Yihshyong was sitting pensively on a chair in the dining room when he heard the clock on the wall chime. He looked at the object that made the sound. Without blinking, he stared at the antique clock hanging on their dining room wall. The clock showed five in the afternoon.
<
So far, there had been no news regarding Shannchyuan's whereabouts. They left the television in the living room on. Everyone was waiting for news updates on television about the incident this afternoon, especially news about the victims.
<
"Shyongge!" Iren appeared out of one bedroom. "You better take a shower first!" He immediately sat next to Yihshyong.
"Okay! After this, I'm going to take a shower. Now Jinqkang is still in the bathroom."
"He didn't bring a change of clothes, did he?" said Iren.
"I already gave him Shinnshiow's clothes. They fit perfectly."
"You're right! I also thought that kid's stature was very similar to Shinnshiow."
"Regarding this matter of Shinnshiow, what do you think?" Yihshyong looked at Iren.
"I think it's clear now that Shyongge is the one who have to deliver the goods. I guess once we get to this point, it doesn't really matter who will deliver the ransom items there."
"I know. I was just thinking about what to tell them."
"Just tell them the truth."
"Tell them that Dahge was one victim in the incident this afternoon?"
"Right. I think that's the best way."
"What if they don't believe it?"
"So far, we've been cooperative with whatever they want. So, we have no reason to lie about this. If they still don't believe it, there's nothing more we can do."
"Hmm..."
"I don't think they will have any other choice, either. In the end, they will accept whoever delivers the ransoms."
Yihshyong was stunned to hear Iren's words. He looked up at the ceiling in the room. Yihshyong often saw Shannchyuan did that. He did not know what purpose Shannchyuan looked up at the ceiling. Sometimes, Shannchyuan's behavior was difficult for them to understand. Yihshyong, who had been living with Shannchyuan for more than a year, from time to time felt like he was groping in the dark as he tried to interpret what Shannchyuan was doing.
"Shyongge, what are you doing?" Iren asked.
"I did nothing," Yihshyong replied. Still looking up, he turned to Iren. It turned out that Iren was also doing the same thing as him. "What are you doing?"
"Of course I do the same as you."
"Do you know what I'm doing?"
"I think Shyongge must be imitating Dahge."
Yihshyong laughed. Still looked up. "Right! What do you think Dahge is looking for on the ceiling?"
"Based on Dahge's personality, it's very likely that this act was one of Dahge's ways of getting some inspiration."
"You do realize that an answer like that is stupid, right?" Yihshyong smiled.
Iren laughed. His head still looked up. "That's something my relatives always say back home. I don't think they were completely wrong. The fact that I'm here with you now may prove that what they said was right."
"You're not alone. My cousin said that too when he found out that I quit my job and chose to travel."
They both chuckled.
"Then, according to Shyongge, what is the real reason?"
"Reason for what?"
"Of course, Dahge's reason for looking up at the ceiling like this!"
"Maybe Dahge was just trying to stretch his neck muscles. That makes a lot more sense."
"Hmm," muttered Iren.
"Or maybe there really wasn't a particular reason. Dahge just wanted to do that."
They both burst out laughing. Under those circumstances, anything could be funny. In stressful situations, as was the case at that time, they often laughed at themselves. It's one of the mechanisms they built to make themselves felt a little better.
"What are you guys doing?" Chioujen's voice startled Yihshyong.
"Imitating Dahge," replied Iren.
"Ah! This is very interesting!" Chioujen laughed. "Do you want to try too?" said Iren. "Hmm..." Chioujen was still laughing. "I just wanted to ask about our dinner. Should I prepare it now?"
"About that," Yihshyong didn't look at his friends at all, neither at Iren nor at Chioujen. He kept looking up at the ceiling. "I haven't showered yet. But you can start preparing now. So, after I'm done showering, I can go straight to dinner."
"Okay. I think in five minutes I'll start preparing dinner," Chioujen said.
"Has Dahge done something like this recently or has it been his habit for a long time?" Iren asked Chioujen.
"Do what?"
"Certainly doing what we are currently doing," said Iren.
"As I recall, Beaushu used to do this often too," Chioujen said. "When I was a child, when I visited my friend's house, I would often see Beaushu gazing alone and staring at the ceiling."
"Did Dahge never explain to you why he did this?" Yihshyong asked.
"Never."
"And you never asked him either?" Yihshyong asked.
"Never," Chioujen replied. "I think it's a private matter. I don't want to interfere at all."
"Have you ever tried it?" Yihshyong asked.
"Of course I have!"
"So what did you get?" Iren asked.
"My neck hurts so bad. I have to put some medicine patches on to ease my suffering," Chioujen replied.
The three of them burst out laughing.
"Ah! You all seem to enjoy doing this too," came a voice.
The three of them turned. Yihshyong and Iren turned towards the voice while still looking up. Jinqkang was already beside them. Turned out he had finished taken a shower. They were so excited to look up, then they didn't even hear when Jinqkang opened the bathroom door.
"What do you mean?" asked Chioujen.
"Of course, looking up at the ceiling. Isn't that what you're doing now?"
Iren looked at Jinqkang. "Don't you find this strange?"
"Of course I find it a little strange. But isn't that the custom of the ancients?"
"Who said that to you?" Yihshyong asked.
<
"No one. But I used to see my grandfather in Yeuandong doing this a lot. Not only my grandfather, but his relatives too. So I came to the conclusion that this is a habit that old people sometimes do."
Yihshyong poked Iren. "You've heard of this."
"No." Iren shook his head vigorously. "This is the first time I've heard of such a thing."
"Perhaps this is just a custom of the Duanmuh Family," Chioujen said.
Chioujen's words were probably just a joke. But maybe he's serious. That's quite reasonable. There were so many mysterious things about the Duanmuh Family.
<
After that, they all fell silent. Everyone was busy with their own thoughts. Because no one was making a sound, the sound of the television can be heard very clearly.
"The delivery of the ransom at night is very unfavorable to us." Yihshyong broke the silence by making the statement.
"Right! It's easier for criminals to escape. Especially if they are very familiar with the area," said Iren.
"In addition, the night atmosphere also makes it easier for them to monitor anyone who comes to the park," said Chioujen."During the day, the park is very crowded. But after sunset, except on weekends, not many people come there. So, if suddenly there are a lot of visitors, it is not difficult for the criminals to conclude that those people are the police."
"I think the police must have considered the matter well," Jinqkang said.
"I hope you're right. At night, of course, the police will find it difficult to disguise themselves. Maybe they will hide in places that are not very clearly visible, such as in the bushes, in the trees, or on the roofs of buildings that are there. One thing is for sure. There's no way they disguised themselves as plants," Yihshyong said.
They heard a car driving in front of their house. Immediately after, the sound stopped.
"The car stopped in front of our house," said Iren. "Someone's coming!"
"Let me see!" After saying so, Chioujen rushed out of the house.
"I think it's Tsaehorng's car," said Iren.
Yihshyong nodded. "That kid really keeps his word."
In less than three minutes, Chioujen was back. He entered the house with a beaming face. He did not enter alone. There were two people walking after him. The first person was carrying a large brown bag. The second person also carried a bag, but not too big.
"How are you, Mr. Gongshi?" As soon as he saw the person carrying the big bag enter the living room, Jinqkang immediately greeted him.
"I'm fine, Mr. Duanmuh," the person answered Jinqkang's greeting. He smiled widely.
"Here, Tsaehorng's driver has arrived." Chioujen's voice was so cheerful.
"Good evening, gentlemen! My name is Gongshi Yangshyang. I am the personal driver of Mr. Mingju's family."
"Thank you for coming here," said Yihshyong. "Please have a seat, Sir!"
"Thank you," said Gongshi. He then sat on the couch in their living room.
"Then, this one is Mr. Pyngher." Chioujen pointed to the other person.
"My name is Pyngher Shiowmin. I am a new employee at Mr. Mingju's company." The other person saluted.
"New employee? No wonder our Jinqkang doesn't seem to know him," said Iren.
Yihshyong felt a little surprised. "But based on Mr. Mingju's story, I get the impression that he has known you for a long time?"
The person named Pyngher smiled. "I'm not really a new person. I've worked for them for ten years. At first I worked in one of Mr. Mingju's father's companies, to be precise, in one of the companies under the Shindongchaang group. Three months ago, Mr. Mingju's father asked if I am willing to move to work in a company that has just been started by his son. Because I thought that my career might be better in a new company, so I immediately agreed."
"Yes, Sir," said Yihshyong. "Even though the company is just established, it can't be denied that there is a big group, namely Shindongchaang, who supports it. So it is likely that it will progress rapidly."
"But why doesn't Jinqkang seem to recognize him?" Iren glanced at Jinqkang.
Before Jinqkang could answer, Pyngher had already opened his mouth. "Mr. Duanmuh has never met me in person. Even though I have worked at Mr. Mingju's company, but there are several projects at Mr. Mingju's father's company that I have not finished. So for the past three months, every day I still go to work at Mr. Mingju's father's company. You can say that I am officially an employee of Mr. Mingju's company which was borrowed by one of Mr. Mingju's father's companies. Maybe next month, then I will physically move to Mr. Mingju's office."