After that serious injury, Guo Tiandi spent nearly half a year in the hospital, with Guo Yingying tirelessly caring for him.
The family that adopted her gave her a choice: return to their home or stay with Guo Tiandi—one or the other.
Choosing one meant completely breaking ties with the other.
“I choose to go home,” Guo Yingying said without hesitation, as if she had already made her decision long ago. “But the home I return to is the one with my brother, not yours.”
The adoptive family quickly dissolved the adoption, and Guo Yingying returned to the cramped rental, relying solely on Guo Tiandi once again.
Only then did she express her true thoughts. She agreed to the adoption not because she coveted wealth but because she felt she was a burden to her brother. Without her, he wouldn’t have to fight or risk his life.
The siblings embraced, crying together, vowing never to abandon each other, to share both good fortune and misfortune.
But their oath was eventually defeated by time.
Guo Yingying wasn’t blind or deaf; she understood the challenges. Effective communication with her required learning braille, a hardship not everyone was willing to endure.
Yet, she couldn’t accept that her brother, who once would have died for her, could one day break his oath and abandon her.
At the police station, Meng Jin and Zhao Yunzhi were monitoring the online sentiments. Jennie Yang’s detractors had launched a vicious attack, condemning her as cold-hearted, forcing her to disable the comment feature on her profile.
A group of neutral netizens organized an effort to help Guo Yingying find her relatives. They went to the nursing home where she was staying. Initially, Guo Yingying refused to show herself, but later provided some clues through her braille teacher.
A cheerful officer approached, “Team Meng, there’s a stunning woman at the front gate claiming to be your girlfriend. When did you get off the singles market? You’ve kept it well hidden!”
The office erupted in excitement. Meng Jin had been set up on countless blind dates, with the same outcome each time. Hearing a different result now excited them more than Meng Jin’s own mother would have been.
Zhao Yunzhi, ever enthusiastic, shouted about welcoming the new sister-in-law and rushed to the gate, only to be stunned. The new sister-in-law was none other than his cousin, Tang Xiaoguo.
He immediately protested. As Meng Jin’s closest subordinate and Tang Xiaoguo’s dearest cousin, he was upset not to have been informed first. He demanded five hotpot meals as compensation.
He walked Tang Xiaoguo towards the office building amid a ruckus above; colleagues were cheering from the windows, eagerly watching the future chief’s wife.
Tang Xiaoguo, generous and warm, waved back, her face radiant with smiles.
Meng Jin rushed out, grabbing Tang Xiaoguo and heading straight for the gate. Half the office cheered, while the other half regretted not seeing the future chief’s wife up close.
Meng Jin shoved Tang Xiaoguo into the car, where she crossed her arms and asked sarcastically, “Team Leader Meng, what’s this about? Can’t my face be seen?”
She leaned towards Meng Jin, batting her eyelashes innocently.
Meng Jin glanced at her briefly, stating matter-of-factly, “Given your history, I can’t let you enter my workplace in case you eavesdrop on case details again.”
Tang Xiaoguo’s nostrils flared as she realized, “Oh, you think I’m with you to steal secrets, don’t you?”
Meng Jin bluntly responded, “I wouldn’t rule it out.”
“Fine!” Tang Xiaoguo nodded, “Since I’m already suspected, I won’t be polite. You’d better be careful; we journalists can get into everything.”
Meng Jin scoffed, “I’m not Zhao Yunzhi; I keep my mouth shut.”
“Don’t underestimate us journalists, Team Leader Meng. Maybe I know more than you do,” Tang Xiaoguo said, admiring her freshly manicured nails and extending her hand towards Meng Jin, “Do you like them?”
Meng Jin looked ahead, sparing a quick glance, “Nice. So, what have you found out?”
Tang Xiaoguo frowned and pouted, shaking her fingers, “I did this for meeting my future mother-in-law, you know. It cost a few hundred bucks. You’re being too dismissive. Even if you’re using me, at least pretend to care. Come on, use all your charm and flatter me to death.”
She watched Meng Jin with a challenging expression.
“It’s just an act, and you’re quite willing to invest. How much did it cost? I’ll reimburse you,” Meng Jin gestured towards the back seat.
The back seat was filled with several luxury shopping bags containing nutritional supplements, cosmetics, and jewelry.
“That’ll be about two thousand, let’s round it up to three thousand. The extra is for my effort,” Tang Xiaoguo patted Meng Jin’s head, “Such a dutiful son, your mom is really lucky.”
Grudgingly, Meng Jin transferred three thousand yuan to her, secretly wondering if she had planned to seek reimbursement all along.
Returning to the matter at hand, Meng Jin pressed Tang Xiaoguo for any intelligence she had.
Tang Xiaoguo, shrewd as a monkey, suggested an exchange of information.
Meng Jin urged her to speak first. If the information was valuable, he would agree to the exchange, as the case required caution.
“Did you know Liu Er has a girlfriend?” Tang Xiaoguo asked.
Initially, Meng Jin didn’t realize who Liu Er was. Shaking his head after a pause, he asked, “Is this related to Liu Tianshi’s murder?”
“I’m not sure yet. But I know that the girl recently returned to the country, and then Liu Tianshi was murdered. You police can’t think this is just a coincidence, right?”
Meng Jin felt overwhelmed as another new character appeared in the narrative.
He suddenly remembered that Liu Tianshi had arranged to meet someone before his death. Could that person be Liu Er’s girlfriend? Where is she now? There had been no trace of her after the incident, and the police hadn’t found anything leading to her, which was unusual.
Tang Xiaoguo explained the background: previously, the case involving Liu Er and Guo Yingying had caused a media storm, and their TV station had conducted a detailed investigation into every aspect of Liu Er’s life.
Liu Er’s girlfriend was named He Saibing. The origin of her name was quite interesting; it was said that He Saibing’s mother adored the actress Fan Bingbing, considering her exceptionally beautiful. She hoped her daughter would surpass Fan Bingbing in beauty, hence the name “Saibing.”
Interestingly, He Saibing was a classmate of Guo Yingying’s. Both were beauties, and although beauty is in the eye of the beholder, most people thought Guo Yingying was more attractive.
An unnamed classmate of He Saibing mentioned that He Saibing dated Liu Er because he had a crush on Guo Yingying. Although He Saibing and Guo Yingying seemed to get along well on the surface, there was rivalry underneath.
Later, He Saibing went to the United States, supposedly breaking up with Liu Er. After Liu Er killed his assistant and fell from grace as a gentleman to a murderer, He Saibing’s classmates were relieved she had left such a scoundrel behind, sparing herself from disaster.
“How did you know He Saibing returned to the country?” Meng Jin asked.
Tang Xiaoguo acted mysteriously, “Don’t ask about that; I have my sources. It’s not important that He Saibing returned, but why she returned.”
She paused, waiting for Meng Jin to ask further. Meng Jin thought to himself how troublesome women could be, “Why?”
Tang Xiaoguo’s lips curled in satisfaction at Meng Jin’s capitulation. She was about to speak when she noticed the car entering a residential area, “We’re here? Let’s meet my future mother-in-law first, then we can continue.”
Meng Jin braked sharply and parked at the curb, pulling out the car keys, “The case is what matters. Speak first.”
Women liked to push boundaries, and while they could be indulged, they shouldn’t be spoiled. He recalled a piece of advice he had read in a book, which suddenly popped into his head.
At that moment, he took it to heart.
Failing her playful attempt, Tang Xiaoguo rolled her eyes, “Are all cops as dull as you?”
Meng Jin nodded.
Tang Xiaoguo pulled up a photo on her phone, “Because of this.”
Meng Jin took the phone, initially confused by the English text. He enlarged the photo, searching for familiar words. Recognizing several but failing to connect them into a sentence, one key word caught his eye. Unsure of its exact meaning, he looked at the image below and instantly understood.
The word meant “pregnant.”
The image was a sonogram of a uterus, with a small black dot representing the beginning of life.
“Is He Saibing pregnant? Is the baby Liu Er’s?” Meng Jin was shocked, but he couldn’t see how this related to Liu Tianshi’s murder, “Whose child is it? It can’t be Liu Tianshi’s, can it? No, Liu Tianshi liked men.”
“What?” Tang Xiaoguo was surprised now, “Liu Tianshi liked men? Who said that?”
Meng Jin regretted his slip of the tongue and wished he could slap himself, “Aren’t we supposed to be exchanging information? We’re even now. Whose child is it?”
“Of course, it’s Liu Er’s,” Tang Xiaoguo said excitedly, “Is it true Liu Tianshi liked men? This would be a huge scoop.” It seemed she couldn’t wait to report it.
“You can’t leak this, or it would be obstructing official duties, enough to get you detained. I’m not scaring you,” Meng Jin warned sternly.
Tang Xiaoguo refused to speak further, eager to meet her future mother-in-law.
As the door opened, Meng Jin almost thought he had entered the wrong house. Dr. Jin had dressed to impress, clad in a dark blue velvet cheongsam with curled hair, high heels, and decades-old jade jewelry making an appearance.
Tang Xiaoguo was well-behaved and warm, striking a perfect balance between confidence and a touch of shyness.
The first time he met her, she was aloof and professional.
The second time, she was proud and shrewd.
Just now in the car, she was cunning and playful.
Meng Jin was baffled, unsure whether she was just a great actress or genuinely multifaceted like a polyhedron.
Dr. Jin and Tang Xiaoguo hit it off as if they had been friends for years, not like it was their first meeting.
As per the ritual of a first meeting between future in-laws, they looked through family photo albums together. Dr. Jin showed photos of Meng Jin from infancy to adulthood, tirelessly. Tang Xiaoguo listened intently, seemingly genuinely interested in everything about Meng Jin.
Meng Jin was impressed by Tang Xiaoguo’s acting skills.
He thought about the case. If Liu Tianshi wanted to meet He Saibing before his death and they had indeed met, could He Saibing have witnessed the murderer? Did the murderer kill to silence her?
