Once dinner began, an oddly tense silence settled over the table.
Both Ch'en and Swire came from prominent families, so their table manners were naturally impeccable. Neither of them spoke while eating. Only Bai Xiao and Hoshiguma leaned toward each other, quietly discussing the smuggling case.
"We've more or less confirmed it now. That batch of Originium really did come in through the city checkpoint, and similar incidents have happened more than once."
Bai Xiao nodded and pressed on. "Any other leads? An accomplice on the receiving end, maybe?"
Hoshiguma sighed. "No. That kind of thing is too hard to track down. Too much time has passed, and after losing the Originium, whoever's behind it got a lot more cautious. We haven't had any new leads for days."
That was more or less what Bai Xiao had expected. The other side were not idiots. Once the Guard Department had their eyes on them, of course they would lie low.
Which made things troublesome.
Across the table, Ch'en was visibly unhappy watching the two of them talk so animatedly. Even the way she chewed grew much more forceful.
But she had no idea how to stop them.
Or what excuse she could even use to stop them.
Ch'en had never been good at communicating with other people.
Seeing that troubled look on her face, Swire, sitting beside her, became interested. In all these years, she had never seen Ch'en like this before.
Who would have thought that, out of the three of them, the first one to end up in a relationship would be Ch'en, the one who always wore that sour expression?
"Bai Xiao, was it?" Swire picked up her napkin and elegantly dabbed at the corner of her lips, looking every inch the young lady she was. "Your cooking is excellent. Thank you for the meal."
"You're too kind, Miss Swire. Since you're Hui-chieh's friends, of course I had to treat you well."
Bai Xiao answered as if by accident, then abruptly covered his mouth in mock alarm. "Ah—sorry, I mean Ch'en, sir."
At once, Ch'en's face turned bright red.
Swire could not hold it in any longer. She burst into laughter. "Hui-chieh? Oh my, that's awfully intimate, isn't it? Wouldn't you agree, Hui-chieh?"
Giggling, she leaned toward Ch'en. Ch'en, humiliated and furious, did not dare look at Bai Xiao and instead reached out to pinch Swire's face, using that as an excuse to avoid the embarrassment.
Of course Bai Xiao had done it on purpose. It was one of his little tricks.
It was only a form of address, but Ch'en looked as though her core were already on the verge of melting down. That alone showed how effective it was. If you wanted to break through someone's defenses, you had to stir up their emotions, make them lose their calm and rationality.
Like Ch'en right now.
"Shut up!"
"There you go again, getting worked up."
Still laughing, Swire stood and slipped behind Bai Xiao. That made Ch'en stop in her tracks. She did not dare come any closer, and could only sit back down, red-faced and fuming, still unable to look at Bai Xiao.
Hoshiguma remained silent, as if turning something over in her mind.
Ch'en's reaction had been excellent, but Bai Xiao knew when to stop. Ch'en had a very dominant personality and a strong sense of pride. This teasing was already close to the limit of what she could tolerate. If he pushed any further, she would very likely get angry.
That was the difference between a true galgame master and an ordinary person.
Maybe lots of people could copy the same techniques, but knowing how far to go was the real soul of it. Even between ordinary friends, a joke taken too far could ruin the relationship, let alone with someone as sensitive and strong-willed as Ch'en.
One moment of overconfidence, and all his previous effort could go to waste.
Bai Xiao always remembered one thing:
Too much was as bad as too little.
The more impatient you got, the more likely things were to go wrong.
So the moment he sensed Ch'en's mood tipping toward the edge, he immediately changed the subject. "Alright, alright. I'm sure Ch'en, sir, didn't invite the two of you over just to eat and drink. If necessary, I can step out for a while."
The second those words left his mouth, Swire stopped laughing and gave him a long, meaningful look.
Playtime was over.
Ch'en's expression turned complicated, while Hoshiguma softly explained, "It's like this. We mainly came tonight because we want to ask for your help."
"With the smuggling case?"
"Exactly. Old Ch'en actually doesn't want to drag you into this, but we really don't have any other choice. And it's not something we can let too many people know about. If it leaks, it could cause public panic. So we wanted to talk it over with you."
Ch'en had truly gone to great lengths to protect Bai Xiao. She genuinely feared that what had happened that night might happen again.
Bai Xiao had no backing at all. If he kept digging into the case, the danger around him would only grow.
Meeting Bai Xiao's eyes, Ch'en looked a little guilty.
"I'm sorry. I never wanted to involve you."
"It's alright." Bai Xiao smiled, his gaze clear and open. "You took me in, Ch'en, sir. No matter what, I'm willing to help you.... I'll go make a pot of tea. Give me a moment to clear the dishes, and I'll come right over."
Watching Bai Xiao's busy figure, Ch'en pressed a hand to her chest, feeling as though her heart might burst out of it.
No matter what, he was willing to help her...?
Swire nodded.
"Alright. Your judgment wasn't bad after all. I approve of him."
"Get lost. And I'm telling you right now, don't start spouting nonsense again, got it?"
Seeing that, Swire decided not to push her luck. Everyone knew what kind of temper Ch'en had. If she got pushed too far, she really would throw them out.
Hoshiguma stayed silent, but for the first time, a thought rose in her heart: maybe she should earn more money and buy a house.
If she hadn't been living in a tiny studio apartment, would Bai Xiao have been staying with her instead?
Would that sentence just now have become, I'm willing to help Officer Hoshiguma?
She had fallen just one step short.
By the time Bai Xiao had loaded the dishes into the dishwasher and sliced up some fruit, the three women were already deep in discussion.
Unlike at the Guard Department, the argument here was especially intense.
"I've already made it very clear. This is not something the three of us can solve on our own. We need the Special Investigations Unit involved!"
"The Special Investigations Unit? Do you have any idea how many people are in there? If this gets out, what do you think the public reaction will be? The fewer people who know about this, the better. Every extra person who knows is one extra chance for it to leak!"
Just like before, Ch'en and Swire were locked in direct opposition, while Hoshiguma could only try to mediate between them.
"Alright, alright, we're discussing it now, aren't we? Can everyone just calm down?"
By then, Bai Xiao had finished cutting the fruit and came over to sit beside Ch'en.
"Hoshi, sir, could you explain the situation to me?"
"Of course.... It's actually simple. Since the investigation has hit a dead end, we're discussing whether or not to bring in the Special Investigations Unit." Hoshiguma explained, "They're all seasoned veteran detectives. When it comes to solving cases, they're much better than we are."
It was obvious enough: Swire was in favor of cooperating with outside help, while Ch'en did not want more people learning about the case.
To be honest, neither of them was wrong.
At that moment, Ch'en looked at Bai Xiao. "Bai Xiao, what do you think?"
Bai Xiao knew Ch'en obviously wanted him to support her.
But right now, solving the case had to come first. Personal feelings could wait.
Besides, he had just spent the evening playing the role of "someone who belonged to Ch'en," making her feel good and giving her all the face she could want. By the same logic, now was the right time to show the other side of himself—his strength.
With a woman as forceful as Ch'en, if you wanted to truly step into her heart, then you had to show her that you were someone she could lean on.
"I think Miss Swire is right.... Right now, solving the case is what matters most. If asking for help can solve it, then that's obviously a good thing."
A flicker of disappointment crossed Ch'en's face, while Swire immediately looked pleased with herself. She had not expected Bai Xiao to side with her.
Bai Xiao rubbed at his brow. "That said, Miss Swire—if the Special Investigations Unit gets involved, and the matter leaks out, and the case is not solved quickly enough, can you take responsibility for the resulting public unrest? Or to put it another way, have you prepared any kind of contingency plan for that?"
Swire, who had just been basking in her own triumph, instantly froze. Lips pressed together, she found herself unable to answer.
Ch'en, deflating a little, could not help snapping, "Then what are we supposed to do? Are you saying that no matter what we choose, it'll be wrong?"
"Of course not."
All three of them turned toward Bai Xiao.
He smiled.
"I'll solve the case for you. Wouldn't that settle everything?"
....
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