Chapter 146

Page Two Ling Shaojie’s Home

After finishing a very frugal dinner, Ling Hua and I left the temple and hailed a taxi on the roadside.

The moment we got in, the driver, who had concealed his baldness with a lot of hair gel, was stunned by the sight of the blonde-haired, blue-eyed Ling Hua.

In that instant, there was a clear sense of amazement and panic.

I could tell he was trying to communicate with us using his limited English vocabulary but was at a loss for words.

It wasn’t until I, with my black hair, got in the car that the driver visibly relaxed and smiled at us.

“Little girl, where are you two headed?”

The driver spoke as gently as possible.

Although I knew he was treating me like a fourteen-year-old girl, being treated so warmly by a stranger made me feel a bit uneasy.

“We’re going to…”

Before I could finish my sentence, Ling Hua, speaking standard Mandarin, announced the address of Ling Shaojie’s house…

which she had stolen from school records.

“Oh, oh, oh, somewhere in the north part of the city, right?”

The driver responded and then asked, “Wait, this blonde girl can speak Chinese?”

Ling Hua smirked and waved her hand, saying, “Uncle, you’re joking! I’ve grown up here, only traveled outside the city for tourism. Of course, I know Chinese!”

Ling Hua was telling the truth, but in the driver’s eyes, this was great conversation material. He wanted to say more, but Ling Hua urged him, “Uncle, just drive! We’re in a hurry!”

“Alright, hold on tight!”

The driver chuckled and sped off.

Only after the meter ticked a few times did the blonde princess touch my head.

She whispered, “Risa-chan, what about the reward for the fool?”

Right, to hide our identities, I used my fake name again.

But Ling Hua, when Xiao Lei was around, called her “Lei-chan,” showing great familiarity, yet now that Xiao Lei was gone, she called her “fool.”

I was different.

Even in front of Xiao Lei, I would still call her a fool.

—”Wow, you’re quite harsh.”—

I glanced at my phone; there were no new messages from Xiao Lei.

“Shaojie-senpai probably hasn’t returned home yet.”

During our time in the south city, Xiao Lei had been keeping watch near Ling Shaojie’s residence. If Ling Shaojie came back or showed any new movements, Xiao Lei would report to us. The reason for not directly tracking her was to avoid exposure.

Tracking an expert tracker?

That sounded like a bad idea.

Across from Ling Shaojie’s high-rise apartment was an office building with several board game clubs. Xiao Lei was hiding in one of them on the 13th floor, watching Ling Shaojie’s place.

“Shaojie-senpai hasn’t come home yet? Has the fool been discovered?”

If it were just Xiao Lei, there was a possibility.

But I denied it: “No way, with Sister Shan with her, I’m confident.”

Though Sister Léiluó was confined at home by Sister Yuǎnyuè and couldn’t go to work, a genius detective had taken her place. With keen intuition, clear thinking, and meticulous observation, she had solved many difficult cases for the local police, becoming a popular figure in the force.

Indeed, I was talking about Sister Shan. Her undercover operation with the police had honed these skills.

Sister Shan was reliable and was acting as an advisor in this operation, working alongside Xiao Lei. It was her idea to use the board game club in the office building to keep an eye on Ling Shaojie’s residence.

“Otherwise, the fool would have climbed up the trees in the neighborhood, shivering while waiting.”

By the way.

The “luck” that had been drained by Qian Xia’s curse had returned to normal levels after some natural balance. Sister Miāomiāo could revert, but considering her family hierarchy, I decided to ignore Léiluó’s request to recover first.

“Stinky brat! Change me back right now!”

A childish roar.

As soon as we entered the board game room, a little girl in a neat dress pounced at me, skillfully locking my arm and pinning me down… grappling!

Poor me, too weak to struggle, could only lie there wailing, “What are you doing, Léiluó? That hurts! Human joints don’t bend that way!”

She commanded, “Today you’ll get a taste of toughness, change me back!”

Clearly, she could only beat me today!

But she recognized me despite my complete transformation…

—”Perhaps it’s due to your aura. Líng Hua’s noble energy field is something you can’t imitate. By elimination, you can confirm your identity.”—

Tsk, my poor aura really is a letdown.

“Alright, Father, don’t make things hard for Ling Meng. Without Yuanyue’s permission, she wouldn’t dare change you back.”

Sister Shan lifted Léiluó off me and helped me up, saying, “Are you hurt? Father just hasn’t transformed back into an adult for a long time, so he’s a bit mentally sluggish.”

I looked at Léiluó; she crossed her arms, puffed out her cheeks, and sat angrily on the couch next to me… quite cute.

“…I’m fine, just a bit sore in the butt. Sister Shan, why did you bring Léiluó along?”

Sister Shan shrugged, “When you asked for help, she insisted on coming.”

Sure enough, Léiluó started shouting again.

“Ling Meng, if I don’t return to work, I’ll lose my job!”

I rubbed my sore bottom and sat beside her, comforting her, “It’s okay, Sister Shan has covered your work, so you won’t be unemployed.”

“You can’t rely on your adoptive daughter for work!”

You’re even worse than Sister Shan…

Léiluó shook me again.

“You three are all so small, it feels like a middle school reunion… Léiluó looks like a primary school student.” Ling Hua joked, but no one seemed pleased. She turned to Xiao Lei, who was peering out the window, “Lei-chan, let me take over for a bit, you rest.”

But Xiao Lei replied without turning, “No need! I’ll do what I can, and you do what you can!”

Ling Hua hadn’t given Xiao Lei a task last night, which still bothered her, so she had to firmly grasp this reconnaissance opportunity.

“I meant that your spying method is too obvious… if Senpai comes back, she might notice.”

Xiao Lei then hunched down behind the window, but her eyes were still peeking across the residential building.

However, Ling Shaojie’s room didn’t have any lights on.

Sister Shan said, “Actually, I have a question. Is this address really her residence? I checked the housing platform, and her place is a small, compact 67-square-meter apartment, one bedroom, one living room. Because of its size, the rent is relatively low. If she doesn’t lack money, this place might be rented just as a decoy, and her real residence is elsewhere.”

She was shaking three crystal dice, probably taken from the board game club counter.

“Why would she do that?”

Sister Shan explained, “Like a clever rabbit with three burrows, no matter how smooth, dealing with intelligence can make enemies. So having multiple self-protection methods is normal.”

Intelligence work often makes enemies.

Back then, Sister Shan was stabbed by Sister Zi because she was a spy.

Queen Miss’s cautious attitude is evident…

In a sense, we and Ling Shaojie are enemies. What we’re doing now is seeking revenge, albeit with different methods, since she still has value to us.

Sister Shan’s speculation was somewhat disheartening.

“So, no matter how late we wait here, Senpai won’t come?”

Sister Shan nodded and shook her head, not daring to be too certain.

“Everything I’ve said is just a guess, but currently, it’s highly likely that the target won’t come.”

If that’s the case, even if we sneak in, we won’t find anything useful…

Xiao Lei also complained, “Why didn’t you say that earlier! Then why did I spend all that time watching?”

“Hey, Lei-chan is really impatient~”

Cherry Sauce took control of my body, saying, “Maybe Ling Shaojie won’t come, but we still have ways to lure her here… the hunter setting traps won’t stay far away. Even if Sister Shan’s judgment is correct, Ling Shaojie’s real residence is still in this neighborhood.”

“Ling Meng’s tone changed.”

“Aha, you noticed the difference?”

“Not surprised, it’s Sister Shan!”

“Wow?”

Even though they noticed the difference in tone, Sister Shan and Léiluó were still confused. Ling Hua explained, “The confident one is Cherry Sauce. She and Kǎi are currently in a combined state, sharing a body without fully merging spirits.”

I’m the less confident one…

“Why combine? Wouldn’t it be inconvenient?” Léiluó asked.

“There’s no need for reasons. We’re originally one.”

Léiluó blinked, puzzled but didn’t ask further.

“Is Cherry planning to use herself as bait to lure Senpai out?”

Finally, someone understood.

“Yes, what do you think I kept a clone for?”

Cherry’s half-soul began transferring to the notebook, making me incomplete again. This empty feeling was uncomfortable, even though it never happened before…

Then, a foot kicked out from my belly, and Cherry’s voice echoed, “Pull me up!”

She finally realized it was easier to come out starting from the legs.

But since I was short and slender, she got stuck at the chest. She had to expand her clothes and, with help from Ling Hua and Sister Shan, awkwardly emerged.

“Phew… I’m exhausted.”

She returned to her original form, unaffected by random transformations.

“Confirm the plan. I’ll act as bait to lure Ling Shaojie out. Xiao Kǎi will search her home for clues. Sister Shan and Ling Hua will organize the clues into useful information… I’ve taken the phone and some materials. If anything happens, I’ll contact you telepathically.”

Amid Xiao Lei’s questioning, “What about me?”, Cherry took a black substance from me and wove it into a red-and-black checkered scarf.

I replied, “Yes, I’ll act after Senpai appears.”

With me around, Ling Shaojie will definitely appear.