Chen Er sensed that the atmosphere was a bit off. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Jiang Cong's furrowed brows.
She knew that Jiang Cong was deep in thought.
Chen Er gave a rogueish smile, whistled suggestively again, and draped an arm around Jiang Cong's shoulder. "Hey, when life treats you well, you should enjoy it to the fullest. You're always frowning like an old geezer."
Jiang Cong disdainfully brushed off Chen Er's wandering hand from his shoulder and took on an educational tone. "It's not good for a girl to act like this. You don't need to put on this act in front of me."
Chen Er was taken aback for a moment. Then, she nonchalantly took out a cigarette, lit it, and blew out a puff of smoke. She raised her eyebrows at Jiang Cong provocatively. "What act? Do you think I'd bother putting on an act for you? You've got to be kidding me!"
Jiang Cong, going against his usual self, snatched the cigarette from between Chen Er's fingers and, without any hesitation, put the lit end into his mouth.
"This is how you smoke," Jiang Cong said as he took a few puffs and then stubbed out the cigarette.
He didn't like smoking, but cigarettes were his best companion when he was feeling irritable, helping him to calm down.
Chen Er watched as Jiang Cong demonstrated seriously, but her eyes involuntarily shifted to the discarded cigarette butt.
Did they... just have an indirect kiss?
Jiang Cong seemed to have seen through Chen Er's thoughts but didn't bother to explain.
He simply said indifferently, "Smoke less in the future. It's bad for your health," then turned and walked forward.
By now, the rain had gradually let up. The cool raindrops fell on Chen Er's face.
The dampness brought her wandering thoughts back.
She quickened her pace to catch up with the man who was a short distance ahead.
Jiang Cong subtly slowed down his steps, waiting for Chen Er to catch up.
"Humph, trying to shake me off? Not a chance!" Chen Er slapped Jiang Cong hard on the shoulder to vent her slight annoyance. Then she resumed the fearless and cocky look she had when Jiang Cong first met her.
For some reason, Jiang Cong found himself starting to like this seemingly inexperienced girl in front of him.
Just like today, when he saw Chen Er chatting happily with Ji Pei in the morning, besides the basic analysis based on his professional acumen, he felt a strange, tingling sensation in his heart that he had never felt before.
It was as if something had veered off track.
This sense of losing control left Jiang Cong feeling helpless and a bit lost, which was why he called Chen Er and invited her out for a walk.
He wanted to find the root cause of this problem.
As a renowned professor of criminal psychology, Jiang Cong had analyzed the behaviors of countless people. However, he couldn't explain his own current behavior and reactions reasonably.
The sun was gradually setting, and the city lights were just starting to come on.
The rain, which had been easing off, seemed to be picking up again.
"Let's go for dinner first," Jiang Cong said as he led Chen Er into a Japanese restaurant.
Due to the rain, the restaurant was quite crowded.
Jiang Cong led Chen Er to a room at the end of the corridor and stopped.
Judging from his familiar movements, it was obvious that this wasn't his first time here, and he didn't try to hide it.
Chen Er suppressed her suspicion and obediently took a seat.
During the meal, Jiang Cong kindly picked up food for Chen Er and reminded her not to gobble it down.
Chen Er was caught off guard by Jiang Cong's unexpected tenderness. A piece of sushi she hadn't swallowed got stuck in her throat.
Her face turned bright red. She took the glass of water Jiang Cong promptly handed her and gulped it down.
"I told you to chew your food slowly," Jiang Cong said gracefully as he ate the food on his plate, looking like a walking work of art.
Chen Er pouted and selectively ignored him.
After paying the bill, the rain was still pouring heavily.
Whether it was intentional or not, the Japanese restaurant was very close to Chen Er's home.
Looking at the increasingly heavy rain, Jiang Cong shook his head and sighed. "It's raining so hard. How can I get back alone?"
Feeling a bit indebted since Jiang Cong had treated her to dinner, Chen Er tentatively said, "Well... you could come to my place to take shelter from the rain?"
Almost as soon as Chen Er finished speaking, Jiang Cong replied with a smile, "Sure."
The night grew deeper.
Jiang Cong and Chen Er made their way towards Chen Er's home, stumbling in the dim light of the street lamps.
"Click."
The security door opened, and Chen Er fumbled for the light switch in the living room.
In the darkness, Jiang Cong turned on the flashlight on his phone. "You're so clumsy."
Finally, Chen Er managed to turn on the light, and the warm yellow light filled the room.
Hearing Jiang Cong's blunt comment, Chen Er looked up and glared at him discontentedly.
Then, as if remembering something, she leaned against the cabinet and stood on tiptoe. "You're not trying to flirt with me, are you? It's so dark and it's just the two of us."
Jiang Cong picked up Chen Er, who barely reached his shoulder, and moved her to the side. He seriously sized her up from head to toe. "Sorry, to a high - school student like you, I can only show the kindness of an elder to a younger one."
Chen Er was stunned by the word "kindness." She had only intended to tease Jiang Cong, but instead, he had outmaneuvered her.
Chen Er felt quite hurt.
Jiang Cong walked past Chen Er and strolled casually around the living room.
"Do you live alone?" Jiang Cong asked as he observed the signs of daily life, which mostly indicated that only one person lived here.
Chen Er nodded nonchalantly. "Yeah, my parents are both gone. I'm the only one in the family."
The girl's words were so calm, as if she were just stating a fact objectively.
Jiang Cong gave Chen Er a deep look and then changed the subject. "Can I take a look around the other rooms?"
Chen Er spread her hands. "Sure, feel free. Do you want iced water or Coke?"
As Jiang Cong paced through the rooms, he replied to Chen Er, who was peeking from the kitchen doorway, "I'm getting old. My stomach can't handle cold drinks. I'll have warm water."
Chen Er resignedly went to boil some water.
A mark on the wall caught Jiang Cong's attention.
He reached out and felt the words carved on the wall.
It was a "He," which seemed to have been carved at least a year ago.
The slant of the writing clearly leaned to the left, and the subtle force on the radicals also showed that the left side was stronger than the right.
It could be inferred that the person who wrote this was either left - handed or not used to using their right hand.
But just now, Chen Er said that she lived alone.
However, the words on the wall didn't seem to be written by Chen Er.
There was a faint callus on Chen Er's right middle finger, which was left from writing with her right hand.
A right - handed person wouldn't write with their left hand without deliberate training.
Jiang Cong stood in front of the wall with a solemn expression.
Chen Er came out of the kitchen, looking for Jiang Cong.
To her surprise, she found him standing in what used to be her sister's room.
A sense of panic welled up inside her uncontrollably. Her fingers turned white as she tightly clutched the water cup, and she tried hard to calm her rapid breathing.
By the time she reached Jiang Cong, she had already regained her composure.
She naturally handed the water cup to Jiang Cong. "Here, the warm water you asked for. I've let it cool down. You can drink it directly."