Chapters (45)
“Hmm…” This one he actually thought about for a minute or two, stirring the water and ice around in his glass with the straw. Then he said, “He is. He pretends not to be, but he is. Have you met him?”
“He came in once. He seemed nicer than the other guys.”
He smiled and laughed again and nodded. “He is. Did you watch the interview?”
Was she allowed to gush about her idol in front of this guy, who actually knew her idol? “Um, yeah! I wish it was longer!”
“He was handsome, right?”
Wang Li beamed. All of her inhibitions were melting away. This guy seemed just as much of a fan as she was. “So handsome! I loved his smile!”
The man bent across the counter, his voice lowering into something almost conspiratorial. “You should see when he smiles for real. It’s like watching the sun come out.”
“Really?”
“A-Wei.” President Liu stood up. He was holding his phone in one hand. “The car is here.”
This A-Wei gave Wang Li an apologetic smile and pushed his glass back across the counter. “Thanks for the water. Have a good rest of your day.”
“You too!” Wang Li called after him. “Have a nice flight!”
Zhang Weiran and Liu Xingyu headed out to the car that would drive them to the airstrip. It hadn’t been difficult to get in contact with Kami no Ha—like the List, they were above all a business organization, and the identities of the leaders (which were called Kishi, Liu Xingyu explained) were an open secret. Liu Xingyu picked one with whom he was more familiar, a man named Yamashita, and arranged a meeting, only saying that he wanted to discuss the List.
They’d decided to go together, despite Weiran’s concerns—Xingyu needed backup. But the hospital had released Xiaokai once he was out of danger, and once Xiaokai was safely at home with He Peilin at his side, Weiran was a little more comfortable with the idea of leaving him for the short time it would take to get there, have the meeting, and come back.
“If he asks where we’ve gone,” Xingyu told He Peilin, “just tell him we’re working on taking out the last parts of the List.”
He Peilin just leveled his gaze at Xingyu, absolutely fearless in the face of the kind of person who would make most people cower. “Is that a lie? I won’t lie to him.”
“It isn’t a lie. But he doesn’t need to know any more details or he’ll get hurt again.”
He Peilin accepted this begrudgingly, and they locked up the house behind them, and then they were leaving for the airport. All while Xiaokai slept.