The Seductive Pretender: Sister-in-Law is Turning Gay - Chapter 12

Chapter 12: The Young Mistress Wants, The Young Mistress Gets.

Following Zhong Manjing’s answers, the duty officer cut to several clips of surveillance footage. Su Yun’s expression was tense, while Su Xiaodong sat obediently in the waiting area nearby.

Seeing the person entering the door, he called out, “Sister Yuqing!”

Everyone inside instinctively looked toward the entrance. Lin Yuqing realized there were quite a few familiar faces even Officer Zhang Guojie, whom she had met that afternoon, was there. She nodded and stepped to the side. “Go ahead with your work first.”

Zhong Manjing didn’t say much to her either, focusing intently on the monitors. The officer had cycled through two or three cameras, but she kept shaking her head.

“The man has a square face, a dimple on his chin—here—and a vertical scar next to the bridge of his nose, about the length of an index finger. Grey shirt, black pants, buzz cut,” Zhong Manjing described. Su Yun’s face grew paler with every word; the description brought only one person to mind.

She had to thank Zhong Manjing for having Meng Luo remind her to close up and go home early tonight, otherwise, she might have run right into him.

They searched several more cameras but still saw no sign of the man. In the initial reference footage, he was seen turning into a blind alley and then vanishing.

Zhang Guojie frowned. “…He must not be a first-timer, knowing how to dodge cameras like that. In the direction he went, weren’t there two cameras reported for repairs two days ago?”

The officers began re-examining the clip where the suspicious man was first spotted. Lin Yuqing fixed her gaze on the screen and, after a while, spoke up: “Officer, near the intersection of West Garden Street East and Whatever Noodle Shop, there’s an alley. If you go in and turn right behind the two storefronts on Lingnan Street, see if the camera at the back is working.”

Her description was incredibly precise. The footage was quickly pulled up. At first, it was blank, but then a man emerged, creeping along stealthily. This time, the cameras tracked him all the way into a small guesthouse.

When the man’s face finally appeared clearly, Zhang Guojie hesitated to speak, glancing at Su Yun, whose expression had hit rock bottom.

“Not bad, young lady. You know your way around the neighborhood,” said Fang Ya, a female officer in uniform, as she stepped in to take over. Zhang Guojie immediately added, “This is Lin Yuqing, the manager of Whatever Noodle Shop.” In his tone, he already treated Lin Yuqing as one of their own.

Fang Ya nodded. “Is it him?”

“Yes. He often comes out at this time, and I’ve been out lately too, so I noticed him. His movements are very fixed from the back alley to the vicinity of Sister Su’s beauty salon, then near our house. I thought he was very strange and felt a bit scared, so I wanted to report it today.”

At some point, Lin Yuqing had moved closer. As Zhong Manjing spoke, she edged toward her until they were nearly touching.

Her hand, hanging at her side, brushed against Lin Yuqing’s. Feeling the warmth, almost by instinct, she reached out and hooked her fingers around Lin Yuqing’s pinky.

Lin Yuqing didn’t move. She assumed Zhong Manjing was frightened by the ordeal, so she didn’t pull away.

“Xiao Fang, I know him.” Su Yun, who had originally just come to accompany Zhong Manjing, was now ashen-faced. She spoke through gritted teeth: “His name is Wang Dingchun. He’s my ex-husband, and he’s a total scoundrel.”

By the time they finished the statements and left the station, it was nearly 10:00 PM. Even the square dancers outside had packed up. Seeing Lin Yuqing still carrying the untouched insulated bag, Zhong Manjing patted her stomach and turned to Su Yun.

“Xiaodong should be sleeping soon, right? You head back first, Sister Yun. Don’t worry about tonight anymore.”

“Alright, alright. You come back soon too,” Su Yun said, her face full of guilt. “Thank you, Sister Zhong. If you hadn’t been so observant, I wouldn’t have noticed that bastard had come back to stalk us…”

Zhang Guojie added, “Fang Ya said they’ll follow up. Let the police handle the investigation first; you two need to focus on your own lives for now.”

Zhong Manjing said, “I’ll head back after I eat. Sister Su, don’t worry too much. He’s under police surveillance now; he won’t be able to cause much trouble.”

Zhong Manjing took it for granted that she was still going to Lin Yuqing’s for a late-night snack. They parted ways with Su Yun and the others at the intersection.

Lin Yuqing didn’t say a word, simply clutching the insulated bag tightly. Lost in thought, she didn’t even realize that Zhong Manjing was still holding her hand.

It was Zhong Manjing who spoke first: “Why am I still holding onto you? I’m sorry, I think I was just too nervous.”

She let go, and Lin Yuqing snapped back to reality. Seeing the apologetic smile on Zhong Manjing’s face, the urge to tell her to go straight home died down. Taking a deep breath, Lin Yuqing reached out and took Zhong Manjing’s hand again. “Let’s go.”

Zhong Manjing lowered her head slightly, unable to stop her lips from curving upward.

“How is it that I wasn’t the one scared, but you were?” Back at the shop, Zhong Manjing unbuttoned her overshirt and hung it on a nearby chair. “I told you to eat first, why did you come to the station to find me?”

Lin Yuqing only said one thing: “You were scared enough to report a crime, yet you still remembered to send me food. It’s been hard on you. Should I just walk you home to rest?”

After hearing Su Yun describe her ex-husband’s history at the station, Lin Yuqing felt that neither Su Yun’s family nor Zhong Manjing was safe.

Zhong Manjing sat down. “It’s only ten. I haven’t eaten yet. Besides, even if it’s late after we eat, can’t I just rest here with you?”

Lin Yuqing: “…” Her reflex was to look toward the upstairs, where the AC hadn’t been installed yet.

But hearing Zhong Manjing say she was hungry, Lin Yuqing sat down.

However, after sitting, she just stared at Zhong Manjing with a serious, contemplative expression.

Zhong Manjing, on the other hand, sat comfortably and naturally, as if her worries had vanished the moment the report was filed. She pointed to the food containers. “It’s all cold. What a waste; these things are best when they’re hot.”

Lin Yuqing hadn’t eaten either partly because she was busy, and partly because she knew Zhong Manjing was coming. Hearing this, she stood up and headed to the kitchen to reheat the food.

With the sizzle of the pan, the aroma of shrimp and crab wafted out. Zhong Manjing waited with half-closed eyes. Before long, Lin Yuqing emerged carrying four dishes.

“Why did you make so much?” Lin Yuqing was surprised; the dishes nearly filled the table.

There was a large dish of stir-fried blue crab with scallions, butter garlic river prawns, lotus root salad, and okra in oyster sauce. The last two were fine to eat cold.

And that wasn’t all—there was also a box of lemon spicy-sour chicken feet. She finally understood the longing look in Zhang Pingrui’s eyes when he delivered the bag.

“I actually wanted to order some BBQ too. It’s a late-night snack, after all, it should be a bit lavish. Otherwise, how can we make up for the dinner we missed?” Zhong Manjing smiled, then saw Lin Yuqing bring out a bowl of hot soup noodles she’d made for her.

The toppings were served separately in small bowls: mashed potatoes with minced meat, braised beef brisket, and chicken giblets with cowpeas, plus a side of pickled cabbage and sweet ginger.

The portions were generous—clearly saved specifically for her. Her smile deepened.

“Thank you for the treat, Boss Lin. You try what I made first.” Zhong Manjing picked up her chopsticks, her eyes crinkling. She pushed the messy thoughts to the back of her mind and focused on the food.

Lin Yuqing started with the blue crab. Biting into a half-cut crab and giving it a suck, the tender meat slid into her mouth, coated in spicy sauce. The heat went straight to her head. She had to admire Zhong Manjing’s skill; whether it was a main dish or a simple stir-fry, everything was exquisite.

“Eating your cooking makes it easy to forget everything else,” Lin Yuqing said.

“Then eat more.” Satisfied, Zhong Manjing began slurping her noodles. Sweat soon appeared on the tip of her nose. Noticing this, Lin Yuqing reached over and turned the fan up a notch.

Lin Yuqing tried the rest of the dishes and was surprised to find the chicken feet had been deboned. The skin was translucent and crunchy, and every bite was pure meat. It must have taken a lot of effort to prepare. This is a huge project… Lin Yuqing thought, her pace slowing as she savored the flavors.

After the heavy dishes, the lotus root and okra provided a refreshing contrast.

“It’s delicious,” Lin Yuqing said solemnly. “Thank you for bringing this to me.”

Zhong Manjing almost laughed out loud. It turned out that the Lin Yuqing without those memories wasn’t a “madman.” She was fun, gentle, and mature.

If she could stay like this, without those burdens, could she remain this happy? In this moment, Zhong Manjing’s selfishness peaked. She wished so much that Lin Yuqing would never remember, never go back.

They could stay here together, living their own lives, far away from the Lin and Zhong families. The further the better.

But the encounter with Wang Dingchun forced Zhong Manjing to take these potential dangers seriously. She herself didn’t matter, but what about Lin Yuqing? She had seen Wang Dingchun before; she was certain of it! He had come to see Zhong Suyuan, and Zhong Suyuan had given him money.

But why would Zhong Suyuan just give him money for no reason? Zhong Manjing had overheard a call in the study where one of Zhong Suyuan’s men said they had taught Wang Dingchun a “heavy lesson” and he would never show up again.

Zhong Suyuan had laughed and called him a “gambling dog.”

During those two years, Zhong Suyuan had “processed” many people who had come into contact with Zhong Manjing. Some she didn’t know about, but many more she did. He didn’t hide it from her; by the time she became numb to it, she realized everything was under his tight surveillance.

Now, if she and Lin Yuqing wanted to find a sanctuary within this dense web, they needed another way… but she couldn’t rush. No reckless moves.

Zhong Manjing took a sip of the soup and stared at Lin Yuqing’s hands.

They were very beautiful hands—well-defined and slender, but not weak. She had seen Lin Yuqing use those hands to mercilessly pin someone’s neck as if crushing a helpless ant.

“Eat more shrimp, you need the protein,” Zhong Manjing said. “Good, right? It’s a new garlic sauce I just learned from an app today. It said people would never forget it. I thought, ‘Can it really be that magical?’ So I made some to test it out on you.”

Zhong Manjing straightened up slightly and leaned in. “Seems it’s not that magical after all. You’ve only eaten three.” She had asked Meng Luo to buy a full two pounds of river prawns—plenty to go around.

Seeing the obvious disappointment on Zhong Manjing’s face, Lin Yuqing shook her head. “No, I was waiting for you to eat with me. Since we’re having a snack together, aren’t you eating?”

Zhong Manjing raised an eyebrow and put down her chopsticks. “I am. But I don’t know how to peel shrimp.”

Lin Yuqing picked up a shrimp and demonstrated. “Isn’t it simple?”

“That’s because your fingers are flexible.” Zhong Manjing looked at Lin Yuqing’s sauce-covered fingers and said pointedly, “I don’t peel them because I don’t want the sauce on my hands.”

She then stared at the perfectly peeled, whole shrimp in Lin Yuqing’s hand.

Lin Yuqing was silent. Lin Yuqing understood.

“Young Mistress,” Lin Yuqing hesitated for a moment, then reached out and fed the shrimp to Zhong Manjing’s mouth. “Is this what you mean?”

Zhong Manjing took it in one bite, her upper lip brushing against Lin Yuqing’s finger. Seemingly unaware of the contact, she chewed and said, “It really is delicious. I’ll stick to this recipe from now on.”

“You make it but won’t eat it? Do you just make it to look at it?” Instead of wiping her hand, Lin Yuqing peeled another shrimp and dipped it in the sauce.

Zhong Manjing said, “It looks so tasty.”

“…” Lin Yuqing blinked, grabbed a small bowl, peeled several more in a row, and pushed them toward Zhong Manjing. “Eat.”

Zhong Manjing picked one up with her chopsticks, took a bite, and put it back down. “Huh? What’s going on? The flavor changed.”

“How has it changed?”

Zhong Manjing said, “It doesn’t seem as good as the one just now. Is it because something fed to you personally by someone else just tastes better than picking it up yourself?”

Hearing the playful lift at the end of her sentence, Lin Yuqing could hear the flirtatious undertone loud and clear.

The Young Mistress wants, the Young Mistress gets.

Lin Yuqing sighed and prepared to peel and feed her, but Zhong Manjing was faster she peeled a shrimp and popped it into Lin Yuqing’s mouth. Lin Yuqing looked up in surprise and saw Zhong Manjing’s eyes curving like a starlit night sky.

“Well?” Zhong Manjing asked softly. “Does it taste better than eating it yourself? If it does, I’ll feed you more.”

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