Although They're Mentally ill, They're Extremely Easy to Comfort - Chapter 58

Like the old-style apartment building, the sparsely furnished room was filled with the musty, damp odor of decay. It was clear at a glance that Lu Jiuzhe’s life was not comfortable.

The tall Ji Nancen could easily dislocate an adult male’s wrist, showing a clear advantage in physical force.

Sensing a conspiracy with sharp intuition, Ji Nancen crouched down and smiled slightly at Lu Jiuzhe: “Don’t sit on the floor; you’ll catch a chill.”

Lu Jiuzhe’s face was contorted with pain. He shielded his wrist and recoiled in panic, managing only to bravely question: “Who, who are you?”

“Who I am isn’t important. What’s important is why you committed arson.”

“Nonsense! Without proof, why are you accusing me of setting the fire!”

Ji Nancen had merely asked a question, but the sudden, unprovoked outburst from the other party was a classic sign of a guilty conscience. She feigned an innocent expression and mocked, “I just asked, didn’t I? If it wasn’t you, it wasn’t you. Why get so angry?”

“What exactly do you want to do?!”

“The fact that I could find you means I’ve already investigated your dirty deeds. If you’re smart, you’ll confess everything clearly. If you insist on being stubborn…” Ji Nancen reached out, grabbed Lu Jiuzhe’s collar, and threatened with a smile: “I’ll have to make you suffer a little first.”

Ji Nancen’s smiling tiger expression was too bizarre. Lu Jiuzhe couldn’t handle the threat; he didn’t want his other hand broken off. Furthermore, he was so terrified that he shook like a sieve and agreed readily: “Fine, fine, fine… I’ll talk, I’ll talk…”

Ji Nancen shoved him back onto the floor, stood up, and straightened her clothes: “Well, speak up. Don’t waste my time.”

“Someone ordered me to do it.”

“Someone ordered you?” That was a good piece of information. Ji Nancen mumbled, smiling even wider: “Is the person male or female? Be detailed. And… if I find out you’re lying, it won’t just be a dislocation this time.”

“I don’t know if the person was male or female. They sent me an anonymous email, first depositing a hundred thousand into my account, and said they’d give me another four hundred thousand after the job was done. So I did what they asked.”

“Hmph, so generous?”

“I was afraid of going to jail for arson, of course, but they offered such a high price, I really…”

Seeing Lu Jiuzhe’s regretful look, Ji Nancen didn’t want to waste time on sentimentality and quickly interrupted: “Cut the rubbish. Any other information?”

“No,” Lu Jiuzhe quickly replied, fearing Ji Nancen would dig deeper.

Ji Nancen scrutinized Lu Jiuzhe’s evasive eyes. She had seen countless wolves and tigers. This young man was not like the cunning old foxes who operated in the underworld; he couldn’t hide his thoughts.

“Wrong. You’re hiding something.”

“I am not!”

“Look at you, tsk tsk. I just bluff a bit, and you break down. You have a guilty conscience.”

Ji Nancen always meant what she said. She lifted her foot and mercilessly kicked Lu Jiuzhe, who was already on the ground.

The rubber sole of her leather shoe was heavy, and coupled with her formidable leg strength, the tightening force crushing Lu Jiuzhe’s arm felt like it was about to break.

“Ah!!” Accompanied by a scorching cry of pain, Lu Jiuzhe couldn’t use his other hand, so he flailed and kicked his legs, trying to break free.

Ji Nancen simply took the opportunity to clamp his legs with her arm, and her height of nearly 180 (cm) allowed her to easily suspend the entire person upside down in the air.

Now, Lu Jiuzhe’s arm was severely pinned to the ground, his legs were held inverted, and his wrist was still dislocated. If Ji Nancen were to forcefully knee his waist, he would likely be crippled.

“Still want to lie?” Ji Nancen wiped the smile from her face, her cold tone carrying a killing intent.

“I’ll talk! I’ll talk! The money was a cash transaction. We met in the same place every time, five minutes apart. So we never saw each other, but the details of the arson were taught to me by him. It wasn’t an email; it was a ‘view once and delete’ message mode, so no evidence was left.”

Ji Nancen focused on the key point, not forgetting to mock: “Tsk, the person who made you commit arson is as stupid as you are. One dares to believe, and the other dares to act. Give me the address where you met, and the money, give me the money too.”

“This…” Seeing Lu Jiuzhe hesitate to hand over the money, Ji Nancen pressed down harder on his arm and threatened through gritted teeth: “Are you going to give it to me or not?”

Struck by bone-piercing pain, Lu Jiuzhe immediately surrendered and compromised: “I’ll give it! I’ll give it!”

Ji Nancen released her hold. Lu Jiuzhe scrambled into the bedroom and quickly returned, dragging a large leather bag: “This is all of it. The meeting spot was behind the office building; there’s only one trash can there. Um… please don’t expose the fact that I committed arson. I was blinded by money at the time. I-I-I won’t dare to do it again…”

Lu Jiuzhe begged anxiously, terrified that Ji Nancen would leak the news. Ji Nancen pulled out a stack of crisp new banknotes from the bag and admired them!

Looking at the pitiful begging from the person in front of her, she merely raised an eyebrow and stated the cruel truth: “You only have two paths ahead—flee, and your crime will worsen, and the police will be after you everywhere; or surrender, at least it counts as an honest confession, and your sentence will be lighter.”

“You only have yourself to blame for limiting your options. As for the money, that studio was burned so badly; there has to be compensation. Moreover, you previously damaged a client’s antique, and your bosses didn’t make you pay a cent. Xiao Yunxi’s partners treated you well, and you had the nerve to act so cruelly. A genuine, ungrateful wretch.”

With a profound sigh, Ji Nancen slung the bag filled with money over her shoulder and swaggered away.

Qin Yun bought freshly baked ice cream puffs and specially came to the company to visit her girlfriend. However, after half a day of not seeing her, the longing in her heart was exploding.

But as soon as she stepped out of the elevator, she bumped into a hurried and subdued Ling Xi: “Vice Professor Ling? What’s the matter? Why the rush to leave?”

“Miss Qin… I came over during my lunch break. I have to rush back to school now.”

“That’s a shame. I brought some refreshments. Why don’t you stay and eat before you go?”

“No, next time.” Ling Xi declined, standing in the elevator and repeatedly pressing the door-close button, seemingly unwilling to stay any longer.

As the elevator doors closed, Qin Yun found Ling Xi’s attitude quite unusual. She was about to go to Qiao Boer’s office for some gossip when she was intercepted by Chu Xi, who suddenly appeared: “Wife, why are you here?”

“To see if you’re working properly. Calling me ‘wife’ so casually, you sound pretty natural…”

Qin Yun wrapped her arms around Chu Xi’s waist, and the two stumbled into the office.

Not having time to put down the puffs, Qin Yun pressed Chu Xi against the wall and passionately kissed her ear, murmuring: “Did you miss me?”

“I had a few days off, so a lot of things piled up. But I made time specifically to think about you. Is that answer satisfactory?”

“It’s alright. I’ll give you a 60, just enough to pass.”

“Then I’ll try harder.” Chu Xi gently stroked the hair by Qin Yun’s ear, but the smile on her lips gradually faded, and she quietly mentioned: “The boss is throwing a tantrum. You should probably wait before going in.”

“What happened?”

“Xiao Yunxi’s studio was burned down the day before yesterday. I don’t know how the boss communicated with her partners, but Ling Xi was so upset she fainted and was sent to the hospital. When she woke up, she was a different person.”

“Right at this crucial moment, her ex-girlfriend suddenly appeared. Ling Xi’s attitude towards the boss is neither warm nor cold; she’s rejecting her at every turn. She just came by and they ended up arguing again.”

After listening to Chu Xi’s brief explanation, Qin Yun rubbed her chin in thought: “Ex-girlfriend? I heard Boer mention her before. What was her last name, Lin, right?”

“Lin Fangwan.”

“Right, Lin Fangwan… First, the studio is burned down, and then an old flame appears. It feels like there’s some kind of foul play involved.”

Chu Xi lowered her eyes, staring at Qin Yun as she pondered. A sudden, uncontrollable stir welled up in her heart. She eagerly pinched Qin Yun’s chin, her tongue teasingly flicking and licking the soft lips, kissing her addictively: “Wife, you look so beautiful when you’re seriously thinking.”

“Stop fooling around! It’s mid-winter in the next room, and we’re acting like it’s spring. Isn’t that a bit too much?”

“But I can’t help it.” Chu Xi pouted, feigning distress. Qin Yun could only lovingly reward her with a fleeting kiss: “Be good. You can do whatever you want when we get home. I’ll go see Boer. Help us prepare some black tea.”

“Yes, President Qin.” Chu Xi resumed her professional demeanor. Qin Yun hooked her chin, teasing: “Call me ‘wife’…”

“Yes, President Qin’s wife…”

Qin Yun walked into Qiao Boer’s office, seeing her distressed, supporting her forehead. Instead of joking or mocking, she quietly sat in the visitor’s chair.

Qiao Boer broke the silence first: “Is something wrong?”

“Just keeping you company.” It was rare for Qin Yun to be so serious. Qiao Boer showed a melancholic smile: “I’m fine.”

“There are no outsiders; why pretend? You don’t have many friends. I can lend you my shoulder to lean on.”

“I’m not a child of seventeen or eighteen. I’m not that fragile.” Qiao Boer scoffed, but her voice still couldn’t hide her disappointment.

Qin Yun usually kept her distance and minded her own business, but out of gratitude for Qiao Boer taking good care of Chu Xi, she decided to help her: “You are usually calm, but whenever Ling Xi is involved, you lose your composure. This Lin Fangwan has just arrived and has already hurt you this much. The road ahead will probably be even harder.”

“Are you here to keep me company, or to mock me?”

Qin Yun got up, walked behind Qiao Boer, and rubbed her shoulders caringly, gently advising: “Look, things have come to this point, and you have to face it eventually. The reason you feel everything is a mess is because all the bad things are mixed together. Why not separate them and sort them out one by one?”

“Perhaps the riddle is the studio burning down plus Lin Fangwan’s appearance. You might think there must be a connection between the two events. But you can’t just look at the surface; we need to think deeper.”

Qin Yun tried to enlighten Qiao Boer. Qiao Boer raised her hand and covered Qin Yun’s hand, answering before falling into thought: “I’ve sent Qu Ye to investigate, but the results aren’t back yet.”

“Investigating is necessary, of course, but my point is… you haven’t been back to Florence in a long time, right? That scoundrel hasn’t contacted you this entire time. That’s what’s suspicious.”

Mentioning the scoundrel in Florence, Qiao Boer straightened up and looked at Qin Yun, realizing something belatedly. She uttered a name that inspired disgust: “Qiao Di.”

“Oh, you! You’ve put all your energy into Ling Xi and haven’t even thought about going to see him since Zanda returned. You should take some time to understand the situation with him.”

Qiao Boer’s vulnerability faded. She clenched her jaw and her palms, her dagger-like eyes clearly showing her deep hatred for Qiao Di: “Back to Florence.”

“What?”

“I’m going back to Florence.”

“You’re too impulsive. Going back now, aren’t you just creating an opportunity for Lin Fangwan? You’re crazy.”

“If I don’t eliminate the inner demon, I can’t save myself. But don’t worry, I’ll arrange everything for the next few days.”

“I advise you to reconsider carefully.” Now it was Qin Yun who put her hand to her forehead in exasperation. She meant to offer a helpful reminder, but this woman was going straight into the tiger’s den. Everyone was losing their minds!

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