Translator: Lonelytree Editor: Millman97
“Cynthia, Edward, and the detained foreign Prop Manager?” Han Chu picked up a pen and drew a tree diagram to connect these seemingly unrelated individuals. Then he frowned as he looked at his drawing. “Now at least we can confirm that Edward’s disappearance is not an accident, but the reason is still an unknown.”
He thought about it and raised his head to ask Luo Mingxin, “Do you have any other clues? Like the details of the arrest.”
Luo Mingxin was speechless. “If I knew about that, I would be one of the detainees.”
“You’re right, I’m sorry.” Han Chu sighed. He accepted this result without much disappointment.
“Is it possible that Edward went into hiding on his own?” Ye Shuang held a plate of fruit as she walked over from the kitchen counter. She happened to hear what Han Chu said, so she sat down and continued naturally. “The Interpol mentioned Cynthia, so even if it’s not directly related, at least they have a target on Edward. Because they would not have focused on a dead person for no reason until that dead person’s family, her son, did something to grab their attention… Only two parties are out to catch Edward—one is the Interpol, which I hope has not found him, and the worse outcome is that Edward was taken away by people who are not from the Interpol. The best outcome is that Edward himself has noticed that and gone into hiding first…”
“Either one of the possibilities is not good news, especially the first one.” Han Chu rubbed between his brows. He closed his eyes before opening them again. “I’ll go and ask my ex-colleagues.”
Then he picked up his laptop and entered the side room to make a call.
Luo Mingxin watched Han Chu stand up and leave before turning to look at Ye Shuang, who was munching on the fruit. After some thought, he shuffled to sit next to the latter. He tried to look as casual as possible, but he was betrayed by the anticipation in his eyes. “What is really happening?”
He had been curiously dragged over, curiously interrogated, and then analyzed by these two, who mentioned impressive sounding topics, but he could not understand and then… there was no and then. Luo Mingxin could not have been more curious.
Ye Shuang swallowed the pear and then shamelessly dropped the man as an ally. “I’m sorry, but you have no value to us anymore.”
It meant that she was not going to tell.
“…” Luo Mingxin’s face darkened. After some time, he had a hard time adjusting his expression, but eventually, he flashed a smile. “I’m not sure you’re right about that. For the investigation, the people might come back to ask about the Prop Manager’s situation, and as you know, my status at the crew is not low. Furthermore…”
After a small pause, Luo Mingxin continued in a gentle voice. “Have you forgotten that you need me to attend Mrs. Huang’s ball tomorrow?”
Wait, so this man still has his value, how can I forget about that‽ Ye Shuang stopped eating. She held the pear in midair and then said, “How about I go and ask Brother Han first?”
Luo Mingxin stared at Ye Shuang for half a minute, and after confirming that she was not going to compromise, Luo Mingxin sighed with regret and shrugged. “Then so be it, the man is hard to deal with. He will never say anything.”
He had to pay a great price, probably to the state of selling out his own country, before the man would even give him a small piece of information…
Even though the two men did not know each other that well, one could just tell at first glance how someone would be difficult to deal with.
Seeing how defeated Luo Mingxin was, Ye Shuang chuckled with good humor. “Does that mean that you think I’m the easier target between the two of us?”
Luo Mingxin rolled his eyes. If you’re an easy target, then there isn’t an easier target in the world.
…
Due to the lack of information, there was not much they could do about Edward’s disappearance. Instead, the more urgent event was Mrs. Huang’s ball. Whether Edward had gone into hiding or been captured… For the former, he would not be in much danger, but if it was the latter… if they could find any suspect at the Yong An Organization, then they might get some clues to Edward’s location.
“I think in the future I need to reserve a space in my luggage for dressing gowns.” Through Luo Mingxin, she rented a gown. After sorting her hair and make-up, Ye Shuang carried her purse and held Luo Mingxin’s arm as they walked through the entrance of the ball.
While Luo Mingxin handed the invitation to the waiter, Ye Shuang lowered her voice to complain, “It’s really not easy doing make-up outside, especially when your male date is so eye-catching to the ladies…”
When she was Brother Shuang, Ye Shuang had always been the focus of all the ladies, but she did not expect a day would come when she would have the eyes of all the ladies when she was in the form of Sister Shuang. When the source of all these gazes was due to Luo Mingxin, who stood next to her, one could imagine how Ye Shuang would be treated by others. Even if there was no open bullying, the silent hatred was one that Ye Shuang could read.
“You’re not from the industry and not a friend of the movie’s sponsor, so naturally, people will be curious why you’re my date for this ball.” Luo Mingxin did not think too much of it, and he was not worried about Sister Shuang’s ability to survive the night. “I normally invite two types of date to these events. One is for the paparazzi, and two is for my connections… And if you’re neither one of these, then naturally, it’s because of true love.”
In response to the ‘true love’ comment, Ye Shuang remained silent and unamused.
The waiter soon finished inspecting the invitation. When he led the way, he asked if Luo Mingxin and Ye Shuang had brought along anything like a phone. If they had, they needed to hand it over for temporary storage, and it would be returned later.
“The security sure is tight around here.” Ye Shuang surrendered her phone in surprise. Luo Mingxin did the same but with a frown.
After the waiter took the stuff away, he whispered, “Some balls are like that. It is mainly to prevent reporters from taking pictures or guests doing some uncouth things. However, this ball is not big, and there are no other invited celebrities other than me, so theoretically, there shouldn’t…”
Then, he silenced himself. Luo Mingxin thought about it, and even though the smile on his face was still perfect, the gaze in his eyes became more serious as he continued. “Later, you need to be on your toes. There’s an eighty percent chance that there is some VIP present. That’s the only reason for them to be so cautious.”
What kind of VIP? A terrorist? Ye Shuang thought internally, but her expression was calm. “Having a VIP is a good thing. You might be able to swindle a new sponsor.”
If the VIP was from the money-laundering organization, then it was even better. Then it would basically confirm that the Yong An Organization was the base, and she might be able to grab a big fish…
“Hah, I hope you’re right.”
Brother Luo and Sister Shuang strode into the hall, and they both activated their acting skill. Even though they had not worked together in this pairing before, they were able to communicate via gestures and gazes alone… Fine, perhaps they did not need to do that. In any case, both of them were astute people, and they worked well together from the many interaction they had had in the past.
They greeted many small-time merchants whom they could not recognize, many small-time politicians whose names they could not remember, many relatives of so and so. They cut through the crowd, deflecting the snarky comment and open hostility… which mainly came from Luo Mingxin’s female fans… After that, they successfully reached the main hall, and with the most natural and casual status, they approached the final boss, a Caucasian lady who was silently surrounded in the middle by CEO Huang and many others.
Ye Shuang smiled and asked without moving her lips, “Who is that?”
“No idea.” Luo Mingxin was not good enough to speak without moving his lips, so he could only lower his head to smooth down Ye Shuang’s hair and whisper, “But she looks like she come from a good background, probably a foreign investor.”
He thought that he looked gentlemanly, but in other people’s eyes, the action was ambiguous to the max.
I don’t think so! Ye Shuang did not trust Luo Mingxin’s conclusion at all.
Even though the lady looked graceful and feminine, there was a core of strength within her. At first glance, she did look like the usual powerful female CEO, but if one looked closer, one would notice the inconspicuous fold of flesh between her tapered index finger and her palm. That was a sign that she was used to handling guns.
Other than that, a woman had to be very confident to wear a suit at a formal event. There was plenty of suited females in real life, but even the female CEO would sometimes change into a dress during conferences. Other than the requirement of the society, this was a subtle hint that she was following the rules and could be used to soften the attitude of her male business contenders. Of course, if you came from a small background, as long as you did not show up in a bikini, basically no one would care whether you came in pants or a dress.
Therefore, based on the lady’s status and way of dressing, the fact that she was about to ignore this hidden rule could only mean that she was powerful or conceited to a certain stage where she did not think that the rules that governed others applied to her.
“Stay on your guard. This woman is not that simple.” Ye Shuang maintained her smile and reminded Luo Mingxin.
Luo Mingxin… Since they were already coming as date, if he pretended to help fix her attire, it would cross the line, so he could only pretend that he did not hear it.
As expected, the first to notice the two’s appearance was the female Caucasian whom Ye Shuang was cautious of. Then, they were discovered by CEO Huang and the rest.
CEO Huang knew that his wife had invited a celebrity, so he was not surprised to see Luo Mingxin there. He smiled naturally and made the introduction to the lady. “This is our country’s leading actor, but temporarily, he has no plans to expand overseas, so madam, you might not have heard of him before…”
“No, I have.” The lady surprisingly curled her lips into a smile and swirled the glass in her hand. “Mr. Luo… am I right?”