So the translator team realised the last chapter was not online. So geefle is laboriously translating the last chapter ie chapter 68 from the printed version.
This of course means there may be a bit of wait before you can see it. Please be patient.
6 months later.
Lin City in the month of May, the warmth was tinged with a hint of stronger heat. However, a light rain had fallen in the early morning, and coupled with the thin sunshine, the air was fresh and sweet, thus everyone felt comfortable.
Ji Bai, arms folded, was standing at the airport exit, wearing a seldom-seen black suit. Standing amongst the crowd with his tall, handsome figure, he looked like a male model. With his calm disposition and robust figure, he was certainly attracting the attention of passers-by.
。
Ji Bai did not have to wait very long before Shuhang, Monkey and a few others, each with a small suitcase, walked leisurely out of the airport. When they saw each other, everyone beamed with joy.
Shuhang spoke first: "Aiyah, becoming a father really makes a difference. Look at him, pleased as punch, strutting around with his his air of success!"
Everyone laughed, and Monkey followed on: "That's only natural, when you make a big purchase, you receive a small freebie as well/when you expend a lot of energy on a big project, you're bound to receive additional benefits. Whatever the Third Ji young master does, he will always do it perfectly."
Ji Bai laughed lightly: "There's no way out of it. When luck comes one's way, nothing one does can stop it."
The crowd immediately burst into a hubbub of laughter and cursing – that statement was really too arrogant!
——
A total of three cars brought the friends from the airport to the city. Ji Bai drove one car, with Shuhang next to him, and Monkey and another friend at the back. They had been to Lin City before, but in the cool early summer, the city was especially lush, fresh and pleasant. Monkey said, "This definitely beats Beijing's hot, heaty weather."
Before Ji Bai could respond, Shuhang interjected: "What place is this? This is the Third Ji's paradise!"
The other friend chuckled as he said: "But really, when Third Brother Ji returned to Beijing last year, he even said he didn't have a girlfriend. It's not even been two years of effort, and he's got his marriage booklet, and the baby is already celebrating its full month!* Are all criminal investigators like this? It's incredibly fast work."
*full month – a celebration when the baby is a month old.
Ji Bai was in a great mood as he replied: "Fast? When you've met the right person, to take two years is too slow."
This statement had the sour bite of romance, as well as the undertone of showing off, so the other three exchanged meaningful glances and started making wordless sounds, expressing a complex mixture of admiration, envy and disdain. After that, they each felt slightly downcast as they were all unmarried, and were somewhat envious of Ji Bai.
The right person. Not everyone could meet the right person in their lifetime. Whether you are heaven's favourite (天之骄子 – God's/Heaven's favoured one – an unusually lucky person), or an ordinary citizen. You really had to have an extra measure of luck to be blessed with a marriage made in heaven.
——
The Full Moon's banquet was being held at a restaurant in the city. Since there was some time before it started, Ji Bai escorted Shuhang and the others to some hotel rooms above the restaurant, before returning home to fetch his wife and child.
Shuhang and the others were restless, what was there to do in the rooms? After washing up and changing, the group of them, immaculately dressed, trooped downstairs to roam about.
The restaurant was new and spacious. The garden was a scene of lush green foliage, with dappled sunlight filtering through the leaves. It was very peaceful and beautiful, the perfect setting for people to linger and reflect. Shuhang hailed a waiter and asked him to open up a private room/lounge, where they sat drinking tea, chatting and playing cards. The room/lounge had a plush red carpet and several cloth-covered sofas. The walls were all glass, through which they had a wonderful panoramic view of the garden.
Shuhang's luck was in today/ShuHang happens to be in luck today. He won three consecutive hands, and surveyed the room with the delighted air of the victor, only to discover that Monkey, who had lost the most, was looking at something outside the glass walls with a distracted expression. He followed the line of Monkey's gaze, and was transfixed.
It wasn't just him. At his side, a man lightly punched another man's arm, and they all lifted their heads to look. In that brief moment, no one paid attention to the cards.
Outside the walls, the deep blue sky, as clear as if it had been washed, stretched on endlessly. The sunlight sprinkled the grass and lake surface, causing both to sparkle with the warm lustre of precious jewels. A very young lady appeared from behind a tree, and walked slowly towards the lakeside. She wore a lotus-coloured long skirt, matching delicate laced sandals, and her long black hair hung down her back like silk. Shuhang had never seen such beautiful hair before, that had not been artificially straightened, or dyed. It was lustrously black and supple, every shining inch of it, and it clung lightly to the woman's delicately pale shoulder, as beautiful as jade. As she turned her head slightly to the side, her eyebrows were as black as ink, and her eyes were big and full. All those watching her quivered.
The glass walls of the restaurant were made of one-way glass, so, while those inside could see the woman clearly, she had no idea of their presence. They watched her walk slowly to the lake, and look out over its tranquil surface, with her brows knitted in a faint frown. She was already so beautiful and so bright, but this slight frown, hinted at an undertone of disaffection. It was just like a piece of jade which shone with a clear brilliance throughout, yet after a moment's bleakness, was even more lovely.
She sat without moving on a bench by the lakeside, dazed and lost in thought. At this point, after a moment's silence, the group of men became animated. Monkey stared at her unblinkingly: "She's definitely not from Third Ji's side. How could he have a female friend that we don't know about? I'll take the lead. Our little exotic sister-in-law, how unexpected of you to have such an awesome friend!"