Chapter 31
After arriving at the destination, the driver turned slightly and pointed at the meter, smiling as he said, “Three hundred and one yuan. I’ll round it down for you. You said earlier you’d pay double the fare. That still counts, right?”
Mu Cheng nodded and instinctively reached into her pocket for money.
Halfway through, her movement stopped. A beat later, she remembered something very awkward.
She had no money.
Not a single cent on her whole body.
When she went out, she had simply thrown on a random set of clothes and had not remembered at all that she needed money.
Having no money yet promising double fare—how “shameful.”
“Um…” Mu Cheng touched her nose, coughed lightly twice, and hesitated.
“With that expression of yours, are you not planning to pay double anymore?” The driver curled his lip and waved his hand. “Fine, fine. If you won’t pay double, then you won’t pay double. Original price, three hundred and one. Since you’re not giving me double, I won’t round down that one yuan either. It’s not easy for me to earn money.”
Mu Cheng grew uneasy and avoided the driver’s gaze.
The driver frowned, narrowing his eyes. His warm attitude cooled a little as he asked, “Don’t tell me you don’t have money.”
The driver rolled up his sleeves, revealing the tattoos on his arms. His muscles were solid. Judging from the current situation, if Mu Cheng dared say she had no money, at best she would be dragged to the police station, and at worst, she might be beaten up.
The driver asked, “QR code or cash?”
QR code.
Right. She could scan a code.
She was holding Zhong Yingzhi’s phone. There should be money in it.
Thinking of this, Mu Cheng let out a breath of relief. She had nearly gotten beaten.
Mu Cheng smiled awkwardly at the driver. “QR code. QR code.”
The driver looked at her suspiciously and pointed at the payment code pasted to the side. “Scan it.”
Mu Cheng picked up the phone and scanned it. The phone made a beep. There really was money in the phone, but payment required a password.
Mu Cheng nervously racked her brain, frantically thinking what the password might be.
Under the driver’s “fierce” glare, Mu Cheng gritted her teeth and entered a string of numbers.
System notification: Payment successful.
Mu Cheng’s eyes widened slightly. She froze.
It was actually right.
She had only wanted to try it, but she had not expected to get it right on the first attempt.
The driver received six hundred yuan, double the fare, and a smile immediately piled onto his face. His attitude warmed up again. “Pretty girl, you really love joking around. I thought you were going to take an overlord ride. But I thought about it too. You don’t look like the kind of person who would cheat others.”
Mu Cheng smiled perfunctorily at him twice, pushed open the car door, and got out.
Mu Cheng looked at the payment successful notification on the phone screen and sank into thought.
Zhong Yingzhi’s payment password was Mu Cheng’s birth month and day.
…
At the hospital, inside a private ward.
Zhong Yingzhi had two stitches on her forehead, which was wrapped in a layer of gauze. Because she had lost too much blood, her face was deathly pale, and weakness and exhaustion showed in her eyes.
She struggled to sit up from the bed and swept a glance around. “Where is she?”
Aunt Yang stood to the side and replied respectfully, “Madam is at home. She didn’t come with us.”
Zhong Yingzhi’s brows furrowed tightly. Her expression became grave, and for no reason, panic rose in her heart.
Sure enough, very soon, terrible news arrived.
Aunt Yang’s phone rang. After answering the call, her expression became somewhat unnatural, showing traces of panic.
Zhong Yingzhi narrowed her eyes at her, sensing that something was wrong. She asked coldly, “What happened? Was that a call from home?”
Aunt Yang did not dare hide it and answered truthfully, “Because you were suddenly sent to the hospital, the side residence fell into chaos. No one paid much attention to Madam’s movements. Madam took advantage of the confusion and ran out.”
Zhong Yingzhi’s pupils widened for an instant, and panic flashed across her cold face. She immediately pulled the needle out of her hand. Because her movement was too rough, blood flowed nonstop from the back of her hand.
Aunt Yang stepped forward to support her. “Eldest Miss, don’t be too anxious. She’ll be found.”
Zhong Yingzhi flung away the hand supporting her and looked at Aunt Yang, her gaze dark. “You clearly knew her emotions were unstable. Why didn’t you watch her? Why did you leave her alone at home? I only cut my forehead. Even if I didn’t come to the hospital, I wouldn’t die. But if she runs out, she could die. Are you trying to get her killed?”
Aunt Yang lowered her head, unable to defend herself.
Lin Zhuo tried to smooth things over from the side. “Yingzhi, you can’t blame Aunt Yang for this. She was also too worried about you and didn’t notice so much. Now isn’t the time to argue about this. The most important thing is to find her first.”
“I’ll settle this with you later. Prepare the car. Find her and bring her back immediately.” After giving the order, Zhong Yingzhi strode quickly outside.
Zhong Yingzhi was wearing a loose floral hospital gown and hospital slippers on her feet. Her steps were hurried, her expression tense. Even so, it still could not hide the innate aloof pride in her bearing. Just one glance was enough to make people afraid to approach her lightly.
Aunt Yang wanted to follow, but Lin Zhuo stopped her. “Aunt Yang, I’ll go with her. Don’t follow. She’s angry right now, and everyone looks displeasing to her. If you follow, there’s no guarantee she won’t vent her anger on you.”
Aunt Yang shook her head. “No. I still have to go with her. Eldest Miss’s head injury hasn’t healed yet. I have to stay behind her and look after her.”
After saying that, Aunt Yang picked up the cloak coat from the hanger and quickly caught up.
Once she caught up, Aunt Yang gently helped drape the coat over Zhong Yingzhi. “Eldest Miss, it’s cold outside. Put the coat on first.”
Zhong Yingzhi did not stop walking. She glanced at the coat on herself, raised her hand, and directly flung it to the ground in disgust.
Aunt Yang looked at the coat thrown onto the ground and sighed quietly before picking it up.
Lin Zhuo followed behind them and saw all this. He shook his head helplessly. Aunt Yang truly treated Zhong Yingzhi like her own child and loved her as one. In everything, she cared about her and thought of her. Unfortunately, Zhong Yingzhi was simply a block of ice. Aside from Mu Cheng, she did not show the slightest good expression to anyone.
When they reached the hospital entrance, a black Bentley had long been waiting outside.
The driver was a middle-aged man in his forties. He wore a black suit and had a buzz cut, looking clean and efficient overall. He was sitting in the driver’s seat. When he saw the people he had come to pick up walk out of the hospital, he hurriedly pushed open the door and got out.
He adjusted his tie, jogged over, opened the car door, and bowed. “Eldest Miss.”
Zhong Yingzhi ignored him and bent down to get into the car. Aunt Yang and Lin Zhuo also got in.
“Have they found her?” Zhong Yingzhi asked.
Lin Zhuo sat in the passenger seat and looked at the message that had just arrived on his phone. He replied, “News just came from that side. When she left, she took your phone. There was a six-hundred-yuan taxi charge. The phone has location tracking, so her location has already been confirmed.”
Lin Zhuo sent the location to the driver. The driver started the car and quickly headed toward the target location.
Zhong Yingzhi stared at the road ahead and urged, “Drive faster.”
The driver stepped on the accelerator, doubling the speed.
Zhong Yingzhi pressed her lips together. “I told you to hurry. Do you not understand? Faster.”
The driver did not dare refute anything and directly floored the accelerator. The car was going so fast that Lin Zhuo gripped the handle above the window, his heart climbing into his throat.
He turned back, wanting to advise Zhong Yingzhi that her own safety was the most important thing. But when he turned, he saw Zhong Yingzhi sitting dazedly in the back, both eyes bloodshot, tears soaking her entire face.
Lin Zhuo froze.
Zhong Yingzhi’s whole body trembled. Her hands were clenched into fists, her nails digging into her palms. Tears filled her eyes and fell helplessly.
The atmosphere inside the car fell silent. Lin Zhuo turned back around and looked ahead, weighed down by thoughts.
When Mu Cheng first appeared, Lin Zhuo had been happy for Zhong Yingzhi. He was happy that there was finally someone who could warm and melt her heart.
But looking at it now, perhaps it would have been better if this person had never appeared.
Seeing this, Aunt Yang hurriedly comforted her. “Eldest Miss, don’t worry too much. We already know where Madam is. We’ll find her very soon. She’ll be fine.”
Zhong Yingzhi’s voice was hoarse and trembling. “If she dies, what am I supposed to do?”
Aunt Yang wanted to pat her back, wanted to comfort her. She raised her hand, but halfway there, she pulled it back. “She won’t. Madam won’t be in danger. She doesn’t remember those things from before anymore, so she only left because the side residence was too stifling. She was only dissatisfied that you wouldn’t let her go out. She only wanted to go out and get some air. She isn’t trying to do something foolish.”
“Is that so?” Zhong Yingzhi closed her eyes, but tears still kept falling, impossible to stop.
Zhong Yingzhi had never shown weakness to anyone. She would always raise her head, always stand in an unreachable position, always look down upon and even despise others. Only with Mu Cheng was she the sole exception.
Proud as she was, she had buried herself in the dust again and again, admitted defeat before Mu Cheng again and again, and likewise fallen into despair again and again.
How could one save someone who was bent on dying? Lock her up, make it impossible for her to leave one’s sight even by a fraction, and then what? Then what could be done? She had still run away, run far, far away. Perhaps she could never come back again. Perhaps she was already dead.
“She’s been playing with me all this time, playing a game where she dies and I save her. She has never won. Cutting her wrists, jumping off a building—no matter what method she used, I would save her. But this time, I feel like I’m going to lose.”
Zhong Yingzhi opened her eyes and smiled, but the smile was even more strained than crying. “Does she want to win that badly? Why can’t she turn back and look at me? Doesn’t she know… doesn’t she know that I can be afraid too?”
…
After Mu Cheng got out of the taxi, she looked at the unfamiliar road in front of her and felt somewhat lost. Nine years had passed. The roads and houses had long since changed greatly.
This place was no longer what it had been nine years ago. The road had widened, the buildings had grown taller, and many lush camphor trees had been added to the once bare streets. The supermarket across from the neighborhood was gone, replaced by a small sports plaza.
Things had changed, but the general layout had not changed much. The residential community was still there. The entrance was still the same entrance, and Mu Cheng could still find the location of her home.
She lifted her feet and walked inside. When she reached the third floor, she stood at the door and looked at the slightly rusted iron security door. At last, within this unfamiliar environment, she found a bit of familiarity from the past.
She raised her hand and knocked on the door. There was no response, so she knocked harder.
Knock, knock, knock.
After a long while, a voice finally responded from inside. “Who is it? In the middle of the night, is it that insurance seller again? I already told you I’m not buying that thing. Are you annoying or not? If you come again, believe it or not, I’ll call the police.”
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