Capítulo 1092: Chapter 408: Shrouded in Mystery (2)
“Alright then.”
Zhou Wang didn’t insist further. He stood up and moved the two small stools aside, then picked up his backpack containing only a few packs of cigarettes and a bottle of Coke. He and Ding Yi walked one behind the other along the path down the slope.
When they reached the road, neither of them spoke. They just tacitly walked towards a nearby residential area.
A few meters apart, Zhou Wang silently followed behind Ding Yi, feeling slightly dazed. He inexplicably recalled when he activated Memory Fragment 003.
There were similar moments within it.
Except in that memory fragment, Zhou Wang was walking in the front, while Ding Yi was silently following behind him.
At this moment, they reached an intersection. Ding Yi stopped, and not far away, a black Audi with a Jing City license plate was parked on the roadside. Seeing Ding Yi appear, the Audi slowly drove over, and Zhou Wang also stopped.
But before the Audi got closer, Ding Yi, pursing her lips, suddenly turned around.
“Zhou Wang…”
“Hmm?”
“Thank you.”
This thank you from Ding Yi was abrupt, leaving Zhou Wang somewhat puzzled. He looked up only to see the girl’s bright smile.
After smiling, Ding Yi waved at him again, then got into the back seat of the Audi. Soon, the vehicle started and disappeared at the end of the road, turning into the newly built villa community nearby.
Zhou Wang watched the car disappear, with a thoughtful look still lingering in his eyes.
Because until now, he still didn’t know what [event] he was supposed to complete.
Jiang Qingkui’s [event] was easily seen through by Zhou Wang because he already knew her well enough. All the indications suggested that if she were really pregnant, it could only be by him…
But Ding Yi’s [event] in this instance seemed a bit mysterious.
In the [event overview] during the draft session, Zhou Wang saw a big fire, a woman trapped in the fire, a middle-aged man exhausted, an old man lying in the emergency room, and a panicked young girl.
The young girl, needless to say, was undoubtedly Ding Yi.
The middle-aged man might be Ding Yi’s father because there were some resemblances in their features. But who was the woman trapped in the fire, who was the old man in the hospital, and what was the fire about?
Zhou Wang didn’t have any clues for now.
The system, as usual, offered almost no hints, relying entirely on Zhou Wang’s own perception.
It was also due to the hint of mystery surrounding Ding Yi’s instance that Zhou Wang became more interested.
…
Returning home in the evening, Zhou Wang felt slightly better seeing a much younger Zhou Dajun and Zhao Guihua.
This might also be the fascinating aspect of this [instance], even if everything is an illusion, even if at this time, his parents often scolded him to showcase some shortcomings of traditional Chinese education, at least at this time, his parents’ temples were not yet graying.
After having leftover lunch alongside his mother’s nagging, “always out of the house,” Zhou Wang watched some news with Zhou Dajun.
Zhou Wang’s original intention was to show some filial piety or seek some psychological comfort for himself, but suddenly, he heard a voice from the TV broadcast.
“…Jing City’s mayor, Ding Baiyu, attended a city-wide entrepreneurs’ symposium today and delivered an important speech…”
“Who?”
Having caught some keywords, Zhou Wang suddenly looked up, startling Zhou Dajun, who was sipping tea beside him.
“What’s with the fuss?”
Zhou Dajun scolded displeased.
“Dad, is this Ding Baiyu the mayor?”
Zhou Wang asked, staring at the somewhat familiar face on TV.
“Yeah, just took office over two months ago. They say he was transferred from the north… Since when did you start caring about this stuff?”
Zhou Dajun commented casually but waited in vain for his son’s response. Turning his head, he found Zhou Wang was intensely watching the news, not hearing what he asked.
Zhou Wang watched the news for a while, then remembered something and ran to the study.
There was an old computer in the house that Zhou Dajun had brought back from his office. Though it couldn’t play games, it could be used for web browsing and research.
Zhou Wang realized that even without system hints, given Ding Yi’s unique family background, he could thoroughly search for some clues on his own.
Blaming himself for being mesmerized by Ding Yi’s charm these past few days, Zhou Wang felt foolish for just waiting for guidance to appear.
After spending over half an hour sifting through scattered news and some forum revelations, Zhou Wang had a rough outline.
Ding Yi’s father was indeed originally working in Beidou, only air dropped to Jing City in Yunan Province two months ago. Zhou Wang didn’t quite understand these things, but according to some “experts” on the forums, although it seemed like a lateral move, it was somewhat akin to an ancient “demotion.”
After all, moving from the central hub to the periphery so abruptly.
Still confused, Zhou Wang thought for a moment, then got out his phone, and dialed a number from memory.
The first call didn’t connect, but the second one rang for a while before a familiar voice answered in surprise, “Hello, who is this?”
“Is this Qiu Zeyu, Young Master Qiu?”
Qiu Zeyu hesitated for a moment due to Zhou Wang’s addressing, then cautiously responded, “Yes, who might you be?”
“You don’t need to know who I am; you just need to answer one question for me.”
“Are you sick? Why on earth should I answer your question for no reason?”
Qiu Zeyu laughed in anger, suspecting this was a prank call. But just as he was about to hang up, he heard Zhou Wang on the other side say calmly:
“If you don’t answer, I’ll spill the beans about your fling with Miss Wang, and you can prepare for a divorce.”
“How do you know…”
Clearly shocked, Young Master Qiu stammered. He had only recently started seeing Miss Wang, and not even his best friend knew. How did this person know?
After a long silence, Qiu Zeyu took a deep breath and said, “Ask your question, but I can’t promise I’ll answer.”
Zhou Wang chuckled secretly. Although Young Master Qiu was destined for a divorce, due to some vested interests, it was not the right time now. Young Master Qiu had told him this personally, having endured years to wait for the right time to divorce…
Nonetheless, from another perspective, it showed that despite his casual attitude, Young Master Qiu still had some affection for Miss Wang.
“I want to know, what happened to the Ding Family?”
“The Ding Family?”
Young Master Qiu was taken aback, then breathed a sigh of relief. He thought the person was going to ask something else.
“Mr. Ding is hospitalized, and I hear his condition is quite grave this time, and he might not make it… This isn’t a secret. Since you managed to get my number, you could easily find out by asking around the circle. Why go through all the trouble to ask me?”
After answering, Young Master Qiu grumbled in dissatisfaction, but Zhou Wang didn’t reply. He just ended the call directly.
So, the old man in the emergency room was Ding Yi’s grandfather?
Having solved another puzzle, Zhou Wang checked and was shocked by Mr. Ding’s impressive credentials; this was indeed a major figure…
Zhou Wang realized what Ding Yi meant by “family changes.” This was not an ordinary change.
But with such high-level disputes, what could a person as insignificant as him do?
Zhou Wang found himself in a new confusion.
…
In the following days, like usual, Zhou Wang met with Ding Yi every day in the little grove by the railway, accompanying her to read books, occasionally telling slightly risqué jokes to tease her, and enjoying the summer sweetness amidst her playful retorts.
Sometimes Zhou Wang would suddenly have thoughts: if things continued like this, it would be hard for him and Ding Yi not to end up together.
However, this was ultimately a fictional instance; the real Ding Yi was no longer the bashful little white flower blooming in the wild.
Until dusk that day, as usual, Zhou Wang followed Ding Yi to the intersection, separated by a few meters, but this time Ding Yi hesitated instead of immediately getting into the car.
“What’s wrong?”
Seeing Ding Yi’s hesitant expression, Zhou Wang asked in surprise.
“Well… my parents know I’ve made a new friend and want to invite you to our house for a meal. Would you like to come?”
For once, Ding Yi seemed a bit shy. “Of course, I know it sounds a bit strange, but that’s how our family is. You don’t have to come if you don’t want to…”
“I’ll go, absolutely!”
Zhou Wang keenly sensed that this might also be a part of the [event]. He immediately nodded and agreed.