038 A Call in the Wee Hours

In the taxi, Zhang Wei reclined in the back seat, gazing lazily at the kaleidoscope of lights outside the window, his expression seemingly indifferent yet tinged with a hint of loneliness. At this moment, he caught sight of a dandy driving a convertible Porsche, with several glamorous women in tow, swaggering past. The dandy seemed utterly disinterested, his demeanor devoid of excitement or interest. Time dragged on, days felt like years, and Zhang Wei let out a gentle sigh once again...

Upon reaching Century Garden, Zhang Wei glanced at the meter and couldn't help but feel a twinge of panic - he was short on cash by three yuan. Enduring the taxi driver's incessant complaints for the sake of these three yuan, Zhang Wei reluctantly tossed two unopened packs of Zhonghua cigarettes to the driver. Three yuan was enough, but it came with the added stigma of being the guy who could afford cigarettes but not a taxi ride.

Damn, was it really necessary? Zhang Wei almost felt like fleeing the scene.

As he neared home, perhaps due to the small incident tonight, Zhang Wei felt a newfound warmth in returning to the city after so long. He was truly exhausted now, weary. Subconsciously, he quickened his pace.

Entering the elevator, he pressed the button for the 12th floor. Just as the elevator doors were about to close, a slender figure appeared at the apartment entrance - a woman. Seeing the elevator about to shut, she hurriedly ran towards it.

"Wait, please wait!" Her voice was crisp and pleasant.

Zhang Wei had already recognized who it was when the slender figure entered the apartment lobby - his beautiful neighbor, Captain Xu Xiaowei, who had escorted him to the detention center.

Xu Xiaowei's footsteps were fast, and just as she was about to reach the elevator doors, Zhang Wei could have easily pressed the open button to let her in. But he chose not to, not wanting to share the elevator with this neighbor who always seemed to wear a poker face for no reason.

Xu Xiaowei watched helplessly as the elevator doors closed. In that split second before they shut completely, she saw Zhang Wei inside, hands folded, a faint smug smile on his lips, looking rather cool.

As the elevator doors sealed shut with a faint thud, Xu Xiaowei was already out of Zhang Wei's sight. But in her mind, she could still see his cocky expression, and couldn't help but curse, "You little rascal, you jerk, are you even a man? What a bastard!"

At this moment, Zhang Wei couldn't hear Xu Xiaowei's curses, but as the elevator doors closed, he caught a glimpse of her infuriated expression. For some reason, seeing her angry filled him with immense satisfaction.

Back in his cozy little home, Zhang Wei turned on the lights. The gentle illumination was soothing and captivating.

Zhang Wei comfortably sprawled on the sofa, absentmindedly lighting a pre-bedtime cigarette. As wisps of smoke curled and dissipated, he didn't smoke much before hearing the sound of his neighbor's door opening and then slamming shut with a loud "bang," piercing the silence of the night.

Zhang Wei's eyes glinted with a hint of mockery. Needless to say, it was his ice-cold neighbor venting her frustration with her door slamming, and apparently, it was aimed at him. The angrier his beautiful neighbor became, the more secretly delighted Zhang Wei felt. After all, if the door got broken, he wouldn't have to pay for it.

As the cigarette burned down to its end and the ember extinguished, drowsiness washed over Zhang Wei. He didn't even bother to take a shower, simply heading straight to the fragrant bedroom. As long as the tigress wasn't home, that fragrant and soft bed belonged to him. No need to play the part of the hall monitor in the living room anymore.

Zhang Wei stripped down completely and climbed into the fragrant bed. Only when the tigress wasn't home could he enjoy the comfort of sleeping naked. It was far more relaxing and freeing, both physically and mentally.

Perhaps due to exhaustion, Zhang Wei's head had barely touched the fragrant pillow before he drifted into a deep slumber. But just as he let out a soft, prolonged breath and sank into the depths of sleep, the landline phone suddenly rang.

Even in his deep sleep state, Zhang Wei heard it immediately, but he simply couldn't be bothered to answer the call. Pulling the blanket over his head, he remained in a hazy state of drowsiness.

Yet the persistent ringing of the landline phone continued, showing no sign of stopping. Zhang Wei had excellent hearing, and even with the blanket covering his head, the sound of the phone ringing was crystal clear in his ears.

Growing increasingly irritated, Zhang Wei reached out from under the covers, groping for the incessantly ringing landline phone. He picked it up haphazardly and hung up.

Silence. Zhang Wei poked his head out from under the covers, feeling thoroughly annoyed as he let out a heavy sigh, then attempted to resume his sleep. However, the landline phone, refusing to be subdued, rang again, its sound piercing.

Fuming, Zhang Wei threw off the covers and sat up in bed. His eyes were bleary with sleep, and there were traces of fatigue in them. Outside the window, dawn was breaking, signaling the early hours of the morning.

Suppressing his anger, Zhang Wei picked up the phone, half-expecting it to be the tigress calling back.

"Hello... Yes..."

"Are you crazy!" Zhang Wei impatiently cursed and promptly hung up with a snap. It was a woman's voice, but not the tigress's voice, so he cursed and hung up quickly. But soon, Zhang Wei's heart skipped a beat - the voice sounded familiar.