He just hit where it hurts!No doubt, Tang Yuanchu"s suggestion sounded lethal to Salimu.
"No, no, no, boss! Both you and Teacher Xiang are a match made in heaven, totally a perfect match for each other; perfectly compatible; extremely skillful rare couple…"
"…"
Wow, even "extremely skillful" came out of his mouth. His misuse of words was certainly serious.
Quan Shaoteng gave a casual glance at him. "Are you a fool or something?"
Salimu replied hurriedly, "I am, I am! I"m a fool. Please don"t mind the words of a fool and let me off!"
Quan Shaoteng propped a hand on his forehead. "Can anyone understand how devastated I am to work with a fool?"
Bai Muchuan glanced over at him. "I can! When I"m with you, I get that exact feeling."
Quan Shaoteng let out a disgruntled sneer. "Don"t think that because your girlfriend is here that I will give you face. Wanna spar?"
A smile appeared on Bai Muchuan"s face. "No need for that. I need to give you face since you don"t have a girlfriend after all."
Quan Shaoteng was at a loss for words. "…"
"Hahahaha…"
There were some who couldn"t hold their laughter.
"Captain Quan recently read materials like 36 stratagems for chasing after girls and watched 108 popular idol dramas… However, he"s still a bachelor."
"D*rn, the way you put it is as if you"re not a bachelor."
"At least I had a girlfriend before."
"Hurhur! Oh yeah, a girlfriend who dumped you for a branded bag…"
"… Say it one more time and I will really get angry!"
"Go ahead! I"m waiting!"
"Hah! I won"t get angry… That ex-girlfriend of mine almost went down on her knees to get back with me. Why should I be angry? I"m even enjoying the attention. You won"t understand the world of a popular online celebrity."
"Popular online celebrity?" Quan Shaoteng scoffed, "Second Young Master Mu"s more popular than you, alright?"
"…"
Tang Yuanchu was left speechless.
"So is our super online celebrity treating us tonight?"
After making a round, it was back to Bai Muchuan again.
His expression immediately became gloomy.
"No problem! In future, if there are any requests and calls for interviews, turn all of them down. Is that clear?"
Everyone looked at each other seriously.
"Roger!"
"Roger!"
The media was everywhere.
Sometimes, the means they use could also make one"s blood boil.
Second Young Master Mu"s real ident.i.ty was as if known to the entire world because of Du Landuo"s suicide incident. Because of that, all kinds of trouble had been knocking at the door. If a good-tempered person like Bai Muchuan got angered, the media must have been too much…
Xiang Wan felt apologetic and stole a glance at him.
Bai Muchuan squeezed her hand under the table. Then he changed the topic.
"Everyone should be clear about our focus going ahead from today"s meeting. It will be Lunar New Year soon, make sure all of you perform your work diligently…"
Every time the Lunar New Year draws closer, the number of crimes would be on the rise.
With the unknown Operation Heaven"s Wrath hanging around everyone"s minds, their job was like handling a ticking time bomb.
The reason Bai Muchuan didn"t eat at home and went out in a hurry was because some personnel from Red Thorn and the Ministry of State Security had visited them.
They had a meeting which was basically about how to stop the imminent Operation Heaven"s Wrath that might pose as a threat to many lives—
From what they had gathered, they only knew that some foreign influences had provided a.s.sistance to the remnants of the Dark Clan, and they seemed to be planning something sinister in the Capital. Nevertheless, as to what was the whole operation about, they had no clues about it… Hence, Bai Muchuan and his elite team had been focusing all their attention on this Operation Heaven"s Wrath.
They tried not to talk about work during their meal.
They didn"t drink any liquor too. It was purely eating, and in no time, they finished their meal.
After they left the restaurant, everyone returned to where they should be.
Xiang Wan was looking around the crowded and lively streets when she suddenly had a thought…
She felt like taking a stroll along a busy street. It had been a while since she had last done so.
Bai Muchuan looked at her. He held her hands and strolled along the streets instead of going to the car.
"Let"s go for a stroll first."
"Sure…" Xiang Wan seemed elated.
Since he was busy with work every day, she was at home most of the time.
There was hardly a time where they held hands strolling along a street.
The red lanterns lined the streets which were full of the new year atmosphere. The air was a little damp and foggy, which was cool and refres.h.i.+ng, making one"s head especially sober.
When Xiang Wan realized that Bai Muchuan had remained quiet for a long time, she asked a question with a smile. "Are you under a lot of stress at work recently?"
"Mm, a little," agreed Bai Muchuan.
"So Ding Yifan is here today to talk about that matter?"
Bai Muchuan looked at her deeply. He did not want to keep it from her and told her a gist of what was happening. "The orders from the higher-ups wanted us to nip the operation in the bud, by crook or by hook. Today, we met up with some key personnel to discuss this. My guess is that the operation might happen during Lunar New Year…"
When was the best time to create a case that could shock the world?
The Lunar New Year was undoubtedly the best choice.
Xiang Wan agreed with his guess. However, she had her own thoughts about this matter.
"Everyone knew that the security measures during that period are the tightest. If we can think of that, they could think of that too… The biggest problem is if you"re out in the open while they"re hiding in the dark… This is not to put you down, but they have a million ways to create a shocking case for the world to see, right? Not to mention, the police are on the pa.s.sive side."
Her a.n.a.lysis was reasonable.
That was exactly what was troubling Bai Muchuan.
"Huang He…"
"Huang He…"
The two of them mentioned a name at the same time.
They were holding hands while they looked at each other and exclaimed at the same time.
"You first," said Xiang Wan.
Bai Muchuan looked up slowly. "I need him… to get more leads."
That was the best option for their current situation.
He had been working as the undercover for so long; there was no reason for them to give him up so easily.
That was official business.
However, Xiang Wan saw Huang He as a friend too… and was feeling a little torn.
"He"s not fully recovered yet, right?"
Bai Muchuan seemed to be in thought. "We contacted him last night. He said… he"s recovering very well."
After a pause, he seemed to have something to tell her. Under Xiang Wan"s persistent gaze, he finally said something. "In about two days" time, I"ll send men to bring him here from Xi City—"
There was a doubt in Xiang Wan"s eyes. "Bring?"
Why was it "bring" and not "fetch" or "pick up"?
"Mm," responded Bai Muchuan, but he did not look at her.
"In Tian Danyue"s eyes, Huang He seemed to get more freedom since he was one of my ex-subordinate, but of course, he was always under the police"s watchful eye. That"s the reason why she never appeared in Xi City to visit Huang He… Well, that"s also because he"s injured, which is equivalent to visiting a doctor while on bail. Now that he"s almost recovered, it"s time… to take him into custody."
Take him into custody?
Xiang Wan felt a chill in her heart.
Poor Huang He. Would he have to go through the entire judicial process too?
She propped a hand on her forehead as she thought of Fang Yuanyuan. "He and Yuanyuan… will be so miserable."
Bai Muchuan looked into her eyes. "For the mission this time, Huang He requested something."
"Eh?" What was that?
Xiang Wan seemed interested to hear more.
"He wanted… to get married to Fang Yuanyuan first!"
"…"
Fang Yuanyuan had raised up this issue to Huang He many times.
At that time, however, Huang He had his concerns…
It worried him that working as an undercover was fraught with dangers. He didn"t want to leave her all alone if anything happened to him, and was, therefore, not willing to get married.
"Hur, so he figured out what"s best for Yuanyuan in the end?"
Bai Muchuan held Xiang Wan tightly in the cold winds and let her lean on his shoulder. "Tu Liang"s death affected him a lot. Just a few days ago, I even got your Senior Zhan to talk to him…"
Oh, so he received some counseling from Zhan Se.
"No wonder…"
With Zhan Se"s personality, she would definitely consider the problem from the angle of a woman.
Getting married to Huang He was Fang Yuanyuan"s obsession. None had managed to talk her out of it.
"If you know that you have nothing to offer to a woman… at least give your love to her."
…
Xiang Wan gained affirmation from Fang Yuanyuan about this piece of news in no time.
The next day after Xiang Wan woke up, she received a message from Fang Yuanyuan that she was coming to the Capital.
"Prepare to welcome me, my dearest cousin!"
"I"ve told my parents that I"m coming here to visit you…"
"Heheh, guess what I am here for?"
Was there still a need to guess?
Back then, Huang He attended college in the Capital. It was the leading Public Security University in their country. Although he was not born in the Capital, they moved his household registry to the Capital. Fang Yuanyuan had also asked for a copy of her household registration certificate so as to get married with Huang He.
Well, that was crazy!
As Xiang Wan looked through the messages, an emotion was bubbling inside her.
She found it hard to put it into words…
The feeling was like the tension before a storm, and she felt heavy-hearted.
It was actually a really good thing for the two of them, who were so much in love to want to become a married couple.
However, they were also very clear about one thing…
That their married life might very well be an end, instead of a beautiful beginning.
However, this silly cousin of hers had undoubtedly chosen to dart straight to the fire like a moth who wanted to embrace the warmth of a flame. She had gone down this path for a man she loved.
Xiang Wan didn"t feel that Fang Yuanyuan was wrong to do that.
However, at the same time, she did not feel that Yuanyuan was right either.
Although Xiang Wan was an author, she found herself at a loss since she couldn"t find the correct words to describe her cousin"s behavior besides the word "crazy". Fang Yuanyuan"s action felt like a self-destructing, self-sacrificing love. Should Xiang Wan compliment her that she was a great woman, or she was just a fool?
For the sake of the mission, he gave it his all even if it meant that he might lose his life.
For the sake of her love, she gave it her all by loving him with all her might—
There was a feeling of helplessness in Xiang Wan.
In their story, Xiang Wan was not the scriptwriter. She could not control how things would turn out ahead…
What she could do was to calm down, stay cool, and pick up Fang Yuanyuan happily at the airport.
Almost at the same time, at a place that they couldn"t see, Huang He, who had not recovered fully yet, was inside a police car. The police car set off, braving through the snow in Xi City to the Capital and to an unknown future…
…
When Xiang Wan picked up Fang Yuanyuan from the airport, it was already later than three o"clock in the afternoon.
Fang Yuanyuan sported an energetic ponytail and was pulling along a simple suitcase. At one look, she seemed to have lost some weight. Her fair complexion had a ruddy glow which made her look like she was excited to come to the Capital.
Xiang Wan could tell that she had expectations for this bold arrangement of a "clandestine marriage".
Xiang Wan squinted her eyes as she sized Yuanyuan up. "Lunar New Year"s just around the corner. I can"t believe your mom agreed to you coming here?"
Fang Yuanyuan raised her chin. "Hey, I"m already an adult, I don"t need to listen to everything my parents say… Besides, I"m here to look for you. Everyone in our family knows that my future cousin-in-law is so awesome; there is no reason why they should stop me at all…"
Alright!
Xiang Wan helped to pull her luggage. "Have you thought about it carefully?"
Fang Yuanyuan showed a smile. "Come on, don"t be a wet blanket by asking such questions."
Not wanting Xiang Wan to continue that topic, Fang Yuanyuan looked around with interest and showed a grin. "Why don"t you introduce all the nice food and sightseeing spots here to me instead… I"ll be free for the next two days, you can show me around."
Xiang Wan raised an eyebrow. "If I keep you company, what about your Huanghuang?"
"Hmm…" Fang Yuanyuan dragged her voice and puffed a sigh. "He should be very busy."
"If that"s the case, how are you two going to get married?" Xiang Wan looked puzzled.
"Well…" Fang Yuanyuan pursed her lips to form a smile. Nonetheless, she could not hide the slight disappointment on her face. "The time I can spend with him… is perhaps the time we need to get all the legal doc.u.ments done!"
"…" Xiang Wan felt a tug in her heart.
"Huanghuang told me that everything would be arranged nicely."
"…"
Xiang Wan asked nothing more but held Fang Yuanyuan"s shoulders.
"You must be happy! I believe in your choice."
"I… I definitely will."
Fang Yuanyuan held both fists to make a "buck up" gesture.
The smile on her face was so radiant like the warm winter sun, and it dazzled Xiang Wan much.
…