The time was almost 11 p.m.
Jingbei was a bustling metropolis, and even at this late hour, the streets were still crowded with traffic.
Yet the unfamiliar text message on her phone sent a chill down Lin Mo’s spine.
Who was following her?
Wasn’t Zhang Meixia already arrested?
Then who sent this message?
Frowning, she leaned forward to glance in the rearview mirror.
Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Her slender fingers typed a reply: [Who are you?]
A minute passed with no response.
She searched for the phone number on WeChat but found nothing.
Zhao Ziling noticed Lin Mo’s unease. "What’s wrong?"
Lin Mo told her about the message.
Zhao Ziling also checked the rearview mirror but saw nothing unusual. "Probably just a prank?"
Lin Mo lowered her gaze and sent another text:
[Pranksters will never get rich!]
Again, no reply.
She forwarded the number to Jiang Tang, asking her to check who it belonged to.
This was a newly reactivated number—only a handful of people knew it.
Zhao Ziling glanced at the rearview mirror once more, still finding nothing amiss. Then her stomach growled. "I haven’t eaten all night. Wanna grab something with me?"
They had just wrapped up a week of intense filming for a variety show.
Lin Mo planned to take a couple of days off before returning to classes, so she wasn’t in a hurry to sleep.
"Sure, what do you want?"
Zhao Ziling remembered Lin Mo had already eaten skewers on the yacht earlier. "How about some braised chicken?"
Lin Mo blinked in confusion. "People still eat that these days? What kind of animal is it?"
Zhao Ziling: "..."
From the moment he got into the car, Xie Guanyan had been buried in work.
A week’s worth of documents had piled up like a mountain.
"We’re here, Mr. Xie," Jin Yang announced.
Xie Guanyan stepped out of the car.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!" Confetti burst in the air.
The butler and staff chorused in unison, "Welcome home, sir and madam!"
Xie Guanyan: "..."
He plucked the streamers off his head and shoulders, a faint smile tugging at his lips. "That’s thoughtful of you. But the madam isn’t home yet."
Madam. Such an intimate title—as if they were already married. He liked it.
But Shanshan probably wouldn’t. She was only eighteen. Marriage was a distant concept for her.
With the lady of the house away, the butler had spent the week leisurely catching up on variety shows and short dramas.
Beaming, he said, "Then we’ll do it again when the madam returns!"
Xie Guanyan pinched a streamer between his fingers and strode inside. "No need. You’re all dismissed for the night."
"Oh, and in front of her, you’ll still address her as Miss Lin."
His first priority upon returning home was always a shower—he wanted to be at his best when Shanshan came back.
Zhao Ziling’s car couldn’t be far behind.
Yet even after his shower, Lin Mo still hadn’t returned.
The staff had all left, leaving the vast villa eerily quiet with just him inside.
Xie Guanyan picked up his phone, hesitating over whether to message her.
Where are you? Why aren’t you back yet?
Would she find it annoying?
An eighteen-year-old girl was at the age where fun came first. Would she resent him for being too controlling?
This was his first relationship—he had no idea how other couples behaved.
All he knew was that he wanted to see Shanshan every second, to know where she was and who she was with.
Ideally, she’d only be with him.
But that was impossible.
Shanshan had her own circle of friends and family, and someday, her own career.
He would always be just a small part of her life.
And that was enough. He wouldn’t ask for more.
In the end, he didn’t send the message. Instead, the man in his pajamas sat on the sofa and called his bodyguards.
"This braised chicken place is great, right? The dance crew introduced me to it!" Zhao Ziling grinned.
Lately, she’d been spending a lot of time at the theater, often eating with the dancers.
It was a family-run shop that stayed open late to make extra money.
Lin Mo gave a thumbs-up. "Delish!"
The two chatted about everything and nothing as time slipped past midnight.
Zhao Ziling suddenly checked the time and smacked her forehead. "Oh right, you have a boyfriend now! Has Xie Guanyan been blowing up your phone?"
Lin Mo finished the last sip of her Mirinda and shook her head. "He hasn’t messaged me."
Zhao Ziling looked ready to cry from envy. "He gives you a fortune and doesn’t nag you? Is Xie Guanyan even real?"
Lin Mo crumpled the empty can in her hand. "Hard to believe, honestly."
After paying, they stepped outside.
The restaurant was roadside, with cars parked along the street.
Lin Mo’s gaze landed on a black SUV that looked familiar.
Upon closer inspection, she realized it belonged to the two bodyguards—the same car that had taken Xie Guanyan to the hospital when he was drugged.
Her eyes widened in surprise. She almost walked over to greet them when the mysterious text flashed in her mind.
Now that she thought about it, she’d "coincidentally" run into these two several times before.
First, during that dinner with Shen Ji'an and Auntie Zhen, when the scar-faced man had pulled a knife on Auntie Zhen. The bodyguards had intervened, and one even drove her and Xie Guanyan to the hospital.
Second, when she went to the Huo Residence to find Zhao Ziling, she’d spotted them swimming in the river.
Third, during the variety show—where they’d coincidentally been cast as "men in black."
They were skilled fighters, and one even knew how to defuse bombs.
And now, right after filming ended, here they were again—at a random eatery she’d never visited before.
Could it really be a coincidence?
During dinner, Jiang Tang had replied: the number that texted her was a temporary online number, untraceable.
"What are you looking at?" Zhao Ziling asked, noticing Lin Mo had frozen in place.
Lin Mo shook her head. "Nothing."
Better not tip them off.
If she saw them again tomorrow, she’d confront them properly.
Inside the SUV, Bodyguard Brother nearly dropped his burger when Lin Mo’s gaze swept over their car.
Even with the heavily tinted windows, he felt exposed—as if she could see right through them.
Panicking, he shoved the fallen burger into Bodyguard Brother’s mouth.
Miss Lin is too sharp. She remembers this car.
They’d just wrapped filming—he’d gotten careless.
The way she’d stared for three seconds before pretending not to notice… Did she suspect something?
He had to report this to the boss immediately.
Once Zhao Ziling’s car drove off, Bodyguard Brother exhaled in relief and snatched Bodyguard Brother’s unopened burger.
Bodyguard Brother: "..."
The moment he finished eating, Bodyguard Brother called Xie Guanyan. "Boss, we’ve got a problem. Remember when we took you to the hospital? Miss Lin just recognized our car but didn’t approach us."
Seated on his sofa with work documents in hand, Xie Guanyan’s eyes darkened behind his glasses. He pushed them up with one finger. "Take some time off starting now."
They’d been appearing too frequently lately. Good thing he already had replacements lined up.
After hanging up, Bodyguard Brother sighed in frustration.
Should’ve been more careful.
Would the boss ever let them come back?
