Wang Man still remembered the angry shouts that had come from the dorm earlier.
It was easy to imagine how upset they'd been over the disturbance.
She understood.
"When this is over, I'll apologize to them in person."
"It's all right. You don't have to take it to heart."
Xiao Xiao shook his head slightly. "I think they could tell you were in a hurry."
"They're not that petty."
"I usually put my phone in airplane mode when I sleep."
He explained why their calls to his phone had gone straight to voicemail.
"No wonder."
Wang Man looked enlightened.
Chi Xiuke sounded a little rueful. "Master Xiao, you're really hard to get ahold of."
She knew that Master Xiao didn't usually like carrying his phone around.
He never answered calls from unfamiliar numbers, either. Even if they called repeatedly, he'd just block them.
Xiao Xiao smiled, looking rather innocent.
"We're here."
At that moment, Wang Kai's voice rang out, alerting them that they'd reached their destination.
The atmosphere in the car grew heavy all at once.
Wang Man was the first to get out.
She opened the rear door. "Master Xiao, please."
Xiao Xiao followed Wang Man and Wang Kai into the police station.
They came to a room.
The air inside was still, and the two sides sat distinctly apart.
There were no police officers.
"Manman, Xiuxiu, Xiaokai."
Wang Father called out as he looked toward the door at the sound of it opening.
Then his gaze fell on the stranger behind them. "This is... Master Xiao?"
"Hello, Uncle Wang. I'm Xiao Xiao."
Xiao Xiao met the middle-aged man's uncertain gaze and smiled as he introduced himself.
"Oh, hello."
Wang Father schooled his features, wiping away the discourtesy and replacing it with a smile.