Jiang Mingzhu now looks like a child who was taught a lesson after a prank failed. She is as deflated as a ball, obedient but unconvinced.
Although he was still unconvinced as before, Zhou Li could feel the difference.
She is more like her original self now.
Jiang Mingzhu was tired from playing and had a full dinner. Zhou Li took her for a walk nearby to eat.
There were very few people in the suburbs, and basically not many people by the river. Jiang Mingzhu got tired after walking for a while and sat down on a bench.
Zhou Li naturally sat next to her.
The wind at the end of March was still a bit cold, and Jiang Mingzhu shivered from the blow.
Zhou Li took off his coat and put it on her body.
Jiang Mingzhu immediately smelled the usual sandalwood scent on his body. It was the perfume he often used, called Holy Wood.
Jiang Mingzhu was a little surprised. It turned out that she had memorized so many of Zhou Li's little habits without knowing it.
When she was distracted, Zhou Li suddenly said: "Say something."
Although he was actively chatting, he was not very good at it, so his tone sounded stiff.
Jiang Mingzhu: "I would like to know the progress of the investigation, is that okay?"
Zhou Li: "Zhan Yubai and Su Min went on a business trip to San Diego last time and didn't find anything."
Jiang Mingzhu: "What about southern Yunnan?"
Zhou Li: "There is no news from the terminal. There should be no action soon. We may have to wait for this phase of the drug to be launched."
Jiang Mingzhu knew that Zhou Li had invested in Su Min's special drug project, and she suddenly thought of something: "If you invest in him like this, will it affect you when the police intervene in the investigation?"
Zhou Li: "No."
Jiang Mingzhu: "...have you called the police?"
She reacted really quickly, and Zhou Li suddenly remembered what Zheng Linxu had said to him before -
"Sometimes I wish she wasn't so smart."
Zhou Li didn't answer for a while, and Jiang Mingzhu became even more curious: "When did you contact the police?"
Zhou Li: "The time you were hospitalized."
Jiang Mingzhu: "So during those two days when you lost contact for no apparent reason, did you really go check on Zhan Yubai and Su Min?"
Zhou Li did not answer.
Jiang Mingzhu: "The last time Zhan Yubai was arrested, was it a play you performed with them?"
Zhou Li: "Yeah."
Jiang Mingzhu: "She wants to kill me by contacting those people again."
This can be easily deduced. Zheng Linxu told her before that Su Min's people started to investigate Pei Ye.
And this time Su Min used a lot of strength, but in the end he definitely got nothing.
If nothing is found, other suspicions will naturally arise. I heard that Zhan Yubai was arrested in Hong Kong City. Her going there must be related to this matter: "Did Zhan Yubai also go to Lantian Welfare Institute?"
Zhou Li: "She was arrested on the way there."
Jiang Mingzhu: "Have you been sending people to follow her?"
Zhou Li was noncommittal.
Jiang Mingzhu: "Is Liu Pei's case also a clue you provided to the police?"
Zhou Li held her head down: "Don't waste your brain."
Jiang Mingzhu smiled and said, "I feel now that I overestimated my capabilities by trying to use you for revenge."
Zhou Li: "I don't think so."
Jiang Mingzhu: "Forget it, I'm too lazy to think about it. I'm so tired."
She relaxed and leaned back on the bench.
Within a few seconds, Zhou Li suddenly pushed her head onto his shoulder, "It's better to lean on her here."
Jiang Mingzhu did not refuse.
After leaning against him for a while, she suddenly said: "I often leaned against my brother like this when I was a child."
Zhou Li: "Huh?"
Jiang Mingzhu: "It rains a lot in Hong Kong City in winter, and sometimes it only gets sunny once a week. The dean will organize us to bask in the sun. I like leaning against him like this. It's very comfortable."
Zhou Li seemed to be stuck in his throat, and the hand hanging on his leg tightened slightly.
He has a very ambivalent attitude towards Jiang Mingzhu and Pei Ye's past.
On the one hand, he wanted to know their past, but on the other hand, he couldn't suppress his jealousy.
Zhou Li: "How important is he to you?"
Jiang Mingzhu: "It's very important."
Her answer didn't go through a second of thought, as if it had become instinct: "He is more important than my life."
Zhou Li clenched his fists tighter, and the blood vessels on the back of his hands burst.
At the same time, Xu Siyan's words flashed in his ears again.
——
Fu Xiaozhi was woken up by a phone call in the early morning.
She took out her phone irritably, and became even more irritated when she saw Zhou Li's name.
Fu Xiaozhi answered the phone, and before she could question her, she heard Zhou Li say, "Come pick her up tomorrow."
One sentence turned Fu Xiaozhi's irritability into confusion: "What?"
Zhou Li: "Tomorrow you will take Jiang Mingzhu back to the prime minister's villa."
Fu Xiaozhi: "Did you quarrel with her again?"
When Fu Xiaozhi called him in the middle of the night and said this, the first possibility that came to his mind was that Zhou Li had started acting like a monster again.
Zhou Li: "...There was no noise."
Fu Xiaozhi: "Then what do you mean? Didn't you have to lock people up before? Did you suddenly become enlightened?"
Zhou Li: "Her parents will be here soon."
Fu Xiaozhi: "Huh?"
Zhou Li: "Her bipolar disorder may have relapsed."
Fu Xiaozhi: "Fuck! It's all your damn fault!"
Zhou Li: "..."
Fu Xiaozhi: "No need for tomorrow, I will pick her up now!"
Zhou Li: "She is asleep. You can come tomorrow."
Fu Xiaozhi calmed down a little after hearing this. The fact that Jiang Mingzhu was still asleep meant that her condition was not that bad.
But Fu Xiaozhi still has many questions for Zhou Li: "Can I interview you about what you are thinking now?"
Zhou Li: "I didn't think about anything."
Fu Xiaozhi: "I don't think so. Why are you locking her up? If you don't let her meet Yuanye, aren't you just afraid that she will fall in love with Yuanye?"
Zhou Li: "Does she like it?"
Fu Xiaozhi: "Are you here to inquire about information from me?"
Zhou Li remained silent.
Fu Xiaozhi sat up from the bed: "Do you really like Zhuzhu?"
Zhou Li: "No way."
Fu Xiaozhi: "Can you fucking speak normally? If I ask you, just answer. You keep asking me questions every time, which makes me want to beat you."
Zhou Li: "..."
Fu Xiaozhi: "Ask me again, do you like Zhuzhu?"
Zhou Li: "She doesn't like me."
This time he didn't ask a rhetorical question, but answered the question directly. Fu Xiaozhi was so angry that he ran away and had no urge to continue chatting with him: "I can't save you. I wish you a single life! Goodbye!"
Fu Xiaozhi still found it funny after hanging up the phone.
Although she has never been in love, she also knows what attitude she should have when pursuing someone.
Zhou Li is like a joke. I have never seen anyone do it first when chasing someone else.
With the way he is, if he competes fairly with Yuanye, he will definitely be defeated by Yuanye in a matter of seconds.
Unless Jiang Mingzhu was already in love with him, he would never be able to pursue her.
——
Zhou Li and Fu Xiaozhi returned to the bedroom after talking on the phone.
A floor lamp was turned on in the bedroom, and the dim light illuminated Jiang Mingzhu's sleeping face.
She slept on her back today, with a pillow under one armpit.
Zhou Li raised his hand and gently touched her face. It was smooth and tender.
He stared at her for a long time, and finally touched her forehead gently with his lips.
