Mei Yeqin took several deep breaths before finally dialing the number.
When Pei Dai received Mei Yeqin's call, he was still in his office, reviewing the case and preparing for arraignment.
Seeing the words "Qinqin" flashing on his phone's screen, his tiredness faded and his eyes lit up.
Mei Yeqin, who rarely called him, brought joy to Pei Dai's heart.
Seeing that the work at hand was almost done, he quickly answered the phone.
"Qinqin, are you finish work yet? Are you tired? Rest first. I'll order dinner for you."
Knowing she didn't like cooking, Pei Dai had already found a Cantonese restaurant before his business trip and told her he'd ordered dinner.
"Pei Dai."
The voice that spoke out was thick with worry. It was clear something had happened. This wasn't the usual aloof Mei Yeqin.
"What's wrong, Qinqin?" Pei Dai's voice was filled with concern, even a slight tremor in it.
Mei Yeqin rubbed her brow and pressed the elevator button. "Pei Dai, I need to trouble you with something."
Mei Yeqin rarely bothered others with such private matters at home, so her brows were furrowed, and her voice was slightly hoarse.
Pei Dai's reaction was completely different from Mei Yeqin. Deeply worried about Mei Yeqin, he was eager to help, even a little anxious. "Qinqin, what happened? Tell me."
Mei Yeqin didn't think much of it, only worrying about not letting anything happen to Jiang Sui. After all, he was her sister's only child.
"It's Jiang Sui. I've sent you his address. Please go to his house and keep an eye on him. Don't let him get hurt. I'll drive over right away."
"Also, he likes to leave his house key under the carpet. I'll send you his address. If you don't have anything else to do, please go there right now."
Pei Dai had extracted the key information.
Presumably, Jiang Sui had gotten into trouble, and Qinqin had to drive late at night.
Pei Dai frowned. "I'll be there right away, Qinqin, but it's too late to drive to Wuzhen now..."
"That's it. I'm hanging up."
She was always decisive, always doing what she said. Pei Dai looked at his hung up call with a wry smile. Fortunately, she hung up, otherwise, Pei Dai suspected Qinqin would have said something like, "If you don't want to help, forget it."
Even if she was worried, Mei Yeqin wouldn't stop. Pei Dai understood this better than anyone. So, the only thing Pei Dai could do was to quickly find Jiang Sui, confirm he was okay, and then ask Qinqin to drive slowly.
Pei Dai didn't dare linger any longer. He wasn't originally from Wuzhen; he'd been transferred there for a few days. He borrowed a colleague's car and hurried to the address of Jiang Sui's home that Mei Yeqin had sent him.
Arriving at the place, Pei Dai actually pulled a key from the carpet by the door. When he tried to unlock it, he touched the door and found it unlocked, so he walked right in.
The room was dark, and the air was gloomy, filled with a gloomy mood.
Slowing down his pace, Pei Dai opened his mouth and asked, "Jiang Sui, are you home?"
Not knowing what the boy wanted, Pei Dai's voice was very gentle. He pulled out his phone and turned it on. He didn't rush to find the switch. Instead, he followed the light from his phone screen, searching for Jiang Sui.
Perhaps due to his job, he quickly spotted the young man hiding in the corner of the balcony.
A faint light still lingered outside, and the young man's presence was intense, devoid of any life. After recognizing the person, he fixed Pei Dai with cold eyes.
"Did my aunt asked you come here?"
The young man was clever, and Pei Dai had no intention of hiding it from Jiang Sui. He nodded, then sent a text to Mei Yeqin, saying he had found Jiang Sui, that he was fine, and asked her to drive slowly.
Then, he sat down with the young man. Jiang Sui glanced up at Pei Dai, then moved away with an expressionless face.
A seat had vacated, exactly where Pei Dai was currently sitting.
Pei Dai, observing this, said, "I heard from your aunt that you have a mysophobia. Isn't it dirty sitting on the floor?"
Pei Dai's unusual behavior left Jiang Sui stunned. He hadn't expected him to say that, but the young man didn't respond. "I'm fine, and I won't do anything. Tell my aunt to go back."
He quickly ordered them to leave.
Jiang Sui's eyes were dark, devoid of any emotion.
He didn't seem to care that someone else was occupying his space, his air, and wanted to be alone.
Pei Dai, interpreting the emotion in the boy's eyes, felt that this was his greatest courtesy, and sighed softly.
"You're trapped in love, and so am I."
Jiang Sui's brows furrowed as he looked at Pei Dai. The meaning in his eyes couldn't be clearer. "Aren't you here to look after me for my aunt? What nonsense are you talking about?"
When meeting Jiang Sui's eyes, Pei Dai didn't say anything. He continued to talk to himself, "Why are you looking at me like that? You kids are allowed to be trapped by love, but we old people are not allowed to do that?"
"Let me tell you about my story with your aunt. It might be something you can learn from, so you don't end up like me."
Pei Dai's words finally brought a hint of something to Jiang Sui's eyes, but that hint was of a psychopath.
"Your aunt and I met in college. Actually, I knew her in high school, but I was too shy back then and didn't dare..."
Jiang Sui's eyes held undisguised disdain, while Pei Dai maintained a faint smile. "Later, as you know, when we were in college, it was a simple process. She asked me to be her boyfriend, and I agreed. Then she wanted to study abroad, and I agreed again."
…
Jiang Sui couldn't believe it was his aunt who confessed, and Pei Dai seemed to have done nothing in the matter.
It felt like Pei Dai was just a passing guest to Mei Yeqin.
In his eyes, seeing Pei Dai so attentively cooking for Mei Yeqin, he assumed he was the one who took the initiative in this relationship. He had never imagined the story would unfold like this.
"Do you think I'm just a passing guest in your aunt's life?"
Listening to Pei Dai's words, Jiang Sui nodded without hesitation.
"That's what I thought at first. I thought she didn't like me and that I was a burden for her. Since I like her, I should support her in whatever decision she makes. Of course, I still think so now."