The sun shone warmly in the morning.
The sound of a sizzling pan was heard from the kitchen—it was Tang Hao, who was making breakfast. Dumplings were evenly spread on the pan, immersed in boiling oil as they sizzled to a golden brown.
A mouth-watering fragrance filled the air.
Tang Hao learned how to cook when he was young. After many years of practice, he had become a well-trained cook. Sis Xiangyi could not stop praising him after having a taste. Therefore, from that day onward, Tang Hao became in charge of breakfast, dinner, and even supper.
He carefully moved the dumplings onto a plate and placed it on the dining table. He could hear gentle footsteps approaching from the hallway.
“Morning!”
A lithe and graceful figure walked into the kitchen.
She was dressed in simple, black pajamas. The pajamas were rather thin; it was unable to hide her graceful body—a small, delicate waist with long, slender legs that extended into a pair of feet that were as beautiful as jade. Despite that, her figure was still very alluring.
Her hair was slightly messy. The expression on her face was languid as she let out a few yawns.
Her beautiful figure was shown as she stretched.
Tang Hao was helpless, even though he had witnessed it plenty of times before.
He blushed. Then, he gave a light cough and said, “You’re up!”
Qin Xiangyi answered with a simple “erm” and sat down. When she noticed the plate of dumplings on the table, her face beamed with joy at the surprise. “My favorite!”
As she said that, she picked up a dumpling with her fingers excitedly and stuffed it into her mouth.
“Hmm! So good!”
She nodded vigorously with a face full of satisfaction.
Tang Hao smiled and sat down too. “Sis Xiangyi, how’s everything in the factory?”
“Busy! Super busy! We just accepted a huge order,” said Qin Xiangyi while eating.
“Oh!” Tang Hao replied.
After a brief pause, he continued, “Yesterday, Secretary Lin informed me that your protection is going to be removed starting from today. There hasn’t been any sign of Chen Sandao for around a dozen days now. Things haven’t been safe in the district recently and the police are lacking manpower.”
“It’s alright! Don’t worry, Lil Tang. I’m in the factory most of the time. Chen Sandao won’t dare to show up in the factory no matter how brave he is.”
After breakfast, she was about to head back to her room.
“Wait, Sis Xiangyi. I have something for you.” Tang Hao stood up.
“Hmm?” Qin Xiangyi stopped in her tracks and turned around to look at Tang Hao with curious eyes. “What is it?”
“A gift!”
“Gift?”
Her pretty eyes beamed in surprise. “Wait, don’t show me yet. Lemme guess. Flowers?”
Tang Hao shook his head.
“Then, a necklace?”
Tang Hao shook his head again.
“It can’t be a ring, can it?”
Tang Hao shook his head and extended the hands that he had previously folded behind his back. On his palm sat an intricate black box. A bright glow poured out as he gently opened the box.
It was a bracelet with a platinum base, inlaid with numerous tiny diamonds. A bead of jade as red as blood was set in the middle of the bracelet.
The bracelet shone—it was so bright, mesmerizing, and ethereal.
“Heavens! It’s so beautiful!”
Qin Xiangyi covered her mouth in shock and exclaimed, “Is this really for me?”
Tang Hao nodded. He stepped forward and handed the lidded box over to her. With a serious tone, he said, “You must wear this bracelet at all times. You mustn’t take it off as it will protect you.”
With her hands over her mouth, she stared at the magnificent bracelet before her. She felt indescribable joy, and at the same time, was extremely touched.
“Lil Tang, put it on for me!”
She extended a pale wrist in a somewhat coquettish tone.
Tang Hao picked up the bracelet and put it on her wrist gently.
The bracelet emitted a mesmerizing glow, complementing her pale skin that could rival snow. It seemed even more dreamlike than before.
“It looks so good! Lil Tang, thank you so much!”
Qin Xiangyi raised her wrist and looked at it left and right. She could not help but feel like bursting with joy. Suddenly, she pursed her lips, closed in on Tang Hao’s face, and planted a kiss on Tang Hao’s cheek.
She giggled. Redness blossomed on her pretty face.
Tang Hao froze; he was stupefied. Then, as though controlled by some unknown force, he suddenly moved closer and returned a gentle kiss on her cheek.
At that moment, she was stunned too. A pair of beautiful eyes stared unblinkingly at Tang Hao.
The atmosphere became bewitching and magical.
Just like that, ten full seconds passed. She suddenly tiptoed. Her face neared his and she sealed his lips with hers. A pair of pale cream hands wrapped around Tang Hao’s neck as she did this.
Tang Hao jerked. His eyes widened slightly.
At this moment, his mind was almost blank.
Subconsciously, he reciprocated.
Their movements gradually became more intense, and more emotional.
Yet, it was at this moment that Tang Hao’s cellphone rang.
Both of them froze. Tang Hao let out a wry laugh and lamented internally at the bad timing.
“Go ahead and pick up!”
Qin Xiangyi retreated. Her pretty face was completely red, like a ripe apple.
Tang Hao took out his phone. It was Taoist Master Chang Qing.
Tang Hao cursed him internally for a while, but answered the call anyway. He knew that if the Taoist master had called him at this time, it had to be with news relating to the evil ghost.
“Hello! Fellow Cultivator Tang, are you free right now?” The Taoist master’s voice came from the other end of the phone.
The Taoist master shouted rather loudly. There seemed to be a commotion around him.
“I’m free. What’s the matter?” asked Tang Hao.
“That fella… committed another crime! I’m now near the crime scene.”
Tang Hao’s eyebrows furrowed. He replied, “Alright! Wait for me, I’ll be there shortly.”
After hanging up, Tang Hao scratched his head awkwardly and said, “It’s the Taoist master. He’s the one I told you about a few days ago. He’s been investigating a case and wants me to help out.”
“A case? What case?”
“The one that’s been causing quite stir. Don’t worry, it isn’t dangerous.”
“Alright!” Qin Xiangyi began to speak but she hesitated. Instead, she simply nodded and said, “Let me send you there.”
She put on a change of clothes and sent Tang Hao to the location the Taoist master had mentioned.
It was a small hotel. At that moment, police cars surrounded the perimeter of the hotel while the police cordoned off the area. Many policemen were standing around.
A large group of people surrounded the entrance of the hotel. They looked at the hotel with horrified expressions.
“It was terrifying! I heard that more than one person died! They died tragic deaths and were all flayed.”
“Flayed? Oh, no! That’s terrible! Is this related to the previous case?”
The crowd was discussing the incident.
Tang Hao walked over and recognized Taoist Master Chang Qing in front of the group.
He called out and the Taoist master walked over immediately, “Fellow Cultivator Tang, you’re here!”
“What’s going on?” Asked Tang Hao.
“I’m not sure about everything that happened but I can confirm that it’s the same guy. I’m waiting for the police to collect all the evidence before I sneak into the place. If I can still find any traces he left behind, I’ll be able to track him down and find out where he’s hiding.”
“Alright!” Tang Hao responded.
After waiting for a while, they saw two more police cars driving over to the other side of the street.
The two police cars stopped in front of the hotel’s entrance. As the car doors opened, a group of people got out of the car. They were clearly from the Criminal Police Unit.
A grin spread across Tang Hao’s face as he said, “Master, let’s go in now!”
“Oh, okay!” The Taoist master answered involuntarily before suddenly becoming confused.
How were they supposed to enter with this many police around?
As he opened his mouth to ask, he saw Tang Hao walking straight ahead.