Chapter 35.1

Wen Xiaohui was well prepared as he sat in front of Sydney once again. He could tell from a glance that Sydney was feeling a little uneasy. It seemed as though it wasn’t just him who was nervous. He felt a sense of regret - he and Sydney used to be very close, if that incident didn’t happen…

Sydney looked well judging from her appearance, with her sharply-pointed chin. Wen Xiaohui could clearly see that she’d recently had face slimming injections and like normal, he complimented Sydney a bit. Sydney happily chatted about her current situation, but the niggling feeling that they were drifting apart was like an invisible wall between them that was completely insurmountable.

After chatting for a while, Wen Xiaohui felt like it was time to get to the point and hence he made up his mind to ask: "Sydney-jie, did the incident cause you any more trouble afterwards?"

Sydney obviously knew what he was referring to, and she answered while glossing over the details, "I cooperated with the police investigations a few times, but it wasn’t anything important. We’ve been divorced for many years, so we don’t have anything to do with each other."

"It was good that you were already divorced, otherwise you might have to take responsibility for his gambling debts. How much did he actually owe? How come he was forced to jump off a building?"

"Between three to five million yuan1. It’s a huge sum of money that he had no way of repaying. He was hiding because the loan shark wanted to chop his hand off, but before he was found…" Sydney’s face was completely blank as she recounted these matters; she was so indifferent that it was as if he was a stray dog that had nothing to do with her.

"So, Luo Yi..." Wen Xiaohui deliberately paused for a second to observe Sydney’s reaction, and he discovered that her expression changed slightly when she heard the name.

"What about Luo Yi?" Sydney pretended to ask unintentionally.

"He’s a bit worried about the issue with the ID card. Didn’t the police ask about the missing ID card?"

Sydney appeared to be somewhat panicked. "What do you mean?"

Wen Xiaohui was deliberately vague on the details because he wasn’t sure, so his only option was to use such ambiguous words to tease it out of her."

"The police normally require an ID card when confirming someone’s identity. Did the police not suspect anything because he didn’t have any ID?"

Sydney's gaze became unfocused. "He was broke like a homeless person. What’s so strange about not having an ID card?"

Wen Xiaohui looked at Sydney’s facial expression and he felt a growing sense of unease. "Ah, that’s good then."

"Why are you digging up the past?" Sydney said impatiently, "We don’t get to catch up that often, we should talk about something happy."

"Luo Yi is worried that the police will find out about this incident," blurted Wen Xiaohui.

Sydney’s eyes grew wide and she looked at Wen Xiaohui in alarm.

Wen Xiaohui felt as if a basin of ice-cold water had been poured over his head in the face of such an honest reaction, which clearly showed that she had inadequate time to deeply reflect on the matter or to conceal the truth. He felt a chill all over his body.

Sydney asked hoarsely, "D-did Luo Yi tell you?"

"Yeah. Wen Xiaohui sensed his heart pounding and the motion made him feel as if his heart was about to pop out of his throat.

Sydney gripped her cup nervously, and her fingers began to tremble from her use of excessive force. It reflected her innermost worries. "He said that he wasn’t going to tell you."

Wen Xiaohui’s fists were clenched under the table. "I worked it out by myself."

Sydney reflected for a couple of seconds, then she furrowed her brows. Her voice became shrill. "You were trying to tease it out of me?"

Wen Xiaohui looked at Sydney directly. "Sydney-jie, could you please tell me everything? I have to know."

Sydney grabbed her bag and she stood up. Wen Xiaohui grasped her wrist, then he said more seriously, "Sydney-jie, I’ll continue to pester you if you don’t tell me."

Sydney gritted her teeth and she stomped her foot firmly, then sat back down. She tilted her head to look out the window, appearing as if she was very tired. "Why are you doing this? I don't want anyone to know about it."

"You’re the jiejie that I respect and Luo Yi is my nephew. I won’t do anything that could hurt either of you, but I must know the truth. It’s because I’m finding it harder and harder to understand Luo Yi and I must find out the truth. I’m a little bit frightened."

Sydney looked at him indifferently. "I’m not sure what happened between the two of you, but I already anticipated that this day would come."

"Why?"

"That child… He’s not a normal person. You’re in each other’s company all the time. You'll be able to tell eventually, even if he can hide it well."

"What do you mean?"

Sydney sighed, "Adi, I really like you and I feel so grateful. I might not have the courage to tell you if you hadn’t questioned me, because I’m selfish and cowardly. I’m sorry."

Wen Xiaohui said softly, "Please tell me, Sydney-jie. I won’t blame you and I promise to keep it a secret." He knew that no matter what he heard today; it could only become a secret to be shared between the three of them. However, he still needed to find out what Luo Yi had done.

Sydney drank some water. The rims of her eyes were looking bloodshot. "After you both left that time, I was thinking for a long time - I even considered contracting someone to murder him. I think I might have been influenced by Luo Yi, but in the end, I didn’t have the guts to do it. That was until…" Sydney took a deep breath. "It was around a week later when I followed Luo Yi’s advice and gave his address to the loan shark." Sydney’s head drooped further.

Cold sweat broke out on Wen Xiaohui’s forehead, and even his breathing started to feel laborious.

"Afterwards, I knew he was going to be out of luck - maybe becoming handicapped or even seriously injured. If he was lucky, he'd flee the city, never to come back. I never expected him to die." Sydney’s voice started to shake. The loud sound of her nasal speech was entwined with a hint of fear. "I really didn’t expect him to die. The police investigation concluded that it was suicide, but I really don’t know whether it was actually suicide, an accident or even homocide.

"Luo Yi went to investigate him?"

Sydney’s eyes were bloodshot, as she nodded.

Wen Xiaohui felt that his brain had gone completely blank, and it took a while before he came back to his senses.

Luo Yi’s move of borrowing a knife to commit murder2 was very vicious. It wasn’t only Sydney’s ex-husband, Raven and Director Luo were also played by him. Even Luca… Wen Xiaohui suspected that Luo Yi was the one who informed the wife of Luca’s affair. Luo Rui had said before that Wen Xiaohui was the god of pestilence, an inauspicious star, and maybe he was right all along. Although these people didn’t deserve any sympathy, he was still unable to accept that Luo Yi was responsible for a series of horrific deeds for the sake of protecting him. Who could remain at ease and keep someone who wasn’t what they seemed by their side?

Sydney grabbed Wen Xiaohui's hand and she said emotionally, "Adi, beware your nephew - he doesn’t seem like a child at all. The look in his eyes, the way he speaks, how he handles matters… He really scares me. I’m begging you not to tell him that I told you what happened. I’m really terrified.

Wen Xiaohui nodded rather stiffly. "I won't tell him."

He didn’t want to admit that he too was starting to feel frightened. Why? He was sleeping with a snake by his pillow side, and the scariest thing was that he was completely unaware. Although the venomous fangs of the snake only targeted outsiders, who could guarantee that he wouldn’t become the prey one day. For the first time, he regretted the decision of becoming Luo Yi’s guardian - he was too reckless and flippant. He clearly knew nothing about Luo Yi, so how could agree to it so easily?!

After Sydney left, Wen Xiaohui sat by himself in the cafe until dark. When the waiter asked him if he wanted to order food, he absentmindedly settled the bill and left.

He walked home that day. It took him nearly two hours.

He needed to calm down, but he felt like he couldn’t. His brain was a mess and he didn’t know what to do. Should he confront Luo Yi? He had promised Sydney-jie that he wouldn’t tell Luo Yi, but could he bury this matter in his heart? How would he face Luo Yi in future? He felt as if he was about to be overwhelmed by the series of questions that didn’t have answers.

—------------------

His mother was tidying when he got home. When she saw him, she asked, "Why are you so absentminded?"

"I’m too tired. There isn’t enough staff at the studio."

"Quickly take a shower and get some rest." After she finished speaking, she continued to mop the floor while humming a tune. She appeared to be in a great mood.

Wen Xiaohui looked at his mum. "Mum, how was your recent date? Are you pleased?"

"It's acceptable; he’s a really good person. We’ll keep in touch and see what happens." Feng Yuehua couldn’t help but smile.

Wen Xiaohui laughed, "That's great."

"Don’t overwork yourself, I’m not expecting you to earn loads of money. Just make enough to support yourself. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, mum. There’s something I want to discuss with you." He knew that it wasn’t great timing for a discussion, but he just wanted to find someone that he could talk to."

"What's going on?"

"My boss wants me to go to the US to continue studying. I’ll be away for a year. When I return, he’ll let me manage the beauty department. It’s an amazing opportunity, and each year only one or two places are available."

"Oh, your studio will be paying? That’s great news." Feng Yuehua said happily, "My son is so amazing. What else is there to discuss? You should go."

"I’ll worry about you if I go." And also Luo Yi. He whispered it and recalled how he still hadn’t told Luo Yi, because with Luo Yi’s reliance on him, he didn’t know how to broach the subject.

Wen Xiaohui nodded. He smiled and said, "Fine, I'll think it over some more."

As soon as he got to his room, he received a text message from Luo Yi. It was the usual kind of message that was asking after his wellbeing, reminding him that it was due to rain tomorrow and that he should carry an umbrella. He didn’t want to respond, but he knew that Luo Yi would call him if he didn’t get a response within half an hour. He found it even harder to face Luo Yi’s voice, as he was worried that he would expose himself.

They said their goodnights to each other after chatting a little over text messages, which terminated their daily contact.

Wen Xiaohui had a cold shower in an attempt to calm his mind, but it wasn’t much use. He was really confused - he didn’t know what to do or even who he could speak to. Luo Rui was less decisive than him, not to mention that he’d already promised Sydney-jie that he wouldn't tell more people about this matter.

He had a splitting headache that night. In the end, he wasn’t sure how he managed to fall asleep.