I flipped through the diary from back to front and indeed found recurring mentions of "Eji Ge," "Nurhaci," "Dorgon," "Hong Taiji," and even "Aobai"?
Song Miao was on the phone in the outer room. Borrowing the deceased's diary was certainly impolite, let alone borrowing it, even flipping through it was inappropriate. Yet, I wanted to take this diary with me.
An idea struck me. I pulled out a book of similar thickness from the large bookshelf. I found a blank sheet of paper in Song Lei's desk drawer, folded it, cut it out, and taped it to the spine of that book with double-sided tape. Then, I wrote a "十" (ten) on it with an ink pen and placed it back on the small bookshelf, blending in with the others. If one wasn't careful, it would be impossible to tell the difference.
I could only steal one, as I had nowhere else to put more. I hid Song Lei's tenth diary in the small of my back, tucking it into my waistband. I adjusted my outer clothes and then paced out of the study.
Song Miao had just finished her call. I said it was too late and I wouldn't impose further, bidding farewell to Chen Lu.
Outside Song Lei's house, they resumed their previous riding posture, heading back the way we came.
Upon reaching the hotel, seeing me in a hurry to go upstairs, Chen Lu asked with a hint of melancholy, "We've only been together for a short while, and you're not inviting me up for a chat?"
My eagerness to read the stolen diary left me with no mood for such things. I feigned a playful tone, "It's too late today. If we go upstairs, I'm afraid I won't be able to resist teasing you, so I won't give myself the opportunity."
"Oh, oh, I think you've got a secret lover, don't you? Is it that rather tall girl? I couldn't ask at Song Lei's house earlier. What's your relationship with her?"
Chen Lu was persistent. I felt a bit annoyed and vaguely replied, "She's a junior from my aunt's university, we just happened to know each other. I had lunch with her just today."
Chen Lu still didn't believe me. "Hmph, she's definitely waiting for you in your room!"
"There really isn't anyone."
"No, I have to go up and see!" Chen Lu said with a mischievous smile and went into the hotel first.
I had no choice but to take her upstairs and check the room.
"See? There's no one here," I said.
Chen Lu's gossip fire extinguished, leaving her a little disappointed. But she still didn't seem ready to leave, sitting on the edge of the bed with a sigh.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"I had an argument with my aunt. Otherwise, would I come out this late to meet a guy? I don't want to go back to her place tonight," Chen Lu said in a low voice, I wasn't sure if she was telling the truth.
"Then where will you stay?" I asked foolishly.
Chen Lu looked up at me as if I were an idiot. "I'm already in your room. Are you going to kick me out? How can you treat an old classmate like this, have you no shame?"
"Alright, then you sleep on that bed," I said, pointing to the one by the window. We had booked a standard double room in a hurry and couldn't get a single.
Chen Lu pursed her lips into a smile. "That's more like it. I'm going to take a shower first!"
As soon as Chen Lu entered the bathroom, I quickly took out the diary and began reading it with an insatiable thirst.
Damn it, no wonder there were ten volumes. Did Song Lei used to write online novels?
The writing was tedious, long-winded, and clearly padded. I read for over ten minutes, finishing the entries for only two days. Neither had anything to do with Jiuxian Cave; they were all about Song Lei's daily life.
Chen Lu only took a quick shower and the sound of water stopped soon after. She emerged wearing only a towel, her hair still dripping.
"It's your turn to shower," she said.
"No rush, I'm going to read for a while," I replied, having already disguised my actions by using the "Manchu Archives" to hold Song Lei's diary.
"Then I'll go to sleep," Chen Lu said, yawning and burrowing into the covers of the other bed.
Fearing she might suddenly pounce on me, I went to the bathroom, intending to continue reading while perched on the toilet.
The fragrant bathroom, with Chen Lu's discarded clothes and socks hanging on the towel rack, was just within reach, making me rather unsettled.
Just as I was hesitating whether to take a closer look, my phone rang. It was my phone, inside the room. I stepped out to answer it, only to find it already at Chen Lu's ear. "Hello? Who am I? I'm Cheng Feng's classmate... Oh, it's you. I know you. Mm-hmm, okay, okay, I'll tell him."
Afterward, Chen Lu hung up my phone.
"Who was it? What's wrong?" I asked.
"Shen Xingyue. She said she's downstairs and wants to come up to see you," Chen Lu said with a look of disgust.