhead. If the Flying Tigers had a few more people who could take on the role of "arrowhead," then her A-Yuan could participate in fewer attack team missions. "Being a sniper is always less dangerous than being on the attack team, isn't it?"
“Exactly.” Ding Huihui nodded silently, then sighed softly, “Actually, I’m always worried about A Tao when he goes on missions, but he never tells me about work-related matters.”
“That’s because Tao is considerate of you.” Iris recalled Zhuang Zhuoyuan’s praise of Zhan Hantao. He thought that Zhan Sir’s thoughtfulness in keeping his unhappiness to himself so as not to worry Huihui was a virtue. But at this moment, looking at Ding Huihui’s expression, Iris had some new thoughts: “Actually, if you mind this, you can just tell Tao. Back then, A Yuan also wanted to hide everything from me, but I taught him a lesson, and now he reports everything. Tao loves you so much, if you seriously ask him, he will definitely consider changing himself.”
"Really? Will it work?" Ding Huihui was a little hesitant. Given Zhan Hantao's taciturn personality, she really doubted whether he could report everything in detail like Zhuang Zhuoyuan.
Iris didn't think it was a big deal at all. For two people to stay together long-term, they need to understand and compromise with each other. If they truly love each other, small changes are always easy to make: "It's unlikely he'll completely change all at once, but if we take it slowly, little by little, I believe it will definitely work. Don't you often leave video cards for Inspector Zhan? If there are things you can't say in person, you can leave a message for him. Communication is the most essential thing between two people; if you don't speak up, he'll never do it right."
“In that case, I’ll give him another chance.” Ding Huihui stretched out her finger, as if she had made a firm decision.
Looking at her, Iris quickly let out a long breath and said to her in a slightly exaggerated tone, "Wow, could it be that I unintentionally saved your relationship with Tao Ge? Huihui, don't tell me that you were considering breaking up before I said this."
Ding Huihui chuckled and quickly put her finger to her lips, signaling Iris to keep it a secret: "You absolutely mustn't tell A-Yuan about this, otherwise A-Tao will definitely find out. It's not that I don't like A-Tao, but sometimes I really feel like something's missing."
Romance is all fabricated. Iris silently shook her head, truly feeling that instead of helping Zhan Hantao create so many external surprises, Zhuang Zhuoyuan would have been better off giving Zhan Sir a straightforward "100 Questions about Ding Huihui" questionnaire. She still needed to give him some pointers when they got back; it's better to teach a man to fish than to give him a fish.
But out of the blue, Ding Huihui blurted out, "If only A-Tao were as good as A-Yuan."
Even knowing that Ding Huihui's sighs were usually thoughtless and unintentional, Iris still subconsciously became alert. In the current situation, she naturally made no attempt to hide her possessiveness, and also gave Ding Huihui a demonstration of being straightforward: "Huihui, Ayuan is great, but he's my boyfriend, you're not allowed to like him!"
"Huh?" Ding Huihui was taken aback for a moment, then quickly reassured her friend, "Okay, okay, I was just expressing my feelings. I would never steal your boyfriend. I'll stick to my principles on that, OK?"
"Fine." Iris said, but reason told her she needed to go back and reconcile with Zhuang Zhuoyuan as soon as possible. A little quarrel is good for the relationship, but a big one hurts. Zhuang Zhuoyuan, that kind of warm-hearted guy, is a hot commodity among girls; even without Ding Huihui, there would be countless other beauties. After all, her aunt was more experienced; no matter how much she trusted someone, she couldn't let her guard down.
Just then, Pauline's voice came from downstairs. News reports said a jewelry store had been robbed at gunpoint, and it seemed the Special Duties Unit (SDU) would be deployed again. Sure enough, the next second, Zhan Hantao and Zhuang Zhuoyuan, who were out buying groceries, called simultaneously. Zhuang Zhuoyuan told Iris not to worry and to stay at the Zhan family home, while Zhan Hantao told Huihui to wait for him to return, reiterating his promise to take her to the airport.
After hanging up the phone, the two girls looked at each other, both seeing similar worry in each other's eyes. The Flying Tigers' missions are very short; their superior, Superintendent Leung Yat-fung, requires them to subdue the criminals and rescue the hostages within a minute. Adding to this the time lag caused by information gaps, news reports generally don't exceed 15 minutes. It's already very short, but for every Flying Tigers member's family, every second is agonizing.
Ding Huihui sat down on the sofa with Uncle Chao and his wife, intently watching the television news. Iris had originally been with them, but after a moment of anxiety, she stood up again, went to the side, and called Lamy: "Hey, sister-in-law, how are you? Do you want me to come over and keep you company?"
Lamy was naturally worried. She and her husband had been happily shopping on the weekend, but before they could even buy a single item, the police arrived with an urgent call. But it had been like this for over a decade, from dating to marriage; what could she say? "You're so kind, Iris. Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm in the mall now, sitting in a cafe watching the news. I'll go back after it's over. Are you okay?"
Iris heard that Lamy's tone was relatively calm, and knowing that she was alright, she felt much relieved. She replied, "I'm fine. Ah Yuan always tells me to trust him, and he has never lied to me, so I'm waiting for him at Zhan Sir's house now. Lamy, I'm relieved that you're okay. Take good care of you and the baby. Hmm? I'm going to check the news now."
“OK, thank you,” Lamy said, looking down at her still-flat stomach. A sweet feeling welled up in her heart again. Just as Iris had said, she really should trust her husband. “Iris, don’t worry, they will all come back safely.”
After joining the Flying Tigers, the members of Team A tacitly agreed upon this after returning home from a mission: if they didn't want to talk about it, they wouldn't; if they did, they'd only mention it briefly. Zhan Hantao naturally hoped his family wouldn't worry about anything, but how could Pauline, who only had one son, not be quite concerned about such matters? So, as soon as he entered the door, she pulled Zhan Sir over for a thorough examination and questioned him carefully. Only after confirming that not a single hair on her son's head had fallen out did she pull Uncle Chao to offer incense to their ancestors.
As soon as his mother left, Zhan Sir's gaze began searching the house again. He already knew the outcome, but he couldn't help but hold onto a sliver of hope. Iris, who had rushed to Zhuang Zhuoyuan as soon as he entered, noticed Zhan Hantao's actions after their hug and kiss. She knew what he was searching for, so she changed her position and wrapped her arm around Zhuang Zhuoyuan's arm, pointing to the room upstairs. She said, "Huihui was waiting for you and was almost late. She had no choice but to take a taxi. She left you a message; you can go check it out later."
"Thank you." Zhan Hantao smiled, his smile carrying a touch of simplicity and honesty. Iris pursed her lips, thought for a moment, and then called out to him as he was about to go upstairs, reminding him, "Brother Tao, I don't know what Huihui recorded, but she probably has something to say to you. If you don't hear any important information in the messages later, I suggest that you two sit down and talk face-to-face after she comes back; that would be better."
Zhan Hantao pulled his foot back from the stairs and walked up to Iris in a few steps: "Did Huihui say something to you?"
Iris nodded and then shook her head: "I think it's best if she tells you the specifics. The only hint I can give you is that it relates to your daily interactions."
Hearing this, Zhuang Zhuoyuan, who always sided with Zhan Hantao, tightened his grip on Iris's hand, clearly hoping his girlfriend would offer more guidance. However, Iris simply shrugged: "A matter between two people should be resolved by the two of them. No matter how good our relationship is with you, we are still outsiders. Brother Tao, for girls, respect is always more important than protection. You can pamper Huihui like a little girl, but you can't exclude her from everything as if she were a little girl."
Upon hearing this, Zhan Hantao fell into deep thought. Zhuang Zhuoyuan seemed to have a flash of inspiration as well, but ultimately couldn't quite grasp it. At that moment, he was more concerned about his friend's love life, so he opened his mouth, wanting to ask Iris again. But Iris had anticipated his actions; before he could speak, she had already let go of him and gone to the kitchen to help Pauline, leaving the two grown men in the living room staring at each other in bewilderment.
“Bada…” Zhuang Zhuoyuan patted Zhan Hantao on the shoulder, about to say “Don’t worry,” but Zhan Hantao turned around and refused his kindness: “I know you want to help me, but I think Iris is more right. My problem with Huihui should indeed be solved by the two of us. Don’t worry, I’ll handle it. Thank you.”
Zhuang Zhuoyuan watched Zhan Hantao go upstairs, then glanced at Iris chatting animatedly with Sister Pauline and Uncle Chao in the kitchen. He had to admit that his future wife's emotional intelligence was indeed higher than his. It seemed that Aunt Gloria's words back then weren't so prejudiced; he was currently only a barely qualified husband candidate, and he still had a long way to go to become an excellent one.
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