Chapter Sixty-One: Peeking? I Invite You!

Wang Zheng still wasn’t sure whether the person was sent by the organization to monitor him—it was all just speculation on his part. If that really were the case, the other party would surely be highly alert. Walking out of the building would inevitably be seen, which might tip them off.

What should he do?

Ah! There was a window at the corner of the floor, and it faced the back. Perhaps he could escape through it. Of course, Wang Zheng wasn’t foolish enough to jump from the third floor. He made his way to the window halfway up the first floor, opened it, climbed out, and looked down—two meters was hardly a threat to him.

With a soft thud, Wang Zheng landed and crouched immediately, slipping into a nearby flowerbed. Who knew if there might be an “enemy” behind him?

Using the densely planted gardens of the residential complex to his advantage, Wang Zheng stealthily made his way to the opposite building, Number Two. Once inside, he dashed up to the fifth floor. It had been a long time since he’d felt such energy.

On the fifth floor, judging by the window’s position, he determined it was the left apartment. Wang Zheng took out the door-opening tools he’d prepared in advance. Just as Bai Bing had said, anti-theft doors were meant to stop thieves, but not those who weren’t thieves. Wang Zheng was neither a robber nor a thief, so the door naturally couldn’t stop him!

With a quiet click, Wang Zheng opened the door and slipped inside.

The lights remained off, and there was no sound. As Wang Zheng moved toward the balcony, he kept a keen eye on the entire room.

‘Well disguised,’ he thought as he walked. The place looked just like an ordinary home. Decorated in white and pink tones, it felt warm and lively.

Through a slightly ajar door, Wang Zheng peered inside and saw a shadowy figure standing at the window, gazing out through a gap in tightly closed curtains with what looked like a single-tube astronomical telescope. This was the target he’d been searching for. But—why was it a woman?

Wang Zheng had already checked the apartment; she was alone, and nothing appeared suspicious. It didn’t seem like someone the organization would send to monitor him—at least, not alone. Yet he couldn’t rule it out.

The woman wore only a set of pure white underwear. Scattered on the floor were juice boxes, bread, and other snacks. She held a bag of chips, munching as she peered out, much like a schoolchild engrossed in a movie at the cinema, utterly oblivious to the presence of another person in the room.

Wang Zheng came up behind her, looked through the slit in the curtain, and saw that she was watching his own building, Number Five. Whether she was watching his apartment in particular was unclear.

“Is it interesting?” he asked.

“It’s alright,” she replied.

Suddenly, the woman froze, then slowly turned her head, only to see a man behind her—one she hadn’t noticed arrive—looking through her telescope. She adjusted her glasses, blinking her large eyes, then abruptly covered herself with both hands and let out a piercing scream.

“Ahhh—!”

Wang Zheng clapped his hands over his ears immediately, saving his eardrums from her shrill cry at such close range.

The woman stared wide-eyed at Wang Zheng, pointing a trembling finger at him. Her scream diminished, finally subsiding into silence, and the terror on her face faded into confusion. She retreated to a corner, grabbed clothes from the floor, and began dressing.

Meanwhile, Wang Zheng stepped up to the telescope and checked the angle—it was aimed at his own living room balcony.

“You recognize me, don’t you?” Wang Zheng asked casually, adjusting the telescope to observe other residents in Building Five.

Indeed, there were beauties to be seen.

“Mm—” The flustered woman nodded lightly. After dressing, she suddenly seemed to remember something, shook her head vigorously, and said, “No, I don’t know you!”

“Really?” Wang Zheng smiled and continued, “Then surely you’ve seen me before?”

“N-no—” she replied, dragging out the words so ambiguously that he couldn’t tell whether she had or hadn’t.

“Let me introduce myself, then! I’m Wang Zheng, living opposite you in Building Five, fourth floor. I moved in recently—hope we can get along. It’s hard to find someone with a shared hobby in such a big complex.” Wang Zheng turned to her and asked, “I enjoy peeping, too, though my equipment isn’t as advanced as yours. How many years have you been at it?”

The telescope, mounted on a stand, was extremely sophisticated, with six or seven lenses of varying focal lengths laid out beside it. Wang Zheng picked the one with the highest magnification, attached it, and adjusted the angle. Remarkable—it could even make out the moon’s surface!

“Years at it?”

“The number of years you’ve been peeping. You seem pretty professional—must have been at it for a while?”

The woman hung her head, silent, like a child caught doing something wrong. Yet when she glanced at the man out of the corner of her eye, she saw him still peering through her telescope, surveying the surroundings.

‘Wait—this is my home!’ she suddenly realized. The guilt she’d felt vanished, replaced by righteous indignation. She kicked the intruder and shouted, “How did you get in here? I don’t care how you did it—if you don’t leave right now, I’ll call the police!”

“You’re here peeping at other people’s business. By definition, that makes you a thief—and you want to call the police?” Wang Zheng laughed, “Go ahead, do you know the emergency number? In China it’s 110, in Egypt it’s 122, South Africa is 10111, Tanzania is 111, and in America it’s 911. If you’re out of credit, you can use my phone, or call the neighborhood security. I’ll wait right here!”

The woman paused in surprise—the trespasser seemed even more self-assured than she was. The fire of indignation she’d just felt was doused as if by a sudden downpour.

“What… what do you want?” she demanded.

“I told you—it’s hard to find someone with the same hobby. Now that I’ve found one, how about peeping together? My treat!” Wang Zheng said, quite generously.

Peeping as a treat? The woman eyed him suspiciously. Suddenly, something clicked, and she exclaimed, “You—you’re the man living with Su Xue and Chu Jun, aren’t you? No wonder you looked familiar—I almost didn’t recognize you from this close!”

Wang Zheng regarded the bespectacled woman. The way she spoke sounded odd—what did she mean by “the man living with Su Xue and Chu Jun”? Still, by admitting it, she’d more or less confessed. Wang Zheng abandoned his peeping through the telescope, sat on the bed, and asked, “Tell me—why are you… peeping at me?”

Damn, the question sounded awkward. Peeping was, by nature, a secretive act—did it really need a reason? No. Openly peeping wasn’t peeping at all—it was appreciation.

“I didn’t mean to peep at you—I just happened to see you. It wasn’t intentional!” the woman protested.

“Not intentional? Do you think that explanation is convincing?” Wang Zheng asked sternly, “Tell me—what’s your occupation? Name, age, place of work?”

He wasn’t asking out of curiosity; the organization had all kinds of people, and until he knew who she really was, Wang Zheng couldn’t let his guard down. That damned team leader knew Wang Zheng’s preferences—he could arrange a woman to meet him at the airport, or have one stay by his side. Who’s to say the leader wouldn’t send a woman to secretly monitor him?

Besides, everyone in the organization was good at acting. Who knew if this woman was another female operative?

He had to stay vigilant—couldn’t let her appearance deceive him.