Chapter 281 May I Kill You, G.o.ddess?It was the end of the year, and the filming of “The Chronicles of The Emperor’s Harem” was wrapped up. As a result, Ah Sha’s schedule was now fully packed; she had to go on promotional tours along with the rest of the production crew.
Today, Ah Sha had knocked off early, so Xunxun kidnapped her to join him for dinner. “My mother called to say that she’ll come visit next week. She wants to see your movie premiere.”
“That’s great!” Ah Sha nodded even though she was miles away.
Xunxun parked the car outside the restaurant. “What are you thinking about?”
“Huh?” Ah Sha was pulled out of her thoughts. “Oh, it’s nothing!” Then, without waiting for Xunxun’s reply, she opened the door and got out of the car.
The little restaurant had a refined and polished design. Every aspect of it oozed the “teenage girl” vibe. Once they were both seated, Ah Sha stared at Xunxun in shock. “How did you find this place?”
“I started this establishment,” Xunxun said and then gave her a profound stare. “The owner of this place has the same name as you.”
It took Ah Sha a moment to get it. When she did, her eyes sparkled brightly. “You’re giving this place to me?”
“Yeah. As a graduation gift.”
A waitress brought in their dishes, all of which were arranged in a girlish and cute way. Ah Sha tried a bit of every dish. “They all taste so good!” she exclaimed, glancing around. “But how come there aren’t any customers?”
“That’s because it won’t be in business until you come home. Officially, that is.” Xunxun poured her a gla.s.s of fruit juice. With its myraid of colors, the juice looked a lot like one of those potions seen in fantasy movies. “I suggest we set the official launching date of this restaurant one day after your movie premiere. What do you think?”
Ah Sha, who was busy stuffing food into her mouth, nodded vigorously. “Mmhm, I’ll let you decide.”
“Ah Sha…” Xunxun frowned.
“What’s wrong?” Ah Sha stared at him with large, round eyes.
“Nah, it’s nothing,” Xunxun said. “Just slow down, okay?”
Chen Huan had gotten in touch with Johns in secret, though she didn’t manage to find out anything significant. She did, however, discover an oddity.
“The drugs used by the poison queen are bizarre. They seem like one of mine, but then they have been modified and resynthesized by adding new compounds to them. I can’t be sure whether the drugs came from my supplies.”
Xunxun knew what Chen Huan was capable of; other than those geniuses hidden away in the military base, not many people in this world were able to match her work. If so, who was supplying the poison queen with drugs? At the same time, Xunxun could not shake the feeling that Ah Sha was hiding something from him.
Still, he refrained from asking. Ah Sha must’ve had her own reason for not telling him. Xunxun was just worried about Ah Sha’s safety.
They went straight home after dinner. When they got home, the first thing they saw was a bouquet of black roses lying right on their doorstep.
“Huh?” Ah Sha stared at the bouquet. Of course, she wasn’t so stupid as to believe that the flowers had been left there by a fan.
Xunxun stepped in and shielded her behind his body. “I’ll get it.”
“No! Don’t!” Ah Sha pushed him away. “It’s for me. I’ll get it!” Ah Sha ran forward and kicked the bouquet to the side; a card fell out.
Xunxun was one step quicker as he moved in to pick up the fallen card. An icy look formed in Xunxun eyes after he read the card.
“What does it say?” Ah Sha s.n.a.t.c.hed the card from Xunxun’s hand. A small line of words was written on it: “A gift for my G.o.ddess. I’m already here. Do you see me?”
Ah Sha followed Xunxun indoors. Once inside, she tossed the card straight into the trash can.
Neither of them said a word to each other. Slowly, an awkward silence filled the s.p.a.ce.
“You really have nothing to say to me?” Xunxun broke the silence.
Ah Sha decided to play dumb. “Had to be some kind of prank, right? You were with me every day, so I can’t have hung out with other men without you knowing!”
Xunxun held her gaze, the profound depth in his eyes was almost palpable. Ah Sha curled her lips at him. “Anyway, I don’t know the person who sent the flowers.”
“That’s it? Nothing else?” Xunxun stood up and stared at her. After a while, he added, “I suggest you think carefully about your choices. Come talk to me once you’ve thought things through carefully.” After that, Xunxun walked into the bathroom to take a shower.
Alone, Ah Sha snuck into the study and booted her laptop. Indeed, Johns had left her a message.
“Ah Sha!” Johns greeted her anxiously the moment the video call connected. “Chen Huan came to me and asked me about the drugs that you normally use.”
“Haha!” Ah Sha chuckled mirthlessly and ground her teeth together. “And let me guess, you gave my mother-in-law everything, didn’t you?”
Johns broke into a sheepish grin. “Hehe, hehe. Hey, you can’t blame a guy. She’s the woman of my dreams, you know?”
“Are you frigging kidding me?” Ah Sha rolled her eyes. “She already has an adult son, for Pete’s sake!”
“But that’s not enough to hold back my pure and undying love for her!” Johns declared. After a while, Johns shook his head lightly. “He hasn’t suspected you? I mean, Chen Huan must’ve told him by now. After all, you got all your drugs from Chen Huan.”
Ah Sha glared at Johns. “Yeah? What do you think?” she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm.
“Look, if everything goes south, just admit it to him and then make it up to him with your body or something. Oh, yeah, that’s definitely going to calm the man down,” Johns suggested. “I mean, its fine as long as your family doesn’t know, right?”
“Thanks for your suggestion,” Ah Sha said, preparing to hang up. But Johns’ stern voice stopped her. “I still think you should come clean to him. That way you’d have one more person having your back when you go up against Bai Qi.”
Ah Sha waved her hand and said, “I know what I’m doing.”
Ah Sha shut off the computer and leaned back in the chair. She didn’t plan to go head to head with Bai Qi. If possible, she hoped to sit down with that psycho and then have a chat. Still, she dared not initiate contact with him, considering how risky it was.
“Time for bed.” Xunxun’s voice sounded from study’s entrance where he now stood.
Ah Sha leaped out of the chair. But when she was about to throw herself at him, she saw the man turning away to leave.
“Fine! Sleep alone tonight for all I care!” Ah Sha thought angrily. Walking past the living room, Ah Sha saw Xunxun studying a bunch of papers.
“Oh, you still have work?” she asked. “I’ll keep you company, then.”
Xunxun looked at her briefly before going back to the papers. “It’s alright. Go ahead and sleep first. I’ll be done in a minute.”
Ah Sha walked back to the bedroom with her head hung low. Behind her, the man stared at her with a conflicted and probing look in his eyes.
Ah Sha lay on the bed alone, failing to fall asleep despite all the tossing and turning she’d done for G.o.d knew how long. A while later, Ah Sha heard the opening of the bedroom door. She quickly shut her eyes and pretended to be asleep. Moments later, she felt a dip in the s.p.a.ce on the bed beside her. A pair of arms wrapped themselves around her body.
The heat from a warm chest a.s.saulted her back and Ah Sha heard a deep sigh. She bit her lip and said nothing…
In the days following the appearance of the black roses, Ah Sha busied herself with the filming of Xin Enterprises’ commercial campaign. Boss Wan and Chen Huan arrived at S City with Liuliu one day before Chinese New Year’s eve. Out of fear that it might draw Bai Qi’s attention, Ah Sha dared not bring Chen Huan to watch her movie’s premiere.
The next day, Ying Qingcang brought the whole family to the theatre to watch “The Chronicles of The Emperor’s Harem”. After that, the family gathered at Ying’s residence for the reunion dinner.
“Son, did you and Ah Sha get into a fight?” Chen Huan secretly cornered Xunxun to interrogate him.
“No,” Xunxun answered coldly.
“Like h.e.l.l you didn’t. Usually you’ll follow that girl around as if you’re a tail attached to her b.u.t.t or something,” Chen Huan said, glacing at Ah Sha who was now playing fireworks with the other children at the backyard. “I don’t think you have the heart to be mad at her, though. So, spill. What’s going on?”
Xunxun looked outright annoyed at this point. “I’m not mad.”
Chen Huan snorted. “Fine if you don’t want to tell me. I’ll just go ask Ah Sha!” In the end, Chen Huan learned nothing from Ah Sha as well. Soon, it was time for the countdown. By then, it wasn’t just Chen Huan who noticed the strange air between Xunxun and Ah Sha; everyone else felt it too.
Xin Qing wanted them to stay for the night, but Ah Sha suddenly received a phone call.
“Mommy, I’m going out.”
Xin Qing clutched Ah Sha’s arm. “Where are you even going at this hour?”
“My friends from overseas came back,” Ah Sha said in a wheedling tone. “Everyone wanted to meet up.”
Xin Qing was just about to say something else, but then she saw Ying Qingcang shaking his head at her. Xunxun stood up. “I’ll drive you,” he offered.
Once Xunxun was out of the door, Ying Qingcang approached the younger man and stood in front of him. “Whatever it is that she’s up to, just protect her.”
“I will.”
There weren’t a lot of cars on the street at this hour. Inside the car, silence pervaded. They had barely spoken to each other for the past few days, not that Ah Sha didn’t want to. It was just that Xunxun kept avoiding her. Ah Sha knew the reason behind Xunxun’s behavior, though she really didn’t no how to broach the subject.
“We’re supposed to meet at the plaza in front of the World Trade Center,”Ａh Sha said softly. “They’re really my cla.s.smates. Three girls.”
Xunxun kept his eyes on the road, though he did give a slight nod. “I know.”
Once again, silence prevailed. This time, it lasted all the way until they reached the World Trade Center. Xunxun pulled up in front of the plaza, and Ah Sha opened her side of the car door. “Would you wait in the car for us?” Ah Sha said. “You still have to drive us around if we have anywhere to go.”
“Alright,” Xunxun said. “You be careful, okay?”
Another moment of silence ensued. Xunxun looked like he had something else to say, though he was struggling to get the words out. In the end, Xunxun held his tongue. Ah Sha ran towards the plaza under Xunxun’s watchful eyes.
All of a sudden, Xunxun’s eyes widened in vigilance. He quickly got out of the car and ran after Ah Sha as if his life depended on it. On the plaza, three human shaped figures fell limply to the ground. A man stood facing Ah Sha.
“Well, well, well. We finally meet, poison queen!” The man was dressed in a white coat and was wearing a pair of gold-rimmed gla.s.ses. Under the light of the street lamps, his handsome features seemed a bit pale.
Ah Sha kept an eye on the unconscious forms of her three friends and took two quick steps backwards. Her palms were held out in front of her chest at the ready.
“Ah, ah, ah. No needles!” Bai Qi laughed. “Or else your friends here would be on their way to meet their makers. Unless, of course, you can kill me before I make a move.”
A human shaped figure burst out from the darkness and stepped in front of Ah Sha.
“Ah Sha?” Xunxun looked over Ah Sha’s body twice to make sure that she was unharmed.
Ah Sha grabbed Xunxun’s hand. “You need to go! He’s Bai Qi!”
“I know,” Xunxun said, pulling her into his arms. Xunxun’s cold gaze zeroed in on Bai Qi’s face. “You tricked my girl and got her to come out here during the middle of the night. And then you show up dressed in white like you’re attending a funeral of a relative? You got a loose screw in your head or something?”
“Pfft!” Ah Sha knew that this wasn’t the time to be laughing, but she still failed to stifle her laughter.
“You really think she’s just some helpless little girl?” Bai Qi didn’t seem to mind Xunxun’s barb at all. Some time during the exchange, a thin and slender blade had appeared in Bai Qi’s palm.
“Uh-oh. It looks like mental r.e.t.a.r.dation isn’t your only problem, dude. It turns out you’re stone-blind as well. Does Ah Sha look like a man to you?” Xunxun smirked. “You know, I’ve been trying to track you down for quite some time. Who knew you’d show up on your own instead. In that case, I won’t be going easy on you!”
Bai Qi frowned and his ears seemed to twitch a few times. Then, surprise flashed inside Bai Qi’s eyes. “You brought a team with you…”
“Move in!”
Before the sound of Xunxun’s voice dissipated into the night, several shadows flew out from the dark and surrounded Bai Qi. The shadows attacked Bai Qi without holding anything back.
Ah Sha tried to move away from Xunxun’s tight hold, but she received a fierce glare from the man. “Stay here like a good girl. I’ll deal with you once we get home.”
Ah Sha could only stand there and watch the battle unfold before her. “Is that Xiao Hua?” she asked after a while. Not once did Ah Sha’s eyes leave Xunxun’s team.
Bai Qi’s weapon was a knife. He seemed to be holding his own even if he was going up against five opponents at once.
Suddenly, Ah Sha saw Xiao Hua pulling out a gun. “No! Don’t use a gun!” Ah Sha quickly shouted.
“You stay out of this!” Xunxun growled, scowling darkly. Just when he was about to order Xiao Hua to open fire, they heard the sound of approaching sirens.
Xiao Hua retreated and ran back to Xunxun and Ah Sha. “Young master, you should leave with the young miss first.”
“Take the team and get out of here quickly, you hear me? That is an order. Kill him next time,” Xunxun said, pulling Ah Sha into a run.
Bai Qi leaped onto the roof of a pa.s.sing car and blew a kiss at Ah Sha. “Until next time, my beautiful queen!”
The dark scowl on Xunxun’s face lasted the entire journey back home. Ah Sha dared not make a sound. The first thing Xunxun did when they got home was make a phone call. After he was done, he saw Ah Sha standing piteously in the middle of the living room. His heart softened immediately.
“Come here!”
Ah Sha walked towards him in slow, tentative steps.
“Sit,” Xunxun ordered.
Ah Sha sat down on the other end of the couch.
Xunxun frowned. “Why are you sitting so far away?”
Ah Sha shifted closer to him and then sneaked a furtive glance at him. “Xunxun… Please don’t be mad. I was wrong!”
“How were you wrong?” Xunxun still refused to look at her.
“I shouldn’t meet with my cla.s.smates in the middle of the night and open myself to attack,” Ah Sha said warily.
Xunxun glanced at her briefly. “What else?”
“I shouldn’t have stopped Xiao Hua from using her gun,” Ah Sha said, pausing in thought. Then, Ah Sha added, “Good thing she didn’t fire though. The police would’ve heard the gunshot.”
Xunxun laughed angrily. “Ying Xin, are you ever going to come clean?”