Si Hang put down the cup, his dark eyes turned toward her.

This way of addressing him wasn’t new to him, but somehow, even though it was a very intimate term, when spoken in her soft, indifferent voice, it was like a string in his heart was plucked, sending ripples through his chest, creating a strange sense of excitement.

Zhuang Zi, however, was completely oblivious. To her, it was just a term of address. She used to call her colleagues at the company in the same way—Brother Zhang, Brother Li. But since his surname was Si, calling him by his surname didn’t sound quite right.

She originally wanted to call him “cousin,” but who would actually call someone that? So she improvised on the spot—”Brother Hang.”

…

After ordering, Pei Zheng handed Zhuang Zi a handbag he had brought with him. Inside was an exquisite square gift box.

Zhuang Zi didn’t even look at it, only politely saying, “Thank you.”

Pei Zheng smiled and said, “I went on a business trip to France a couple of days ago. The female colleagues who went with me all said this brand is really good, so I bought one as a small gift.”

“Next time, don’t be so formal.”

Pei Zheng smiled but said nothing more.

Si Hang watched the two of them for a while, feeling utterly bored. He coldly shifted his gaze away from them and got up to wash his hands.

When he returned, the waiter had already started serving the food.

The meal was relatively harmonious and pleasant.

Pei Zheng was quite talkative, discussing work, society, family matters, and national affairs with Si Hang, keeping the atmosphere relatively normal.

Zhuang Zi didn’t say much throughout, only briefly leaving the table halfway through.

Si Hang glanced at her, knowing exactly what she was up to.

…

After the meal, the three of them left Wanda Plaza and said goodbye to Pei Zheng in the parking lot.

Before leaving, Zhuang Zi took out a book on literary translation techniques from her bag and handed it to Pei Zheng. “I read this before; it’s very practical. I hope it helps you.”

Pei Zheng accepted it with surprise. “I’ve been wondering what to read lately. Your gift came at the perfect time. Hey, what’s this notebook?”

He was about to open it when Zhuang Zi glanced at his action and interrupted, “Those are just some key notes I took. You can see if they might be useful to you.”

“Alright,” Pei Zheng laughed heartily. “Thanks.”

Zhuang Zi said, “If you have any professional questions in the future, you can message me on WeChat.”

Pei Zheng looked at her, the emotions in his eyes already clear without words.

He took a deep breath and forced himself to smile naturally.

Zhuang Zi knew that Si Hang was in a hurry to get back to work, so she said goodbye to Pei Zheng.

Pei Zheng watched them walk away, the smile on his face gradually fading.

That man was definitely not her cousin.

Although they hadn’t shown any actual intimacy or had any tacit communication, men’s instincts are sharp. Without even guessing, he could sense the danger the other posed. What’s more, their awkwardly coordinated acting at the dinner table only made it more obvious that something was wrong.

If today, Zhuang Zi had been accompanied by an ordinary man, he might have had the confidence to try again. But every expression of the man exuded sharp intelligence. He looked too outstanding, and just by sitting there, his aura was unmistakably revealed.

Moreover, his gaze always carried a hint of arrogance, giving off a challenging vibe.

He wouldn’t be easy to deal with.

After years as colleagues without receiving any response, now there was a formidable rival in the picture.

His instincts were already telling him he would lose without a fight.

Pei Zheng withdrew his gaze from their retreating figures and returned to his car. His phone beeped.

He took it out and saw a message from Zhuang Zi on WeChat:

[Notebook password 123456.]

He followed her instructions and unlocked the notebook, only to freeze in the next moment.

The brand-new notebook had nothing in it except for a single row of neatly written small characters on the first page.

Pei Zheng stared at the notebook for a long time.

He hadn’t expected her to repay him in such a way.

Leaving him no room to refuse.

…

“What did you write in the password-protected notebook?” Si Hang asked.

Just before Pei Zheng arrived, he had seen her writing something in the notebook. He hadn’t been concerned then, so he didn’t ask.

It wasn’t until he saw her give the notebook to Pei Zheng that he realized why she had bought the book and the password-protected notebook on the way there. Now, he was a bit curious about what she had written that she considered to have repaid her debt.

“A private lesson link,” Zhuang Zi replied.

She had already planned this before arriving.

She had written a link and password in the notebook, leading to an online one-on-one private lesson by a very famous British instructor in the field of translation. Back at the company, many colleagues had discussed it, but since the price was too high, no one had been willing to purchase the course. Although the fee for such a master class was indeed expensive, the content was absolutely worth the price.

She had given him a set of valuable lessons, which far exceeded the fine but gave her peace of mind.

Moreover, it looked more like a reciprocal gesture rather than bluntly repaying the favor with money, which would have been awkward for both of them.

…

Before heading to the police station, Si Hang first detoured to drop her off at home.

After getting in the car, while fastening her seatbelt, Zhuang Zi asked him, “When did you go to pay the bill?”

Earlier during the meal, she intended to pay the bill in advance, but the front desk informed her that the handsome guy she was with had already settled it.

Apart from her, only Si Hang had left in the middle of the meal, so who else could it have been?

Si Hang started the engine and said stiffly, “While you were discussing imported gifts with another man.”

Zhuang Zi paused in her actions, turned to look at him, and for a moment, she couldn’t find the words to respond.

He didn’t look at her, driving out of the underground parking lot with a blank expression.

It wasn’t until the car was on the main road that Zhuang Zi casually said, “Then I’ll treat you next time.”

She had promised to pay, but in the end, he spent the money, which made her feel a bit guilty.

Si Hang ignored her.

The car drove on for quite a while before he brought up another topic, “I’ve looked at Zhuang Yao’s call records. The last person she contacted was a Dr. Yuan, about half an hour before the incident.”

“Dr. Yuan was my sister’s attending physician. She had congenital urticaria.”

Si Hang looked ahead, his face expressionless. “You might want to get in touch with this person, to see if Zhuang Yao mentioned anything to her before the incident.”

“Okay.” Zhuang Zi agreed, then suddenly realized, “You’ve looked into my sister’s case?”

Si Hang paused for a second before flatly denying, “No.”

Zhuang Zi didn’t question it further.