Cherish You as My Life - Chapter 18.5

Chapter 18.5

It was two o’clock in the morning. 

Han Xi turned on her phone, removed Ji Yao from the blacklist, and sent him a message.

[Han Xi: Thank you for adopting Ashe.]

When Ji Yao saw Han Xi’s message on his phone the following day, he joyfully jumped on the bed.

Not only had she removed him from the blacklist but also approved the dog’s name.

“Hehe… I love you Ashe! Oh, it seems she also loves you. Hehehe….”

After hearing its name, Ashe, who nestled on a cushion on the floor, climbed onto the bed and snorted.

Actually “Ashe” was more suitable for a female dog, but the innocent dog didn’t know it.

Perhaps only Deputy Zhao, who was often called Jingjing, could understand the dog’s sorrow.

After Ji Yao calmed down, he sat cross-legged on the bed and replied very calmly.

[City Bureau Yi Zhihua: You’re welcome. Do you like this name? ]

Han Xi was cramming herself onto the metro when she got Ji Yao’s message. She was unable to hold her cell phone due to the excessive number of people around, so she could only respond after stepping off the subway.

[Han Xi: It’s good.]

As there were many food stalls at the subway entrance, Han Xi bought a bag of soy milk and a piece of black rice cake to eat while walking.

 ****

After receiving the reply, Ji Yao rolled around on the bed a few times while smiling ear to ear. 

After calming down, he got up from the bed and went to the bathroom. 

When he went to the dining room, the chef had already prepared breakfast and returned to the Ji mansion. 

There were more than a dozen breakfast dishes neatly placed on the dining table.

Golden pork pizza, salmon and lettuce sandwiches, tea eggs with a hint of fresh tea, pork strips that were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, crystal shrimp dumplings with shrimp visible on the thin crust, freshly squeezed orange juice, banana milk…even the dog plate next to the dining table had different flavours of dog food.

After Ji Yao had breakfast, he called the chef at home and asked him to come over and cook only one person’s meal for dinner. 

Ji Yao’s mother, Su Yao, took the chef’s phone and asked, “Son, why are you so good?”

Ji Yao said, “It’s nothing,” as he leaned back in his chair and examined the remnants of breakfast. “I think it’s too wasteful.”

He suddenly remembered what Han Xi did to the half-eaten corn and what she said about wasting food. 

“Oh, and  come over and make meals for two people in the future. Everything except steamed buns will be fine.” Ji Yao knew that Han Xi was not picky about food and would eat basically everything except steamed buns.

Su Yao understood the main idea right away, and even her voice was excited as she said, “You’re living together!”

“I think so,” Ji Yao said, leaning back in his chair. “I’m going to be late, so I won’t say anything. Bye.” 

He got up and hurriedly packed the food he didn’t touch, to distribute to the people in the office. 

 ****

Zhou Li began to chew on a cracked tea egg and said, “Captain Ji, could you please give me some more milk? I’m choking so bad from the tea egg.”

After glancing at her, Ji Yao said, “No.”

He then picked up a bottle of banana milk that was on the table and went to the forensic room on the fourth floor. 

Seeing that, Zhou Li clicked her tongue secretly.

No one was ever allowed to touch his banana milk. Even a five-star hotel dinner would be fine, but no one was allowed to touch his milk. Anyone who dared to think so would be sent to the gym to run several laps.

 ****

“Can Qiao Jiang’s body be sent for cremation? His mother has been urging us,” Ji Yao put the milk on Han Xi’s table and asked.

“All necessary tests have been completed,” nodded Han Xi. “Wait until Xiaohan is finished suturing. Mmm…around two o’clock in the afternoon, you can notify the family members to come over and take the body to the funeral home.” After saying that, she glanced at the milk on the table. “Thank you.”

Leaning on the edge of the desk, Ji Yao asked, “You didn’t sleep well last night, right?”

There were heavy dark circles under her eyes, and even her face was a little haggard. Moreover, the message she sent him was at two o’clock in the morning.

After getting up from her chair, Han Xi turned around and gave Ji Yao a cup of lemonade, saying, “Well, I had a nightmare. By the way, thank you for adopting Ashe.”

With his peach blossom eyes raised, Ji Yao took a sip of lemonade and asked, “How are you going to thank me?”

“How do you want me to thank you?” Han Xi asked, looking up at the man.

Ji Yao had a “you know what” look on his face as he lifted his eyebrows.

“I don’t understand,” said Han Xi.

As she spoke, a strand of hair from her ear slipped into her mouth.

Ji Yao hurriedly raised his hand and helped her push her hair away without touching her face. .

He was tall, and the way he looked at her looked a little condescending, but his eyes were gentle.

Before Ji Yao could remove his hand, Han Xi, who panicked, turned her face away and her lips touched the back of his hand, leaving a lipstick mark on the man’s hand.

When her soft lips touched his skin, he felt the entire back of his hand go numb, and the lipstick mark was like fire, almost burning his life.

After taking a step back, Han Xi turned around and collided with the bottles in the cupboard, and she nearly broke a bottle when she unintentionally knocked it over.

“Why are you panicking, huh?” Ji Yao asked as he helped her put the bottle back in place after catching it with his palm. Actually, he nearly missed the catch since he was also in a panic.

The two of them stood in front of the cupboard. Their bodies were very close to the ground. She could feel the heat radiating from his body, like a ball of fire.

Pretending to be calm, Ji Yao bent his head and asked, “Han Xi, why are your ears red?” as he looked at the tips of her ears. His voice was low and magnetic, with an indescribable sex appeal.

Zhu Han, who went to the bathroom, came to the forensic room at this time. She was shocked by the scene in front of her eyes and didn’t dare to go inside. The atmosphere inside was so ambiguous that she even wanted to secretly close the door for them.

Suddenly, Zhu Han shouted loudly, “Morning, Director Cai!” 

 “Xiao Zhu, why are you standing at the door?” Director Cai asked with a nod.

Ji Yao, who got Zhu Han’s message, quickly emerged from the forensic office and said, “Director Cai, morning.”

With a sharp gaze, Director Cai asked Ji Yao, “Why are you running here every two days?”

“I came to see Qiao Jiang’s autopsy report, and there is nothing missing,” Ji Yao said in a serious manner.

As Director Cai left, Ji Yao turned around and glanced at the forensic office. 

Han Xi was no longer in front of the cabinet. She put on surgical clothes and entered the autopsy room.

Ji Yao went back to the Criminal Investigation Team 1 office and said, “Jing… Deputy Zhao, send me the final report on the robbery case on Huaihai Road last Wednesday within today. Zhang Xiang, go to Qiao Jiang’s hometown and meet his neighbours, teachers in school, and classmates and gather information about him. Especially about his personal relationship issues.”

Upon hearing that, Zhao Jingjing stood up and asked, “Do you suspect that Qiao Jiang’s death was a murder of love?”

Ji Yao sat down and leaned on the back of his chair. “Some encounters are beautiful, and some are sinful. It can only be said that the possibility of murder is not mentioned clearly. So in this case, no possibility can be ignored, even if they seem useless.”

Before getting off work, Zhang Xiang came back to report. “The neighbours of Qiao Jiang’s family didn’t say many things, and everyone said they had never seen him bring any women back. His teachers and classmates said he was a bit withdrawn and didn’t like to get along with people, had never been in love, and had never had any conflicts with people in school.”

Ji Yao opened his email and looked at Qiao Jiang’s records in the past three years sent by the technology department and found that his personality was indeed withdrawn, as Zhang Xiang said. “There is nothing suspicious about Qiao Jiang’s mother and brother. His father died of cancer five years ago.” Ji Yao said, “Zhou Li, please send me a copy of Qiao Jiang’s father’s information via email.”

“Qiao Zhen has been dead for five years; could it be related to Qiao Jiang’s death?” Zhou Li spoke, turning around.

After giving it some thought, Ji Yao said, “There’s a saying in China that a son should repay his father’s debt.”

“How did Qiao Jiang’s brother survive then?” Zhou Li asked. 

Ji Yao: “How would I know? Ask the murderer.”

After giving it some thought, Zhou Li said, “If this is true, Qiao Jiang’s brother is probably not his father’s biological son, thus he didn’t need to pay this debt.”

Zhang Xiang looked up from the computer screen and said, “You have such a rich imagination; why don’t you write a novel?”

“Hey, it’s true,” said Zhao Jingjing, tossing aside the DNA test report that had just been sent from the lab. “Qiao Jiang’s mother didn’t say anything. If Captain Ji hadn’t asked for a DNA test, no one would have thought that the two brothers were half brothers. As for which of the two brothers was Qiao Zhen’s biological child, it was impossible to guess because Qiao Zhen is  dead. You have to ask Qiao Jiang’s mother to find out the truth.”

Zhang Xiang hastily pulled out his notebook and recorded the important facts. 

Ji Yao looked through Qiao Jiang’s father’s file, which revealed that he disappeared for six years—more than 20 years ago—and that there had been no records throughout those years. “Xiangzi, invite Qiao Jiang’s mother here next Monday and ask her again,” Ji Yao said, glancing at the clock.

Zhang Xiang scratched his head and thought that this case was getting more and more complicated. 

Ji Yao stood up and said energetically, “Get off work.”

“There are still three minutes until we get off work,” Zhao Jingjing informed him.

Ji Yao had already calculated the time. “When we go downstairs, it will be the right time.” 

Zhao Jingjing said, “Director Cai is downstairs. What if we got caught?” He added, “You are in such a hurry to go back today, do you have a blind date?”

“You comrade, what nonsense are you talking about?” Ji Yao said, putting his phone in his pocket. “Today, a new neighbour across from me moved in. So I have to help.”

 ****

After returning home, Ji Yao had a shower, changed into fresh clothing, and sprayed some perfume.

Han Xi was instructing workers to move boxes into the house. When she looked up and saw Ji Yao coming out of the opposite door, she suddenly choked on the smell of his perfume.

The man was wearing a light purple shirt with a slightly open collar, black suit pants wrapping a pair of long legs, and shiny leather shoes. His hair seemed to have been styled with hairspray, which was even shinier than the leather shoes.

Han Xi: “Why are you here again?”

Ji Yao: “Aren’t I just visiting relatives at my cousin’s house?”

End of chapter 18