“…” Zhuang Zi’s fingers unconsciously clenched into a fist, her cheeks reddening slightly as she looked at him. She told herself not to pay attention to him, but couldn’t help but retort, “Not everyone is lucky enough to meet the right person.”

He spread his hands, “So?”

Zhuang Zi pressed her lips tightly together.

She really didn’t want to bring up her past affairs, not in front of him or anyone else.

She was trying to cooperate with the investigation, but her short-lived, insignificant relationships seemed irrelevant to the case.

She spoke about them because he had insisted on her cooperation. Although she didn’t usually care what others thought of her past, his contemptuous smile made her feel uneasy.

But then she thought, their relationship was purely professional, and she was grateful to his parents. Once the case was over, they’d go their separate ways. There was no need to explain herself to him.

With this in mind, she decided to be frank. She furrowed her brows slightly and said indifferently, “Since I couldn’t find someone suitable, why not marry a well-off man who was willing?”

Si Hang’s eyebrows twitched.

He stared at her indifferent, uncaring attitude, speechless for several seconds.

After a moment, he coldly chuckled, “If you see things so clearly, why are you still single?”

Zhuang Zi looked at him warily, noticing his questions were becoming increasingly off-topic.

This was supposed to be about the investigation, so why was he focusing on her private matters?

She wasn’t one to argue much and had no interest in debating with him. She coolly countered, “I don’t see how this is relevant to the case.”

The room fell silent again.

Si Hang remained silent, his dark eyes fixed on her.

Zhuang Zi glanced at him, noting his cold expression. She realized her earlier resistance might have been too obvious.

She considered for a moment and then tried to shift the topic, “I have no grudges with them, so they have no reason to seek revenge.”

Si Hang still looked at her, saying nothing, his expression unreadable.

Zhuang Zi’s expression remained calm as if discussing a former friend she had lost contact with, “We’ve all moved on and lost contact. Why would anyone ruin their good life to trouble me?”

Si Hang finally spoke, “No conflicts, but you still broke up.”

Zhuang Zi looked at him, “What do you mean?”

“Breakups often lead to fights and bad blood,” Si Hang said, spinning a pen between his fingers, “Maybe you think it’s over, but the other party might not. If you can’t talk about some things, that’s fine, but I need the truth about the breakups.”

Zhuang Zi frowned slightly.

What was there to explain?

She broke up with her exes because they weren’t suitable, ending things amicably with no particular reason.

Even if there had been minor conflicts, they were trivial and not worth mentioning.

If she had to find a suspicious point…

She suddenly recalled something, pausing slightly before looking at Si Hang, “On the night of the incident, I did run into someone.”

Si Hang asked, “Who?”

“The second one.”

“What’s his name?”

Caught off guard that night, Zhuang Zi had momentarily forgotten the man’s name.

It wasn’t that she had a bad memory, but she tended to forget unimportant people.

Their relationship was brief, lasting only three months, and to her, he was just a passerby.

But now, she remembered his parents were from Yi Province, and he should have had a home in the city. Why was he at the hotel that night?

Thinking about it, it seemed strange.

What was his name? He something?

She vaguely recalled and said uncertainly, “He Yue?”

…

After leaving some basic information about a few people, Si Hang told her to get Xiao Zhao to take her home first and then immediately instructed his subordinates to investigate those people’s current basic information.

By the time the investigation results were sent to his phone, it was already the end of the workday, and he was driving home.

He had told Aunt Qin earlier that he would be home for dinner, so she prepared two of his favorite dishes.

When he entered the house, Zhuang Zi was in the dining room helping to set the table.

He took one look at her busying herself in his dining room, displaying a virtuous demeanor, and slightly raised an eyebrow.

After changing his clothes in the bedroom, he walked to the dining room.

Seeing him come in, Zhuang Zi gave him a brief glance.

He sat down at the table, picked up a glass from the tea tray, and looked at Zhuang Zi. “Hey.”

Zhuang Zi looked up at him.

He nodded towards the teapot at the other end of the dining table. It was too far for him to reach while seated.

Understanding his gesture, Zhuang Zi casually picked up the teapot with honey lemon water and filled his glass more than halfway.

Si Hang didn’t thank her, taking a sip without any courtesy.

Zhuang Zi then turned to go to the kitchen to help serve the rice. Seeing that the rice cooker indicated two more minutes, she returned to the dining room and sat down.

Si Hang was looking at his phone. When he saw her come back, he said, “The information on your exes has been retrieved.”

Zhuang Zi glanced at him and poured herself a glass of honey lemon water. “Oh.”

Si Hang focused on his screen, swiping through the photos of three men one by one.

They weren’t ugly, nor were they greasy. But to say they were handsome, none were particularly striking.

Overall, they were passable.

But for some reason, he suddenly recalled a remark he overheard outside his office that morning, and his expression darkened.

Why was it possible for her to be with these men, but impossible with him?

Was it because he wasn’t as handsome as them? Or not as charming or well-built?

A strong sense of competitiveness surged within him, affecting his nerves. He felt that if he didn’t vent, he wouldn’t enjoy this meal.

So he tossed his phone onto the table, lifted his eyelids, and looked at the woman across from him with a cold gaze.

Zhuang Zi had just finished her water and met his strange look, returning it warily.

Then she saw him adjust his posture slightly, tap his phone screen with his hand on the table, and a faint, indifferent smile appeared in his eyes. “Is that the best you can do?”

Zhuang Zi glanced down at the screen, where there was a stiff photo of Jiang Tianchen in a suit, looking very handsome.

She didn’t understand why he suddenly asked her this, so she cautiously looked back at his face, not saying a word.

He suddenly let out a mocking laugh, shook his head, and his expression was unclear whether it was disdain or ridicule. “It seems you’re beyond hope.”

“………”