1
I know what you did.
These eight words clung to Qin Guan like a cold-tentacled monster, silently winding around his neck and sticking to his spine.
Had someone discovered his deeds? Witnessed him burning the clothes? Found the suitcase sunk in the lake?
Impossible.
After a brief mental blankness, Qin Guan smoothed his hair, took a deep breath, and regained his usual composure. He'd ensured every detail was flawless, leaving no trace.
Moreover, he'd never shown his ID at the hotel. No one knew his identity, let alone where his car was parked.
This had to be a bluff—a tactic he'd both witnessed and wielded countless times in court. Why was he so rattled now?
Shaking off panic, he examined the card wedged in the driver's side window. The rectangular imprint in the dust proved it had been placed shortly after he'd parked before his flight.
Unrelated to Qi Min.
Either a prank… or—
A sliver of dread pierced his mind, briefly prying open old memories before he slammed them shut.
No.
The only explanation: a disgruntled client from a lost case seeking revenge. As a lawyer, he'd dealt with worse.
2
The scare soon passed.
Qin Guan drove home to his upscale neighborhood, parking in his dedicated spot. He grabbed his luggage, his daughter's gift, and a bouquet of baby's breath—Xu Ruyi's favorite.
Locking the car, a familiar voice rasped, "Back from your trip, Lawyer Qin?"
The community cleaner, a gaunt, dark-skinned woman reeking of garbage, smiled at him. The odor—a claw from his past—threatened to drag him into forgotten memories.
He nodded distantly and hurried away, her gossip trailing him:
"Such a handsome man… teenage girls say he looks like a TV star."
"Not just looks! He's the model husband—big-shot lawyer who cooks, cleans, carries the baby! Always buying flowers for his wife."
"Marrying him must be a dream!"
"But I heard his wife's family's rich. He's from the countryside… this house is hers…"
The whispers needled his heart as he stormed into the building.
3
"Daddy!"
His daughter Xiao Lizi leapt into his arms the moment he entered. Qin Guan kissed her soft cheeks repeatedly, noticing the nanny's strained smile.
"Sir, check on Madam," the nanny whispered, glancing at the locked study. "She's been shut in since returning from her parents' house… you know how fragile she's been…"
"Her parents' house"—a 20-minute drive away. After her father's death three months ago, Ruyi's grief had consumed her. Qin Guan had forbidden visits to avoid reopening wounds.
"She hasn't eaten properly… you're all she has now," the nanny pleaded, tears glistening as she took Xiao Lizi.
4
Qin Guan understood.
Xu Ruyi, an only child raised by scholarly parents, had abandoned her fashion design career to care for them. Their successive deaths shattered her.
Holding his weeping wife, Qin Guan fixated on the nanny's words—and the newfound respect in her eyes when addressing him.
He should share Ruyi's sorrow. Yet, unethically, triumph sprouted: I'm no longer the live-in son-in-law. I'm the master here now.
5
With Ruyi calmed and Qi Min's affairs under control, Qin Guan resumed work. At 9:30 AM, Qi Min's resignation email reached her livid boss.
"How dare she?!" Attorney Chen roared. "We funded her training, and she quits without notice? Leaves this mess for me?"
Qin Guan's rehearsed reply flowed smoothly: "She booked my hotel, then vanished. Didn't even say thanks."
The office chuckled knowingly—Qi Min's reputation for ambition made the story believable. Step one complete: no police reports from the firm.
6
Step two: handling Li Yang.
When the pretty-boy lover visited the firm, Qin Guan ignored him. Dressed in tailored suits, the revered lawyer sneered inwardly: How dare this parasite think we're equals? She was just a plaything.
Li Yang slunk away after repeated rejections but kept calling. Qin Guan occasionally replied "Busy," then staged a fight before demanding money—in Qi Min's name.
A classic exit strategy: shame the man into leaving. Once Li Yang retreated, evidence would vanish before any investigation.
7
But Li Yang called the police.
A week later, as Qin Guan bought seafood for dinner, he spotted Li Yang entering his neighborhood with an officer. Panic flashed—if they questioned Ruyi…
Intercepting them at the gate, Qin Guan performed flawlessly. The young officer conducted routine inquiries—no body, just missed calls. No missing person case.
Qin Guan's vague account of "business training" with Qi Min satisfied them. Normal people forget details, after all.
8
After coolly dismissing the pair, Qin Guan carried the groceries home.
The front door stood open. In the entryway sat a massive parcel.
"Who ordered this?" The nanny cut the straps as Ruyi shook her head.
Qin Guan denied it too.
The box opened.
Qin Guan's breath stopped.
Inside lay a black suitcase.
On the handle's right side gleamed two elegant letters: HK.
The Hanke suitcase.
The exact one he'd stuffed Qi Min into.