She silently walked to the bed further inside, lay down facing away from the other bed, and pulled the blanket over herself. She heard Meng Qing draw the curtains, then heard sounds from the other bed, followed by a “Good night” before silence fell.
Yu Yi thought about their kiss on the coral reef, remembering his words: “Don’t worry, I won’t force you if you don’t want to.” Unknowingly, she drifted off to sleep.
—
The next morning, Yu Yi opened her eyes to find she had turned in her sleep, now facing Meng Qing’s bed.
He was still asleep, lying on his side. His black short hair was slightly messy on his forehead. Because of his sleeping position, only the left side of his fine, delicate eyebrows was visible. A fan-shaped arc of eyeliner was drawn beneath his brow, and below his straight, tall nose bridge, his thin lips were slightly parted. Even in sleep, the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned.
Yu Yi’s lips curved into a slight smile. She remained still, lying sideways and watching him for a while.
The light filtering through the curtain cracks gradually brightened. Yu Yi gently got up and was about to put on her shoes when Meng Qing also woke up. When he saw Yu Yi, he smiled at her, then adjusted to a comfortable sleeping position and closed his eyes again.
Yu Yi got out of bed to wash up and comb her hair.
When she came out of the bathroom, Meng Qing had also gotten up. Yu Yi looked at the two beds they had slept in, remembering how she and Meng Qing had pretended to be a couple in front of Griffin. She smoothed out the bed Meng Qing had slept in, patting the pillow and arranging it neatly.
After washing up and coming out of the bathroom, Meng Qing saw that she had tidied his bed to look as if no one had slept in it, leaving only one bed with signs of use. He understood her intention and nodded approvingly. Although he had installed detectors that would alert him if anyone entered the room, he couldn’t prevent Griffin’s people from secretly checking the room while they were out. Yu Yi’s arrangement would prevent any suspicion if they did enter.
He opened the terminal to check Pink’s location and found that the brown and pink balloon was still stationary inside the Rainbow Hotel.
Yu Yi also saw that Pink was not moving for the moment. She was about to ask Meng Qing about their plans for the day when he beckoned her over. Yu Yi walked to his side, and when she saw him point to his mouth, her face immediately turned red. “Not thinking about good things first thing in the morning,” she said.
Meng Qing asked in surprise, “Isn’t this a good thing?”
Yu Yi gave him a shy glare, placed her hands on his shoulders, and stood on tiptoe to kiss him.
Meng Qing’s arms supported her waist and back as he lowered his head to kiss her.
Afterwards, they had a simple breakfast. Meng Qing infiltrated the Rainbow Hotel’s internal system, checking guest registration. There was no name for Pink, but on the day Pink started renting a car, three single male tourists had checked into the Rainbow Hotel, staying in rooms on the 15th, 12th, and 7th floors.
Meng Qing drove with Yu Yi to the Rainbow Hotel. The two hotels faced each other, with fierce competition.
Chapter 94: Pearl Island (5)
Yu Yi and Meng Qing took the elevator to the 15th floor. She disguised herself as a Rainbow Hotel room service staff, pushing a cleaning cart to the first room and gently knocking. The male guest opened the door. Yu Yi smiled and asked if he needed room cleaning service. The man said he did not.
Yu Yi went to the 12th floor, knocked, but got no response. She put on infrared glasses and saw the room was empty, signaling to Meng Qing about 10 meters away that the room was unoccupied.
When Meng Qing came over, Yu Yi opened the door lock, and they entered the room. There was a travel bag with some change of clothes and chargers, but nothing unusual. It seemed to be an ordinary tourist’s room.
They finally arrived at room 0711, with a “Do Not Disturb” sign hanging on the doorknob. Yu Yi could no longer pretend to be room service to knock, so she looked back at Meng Qing.
Meng Qing put on infrared glasses and saw a person in room 0711 sitting at a table using a laptop. He whispered something to Yu Yi, who nodded, pushed the cart away, and took the elevator down two floors.
Meng Qing knocked lightly on room 0711. The person inside looked up and listened for a while but did not respond.
Meng Qing continued knocking. The person in the room closed the laptop, paused, and then walked towards the door. Meng Qing quickly put away his infrared glasses and made an impatient, anxious expression.
The door opened, revealing the thin man named Pink. He looked at Meng Qing and asked, “What do you want?”
Meng Qing pointed to room 0709 and said, “I just moved in, but the closed-circuit TV stopped working halfway. I wanted to ask if your TV is working fine.”
Pink replied, “I don’t have the habit of watching TV, so I don’t know if the TV is working.”
Meng Qing stepped forward to enter his room, “Let’s turn on the TV in your room and see.”
Pink stood in front of him, showing no intention of letting him in, and said with a polite smile, “You can call the front desk to report the issue. I’m sure they’ll resolve it quickly.
Meng Qing looked disappointed, “I’ve already reported it, but they haven’t sent anyone yet. I just wanted to ask if your TV is working. If yours is fine, then the problem must be in my room…”
At this time, Yu Yi had changed into a Rainbow Hotel female staff uniform – a well-fitted black waist-hugging blazer with a knee-length tube skirt. She came out of the elevator and walked to room 0709, knocking gently.
Meng Qing nodded at Pink and walked towards Yu Yi. Yu Yi smiled and asked, “Did you report a malfunction with the closed-circuit TV?”
Meng Qing used the room card he had made for 0709 to open the door and enter, saying, “Yes. Why aren’t professional staff coming?”
“Our engineers have checked the closed-circuit TV system, and the signal is normal. It might just be an issue with this room…” Yu Yi said as she entered the room.
Meng Qing, using his infrared glasses, saw Pink return to the table and open his laptop. He whispered, “Book a room.” He handed a passport to Yu Yi, who went downstairs to book room 0709 for him.
Meng Qing turned on the closed-circuit television to “watch,” actually keeping a constant eye on Pink’s movements. However, for the rest of the day, Pink remained in his room, either browsing the internet or resting, never leaving the room or showing any unusual behavior.
Meng Qing asked Yu Yi to return to the Blue Sapphire Hotel while he continued to monitor Pink until late at night when Pink went to sleep.
Seeing no opportunity to enter Pink’s room for further investigation, Meng Qing went to the bathroom to wash his face before leaving the Rainbow Hotel and returning to the Blue Sapphire Hotel.
Yu Yi asked, “Pink never left the Rainbow Hotel? So the strange phone number Taylor contacted should belong to him, right?” She had been tracking the two phone signals, which remained overlapping at the Rainbow Hotel throughout the day.
Meng Qing nodded, “We can pretty much confirm it’s Pink.”
“Does Griffin know about Taylor’s actions?” Yu Yi pondered.
Meng Qing said, “He’s sleeping, but he’s very alert. I don’t want to startle him. Moreover, to understand Pink’s next move, monitoring him is less effective than monitoring this one.” He pointed upstairs, and Yu Yi understood he meant Griffin.
“There’s no one in the office at this time, perfect for installing surveillance.”
Although their room was just two floors below Griffin’s office, the hotel windows couldn’t be opened.
