Evening, Beijing.
The sun was setting, and the sky gradually darkened.
A Mercedes Business sped down the road like a crazed lion, overtaking car after car. Beijing had all sorts of traffic regulations—out-of-town plates faced restrictions entering the inner ring, there were odd-even plate rules, speed limits on certain roads, and so on. To avoid trouble and save time, Dong Xuebin had taken out the pass Xie Huilan had once arranged for him for the Beijing Municipal Party Committee Standing Committee Courtyard the moment he entered the city and placed it beneath the windshield. Traffic police who recognized that kind of pass generally would not stop the car.
Inside a residential complex, the sharp screech of brakes rang out.
Under the residents' astonished stares, Dong Xuebin flung open the door and got out, slammed it shut with a bang, then turned and rushed into the entrance of a building.
First floor... second floor... third floor...
Moving like the wind, he reached it in just six or seven seconds.
Dong Xuebin reached for the doorbell, but at this point, his expression twisted with hesitation, and he did not press it. This was Father Qu and Mother Qu's home. If nothing unexpected had happened, Qu Yunxuan would be here for dinner tonight as well. The moment the door opened, the moment he saw Aunt Xuan, everything would become clear. Yet Dong Xuebin hesitated. What the Qu Family had told him over the phone had nearly driven him mad. Aunt Xuan was carrying someone else's child? The blow was enormous. He could barely think straight, could barely breathe.
One second...
Five seconds...
Ten seconds...
Dong Xuebin finally gritted his teeth and pressed the doorbell. Ding-dong, ding-dong, ding-dong.
Before long, the door opened, revealing Mother Qu's startled face. "Xiao Bin? Why are you here?"