Imperfect Desires

While on this side Nora had always been the slave of her emotions by hiding her tears behind her smile, there was another person on the other side who could say to be a master of her own emotions. 

Even now, in a small restaurant, she sat  at the table with plenty of food before her. Seeing the soup with spicy and sour broth, Yan Ying took the white bowl in her hand to take a whiff. Made with the goodness of mushrooms, cabbage, carrot and a twist of red pepper and sour with vinegar. She almost drooled at the sight.

Right beside it was placed a fiery delight known as Szchewan Chilli Chicken. This dish was a perfect example of fiery oriental spices. 

Looking at her expressions, Uncle Kuan was getting a headache. A young miss of a rich family actually looked like a beggar who hadn't eaten anything in years. Ao ao ao! This was really hard to watch for him.

However, Yan Ying was oblivious to his inner turmoil as she picked up the wooden chopsticks and picked up the crisp appetizer; Spring rolls. Shredded veggies enclosed in a thin sheet and then fried golden. She dipped it into the tangy sauce and took a bite. The infused flavors made her close her eyes in content. Ah! This was heaven!

As Uncle Kuan heard that strange voice coming from her mouth, he wanted to scream at her. Wasn't she just so excited and filled with vigor an hour ago when she decided to investigate Carina Novell's death? Then what the hell was she doing at this restaurant?!

Yan Ying still didn't pay any attention to him as she now turned her eyes towards the Honey Chilli Potato. This amazing recipe was a perfect balance of sweet and spicy tossed with hosts of sauces and spices.

Seeing her so focused on munching on the food Uncle Kuan could only silently stare. There was no point in asking her to stop. He had been following her around for years and understood her nature very well. Why she was referred to as a master of her emotions was simple. She'd never let her emotions rule her life.

In a sense, she was a very simple-minded person. So simple that just a bit of distraction and she'd completely forget what was going on. For instance, at this moment, food before her became that distraction that she'd been looking for. Just a distraction was what she needed to rule over her own emotions. That was her defense strategy.

"Young Miss, isn't it spicy?" asked Uncle Kuan, finally breaking his silence tactfully.

Chewing on the Shitake Fried rice, she scooped a spoonful of the hot and sour soup and felt gratified with the taste. Her lips were red like hot pepper, even her cheeks were flushed. Water had been pooling up in her eyes but she still managed to offer a smile to him. "Spicy? This is called heaven! Haha!"

"Shouldn't you be calling it a hot mess?" inclined Uncle Kuan as he felt a bit frustrated with her state.

"Uncle Kuan, do you know how I define heaven?" Uncle Kuan raised his brows and shook his head while she continued, "Heaven is defined as a hot mess!"

Uncle Kuan slapped her head and reminded her, "I always thought your definition of heaven had been Xin Xiaoli. I guess I was wrong." Yan Ying's body stiffened visibly before she shook it off almost instantly. Noticing that she wasn't gonna give any reaction, he dropped the topic and asked, "Weren't you eager to solve some mysteries? Why are you exactly wasting your time here then?"

"Have you ever seen me being impatient, Uncle Kuan?" questioned Yan Ying and Uncle Kuan could only shake his head in reply. "No matter how eager I am, I can't be going against my patience. Besides, if you think I'm wasting my time, you're absolutely wrong!"

After speaking this much, she continued to eat her food and even ordered more making him impatient for sure. "Young Miss, can't you stop being a glutton?" Yan Ying quirked her brow at his in amusement while he added, "You remind me of Taotie!"

Yan Ying furrowed her brows before inquiring, "Taotie? You mean that ancient vicious beast in Chinese Mythology?" Uncle Kuan calmly bobbed his head up and down. 

"Absolutely that glutton creature who could eat the world yet be left hungry," chimed in Uncle Kuan with a smiling expression.

Yan Ying's face, however, twitched at his description. Her hunger wasn't that bad. After all, it wasn't every day that she'd treat herself like this. But before she could say anything in reply, a man took a seat before her and smiled at her.

Yan Ying stared at his smiling face with indignance, "Don't you know how to ask for permission before taking a seat?"

"Since you called me here, I assumed you're giving me the permission to sit as well," came the prompt reply.

"Mark, what are you doing here?" the question came from Uncle Kuan.

The man named Mark turned to look at Uncle Kuan and greeted, "Chief Kaun, sorry I didn't see you there." Uncle Kuan didn't bother to care about being ignored as he beckoned him to answer. "Team leader Ying asked for something. I'm just here as a deliverer."

Under Uncle Kuan's inquiring eyes, she stretched her hand towards Mark. "Give it already."

Mark passed the blue file in his hand to Ying while his eyes scanned the table filled with empty utensils. He really couldn't bring himself to believe she was the one who ate this much all on her own.

Meanwhile, Uncle Kaun also leaned beside Yan Ying to scan the document in her hands. Her brows were tightly knotted now. "Is this all?" she asked incredulously.

"This is all we found," replied Mark straightforwardly. 

"Are you kidding me?" she retorted. "This single hospital document doesn't even have the details that I need." She showed it to him as she bellowed, "Are you telling me that the hospital is no incompetent that they didn't even bother getting the details of the guardian, relative, or family of the patient?"

The document in her hand clearly was Carina Novell's hospital history but what she desired to know wasn't even mentioned at all. Even the cause of her injury wasn't stated. Was this a joke?! Which hospital was this incompetent?!

"When the patient was brought to the hospital she had already been in a coma for a year," replied Mark and even told the other details that he could gather from the hospital. "By the way, Team leader, I assure you something is fishy."

"Why do you say so?"

"All the digital data related to Carina Novell had been thoroughly removed. Even if I want to recover the data, it's impossible." Yan Ying furrowed her brows. She had no doubt in her team's abilities then... "It seems the other person is not any weaker than us."

"You can leave now," she shooed him away and leaned back in her seat losing all her appetite finally. She bit her thumb in deep thought. "Uncle Kuan, don't you find it weird that no family or guardian is mentioned?"

Uncle Kuan closed the file in his hands and wondered, "Perhaps, Ms. Novell was all alone when the accident happened."

Yan Ying's shoulders slumped down as she said, "If what you just said is true then this is the most awful thing I've heard today." She looked at his face and added, "Her death's news wasn't as shocking but knowing that she was all alone at the door of death makes me really disturbed."

"It seems like you're getting nowhere with this."

A glint flashed past her eyes. "Uncle Kuan, you really underestimate me." She picked up her phone and dialed a number as she said to him, "I'm still as shrewd as I was. No one can corner me so easily." As the other person picked up the call, she stated with a smirk plastered on her lips, "Hey, doctor! It seems like its time for you and me to meet."