Ch.79 – One-way Passage

Exercising before bed has been proven to aid in the process of falling asleep. Xia Wennan forgot all about his insomnia thereafter, and even slept until nearly eight o’clock the next morning.

Ming Luchuan was no longer in the room when he awoke, and as he groggily fumbled for his phone, he discovered that Ming Luchuan had sent him a message: Didn’t want to disturb your sweet dreams, so I’m going down first.

That was when Xia Wennan got up. He hurriedly washed his face and brushed his teeth before getting dressed and heading downstairs, where he discovered that everyone had already begun eating breakfast in the dining room.

Right as he arrived at the doorway of the dining room, he subconsciously came to a halt when he saw that Yin Zejing had actually returned. He was eating breakfast with Ming Qin, sitting next to him.

Ming Luchuan looked up and, as if noticing his hesitation, said, “Come sit here.”

Xia Wennan hurriedly took the seat next to Ming Luchuan.

“How did you sleep last night, Wennan?” Ming Qin asked with a natural air about him.

Xia Wennan gave a nod. “Pretty well.”

When Yin Zejing noticed that Ming Qin’s milk glass was empty, he reached for the milk carton to refill it.

“I’d like a coffee,” said Ming Qin.

“I’ll make you some,” Yin Zejing said right away. He then got to his feet and walked to the kitchen.

Moments later, Yin Zejing brought a cup of fresh-brewed coffee and set it down in front of Ming Qin, then returned to his chair. As he dug back into his breakfast, he gazed at Ming Qin and said, “I guess I’ll go contact a new company for my internship?”

Ming Qin said, “Go ahead.”

Yin Zejing propped his face with one hand. As he stirred the bowl of oatmeal in front of him, he sighed lightly, but after seeing no reaction from Ming Qin, he didn’t utter another word.

Ming Qin picked up his coffee and slowly sipped at it. When he put it down, he suddenly said to Ming Luchuan, “It’s Uncle Duan’s birthday next week, you two should prepare your own gift.”

Xia Wennan looked up. He had no idea who this Uncle Duan was.

“I don’t know if Huaiye will be working that day,” said Ming Siyan.

“Make sure you all come. Uncle Duan is different, after all. We’ve been friends for so many years,” said Ming Qin. He then turned to Ming Siyan. “Why hasn’t Huaiye been coming by much these days?”

Ming Siyan lowered his gaze, training his somewhat blank gaze on his plate. “He’s been busy with work, we rarely get to see each other.”

Ming Qin’s brow knitted at his words. “You two have been engaged for a long time. Isn’t it about time you got married? There’s no need to keep delaying it.”

Ming Siyan remained unspeaking, but a hint of embarrassment showed through his eyes. Obviously, something like this wasn’t solely up to him.

Yin Zejing seemed like he really did need to go out and contact a new company for his internship, walking out in a rush after finishing his breakfast.

Before Ming Siyan left, he told Xia Wennan, “Wennan, there’s something I have to do, so I won’t wait for you and da-ge.”

Xia Wennan promptly said, “You’d better be off then, don’t let us hold you up.”

Ming Siyan seemed reluctant as he waved a hand at Xia Wennan.

Because Xia Wennan had come down quite late, Ming Qin had already left the dining room and gone upstairs by the time he finished his breakfast. Ming Luchuan also stood up and announced that he would be getting the car.

Once Xia Wennan remained in the dining room alone, he hurriedly finished off his boiled eggs and milk, then stood up to leave when he noticed the aunt emerge from the kitchen and begin tidying up the table.

Xia Wennan immediately froze in place.

“Auntie,” he called out to her.

The aunt looked up with a smile. “I see that Mr. Xia hasn’t left for the company yet?”

The gears in Xia Wennan’s head began to turn. “How long has auntie been working for the Ming family?” he asked.

“Not that long—two years, give or take. Unlike Zhang jie, who’s been around for ten to twenty years, I suppose.”

Xia Wennan’s mind quickly caught on to this timeframe. “Was that before Sichen’s incident?” he asked.

The aunt nodded. “Before Sichen’s accident, it was Zhang jie who did the cooking and cleaning, but afterwards, she was put in charge of caring for him. That’s when the Ming family employed me.”

“I see… Then, auntie surely knows about my car accident, yes?”

The aunt’s hands stopped what they were doing. “That’s right. It gave me a dreadful fright when I first heard about it. Fortunately, you weren’t seriously hurt.”

“That night, I drove back alone after having dinner here—was it you who prepared the food?”

“It was,” the aunt replied.

“Did you stay in the kitchen the entire time we ate?” asked Xia Wennan.

After so many dinners at the Ming house, he realised that the aunt had never left the kitchen from the time she served the meal till she cleaned up after they finished eating.

Upon hearing Xia Wennan’s question, the aunt went over her memories, and said “Yes.”

“Did anyone else enter the kitchen that day besides you?”

The aunt’s face lit up with surprise. “Ah? Why is everyone asking this question?”

Xia Wennan was stunned. “Who else asked?”

“Mr. Luchuan came down first thing this morning and also asked me about this.”

Xia Wennan was stunned, yet entirely unsurprised. “Then, did anyone else enter?” he continued asking.

“You did,” said the aunt.

“Me? What was I up to?”

The aunt seemingly recalled the events of that night in great detail, as she said, “You said that you weren’t having wine, so you came for some orange juice. I fetched a glass for you and took out the orange juice from the fridge.” After relaying this, the aunt continued, “So I thought, if you’d had a drink that day, you wouldn’t have been able to drive, and the accident wouldn’t have happened.”

Xia Wennan smiled. “It’s okay. I’m quite all right now anyway.” Xia Wennan then quickly enquired, “Did anyone else come in before that?”

“Zhang jie did,” said the aunt. “If there are more people at home, Zhang jie would come and help prepare Sichen’s meal. Sichen’s food is prepared separately. And—I think Xiao Yin came in as well.”

“You think?”

“I went to the bathroom and came back to see Xiao Yin coming out. He’d probably just returned from a basketball game and grabbed a drink from the fridge.”

“Oh—” Xia Wennan trailed off, somewhat stumped.

“When Mr. Luchuan asked me earlier, I also spoke to him about this,” said the aunt. “Is there something wrong?”

At this time, outside the house, a car horn sounded, as if Ming Luchuan had been waiting for him for a long time and was signalling him to hurry up.

Xia Wennan could only say, “It’s nothing. Thank you, auntie. I’d better get to work now.”

He then exited the kitchen, walked into the living room, and took his coat from the coat rack near the door. He put it on as he walked out to Ming Luchuan’s car, opened the passenger side door, and climbed inside.

Ming Luchuan started the car and asked, “What took you so long?”

“I had a few questions for the housekeeping aunt,” Xia Wennan said in a small voice.

Ming Luchuan cast a glance at him.

Xia Wennan bumped Ming Luchuan’s elbow. “Get going, we’re already late. Let’s talk on the way.”

Ming Luchuan slowly drove away from the Ming house.

Xia Wennan couldn’t help but peer at the rearview mirror, and watched as the garden behind them grew further and further away. At the same time, he said to Ming Luchuan, “I heard that you questioned the aunt.”

Ming Luchuan hummed.

Xia Wennan rubbed his lips. “Everyone else had wine that night, but it was only me who had orange juice. Could someone have drugged it?” He thought about what the aunt had said about Yin Zejing opening the fridge to get a drink.

“No.”

Ming Luchuan’s answering tone was full of certainty. Xia Wennan turned to give him a curious stare. “How can you be so sure?”

“Because it was an unsealed bottle of orange juice. You took it out and I helped you open it.”

Xia Wennan was taken aback, his train of thoughts veering off-track. “Was I so weak that I needed you to open a bottle for me?”

Ming Luchuan wordlessly glanced at him from the corner of his eyes.

Xia Wennan frowned, engrossed in his thoughts. “We can’t be sure. What if the sleeping pills were melted and injected with a syringe?”

“I don’t know about that,” said Ming Luchuan, “but I doubt it.”

☆ ☆ ☆

Thank you to Yuli for the kofis!

Chapter 78 | TOC | Chapter 80