Chapter 336: Chapter 334: Returning to Jinghai

After another two days in Yanjing Village, they finished up the loose ends of the case. The rain had stopped, and once the roads were a little drier, Su Miaoyi and her team headed back.

Duan Wenrui, along with Tian Min, Cong Yu, and the rest of the branch office team, also returned to Chang City.

Zhuang Yanzheng had rented a car, which was perfect for the four of them.

Zhuang Yanzheng was driving at first, with Lu Zhishen in the passenger seat.

Chu Xingrou and Su Miaoyi were asleep in the back.

Then, the car suddenly lurched to a stop.

The two women opened their eyes to find Lu Zhishen vomiting on the side of the road.

Despite taking motion sickness pills, wearing a patch, and sitting in the front passenger seat, the bumpy ride still got to him.

Eventually, they ran out of options, and Lu Zhishen took the wheel.

As soon as he started driving, he was fine. No more motion sickness.

So he drove for the remaining few hours.

"We’re here, and you’re still asleep," Zhuang Yanzheng said, waking Su Miaoyi and Chu Xingrou.

The two in the back seat had been sleeping so soundly they were dead to the world.

Su Miaoyi opened her eyes, rolled down the window, and leaned on the frame to look outside.

’Wow.’

’Skyscrapers.’

’Wow.’

’So sleepy.’

Zhuang Yanzheng got out of the car, stretching his neck and rubbing his lower back. He walked over to the rear door. "You two really know how to sleep. I was getting bounced around up front until my back ached, and you two slept through it all without batting an eye."

Chu Xingrou tried to wake herself up, struggling to open her eyes. She managed it for a moment before failing, and flopped onto Su Miaoyi.

Su Miaoyi patted her on the head and gently pinched her cheek.

"All these days away... we couldn’t eat or sleep properly, we were up late, and our brains were constantly working. Now we can finally relax," Su Miaoyi said. "I can’t remember the last time I was this sleepy."

Zhuang Yanzheng chuckled. "Wake up, you two. Let’s get a bite to eat, then you can sleep at the hotel."

"Are you paying?" Su Miaoyi asked, looking at him.

Zhuang Yanzheng chuckled again.

"What are you always laughing about?" Su Miaoyi asked. "Did the bumpy road rattle your brain? Lost control of your facial muscles?"

"Your brother’s paying," Zhuang Yanzheng said.

"Huh?"

"Just scammed a chunk of change out of him."

Su Miaoyi: "...You guys are so childish. You should have just given that money to me instead."

She imagined the feeling of money flowing into her wallet and couldn’t help but laugh.

"How did I never notice you were such a little miser?" Zhuang Yanzheng asked.

"Have I ever been this broke before?" Su Miaoyi said, slowly waking up. "My dear creditor."

Zhuang Yanzheng nodded, then looked at Chu Xingrou. "Get up. Time to eat. You two are so clingy."

With that, he walked over to Lu Zhishen, hooked an arm around his neck, and started dragging him along.

Lu Zhishen shrugged his arm off, but he just draped it over his shoulder again.

Lu Zhishen tried to walk a few steps ahead, but Zhuang Yanzheng pulled him back and hooked his arm around his neck again.

Su Miaoyi watched them for a moment. "Talk about clingy."

...

They spent one night in Chang City, met with a few people the next day to put the finishing touches on the case, and then the four of them finally returned to Jinghai.

The four of them first returned to the bureau to debrief on the case before finally heading home.

Having been away for so long, Su Miaoyi desperately missed her bed, and she missed An’an, too.

She reached her front door, opened it cheerfully, changed her shoes in the entryway, and stepped into the living room.

And then... she froze in the doorway, staring at her apartment in stunned silence.

The sofa was askew.

The rug had been shifted out of place.

The pictures on the wall hung at an angle.

The coffee table was tilted, with two of its legs off the floor.

And the floor lamp—it was leaning against the sofa, looking as if it were about to launch itself at her.

Su Miaoyi stood in the doorway for a moment before stepping into the living room.

She noticed the potted plant by the wall was practically bald. Of its once-full foliage, only three leaves remained at the very top.

She took a closer look. They’d been cut by hand.

Su Miaoyi went to check the other rooms.

The other areas were mostly fine, except that all the cups from the kitchen had been arranged on the dining table.

Then she pushed open the guest bedroom door.

Her eye twitched as she stared at the leaking punching bag.

"This was all your doing," Su Miaoyi seethed.

Silence answered her.

"I know you’re in there, stop playing dead!" Su Miaoyi snapped.

’You haven’t seen the master bedroom yet,’ a voice in her head said.

Su Miaoyi pushed open the master bedroom door.

She saw the bed piled high with clothes and the now-empty wardrobe.

Su Miaoyi sank to the floor, pressing a hand to her forehead. The situation was so absurd she started to laugh.

For some reason, it felt like she owned one of those pets that destroys the house.

Except this pet was her.

’This is the price you pay for not waking up,’ the voice in her head said.

"It’s so messy a burglar would feel compelled to tidy up before leaving," Su Miaoyi muttered.

’Don’t be so dramatic.’

’You clean it up.’

’No.’

"You’re cleaning this up!" Su Miaoyi insisted. "You made the mess, you deal with it."

’No.’

’Well, I’m not cleaning it.’

’Neither am I.’

And so, on her first day back home...

...Su Miaoyi had an argument with herself.

In the end, the main personality won, and the "Sister Leng" persona began to clean the room.

The rest of the apartment was easy enough to tidy up. She just had to move everything back to its proper place.

The real problem was the sheer amount of clothing that needed to be sorted.

Pulling them all out had been easy. Putting them back in was a time-consuming chore.

By the time she finally finished folding everything and putting it away, Sister Leng’s expression was frostier than ever.

Right before the two personalities switched back, she reached out and yanked one of the garments back out. Then, the switch happened.

Su Miaoyi opened her eyes and stared at the piece of clothing on the bed. "Even An’an doesn’t pull destructive stunts like this, you know that?"

’I do not,’ the voice replied, cold as ice.

Su Miaoyi sighed, folded the item, and put it away before heading to the bathroom.

"Look at you. Was it really that big of a deal to clean up the room?" Su Miaoyi said.

The voice in her head ignored her.

"You made the mess, so it was your responsibility to clean it up."

Still no response.

"Getting petty, are we? Giving me the silent treatment now."

Still nothing.

Su Miaoyi took a wet wipe and cleaned around the edge of the sink. "We’re having noodles for dinner tonight."

’From where?’ The voice in her head was cold and sulky.

A corner of Su Miaoyi’s mouth lifted. "You pick."

’The usual place on the west side,’ the voice said. ’Extra spicy.’

"Deal." Su Miaoyi got her phone to place the order.

Then, she asked Shen Yanzhou when he would be back. She wanted to see An’an.

Shen Yanzhou was on a business trip, so An’an was at his villa.

Shen Yanzhou texted her the address to his villa, then followed up with a call. "Just head straight over. I sent you the passcode and I’ve already cleared it with the guards. The three rooms on the left on the third floor are all yours. Why don’t you stay for a few days?"

Su Miaoyi’s eyebrow twitched as she listened.

’Three rooms?’

’Qin Leyan has three rooms in Shen Yanzhou’s villa?’

’What kind of lavish life did I used to live?’

’And I’ve forgotten all of it.’

"I’m not going," Su Miaoyi said. "It’s too far."

"Then I’ll have someone bring An’an to you," Shen Yanzhou said. "You haven’t eaten yet, have you? What would you like? I can have the chef prepare something and send it over, too."

"No, it’s fine. I’ve already ordered something."

"All right, then. I’ll have them bring the cat over."

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