The Devil Doctor's Spicy Love

Chapter 493: Reading the wrong signs

Jia was flipping over pages of her case file in silence, calmly sipping onto her coffee - or at least that was what she thought how time would pass only if a certain intense, boring, piercing pair of ink black eyes didn’t hamper her concentration. She tried to avoid it to the best of her abilities but it was as if the devil had taken a pledge to become a roadblock for her.He is definitely mad at me, isn’t he?

She did blame herself for ruining Mingshen’s mood, especially just a day before his birthday. Yet at the same time, her own words had shaken a realization within her.

I should probably move out...

Her grip on the pen tightened slightly. A question hovered in her mind. Staying in the Yang mansion and her regular therapy sessions had been a ray of light in her dark world -

But was she ready to step back into her home?

The very home where her parents’ memories still lived in every corner of the walls. The place where she was reminded of her once happy and colorful childhood which only grew darker and blacker as time passed.

She didn’t know. She stood in a good place now. But would it continue the same in the same house that had dragged her down in the past?

Jia looked up from her case files. Mingshen’s razor-sharp attention at her hadn’t lost its edge one bit.

She cleared her throat. "Ah, I am so hungry!"

Huojin’s head popped out from his desk. "Is it the food kind of hungry or something else kind of hungry~?"

The other officers passing by stopped at once, their ears perking up as straight as an excited car’s tail. The radar for gossip was switched on.

What kind of hungry is Inspector Mo talking about?

Jia looked at him and smiled. "Hmm...cannibalism kind of hungry. And guess who would be my first lunch meal?"

A chill swept through the air.

"Who might that be, I wonder?" Huojin played innocent. "Does human meat really taste that good?"

"I bet yours will be the most delicious delicacy I would have eaten in my life."

"How could you have the heart to eat your bestie?" He sniffled. His drama earned some rolled eyes.

"Hey, everyone who is rolling their eyes at me! Rude!"

The atmosphere had lightened but not Mingshen’s gaze.

You know, I didn’t give Mingshen enough credit for when he used to keep blabbering nonstop. He is actually more terrifying when he goes silent...

But whatever it is, I need to apologize to him, she sighed.

—

I need to confess to her.

Was Mingshen’s line of thought.

As soon as possible. Before she starts packing her bags.

Their last conversation had raised alarm bells all inside him - as though an ambulance with a siren was driving through a busy road. The patient inside it was critical. Pulse weakening. Oxygen dropping.

But I want to plan a grand confession. Spicy deserves nothing less than that.

But there were two problems.

Mingshen had no heads or tails of where to even start the planning process, and time was of the essence. He didn’t when she would start packing her bags.

The second problem was even more dire than the first.

I still don’t know what her favorite color is.

Which was why Mingshen had been observing her - or more importantly, her workspace. What kinds of colors had she used? What color did she like to see more? But there was nothing that had particularly stood out to him.

He thought back to her apartment home. What color were the curtains? Or the bedsheets? Couch? Clothes? What color did he frequently see that would hint at her favoritism?

Answer - There was none.

This is bad. Obviously, Spicy would have at least one favorite color. But why can I not find it?

He glanced back at Huojin once - and found him smiling at him, like the God who saw and heard and understood everything, yet only observed from a distance.

He must know her favorite color.

The thought irked him immensely, and he gritted his teeth in silence.

I don’t need his help. I can figure it out myself.

Wait a minute, little chili would know too.

An annoyance pricked him again. To rely on a best friend and younger sister who only aggravated his general sense of peace was a humiliation Mingshen wasn’t ready to bear.

His eyes narrowed.

And the more they narrowed, the tenser Jia became.

He just gritted his teeth a minute ago. He is really that mad huh. I need to do something about it.

"Let’s go out."

"Let’s go out."

They spoke unanimously, catching each other off-guard.

Jia coughed. "I thought I would have an early lunch. Do..do you want to join me?"

"Sure," Mingshen replied.

"Oooooo~~" Huojin chimed in. "What is this I am hearing? Is Inspector Song planning a date in the middle of her duty? Is Inspector Song finally skipping work?"

Her gaze darkened.

Their supervisor, Tang Haitao, who was passing by, raised an eyebrow.

"Really?"

"Sir...please ignore him-"

"No, no! Sir, do you think I would ever lie?"

He scoffed. "You have lied plenty. Be lucky you still have your job."

"..."

His gaze returned to her. Then bloomed an expression of relief.

"Finally, Jia is acting like a normal human."

She was left speechless. "I always acted as a normal human!"

"What kind of a human doesn’t skip work?"

"Sir, we are cops..."

"Skipping work is an emotion, you know? Glad you finally found your way to it. Yang Mingshen has been a great influence on you."

"..."

What’s wrong with everyone today?

Huojin grinned. "Don’t go out for too long, okay? And by that I mean, don’t get too carried away-"

A book came flying at his head before he knew it. "Ouch!"

She smiled. "Oops. Got carried away. Your friendly warning came a tad bit late."

"Blatant violence! Supe Tang, did you just see that?"

"Ah, it’s hot out here. Back to my air-conditioned office," he was already walking away and so were the other officers.

Huojin sniffled. "Such blatant bias, my heart bleeds."

Jia cleared her throat and glanced at Mingshen. "Shall we?"

"Hmm. After you."

Damn it, I wanted to walk behind him.

Ahh, God help me today.