章)Late summer in New York, the air was filled with the damp scent of rain-soaked grass, a hint of comfort mixed with the oppressive heat.
"Miss Smith, Ive been on this case for years, and to close it before my retirement is my wish," said Officer Taylor.
Lily Smith stood at the entrance of the New York City Police Department, her hands in the pockets of her hoodie, her baseball cap pulled low, replaying Officer Taylors words in her mind.
The setting sun cast a shadow under her cap, highlighting her fair and delicate jawline, catching the attention of passersby.
A short car horn brought Lily back to reality, "Miss, is this your Uber?"
Recognizing the familiar bright voice, Lily looked up. Seeing the flamboyant red and white painted Continental GT, she couldnt help but smile.
Ignoring the murmurs of onlookers speculating that she was some young lady of a wealthy family experiencing life, Lily opened the door and got in.
"Hey, I hit the jackpot today, arent you the famous comic artists wife?" The "Uber driver" Melinda leaned over to look up at her, grinning mischievously.
Lily paused, not responding. As soon as she sat down, she took out the birthday gift she had prepared for Melinda from her backpack.
Melinda let out an excited "Owl" and happily accepted the gift, tearing open the box. Inside were a pair of earrings. White diamonds surrounded a central yellow diamond, shaped like daisies, her favorite.
Melinda loved them, threw her arm around Lily, and planted a kiss on her cheek.
The air conditioning in the car was hardly working, and Melindas nose was slightly sweaty. Lily said, "Could you turn the air conditioning down a bit?"
Melinda didnt respond, instead, she placed her palm against the air vent, "A has to save on gas, you know. The air conditioning is a gas guzzler."
"..." Alright. Lily didnt argue and removed her cap, smoothing her hair.
Lily had long black hair, with a few strands falling by her ears, making her skin look porcelain white. Her eyes were slightly upturned at the corners, and when she opened them wide, there was a fine fold at the corner of her eyes. When she didnt smile, she exuded a cool, fairy-like aura.
Not knowing what had tickled Melindas fancy, Melinda leaned over and rubbed Lilys face again.
"My dear Lily, what an adorable creature you are!" Melinda exclaimed dramatically, as if she were a fan who had just met her idol, "Arent you a fairy in disguise?!"
"..." Lily, whose mouth was squished into a little duck shape, felt that her current extremely distorted face had absolutely nothing to do with a cute fairy.
Unable to move, Lilys gaze shifted towards Melindas side, and she mumbled, "If you dont stop, todays ride will be a loss."
"Oops!" Seeing the handsome and dashing traffic police officer getting off his motorcycle with a yellow ticket in hand, Melinda quickly let go, skillfully shifted gears, and shot the coupe forward.
At the intersection waiting for the traffic light, Melinda stealthily glanced at Lilys expression.
"Lily," Melinda asked cautiously, "I heard that your grandfather wants you to marry Ethan Johnson?"
The news of the Johnson-Smith union had spread. Although Lily and Melinda were invisible in this circle, they were both familiar with the Johnson familys heir, who was always in the gossip headlines.
Lilys hand, which was connecting her phone to Melindas car Bluetooth to pick music, paused. She replied without any emotional fluctuation, "Yeah, I think so."
"?" Melinda was more anxious than her, "Well, what do you think about it?"
"I dont want to get married," Lily replied without hesitation.
Lilys grandfather, who obviously doted on her without principle, was in a hurry to marry her off. Melinda couldnt understand.
"Youre just of legal marriage age, and hes already thinking about you getting married young?" Melinda was full of questions, "Ill go with you tomorrow to persuade your grandfather."
Lily paused for a few seconds, "Okay."
Seeing Lilys half-closed eyes with no expression, Melinda joked, "But you have to admit, in terms of enjoying life, my dad, who has lived for so many years, really cant compare to Ethan Johnson."
At least when he first returned to the country, he revitalized the game company his father had left him, which was on the verge of bankruptcy, in less than half a year.
"And," Melinda continued, "at least if you marry him, you dont have to worry about him being after your money."
"But!" Melinda immediately changed her tone, "Just because he dared to accidentally like that tweet about waiting for your divorce to trend, we cant marry him!"
Lilys heart was unmoved, and she looked at herself in the cars side mirror, "You changed the spray paint pattern again?"
"Ah," Melinda was immediately excited when she heard this, "Isnt it cute? Doesnt it fit my soft and cute persona?"
Lily turned her head and looked at her friend with red lips and big waves, who was clearly a bright and beautiful look, and said leisurely, "Yeah, Doraemon is very cute."
"Hey?" Melinda was anxious, "What kind of look is Lily giving me? This is clearly Hello Kitty, right?"
The authentic red and white color scheme is soft and cute.
"Is it?" Lily teased.
"Of course," Melinda turned the steering wheel with her left hand and randomly gestured on her head with her right hand, "Ears, this cat has ears, Doraemon doesnt. Besides, Doraemon is blue!"
Watching Melinda explain to her seriously, Lily laughed softly.
When Lily laughed, the corners of her eyes would slightly curve down, exuding a healing warmth.
Melinda quickly glanced at her, feeling relieved, "Stop, stop, wait until I park the car before you laugh, dont try to disturb the drivers mind with your beauty."
Lily looked at her with amusement but didnt respond.
"Tsk," thinking of the recent comments on Weibo that Lily was "not presentable," Melinda got angry again, "I dont believe any man can resist you when they see you!"
The car entered the Xiaojiang Club. The two women got out of the car and were led into a private room.
New York is adjacent to the river, and Xiaojiang is built on the riverfront, which is worth its weight in gold. The building left over from the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, Melinda had booked three months in advance. Each private room is named after a cipai, and theirs is called Linjiangxian.
At this time, in another private room of Xiaojiang.
"What did you book, Qu Ming?" Zhen Nan said when he entered the room and saw the name of the private room, goosebumps fell to the ground, "I dont know, I thought you were going to confess to Ah Fu on his birthday."
"Get out of here!" Qu Ming, who was accused of wanting to confess to his good brother Ethan Johnson, endured the urge to throw the fish eyes he was holding with his chopsticks at his head, "Youre late and talkative, youre the one who cant stop talking!"
When he booked the seat, he didnt specify which private room, he just said he wanted the best view of the river, who would have thought they would give him such a room.
Ethan Johnson, the central figure of the event, slightly lifted