C14 Mu Tingxiao's Father

Mu Jiachen was breathing heavily, looking as if he had just participated in a triathlon. His eyes were bloodshot, and his face was even paler than earlier. Moo Nuannuan glanced at his hands to see that one of them had blood running down its knuckles. She widened her eyes in surprise. "You–did you...why the hell did you punch the wall?" She followed his gaze to see the damages sustained by the drywall, and she gritted her teeth. Luckily, the manager of this building didn't give a crap about these types of damages, else there would be hell to pay. "Hello? Aren't you going to say anything?"

It wasn't as if she had placed anything strange in his food. In fact, she had cooked pretty well for someone who hadn't done these things in a while! The least he could do was be appreciative over it, not try to destroy her own property. However, just as she was about to reach for his hand, he pulled away from her and turned around.

She was about to curse the living hell out of him when his phone rang out.

He glanced at the unfamiliar number, and his face darkened even further. Somehow, the tension around the room had grown even thicker, and it was like the both of them had been stunned into silence. While Mu Tingxiao wasn't in a good place to talk, Moo Nuannuan didn't know what else to do or say. They had reached an impasse.

A few minutes had passed when he finally looked up. "You can go in."

His voice was void from any emotion, like a ghost of the man he once was.

At first, Moo Nuannuan wanted to ask what had gotten into him and if she had done anything to offend him, but one look at his soulless eyes, she knew that this wasn't the right time. She quietly moved back into her apartment, holding the door half-closed with one hand as she wondered whether it was best to lock him out there for good.

He didn't seem to notice her struggle when his phone rang out again.

This time, the call wasn't from an unknown number anymore. Instead, the name 'Shi Ye' popped into his screen.

He didn't waste any time as he answered the phone, "What does he want from me now?"

"You know why, he's asking for you to bring his daughter-in-law to his place for dinner tonight," Shi Ye replied respectfully. "He...Your father expects you to say yes."

Mu Tingxiao scoffed. Of course, that was why he had called him. "Don't bother answering his calls in the future."

"Easy," he readily agreed. "It's not like he's my boss or anything."

As soon as he hung up, Mu Tingxiao rubbed the space in between his eyebrows. Ever since ten years ago, he and his father always had such a rocky relationship, and now, it seemed he had gotten more invested in the idea of meeting his wife. Gritting his teeth, he glanced at the door only to see that it was still ajar. Moo Nuannuan was standing at the other side, leaning against the opening. He scowled.

"Were you eavesdropping on me?"

"I–Of course not!" She immediately shook her head.

It was best not to insult him right now.

"Then why haven't you closed the door?" He cocked up his eyebrow, taking another step forward. The playful glint in his eyes had returned, and the corners of his lips twitched up into a smirk. Soon enough, the angry man had faded out of sight. "Already so willing to give up that crippled cousin of mine? Or are you still so hung up on him?"

"I...I..." Her face immediately flushed in disapproval. Not wanting to respond to him, she slammed the door shut.

Mu Tingxiao stared at the door disinterestedly before shaking his head.

He had wanted to stay here for the next two days to scout for the person he was trying to chase in the first place. While Moo Nuannuan was away, he used the ledge by the windowsill to keep track of everyone's movements and to see if there were anything suspicious happening around the area. However, nothing had happened. It was as if that same person had disappeared.

It was no use for him to stay at her place anymore.

Besides, although Moo Nuannuan wasn't as gifted in the looks area, she was as kind as she was smart. She was certainly not a hindrance to what he had wanted to do, and in fact, she had proven to be quite useful when he needed her to be. He might as well give her some peace of mind for now. With a sigh, he headed out of the building and went straight to the back of the alleyway.

There, he saw Shi Ye leaning against his car, waiting for him.

"Boss," he greeted. There was a trace of worry sketched over his features. "How are you feeling?"

Mu Tingxiao waved his hand dismissively. "I'll be fine."

Their conversations were always very straight-to-the-point. Shi Ye immediately opened the door for him, and as soon as they were seated, he started the car. "Shi Ye." His voice echoed from the back seat. "Has he been calling you this past two days?"

"Yes." He nodded, knowing who he was talking about. "Mr. Mu said you blacklisted his number. He tried reaching you by using another line, but you still weren't picking up. That's why he called me."

"Hm." It wasn't the first time his father had tried reaching him through another number.

"Before you arrived, Mr. Mu called one last time. He said that if you don't bring your wife back for dinner, he'll call her himself."

So he wanted to play it this way, huh?

Shi Ye waited for a long time, expecting Mu Tingxiao to ask him to block his calls even further or to concede to his father's wishes, but the man simply shrugged in reply. "Let him do as he pleases," he said, before turning the other way. It seemed that his wife wouldn't be having a peaceful night as well.

Moo Nuannuan had already finished eating her meal. Although a part of her was worried for Mu Jiachen, it wasn't in her personality to pry any further. After all, she knew when she was unwanted, and the way he had strode out of her apartment meant that he wanted to be alone. She wasn't going to force him to do otherwise. Just as she was about to wash the dishes, her phone rang.

It was an unknown number.

It rang for a long time before she finally answered.

"Hello? It's Moo Nuannuan speaking."

"Hello, I'm Mu Qingfeng, Mu Tingxiao's father."