The girl hadn't invited him inside, so naturally, he couldn't enter—it was already midnight, and propriety had to be maintained.
Qiqi quickly pulled out her spare key to unlock the study, only to find it empty. Rong Yi wasn't home!
Her heart skipped a beat, sinking like a stone.
*Rong Yi, could that giant monster really be you? But you were so badly injured—why didn't you come home?*
Just then, another knock sounded from outside, followed by Lu Wei's polite and restrained voice: "Qiqi, are you alright?"
Qiqi hurriedly shut the study door, went out to the courtyard, and waved at her senior brother. "Senior Brother, you should go back and rest! My cousin's already asleep and can't come out to say goodbye!"
Lu Wei looked slightly surprised. "Can't he step out for a moment?"
Qiqi shook her head with a troubled expression. "My cousin has a terrible temper, as you know."
Lu Wei gave her a long, searching look, then nodded. "Alright then. Qiqi, get some rest early. If anything happens, make sure to call me!"
Qiqi nodded quickly, putting on a "I'm so sleepy I want to crash" act, though she was on the verge of tears inside.
Lu Wei added a few more reminders before finally leaving.
Qiqi dashed back into the courtyard and bolted the gate.
It was almost one in the morning—Rong Yi's first night away from home.
Qiqi sat on the stone bench under the old locust tree, waiting and waiting, until the eastern sky began to lighten. Still, Rong Yi hadn't returned.
Day broke, and Qiqi slumped wearily onto the table.
She didn't dare go out to search for him, afraid that if she left the house, he might come back. Besides, he didn't have a phone and rarely went out alone—she had no idea where he could have gone.
So she had no choice but to stay in the courtyard, waiting like a fool.
One moment, she was frantic over the monster's injuries; the next, she pulled out a photo to study, her mind full of doubts.
It was the photo left behind by the black-clad figure who had attacked her. Qiqi had secretly tucked it away in the garden during the chaos. Zhou Yi had told her not to call the police, clearly trying to shield Zhou Zhibi. And while Senior Brother Lu had promised her an explanation, Qiqi wasn't naive enough to trust them completely. Her life was at stake—she had to investigate on her own to stay in control.
That's why she had hidden the photo.
What surprised her was that the person in the photo wasn't her, but another young woman. The woman looked a few years older than Qiqi, with delicate features, a calm demeanor, and sharp, clever eyes. She had long, ink-black hair. It was a half-length portrait, showing her wearing a neat white top—simple and spotless, but the style was outdated, like something popular decades ago. Yet on her, it suited her serene aura, looking very comfortable.
In other words, this woman either wasn't from the same era as Qiqi, or she lived in a remote, isolated rural or mountainous area, which would explain the old-fashioned clothes.
Qiqi flipped the photo over—it had been printed on an ordinary color photo printer, so the colors were fresh, giving no clue to its age.
But the woman in the photo really did look a lot like her.
No wonder the black-clad figure had used it to compare with her—her eyes, nose, mouth, and that sharp little oval face were almost identical to Qiqi's, as if stamped from the same mold!