I See Murders Before They Happen

Chapter 239: Chapter 237: I Heard You’re Dating?

The case was closed.

That weekend, Zhuang Yanzheng suggested in the group chat that they all get together to relax.

When Su Miaoyi received the message, she was lying in bed with An’an, scrolling through videos. She saw the notification from the group chat, tapped on it for a look, then glanced at the time. It was a little after four in the afternoon.

No one was talking in the chat. Cuddling An’an, she rolled over and went back to her videos.

Ten minutes later, Zhuang Yanzheng started tagging everyone in the group one by one.

Su Miaoyi swiped the notification away and kept watching her videos.

Another ten minutes passed, and Zhuang Yanzheng started sending red envelopes in the chat.

Su Miaoyi instantly tapped on it, her eyes glued to her phone, ready to snatch a red envelope.

Each was worth two hundred yuan, but could only be claimed by one person.

Su Miaoyi tried to grab five in a row but didn’t get a single one.

She shot up in bed, her fingers furiously tapping the screen. After another five attempts, she finally snatched one, and a wave of relief washed over her.

But that ended up being the only one she got. She missed all the ones that followed.

Su Miaoyi glanced at the sun slanting in the west and felt that the sky today was gray and bleak, devoid of light.

After sending the red envelopes, Zhuang Yanzheng sent a voice message to the group: "I tag you all and you pretend not to see it, but when it’s time to grab red envelopes, you’re all faster than the next! You were just lurking and waiting for the money, weren’t you?"

Qi Feng: "Captain Zhuang, I love get-togethers! I absolutely love them! Just say the word, where are we meeting? I’ll be there in a flash."

Chu Xingrou: "Me too, me too!"

Yan Cheng: [+1.]

Lu Zhishen: [+1.]

Su Miaoyi watched their conversation, still wallowing in the sorrow of having snagged the fewest red envelopes.

Zhuang Yanzheng sent another voice message: "What about the one who grabbed the least? Why so quiet?"

After listening to the message, Su Miaoyi threw her head back and flopped onto the bed.

The bed was soft, and her fall bounced An’an slightly.

An’an stood up, dazed for a few seconds, then jumped onto her, walked up to her chest, and found a comfortable spot to lie down.

Su Miaoyi stroked An’an’s head. "Oh, my little ancestor, you’ve been sleeping all day. Wake up."

An’an didn’t move and started to purr softly.

Zhuang Yanzheng tagged her in the chat: "You should really upgrade that potato internet of yours. Everyone else already claimed their money by the time you even saw the red envelope, didn’t you?"

Su Miaoyi replied with a sticker of someone throwing poop at him.

Then she followed up with a message: [Where are we meeting?]

Zhuang Yanzheng said: "The restaurant my family owns. Seven p.m."

Below that was a string of "Roger that"s.

Seeing there was still plenty of time, Su Miaoyi went back to scrolling on her phone in bed.

’Can you get up and move around a little?’ the voice in her head said.

"I was boxing all morning. I nearly punched a hole in the punching bag in that room," Su Miaoyi said.

’But you didn’t, did you?’

"If I did, would you be the one paying for a new one?" Su Miaoyi asked.

’Sure,’ the voice in her head said. ’Isn’t your money my money?’

Su Miaoyi suddenly realized a problem.

’My wallet is in danger!’

’So stingy,’ the voice said disdainfully. ’Fine, I’ll report to you whenever I spend money. Happy now?’

"You don’t mean you’ll report it *after* you’ve already spent it, do you?" Su Miaoyi asked cautiously.

Silence. A full thirty seconds of silence.

"Are... you still there?" Su Miaoyi asked.

’Fine, I won’t spend any! All right?’ the voice said.

Su Miaoyi nodded in satisfaction.

’Tch!’

Su Miaoyi mimicked its cold tone: "Tch."

...

The get-together was held that evening.

First, they ate dinner at the restaurant. Afterward, the group went to the open area behind it for a barbecue.

A few other people from the police station were on the other side, singing along to music blasting from a speaker.

The singing was so bad, Su Miaoyi felt like it was going to sing her soul right out of her body.

"Sister Miaomiao, here. Forensic Doctor Yan grilled this. It’s delicious." Chu Xingrou sat down beside her.

Su Miaoyi took them and ate the two skewers.

"The ones Captain Zhuang grilled were all burnt and black, so I secretly threw them in the trash," Chu Xingrou whispered.

Su Miaoyi started laughing.

"What are you two laughing about!" Zhuang Yanzheng shouted from a distance.

Lu Zhishen, who was next to him, was startled by the shout and dropped the skewer in his hand.

He gave Zhuang Yanzheng a deadpan look, openly picked the skewer up off the ground, and offered it to him to eat.

Zhuang Yanzheng stared at the dirt clinging to the lamb skewer, then back at him. "What’s this? You’re not even trying to hide it when you mess with me now, huh?"

Seeing his reluctance, Lu Zhishen said nothing and turned to offer it to Yan Cheng instead.

Yan Cheng, who was grilling skewers while also having to "babysit," reached out, took it, and tossed it into a nearby trash can. He then handed Lu Zhishen a freshly grilled one.

The moment Lu Zhishen got his hands on it, Zhuang Yanzheng snatched it away.

Lu Zhishen stared at his empty hand, looking completely frozen in place.

Yan Cheng looked between the two of them, grabbed two more fresh skewers, and gave one to each so they would stop fighting over them.

"So childish," Su Miaoyi remarked, watching them. "Their combined age is nearly a hundred."

Chu Xingrou laughed as well. "Forensic Doctor Yan is so much more mature than them."

Su Miaoyi nodded with a smile.

The two chatted for a while. After some thought, Su Miaoyi decided she would tell Chu Xingrou about her ability to see crime scenes.

Last time, at the burial site, Chu Xingrou had overheard their conversation.

And later, she had run into Su Miaoyi in the hallway while she was seeing a vision.

She felt she could tell Chu Xingrou.

They were the only two women in the Field Team. It would be more convenient at times if Chu Xingrou knew more about what was going on.

As she was starting to tell Chu Xingrou, Zhuang Yanzheng was called away by a phone call.

He went over to the restaurant, where his mother was waiting for him.

"Mom, what’s wrong? What brings you here all of a sudden?"

Yan Zhiqing pulled him over to the floor-to-ceiling window. "Your father and I were at a banquet. We were just passing by and thought we’d check on you."

Zhuang Yanzheng: "?? Didn’t we just see each other at home before I came here? You missed me already?"

Yan Zhiqing pinched his arm.

Zhuang Yanzheng sucked in a sharp breath and rubbed his arm. "Mom, be careful. You’ll break your nails."

"Stop messing with me," Yan Zhiqing said, glancing at the people at the party behind them. "Who’s that singing so horribly?"

Zhuang Yanzheng squinted. "Qi Feng."

Yan Zhiqing frowned in distaste.

"Mom, what’s up?"

"Are you in a relationship?" Yan Zhiqing asked.

Zhuang Yanzheng: "???"

"Are you dating one of the women from your unit?" Yan Zhiqing pressed.

"Mom, who told you that? We don’t have any women in our unit," Zhuang Yanzheng said, shocked.

"Then aren’t those women?" Yan Zhiqing asked, pointing toward Chu Xingrou and Su Miaoyi.

Because they were far away, she couldn’t see their faces clearly, only that they were two women.

Zhuang Yanzheng looked at the two of them, his mouth hanging open. "Who told you that?"

Yan Zhiqing sighed. "So you’re not dating, then?"

Zhuang Yanzheng nodded.

Yan Zhiqing raised her hand and smacked him again. "I knew it! They’re not interested in you! You’re in your thirties, an old man. You’ve lost your appeal!"

Zhuang Yanzheng: "..."

"Mom, did you just happen to ’pass by’ to insult me?"

Yan Zhiqing sighed. "I was at a banquet tonight, and so many people were congratulating me, saying my son has a girlfriend. Oh, no, not a girlfriend—a fiancée he’s already engaged to."

Zhuang Yanzheng’s expression turned serious. "Who were they talking about?"

"Let me reenact it for you." Yan Zhiqing put on a prim and proper smile and took Zhuang Yanzheng’s hand. "’Boss Yan, congratulations! Young Master Zhuang and the young lady of the Ji Family, they’re simply a match made in heaven. You must let me know when the date is set. I’ll definitely be there.’"

"The Ji Family’s young lady?" For a moment, it didn’t register with Zhuang Yanzheng.

"Ji Sheng’s," Yan Zhiqing said, the smile vanishing from her face. She jutted her chin toward Su Miaoyi outside.

Zhuang Yanzheng looked as if he’d been struck by lightning.

’It’s over.’

’If Shen Yanzhou finds out about this, I’ll have to sleep with one eye open from now on...’