Their Love Stories

At Ceng Hanyu’s villa.

Ceng Hanyu’s smile faded a little as he spoke on the phone, “Yeah, he was here yesterday. But Yao was sleeping, so he said he would pick her up some other day.”

“Okay… I feel much relieved.”

Reassured, Mo Suqing rang off. As long as Yao is alright, nothing else matters.

But, she was surprised to learn that Leng Haoyun would be willing to pick her up some other day. As far as she could see, the man was awfully possessive of Yao. It was odd he would agree to such a thing.

Ceng Hanyu must have said something to him.

It was probably for the best. He was already engaged. Even though he was Yao’s uncle, even though Yao had uncommon feelings for him, he needed to keep his distance and squash Yao’s hope. That way, she could begin to heal.

Mo Suqing was going to go to work when her phone rang.

The caller ID was strange to her. She was about to pick it up when the ringing stopped.

Mo Suqing frowned, but she didn’t think too much about it. Probably just a junk call. However, when she approached the door, a message came through.

Mo Suqing tapped it open and froze on the spot.

The message was short: Care to know where Ye Zhongjue is?

Mo Suqing felt the adrenaline course through her veins, like something bad was about to happen.

Frowning, she paced to and fro in the house for a while without knowing what to do.

She had a very uneasy feeling. She picked up the phone to call Ye Zhongjue, but then thought better of it.

Yet, the unease grew stronger and stronger. In the end, she called Ye Zhongjue anyway. No one answered.

Mo Suqing was so anxious that she decided to call Lin Ran. Lin Ran did answer the phone, but sounded hesitant.

Mo Suqing asked, “Where’s Ye Zhongjue? Why isn’t he answering his phone?”

Lin Ran sounded strange when he replied, “Um, Boss just went out. He probably forgot his phone. I’ll tell him you called when he’s back.”

Mo Suqing asked several more questions, but Lin Ran’s reply was ambiguous. She had a bad feeling.

She hung up the phone and decided she would go to Mighty Empire and see for herself if Ye Zhongjue was alright. After all, he had never stayed out all night before.

And then, there was that weird message she had just got.

Mo Suqing grabbed her purse and left the house. She looked agitated as she fixed her mind on Ye Zhongjue, not knowing danger was coming for her.

No sooner had she left the community when a taxi approached. She hailed it and quickly got in the car.

“To Mighty Empire. Quick!”

The driver hung his head low with a black cap that obscured half of his face. He gave her a noncommittal reply and started driving at a high speed.

After some time, Mo Suqing felt something was wrong. They were not heading toward Mighty Empire.

Mo Suqing looked at the driver warily and said, “You…”

But she didn’t finish the sentence. All of a sudden, the driver turned around and gave her a sinister smile. The last thing Mo Suqing saw was that the man sprayed some kind of white spray at her.

The next second, she lost her consciousness as her body slid sideways on the seat.

……

Back to earlier this morning, shortly after Mo Suqing had got up and called Ye Zhongjue.

Jian Jie emerged from the Hilton Hotel where she had spent the night to keep An Huilin company. Leng Haoyun had disappeared from their engagement party the previous day.

She had just left the hotel when she sensed someone following her. A triumphant smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. Her plan was working. Someone had lost their patience and begun to act.

She quickened her pace and walked toward the parking lot. The footsteps behind her quickened, too. When she reached her car, a figure appeared from behind and blocked her. She could have dodged in time, but she didn’t move as if she was rooted on the spot. Something gleamed in her eyes as the man drugged her and she lost consciousness.

When Ye Zhongjue answered the phone, he immediately recognized Jian Jie’s scream.

A man laughed obscenely and said, “I heard that Miss Jie is President Ye’s mistress and that’s why you keep her by your side as your secretary. She is so curvy! And the skin looks so fair and smooth that I don’t know if I want to lay a finger on her… Hahaha!”

He burst into lewd laughter.

“But, alas, my friends surely are interested in her…”

Rage showed in Ye Zhongjue’s eyes. He roared, “Stop talking bullshit! What do you want? Just spit it out!”

“Ha, President Ye is as impatient as ever! Since you want to get down to business right away, I guess I can probably tell you what I want.”

His voice became serious when he continued, “It’s simple. I want you – only you – to bring all the files regarding the urban planning project to me. We’ll talk from there.”

Ye Zhongjue narrowed his eyes. A dangerous light gleamed in them.

The man spoke again, “Remember, do not take your phone with you. Just go to the Central Square and I’ll give you the next hint of what to do. I trust you won’t do anything stupid…”

He dragged the last syllable and ended the conversation.

Ye Zhongjue looked furious. The urban planning project? How do they know I have the relevant files? They were in the folder that he had asked Lin Ran to fetch from the villa the day before.

It contained the detailed plans for the developments of A City for the next five years. It was a governmental project. The company that could reach an agreement with the government would be able to secure a bright future in the construction industry.

Ye Zhongjue frowned as he recalled the shot Jian Jie had taken for him.

A hint of ruthlessness crossed his eyes. If they dared to provoke him, they were all going to pay!

Besides, it was time to call it even with Jian Jie.

After Ye Zhongjue hung up the phone, he threw his phone on the desk, grabbed the folder, and walked out of his office. “No matter who calls, tell them I’m not here,” he barked out the order to Lin Ran as he left.

The moment he entered the elevator, his phone on the desk began to ring. The caller ID read “Honey,” but he could no longer hear it.

He got in the car and headed to the Central Square.

When he arrived, a conspicuous billboard on the square caught his eyes. A line in black font at the bottom left corner read: 

Number 101, New Age Estate. Your best chance to find what you are looking for.

Ye Zhongjue didn’t need to think twice to know this was their trick.

He immediately made a U-turn and headed toward New Age Estate.

Meanwhile, Mo Suqing was taken to an abandoned factory on the outskirts of town.

……

Ye Zhongjue arrived at the villa at number 101 in New Age Estate. He was about to press on the doorbell when he heard some shuffling inside. Warily, he moved sideways and stood next to the door.

He had his hand ready on his waist in case anything should happen. He had checked before getting out of the car. There were no vantage points for a sniper around the villa and he didn’t sense any danger nearby.

As one of the heads of Sin Eliminators, he had developed a hypersensitivity to danger.

Yet, he didn’t pick up any dangerous air now. Still, he could feel his heart beating wildly as if something bad was about to happen.

He hadn’t had such a feeling for many years.

The door opened and a middle-aged woman came out. She looked at Ye Zhongjue amiably and said, “Mr. Ye, right? Just now, someone sent the young miss home. He told me a Mr. Ye was coming and asked me to give him something.”

Ye Zhongjue’s eyes became dangerous as he looked at the woman suspiciously. However, she seemed alright.

“Is Jian Jie your young miss?” he asked.

“Yeah!” the woman answered smilingly. “Please come in, Mr. Ye. The thing he wanted me to give you is in the living room. The young miss is still asleep.”

Ye Zhongjue didn’t get inside. He stood where he was and looked around.

“This is Jian Jie’s villa?”

“Yes, how do you know?” the woman looked surprised. She glanced at Ye Zhongjue and explained, 

“To be honest, after the young miss came home from abroad, she hasn’t stayed at her family home much. Most of the time, she lives here. I am in charge of taking care of her. About half an hour before, a man who looked like a bad guy sent her back. She has been sleeping ever since and I have been unable to wake her. The man gave me something and asked me to give it to you when you came. Then, he just left.”

Ye Zhongjue didn’t say anything. He walked past the woman and into the house. However, he instantly sensed the woman pouncing on him with something shiny in her hand.

Ye Zhongjue turned around swiftly and dodged the fruit knife before gripping her neck.

The woman went limp at once. She dropped the knife and choked out the words with great difficulty, “I… don’t want… to do this… but they…. threatened me…”

Ye Zhongjue threw her on the floor. He could see she was harmless.