Chapter 27: Are You Hiding a Beauty in a Gilded Cage?

When Ning Huaizhi saw him write down her name without a moment’s hesitation, she couldn’t help but feel a prickle of unease.

Did he know? How could he possibly know? If they had met before, why was there not even a trace of a memory of it in her mind? It couldn't be that her memory was failing her, could it?

Not one to hide her curiosity, she asked him directly. "Mr. Qin, have we met somewhere before?"

Qin Qiuhong raised an eyebrow. "Why? Do you find me familiar?"

That was only natural, of course; after all, the name Qin Qiuhong appeared in the news often enough that many people were familiar with it.

"No, it’s just that you seem familiar with me. You wrote down my name directly just now without even asking me, so I guessed we must have met somewhere."

Qin Qiuhong was momentarily taken aback. Usually, it was others who claimed familiarity with him; experiencing this from the other side was a first.

"It’s quite refreshing," Qin Qiuhong remarked.

"We have indeed met. Do you remember? The banquet held by the Ning family. I was quite impressed by you; you were very clever."

At the time, he had felt a touch of admiration for her. However, he had quickly pushed the matter to the back of his mind. He had far too many pressing matters to attend to, and such a trifle was not worth occupying his thoughts for long. He had not expected their paths to cross again so soon.

Qin Qiuhong had even speculated whether Ning Huaizhi was intentionally trying to get close to him, but his investigation had shown otherwise. It was merely a coincidence, which finally put his mind at ease. There had been no shortage of men and women in the past who tried to "accidentally" encounter him, all with ulterior motives aimed at his Qin Group. He had grown inevitably guarded.

"So that’s when it was," Ning Huaizhi murmured. During that banquet, her mind hadn't been on the event at all, so it was no wonder she didn't remember a person like him.

Qin Qiuhong glanced at his watch. It was getting late. He should have been at the office long ago, but he had stopped by to bring her breakfast and hadn't realized how much time had slipped away.

"I need to head to the office. Get some rest. If you need anything, just press the button by the bed. I’ve already reported yesterday’s incident to the police, and they will come by later to take your statement. If you know who attacked you, you can tell them directly."

"Thank you," Ning Huaizhi looked up and smiled. "I'm sorry for the trouble."

Qin Qiuhong chuckled and turned to leave.

Ning Huaizhi climbed out of bed and paced around the room. After lying down for over a dozen hours, her bones felt stiff; she couldn't stay still any longer.

Before long, there was a knock at the door.

"Ms. Ning, the police are here. May we come in?"

"Please, come in," Ning Huaizhi nodded.

Two officers entered—a man and a woman. The man was quite tall, and while the woman was shorter, she possessed an equally commanding presence. As Ning Huaizhi observed them, they were doing the same to her.

The female officer stepped forward first, her tone gentle. "Hello, my surname is Zhang, and this is Officer He. We received a report yesterday, but since you were unconscious, we were unable to take your statement. We came as soon as we heard you were awake. How are you feeling? Are you alright?"

"I’m doing okay."

"Good. Shall we begin the statement?"

"Yes."

Officer Zhang asked the questions while Officer He took notes. It began with basic information before moving on to the events of last night.

"Ms. Ning, do you happen to know who did this?"

Officer Zhang had been prepared for a denial, so she was surprised when Ning Huaizhi nodded immediately.

"I do. It was my ex-boyfriend, He Mingyuan," Ning Huaizhi said with a calm tone.

Officer Zhang paused, then asked, "Do you have any idea why he would do this?"

"We had a conflict a while back, and I broke up with him. Since then, he has been constantly pestering me, hoping I would get back together with him. I refused, and perhaps that is why he waited to ambush me while I was working at the court."

"It was already dark, and I couldn't see the path clearly when I came down. He dragged me into the woods nearby. At the time... later, I managed to run away. I saw lights on the dirt road and ran toward them. It was my only chance. In a place like that, I knew I couldn't outrun He Mingyuan; I had no choice but to seek help from someone else."

After that, she had passed out and arrived at the hospital; there was nothing more to tell. Throughout the entire account, Ning Huaizhi remained calm and detached, as if she were speaking of someone else’s experiences rather than her own.

Officer Zhang looked at her with a hint of pity. To have such a boyfriend was truly the height of misfortune.

"I see. Ms. Ning, is there anything else you would like to add? Do you have any evidence?"

"I have a surveillance video. It’s the only camera on the road leading to the court. It clearly records He Mingyuan’s state as he went up and came down. He was clearly flustered when he left. Perhaps that will be of some help to you."

Ning Huaizhi handed the video over to Officer Zhang.

"Thank you, Ms. Ning. We will handle this seriously and investigate the matter thoroughly. You haven't fully recovered yet, so please get some rest. I won't disturb you any further."

Ning Huaizhi nodded slightly. Having spoken for so long, she felt a wave of exhaustion and decided it was time to rest again.

The two officers opened the door, shut it with a click, and their footsteps faded into the distance. Ning Huaizhi lay back down and closed her eyes.

This time, He Mingyuan did not appear in her dreams. Instead, she saw someone else: Qin Qiuhong.

She saw him standing in his office at the Qin Group. It was dark all around; he hadn't turned on the lights and stood by the window, looking down at the thousands of city lights below. Ning Huaizhi found it strange, as she didn't recall ever seeing this side of him. She knew, with a clear sense of intuition, that this was not reality.

She walked up to him, but he didn't seem to notice her, merely sighing to himself. The moonlight fell upon his face, adding a sense of profound loneliness to his expression.

Was he... missing someone?

...

When Qin Qiuhong stepped into his office, Qin Qiulan was already waiting for him on the sofa.

"Why are you so late today? Don't you have documents to process?"

"I had some matters to attend to on the way, so I was delayed."

Qin Qiulan’s gaze drifted toward him, a book held up to cover the lower half of her face. Her fox-like eyes curved, carrying a hint of mischief.

A chill ran down Qin Qiuhong’s spine. The ominous feeling made him wish he could turn around and leave immediately.

But it was too late.

"What could possibly keep a career-driven man like you for so long? Don't tell me you've been hiding a mistress somewhere?"