The man in the duckbill cap gave no sign of hearing, waiting for the moving van behind to pass before jostling his keys into the ignition. He planted his left foot on the clutch pedal and gently lifted his right foot off the brake, letting the car shudder forward.

Seeing he would ignore her again and try to drive away with her, Oshiro's anxiety flared. Last night she'd been in bed at home clearly - now here she was waking up in some stranger's vehicle. He wouldn't even tell her his name, let alone where they were headed. If it truly was as he claimed about following parental instructions that would be one thing, but what if this turned out to be human trafficking? If she didn't resist now while the car still idled at low speed, once he accelerated past 170mph there'd be no escaping her fate.

A sudden realization struck. Oshiro yanked open the door and vaulted from the vehicle into the emergency lane against the traffic flow. A lone woman jogging on a highway? This shocking act made the duckbill cap man slam off the engine, yank out his keys, and chase after her immediately.

But women's legs had their limits - before she'd run ten meters he caught up, gripping her arm to drag her back toward the car.

"Let me go! I don't know you! If you don't release me right now I'll scream for help and have police arrest you!" She twisted in his grasp while flailing his hand away with stubborn resistance.

"Calm down. Calm down," he said, using his other hand to steady her shoulder and bring their eyes together. "I'm not a bad guy. Look into my eyes - does anyone come to mind?"

"Wahhh..." As his grip didn't loosen, Oshiro broke into sobs. She had no idea what else could save herself besides tears. But even this tactic worked somewhat, at least stopping him from trying to force her back in the car. Just like Mr Lu Xun's window theory: "If you say the room is too dark and suggest opening a window, they'll never allow it. But if you propose tearing off the roof instead, suddenly opening windows becomes acceptable." Moments ago when he was calmly conversing with no intention of revealing himself, she could have walked away. Now that she demanded to leave, he abruptly became amiable. Oshiro thought this man incredibly strange - one moment burning hot with enthusiasm, next freezing cold in demeanor. How few people must be able to tolerate such mercurial temperament? Still, his appearance did resemble Xiao Shu strikingly similar, aside from personality differences and hair style it was as if they'd been molded from the same die.

"Are you..." she almost asked about twin brothers before stopping herself. Ever since childhood her parents always said Xiao Shu was Lai Tai Zheng's adopted son - found at roadside during snowy New Year's Eve night. Since he was an abandoned infant, finding relatives would be difficult. But if such a relative did appear wanting to take him back to biological parents... then their relationship would definitely end. Thinking this through, Oshiro shook her head violently, refusing to acknowledge any blood relation between the young man whose face matched Xiao Shu's 90% and her beloved Xiao Shu. The words on her tongue dissolved into just two syllables she couldn't bring herself to say.

"My name is Lai Xiaohao - twin brother of Lai Xiaoshu." Seeing Oshiro's hesitant expression, the duckbill cap man - now identified as Lai Xiaohao - felt his heart shatter. The self-introduction he'd held back so long finally tumbled out in a breathless rush.

Why did he insist on this elaborate charade? Had he revealed himself earlier, Miss Nangong would surely be sitting calmly in the car right now listening to family stories about Lai Xiaoshu rather than enduring this storm of tears. Who knew which nerve misfired making him think Oshiro's treating him as stranger was such an incomprehensible situation. For fourteen years he'd secretly stood behind her countless times, just one handspan away from touching her - yet now it seemed their first true meeting had come at last.