Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 110: Lie Busted?!
He Juan did not want to remember anything from the last ten minutes.
When he finally managed to emerge from the crowd, the back of his shirt was already soaked in sweat and he had a few additional plastic bags in his hands, courtesy to the jovial aunties who had unceremoniously shoved them toward him.
Gratitude notwithstanding, he was simply helpless to deal with the upbeat energy. Those aunties were ridiculously strong! If not for Su Xieren tugging him away in the nick of time, He Juan was certain he would have been forced to sit down inside the stall to sample the food and give reviews!
"Wow..." Er Meilin exclaimed in astonishment as she saw the assortment of food He Juan had harvested in a very short time. "So this is the privilege of good-looking people..."
"Hmph!" Jia Molei crossed his arms over his chest, showcasing his muscular arms inked with dense tattoos. He lifted his chin and said in a haughty tone, "What good is it to be swarmed by the crowd? Look at me. Nobody dares to approach me and they even give way when I pass by!"
He Juan heard Er Meilin whispering to Su Xieren with a disgusted tone, "Goodness... he can even be proud of something like this. Remind me again why I have to continue working under him?"
Su Xieren went along with her happily, "The New Year’s bonus is good."
"Ah, you’re right." Er Meilin had a look of enlightenment. She then turned to Jia Molei and gave him a thumbs up with a plastic smile on her face. "You’re so cool, Boss!"
Jia Molei was so angry that veins throbbed on his forehead. "Do you fucking think I heard nothing when you two are practically talking beside me?!"
He Juan watched the three people bickered back and forth with a mirthful smile on his face. There would never be a moment of peace as long as Jia Molei was with Su Xieren, and now with the addition of the mischievous Er Meilin, they were akin to popping firecrackers. He blissfully devoured a cup of sweet chocolate noodle jelly – which was given by the nice aunties – to refill his depleted stamina before turning to the almost dilapidated building in front of him.
He Juan’s throat bobbed nervously. He thought that his apartment was already antique enough, but it turned out that he had not seen enough of the world yet.
The five-storied building in front of him looked like it was going to collapse anytime soon. The paints were mottled, and one side of the wall had been turned into a garbage dump. Pungent smell of food waste permeated the air, making everyone feel very unpleasant. The entrance to the building was very narrow and dark like the mawing jaw of a monster.
Simply put, this apartment could be directly made into a haunted spot and it did not even need any further embellishment.
The four of them had to enter one by one in order to climb the stairs. He Juan took the lead, followed by Er Meilin, Jia Molei then Su Xieren. The space between two walls was so narrow that He Juan had to shrink his shoulders a little. Not only that, he also had to bow his head to avoid being caught by spiderwebs.
He Juan had not bothered with his size before, but right now... he felt like a giant who had accidentally stumbled into a mini-sized house.
Such a cramped space would be a huge disaster for the claustrophobic, he mused. Oh, and also the mysophobic. He Juan turned his head sideways and as expected, Jia Molei and Su Xieren’s faces were not looking too good. They kept twisting their bodies here and there to avoid brushing against the dark moss on the wall. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝙬𝙚𝓫𝒏𝓸𝓿𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝙤𝓶
He Juan could not help but pipe in, "Guys, if you don’t want to come here, don’t force yourself. I have Miss Er with me here." Seeing how uncomfortable the two Betas were made him feel a tad guilty. After all, if not because of He Juan, they were the kind of people who would not enter this kind of place. Ever.
Yet to his surprise, both of them readily refused it. Helpless, He Juan could only continue on his way. "Which floor is her house again?"
Er Meilin cleared her throat, "It’s the... fifth. The highest one."
"Alright," He Juan replied readily with no reluctance whatsoever.
Along the way, he scanned the surroundings with curiosity. The walls in this place were so thin that he could clearly hear the sound of television inside, the intermittent cough of an elderly, as well as someone who was talking about their plans to play mahjong tomorrow. It was typical of the cheapest apartment far from the city center. If you farted, then the entire floor would be able to guess what you ate for lunch. There was simply no privacy at all.
The four of them stumbled into the fifth floor and crowded in front of room 504, Student Ye Lingya’s house.
He Juan cast Er Meilin a faint glance which was received very well by the latter. Er Meilin consciously stepped forward and knocked on the door as there was no bell to press on. "Good evening, is this Miss Ye Lingya’s house?" She had kept her voice to the bare minimum, yet it still echoed all over the floor as if someone had put a speakerphone to her mouth.
Not good, He Juan suddenly thought. The matter they were going to talk about... if it was heard by the neighbors...
All of a sudden, he seemed to understand why Ye Lingya’s parents chose to forfeit the lawsuit. Who knew what kind of rumors would follow their daughter afterwards if they stayed in this kind of place?
The four of them immediately held their breaths as they heard shuffles of footsteps. It stopped right in front of the door, then a quiet and timid female voice answered, "I am Ye Lingya. W–Who are you...?"
Er Meilin readily gave the answer she had been preparing. "Hello, Miss Ye Lingya. We are the administrators from Yuyang Hospital Center. I’m very sorry, but due to my negligence, some of the important data from the patients are missing, including yours. Can you please help us with this one? If I still can’t get it done before today, then I will surely get fired... " Her voice contained the appropriate amount of awkwardness, pleading and shame as though she was only short of begging Ye Lingya on her knees. It was perfectly done. As expected of Miss Er, the ultimate social butterfly...
There was no response from the other side.
Just as Er Meilin was going to try again, Ye Lingya’s voice drifted out, as soft as a breeze, as gentle as a spring lake, yet the content was akin to a thunderclap to the four people’s ears. "The red-haired man. I have seen him before... He is a doctor, isn’t he?"
Er Meilin’s smile slowly vanished from her face as she mechanically turned to face Jia Molei, who had been innocently hanging out in the background.
Jia Molei: "..." What the fuck?
For a moment, tense awkwardness hung in the air. He Juan silently palmed his forehead with an exasperated look whereas Su Xieren was inching closer to the stairs, reading to turn away at the earliest signal.
It couldn’t be. They had not even started yet... and the lie was already busted?!
