Cherish You as My Life - Chapter 11

Chapter 11

As soon as he was off duty, Ji Yao prepared to sneak to the forensic office on the fourth floor. He had already made an excuse to go there: thank the forensic comrades for their hard work in helping the investigation of the case.

Unexpectedly, he met Director Cai, who came out of the meeting room on the way.

Ji Yao pretended he didn’t see Director Cai and was about to turn to leave when he heard Director Cai’s angry voice.

“Ji Yao, come to my office.”

Therefore, Ji Yao had no choice but to go to the director’s room to listen to his lecture.

“Look at your appearance. Is this how a police officer would dress?” Director Cui started his scolding as soon as Ji Yao entered the room. “Why are the buttons on top unbuttoned? And the cuffs are rolled up so high. Do you want to fight someone?”

Ji Yao didn’t utter a single word; he just arranged his shirt properly.

Director Cai did not know how to reprimand Ji Yao further, so he waved his hand and said, “Go away.”

Ji Yao slipped out of the director’s office and went to the forensic room. However, by the time he arrived, Han Xi had already left, leaving Zhu Han to arrange the equipment.

Zhu Han caught sight of Ji Yao and took the initiative to explain. “Sister Xi answered the phone and left; she just left.”

Upon hearing that, Ji Yao hurried down the stairs and saw a black Cayenne parked at the entrance of the City Bureau. A man in a black suit emerged from the car, donning shiny leather shoes and a gold close-up eyeglass that concealed his eyes. He exuded an air of sophistication and introspection.

The man opened the passenger door for Han Xi, and she got inside. 

The two seemed very affectionate, as he attentively helped her avoid hitting her head on the window above by putting his hand there.

Meanwhile, Ji Yao leaned against a nearby pillar, observing their interactions with a slight smirk on his face. ‘From Han Xi’s body language, it is clear that they are not lovers.’

The man closed the car door and glanced up at the gate.

Han Xi fastened her seat belt and asked, “When did you come back? Didn’t you say you would come next week?”

Luo Haiyao gripped the steering wheel and replied, “Just got off the plane.” 

He had been away on a business trip for two weeks, and his first priority upon returning was to see Han Xi. “Don’t worry about me. I finished my work earlier.”

He was three years older than her, and they had lived together in an orphanage for four years before Han Xi got adopted when she was seven years old.

Two years later, Luo  Haiyao‘s biological parents found him and took him away.

Later, he finally found her.

At that time, she was a college student. He could still remember the scene they met after a long time. She was sitting on the grass in their university playground, under the afternoon sun. Seeing that, he felt the darkness in his life suddenly vanished. 

From one glance at her, he knew she was his girl, his only family member, and his lover in the future. They were destined to live and die together.

 ****

After having dinner, Luo Haiyao took Han Xi home. 

Han Xi looked at the City Centre that was lit with neon lights through the closed window. After pondering for a few seconds, she looked at the man and said, “I’m going to move. The place I live now is too far from the City Bureau.”

“Okay, then I’ll ask someone to arrange a place for you,” Luo Haiyao said with a soft smile. 

“No… I’ll do it myself,” Han Xi leaned on the seat and replied. 

Luo Haiyao: “It’s very troublesome to find a house. You don’t have to worry about that.”

Han Xi repeated the words. “I’ll do it myself.” 

Luo Haiyao was familiar with Han Xi’s stubbornness, so he didn’t push the issue further. Instead, he gave her some advice before they parted ways. “Make sure to find a good house and keep your distance from your neighbours, especially those across the hallway. If you can avoid interacting with them, that would be good for you.” He added, “Many people out there are untrustworthy.”

Han Xi turned to look at him and replied, “Got it.”

 The car stopped at the entrance of Zhuyuan Community, and Han Xi got out of the car and walked to the community.

As she walked away, she muttered to herself, “But there are also good people out there.”

 Luo Haiyao watched her leave. ‘It’s better she could understand what I said.’

 As Han Xi was about to go inside, she looked back. Sure enough, Luo Haiyao was still there. 

 It wasn’t until Han Xi entered the community that Luo Luo  Haiyao rolled up his car window and disappeared into the darkness of night.

 Han Xi didn’t like to eavesdrop on others’ conversations, but when she heard her name mentioned, she couldn’t help but listen in.

 The young security guard was holding an old phone with a relaxed expression on his face as he talked. “Officer, thank you for helping me. Thanks to you and Miss Han, my mother’s surgery was successful. If there is anything I can do for you, I will go above and beyond.”

 Meanwhile, inside the security room, Xiao Zhou was on the phone.

Ji Yao, who just finished eating, went to the balcony, gazed at the dark sky and asked, “Did Miss Han come back?”

 Xiao Zhou saw Han Xi standing outside the security room; he smiled at her and replied, “Yes, Miss Han just came back.”

 Han Xi stood still, knowing who was on the other end of the phone.

 Before hanging up, Xiao Zhou suddenly remembered something and said, “Officer, the last time I said that Sister Yu and Uncle Zhou didn’t know each other. But I just remembered that Uncle Zhou was downstairs when Sister Yu committed suicide.” His voice wasn’t as lively as before but rather carried a hint of sadness and helplessness. “Uncle Zhou was holding a bag of fish.”

 As Han Xi listened, she tried to recall the photos taken at the scene of Mrs. Yu’s suicide. She had looked at them countless times but never noticed Zhou Tong in any of them. But after listening to Xiao Zhou’s words, now she remembered seeing a photo of someone’s arm holding a plastic bag with a fish inside. 

 When Xiao Zhou hung up, Han Xi asked him, “Do you remember what Zhou Tong said that day?”

 Xiao Zhou thought for a moment before shaking his head. “I was trying to persuade Sister Yu not to do such a thing. And there was so much noise coming from upstairs that I couldn’t hear clearly. So I didn’t pay attention to whose voices were there.”

 Han Xi nodded in understanding. “Okay, thanks for your help.” She paused and asked, “You just called Captain Ji, right?.”

 Xiao Zhou was stunned for a moment before he reacted. “Well, if it weren’t for Captain Ji, my mother would probably be dead.” Xiao Zhou told of his encounter with Ji Yao at the hospital to Han Xi. “The next day, the Luguang Charity Foundation contacted me, and they helped cover part of the operation fee.”

***

 As soon as Han Xi returned home and unlocked the door, she immediately turned on all the lights in the room. She then proceeded to carefully wash her hands with lemon-scented soap until its smell filled the entire bathroom.

 After taking a refreshing shower, Han Xi settled into bed and opened a medical journal to read. However, today her mind was particularly scattered, and it took her much longer than usual to get through just one or two pages. She even forgot about the glass of lemon water that she had made for herself earlier, which now sat cold on the bedside table.

 She couldn’t help but think of Xiao Zhou, who was kind on the inside and out, and Luo Haiyao, who gave off an air of uneasiness but was very nice on the inside. 

***

 The next day, Ji Yao went to the forensic office to ask Han Xi for any information on Xiao Yu’s case of jumping off the building. 

 Han Xi took out a photo from her file bag and pointed out an arm holding a fish in the lower right corner. “This person is most likely the deceased, Zhou Tong.”

 Ji Yao picked up the photo and looked at it thoroughly. He looked at the pattern of the shirt. “You’re saying that Zhou Tong’s killer is not among these people?”

 Han Xi shook her head. “I don’t know that. It could also be possible that Xiao Yu and Zhou Tong’s paths simply crossed by chance and there was no connection to Zhou Tong’s death.”

 “I’m taking these photos for a while.” Ji Yao put the photos back into its information bag and couldn’t help but think that Xiao Yu’s suicide was somehow linked to Zhou Tong’s murder. “When we solve this case, I’ll treat you to dinner,” he said.

 Han Xi raised her head and met his charming light-brown eyes that were slightly fluttering. She secretly studied his eyes and noticed that Ji Yao’s eyes seemed to be fascinating. If she could, she would pluck his eyes out and examine them under a microscope.

 When Han Xi was in her own thoughts, Ji Yao saw his own reflection in Han Xi’s eyes. Though his features were not clear, he couldn’t help but say, “I must look pretty good in your eyes. He continued to stare into her pupils as if looking into a mirror.

 Upon hearing that, Han Xi closed her eyes tightly as if trying to blink him away.

 Ji Yan chuckled softly and commented, “Han Xi, you’re so cute.” Then he turned to Zhu Han, who stood by the side and said, “Xiao Zhu, you’ve also worked hard. Let’s grab a bite to eat later.” He winked at her playfully.

 Zhu Han immediately thought of the money she had received earlier from Ji Yao and quickly betrayed Han Xi. “Okay, let’s do it,” she said with a big smile. 

 Ji Yao: “Then it’s settled.” After that, he left.

 Han Xi looked and saw Ji Yao striding confidently towards the staircase. His movements were like a powerful gust of wind that seemed ready for takeoff.

 She couldn’t explain why, but her mood suddenly turned positive after Ji Yao left.

 Ever since she left the orphanage, no one had been able to affect her emotions until now. Ji Yao was the first one who did that.

 Ji Yao went back to the office on the third floor and threw the photo onto Zhou Li’s desk that Han Xi mentioned. “Zhou Li, I want you to go to Zhou Tong’s house and focus on finding this clothing. We need it for physical evidence.”

 Zhou Li searched all the nearby vegetable markets, supermarkets, and pharmacies yesterday for any trace of the murder but found nothing. That means that those people had no connection to the deceased, Zhou Tong.

 The investigation seemed to hit another dead end, but now there was a new lead—not regarding Zhou Tong’s case, but rather Xiao Yu’s death by suicide.

 Ji Yao asked Zhao Jingjing to lead a team in re-investigating Xiao Yu’s social circle, focusing on those who were close to her instead of potential enemies.

 After assigning tasks, Ji Yao sat down in his chair and tapped his fingers on his knee. He could sense that they were getting closer to solving the case.

 Once this case was solved, he would launch a formal pursuit against Comrade Han Xi. 

End of chapter 11