I slept with my sister's classmate, and she turned out to be my boss.

It was 7 p.m. at Gu Huaiyuan's dining room.

On the table were three dishes and a soup: steamed sea bass, water spinach with garlic, a pot of pork rib soup, and a plate of cucumber salad.

Li Xiushan sat down opposite Gu Huaiyuan, picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of fish and put it in her bowl, then lowered her head and ate slowly.

Gu Huaiyuan also picked up his chopsticks, took a bite of water spinach, chewed it a few times, and then put it down.

Li Xiushan glanced at him:

"What's wrong? Don't you like the food?"

"No. I ate something this afternoon, so I'm not very hungry."

Gu Huaiyuan picked up the bowl, took a sip of soup, and then put it down.

Li Xiushan looked at him, but didn't ask any further questions. She lowered her head and continued eating.

The silence at the dinner table lasted for a while, broken only by the soft clinking of bowls and chopsticks.

After a while, Li Xiushan asked, "Is something wrong tonight? Why do you seem so distracted?"

Gu Huaiyuan paused for a moment: "No. I'm just a little tired."

"You've been like this lately," Li Xiushan said, looking at him. "You sat in the study until midnight the night before last, and you barely spoke when you came back yesterday. Today, you didn't even want to pick up your chopsticks at dinner."

Gu Huaiyuan didn't respond, because he didn't know how to explain.

Is the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection investigating him?

He said he was preparing to run away, and this was their last meal together?

He couldn't say that.

In recent years, although the two have not been inseparable, they have gotten along fairly well, and there are some things they just can't bring themselves to say.

Of course, Li Xiushan was unaware of Lin Meijuan's existence.

Li Xiushan didn't ask any more questions and continued eating.

Gu Huaiyuan sat for a while, then stood up: "I'm going to the study to read for a while."

Li Xiushan didn't look up, she just hummed in response.

Gu Huaiyuan walked into the study, gently closed the door, and sat down at the desk.

He pulled open the bottom drawer and took out a dark gray briefcase—a standard model, usually used to carry documents and placed in a corner where it wouldn't attract attention.

He placed his briefcase on the table and unzipped it.

First, they put in a passport, then a wad of cash—

He withdrew the cash from different banks in installments last week, not in large amounts at once, but in several installments of 20,000 yuan each time, totaling about 100,000 yuan.

Next, I put in two overseas bank cards, placing them in the same compartment as my passport.

Then he sat down in the chair and looked at the already packed briefcase.

He zipped up the briefcase, placed it on the corner of the table, and left it there without locking it in the cabinet.

He glanced down at his phone and found Lin Meijuan's WeChat.

He stared at the dialog box, his finger hovering over the top of the screen for a moment, without typing anything.

Even if I type, she won't receive it...

He remembered the day Lin Meijuan first met him.

It was an industry trade show. He gave a speech on stage and then walked around the exhibition area afterward.

Lin Meijuan was a hostess from the exhibiting company. She was wearing a uniform and stood next to the booth, holding a brochure.

She handed him some information. When he took it, he glanced at her and thought that the girl had clean features and didn't seem like the kind of person who would deliberately try to build relationships at exhibitions.

We met again at the dinner party later, and coincidentally, we sat at the same table.

He asked her where she worked, and she said she worked in administration at a company in the provincial capital.

He then asked how she came up with the idea of ​​becoming a hostess, and she said it was through a friend's introduction, to earn some extra money.

Towards the end of the meal, someone came to offer a toast.

He drank quite a bit and stood in the hallway for a while when he went to the restroom.

She passed by from behind, slowing her pace slightly as if she wanted to say something, but then walked on without saying a word.

After the dinner, she waited for her car at the hotel entrance.

He walked over and said, "Take my car, I'll give you a ride."

She said it wasn't necessary, as the organizers would provide transportation.

"Well... I'll give it to you when I have the chance."

Lin Meijuan smiled and said, "Okay."

Later, he opened a beauty salon for her.

She stood in the still-unfinished shop, turned to look at him, her eyes shining:

"Is this really for me?"

"Yes, it's for you."

That beauty salon later became his channel for transferring payments.

The money passed through the beauty salon's accounts, changed hands several times, and finally flowed to the direction he specified...

……

Gu Huaiyuan put his phone on the table, leaned back in his chair, and sat there for a long time.

Then he stood up, picked up his briefcase, and walked out of the study.

The living room lights are already off.

The door to Li Xiushan's bedroom was ajar, with a sliver of light shining through the crack.

She has already gone to sleep.

Gu Huaiyuan stood in the living room without turning on the lights.

He glanced toward the bedroom, but the door remained still.

He changed his shoes, opened the door, and went outside without looking back.

Instead of going to the underground parking garage, he walked along the sidewalk for about ten minutes and hailed a taxi at the intersection.

"Driver, to the airport."

The driver responded and stepped on the gas.

The car merged into the main road, passed through several intersections, and got onto the airport expressway.

About twenty minutes later, when the car was about to enter the airport expressway ramp.

He suddenly spoke up: "Master, stop at that exit ahead."

The driver glanced at him in the rearview mirror: "Not going to the airport?"

"Something came up, so I can't go."

The driver pulled over near the exit, and Gu Huaiyuan took out his wallet, pulled out a thousand yuan, and handed it over.

"This is enough for the transportation fee."

The driver took the money and counted it: "Too much."

"No need to look for more."

Gu Huaiyuan took another envelope out of his pocket and placed it on the passenger seat.

"Please take this to the airport for me and leave it at the service desk in the departure hall. Someone will come and pick it up."

The driver glanced at the envelope: "What's inside?"

"It's nothing, just a few documents. You can leave them there."

The driver hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "Okay."

Gu Huaiyuan opened the car door and got out.

He stood by the roadside and flagged down another car.

"Master, to the south of the city."

The car turned around and drove in another direction.

The taxi carrying the envelope continued forward and entered the airport expressway ramp.

There was nothing in the envelope except a blank sheet of paper.

Gu Huaiyuan left his phone in the taxi.

He didn't want to be tracked down anymore.

Lin Meijuan was stopped at the airport, and he didn't want to "repeat the same mistake".

When the car entered the highway towards Nancheng.

He pulled another cell phone out of his pocket—

An old-fashioned, non-smart phone that I haven't used in a long time.

He had charged the battery beforehand and put it in his study drawer, only taking it with him before leaving the house today.

He turned on his phone, dialed a number, and it was answered after two rings.

"it's me."

There were no pleasantries on the other end of the phone: "You're out?"

"I'm out. But I didn't go to the airport."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone: "So where are you now?"

"On my way to Nancheng. I'll contact you again when I get there."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone: "Okay. Be careful."