Chapter Eleven: The Ex-Boyfriend

"Did you see your sister this morning?" Wang Yuluo's aunt looked at her daughter in surprise.

Yu Mengpeng waved her hand dismissively, "No, she just sent me a photo this morning, wanted me to check if her makeup looked good. Here, you all can see for yourselves, it’s what she sent me! Nothing unusual!"

As she spoke, she took out her phone and pulled up her chat with Wang Yuluo. Sure enough, at around eight o’clock, Wang Yuluo had sent her a selfie. The girl in the photo wore a full, carefully applied makeup, her spirits high and her mood evidently cheerful.

"See, I wasn’t making things up! I even teased her, asked if she had a new date or was getting back with her ex-boyfriend, but she didn’t reply. It’s only been half a day, so what’s going on?" Yu Mengpeng looked puzzled.

"Mengmeng, what ex-boyfriend? What reconciliation?" Wang Yuluo’s father was startled by his niece’s words. "When did Yuluo ever date anyone? Why don’t I know a thing about this?"

Yu Mengpeng realized she'd misspoken and looked embarrassed, intending to brush it off, but everyone present was staring at her, making it impossible to dodge. She could only tell the truth.

"My sister dated a guy in college, didn’t tell you because she was afraid you’d nag her. He was a year ahead of her. After she graduated, they broke up. Recently, I overheard her mention that he wanted to get back together, but I don’t know what she thinks about it; she hasn’t said. That’s why I teased her."

"Anyway, you know my sister—she’s always had admirers, just doesn’t want you to know."

"So she kept it from your uncle, and you helped her hide it from me?" Wang Yuluo’s aunt reproached her daughter for keeping the secret.

Yu Mengpeng protested, aggrieved, "How could I tell you? If I did, you’d tell my uncle, then he’d ask my sister, and she’d blame me, get mad at me! Besides, my sister’s twenty-five, not fifteen. You think it’s like school, boys passing her little notes? She doesn’t need to report every little thing to the family elders.

"Also, my sister’s always been independent. Even as a teenager, she never wanted to tell you everything, let alone now that she’s in her twenties! My uncle isn’t even home for half the year, and you—every time you catch my sister, you go on and on. Honestly, it’s not just her, even I get a headache listening to it!"

Wang Yuluo’s aunt was clearly hurt by her daughter’s words, her expression sour, but with outsiders present she couldn’t vent, so she just frowned and pointed at her daughter, "You, honestly, such ingratitude..."

Yu Mengpeng’s face darkened at her mother’s remark. She turned her head away and lapsed into silence.

"Officer Ning, please check whatever you need! I said we’d cooperate, and we will cooperate fully!" Wang Yuluo’s father, seeing Ning Shuyi and Huo Yan standing aside listening to his sister and niece bicker, hurriedly addressed them.

Ning Shuyi nodded at him and, together with Huo Yan, began to look around the floor.

Wang Yuluo’s room was spacious but messy. Clothes were piled or draped everywhere—by the bed, on the sofa chair, in the dressing room, and even in the en suite bathroom. The vanity was cluttered with all sorts of skincare and makeup products, filling half the available space.

Inside the dressing room, Ning Shuyi saw a large collection of beautiful and elaborate dresses—some vintage Chinese, some resembling European medieval styles, some distinctly postmodern and sci-fi, and others so strange they defied categorization.

When she saw the cabinet on the opposite side, filled with colorful wigs and headpieces, she understood completely.

Wang Yuluo must have been a cosplay enthusiast in life. Judging by these costumes, her investment was considerable.

Beside the vanity, there was a small table originally meant as a desk, now covered with assorted clutter. A stack of books lay on the floor beneath it, coated in a layer of dust—clearly untouched for some time.

Ning Shuyi checked the titles: all were postgraduate exam prep guides, dated from the previous year.

Cosplay costumes and wigs were neatly organized in the wardrobe, while the exam guides gathered dust on the floor.

It was obvious which pursuit mattered more to Wang Yuluo in life.

Apparently, Ning Shuyi’s attention to the dusty prep books caught Wang Yuluo’s aunt’s eye. She edged closer, smiling nervously as she spoke to Ning Shuyi, "My brother’s house rarely has visitors; neither father nor daughter likes outsiders around. Especially my niece—she’s always had that... territorial sense!"

"Mom, what ‘territorial sense’? That sounds awful, like you’re talking about wolves or dogs! It’s called personal space!" Yu Mengpeng corrected from the doorway, keeping her distance.

"Oh, it’s all the same! Can’t do anything right, but always ready to argue!" Wang Yuluo’s aunt shot her daughter an annoyed look, then continued to Ning Shuyi, "My niece never lets me upstairs to clean on my own. If she’s not home, I can’t go up at all; if she is, only when she’s in a good mood. Otherwise, she won’t even open the door.

"My brother runs a business, busy, sometimes too tired and stays at the office, sometimes traveling on business, so he’s rarely home. No housekeeper—just me, coming every so often to tidy up. I’ve got plenty on my plate myself; I can’t always run over. It’s been a while since I last cleaned, so today there’s dust everywhere... Sorry you had to see it!"

Ning Shuyi assured her it was fine, her gaze passing over Wang Yuluo’s aunt to Yu Mengpeng, who stood obediently outside the bedroom, clearly resolved not to cross the threshold. The girl met Ning Shuyi’s eyes, glanced at her mother, then deliberately turned away, avoiding her gaze, as if determined not to speak in front of the elders.