Chapter 190: What a Lovely Family
Chapter 190: What a Lovely Family
He could go home now.
Lu Xin sensed this after finishing half of the coffee blended with chocolate.
He felt it distinctly—he was being watched.
It was an indescribable sensation, as if hidden eyes were scrutinizing him, an unshakeable gaze that remained elusive no matter how he searched. The cafe lay still and quiet; even the waitress clad in a dark maid uniform had stopped arguing with him. She now hovered behind the counter, seemingly busy yet idle.
Most would dismiss this feeling of being watched as illusion.
But Lu Xin knew better.
Though he didn’t grasp precisely how he’d been targeted, recalling Drunkard’s ordeal brought clarity. She assumed exposure from investigating this organization marked her. Yet the truth diverged sharply—her suspicion wasn’t the trigger.
The reason was much simpler: she’d spiked her coffee with liquor.
She’d insulted the sanctity of coffee.
……
After connecting these dots, Lu Xin serenely finished his beverage.
It was expensive, after all.
He also needed to ensure his watchers remained fixated.
Only then did he rise, slinging his bag over one shoulder… All this while, Little Sister clung to that bag, rummaging for candy. Outdoors, Lu Xin habitually pretended not to see her; so he hoisted both bag and sibling onto his back.
He paid, collected change, and left.
On reaching the opposite sidewalk, Lu Xin glanced back. The cafe radiated an indefinable strangeness—sunlit yet shadows seeped through its structure like refracted light. Behind the window mirroring street scenes, the stare boring into him intensified.
……
Lu Xin took the tram to Satellite City No. 4’s train station parking lot, retrieving his pre-parked Motorcycle. Unaware what might unfold after becoming the organization’s mark, he’d agreed with Drunkard beforehand: once inside that cafe, contact ceased. Mutual targets mingling risked alarm.
With bike in tow, Lu Xin boarded the High-Speed Train homebound to Satellite City No. 2.
Drunkard, observing from some vantage point, would see this move—proof he’d successfully drawn attention. As his train departed, she’d mobilize preparations to trap their foes. Once this invitation took hold, his call would trigger instant action.
Was Satellite City No. 2’s distance too great? Might they lose track?
That worry had plagued Lu Xin earlier.
Yet aboard the train, the sensation sharpened—eyes clung like maggots to bone. Reassured, he relaxed. The gaze fixed and unrelenting meant Psychic Entities would find their mark by nightfall and kill.
How utterly invisible, this method of murder…
Lu Xin pressed down on his bag, thwarting Little Sister’s attempts to unzip it. Eyes shut, he contemplated quietly.
The world had shifted since the moon bled crimson.
……
At Satellite City No. 2’s central station, Lu Xin reclaimed his Motorcycle. He inspected it thoroughly for scrapes before riding home. This journey to Satellite City No. 4 demanded the bike—anticipating battles necessitated readiness. Ironically, events unfolded so mildly it proved needless freight.
He didn’t rush home. First a detour to the market: cucumbers, eggplants, half a pound of pork belly. Spotting fresh clams hauled ashore, he gritted his teeth and bought a pound too. Produce dangled from handlebars as he ambled homeward.
This Motorcycle’s flaw surfaced clearly—haggling became futile. Vendors eyed it instantly and hiked prices by several mao coins.
Inside his building hallway, Lu Xin wheeled the bike in, locked it meticulously, then ascended with groceries. Pushing the door open, he found Mother and Father seated silent and rigid at the dining table—opposite ends, tension clotting the air. Whatever conversation died lingered heavily.
Hearing Lu Xin enter, both pivoted toward him.
One summoned a fragile smile; the other darkened visibly.
Before either spoke, Lu Xin lifted his shopping bag. “Brought extras. Let’s feast tonight?”
Derailed, Father’s expression warred briefly before settling on a cold snort. Mother’s voice warmed gently: “Oh? We just celebrated life’s improvements days ago!”
Lu Xin offered an earnest smile. “Just back from business. Extra subsidies now—spending 10% on food feels fair.”
Mother appraised him fondly. “How extravagant you’ve grown lately…”
Heat touched Lu Xin’s ears. “Mainly for you both. You’ve known lean times too long.”
Mother and Father’s expressions seemed to change somewhat.
Mother rose gracefully and said, “I’ll go make dinner then, the sky is almost dark…”
Little Sister was clutching Lu Xin’s bag tenaciously, insisting, “I want candy, give it to me quickly…”
Lu Xin held on tightly, unwilling to let go, and explained sincerely, “There really isn’t any left…”
“So eager to rush to work, hurrying to do dangerous things for others…”
When Lu Xin helplessly took out half a piece of candy from his pocket, pacified Little Sister, and sat down on the sofa, Father, who had been staring coldly at him, suddenly asked, “Is it because you’re in such a hurry to rise to that damn Second Stage, to see that secret? Is the current life making you uncomfortable? Just how unsatisfied… are you to work so hard?”
Facing Father’s gaze that seemed to solidify into substance, Lu Xin, after a while, slowly lifted his head.
He looked at Father and said with a smile, “Is there any wine left at home? I’ll have a drink with you tonight.”
Father, whose blood-red eyes seemed perpetually in a drunken state, revealed a cold glint.
It was clearly palpable that his anger was intensifying.
After a good while, he spoke with a slight sneer, “Always pretending to be so normal, aren’t you tired?”
“How can what you enjoy be called pretending?”
Lu Xin said to Father with a smile, “I really do want to have a drink with you.”
Father fell silent, like a volcano, suppressing immense power, just unable to erupt.
“By the way…”
Lu Xin, as if just remembering this issue, gave a light laugh and said to Father, who was sitting across in the chair, his oppressive presence almost engulfing the whole living room, and to Mother, who was cooking in the kitchen, “Tonight, it’s not just us eating; I’ve invited two friends… Maybe two, or possibly more, so we have to…”
” Hehe…”
Mother, busy cooking in the kitchen, suddenly let out a laugh, but quickly covered her mouth.
Through the kitchen’s glass door, it was visible that she was holding back laughter while cooking.
“I want… I want a friend too…”
Little Sister, slowly gnawing on that piece of candy, immediately raised her hand happily.
“Hmph…”
Father gave a heavy grunt. Instantly, the light in the entire room dimmed noticeably, as if the whole building was rapidly sinking, but it was just a hallucination. With a slight mental lapse, one realized that nothing had actually changed. Outside the window, faint streetlight had come on. Since the room was still unlit, Father’s figure had become somewhat indistinct, like a shadow.
” Since you have friends coming…”
After grunting, Father didn’t get angry; instead, there was a rare hint of ease in his voice.
” Then of course we must entertain them properly…”
“…”
Lu Xin looked at Little Sister, whose eyes were shining with excitement, she was so happy that she squirmed; then he looked at Mother in the kitchen, whose posture while cooking had become increasingly graceful, one hand turning food with a ladle, her steps light as if dancing.
Finally, he turned to Father, who had his back to the window and seemed to have a trace of a smile on his face.
Lu Xin’s mood also gradually brightened.
Oh, how wonderful it was, such a warm and kind family…