Chapter 172: Chapter 16 Planning Chapter 172: Chapter 16 Planning “I agree with you on that!”
Zhou Duanyun laughed heartily as he poured Gao Yang another drink, and both of them downed their shots.
“Those two really can hold their liquor.” Tang Xin smiled, watching them, then turned her head to look at Lin Xian’s drink dispenser:
“You’ve had quite a bit too, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, my alcohol tolerance is pretty good.”
“No wonder you are so interested in the Hibernation Pod, Lin Xian, is it because of Professor Xu Yun?” Tang Xin blinked, looking at Lin Xian.
“Not really.” Lin Xian filled his cup to the brim:
“I just feel sorry for Professor Xu Yun’s daughter, hoping she can live until the day the Hibernation Pod comes out.
Here’s to your research succeeding soon, many patients are probably waiting for you guys.”
Tang Xin had also had quite a bit to drink that day, she laughed and clinked her glass with Lin Xian’s.
Lin Xian had thought that Tang Xin wouldn’t drink today.
After all, she was the only girl there and it wasn’t a business occasion.
Nobody would have said anything if she didn’t drink; they were all classmates, just doing whatever they felt like.
But unexpectedly, she was a real heavyweight.
Zhou Duanyun and Gao Yang were obviously drunk…
extending the battle line quite long.
After finishing two bottles of baijiu, Zhou Duanyun had the driver bring two more and they continued drinking, showing no sign of ending the night.
Lin Xian and Tang Xin had already reached their limit and were ignoring the two on the other side who were still calling out for more drinks, chatting away on their own.
Tang Xin told Lin Xian that their symphony orchestra had a performance at the “Donghai City Music Gala” coming up soon, and she invited him to go see it.
Lin Xian wasn’t really interested, actually.
But Tang Xin was enthusiastic about inviting him, mentioning that it wouldn’t just be symphonies but also performances by many stars, including singing, dancing, and other programs.
It was quite grand, so Lin Xian agreed to go.
It wasn’t until the waitstaff came over to say that the restaurant was closing for the night that Gao Yang and Zhou Duanyun were willing to leave.
The two had been drinking from around seven or eight in the evening until the early hours of the morning.
They had met their matches.
After going downstairs, Zhou Duanyun’s driver opened the rear door of the Rolls-Royce Phantom for Gao Yang and Zhou Duanyun to get in.
The Rolls-Royce Phantom was a four-seater, so it was just Zhou Duanyun taking Gao Yang home.
Lin Xian was preparing to take a taxi to send Tang Xin home.
When are you going to come buy a car from me?” Gao Yang rolled down the window and shouted from inside the Rolls-Royce.
“I’ll come when I’ve got time, don’t worry, I keep my word.”
Lin Xian waved goodbye to the two of them.
“Lin Xian, let’s get in the car and go as well.”
Tang Xin pointed to a taxi parked by the roadside.
Under the influence of alcohol, his vision was a bit blurry, as if there was a delay, making everything seem like it was half a beat too slow.
The whole street was very quiet.
After Zhou Duanyun’s Rolls-Royce left, apart from the sound of the restaurant staff tidying up tables and chairs behind them, the whole world was eerily silent.
A taxi was just quietly parked on the road, waiting for passengers.
The darkness swallowed up both sides of the road.
Tang Xin walked ahead and was already beside the taxi, reaching out to pull the door open—
Behind her, Lin Xian grabbed her hand.
Tang Xin turned around, looking down at Lin Xian holding her hand, and seemed to panic for a moment.
Maybe it was the alcohol, but she felt that Lin Xian’s palm was hot, and his electronic watch peeked out from under his cuff, its silver digits displaying the time—
Lin Xian?” Tang Xin’s cheeks were slightly flushed; with her free hand, she reached behind her ear, twirling her hair with her index finger.
“How about we talk a bit more?” Lin Xian suggested with a smile.
“Sure.” Tang Xin looked away, towards the end of the road:
“Right here is fine.”
“Here?” Tang Xin was a bit puzzled, looking around and smiling at Lin Xian:
“This doesn’t seem like a good place to chat.
A coworker took me to a nice bar the other day.
Shall we go there instead?”
Lin Xian glanced at his watch.
“Sure, it’s a good time to sober up.”
He let go of Tang Xin’s hand and pulled open the rear door of the taxi—
It opened easily without hesitation.
Then, gesturing for Tang Xin to get in, he said:
“You sit in the back, I’ll sit in the front.”
He then reached for the front door—
And it opened smoothly as well.
Exhaling through his nose…
Was he really just being overly sensitive?
Seated in the front passenger seat, he turned his head to look at the driver, a very ordinary-looking middle-aged man.
The driver discarded the cigarette butt in his hand, touched his nose, and looked at the two passengers.
Tang Xin showed the driver a location on her phone.
In the music bar, the resident singer was performing a soothing folk song on stage.
Lin Xian and Tang Xin sat at a small table in the corner, drinking their beverages.
Tang Xin was like a chatterbox, endless in her conversation, chirping away like a sparrow, a far cry from the way she had been at the restaurant, sharing snippets of her life and funny stories from work.
Lin Xian mostly smiled and agreed.
His mind, however, was full of the image of that desolate road with no cars or pedestrians, and the flawless taxi.
Many details indicated…
He had been overly paranoid about 00:42.
He might get killed, Tang Xin might get killed…
he was starting to see threats everywhere.
But the truth showed.
Whether it was the gathering with classmates or today, it was all just a false alarm, scaring himself for nothing.
On reflection, actually making a kill exactly at 00:42 would be quite difficult.
There was only a minute’s time, the target had to be right on the street, and a car had to come speeding by to hit them…