Chapter 95: Worried
Cheng Xiyue knew that things just took a turn for the worse when he heard Lu Huaiyu’s answer.
“You don’t know where she is?”
Lu Huaiyu usually kept an eye on the girl, so Cheng Xiyue assumed that he would have known. However…
“She sent me a message an hour ago and told me that she was home.” Lu Huaiyu’s eyes were cold and his tone was flat.
Cheng Xiyue had goosebumps all over his body.
What was going on?
Did something happen to Ning Li? Or did she lie to Lu Huaiyu?
For a moment there, Cheng Xiyue could not tell which possibility was more dangerous.
“I’ll send someone to look for her,” he said.
Lu Huaiyu was in the capital, so it was up to Cheng Xiyue to handle the matter.
When Lu Huaiyu turned around, he saw his grandfather going back to the bedroom to rest.
“Alright.” He did not say anything else and just hung up the phone heavily instead.
The message from Ning Li was still open in his chat window.
“Huaiyu, shouldn’t you be going to bed now?” Lu Qishan asked.
Lu Huaiyu picked up his coat. “Have a good rest. I have to go back to Yunzhou for a while.”
Lu Qishan was stunned as he stared at his grandson blankly. “Now? It’s almost 11:00 p.m.. What’s the emergency?!”
“It’s quite serious, but you don’t have to worry. I’ll handle it.”
Since Lu Huaiyu insisted, Lu Qishan could do nothing but agree. “I’ll ask Qingyun to send you to the airport.”
The Lu family practiced a strict family rule—everyone in the family did things swiftly and precisely.
When Lu Huaiyu walked out of the door, he gave Ning Li a call, but her phone was still turned off.
“Second Master.”
Fang Qingyun drove the car over in a hurry. Even after Lu Huaiyu got into the car, he still failed to respond to Fang Qingyun. Although it was late, Lu Huaiyu wanted to fly back to Yunzhou just like that?
“Airport. Now.”
Lu Huaiyu then made another call.
“Chief Shao, I have something to ask you.”
…
Wei Songze was storing items in his own place.
A few parcel boxes were placed together while some miscellaneous items were piled up in the corner.
Two days before Ning Li arrived at Yunzhou, she had sent everything to him. She did not have the chance to take them until now, and he almost thought that she had forgotten all about them.
Fortunately, Wei Songze’s house was quite empty, so he had the space to keep all the items.
Then, his phone rang all of a sudden.
“Who is this joker? Don’t you know how late it is?” he grumbled as he looked at the screen of his phone.
It was an unregistered number, so he simply declined the call. However, the same number called him again, forcing him to answer.
“Hello?”
A familiar voice came from the other end of the call. “Wei Songze? I’m Lu Huaiyu.”
As Wei Songze widened his eyes in shock, he shot another glance at his phone in disbelief.
Lu Huaiyu?
The noble prince that bailed him and Ning Li out from the police station the other day? How did the man even get his number?
He then remembered how polite and courteous the police chief had been the other day, then his question was immediately rendered unnecessary.
He answered nervously, “Y-yeah, I am Wei Songze!”
“Where’s Ning Li? Is she with you?” Lu Huaiyu asked.
“Sister Lili? No…After I sent her there, I came back.” Wei Songze was rather confused by the question.
Lu Huaiyu squinted his deep and cold eyes.
“Where did you send her?”
…
The rain showed no signs of stopping.
Ning Li stood beside the window until the lights outside slowly went dark. Only then she returned to her seat.
The only table lamp shed soft light over her face and body, tracing the lines of her body in the dark.
There were several pieces of paper on the table, and each of them had different scribbles on it.
At first, the scribbles started messily, but slowly, they started to form a shape. There was a sketch of a rotten apple in the kitchen, broken bowls and chopsticks on the ground, plus a street lamp on a rainy night.
Countless pictures flashed across her mind.
Some were merely sketches; some were so detailed that it looked real.
She had used a pencil to sketch all of it. Other than black and white, there was no color at all.
She leaned her body as she sat down and drew, as though she was trying to make a statement with her posture, but it also felt like she was just trying to kill time.
On the last piece of paper was a good-looking portrait of someone.
The person’s hair was slightly messy and the eyes were sharp despite being half-closed. The thick and long eyelashes were clearly emphasized, as though they were the deepest impression left in her heart.
The nose was tall while the lips were slightly curved into a smile.
The lines on the face were smooth and clean, especially the sharp jawline. The sharpness of the look was toned down by the warmth from the smile, making the face look cold.
The eyes were deep as if a layer of endless mist prevented one from seeing what was behind the abysmal mystery they held.
Although the expression looked calm, it also had a subtle sense of intimidation plus a hint of dangerous hostility.
It felt like with every inch closer into his domain, one would be forever trapped within his grasp.
…
Cheng Xiyue made a few calls.
Ning Li had not gone back to Second High or Xiaosong Hill.
He was worried that things might get out of control, so when he asked for Ning Li, he did not reveal too much. However, after several fruitless calls, he started to get even more concerned.
Just when he was thinking about calling the police, he got a call from Lu Huaiyu.
“Airport now. At the B exit of T2 terminal.”
Cheng Xiyue failed to understand the meaning of his words. “Huh? Why? Why the airport?”
Lu Huaiyu said coldly, “I know where she is.”
“You found Little Ning Li?” Cheng Xiyue was thrilled at first, but he suddenly thought of something. “Wait, are you in Yunzhou?”
Lu Huaiyu had a look at his watch.
“You have 20 minutes.”
…
The night was dark. The heavy rain cleared the streets. Only cars sped across, causing water to splash in the wake of their trails.
While Cheng Xiyue was driving, he could not help but glance at the passenger seat from time to time.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Lu Huaiyu looked unfriendly. Ever since he got into the car, all he stated was the name of a location and nothing else.
Cheng Xiyue knew that Lu Huaiyu might have been worried about this, but he did not expect the man to book a flight ticket back right away!
Judging from the man’s reaction, something was not right.
“Um…Since we know where Little Ning Li is and her friend, that Wei guy, said that she’s staying there willingly, she should be safe, right?”
At first, Cheng Xiyue thought that Lu Huaiyu had come back because he was worried about Ning Li’s safety, but now it seemed like it was more than that. It had been quite a while since he faced Lu Huaiyu’s pressuring presence.
Nonetheless, Lu Huaiyu remained silent.
Cheng Xiyue sighed.
Ning Li was still new in Yunzhou and only had so many friends, thus there were only a few places that she could go. She might still not have the chance to explore the streets of Yunzhou properly.
However, before they realized it, she had asked someone to rent a place for her and had gone there without telling anyone.
The car soon arrived at the neighbourhood entrance.
Cheng Xiyue had a glance from the outside. “We’re here. This should be the place.”
Lu Huaiyu then got out with an umbrella.