Door knocking resounded at the entrance, "Must be that blockhead making the noise," Mo Xixi peered through the door’s peephole, and sure enough, it was the face of Ren Minghang tinged with a mix of panic and excitement.
Hearing no one respond inside the room for quite some time made Ren Minghang even more anxious. He was still holding a container of freshly stewed takeout pigeon soup. Just before, when he came up, he had looked around to make sure Lin Yi wasn’t there before he proceeded to the door.
"I mean, will you let the sick rest or not?" After playing dead for quite a while and noticing the person outside showed no signs of leaving, Mo Xixi deliberately lowered her voice and applied some foundation to her lips and face to appear "weak and powerless" as she opened the door.
"Ah, sorry," seeing someone other than Xia You, Ren Minghang couldn’t help but feel disappointed, his eyes unavoidably wandering into the apartment.
"What are you looking at?" Mo Xixi wasn’t sure where Ren Minghang’s gaze had fallen, but she was quite certain she saw a steaming, fragrant pot of pigeon soup. For the soup’s sake, she stepped aside to let Ren Minghang in.
"I came to see Xia You. Did you guys catch the flu? Are you both sick?" Ren Minghang entered the apartment and, noticing no one else inside, his gaze fell upon the still-lit computer on the coffee table and several empty instant noodle containers; he couldn’t help but frown.
Shoot, I forgot to clean up, Mo Xixi thought, forcing herself to sit back on the sofa with great "effort," her eyes still fixed on the pigeon soup, "Xiao You is fine, she’s just gone home for now, her family is in Bazhou. I’ve called a few times, but no one answers."
"What’s her phone number? Let me try contacting her," Ren Minghang immediately asked for the number.
Mo Xixi dryly rattled off a few numbers, then unabashedly grabbed the pot of soup and began to drink. The room filled with the greasy sweetness of pigeon soup.
"Brother Cai, we’ve got a call from an unknown number," inside the Bazhou City Police Station, the officer responsible for cracking Xia You’s phone lock warned. They had put in considerable effort to bypass the lock set on Xia You’s contacts, but no matter what they did, they couldn’t crack the programming lock.
The biggest secret on Xia You’s phone was the "Military Road" game; the emphasis Mo Xixi had placed on encrypting the phone was specifically on its programs.
Xia You’s contact list did not contain Simon’s information. Now that they received a call from an unfamiliar number in her phone, it was highly suspicious.
"Pick it up," Cai Yang ordered.
"Is this Xia You?" Ren Minghang sounded somewhat nervous on the other end.
The one savoring the pigeon soup was beginning to feel a bit disgruntled, unable to see Xia You as someone who values men over friendships; yet she picked up a man’s call. But upon reflection, recalling that Xia You didn’t even have Ren Minghang’s contact, she found reassurance.
"This is Bazhou Police Station speaking, are you Simon? Your sister is currently with us," the police’s inquiring voice had barely ended when the call was abruptly disconnected.
"Track the signal immediately. See where the call came from?" Cai Yang snatched up the phone, searching for that number and dialed back right away.
"It’s from Qinyang, but the signal is moving, heading towards Bazhou. Doesn’t seem like Simon," the tracking officer observed the flashing signal on the screen.
After trying to call several times without an answer, Cai Yang doubted Simon would be foolish enough to walk straight into the trap, "Keep an eye on that signal. You guys, bring that drug over; I need some information out of her mouth."
The police officers, uneasy, said, "Brother Cai, are you really going to use that drug? The supplier already warned it’s only for use on serious criminals, and besides, she’s a military personnel. If the higher-ups investigate, it won’t be easy to explain."
"What’s there to be afraid of? You think I, a Sergeant, can’t deal with a mere junior officer? It would be shameful for us police if word got out that we couldn’t handle them," Cai Yang said sinisterly. He was determined to show those arrogant soldiers what’s what. It’s exactly because the police were always so evasive that the military didn’t take them seriously.
Cai Yang didn’t believe it. It was just a junior officer; even if the questioning left her crippled, what could happen?
After a series of beeps, the phone finally fell silent. Having hung up, Ren Minghang tossed a remark to Mo Xixi, "Xia You’s in trouble; she’s been taken to Bazhou Police Station," then he immediately drove off to Bazhou City, ignoring traffic lights and pressing the gas pedal to its limit, anxious to reach the Bazhou Police Station. He recalled hearing about police brutality and deaths during interrogation not long ago.
How could Xia You get involved with these people, she...
Listening to Ren Minghang rush downstairs, Mo Xixi bellowed after a while, "They actually dared to capture an active-duty military member! They’ve really got some lion-sized guts. These days, police going after the military," she looked ready, had she a submachine gun, to charge straight into Bazhou Police Station and level the place.
"Forget it, why am I getting riled up? Better let that blockhead play hero," Mo Xixi settled down after her outburst, her mind brewing crafty ideas, "I wonder if that lad can handle it alone. Just had his pigeon soup, I owe him one; might as well figure a way to send some reinforcements."
Mo Xixi giggled mischievously, dialed a number, and yelled, "Boss Lin, our Xiao You has been captured by the bad guys!" After speaking, she added to the drama with a sniff and a whimper. (To be continued. If you enjoyed this work, welcome to recommend, vote for monthly tickets on Qidian (qidian.com). Your support is my biggest motivation.)