BL Ch93

As soon as September arrived, even in Myanmar, where the climate was typically divided into only cool, hot, and rainy seasons, the temperature seemed to noticeably decrease.

Ji Lin, still fully clothed, had spent the entire night on a makeshift mat on the floor. In the morning, he rose and first opened the window to let in fresh air. The previous night, out of concern that Mu Hao might catch a cold, the window had remained closed, leaving the room feeling somewhat stuffy.

While he was breathing in the crisp air from the valley, he suddenly spotted two furtive figures downstairs. Their heads were huddled together, engaged in hushed whispers.

“Did you hear it last night?”

“I heard it, alright. It was so intense that I couldn’t sleep all night.”

“I told you, absence makes the heart grow fonder.”

“What are you two plotting?”

Lou Baoguo and Zhou Yi flinched, startled out of their wits. When they realized who it was, they exhaled in relief. “Captain Ji, you scared us! We thought it was the young master.”

Ji Lin was puzzled. “So what if it was him?”

The two quickly pulled him into a corner. Lou Baoguo shushed him and whispered, “You didn’t hear it last night? Oh, right, your room is farther away.”

Zhou Yi interjected, “Forget it, let’s not gossip. If the young master finds out, we’re done for.”

Lou Baoguo, burning with curiosity and eager to uncover the truth, pressed, “I’m not interested in anything else. I just want to know, between Big Bro and the young master, who’s the… you know?”

Zhou Yi’s face flushed. “You’d have to ask them. How would I know? All I heard was creaking, nothing else.”

Ji Lin was utterly confused. “What are you guys talking about? Creaking? Was there a rat in the room?”

The other two stared at the innocent young policeman as if he were a rare specimen. Lou Baoguo’s small eyes glinted with a sudden, mischievous idea. Smirking, he said, “Captain Ji, since the whole team is here, don’t you think we should set off early? That way, Officer Mu can receive better treatment sooner. Why don’t you go talk to the young master about it?”

Ji Lin didn’t sense anything amiss and found the suggestion perfectly reasonable. He nodded. “Yes, I was just about to look for him. Leaving early will avoid complications back home. Is he awake?”

“Probably. He’s been getting up pretty early these past few days.”

“Alright, I’ll go now.”

Zhou Yi looked at the oblivious Ji Lin striding confidently upstairs with pity and turned to scold, “Aren’t you just sending him to his doom?”

Lou Baoguo grinned and slung an arm around him. “No, no. For Officer Mu’s sake, the young master will go easy on him. Come on, let’s hurry and catch the show!”

Ji Lin reached Yu Duqiu’s door on the second floor, knocked twice, and received no response. He knocked three more times and called out, “Yu, are you awake? I need to talk to you.”

A moment later, the door opened. Yu Duqiu, wrapped in a bathrobe, leaned against the doorframe, yawning and crossing his arms. “What’s up?”

“Let’s talk inside.” Ji Lin started to step forward.

Yu Duqiu raised an arm to block him. “You’d better not come in. It’s a bit messy in here. It might leave you traumatized.”

Ji Lin scoffed and brushed his hand aside. “Please, I’m a cop. I’ve seen murder scenes without flinching. How messy could your room be? There’s no scene I haven’t seen.”

His voice slowed, and he froze in place, staring in shock as his pupils trembled. “Seen…”

This scene, he truly had not seen before.

The floor was littered with all sorts of items in chaotic disarray: clothes, pants, shoes, a belt, crumpled bedsheets, and something he had only ever seen on the shelves near supermarket checkouts. Clearly used. And there were one, two, three, five of them.

Yu Duqiu closed the door and turned to see Ji Lin’s rigid back. Helplessly, he said, “We didn’t sleep until three in the morning, so I haven’t had time to clean up. Bai Zhao is still sleeping. Want to come back at noon?”

Ji Lin’s eyes were like rusted lock cylinders, unable to move. He stiffly turned his neck, glaring at this beast in human clothing with disbelief. “He just escaped death, still injured, and you, are you even human?”

Yu Duqiu’s lips curled, amused by the misunderstanding. “He’s fine, full of energy. Don’t believe me? Go see for yourself.”

“Who wants to see that?” Ji Lin had already imagined Bai Zhao collapsed on the bed, too weak to move, and felt a surge of pity for the little bodyguard. His loathing for the beast before him deepened. He jabbed a middle finger at him. “You, take good care of him! We’ll talk when he’s awake!”

“Yes, sir.” Yu Duqiu’s grin was infuriatingly smug. “You really don’t want to check on him? You might experience this yourself someday.”

Ji Lin didn’t immediately catch his meaning. But when he saw the teasing glint in Yu Duqiu’s eyes, his face flushed from head to toe. Too flustered to even curse, he slammed the door and stormed off.

Lou Baoguo and Zhou Yi, who had been eavesdropping outside, nearly jumped out of their skin at the loud slam. Seeing Ji Lin emerge with a beet-red face, they eagerly asked, “Captain Ji, what did you see?”

Ji Lin gritted his teeth. “Your young master is absolute scum!”

Lou Baoguo gasped, clutching his teeth with four fingers. “So, does that mean Big Bro was…”

Zhou Yi nodded. “Probably. The young master opened the door, so Xiao Bai might not even be able to get up.”

Unbeknownst to Yu Duqiu, his “heroic prowess” spread like wildfire through his team’s group chat in the next few hours. Even Zhao Feihua, back in China, got wind of it and marveled: The King of Bai, true to his name, not only managed to sleep with Young Master Yu multiple times but also stayed the night. This might finally rein Yu in, no more gallivanting. The company’s image was saved at last! As PR manager, he would not have to tear his hair out over his boss’s scandalous headlines anymore!

Yu Duqiu had indeed settled down, but “heroic” was not quite accurate. After Ji Lin left, he immediately clutched his aching waist, hobbling painfully to the bed step by step. He collapsed into the blanket serving as a bedsheet, only to be enveloped by a warm, reassuring embrace, drifting back to sleep to recover.

Thankfully, his physical resilience was strong. After ample rest, the night’s indulgence was mostly alleviated. By lunchtime, when he went downstairs, there were hardly any traces of fatigue.

That afternoon, Yu Duqiu invited everyone to his room for a brief meeting to discuss their return to China, assuring them that the hotel staff had cleaned the battleground of a room, leaving it spotless. But Ji Lin, still haunted by the morning’s shocking scene, adamantly refused. The meeting was relocated to his room instead.

Mu Hao was staying awake for longer periods now. Over the past two days, he had been able to remain conscious almost all day, no longer plagued by hallucinations from withdrawal. Even the doctor praised his remarkable willpower, noting that most people would not recover so quickly.

Ji Lin relayed these words with unmistakable pride, as if he were the one being praised. Mu Hao, likely embarrassed, brushed his fingers against Ji Lin’s hand, signaling him to stop.

Ji Lin, as always, miraculously understood and immediately dropped the subject. He said seriously, “In short, although Mu-ge’s condition has improved, to prevent any surprises, I think we should leave as soon as possible. It’s not raining today, so the mountain roads should be easier to navigate. Since we’re no longer operational, we’ll leave Bai Zhiming to the local police.”

There were only six people in the room. Aside from Mu Hao, who was too weak to travel independently and had to go with them, four of the remaining five agreed. Ji Lin looked at the only one who had not spoken. “You don’t agree?”

Yu Duqiu tapped his chin lightly with his fingers. “It’s not that. I’m thinking, since someone in my team leaked information, I can’t guarantee we won’t run into trouble on the road out of the city. It’s a few hours’ drive to the checkpoint, and the route is practically deserted. Hijacking a car would be too easy.”

Ji Lin thought to himself that this guy had a touch of paranoia. But given the events of the past few days, a little caution would not hurt.

“How about we get a police escort?”

“They’re short on manpower and probably won’t agree. Besides, an escort wouldn’t help. More people don’t necessarily mean safety. Bai Zhiming nearly took us all out.”

That was true. Ji Lin pondered for a moment. “How about this: our convoy leaves in stages, with three kilometers between each car. That way, if we’re ambushed, we won’t be completely wiped out, and we can still provide timely support.”

A subtle glint flashed in Yu Duqiu’s eyes. Ji Lin instinctively felt this man was scheming something he did not want others to know. But Yu Duqiu merely said casually, “Sounds good. Let’s do it. Mu Hao, isn’t Comrade Xiao Ji clever?”

Mu Hao gave a small nod.

Ji Lin’s face reddened. “Ahem, I’m not clever. Mu-ge’s way smarter than me.”

With the plan settled, Yu Duqiu stood up. “I’ll assign the personnel for each car. We leave at two. If all goes well, we’ll reach the checkpoint by six. Once we’re past it, we’re safe. We’ll rest in Mandalay for the night and fly back home tomorrow morning.”

Most of the luggage had been packed the day before and only needed to be loaded. To avoid drawing attention, Ji Lin had already moved Mu Hao to the car early. Pei Ming was informed and did not object, only expressing regret. “This trip didn’t yield much. I wasted over ten days of your time for nothing.”

Yu Duqiu responded politely, “It wasn’t entirely fruitless. At least that volunteer is showing signs of recovery, and the data we gathered is enough for me to apply for experiments back home. Your time is valuable too, Pei-ge. I really appreciate you coming along. As for the promised shares, I’ll have someone handle it once we’re back.”

Ji Lin listened silently to these two cunning foxes exchanging pleasantries, sneering inwardly. Pei Ming probably had no idea that the moment he stepped off the plane, he would be facing arrest and interrogation by the police.

Yu Duqiu was playing the generous benefactor while pulling the wool over his eyes.

The convoy that had brought them here was neatly lined up at the hotel entrance. Locals, unaccustomed to seeing so many luxury cars, gathered curiously to gawk. Some bold kids touched the car bodies, only to shrink back when glared at by the tall, intimidating bodyguards.

Before departure, Yu Duqiu, as usual, personally reviewed everyone’s secret codes. In case of an emergency, they could send messages that outsiders would not suspect. This time, he made a point to assign one to Ji Lin, leaning in to say, “Your code is…”

Ji Lin shoved him away, spitting, “I’m not your subordinate. You follow my orders, and don’t pull any stunts, got it?”

Yu Duqiu shrugged. “Fine, don’t listen. Don’t come crying to me if something goes wrong.”

Ji Lin hesitated, but for Mu Hao’s safety, he relented. “Alright, let’s hear it.”

Yu Duqiu, smug as ever, leaned back to his ear and whispered something.

Ji Lin’s face flushed from his cheeks to his neck. He roared, “Get lost, you pervert!”

Most of the luggage was loaded, and the first car had already set off when Zhou Yi finally saw Lou Baoguo return. Perplexed, he asked, “Where were you?”

Lou Baoguo jogged over, wiping sweat from his forehead, and mysteriously opened his hand to reveal a small transparent bag containing a beautiful ruby.

“Just bought it at the market. Don’t know if it’s real, but it wasn’t expensive. Figured I’d bring it back as a souvenir gift.”

Zhou Yi asked, “For your mom?”

“Hey, why are you cursing?”

“I’m asking if it’s for your mom!”

“Mind your business. I’ll give it to whoever I want.” Lou Baoguo pocketed the ruby and got into the car.

His good partner suddenly having a secret left Zhou Yi feeling a bit off. He mentioned it to Yu Duqiu, speculating, “A-Bao might have a crush he’s keeping from us.”

Yu Duqiu brushed it off. “No big deal. Doesn’t mean they like him back.”

Zhou Yi felt a pang of sympathy.

Yu Duqiu, remembering something, glanced at Bai Zhao’s hand. “Where’s that ruby ring I gave you? Lost it?”

“Yes, sorry.”

“No worries. I’ll deduct it from your salary. No more pay for you.” Yu Duqiu patted his chest with a grin. “Bonuses are off the table too.”

“Alright.”

In one minute, Zhou Yi witnessed the birth of two pitiable souls. Fearing he would be next, he hightailed it to his own car.

Yu Duqiu’s convoy consisted of six vehicles: one for Ji Lin, Mu Hao, the doctor, and others; one each for Zhou Yi and Lou Baoguo with several bodyguards; two for the remaining staff; and one empty car left by the roadside.

Yu Duqiu beckoned. “Get in, babe.”

Bai Zhao looked around. “Just us two?”

“Yes.”

“No driver?”

“You’re my driver.”

“But didn’t you say…”

“I make the rules, and I decide when to break them.” Yu Duqiu headed to the passenger side, opened the door, and looked back. “Or what, you think you can’t protect me on your own?”

The taunt worked like a charm on the hot-blooded young man. Bai Zhao did not question further and got into the car.

Not far off, Pei Ming settled into the backseat, silently staring at a message on his phone from a certain number.

His secretary, seeing him engrossed, cautiously asked, “Mr. Pei, Mr. Yu’s car has already left. Are we following them?”

Pei Ming loosened his tie, easing the tightness in his chest. His slightly sweaty hand clenched into a fist, as if resolving something. When he looked up, he let out a long breath, his cold gaze following the car ahead as it gradually disappeared from view. “No, we’re not going the same way.”