The Creator's Grace - Chapter 28

During her time working as an assistant at the Chi Group, Chi Yu was very busy, but she also learned a great deal.

Not only did she have to know exactly what Ran Jin was doing every day, but as an assistant-cum-secretary, she had to understand the daily work content and priorities even better than Ran Jin did. Chi Yu picked it up quickly; besides her own natural intelligence, the managers and colleagues in various departments were extremely patient with her. Whenever she asked a question, they would explain every detail without reservation. Even if she didn’t ask, as long as the Younger President Chi frowned slightly, someone would immediately come up to ask if they could help.

Before taking the position, Chi Yu had thought Ran Jin might shut her out, or that even if she secured the spot through coercion, Ran Jin might instruct the company to hide things from her. To her surprise, everything went smoothly. Chi Yu couldn’t help but wonder: were these people helping her so patiently out of respect for her sister? Or was it…

When Chi Yu left the Planning Department clutching her laptop, she didn’t leave right away, staying by the door to listen for a moment.

“Do you guys think President Ran and the Younger President Chi are actually together? President Ran specifically told us to support the Younger President Chi more.”

“Told us to answer all her questions and hide nothing… with this rhythm, is she really going to hand the Group over to her?”

“No way, isn’t the Younger President Chi a scientist researching lunar orbits? Maybe she’s not great at running a company?”

Manager Xu walked by and, hearing their conversation, swiped her folders across the back of their heads one by one. Accompanied by cries of pain, Manager Xu said with a cold face: “If you have time to gossip behind people’s backs, why don’t you think about your own performance! Is the planning finished? Xiao Yang!”

Xiao Yang, who had just been gossiping quite comfortably, lowered her head and whispered, “Not yet…”

“Then get back to work!”

“Yes!”

The Planning Department instantly entered a state of high tension. Chi Yu, standing at the door, heard everything clearly.

Ran Jin specifically told them to be completely open with me?

After becoming an assistant, Chi Yu left early and returned late, truly looking like a corporate office worker.

“Any progress on Zhou Yu’s side?” Chi Yu invited Qi Tong to eat at a restaurant in the mall downstairs.

“I’m watching everything, but I haven’t found any new clues yet. What about you? Why do I feel like you’ve lost a lot of weight?”

“I’m working non-stop every day, how could I not be tired?”

Qi Tong thought it was funny: “You were born to be a pampered socialite, you don’t know how to serve people.”

Chi Yu stretched her aching neck and shoulders. “Watch your mouth. It’s just a division of labor; it’s not ‘serving.’ If you haven’t found new clues, why did you come to see me?”

“…Am I just a tool to you, Sister Yu? Can’t I just miss you and come for a visit?”

The two had grown up together and always spoke without filters, saying whatever came to mind. As they were chatting casually, two people walked through the restaurant entrance.

“Hey, it’s Ran Jin and that cop named Lu!” Qi Tong immediately lowered her voice.

Chi Yu gave a non-committal “Mhm.” “They often meet at this restaurant for meals and such.”

“True.” Qi Tong remembered. “When I was investigating the personal friendship between Ran Jin and Lu Siqiong for you, this restaurant had a high appearance rate. Besides this place, the only other spot they meet is Lu Siqiong’s house.”

Qi Tong’s words reminded Chi Yu of the time she ran into Lu Siqiong and Ran Jin on the road; the scene of Lu Siqiong leaning over to kiss Ran Jin in the car instantly crashed into Chi Yu’s mind.

If they had broken up long ago—if her sister already had someone else on the outside but they chose not to go public to protect the interests of the Chi Group—then Ran Jin being with Lu Siqiong was beyond reproach; it was even a very fair thing. So, was the breakup between Ran Jin and her sister actually the trigger? Did her sister’s death occur because of their complex emotional relationships? And who was that person her sister was photographed dating? Could that person be the real killer hiding behind the scenes?

Did I really misunderstand Ran Jin? Then what about the person captured in the surveillance video?

Thinking of this, Chi Yu immediately showed the video saved on her phone to Qi Tong, asking her to help investigate the person. This was the video she had found after scouring the entire internet last night—the one showing her sister on a date with a rumored partner, which had led Ran Jin to publicly announce their breakup.

Qi Tong was stunned looking at the video. “You can recognize your sister in a video this blurry? The person with her is wrapped up even tighter; you can’t even tell if it’s a man or a woman. It just looks like a bunch of pixels.”

Chi Yu said, “If it weren’t difficult, why would I need a ‘Great Buddha’ like you to take action?”

Boosted by Chi Yu’s praise, Qi Tong immediately perked up. “Since Sister Yu has spoken, I’ll peel off my own skin if I have to to find out! Don’t worry, leave it to me!”

Chi Yu said gratefully, “When my Sister Tong finds the truth, I’ll give you whatever you want.”

“Really?”

“Really. I’ll go bankrupt to satisfy you.”

Qi Tong was soothed so thoroughly she almost ended up like Lulu, lying belly-up in Chi Yu’s lap in comfort. While Qi Tong was grinning foolishly, she looked up and locked eyes with Lu Siqiong, who had noticed them long ago. Lu Siqiong’s gaze paused slightly, and then, with an expression of disdain, she rolled her eyes so hard they could have circled the globe twice. Her lips moved slightly, seemingly forming the word “Idiot.”

Qi Tong: “…”

During her days as Ran Jin’s assistant, Chi Yu discovered that Ran Jin truly held the Chi Group in her hands, rarely missing any important decision or detail. This was why Ran Jin’s schedule was packed from morning until night. To fully understand what had happened at home during her years abroad, Chi Yu used her title as assistant to not only understand Ran Jin’s work from all angles but also to penetrate her lifestyle.

She drove her sister’s car to work, and whenever Ran Jin finished for the day, Chi Yu would follow. She dismissed the driver and personally drove Ran Jin back to her apartment. Despite the apartment being only a few kilometers from the tower, Chi Yu persisted regardless of the weather. Ran Jin had objected a few times, but Chi Yu remained stubborn, so she eventually let her be.

However, in the quiet of the night when no one spoke, inside the car which still carried Chi Li’s signature scent, the two who were once so close they could rest on each other’s laps and share secrets were now left with nothing but endless silence and radio music trying to soften the atmosphere.

“Thank you for the ride.”

Every day before going upstairs, Ran Jin would leave those words behind. Chi Yu would not respond, and the two would part in a frozen stalemate. After Ran Jin went up, Chi Yu wouldn’t leave immediately; she would sit in the car, watching the light turn on in the small window of Ran Jin’s apartment. Ran Jin really did go back; she went nowhere else.

The radio music was sometimes noisy, and other times it played old songs that made one sad from the very first chord. In the car console, there was a pack of cigarettes and a lighter that had been sitting there for who knows how long. Chi Yu remembered that her sister always smoked this brand. She pulled a slender cigarette out, looked at it for a while, and then placed it clumsily in her mouth. The first puff made her cough violently.

Why did Sister like smoking these things?

Chi Yu extinguished the cigarette in the console ashtray. That single puff, which hadn’t even reached her lungs, made her throat feel terribly uncomfortable. One moment she thought of her sister who died under mysterious circumstances, and the next she thought of Ran Jin kneeling to wipe the stain off her clothes.

She ran her fingers through her thick hair, pushing it back to reveal bright yet confused eyes. The path beneath her feet had countless forks, while ahead lay a thick fog; the way she came was gone, and no return was in sight.

Ran Jin let her be an assistant, let her drive her home, and let her look closely into her life. Ran Jin would indeed call people Chi Yu didn’t recognize right in front of her, using flirtatious language identical to how she had teased her that night at Mulan Club.

Yet, despite this, Chi Yu had observed Ran Jin’s routine and calculated her workload; she had no time to be unfaithful. Just like her professional suits which she wore year-round—buttoned all the way to her chin without a hint of allure—Ran Jin’s life likely consisted only of verbal flirting and wave after wave of solid work. Aside from that, the only thing that could be called relaxation was dining with Lu Siqiong.

The Nanan Branch where Lu Siqiong worked wasn’t far from the tower. The two met at the restaurant every few days to chat, and when the time came, Lu Siqiong would leave while Ran Jin went back upstairs to work. On rarer occasions, if Ran Jin needed to go somewhere in the afternoon and it was on Lu Siqiong’s way, she would hitch a ride.

Chi Yu had followed them secretly a few times, observing from the flow of traffic. The behavior between the two was indeed intimate, but to be fair, the actions between many female best friends were much more intimate than this. Chi Yu herself used to love resting on Ran Jin’s lap or boldly draping an arm around her neck despite her height—all of which was closer than Ran Jin and Lu Siqiong’s interactions. Even then, Chi Yu had only considered her family.

So, what exactly was the relationship between these two? Was Lu Siqiong really Ran Jin’s new girlfriend? Chi Yu was extremely curious and followed them whenever she had time.

That day, Chi Yu followed them to the building where Zhou Yu’s company was located. After Ran Jin went up, Lu Siqiong drove two blocks forward, parked her car, and entered a mall. Chi Yu knew she couldn’t follow Ran Jin into Zhou Yu’s office, so she chose to trail Lu Siqiong.

Chi Yu walked slowly behind, seeing Lu Siqiong dressed glamorously today, walking in high heels with her long legs; she certainly wasn’t at the mall for a case. When she saw Lu Siqiong sweetly holding the arm of a tall man—the two acting affectionately as they went upstairs and even sharing an ice cream—Chi Yu remembered the image of Lu Siqiong leaning over to kiss Ran Jin in that SUV, and a flare of anger rose involuntarily.

While the man went to wait in a long line for a trendy milk tea, Chi Yu walked up to Lu Siqiong and said, “Officer Lu, please come with me. I have something to say to you.”

Seeing Chi Yu, Lu Siqiong’s face quickly soured as well. Chi Yu entered a fire exit, and after a thought, Lu Siqiong followed her in.

“Is that your boyfriend?” Chi Yu asked bluntly in the stairwell.

“What of it?” Lu Siqiong had expected her to ask about Ran Jin; what she said was a surprise.

“Is he really your boyfriend?” Fire smoldered in Chi Yu’s eyes, a cold smile touching her lips. “Dating a boyfriend while making advances toward Ran Jin. Officer Lu is quite something.”

Lu Siqiong didn’t immediately grasp the hidden meaning in Chi Yu’s words, but she could hear the sarcastic tone. She instinctively struck back: “What business is it of yours what happens between Xiao Jin and me? Who are you to her? Just her ex’s sister. And what do you mean by ‘making advances’? I—”

At this point, Lu Siqiong caught on. “No, wait a second. Do you think I’m two-timing? Do you think something is going on between Xiao Jin and me?”

Chi Yu remained silent, looking at her with an unfriendly expression. This silence was an admission.

Lu Siqiong had long found Chi Yu unpleasant. The last time she was cornered in the parking lot, she had a stomach full of words she didn’t get to say. She had spent a long time reflecting on it afterward, feeling she hadn’t performed well in the argument and feeling frustrated. She had vowed to perform better next time. The opportunity had arrived, and she was going to strike back fiercely in Chi Yu’s face.

“So what! Just because your sister is gay doesn’t mean the whole world is! In your eyes, is it impossible for Xiao Jin to be around anyone without something shady going on? Yes! That person you were peeking at from some corner just now is my boyfriend, and everything between Xiao Jin and me is perfectly clean! She has never done anything to betray your sister! I’m telling you, Chi Yu, I don’t care how much Xiao Jin can’t bear to let you go or how she protects you—to me, you’re just a brat who needs a reality check. I suggest you use your brain to think through the cause and effect of this whole thing, and think hard about Xiao Jin’s situation!”

“Her situation.” Chi Yu looked straight at her, as if seizing this chance, desperate to see the secrets about Ran Jin in the depths of Lu Siqiong’s heart. “What kind of situation is she actually in? Can you tell me?”

Lu Siqiong’s agitated voice was still vibrating in the stairwell, as if she had returned to a cramped, dim interrogation room. She instinctively countered Chi Yu with the attitude she used on criminals. She expected Chi Yu to blow up at her after hearing these rebukes.

Instead, Chi Yu’s tone was no different from when she first entered—it was still steady, but the sarcasm was gone.

“You don’t know everything about her either, but you know more than I do,” Chi Yu said. “Officer Lu, where did you and Ran Jin meet? Why was she wandering the streets back then?”

Lu Siqiong noticed that Chi Yu’s attitude seemed to have shifted. One doesn’t hit a smiling face; even though Chi Yu wasn’t smiling, her genuine inquiry about Ran Jin’s past extinguished much of the anger that had risen to Lu Siqiong’s head.

Lu Siqiong’s lips moved; Chi Yu could clearly see she wanted to speak, but then she stopped.

“It’s not my place to speak about Xiao Jin’s affairs. You weren’t wrong before; I indeed don’t know everything about her, but I know it hasn’t been easy for her to get to where she is today step by step. She has her own mission, and if I talk too much, I’ll only interfere. However, I see you’ve already sensed something. You might as well go ask her directly; if she wants to tell you, she will. But… there’s a high probability you’ll be asking in vain. I’ve known her for years and I understand her; if she doesn’t want to speak, there is no way for you to pry her mouth open, even if…”

Lu Siqiong stopped abruptly at those words, then looked at Chi Yu with a look of distaste.

“She indeed doesn’t want to explain things to me.” Chi Yu’s heart slowly sank into a pool of lemon juice, turning sour and soft.

Lu Siqiong realized that Chi Yu had called her here because she actually wanted to stand up for Ran Jin. Thinking about it this way, there was nothing to be angry about anymore.

“There’s a lot I don’t know, and I can’t say much about what I do know. But, Chi Yu.” Lu Siqiong’s phone was vibrating; her boyfriend had come out with the milk tea and called her because he couldn’t find her. She opened the fire exit door. Before leaving, she said to Chi Yu: “The person you haven’t seen clearly might not be just Ran Jin. You know about ‘the shadow under the lamp,’ right? Some people you think you know very well—in reality, the truth may not be what you’ve always seen with your eyes.”

After saying this, Lu Siqiong left the stairwell, leaving only Chi Yu standing in the quiet space, smelling the faint scent of smoke that had merged with the walls and drifted into her nose.