Chapter 41: What Does Zhao Min Want with You?

Zhou Hui pulled her car up to the front of Yu Bai’s house, got out, and from a dozen meters away, she spotted the bare branches of a peach tree stretching over the granite wall.

The peach branches were stark and leafless. Zhou Hui figured the tree must be dead.

The courtyard gate wasn’t locked, so Zhou Hui pushed it open and stepped inside.

The withered peach tree stood alone in the vast, empty yard.

There were no decorations anywhere in the courtyard—not even so much as a single potted plant—and with the only tree dead, the place felt utterly lifeless, a barren wasteland.

All the doors and windows of the villa were tightly shut, heavy dark curtains drawn across the panes, blocking out every ray of sunlight. It resembled an airtight fortress, long abandoned and devoid of any human presence.

Zhou Hui couldn’t begin to imagine what the rooms inside looked like. She wasn’t even sure if Yu Bai was really at home recuperating. Approaching the door, she tentatively pressed the doorbell twice.

At first, there was no sound from within. Zhou Hui waited a full five minutes, but heard nothing at all.

She tried calling, but no one picked up. Zhou Hui wondered if Yu Bai’s “illness” was just an excuse to skip work. Why had she insisted on using that as a reason to come all the way out here, anyway? She turned to leave.

Just as Zhou Hui started to turn away, faint noises came from inside the house, followed by footsteps growing clearer and closer.

The door swung open from within, and Yu Bai’s voice emerged, hoarse and rough. “Oh, it’s Officer Zhou. What are you doing here?”

Zhou Hui stepped inside, immediately hit by the thick stench of cigarette smoke permeating the entire room. The dim space was hazy with it; she coughed a few times and wrinkled her nose. She gave Yu Bai a head-to-toe once-over and noticed she was still wearing the Peppa Pig jacket she’d thrown over her at the hospital the night before. Her curly hair hung messily over her shoulders, her face gaunt and drawn, dark circles under her eyes.

Yu Bai lounged indolently against the back of the door, her whole posture slack and defeated, bearing no trace of her usual poise.

Zhou Hui didn’t know what had gotten into her, but a surge of inexplicable anger bubbled up. “How much have you smoked?”

Yu Bai shrugged indifferently, even managing a lazy smile as she replied, “Didn’t keep count. Why don’t you come over and help me tally them up?”

With that, she shuffled off in her slippers toward the living room and flopped back onto the sofa.

Zhou Hui followed, her gaze landing on the ashtray on the table, overflowing with cigarette butts. Her temper flared hotter—this was taking zero care of her own body! Suppressing her irritation, she demanded, “You’ve been smoking in here all night?”

Yu Bai tilted her head back from the sofa, testing Zhou Hui’s patience further with another nonchalant nod. “Something like that.”

“Something like that? Yu Bai, you… you’re something else. Fresh out of the hospital and already pulling this crap.” Zhou Hui was at a loss for words.

In her raspy voice, Yu Bai said, “Why so worked up, Officer Zhou? It’s just a smoke. Not gonna kill me… Oh, right. You hate the smell. I’ll cut back when you’re around.”

Her voice trembled lightly at the end, almost flirtatious.

Zhou Hui knew Yu Bai was doing it on purpose.

She forced herself to stay calm and said patiently, “Didn’t you call this morning saying you felt unwell? If you’re unwell, why aren’t you resting?”

A sly smile tugged at Yu Bai’s lips as she quipped, “The moment I saw you, Officer Zhou, all my ailments vanished.”

Zhou Hui could hardly believe her ears. Staring at Yu Bai, she said, “In this state, and you call that ‘better’?”

Yu Bai’s smile faltered for a split second, a flicker of something unreadable crossing her face.

But it was gone before Zhou Hui could pin it down. Yu Bai flashed her grin again and said, “You didn’t come here just to check on my health, did you, Officer Zhou? Out with it—what’s up?”

She half-reclined on the sofa, propping her forehead on one hand, laying her cards on the table without a hint of evasion.

Caught off guard by the bluntness, Zhou Hui didn’t know where to begin. She glanced at Yu Bai again, unable to stomach how she was treating herself.

Striding to the window, she yanked the curtains open with a sharp “whoosh.” Blinding sunlight poured in, flooding the room with sudden brightness.

The smoke swirled upward in the beams, twisting and dancing before dissipating in the light. The room’s stagnant gloom shattered into fragments and vanished.

The abrupt glare made Yu Bai flinch instinctively, and she shot Zhou Hui a displeased frown. “What do you think you’re doing?”

Now that the dim room was bathed in light, Zhou Hui turned around, silhouetted against the sun, her tone brooking no argument. “Go upstairs and take a shower. Then come down for breakfast… The fridge has ingredients, doesn’t it?”

Yu Bai hesitated for two seconds before answering, “……There should be more.” Then she paused another two seconds, squinting at Zhou Hui as she said, “Officer Zhou……are you going to make breakfast?”

Zhou Hui looked at her and shot back immediately, “What, do you know how?”

Yu Bai: “……”

It was as if her brain short-circuited in that instant. She suddenly had no clue what Zhou Hui was up to. It had to be because she hadn’t slept a wink last night, Yu Bai figured.

Putting aside any further speculation about Zhou Hui’s intentions for the day, Yu Bai shrugged. Under Zhou Hui’s watchful gaze, she headed upstairs to the bathroom. She glanced up at her reflection in the mirror. Though she’d braced herself for it, the sight of that disheveled figure—neither fully human nor ghostly—still gave her a start. No wonder Zhou Hui had been so furious.

She let out a light chuckle and stepped into the bathroom.

Twenty minutes later, Yu Bai shut off the shower, wrapped herself in a bathrobe, and emerged.

Her long hair hung damp around her ears. She grabbed the hairdryer, about to blow it dry, when a wave of dizziness hit her. Her vision blurred, her steps faltered; she clenched her fists, gripped the sink, and broke out in cold sweat.

In a flash, realization struck her like lightning. Her gaze sharpened with a fierce edge. She set down the hairdryer and flung open the bathroom door.

Zhou Hui was perched on the edge of the bed in the bedroom, her eyes locked straight on Yu Bai.

Yu Bai’s sharp look softened at once. She leaned loosely against the doorframe and quipped, “Officer Zhou, did you come up here just to watch me shower?”

Zhou Hui rose and approached, bracing both hands on the doorframe as she loomed over her. “Why so jumpy?”

Yu Bai’s breath caught. She took an instinctive step back, her eyes deliberately sliding away from Zhou Hui’s. “I’m not.”

Zhou Hui narrowed her eyes, her brow furrowing. “Not? Then you didn’t notice you put your bathrobe on backward?”

Yu Bai was always meticulous in her habits, downright exacting when it came to her daily routine and appearance—right down to every strand of hair in place. But today, everything about her was off-kilter.

Zhou Hui studied her closely, probing for clues. Yu Bai held her ground, meeting that stare with lazy, unfocused eyes whose dark depths seemed poised to devour everything in sight. She smiled as she spoke, but sidestepped the question entirely with sly deflection. “Officer Zhou, didn’t you say you were making me breakfast?”

Zhou Hui refused to be derailed, her gaze pressing in relentlessly. “You still haven’t answered. Why so jumpy?”

Yu Bai fought through the wave of physical discomfort, mustering a strained smile to keep sparring with her. “Is this your version of an interrogation?”

Zhou Hui’s expression turned grave. “I never resort to that.” She jabbed a finger at Yu Bai. “But if you don’t come clean, I can’t promise what I might do next.”

“Ha!” Yu Bai let out a soft laugh, clucking her tongue. “Talk about cops and crooks being cut from the same cloth! Officer Zhou, being this bold—better watch out, or I’ll file a complaint.”

Zhou Hui didn’t flinch, a smile tugging at her lips. “So, ready to come clean now?”

Yu Bai glanced up at her. She knew full well that Zhou Hui’s visit today went far beyond mere concern for her well-being. She crossed to the bed and sank onto it, drew a steadying breath, and offered Zhou Hui a faint smile. “What does Officer Zhou want to know? Fire away!”

Zhou Hui stared at her for a long moment, her eyes never wavering. Yu Bai sensed something off about that look—something she couldn’t quite place—but the scrutinizing intensity set her on edge. She couldn’t hold back any longer. “What is it you really want to say?”

Zhou Hui fell silent for a few seconds, steeling herself at last. “What did Zhao Min want with you last night?”