News of Luo Qianqian’s departure wasn’t known by many. After the physical examination, she and Ye Liang, along with the Wei Family, had a farewell dinner. That evening, Hei Yu also came out from that dark, secret base to have a farewell meal with Luo Qianqian.
"Teacher, thank you." Luo Qianqian lifted her glass, drank it all in one gulp, and even though it was just beer, tears fell.
Hei Yu nodded, "You know what you need to do, so do it. But the agreed-upon final exam won’t change, I’ll be waiting for you to come back and test with me." His bottle was empty after he tilted his head back.
"Teacher, my junior sister is still underage, and you’re letting her drink..." Ke Ji rolled his eyes and muttered in a low voice, "I always feel like you’re planning to pretend to be drunk and make me pay the bill."
This was really just a joke. After all, it was just a barbecue; how much could four people eat? The remaining one, of course, was Ye Liang.
After ordering, Ye Liang returned and saw Luo Qianqian’s flushed cheeks from drinking, furrowing his brows, "Why did you drink?"
Hei Yu looked at Ye Liang and chuckled, "You really do seem quite like her younger sister."
Ye Liang was taken aback, his eyes narrowed, and the atmosphere at the dining table immediately changed.
Luo Qianqian smiled, "I can even hack into my mom’s phone, do you think it’s strange my teacher knows about something ? After all, my skills now are thanks to my teacher."
Hei Yu looked at Luo Qianqian, drank half a bottle more, and then slowly said, "I don’t understand why a kid as silly and careless as you would be specifically assigned to me to teach. But, I didn’t expect you to be quite loyal and righteous." Hei Yu had Luo Qianqian’s complete information before even meeting her, as it was a direct command from the higher-ups. The more he learned about her, the more he discovered her flaws—meddlesome, emotional and quite a gossip. Yet, it’s this kind of kid who specially made noodles to nourish his stomach, although that pitch-black lump ended up in the trash; what was served on the table was still canteen food. But he appreciated the thought.
"No, that’s not it." Luo Qianqian squinted her eyes, "I just don’t like it when someone has bad intentions towards people around me." Just like that person with the codename LS.
Before leaving the lab, Luo Qianqian’s last target was to pinpoint the location of the phone from which calls were made every Wednesday. However, hidden under heavy protection, she couldn’t penetrate to the last layer, merely watching as crimson feathers floated down on her computer screen, which then slowly displayed a few words:
Little sister, keep working hard. LS
Whether male or female, young or old wasn’t known, and after hours of tracking and being distracted by chatting on the phone, all Luo Qianqian could do was narrow down the location to Southeast Asia, unable to reduce it any further.
She was even certain that this LS was the person who had taken her brother away, but she couldn’t confirm their identity. Her brother, too, would not reveal anything about that person, seemingly warned about something. He always refused to discuss the topic.
"Why don’t you just say you’re too possessive?" Watching Luo Qianqian place the enoki mushrooms in front of her and prevent him from reaching for them, Ke Ji said softly. Over the month’s interaction, he had become as close to Luo Qianqian as friends; even closer than Ye Liang, the big brother he had picked up.
"Hmph." Luo Qianqian guarded the enoki mushrooms, turned to Ye Liang, "Bro, the vegetables shouldn’t be spicy, and half of the meat skewers shouldn’t be spicy either, did you say that?" Looking at the red inside the mushrooms and the layer of bird’s eye chilies, Luo Qianqian obviously wouldn’t let Hei Yu, prone to anorexia and gastric problems, touch even a bite of it, let alone the drink. Regrettably, a month’s interaction made it clear to her that her teacher was a total drunkard, always surrounded by various bottles of liquor in his house, never refusing any.
Ye Liang nodded, then with a twitch of his lips, he looked at Ke Ji, "Don’t compete with her, yours is coming up, and everyone gets a share." It’s just that yours is noted as insanely spicy; you’ll know how spicy when you visit the restroom tomorrow.
All of a sudden, Hei Yu took out a box and handed it to Luo Qianqian, "I don’t have anything better to give, and I haven’t seen you wear any jewelry. This is my work throughout this period."
Luo Qianqian opened the box in surprise; it was her watch, which she thought she had left at home, but it seemed a bit different. This watch was one of the first gifts she had received from the Luo Family, and she had always cherished it.
However, Hei Yu had tampered with it, and she could guess he probably modified something; the appearance hadn’t changed much, so he likely just added a tracking feature to ensure her safety.
Luo Qianqian nodded, "Thank you, teacher." She wouldn’t refuse the teacher’s kindness.
A meal had passed, and everyone was pleased. The last ones sober were not the heavy drinker Hei Yu, nor the big eater Ke Ji, nor the silently drinking Ye Liang, but Luo Qianqian, who had shown signs of drunkenness first. After paying the bill, she called Chang Xi to help send the three people home to sleep, then took her to watch the sunrise.
"What’s wrong?" Chang Xi was also a night owl, but staying up to see the sunrise was still more than she could handle, yawning as she sat on the mountain and watched Luo Qianqian.
"Once I finish my task, I don’t know if I’ll still be able to see such a peaceful sunrise."
Thinking of her brother’s blame, her mother’s heartache, and even Xu Tianyi’s departure, Luo Qianqian felt the future held too many uncertainties. It was like how she clearly loved Xu Tianyi so much, but when faced with something like her brother’s situation, she would still go ahead with what she thought was right, despite his advice.
"Am I being too stubborn?" Looking at the sky turning white, Luo Qianqian softly asked the Chang Xi beside her. She didn’t receive a reply for a long time and turned her head to look; she had already fallen asleep with legs hugged.
She smiled, woke up Chang Xi as the sun gradually rose, and helped her, staggering with every third step because of her size, down the mountain. She took a taxi to send her home, then wandered, not knowing where to go next.
"Luo Qianqian." Xu Tianyi was standing by the roadside watching her.
Luo Qianqian looked up, not knowing when she had walked back to the apartment she shared with her brother. Seeing Xu Tianyi’s tired face, she softly asked, "Why did you come?"
Xu Tianyi shook his head, "I was worried about you."
"You’re just a kid. Neither of us should worry about the other." Luo Qianqian smiled, "Are you treating me to a meal?"
After that month of experiences, Luo Qianqian had already adapted to a biological clock of staying up late and getting up early. How late? After the sun rises. How early? Before the sun sets.
"Are you really going?" He hadn’t heard this news from Luo Qianqian, but had found out from the website, and Bo Mei had told him. He didn’t believe it, so he called to ask, but couldn’t control his temper and they ended up having a large argument. Since then, until they met today, neither had called the other.
"Yes, you know how important my brother is to me," Luo Qianqian said calmly as she nodded in the restaurant.
Xu Tianyi pursed his lips, "Are you finished causing trouble?"
"I wasn’t causing trouble," Luo Qianqian shook her head, "Really, I wasn’t."
Xu Tianyi touched Luo Qianqian’s head, "Stop causing trouble, and keep in touch with me wherever you go. You know I worry." He said as he sat beside Luo Qianqian, pulling her into his embrace, "I won’t stop you, but can you please stop being cross with me?"
"Who, who’s being cross with you?" Luo Qianqian blushed deeply from the sudden tenderness, then suddenly looked up at Xu Tianyi, "Did you just come directly here?"
"Yes," Xu Tianyi watched Luo Qianqian, gently smiling, "The Han Family has been warned, and they shouldn’t dare to make a move for now."