Chapter 277

Chapter 277 The Truth About the Fire

 

Li Lijuan left after having a big argument with Su Rui.

“Old Director, you’re too lenient with her. If she comes asking for money next time, just don’t give it to her and see what she can do about it,” Ye Binglan sighed slightly, filled with righteous indignation.

This pair of children hadn’t even thought about supporting their elderly parent, taking their father to live with them. Instead, they wanted to divide the old man’s relocation compensation. Such a small and remote house—even if it were demolished, how much could it be worth?

“If I don’t give it to her, she’ll nag me all day long,” the old director said helplessly. “To be honest, I’ve failed when it comes to raising my children.”

“Are you still planning to give her the relocation money?”

“We’ll see when the time comes,” the old man sighed lightly.

Seeing the old director’s expression, Su Rui knew that the compensation would most likely be swindled away by those unfilial children again.

After saying goodbye to the old director, Ye Binglan wasn’t in the mood to talk much along the way.

“Brother, you’re also from Bikang. Can you think of a way to teach that Li Lijuan a lesson?”

“Teaching her a lesson isn’t a problem at all, but would that cause her to become even more aggressive in demanding money from the old director?”

Ye Binglan felt somewhat helpless: “Every family has its own difficulties. We finally found the old director, only to discover he’s living so pitifully. It makes me feel terrible.”

“I’ll think of something.”

This time, Su Rui’s findings weren’t substantial. Although he could basically confirm that the orphanage fire nineteen years ago was arson, too much time had passed to investigate any useful information. Even if he found Bai Keqing, he probably wouldn’t reveal anything.

“Binglan, what do you think was the real purpose of that fire?” Su Rui asked with furrowed brows. “Since it was arson, there must have been a purpose.”

“There are many possibilities. The most likely reason is that someone wanted to take revenge on a person in the orphanage, so they burned down the entire place,” Ye Binglan shook her head, showing grief and anger. “It’s truly heinous.”

Su Rui’s brows tightened: “Is it possible that the fire was meant to erase all traces of someone having lived there?”

“Traces of someone living there?” Ye Binglan smiled bitterly. “I can’t imagine who could be so important that they would let dozens of people get hurt just to protect one person.”

“Of course, it’s also possible they set the fire to kill that person.”

“That’s certainly possible, but not highly likely.”

“I’m just speculating.”

Su Rui shook his head, and Su Wuxian’s face appeared before his eyes again.

…

In Ye Binglan’s apartment.

Ye Binglan had just finished showering and was wearing a white nightgown with her snow-white shoulders exposed. Her slightly damp hair was draped over her shoulders.

This was according to Su Rui’s instructions: take a shower first, then get a massage.

However, facing her brother like this made Ye Binglan a bit embarrassed. Her face turned slightly red, revealing a woman’s charm.

“You must never overexert yourself like this again, understand?” Su Rui said seriously, looking at the unmistakable fatigue in Ye Binglan’s eyes. “The damage caused by this kind of life-draining exhaustion can’t be recovered with simple rest.”

“Mm, I know,” Ye Binglan nodded obediently.

“What do you know? You agree so readily, but then you don’t listen at all,” Su Rui said disapprovingly. “When you start getting wrinkles, let’s see who will want you then.”

“I won’t get married. I’ll just stay with my brother,” Ye Binglan smiled radiantly, her eyes sparkling with light.

“You can stay with me for a lifetime?”

“As long as you’re willing, I definitely have no problem with that.”

“You’re really something. Come on, lie down on the bed.”

“Okay.” Ye Binglan naturally had no doubts about her brother’s words and immediately lay down on the bed.

Su Rui sat on the edge of the bed and suddenly realized he had some distracting thoughts.

In the sunlight coming through the window, Ye Binglan’s white nightgown became slightly transparent. Su Rui could clearly see her pure white shorts underneath.

Because Ye Binglan exercised daily, her figure was in excellent shape. Every part of her body was firm and elastic. Looking at her perfect proportions and contours, Su Rui couldn’t help but feel his breathing become slightly heavier.

He had always treated her as a little sister, but this little sister had now grown into a beautiful woman!

Ye Binglan didn’t think much of it. After all, Su Rui was her closest person in the world, so anything was fine. However, being alone with him like this gave her a slight feeling of shyness.

Ye Binglan was completely unaware of what kind of temptation she posed to a normally developed man, lying there in a semi-transparent nightgown!

Taking several deep breaths, Su Rui forcibly suppressed the romantic thoughts in his mind. He placed his hands on Ye Binglan’s shoulders and began to massage gently.

“Ah!”

Ye Binglan let out a light cry, feeling intense soreness in her shoulders.

“Brother, you’re pressing too hard,” Ye Binglan said, enduring the pain.

“I’m stimulating your muscles to release all the soreness inside,” Su Rui explained as his fingers moved across her back.

As the massage progressed, Ye Binglan no longer felt as much pain as at the beginning. Instead, she felt an indescribable comfort, as if the muscles in her back were singing happily.

“Brother, I feel like you’re even more professional than those massage therapists. Your technique is so skilled.”

“When we were in the army, injuries during training were common. We relied on massaging each other to quickly eliminate fatigue and promote blood circulation. Otherwise, the military doctors would have been overwhelmed.”

Having been in the army for so many years and exchanged massages with comrades for just as long, how could Su Rui not be professional?

When massaging down to Ye Binglan’s waist, Su Rui’s hand stopped midair. Looking at the view before him, he said somewhat dryly, “Well, I won’t massage your buttocks. Just pat them yourself a few times later.”

“Uh, okay.” Hearing Su Rui say this, Ye Binglan’s face turned completely red.

After Su Rui suppressed countless distracting thoughts and finished massaging Ye Binglan’s long legs, he felt he couldn’t take it anymore. He quickly rushed into the bathroom and washed his face with cold water.

If the massage had continued, who knows what inappropriate things might have happened.

Ye Binglan lay limply on the bed, her translucent earlobes reddened with embarrassment, and fine beads of sweat appeared on her neck. Much of the fatigue deep in her body had dissipated.

At this moment, she couldn’t help but recall the old director’s misunderstanding about her and Su Rui, saying they were a perfect match. Thinking about this, a sweet smile appeared on her face.

“Brother, stay here for dinner tonight. There’s a small restaurant downstairs that’s really good,” Ye Binglan sat up, leaning against the headboard and gathering her hair. Her snow-white legs were crossed, like a young woman who had just finished an afternoon nap.

“Let’s eat at home. It’s too wasteful to eat out.”

“That’s fine. I can also taste my brother’s cooking.”

“Let me see what ingredients you have in the kitchen.”

Su Rui said as he went into the kitchen. Due to her busy work schedule, Ye Binglan rarely cooked. Fortunately, she had bought some groceries the day before yesterday; otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to make dinner tonight.

“Do you like noodles?” Su Rui called from the kitchen.

“I do!” Ye Binglan shouted back, her “I do” even louder than Su Rui’s call.

However, after shouting this, Ye Binglan added loudly: “I like everything you make!”

Since Su Rui had already turned on the range hood, he didn’t hear Ye Binglan’s voice.

Coming quietly behind Su Rui, watching this man wearing an apron cooking seriously, Ye Binglan suddenly felt an indescribable emotion.

She had never carefully thought about what kind of life she wanted to live, but now she suddenly understood.

Looking at Su Rui’s back, Ye Binglan was clear and certain about her heart. This was the kind of life she wanted.

A life with you.

Su Rui was cooking noodles when he suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around him from behind, and a soft body pressed tightly against his back.

Since Ye Binglan was only wearing a nightgown, Su Rui could clearly feel the pressure of two soft areas.

This made his whole body stiffen.

“Binglan, what’s wrong?” Su Rui sensed something unusual. Ye Binglan seemed different from usual.

“Nothing, I just want to hug you,” Ye Binglan pressed her face tightly against Su Rui’s back, her face full of smiles.

“But you have to let me finish cooking,” Su Rui said helplessly. He thought Ye Binglan was still the little girl who had just found her brother.

Su Rui didn’t know that the flower had already bloomed, just for him.

“I won’t let go. Just cook like this,” Ye Binglan showed no intention of letting go. If she were a bit shorter, she would probably have been hanging entirely on Su Rui.

Su Rui could only helplessly allow her to cling to him like a little girl while he struggled through the happy torture of serving the noodles.

“Brother, it smells so good,” Ye Binglan finally let go, cutely sniffing the air. “I can’t wait.”

“Try it and see how it tastes,” Su Rui smiled. This bowl of noodles showcased all his cooking skills.

Smelling the warm, homey aroma, Ye Binglan was already eager to eat. Forgetting her ladylike image, she took a big bite.

“Delicious!”

Ye Binglan gave a thumbs up. She wasn’t exaggerating; this was a pure evaluation of the taste, without any personal feelings mixed in.

In just a few minutes, the large bowl of noodles was empty. Ye Binglan wiped her mouth with satisfaction, but looked at Su Rui with a complex expression.

Only with hot, steaming food can there be a sense of home.

“What’s wrong?” Su Rui clearly felt something was off with Ye Binglan.

“Brother, when you have a wife in the future, I won’t be able to hug you casually anymore,” Ye Binglan said softly.

These past few days, whenever she was in front of Su Rui, her tone and behavior had clearly become like a little sister who liked to cling to her brother.

“What’s the big deal? At worst, I just won’t find you a sister-in-law,” Su Rui wasn’t just saying this casually. He had always had good luck with women, but few had stayed in his life for long.

“That won’t do,” Ye Binglan said very seriously. “But I have standards for your wife. She must be at least as good as me.”

Su Rui spat out a mouthful of water.

On the opposite building, Ye Binglan’s police colleague Li Huazhong put down his binoculars and cursed viciously: “Damn woman, how dare you hug and embrace in front of me. Do you know what consequences your actions will have!”