"I already told you about the virtual idol thing, didn't I? I quit," Xia Qingtian said. "It's not convenient for me to take calls right now, and phone bills are quite expensive. We can talk about it when I get back."
With that, Xia Qingtian hung up the phone, giving Mo Jianing no chance to harass her further.
Mo Jianing, having her call hung up by Xia Qingtian, stomped her feet and cursed in anger.
After venting for a while, Mo Jianing panted, gritting her teeth, "Xia Qingtian... you ungrateful wretch! I refuse to believe I can't succeed without you!"
Mo Jianing's eyes darted around, and she immediately thought of another plan.
Maybe... it would work!
Meanwhile, Xia Qingtian, staying at the Lei family's residence, wasn't suffering from the passage of time, but she was certainly bored.
The atmosphere within the Lei family was subtly tense. Due to her injured foot, Xia Qingtian spent most of her time recuperating in her room.
Her meals and refreshments were delivered at regular times each day.
It felt similar to being hospitalized.
The only difference was that she no longer saw Mobius.
It made sense, of course. Mobius was Mr. Gu's special assistant and must have been very busy. The fact that he could visit her frequently at the hospital was likely him making a rare exception amidst his packed schedule.
"Am I becoming sentimental just because I'm sick?" Xia Qingtian chuckled wryly, shaking her head. She glanced out the window, finding the sunlight pleasant today, and impulsively decided to take a stroll in the courtyard.
The Lei family's courtyard was styled in a more Italian fashion, with a clear layout. Terraces and fountains were symmetrically constructed along the central axis. Even the plants were chosen for their year-round greenery, with few seasonal flowers. The colonnades and sculptures were exquisitely crafted with a distinct style, giving the overall impression of grandeur and solemnity, pleasing to the eye.
It was practically a haven for those with obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Taking a deep breath amidst the surrounding greenery, Xia Qingtian felt a lot refreshed.
The city C was located further south, and the temperature was a bit higher than in City Z. Even in this month, it wasn't cold.
After lazily basking in the sunlight for a while, Xia Qingtian started walking back. She noticed two middle-aged men standing by the circular fountain, seemingly observing her.
Xia Qingtian guessed they were likely elders of the Lei family. She nodded and offered a faint smile as a form of greeting.
The other two returned her nod.
After that, Xia Qingtian walked straight into the villa, intending to return to her room to rest.
Watching Xia Qingtian's retreating figure, one of them asked, "Is she the one the third brother mentioned... Yao Yang's girlfriend?"
"Yes," the person beside him replied.
"And she also saw that the 'Thousand Buddhas Assembly' was a forgery?"
"Yes."
"Interesting," the first man chuckled upon receiving confirmation.
"Master Lei, do you want us to investigate?" the person beside him asked.
"No need. It's a matter for the younger generation; no need to interfere too much," Master Lei said, showing little interest. "How is the investigation into Qin Mei's affairs going, Third Brother?"
"The third young master has already arranged for all of Qin Mei's belongings to be compiled and sent to the Lei family. He wants to examine them himself to see if there are any clues."
"The third child does things steadily enough, but he's never had to endure much hardship since he was young and lacks a bit of meticulousness. This time, let it be a lesson for him," Master Lei said, taking a deep breath.
Hearing Master Lei say this, the person beside him simply nodded and silently followed Master Lei.
Meanwhile, Xia Qingtian had just entered the villa and was about to return to her room to rest when, at a corner, she collided head-on with a servant carrying a box.
Xia Qingtian fell to the ground. The servant was startled, dropping the box, and its contents spilled out.
"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry!" the servant apologized repeatedly, rushing to help Xia Qingtian up. "I'm truly sorry."
"It's fine," Xia Qingtian waved her hand.
Seeing that Xia Qingtian wasn't going to pursue the matter, the servant hastily picked up the spilled items. After gathering everything, they apologized to Xia Qingtian again before hurrying away.
Watching the servant's retreating back, Xia Qingtian shrugged. Just as she was about to continue walking, she felt a distinct foreign object under her foot.
She looked down and picked it up, only to discover a metal buckle, round and very small.
It must have been something the servant missed.
Fingering the metal buckle, Xia Qingtian froze.
This buckle!
Xia Qingtian held the buckle between her fingers, examining it closely.
There was no mistake!
In her previous life, she had seen it countless times on Song Junhan!
Although many men would prepare special buckles to replace the second button on their suits or coats to enhance their气质, Song Junhan seemed to have an unusual fondness for this particular metal buckle. This style of buckle was not common in the market. Xia Qingtian had seen it so often that she had asked Song Junhan about it. He had merely brushed it off, saying he liked the buckle's design and had it custom-made.
Xia Qingtian hadn't thought much of it then, but now...
Xia Qingtian's gaze shifted slightly. As she was contemplating, she heard a man's voice from behind her, "Miss Xia, why are you standing here daydreaming instead of resting in your room?"
"Third Young Master Lei?" Xia Qingtian snapped back to attention and turned to look at the person behind her.
"What is this?" Third Young Master Lei's gaze fell upon the metal buckle in Xia Qingtian's hand.
"Someone accidentally knocked over a cardboard box just now, and it seems they dropped this," Xia Qingtian handed the buckle to Third Young Master Lei, her eyes filled with curiosity. "I took a closer look because the design was rather unique."
Without taking the metal buckle, Third Young Master Lei's gaze flickered, and he recalled seeing this metal buckle on Qin Mei's clothes multiple times.
"Third Young Master knows?" Xia Qingtian asked.
"It's just a dead person's belonging. If Miss Xia likes it, take it to play with," Third Young Master Lei said, turning his face away. "I have to get back to work."
"Okay." Although Xia Qingtian found the phrase "a dead person's belonging" a bit strange, she reconsidered the Lei family's industry, where most of what they dealt with were items belonging to the deceased, and thus she dismissed it.
However...
After returning to her room, Xia Qingtian examined the metal buckle closely, and her heart grew heavier.
Could this buckle have some other meaning or a unique origin?
Xia Qingtian couldn't figure it out that night. The system hadn't issued any tasks related to the buckle, nor had it given any special reminders. Xia Qingtian decided to put the buckle away for now.
If there was indeed something suspicious, she would find out later.
What if... it was just a coincidence?
At the same time, in a villa in the suburbs of City C, the man who had previously parked his car outside Xia Qingtian's hotel and ordered her elimination was now sitting on the sofa with a dark expression.
Qin Mei was dead, and the chess piece buried in the Lei family for eight years was gone!
How could he accept this! How could he!
But what could he do if he couldn't accept it?
Taking a deep breath, the man suppressed the rage in his heart and asked coldly, "What about Qin Mei's emblem buckle? Has it been retrieved?"