Chapter 18: Volume 1, Chapter 18: The Dangerous Professor Has Me Head Over Heels (18)

On the antique European-style table lay a Western breakfast; the youth seated there was handsome as a painting, every gesture like a figure from an oil painting.

"Sit here." Unlike Huo Yin's mature, icy, sharp aura, the youth was clear and elegant, much like a vampire in an ancient castle, carrying a settled chill.

Jiang Zhi followed his words, sat in a side chair, and gazed at the pastries on the table, her expression dazed for a moment.

A faint, unforgettable memory surfaced before her eyes.

The scene of her having breakfast with Huo Yin in the villa.

Her lips opened and closed slightly, silently mouthing a name.

As Mu Chi, sitting beside her, saw clearly the name she mouthed, his brows and eyes suddenly darkened, his pupils icy and piercing; the fingers resting on the table gradually tightened, the fork in his palm bending and twisting.

"Jiang Zhi."

He called her name.

Jiang Zhi snapped back to awareness, the corners of her eyes slightly reddened, she gave a low "uh," grasped the fork placed before her, and buried herself in eating.

Mu Chi furrowed his brows, then after a moment pulled the corner of his mouth into a cold arc.

Afternoon.

These past two days Jiang Zhi kept calling Jiang Jiang, but he never answered.

She grew increasingly frightened, wanting to go home and check the school.

During the month she disappeared, Jiang Jiang should have returned to school for the new term.

Mu Chi said he feared something might happen to her and offered to accompany her.

They drove to the school first, asked Jiang Jiang's classmates and teachers, and received only one answer.

Jiang Jiang vanished not long after the term began.

The teachers couldn't reach him, quickly filed a police report, but heard nothing for a long time.

Jiang Zhi walked out of the school spiritless, her face pallid, the fingers hidden in her sleeves clenched tightly.

At the moment the car stopped beside her, she swayed, and Mu Chi promptly steadied her as she began to fall backward.

"What's wrong?"

Jiang Zhi lifted her hand and rubbed her eyes hard; soon her eyes reddened, spreading from the corners.

"I'm fine."

Her tone was firm, but if you listened closely you could hear a faint tremor.

She stepped out of his embrace, opened the car door, and got into the passenger seat.

Mu Chi's arms still seemed to retain the soft, faint fragrance of the girl's body; he drew a deep breath, his peripheral vision catching a dark silhouette lurking in a nearby corner.

He curled his lips, a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

Huo Yin, you will never get Jiang Zhi.

She belongs to me.

He started the engine and drove to Jiang Zhi's residence.

The house still held the lingering trace of Jiang Jiang's presence—his clothes strewn about, a half‑eaten bag of chips on the table, and a photo forgotten there.

Jiang Zhi stepped forward and picked up that student photo.

In the photo Jiang Jiang radiated youth, cheeks puffed as if holding back a laugh.

He's always like that—he loves to smile even in formal settings.

Drop after drop of tears pattered onto the table; she lifted her hand to cover her mouth, her body seeming to lose all strength as she leaned against the edge.

Recalling the last time she saw him, her brother had urged her, telling her not to trust people so easily and not to live with Huo Yin.

If she had listened to him

If

The more Jiang Zhi thought, the more her tears would not stop.

Mu Chi, standing behind her, stepped forward, raised his hand to pat her shoulder reassuringly, and said, "Don't be afraid, your brother will be fine."

Jiang Zhi whispered helplessly, "Really?"

Mu Chi's tone was grave: "Really! I will help you find your brother."

Jiang Zhi turned, buried her face in his shoulder, and burst into silent sobs.

In a corner she couldn't see, Mu Chi's eyes flickered with a hidden smile.

They left the residence.

Just as they stepped out of the neighborhood, Jiang Zhi spotted a man standing not far away.

The figure was familiar.

Jiang Zhi's pupils contracted; she lifted her foot, wanting to approach.

Mu Chi at her side gripped her wrist tightly, his voice low: "Don't go!"

The man wore a flat cap, half his face covered by a mask; from afar only his dark eyes were visible, black and deep, revealing no emotion.

Suddenly, he waved at her.

Seeing this, Jiang Zhi broke free of Mu Chi's hold, strode forward, and walked over with big steps.

Upon reaching him, Jiang Zhi lifted a tear‑streaked small face, her clear black eyes pleading: "Release my brother, I won't run away again—please, let my brother go."

Beneath his glasses, Huo Yin's eyes lay in shadow beneath the brim, deep as a cold pool.

He raised his fingertip to gently wipe the tears from her cheek, the motion soft, his voice low and resonant like a cello:

"I didn't take your brother."

Jiang Zhi didn't believe him at all, she grabbed his clothing tightly, her eyes full of hatred, lips pressed together, then she hissed hoarsely: "Huo Yin, I really won't escape anymore—please, release my brother; my brother has nothing to do with this, he's my only relative left—why won't you let him go?"

At the end of her outburst, her emotions overwhelmed her, her vision went black, and she fainted.

Mu Chi got there first, embracing the girl in his arms.

Huo Yin slightly lifted his brow, peering through the lowered brim of his hat; his deep, icy black eyes exuded a bone-chilling killing intent.

Let go of his brother.

Mu Chi curled his lips in a neither cold nor indifferent manner, looking at him with interest, as if he'd heard a joke: "You're not trying to get her by any means, are you? What right do you have to say that?"

Huo Yin pulled a cold-toned Desert Eagle from his pocket, aimed it at the youth's head, and, expressionless, repeated: "Let go of her brother."

Mu Chi showed no trace of fear, neither dodging nor flinching, locked eyes with the man, and spoke softly: "You can't kill me."

No sooner had he spoken.

Not far off, a police siren wailed, drawing nearer.

Huo Yin closed his eyes, took a deep breath, after a moment he glanced deeply at the unconscious girl, his icy voice laced with killing intent: "If you hurt her, I'll make you wish you were dead."

Mu Chi watched his back disappear quickly, utterly unaffected by his threat.

Lowering his gaze, he gazed dreamily at the girl in his arms, licked his lips, and whispered: "Welcome home, Zhizhi."

Jiang Zhi had a dream.

In the dream, Huo Yin wasn't a pervert who killed countless people, but a renowned neurologist living next door.

Once she came home, misread the nameplate, entered the password at someone else's door, and got it wrong five or six times in a row.

When she thought the building's lock was broken, the door opened and a stranger stepped out.

The man's black hair casually fell before his eyes, his gold-rimmed glasses reflecting the hallway lights; his face was extremely handsome, his narrow phoenix eyes tinged with a faint blue beneath, weary and drowsy.

Upon seeing her, his brows slightly lifted, his expression aloof: "Anything the matter?"

Jiang Zhi froze for a moment, blankly glanced at the number plate, then looked at him, and apologized flusteredly: "Sorry, I live next door, I pressed the wrong lock."

Huo Yin's thin, dark lips curled up slightly, as if he were looking at an idiot.

Jiang Zhi returned to her room, her face flushed.