0101: Tiger?

The conversation flowed this way. What had started as Ji Yun confronting her father had somehow turned into an interrogation of a prospective son-in-law by a former mother-in-law and father-in-law. The sudden pressure weighed heavily on Xu Lin, but fortunately, Ji Yun stepped in to help him out, making him feel a bit more at ease.

"So, Xu Lin, is your family well-off? How many people are in your family?"

"Dad, your own business isn't settled yet. If nothing else, you cheated and hurt Aunt Yao back then, which was wrong. It's only natural that you feel guilty now, and Mom should face this properly too."

Ji Yun cut off her father's questioning of Xu Lin. He had been asking about everything from his grades to whether he owned a car or a house, how many family members he had, and even how many acres of land they owned.

"If you want to talk about that, go talk to your mother."

"Really?"

"If she comes back and doesn't make a scene with me and Yao Yun, I'll change my last name!"

"Regardless, it was your mistake back then. Now that Aunt Yao is in this state, both of you should come and take care of her for a while."

Hearing Ji Yun's righteous indignation, Xu Lin could only nod helplessly. Class Monitor Ji had always been so kind-hearted. Even when her own parents were in the wrong, she stood by principle rather than family, refusing to defend them just because they were her parents.

Beside them, Yao Yun was so touched that tears welled in her eyes. Ji Yun quickly leaned in, taking a tissue to help wipe them away.

"Aunt Yao, you did nothing wrong. My father divorcing you hurt you deeply. Even though they are my parents, I must distinguish right from wrong."

"You are a good child."

"Alright, Aunt Yao, if you need anything, just order him around. I understand the situation now, and I will have a proper talk with my mother."

"No, don't get angry with them on my account. I don't have much time left anyway."

"That won't do."

"Alright, child, don't you have friends waiting? Don't leave them out."

Yao Yun let go of Ji Yun's hand and glanced at Xu Lin. Xu Lin understood her meaning immediately.

"Well, Ji Yun, let's head back over there first, before they come over to rush us."

"Okay." She nodded. She knew that this matter either had to be dragged out or settled through a serious talk with her mother.

"Goodbye, Uncle. Come over to my place for a visit when you're free."

"We'll see when I have time," Ji Datong replied quickly. Although he had just spent a long time grilling Xu Lin like a prospective son-in-law, he felt too embarrassed to actually visit like an in-law.

Watching Xu Lin and Ji Yun walk away side by side, Yao Yun looked at Ji Datong. "That young man is quite nice. Let's hope he isn't as unfaithful as you were."

"When was I ever unfaithful?" Ji Datong took an embarrassed sip of his drink. "Before our divorce, I wasn't officially dating her mother."

"But I still lost. Still, you two have a wonderful daughter. I really like her. If only I still had the chance... I would love to take her as my goddaughter."

As Xu Lin and Ji Yun walked toward Su Qingwan's table, Ji Yun suddenly realized something: who was Xu Lin having dinner with?

But it was definitely a girl, no doubt about it! It couldn't be Elder Sister Chu—Miss Chu had gone out and hadn't returned yet, and her PE classes were being covered by other teachers. But she wouldn't ask Xu Lin who it was. Asking would put her at a disadvantage, making it seem like she cared too much about him!

Xu Lin noticed Ji Yun's girlish sensitivity and felt quite happy. Although she was young, she was probably the one who understood his thoughts best.

But when they arrived at the table, Ji Yun froze at the sight of a familiar figure. Why was it Ms. Su? Although Ms. Su had also joined them for dinner last time, she had only driven them there. Compared to the Chu sisters, whose looks toward Xu Lin were blindingly obvious, Ms. Su had barely spared him a glance back then.

Yet, here they were, having dinner together. Clearly, they were quite close. When had they become so familiar with each other?

Come to think of it, when Xu Lin had a fever last time, it was Ms. Su who took him to the infirmary. She had stayed there for over a class period and even took the initiative to drive him home afterward. Teachers cared about their students, but not to this extent. Something was off. But a student-teacher romance... surely that was impossible?

Ji Yun's head spun slightly. But as she drew closer, she saw the girl sitting opposite them—dark-skinned but very beautiful and sharp. She suddenly felt like she didn't really know Xu Lin, or rather, didn't understand his incredible luck with women.

Maybe he wasn't unfaithful, but rather like a flower himself, naturally drawing others in?

"Hello, Ms. Su."

"Oh, Ji Yun! Come, sit down. We ordered too much food anyway, we can't finish it all." Su Qingwan quickly took Ji Yun's hand and pulled her down to sit beside her.

Since each side could only seat two people, Xu Lin had no choice but to sit next to Qin Yunhe. The moment he sat down, Qin Yunhe, who had been picking up food with her chopsticks, froze. Her movements went from double speed to half speed.

"Stay away from me," she whispered.

Xu Lin shifted outward helplessly, but when his eyes met Ji Yun's from across the table, he froze as well.

Damn it! He was doomed! When he saw Ji Yun's father earlier, he had immediately notified Ji Yun, completely forgetting about this police officer girl sitting next to him. Qin Yunhe firmly believed that he and Su Qingwan were dating, and she viewed him as an adult. But if Ji Yun spoke too much, the truth would be exposed.

Holding his chopsticks with one hand, he unlocked his phone under the table with his left hand and quickly sent a message to Su Qingwan.

*Won't Ji Yun expose us? My bad, I completely forgot about this.*

A phone chimed across the table. Xu Lin pretended not to hear it and took a sip of his drink.

"Xu Lin just told me briefly. Is everything resolved with your family?" Su Qingwan glanced at her phone, set it aside, and gave him a subtle look that said, *Leave it to me.*

"Yes, it's temporarily resolved, I suppose."

"I won't pry, but if you run into any trouble, you must tell me. Even though I might not be of much help, I'm a few years older than you. I can offer some guidance or just chat. Outside of school, I'm not your teacher; you can think of me as an older sister."

Ji Yun nodded as she listened, thinking Ms. Su was indeed kind and gentle. Yet, the underlying tone of those words felt a bit strange. *Only a few years older than me, not a teacher outside of school, acting like an older sister... it almost feels like...*

"Um, thank you, Ms. Su... I mean, Sister Su... Sorry, I'm not used to it."

"It's fine, you can call me whatever you like."

"By the way, this is my best friend, Qin Yunhe."

"Hello, Sister Qin."

"Hello," Qin Yunhe replied with a smile, then shot a glance at Xu Lin.

"Speaking of which, our class's recent English homework..."

The two of them then began chatting about English class. After all, one was the class monitor and English representative, and the other was the English teacher. Xu Lin and Qin Yunhe couldn't get a word in, so Qin Yunhe quietly looked back at him.

"Xu Lin, how do you know a high school girl?"

"Sister Qin, we go to the same school. We knew each other before. I only graduated two years ago."

"Oh, right. I forgot my Wanwan is robbing the cradle."

"If Qingwan finds out, she'll probably throw a punch or two at you."

"She would never. But what's the deal between you and this girl?"

"The deal? What kind of question is that?"

"Based on my years of experience solving cases, there's something going on between you two. You're not just classmates."

"What makes you say that?" Xu Lin asked with a calm smile. He really didn't believe it. Ji Yun hadn't looked at him much, and there had been no intimate physical contact or words. How could it seem like they were more than friends?

"When you two walked over just now, her head unconsciously leaned toward you, which shows she feels safe around you. And after sitting down, though she was facing me more, her toes were pointed toward you. When I told you to move aside, her toes unconsciously adjusted as well."

"Uh... psychology?" Xu Lin hadn't expected such an explanation, but it actually seemed quite accurate.

"Yes, I read it in a book."

"Books can be wrong, not to mention how many fake psychology 'masterpieces' are out there."

"This book is very famous. It's called *Emotion and Psyche* or something like that."

"As a police officer, you need to be rigorous. Look, aren't your legs pointed toward me too? Do you like me?"

"Shameless. I haven't even settled the score with you for what happened earlier."

"I already told Wanwan. It wasn't intentional on my part anyway."

"Don't you dare!"

But just as Xu Lin was teasing her, a series of screams and shouts echoed from outside.

"What's going on?"

The patrons inside the restaurant stood up and looked outside. Many people were rushing in.

"There's a tiger outside!" a few people who ran in shouted.

"A tiger? How is that possible?! You must be joking!" The people inside laughed. Were they talking in their sleep?

"It's true!"

"Linshui Zoo doesn't even have tigers!"

"It's true! Everyone, don't go outside!"

Xu Lin stood up and looked out through the glass. People were running toward the west, and traffic was beginning to gridlock. It was impossible to make out anything clearly.

The next second, a deafening roar echoed from outside. The room fell dead silent for an instant, before erupting into chaos once again.

"Holy crap, there really is a tiger!"