The Creator's Grace - Chapter 13

Perhaps because Ran Jin’s body temperature was too hot, or perhaps because Chi Yu felt such an ambiguous scene shouldn’t happen between her and Ran Jin, she quickly withdrew her hand.

Finding her hand empty, Ran Jin didn’t press the matter and slowly lay back down.

At some point, the top button of Ran Jin’s shirt—which she always kept fastened—had come undone. Her neck, where the flush had mostly faded, now appeared as smooth and flawless as jade.

She seemed thirsty; her throat moved slightly. Her slender neck and the collarbone peeking out from behind her shirt collar caused Chi Yu’s gaze to linger for a moment before she looked away.

She must have mistaken me for Sister to show such an expression, Chi Yu thought.

The two sisters looked very much alike; even with a sixteen-year age gap, their features were so similar that Chi Yu sometimes mistook her own childhood photos for her sister’s.

But wouldn’t someone feel afraid seeing the lover they murdered in a half-dreaming state?

Chi Yu felt a bit bewildered. She had been certain that Ran Jin betrayed her sister, but now, there seemed to be room for further investigation.

Chi Yu played Lu Siqiong’s voice messages near Ran Jin’s ear a few times. Without exiting WeChat, she left the screen on the chat page with Lu Siqiong, locked it, and slipped the phone back into Ran Jin’s pocket.

When Ran Jin woke up tomorrow and unlocked her phone to find the chat page open, she might have a hazy memory of hearing the messages and assume she had listened to them herself while drunk.

Even if she remembered correctly and realized Chi Yu had looked at her phone, that would be fine too. Chi Yu would confront her head-on and ask exactly when her “ambiguous” relationship with this Officer Lu had started.

Chi Yu adjusted her mindset, leaned over, and nudged Ran Jin’s shoulder. “Sister Ran, go upstairs to sleep.”

Ran Jin slowly woke up. Having slept for a while, she was more lucid than before; at least her eyes found a clear focus as she looked at Chi Yu.

“How… did I get back?” Ran Jin’s throat felt parched and painful as she spoke, as if she had swallowed fire.

“I saw you were completely drunk after just two glasses and couldn’t walk on your own. I was afraid no one would look after you if you went back to your apartment, so I brought you here.”

Before Ran Jin could speak, Chi Yu continued in a caring tone, “Sleep here tonight. Auntie Su just cleaned your and Sister’s room today.”

If acting “guilt-free” in a funeral hall could be a performance, then sleeping in the room they once shared should surely invoke a greater sense of fear. Chi Yu stared at Ran Jin, waiting for her reaction.

Ran Jin rubbed her aching temples. The nausea in her chest hadn’t dissipated, and her neck felt inexplicably sore. “It seems I really can’t go back tonight…”

By saying this, she agreed to stay.

Chi Yu helped her up, and they climbed the stairs to the second floor together. Throughout the walk up, Ran Jin leaned toward the handrail, keeping her distance from Chi Yu. Chi Yu kept her eyes lowered, observing her silently.

Just as Chi Yu was about to push the bedroom door open, Ran Jin reached it first, stepped inside, and leaned against the frame. She said to Chi Yu, “You must be tired tonight. Go get some rest. Goodnight.”

“Mhm…”

As it turned out, Ran Jin showed no hesitation or fear as she entered the bedroom. Chi Yu’s gaze instinctively tried to peer inside, but the lights were off and the heavy blackout curtains were drawn. Not even the streetlights from the garden could penetrate the room; it was pitch black.

Driven by a strange impulse, Chi Yu reached out and re-fastened the button Ran Jin had accidentally left open. Ran Jin’s eyes fell upon Chi Yu’s fingertips.

Chi Yu quietly straightened her clothes. “Goodnight,” she said with a smile before leaving.

Dazed, Ran Jin closed the door. She looked at the spacious double bed but didn’t lie down. Instead, she braced herself against the wall and walked slowly into the walk-in closet, skillfully opening a door and stepping inside.

Back in her third-floor bedroom, Chi Yu’s mind was filled with thoughts of Ran Jin while she bathed. When she stepped out of the bath, she felt a chill all over, realizing her fever hadn’t broken all day. She took some fever medicine and fell asleep quickly, though she was plagued by nightmares and woke up several times.

When she finally woke the next day, the clock by her bed read 11:00 AM. After freshening up, she went downstairs, where Auntie Su served her coffee.

“Where is Sister Ran?” Chi Yu sat at the table, sipping her coffee and stretching her stiff neck.

“Miss Ran left early this morning.”

“Oh? She was that drunk last night and still left early?”

“Yes. I saw her come downstairs before 7:00 AM. She was deathly pale and her eyes were red. I asked what she wanted for breakfast, but she said she wouldn’t eat here and left while talking on the phone.”

Chi Yu raised her left eyebrow slightly. Auntie Su asked what she wanted to eat; she replied “anything,” set down her cup, and went upstairs.

She walked to the far end of the second floor—to her sister and Ran Jin’s bedroom. She rarely came here; to her, this was a deeply private space belonging to her sister and sister-in-law. She had been raised to respect the privacy of others and avoided the second floor to prevent awkwardness. The Chi house was so large that if she needed to speak to them, she could do it anywhere else. Consequently, she was very unfamiliar with this bedroom.

Click.

Chi Yu opened the door a crack and peered in. The curtains were still closed; even though it was broad daylight, the room felt like a dim night. The room was empty. Chi Yu walked in and pulled the curtains open. The bright noon sunlight poured in, illuminating everything clearly.

The bedroom looked normal. There was a large double bed, and the bedding was folded so neatly it looked as though no one had slept in it. Chi Yu walked around the room but found nothing unusual.

The balcony of this room led to the attic. Chi Yu remembered entering this room only once years ago to get to the attic via the balcony. Back then, Ran Jin had just arrived at the Chi house and lived in the attic. She had many injuries and often ran high fevers, talking in her sleep; she couldn’t be left alone.

At first, her sister was very busy, so Chi Yu helped take care of Ran Jin, slowly nursing her back to health. She remembered Ran Jin being incredibly thin then—practically skin and bones—with many old scars. She was like a wounded little animal, her eyes full of wariness and fear. Chi Yu had been exceptionally careful and patient while caring for her. To help Ran Jin relax, Chi Yu even shared her favorite peach juice with her.

“Sister said you’ll be living with us from now on. Now that you’ve drunk my peach juice, you’re family.”

Later, her sister moved her down from the attic to her own room. Looking back now, Ran Jin was a lone wolf that she and her sister had raised together. The weak little animal had finally grown into a beast with hidden motives.

Chi Yu stood in the room as memories flooded back. The bookshelves were filled with books her sister had read, thick photo albums, and souvenirs Chi Yu had bought while traveling—her sister had treasured them all, neatly arranging them in the display cases. Chi Yu paced the room, picking up pieces of memory.

Leaving the bedroom, Chi Yu sniffed, checked her temperature, and—after confirming the fever was gone—headed out. She had an appointment with Qi Tong and took a few people from the studio to the broadcast building for a secret investigation.

The results were as she expected; many people had seen Ran Jin in person that day and spoken to her. While the details of what they saw and heard varied slightly, the accounts were consistent and didn’t seem like coordinated lies.

Finding no flaws at the broadcast building, they headed to the home of Hong Yiling, the secretary who first discovered Chi Li. Apparently, Hong Yiling hadn’t even written a resignation letter after the incident and hadn’t shown up for work for two days. When they reached her rental apartment, they knocked for a long time but got no answer.

Instead, they drew out an elderly neighbor from across the hall. “Are you looking for Xiao Hong? Don’t bother; she moved out in the middle of the night a few days ago. Even the landlord can’t find her.”

Qi Tong stepped forward. “Do you know why she moved?”

“How would I know? If you people weren’t banging on the door all day and night, I wouldn’t even have come out to talk to you.”

Qi Tong: “…”

Outside the building, Qi Tong said, “It’ll be a real problem if we can’t find Hong Yiling.”

Chi Yu replied, “It’ll be a problem for the killer if we do find her. Even though we haven’t seen her, knowing someone is trying to hide her further proves that my sister’s death is suspicious.”

“Wow! Sister Yu, you really think fast!” Qi Tong flattered her habitually.

Chi Yu said, “Alright, no need for flattery; I’m still treating you all to lunch. What do you want to eat?”

“Anything?” Qi Tong’s eyes lit up at the mention of food.

Chi Yu looked at her with disdain. “You earn much more than I do in a month; why are you so starved?”

“That’s different. Money you earn yourself isn’t like money inherited from home. I earn every cent with blood and sweat.”

As they were talking, a car slowly passed them. Qi Tong noticed Chi Yu’s gaze following the car—a gaze that shifted quickly from confusion to pure loathing. Qi Tong looked out of curiosity, and what she saw made her heart skip a beat.

The white SUV waiting in the opposite lane for a straight light had stopped for a red. Normally, the dark window tint would make it hard to see inside, but the window was halfway down. The woman driving leaned over toward the passenger seat, her head tilted—a posture that was unmistakably a kiss.

The person in the passenger seat was also a woman. And she looked remarkably like… Ran Jin.

The left-turn lane started moving, and Qi Tong carefully inched the car forward. As they passed, Chi Yu looked back and saw the woman’s face clearly. It was Ran Jin; she wasn’t mistaken. And the woman driving was that police officer named Lu. Lu Siqiong’s hand was still on Ran Jin’s chin, her whole body turned, their faces so close they were practically pressed together.

An expression like a gathering storm settled on Chi Yu’s face as she withdrew her gaze. Qi Tong didn’t even dare to breathe too loudly for fear of being caught in the crossfire.

It seems I was right—it’s even worse than I imagined. A cold, contemptuous sneer slowly formed on the corners of Chi Yu’s mouth.

My former sister-in-law certainly gets around. No wonder she could coax a cop into testifying for her; what filthy methods.

Chi Yu suddenly asked Qi Tong, “What business projects is Ran Jin busy with lately?”

Qi Tong flinched at the sudden question. Since only the two of them were in the car (the rest of the studio staff were in another vehicle), she spoke freely to soothe Chi Yu:

“Ran Jin has been fighting for the lunar mining rights lately. I don’t know if you’ve heard of this project, but your Chi Group has been working on it for a long time. It’s reaching a fever pitch now, with many conglomerates eyeing it. Currently, the Chi Group has the best chance, depending on whether Ran Jin is willing to spend the money to secure the ‘Lunar Orbit’ (Trans-Lunar Injection).”

Hearing the words “Lunar Orbit,” Chi Yu rested her chin on her hand, a plan already forming in her mind.