Rebirth: Once Again With You

Both cars raced at high speed and on equal footing on the straight, wide road. However, when they drove in entirely different terrain, the difference started to become apparent.

The black sedan gradually had difficulty maintaining speed while taking a turn, creating distance between them.

Glancing in the rearview, he saw the car behind couldn't keep up with him. The distance between them gradually widened until he couldn't see the sedan anymore.

After making sure he had completely lost them, his shoulders relaxed as he returned their speed to normal.

"Phew, it's been a while since I got a scare like that." Detective Tang chuckled before turning his head to his side. "Young miss, are you okay?"

He couldn't see her face clearly because she kept her head down, but she could hear her talk in a small voice. "...op….car…"

"Huh? Did you say something? Sorry, I can't hear you."

Li Caiyi said in a painful and pleading tone. She sounded like someone whose neck was choked. "Stop the car…."

Detective Tang was flustered and quickly stopped the car on the empty roadside. Before he could ask her what happened, she had unbuckled her seatbelt, pushed the car door open and rushed outside.

"Blergh!"

That noise was all the answer he needed. He sighed in relief. For an ordinary citizen like Li Caiyi, that ride must be an ordeal.

Detective Tang also slowly came out of the car with a bottle of mineral water in hand. It was a good thing he bought this when they were in a family restaurant before.

He approached Li Caiyi with a pitiful gaze before crouching beside her and helping her by rubbing her back.

"Thank you for holding it until you get out of the car, or I will ask you to pay for dirtying the rental car."

Li Caiyi glared menacingly at him. He grimaced and quickly put down the bottle beside her before walking away, afraid of getting cursed to death by her.

Fifteen minutes later, her nausea finally subsided, so she stood up while wiping her mouth with a handkerchief.

Never in her life had she had a ride as wild as that. Her whole life flashed before her eyes a few times back there. She really thought she would die.

"Are you feeling alright now?" Detective Tang let go of his cigarette and stepped on it when he saw Li Caiyi trudging slowly to him. He still had that annoying smile on his face, as though he found her sorry state funny, and it irked her.

Fortunately for him, Li Caiyi was too drained to scold him, so she only complained in a weak voice. "Detective Tang, must you go that far just to shake them off? That was very dangerous."

Detective Tang was amused seeing the resentment in her eyes. "Sorry, but this has to be done whether you like it or not. I wouldn't want a stranger to find out our destination. This is a top-secret, remember?"

"You still haven't told me where we are going, though. Does that mean you didn't trust me too?"

"You'll eventually know, so I would rather save the explanation for later. Rather than that, are you ready for a drive again?"

Li Caiyi's face turned green once again when she recalled that horrible, sickening feeling she had. With a defeated look, she said, "Let me rest for a while."

Detective Tang didn't object and waited patiently until Li Caiyi was prepared to go. Out of pity and concern, he took his time driving this time. He tried not to shake the car too much and let her sleep for a few minutes until they reached their destination.

Only then did he dare to shake her awake. "Young miss, we are here."

Li Caiyi didn't even realise when and how long she had fallen asleep. When she opened her eyes, she saw an old two-storey building.

It looked abandoned from the outside, with faded paint and a sealed window, but this place had a separate garage, where Detective Tang parked the car.

"So this is the place?"

"Yeah, why?" Detective Tang asked as he unbuckled his seatbelt.

"This doesn't look like a place you use for meetings, though."

Detective Tang smiled mysteriously. "For a secret meeting, this place is perfect."

Li Caiyi couldn't deny that. She got down from the car and followed Detective Tang's lead.

At first, she thought they would enter the building, so she was surprised when Detective Tang walked through the narrow path beside the building and straight to the backyard.

There, they found another separate building which was probably used as a storehouse. Detective Tang opened the door using the key he had brought and entered.

Inside, aside from a pile of board covered with tarpaulin, there was only grass as high as her waist.

This place was really abandoned, and thankfully they came here during the daytime or exploring this place would feel spooky.

Li Caiyi gazed at the older man inquisitively, but the latter ignored her and pushed the pile of boards and tarpaulin aside instead. She gasped in shock when she saw a steel door hidden beneath it.

"Sorry, I know this place leaves a bad taste, but my friend is very reticent and peculiar. He loves nothing more than a closed and hidden space. It was hard for me to persuade him to let you come here."

Li Caiyi wanted to comment that this level of peculiarity had reached the creepy level, but she would rather not offend any entity currently residing under the ground she stood on. She gulped and forced herself to smile.

"I'm okay. We are the one who needs his help, so it's only right that we are the one who comes to his place."

"Young miss, your hand is hurting me. Can you please let go of me?" Detective Tang grimaced as he looked down at her hand, which grabbed his arm tightly. She was practically digging her nails into his flesh.

Although she said that, her body was very honest. She was scared, okay?!

What kind of man could possibly choose a place like this to live?

If it weren't a mad scientist, he must be a psychopath!

"Detective Tang, be honest with me. He is…safe, right?"

Li Caiyi didn't need to escape from one criminal and hop into another's nest in one day. Her reaction made Detective Tang burst into laughter.

"Haha, who knows? I'm sure no person with a normal mind would willingly stay in a place like this."

His words couldn't be more discouraging. Li Caiyi took a deep breath to calm herself down.

"Well, whatever he is, since you trust him, I'll try to put my trust in him too. Let's not waste any more time."

Li Caiyi tugged on the corner of his shirt and stood behind him, ready to use him as a shield in case something happened. He laughed even more seeing that.

"I was just joking. He is not normal per se, but I can assure you he bears no malice to anyone."

"That's a relief to hear."

With such a rigid tone, Detective Tang couldn't tell if she genuinely felt like that or was just being sarcastic. He shrugged his shoulders and pulled the steel door open, revealing deep darkness beyond it.