Chapter 47
I tried to shake his hand off, but he only gripped tighter, dragging me over to the telephone.
I finally understood why murders happened in this world—because sometimes, you really just want someone to vanish completely!
I was so angry I was shaking, yet completely helpless. Fine. I'll wait until you finish. And if you block me again, I won't take it lying down!
The phone rang over and over until it finally switched to voicemail. Still no one picked up. Yang Yun raised an eyebrow and said, "Since Brother Fei is so busy, I won't keep him then. It's nothing really. Just a few days ago, I thought I saw someone who looked just like Ayi. But never mind, I must have been mistaken."
"Is that it?" I asked coldly.
"That's it." Yang Yun released my hand and gestured that I was free to go.
I gave him a suspicious look, turned to leave—and the phone rang sharply. Shang Guan's urgent voice came through the speaker: "What time? What location?"
I paused, then kept walking. I didn't hear anything. I heard nothing at all. Trying to convince myself of this, Yang Yun's voice still slipped into my ears: "What time and location? Brother Fei, I don't quite follow." His tone was innocently pure to an extreme degree.
"...What do you want?"
"Hehe, how could I trouble Brother Fei for anything? I genuinely don't understand."
"Fine. The 'doll' matter—I'll help you handle it." Shang Guan's voice was cold and hoarse, compromise laced with threat.
My hand froze over the keyboard. "The doll"? The one from N City? What kind of trouble had Yang Yun gotten into?
"Mmm, well, that's a bother then. Oh, and about what you said just now—the time and location? It just came back to me. A couple days ago I was bored and wandered over to 'Undersea World.' Saw an acquaintance there. If Brother Fei's interested, he could go take a look too. Might find something unexpected."
Before he even finished, the call disconnected. I kept typing, but Yang Yun's voice drifted from behind me again: "Ayi, what do you think is at 'Undersea World'?"
I didn't answer. But my fingers unconsciously slowed. "Undersea World"—the name was deceiving. Anyone who didn't know better would think it was an aquarium built underwater, where people could watch fish through glass panels. But that place was just a beach. The only reason it was called "Undersea World" was because the beach itself was named "Undersea."
That name had fooled countless people unfamiliar with N City. I'd actually made the dumb mistake of going there once myself. Though it was a letdown as a cover, visitors rarely complained afterward—the scenery on that beach really was quite beautiful. Blue seas, blue skies, silver sand, green trees. Gorgeous.
It was technically a scenic area. But... what was Yang Yun getting at with this?
"Ayi, what do you think Brother Fei will find there?" he spoke again. I still didn't turn around. Though he didn't need my reaction anyway, and immediately started talking to himself: "You'll definitely never show up there. But how could I let Brother Fei make the trip for nothing? I should give him a gift. Want to guess what that gift might be?"
I spun around, glaring at him: "You—"
He propped his chin on his hand, leaning against the bar counter, smiling as he watched me.
I clenched my fists. Finally turned around, rapidly punched in the remaining digits, and bolted out as fast as I could. The moment I shut the door, Yang Yun's languid voice still drifted through: "It'll be a lovely gift..."
Damn the gift. Damn Undersea World. Damn Yang Yun! To hell with all of it! I tore down seventeen flights, then sprinted another block before my legs gave out from exhaustion.
The sunlight outside was blinding. The car horns and chaos felt like another world entirely. I squinted against the glare, gasping for breath, and suddenly felt like I'd been reborn.
After catching my breath, I stood up straight—only to realize I had no idea which direction to go. After some thought, I decided to go back to Honglin first. All my things were there. Whatever else happened, I had to收拾一下, and this time when I left, it would be for good.