Chapter 94: Pretending to Be Pitiful

His eyes were tinged with red, fragile as an illusion reflected in water, and even carried a faint sound of sobbing.

“Sister, I’m truly pitiful. No one has ever cared for me since I was a child. I grew up so lost and confused, I don’t even know how to trust others. If I trust them, they’ll kill me… Sister, could you please teach me? Teach me how to believe in others, how to see the beauty in this world, how to become someone who’s not so dark inside anymore…”

A pang of guilt struck Zhong Huayan.

She owed him. Everything had started with the Zhong family. It was the Zhong family that caused the death of his parents, and then took him in only to torment him…

“I’m sorry, I was just thinking about Hongshu. Her family is so poor, her parents and younger brother will all depend on her in the future. She ran away at such a young age, just wanting to do her part. She’s only eighteen, yet she’s been working for years already. All she wants is a stable job in the city so she can support herself. Besides, she’s so timid—if I had given her that card, she wouldn’t have run away so quickly! The director should be able to mobilize people to find her! Let’s just do a good deed for once!”

Fu Yanyan pressed his tongue against his lower jaw, looking both pleased and a little mischievous, and kissed her on the cheek.

“Sister, you smell so nice, so soft. If such a wonderful person as you spends more time with me like this, maybe I’ll change for the better, be purified…”

“You’re pushing your luck.”

She hadn’t even finished speaking before her lips were kissed again, cold and soft, and then he said,

“Now that’s what I call pushing my luck. But don’t be angry, Sister. I’ll get it done for you right away.”

Then, a slight smile appeared on his lips as he took out his phone and spoke lightly.

“Director, I need you to contact the police within twenty-four hours and find the woman in the photo as quickly as possible.”

“Oh? Looking for your little sweetheart?”

“I don’t know if she’s a sweetheart, but if you can’t find her, I guess you’ll be living as a widower with me from now on. Women are like clothes, friends are like brothers—don’t you agree?”

The person on the other end was clearly flustered. He had held his position in Aumeng for years, and his greatest passion was women.

So the first time he met Fu Yanyan, he thought this kid was either a monk or had some kind of problem, because no matter how stunning a woman was put in front of him, he wouldn’t spare them a glance, always talking about benefits and cooperation, nothing more than a money-making machine. He never showed any tenderness to women, hardly ever got drunk, and even when he did, only tormented them further, ruining those rare beauties.

“Oh please, to President Fu, everyone is just clothing—who could ever hope to be your brother? I’m not that lucky.”

Fu Yanyan hung up after hearing this, then called a few more friends.

While making his calls, he would cast her the occasional, subtle glance.

When he finally put his phone away, Zhong Huayan began to tease him.

“Lovers are like clothing, friends are like brothers?”

“You’re not a lover. You’re my Bodhisattva, my ancestor. Clothes can be ruined, brothers can be lost, but spirit cannot be forsaken. Ah Huan, you’ve always known, I believe in the Bodhisattva.”

“Such a smooth talker.”

Fu Yanyan was naturally happy to see the woman in his arms being coy and jealous—it showed she cared.

“What’s wrong? Didn’t eat? Why are you so thin?”

Maybe it was because his hands were broad, but every time he touched her waist, he’d ask those same three questions.

Zhong Huayan remembered that when they were young, she’d come home from school and pinch his waist, asking,

“What’s wrong? Didn’t eat? Why are you so thin?”

Until the boy hit puberty and shot up, growing a whole head taller than her.

She would secretly ask the housekeeper to make him a midnight snack and bring it to his room.

She always left those same words.

In Zhong Huayan’s memory, her adopted younger brother was always frail and quiet, preferring to stay alone in a corner, obedient and reserved.

So naturally, she’d always shown him extra care since childhood.

“Worrying won’t help. Let’s go have some supper. You’re a bit weak.”

She was still preoccupied, still worried about Hongshu, but this scoundrel of a man had already ordered the housekeeper to prepare a table full of dishes, and then personally served her.

In the central district of Aumeng, it was rare to see a traditional Chinese waterside pavilion like this.

Amidst the shimmering water, the man in black Tang suit exuded a sharp, noble aura with every movement, holding in his arms a woman of elegant and dignified bearing.

Her beige outfit complemented the scenery perfectly, especially the scholarly grace between her brows, exuding a distant nobility. Both were wrapped in the charm of Chinese tradition, commanding presences with an air of authority. The woman seemed like a meticulously groomed successor, and the man like someone who had fought his way to the top, with a peculiar coldness in his bones.

Fu Yanyan placed a piece of meat before her.

“Ah Huan, eat everything, don’t be picky.”

“I just want pork belly, the fattier the better.”

“Why are you so insistent on fatty meat, Ah Huan?”

“Because… I never got to eat it as a child.”

Fu Yanyan let out a soft laugh, dotingly placing a piece of pork belly into her mouth, watching as her cheeks puffed out while she chewed.

“Why are you looking at me?”

“It’s just… I rarely see this side of you.”

His reply was calm. Before, she would never open up like this in front of him, never act so freely herself. She was always holding a proposal, standing tall in the office tower, giving him only a sidelong glance. Even when they ate together, there was little conversation—no matter what topic he brought up, she would only listen to matters regarding the company, and if in a bad mood, her words were sharp and cutting. She was always decisive, brooking no argument, and never spent more than half an hour at a meal.

It was because of all this that, at first, he never thought Li Yanyan and Zhong Huayan were the same person.

As she ate, Zhong Huayan pondered.

Very few people knew what she was like in private. She always wore a mask before her family and company staff, maintaining her posture to inspire morale and command respect.

But every time she was in the car, she would light a cigarette, gaze wearily at the family business, and when lying in bed, ask the housekeeper for a midnight snack and devour it ravenously.

“You didn’t know me well back then. I’m actually very easygoing in private.”

Just as Zhong Huayan finished speaking and was about to eat a few more pieces of pork belly, Fu Yanyan’s phone rang.

He had several phones, but the one he carried with him rarely rang unless it was someone from his contact list.

“President Fu, we’ve found the woman named Lin Hongshu. She was indeed kidnapped and disappeared in the neighborhood you provided. After checking the vehicles, we discovered that a Range Rover with the same license plate took her to the area behind the casino. Our police are already conducting a thorough search. Once we’ve confirmed the target, we’ll rescue her immediately!”

“Is she still alive?”

“It appears so. According to surveillance, she was still alive an hour ago.”

Behind the casino?

Zhong Huayan and Fu Yanyan thought of the same person at once.

Xu Yaochuan?

His restaurant was large enough and happened to be in that area. Moreover, after the kidnapping, the perpetrator hadn’t avoided the cameras.