Chapter 81 - 80: The Falling Flowers Intention, The Heartless Flowing Water

Being provoked by such a beautiful young girl, the bearded man was unwilling to back down on the spot.

“Little sister, don’t get me wrong, I’m a legitimate businessman! I don’t even know where this gold chain was bought, I found it in the corridor of my hotel! Nobody claimed it, so I took it…” The bearded man added, “If someone comes looking for it, I’ll return it! I never planned to keep it!”

Lu Mian “huh”ed, uninterested.

Xiao Qimo and Ye Jinwen exchanged a complicated look.

It seems that the jewelry robbery in Wucheng yesterday has nothing to do with this bearded Mr. Huang.

Yes, the gold chain around Mr. Huang’s neck was indeed the one registered as stolen from the jewelry store. Mr. Huang appeared unaware and had worn it out, thus catching their attention, leading them to this bar to play cards.

According to Mr. Huang, the stolen item appearing in his hotel implies that the three suspects had been there, and they might still be in the hotel at this moment!

With this in mind, Xiao Qimo and Ye Jinwen naturally lost the mood to continue playing cards, subtly indicating their intention to leave.

But Mr. Huang was unaware of these details, and having lost miserably in the previous round, he naturally wanted to win it back and insisted on not letting them go.

“You two can’t just win and run! Little sister, deal for us one more time, I promise it’s the last hand!”

“But…” Ye Jinwen wanted to refuse.

Xiao Qimo threw a reassuring look, hinting it was alright to play one more round, a matter of a minute or two.

“Alright…”

So, true to the form of someone who cannot shuffle cards, Lu Mian reluctantly shuffled for them again, still half-heartedly and carelessly.

The stack of cards was placed back on the table.

This time, Lu Mian did not sit back down but rested one hand on the back of Xiao Qimo’s chair, her tone indifferent, “I’m going to the restroom.”

“Hmm. Go out the door and walk straight to the end on your left-hand side,” he instructed considerately.

“Okay.”

After Lu Mian left, the bearded Mr. Huang’s eyes remained glued to the door.

“Mr. Huang, it’s your turn to draw cards,” Xiao Qimo reminded in a cool voice.

Mr. Huang snickered, reaching for the cards while laughing, “Mr. Qimo, it’s a case of unrequited love. That girl obviously has no interest in you!”

His words couldn’t have been more blatant; although the beautiful girl was brought by this gentleman, it was obvious they were not a couple, otherwise, he wouldn’t be harboring any thoughts.

“Draw. Your. Card!” Xiao Qimo’s voice grew even heavier.

The current hand was not as good as the last; both parties were equally matched.

Xiao Qimo and Ye Jinwen had planned to finish the game in two minutes, but unexpectedly, even ten minutes later, they couldn’t end it.

With Mr. Huang now playing more carefully out of determination, the outcome was hard to predict for a while.

Twenty minutes later.

Lu Mian returned leisurely, wiping the water droplets off her fingers with a tissue.

She glanced at the card table and said in a teasing tone, “Still not finished?”

Xiao Qimo grunted nonchalantly and handed out the final card, asking, “Took a long time? Are you not feeling well?”

“Oh,” Lu Mian spread her hands casually, “Girl stuff, you know, a bit more troublesome.”

Xiao Qimo got it right away, but for some reason, he felt that something was a bit off.

The card game ended with the last card put on the table, and the winners were decided.

Xiao Qimo and Ye Jinwen narrowly won.

The two naturally had no intention to continue and, after saying goodbye to Mr. Huang, led Lu Mian downstairs.

“I’ll take you home,” Xiao Qimo had already opened the passenger side door, and while turning around, he gave a suggestive look to Ye Jinwen.

Ye Jinwen took the hint, “Little Mianmian, I have something to attend to, so I’ll be off first!”

Lu Mian didn’t protest. The two of them didn’t speak much on the way back, quickly returning to Jin City Number One.

When Xiao Qimo got the call from Ye Jinwen again, he was informed—

“Brother Qi! We’ve found the suspect! But…” He paused, sounding frustrated, “Damn it, someone stole our thunder and tied the suspect up and dumped them at the police station before we could!”