Overdo

The officer replied without hesitation, "He just received a call summoning him to see the commander." We thanked him and went downstairs. Standing below, Mu Shiyang looked at me and asked, "Should we wait here for him or go find him? Personally, I think we should hurry back, or we won't make it back to Wuchi tonight." I said without a moment's pause, "Of course we wait. I must see him."

He said, "We've been friends for seventeen years, but I understand you less and less. One day, you'll turn into a little monster!"

I couldn't be bothered to explain, nor did I want to. We waited in the car. The sky gradually darkened, the evening clouds at the horizon slowly transforming into a black velvet curtain, with stars peeking out like mischievous eyes. The phone in Mu Shiyang's car rang—it was the aides' office. They were panicked, "Mr. Mu, are you with the young lady?"

He glanced at me and said, "Of course I'm with her." The aides seemed to relax a bit, but they were still extremely anxious as they asked, "Where are you now?" Mu Shiyang chuckled and said, "You only just realized the young lady is missing? Be careful, Director Liang will dock your pay." The aides relaxed further, thinking we were hiding and playing a trick on them, so they said, "Mr. Mu, don't scare us. The young lady should come home now." I took the phone and told them, "Come find me, and I'll go home once you do." Before they could say anything else, I hung up.

Mu Shiyang said, "You're going to get me and them all killed."

I knew. If the aides couldn't find us by midnight, it would be absolute chaos. Deep down, I was terrified too, but I tried to reassure him haphazardly, "It's nothing. At worst, Uncle Lei will give you an earful, and Father will scold me." He said, "I'm not that optimistic. I think—I'll lose half my life over this."

I blurted out, "I'll be buried with you. Besides, 'To die under the peony is to be a ghost among the romantic.''" He burst out laughing, looked me over, and said sarcastically, "Dying under the peony is one thing—but you, at best, are just a dog's tail grass!" I shot him a glare, "And you only deserve to die under dog's tail grass!" We bickered, but it was really our way of comforting each other. The sky had turned completely dark, but there was still no sign of that Zhuo Zheng. I started to get anxious. Mu Shiyang saw through me; he also wanted to fulfill my wish quickly so we could return to Wuchi, so he asked, "Should we go look for him?" I asked, "How?" Mu Shiyang said, "Let's go see Commander Fan directly. He might be there, and even if he's not, having the commander intervene will definitely find him right away."

I exclaimed, "No way! That Commander Fan might have seen me before, and he definitely knows you. If he finds out I sneaked out, he'll surely escort us both back." Mu Shiyang said, "Him knowing me isn't a big deal. As for you, he's probably only met you once or twice. If we go see him, he might not recognize you. Before the aides' office makes this known to everyone, let's make it quick."Waiting like this really wasn't a solution, so I agreed. We had just stepped onto the stairs when we encountered a young officer passing by. Mu Shiyang caught sight of his shoulder insignia and exclaimed, "Zhuo Zheng!" The man indeed turned around, looking at us with confusion. My heart raced wildly. Those eyes were so familiar! Father's eyes! Though the gaze was different, though the age was different, they were the same. Mu Shiyang also froze for a moment, but he reacted quickly and asked, "Excuse me, are you Zhuo Zheng?" The man raised his eyebrows. Good heavens! Even this small gesture of doubt was exactly like Father's. I gasped sharply and heard him say, "I am." Mu Shiyang took out his work ID again, "We'd like to talk with you."

He glanced at the ID and said, "Is this official business?" But Mu Shiyang seemed to start growing suspicious, saying, "Mr. Zhuo, you look very familiar. Have we met before?" Zhuo Zheng laughed, "Many people have said I look familiar. I suppose I just have a common face."

A common face? No! Not at all! Father's photos are everywhere, of course people think you look familiar. Mu Shiyang shook his head, "No! I must have seen you somewhere." I wanted to stop him from thinking further, but I couldn't find the words to interrupt. My mind was in chaos, threatening to shut down. Meanwhile, Zhuo Zheng was also studying me, his expression showing some surprise and doubt as he asked, "Miss, what's your surname?"

I answered randomly, "My surname is Mu." Mu Shiyang smiled, and I glared at him—fine, let him have this small advantage. There was no other way. Zhuo Zheng coughed lightly and asked, "What official business do you two have?" Mu Shiyang looked at me. I stood there tongue-tied, not knowing what to say.

Finally, I asked, "Mr. Zhuo, what... what do your parents do?" Both Mu Shiyang and Zhuo Zheng looked at me in surprise. I knew I sounded like a census taker. But... how else should I phrase it? Though puzzled, Zhuo Zheng still answered, "I'm an orphan. My adoptive mother is a primary school teacher."

An orphan? I was confused, "Is Zhuo your birth surname?" He said, "That's my adoptive mother's surname." Looking at his face so resembling Father's, I suddenly grew timid. I said, "Thank you," then turned to Mu Shiyang, "Let's go."

My sudden change baffled Mu Shiyang—I'm sure he was mentally calling me a little monster again. Zhuo Zheng was also bewildered; he probably had never encountered people conducting official business like this. He asked Mu Shiyang, "Is there anything else?" Mu Shiyang was still concentrating on something, and upon hearing the question, he blurted out, "Yes," then stepped back as he realized what he'd said. His face instantly looked as if he'd seen a ghost—he'd probably frightened himself. He stared confusedly at Zhuo Zheng, who was equally confused looking back at him. I quickly pulled him away, "Let's go."

I dragged him away quickly. Even after getting in the car, he remained utterly perplexed, "How strange! What's wrong with me? Like seeing a ghost! This isn't the office, and he's not the..." Suddenly he jumped up, "Heavens!" He stared at me wide-eyed, and I stared back.His face turned ashen! He finally realized why Zhuo Zheng looked so familiar! I think he’s figured it out! Sure enough, he murmured to himself, "No wonder... no wonder my heart raced the moment I saw him, I felt guilty whenever he frowned, and I faltered whenever he questioned me..." He stared at me in disbelief. "I actually..." To be honest, when I saw Zhuo Zheng frown just now, my heart was pounding too. The moment he put on a stern face, he looked exactly like Father.

He asked me, "Is this the one you said was... good-looking?"

I nodded. He let out a long sigh and said, "You’ve played a nasty trick on me!" Immediately, he thought of something else. "Why did you come looking for him?" He was far too clever—he guessed it right away. His face changed dramatically. "He... he..."

I’ve known him for seventeen years, and this was the first time I’d ever seen him at a loss for words. Among our family’s social circle, he was famously known for his grace and insight, hailed as the foremost of the so-called "Four Gentlemen of Wuchi." His family was also renowned for their refined demeanor, priding themselves as an old, established lineage that upheld the principle of "remaining unruffled even if Mount Tai collapses before them." Yet now, he was utterly dumbstruck.

He drew a sharp breath and said, "Nannan, you’re really going to be the death of me this time." Getting involved in my family’s private affairs was extremely unwise, especially in a matter like this. He was clearly thinking of my father and let out a long, heavy sigh.

I argued, "I wanted to come find him alone, but you insisted on following me."

He didn’t respond, and I thought he was angry. Feeling a bit scared, I said, "I’m sorry." He shook his head slightly and had already regained his usual composure. He patted my hair and said, "Forget it, we’re already here. We need to figure out how to pull the wool over their eyes."