“Andy… Mmm-hmm…”
Sophia, still groggy, curled up, her legs instinctively wrapping around the person beside her.
“?”
Why had Andy shrunk?
And why was he so much softer?
Sophia groggily opened her eyes, only to see Youxi lying beside her, looking at her with a scrutinizing gaze.
“Sophia, did you sleep well last night?”
Sophia subconsciously shivered:
“Uh… Good, not bad! Morning, Youxi, where’s… Andy?”
“Brother went to make breakfast.”
Youxi’s pretty little face was expressionless.
“I saw you were sleeping so soundly, I couldn’t help but snuggle closer.”
Hmm… She was lying. She had actually snuck into the bed not long after Sophia fell asleep last night, occupying the space between the two of them.
It was as if she was the one with two wings.
Of course, Sophia, being a bit simple-minded, didn’t notice, and being stared at like that gave her a strange sense of guilt.
“Ah, hahaha… Jasmine should be here soon. Today is our first day of school, so we should get up early…”
Sophia chuckled, preparing to get up, but Youxi held her in place.
“Youxi?”
Youxi didn’t answer, only buried her head in Sophia’s embrace, remaining silent for a while before a muffled, ticklish sound emerged:
“Sophia… In the future, if something happens, don’t bear it alone, okay?”
Sophia was slightly startled, her eyelids lowered, and she instinctively hugged Youxi tighter:
“Mmm, I know.”
Since it was the first day of school, they might as well… sleep a little longer.
At the same time the two girls were lying in bed, Li Andy on the other side heard a knock at the door.
After letting the mature spatula cook the breakfast by itself, he went to the door.
Upon opening it, he saw that the visitor was not Jasmine and Harveys, but Officer Susan.
Li Andy raised an eyebrow:
“Something wrong?”
Susan glanced inside the door, and seeing no one else, she spoke:
“I want you to do my makeup, um… like a streetwalker.”
Li Andy’s mouth twitched slightly, a bit taken aback.
He naturally understood that Susan wanted to go undercover to bait a trap.
But why did she come to him, a man she barely knew, for makeup?
“Uh, Ms. Susan, why don’t you ask your female colleagues?” Li Andy couldn’t help but ask.
“.......” Susan was silent, her body tensing slightly.
“You… have absolutely no friends? Not even acquaintances?” Li Andy felt this person was even more outrageous than described in the game.
Susan couldn’t hold back anymore and retorted, gritting her teeth:
“Isn’t this an office?! This is a commission! I’ll pay you!”
“Hmm… Do you think I can do makeup?” Li Andy threw the question back.
“.......”
Now both of them were silent.
Just then, Harveys arrived with Jasmine in a carriage and walked gracefully towards them.
“Andy, who is this?” Harveys asked with some curiosity.
“Susan, our North Street Security Bureau officer.” Li Andy introduced her while ushering the three inside.
At this point, he remembered that Harveys was very good at dressing up, so he informed her of Susan’s request.
After listening, Harveys blinked, her gaze towards Susan gradually becoming one of admiration.
“Officer, I’d be happy to help, but your plan… won’t it be too dangerous?”
Susan frowned, not knowing if it was dissatisfaction with Li Andy exposing her plan, or simply a lack of good expression.
“To catch that madman as soon as possible, I need to do this. Recently, the victims’ residences have been moving further and further from Black Alley. I’m afraid it won’t be long before the killer’s targets are not limited to streetwalkers. You also have a daughter; you wouldn’t want that kind of danger constantly lingering around, would you?”
Harveys opened her mouth, unable to refute, and finally sighed, accepting the commission.
While Jasmine was calling the two girls to get up, Li Andy also prepared breakfast.
“Did your superiors approve this plan?” Li Andy also offered Susan a glass of milk and bread.
Susan paused, then, thinking of the commission fee she might have to pay, frankly accepted the hospitality.
“They approved.”
“Then they’re not sending a helper to assist you?”
“No need.”
“You think they’re incompetent?”
“......Internal Security Bureau secret, not suitable for disclosure.”
Through their on-and-off conversation, Li Andy roughly understood the current situation of the West Street Security Bureau.
Due to the Empire’s trade tax order and continuous minor conflicts between districts, their Security Bureau’s finances and manpower were very tight.
Not to mention the puppet incident Li Andy stirred up a few days ago, which undoubtedly added a lot of pressure to many people and matters.
“Brother, do we have guests?”
The three girls, dressed, slowly came downstairs. His sister, Youxi, suddenly paused when she saw Susan, then scampered to Li Andy’s side, possessively sitting on his lap and enjoying his half-eaten breakfast.
Her actions surprised Li Andy a little.
Normally, she wouldn’t be so clingy when outsiders were present.
“Officer Susan, she visited yesterday and is a client today.” Li Andy naturally put his arm around Youxi and introduced her.
In his own territory, he didn’t much care about others’ opinions. Anyway, in the eyes of foreigners, they looked no different from biological siblings.
Susan looked at the vibrant Youxi and Sophia, her gaze showing a small hint of admiration, but a sense of danger from an unknown source made her frown again.
Her excellent graduation from the military academy and multiple meritorious deeds largely depended on this instinct.
Who was it?
It couldn’t possibly… be this girl, could it?
Could it be that the killer had already set his sights on this place?
She quickly scanned outside the window, but there were only swaying leaves, no suspicious persons.
This bone-chilling sense of crisis only silently dissipated after Li Andy finished explaining the commission details to his sister.
When Susan relaxed her tense shoulder blades, cold sweat had already soaked the back of her uniform into a dark map.
“Ms. Susan, are you alright?”
Harveys asked with concern.
“I’m fine…”
Susan rubbed her forehead.
“Perhaps… I’ve been a bit stressed lately.”
===
(My body hasn’t fully recovered; looking at anything for too long makes me a bit dizzy. I’m currently recuperating my stomach and replenishing qi and blood, so for these two days, it’ll be one update for now. I’m the type of person who doesn’t have much in terms of saved drafts, but my detailed and general outlines are quite long. The details are polished later. Right now, my head feels heavy, and I can’t really get into the flow. I’ll make up for it when my body recovers.)
(Also, dear patrons, please don’t stay up late. Although staying up late feels great, one day if you accidentally eat something wrong, and a bunch of debuffs explode at the same time, it’s truly deadly.)