Chapter 87 - Home

UNEDITED: 

"Then, go out with me," Han Ze Min's casual proposal resonated in the room, ringing a bunch of alarming bells on Ming Yue's on one corner of her mind and creating utter confusion on another corner.

Her dubious eyes carefully scanned the grinning man who stood before her. Even when they were children, Han Ze Min was second to none in terms of good looks and personality. He had always been 

I'm seriously sick of it."

"What? Did he also-"

"I have no plan to go out with anyone."

"I like you."

"I like me too."

"Seriously? You think that joke would work on me?'

"You are the young master of the Han family, soon to be CEO of the HK group. You will get more eligible women-"

"I said go out with me, not to marry me."

"Huh?"

"I have no plan to marry you. I just need someone to go out with me so that my family will stop pestering me with marriage."

"You want me to pretend as your girlfriend?"

"Exactly. Don't worry, I will pay for your services....both physical and emotional."

"Do you know how offensive you just sounded right now?"

"We need to discuss our terms before we sign upon this fake relationship thing, miss Ming." 

"No thanks."

"At least listen to my terms. I will pay double...Nah triple than the money you gets here. You just need to pretend as my girlfriend, goes on date with me, show up for dinners with me. You will get your own apartment and car and basically everything you need. But once in a while, do come to my condo and sleepover." 

"I'm not asking you to sleep with me...just come over to make others believe that we are a legitimate couple. We won't have any physical relationship unless you are okay with it?" 

"And how long do I have to pretend like that?"

"Just until, Wan Yi Jun gets married."

"Why is that so?"

"He is the eldest among us. If I get a girlfriend, our family will definitely pester him to get married or get engaged to his girlfriend whom you mentioned earlier."

"I'm sorry I don't understand how your family dealing with things. Being single or not, that's someone's personal choice. What's the point of pushing two individuals into marriage if they are not ready to settle down?"

"You don't know our family's rules." 

"You are a police officer, are you not brave enough to say break the stupid rules and regulations set by your highly conservative family?" 

"I want to...but there is something that stopping us from doing so..." 

Me and Yi Jun are the only male heirs left in our family. If we don't get married or have a child, the centuries-old legacy of our family will end with us."

"So you want me to pretend as your girlfriend until you find an eligible woman as your girlfriend or wife, maybe?"

"Yes. I will inform my family that we broke up and pretended to be heartbroken for a while." 

"Is it okay for you to deceive your family like this? Didn't you say that liars and traitors will always be hated by your family?" 

"Do you believe me if I say that I don't want to be part of my family anymore?" 

Wan Yi Jun's answer was unexpected. Well, it was weird that one of the top officers of the Imperial police force, who is known for his cold-blooded personality, is none other than someone who once wanted to become a pianist.

"I like wrestling." Ming Yue's sudden declaration, gathering everyone's attention to her. 

"I used to work with a wrestler's place. Nowadays, I just wrestle in the kitchen with dough and batter." She said in a monotonous tone that instantly cracked up others, 

"Oh, no worries, I can spar with you," Han Ze Min casually suggested.

"Say that after seeing her punches," Wan Yi Jun let out a chortle and haughtily tilted his head when he recalled his earlier interactions with Ming Yue, which clearly showed that she is a fighter.

"Oh really, then we have to spar." Han Ze Min repeated once again, just to hammer down the fact that he is interested in Ming Yue. However, even before everyone started to dwell on that conversation, Wan Yi Jun meddled in and stopped him by directing the question to the rest of the team members.

The conversation went through up and downs finally ended on a good note, restoring everyone's mind in peace. 

But among them, Lao Yating was the only one who sat there without entirely engaging in the talks happening over there. His mind was still stuck on the investigation. None of the drama that happens before his eyes made no change in his chaotic brain. 

However, the moment he learnt that Ming Yue is from Zhi Ruo, it immediately piqued his interest. 

"Are you from Zhi Ruo in the dragon city?" He curiously asked,

"Yes, have you been there, officer?" Ming Yue casually replied while finishing the last bite of her pasta,

"No...I have met someone from Zhi Ruo," Lao Yating answered without letting her kn

"It's no wonder that you met someone from Zhi Ruo, people often migrate from that barren land to capital for better opportunities."

"Barren land?"

"Hmm, it is a border island, with no proper facilities or infrastructure."

"Those were two university students, orphans."

"Orphans are not a new thing in Zhi Ruo, most of the kids born over there lost their parents and family in the borderland dispute." 

"Mainland people often treat us pushovers or illegal immigrants from Daisun who got no power here."

"Those kids were university students in one of the prestigious universities in the capital and got themselves in a bit of trouble."

"Sir Lao, why are you ruining the mood? You can talk about the case all week, but not on weekends."

"I'm sorry...If I said anything to offend you."

"No sister, Sir Lao is not feeling good. We hit a dead-end in the recent case we investigated."

"That murder case on new year?"

"Oh, you knew about it?"

"It's all over in the news."

"Well, media houses don't know our struggle. They just spew nonsense."

"They spew nonsense because you kept people in darkness."

"Even police officers are struggling in darkness, without any ."

"Who pushed the police into darkness?"

"Ming Yue, are we having this conversation at the dining table?"

"I know. The whole point of having this meal is to get your minds relaxed, so sorry for the inconvenience caused by me. Please have your lunch."

"Captain, your maid is quite fierce."

"Yes, she is."

"No matter how much evidence we collect, we always end up in the same place we started, the victim was murdered due to personal vengeance. But even after interrogating everyone related to that victim, we still couldn't find anyone who would have hatred towards the victim."

"Have you checked about her past relationships?"

"She doesn't have any past relationships."

"Who doesn't have a past relationship? I'm damn sure that everyone here has a relationship."

He was looking at her without taking his eyes away from her, even for a moment. 

"Young master Han, is there anything on my face?" 

"Nothing. All I can see is beauty." 

"Master, it seems like he is not comfortable having a meal with me. So excuse."'

"Don't leave."

Wan Yi Jun's answer was unexpected. Well, it was weird that one of the top officers of the Imperial police force, who is known for his cold-blooded personality, is none other than someone who once wanted to become a pianist.

"I like wrestling." Ming Yue's sudden declaration, gathering everyone's attention to her. 

"I used to work with a wrestler's place. Nowadays, I just wrestle in the kitchen with dough and batter." She said in a monotonous tone that instantly cracked up others, 

"Oh, no worries, I can spar with you," Han Ze Min casually suggested.

The conversation went through up and downs finally ended on a good note, restoring everyone's mind in peace. 

But among them, Lao Yating was the only one who sat there without entirely engaging in the talks happening over there. His mind was still stuck on the investigation. None of the drama that happens before his eyes made no change in his chaotic brain. 

However, the moment he learnt that Ming Yue is from Zhi Ruo, it immediately piqued his interest. 

"Are you from Zhi Ruo in the dragon city?" He curiously asked,

"Yes, have you been there, officer?" Ming Yue casually replied while finishing the last bite of her pasta,

"No...I have met someone from Zhi Ruo," Lao Yating answered without giving much emphasis on the person's identity as he promised to the students who had given the statement.

"I have heard a lot about Dragon city, but...Zhi Ruo-" Bing Wen's words broke when he went into his thoughts.

"It's no wonder that you haven't met someone from Zhi Ruo. Only very few people could migrate from that barren land to other places for better opportunities." 

"Barren land, like a desert with dunes and high temperature?" Bing Wen asked again with his eyes widened in surprise.