Quick Wear: Cousin, Come to the Bowl Quickly

"What’s wrong with you?"

As soon as Shen Jingyuan asked this question with concern, he immediately regretted it.

madness.

He cursed himself in his heart.

Why is he asking this?

Not to mention that with Lin Xi's explosive temper and her dislike for him, there was a high probability that she would misinterpret this question as him gloating over someone else's misfortune and taking advantage of his misfortune.

Just imagining the angry or contemptuous look she might give him was enough to make his forehead ache again.

What's more, the most pressing issues at this moment are piling up.

Why is she here?

And how did he avoid everyone's eyes and ears and follow them all the way to this cargo ship about to leave Shanghai?!

Had Commander Lin and his wife already discovered she was missing and were they making such a fuss about it?

And had she been seen along the way? Had she left any traces? Would it reveal his whereabouts and the true purpose of his trip...

These cold and sharp questions, which concern the success or failure of the mission and even life and death, each require him to deal with them immediately and calmly. Which one is not a hundred times more important than finding out why this young lady cried so hard?

But somehow...

But it was that most insignificant question, the one he shouldn't have asked, that slipped out of his lips first, uncontrollably, with a hint of bitterness that he himself didn't even notice.

It was like stepping on a mine you had planted on the battlefield.

An inexplicable irritation surged in his heart. Shen Jingyuan frowned and forced himself to suppress those inappropriate thoughts. His face darkened slightly, his eyes became sharp again, and he glanced coldly at Lin Xi opposite him.

However, to his surprise, the expected rage and ridicule did not come immediately.

Under the flickering kerosene lamp, Lin Xi, who was sitting opposite him, was slightly stunned when she heard his awkward "What's wrong with you?"

Then she raised her eyes and stared at him blankly with her already red and swollen eyes.

The moment their eyes met, it was as if something had gently knocked a crack in the hard shell she had tried so hard to hold up.

Tears quickly welled up in Lin Xi's eyes, and the corners of her mouth drooped uncontrollably, forming a somewhat aggrieved arc, as if she would burst into tears in the next second.

As if he had not expected her reaction like this, Shen Jingyuan's eyes flashed and he was stunned for a moment. For the first time in his life, a look of almost blank helplessness appeared on his stern face that was used to strategizing on the battlefield and arguing at the negotiation table.

He opened his mouth as if to say something, but Lin Xi, realizing that he had lost his composure, quickly turned his head away, reached out and wiped his face randomly, then turned his head and glared at Shen Jingyuan before speaking.

"What are you looking at!" She sniffed, her voice thick with nasal sounds and a kind of ferocity that was cowardly and fierce. She growled at Shen Jingyuan in a bad mood, "It's none of your business!"

Lin Xi's low growl was like a basin of cold water, instantly waking up Shen Jingyuan's inexplicable helplessness. His eyes flashed, and the rare blankness on his face instantly faded away, replaced by coldness again.

He pursed his lips, forced himself to suppress all chaotic thoughts, and quickly brought his mind back to the imminent crisis before him.

"Lin Xi," His voice returned to its usual calmness, even a little deeper than usual, revealing an unquestionable oppression.

"I have no interest in meddling in your affairs, but you must tell me now. Why are you here? Do the Commander and his wife know that you ran away? How did you avoid everyone and follow them all the way to this ship? And—"

He tilted his head slightly, his eyes scanning the wooden cabinet in the corner sharply. "Why are you hiding in there? Who told you about this ship? Or... who helped you?"

A series of cold, direct, and to-the-point questions hit Lin Xi like dense hail.

She was already upset, and now Shen Jingyuan's aggressive questioning made her dizzy and a surge of anger suddenly rose in her heart.

"Why are you asking so many questions?!" She irritably avoided Shen Jingyuan's sharp gaze, struggled to get up, and tried to hide back in the cabinet that gave her a sense of security. "None of your business is my business! Go away!"

However, as soon as she moved, her wrist was suddenly grabbed by a large hand like an iron clamp! The force was so great that it instantly stopped her movement.

"Let me go!" Lin Xi was shocked and angry, and was about to explode instinctively.

But instead of letting go, Shen Jingyuan held on even tighter, and with a slight tug, he pulled Lin Xi back to the table.

He leaned forward slightly, lowered his voice, and confronted Lin Xi across the table, "Listen! I don't want to get involved in your business, but I came out this time with a mission. It's a serious matter, involving the lives of countless people."

"If you don't explain clearly why you appeared here, even if you leave only a trace of your presence and are discovered, the consequences could be devastating!"

As if he didn't notice Lin Xi's eyes widened instantly, Shen Jingyuan continued to speak word by word.

"By then, it won't just be you and me who will die. The commander will also be implicated, and even the entire Shanghai market might be disrupted. You have no idea how many people will die and how much of a shock this will cause!"

Shen Jingyuan knew that Lin Xi was a person who would respond to soft words rather than harsh ones. She was angry offline, so he should go along with her and coax her.

But now the situation is urgent, he can only try to exaggerate the consequences, and deliberately emphasize the word "Commander", which means that no matter how much Lin Xi hates him, she will not take risks with Commander Lin who has always loved her.

Sure enough, after meeting Shen Jingyuan's deep and unfathomable eyes filled with unprecedented solemnity and determination, Lin Xi's heart sank suddenly, and she felt a chill crawling up her spine, and the arc of her struggle suddenly weakened.

He... wasn't trying to scare her.

"What... mission?" Lin Xi's voice trembled a little, and she stuttered with a hint of disbelief. "You... aren't you going back to your hometown to visit your relatives?"

Upon hearing this, Shen Jingyuan's lips curled up in an extremely sarcastic arc. There was no warmth in that smile, only cold self-mockery and a hint of barely perceptible bitterness. He stared at Lin Xi and asked back in a low and clear voice.

"Visiting relatives? Miss Lin, don't you call me an 'unwanted stray dog' every day?" He deliberately emphasized the insulting word, as if reminding her of his past harshness. "You should know my background better than anyone else, right? An orphan who doesn't even know who his parents are... Tell me, what kind of hometown am I going back to? What kind of relatives am I visiting?"

The words that she had cursed out without restraint were like a loud slap in the face, hitting Lin Xi again. Her face froze and she closed her mouth awkwardly.

"Mr. Shen! Are you okay? The weather today is unbelievable. It was calm just now, and suddenly there were some gusts of wind. Did you get hit?"

Just as the two men were staring at each other in a stalemate, there was a knock on the cabin door suddenly, and the boatman's somewhat panicked voice floated in and fell into the ears of the two men.