Chapter 176: We’ve Caught Someone
Chapter 176: Chapter 176: We’ve Caught Someone
After their trip to the kindergarten ended for the day, the group walked out of the main gate.
Xu Li said she would go get the car.
Fu Chao also called his driver.
While they were waiting, Nan Zhi offered to treat Fu Chao to a meal to thank him for his help.
Fu Chao was just about to happily agree.
But then, he suddenly got a phone call.
"It’s my mom."
After casually explaining to Nan Zhi, Fu Chao stepped to the side to answer Qing Qing’s call.
He didn’t stand too far away, but not too close either.
Nan Zhi couldn’t hear what he was saying, but she could see his expression suddenly turn cold and grim.
Those handsome features, usually so cheerful, bright, and approachable, were suddenly shrouded in gloom, revealing a hint of sharp severity.
This was the first time Nan Zhi had seen this side of Fu Chao. Even when they first met, when he hadn’t been friendly toward her, his expression hadn’t been this grim.
She couldn’t help but stare a little longer.
When Fu Chao came back after finishing his call, she couldn’t resist asking:
"Did something happen at home?"
Fu Chao was about to shake his head and deny it.
But seeing the genuine concern in Nan Zhi’s eyes, the words caught in his throat, and he changed his mind.
He nodded.
"Yeah. One of the people involved in my sister’s kidnapping years ago was just trying to illegally leave the country. Luckily, my parents found out beforehand and just caught them. I have to go over there now, so we’ll have to do that meal you offered another time."
The sheer density of the information sent waves of shock through Nan Zhi.
A thousand thoughts could only be distilled into a single sentence:
"Be careful, then."
Fu Chao gave her a bitter smile.
Then he reached out and patted the top of Nan Yi’s head, who stood beside Nan Zhi.
Nan Yi, who usually hated being touched by anyone other than his mother, must have sensed the sadness coming from Fu Chao. In a rare exception, he didn’t pull away. Instead, he stood there stiffly and allowed it.
He even remembered to say:
"Don’t be sad."
Fu Chao’s eyes stung, and he almost started to cry.
He quickly raised a hand to wipe the moisture from the corner of his eye, said goodbye to Nan Zhi and Nan Yi, then got into the car by the roadside and sped away.
Nan Yi suddenly asked:
"Mama, what’s ’kidnapping’?"
The unexpected question left Nan Zhi unsure how to answer.
She had intended to explain it more delicately.
But Nan Yi was more perceptive than she’d thought and seemed to understand on his own.
"...Does it mean bad people took Uncle Fu Chao’s sister away from her mommy and daddy?"
Nan Zhi felt his small body tremble slightly, likely out of fear.
She hummed softly in agreement and pulled Nan Yi into a tight hug.
Nan Yi found a continuous sense of security in her embrace.
He stopped trembling and just said:
"Uncle Fu Chao’s sister is so pitiful."
Nan Zhi felt a little dazed.
At the same time, a trace of envy for Fu Chao’s sister bloomed deep inside her—
Despite the tragedy she had suffered, her whereabouts still occupied her family’s thoughts after so many years.
They rejoiced and worried for her, and they would spare no effort to find her.
’Unlike me,’ she thought. ’Abandoned, with no one to think of me all these years.’
Because of this, Nan Zhi hoped even more that Fu Chao’s sister would be safe.
Then there would be one less unfortunate person in the world.
-
Halfway through the drive, dark clouds suddenly gathered in the sky, and in the blink of an eye, a torrential downpour began.
Fu Chao stared through the car window, his heart heavy, as he watched the view blur behind a dense curtain of rain. His mind was a mess.
He wanted to see that woman as soon as possible, yet he was also afraid of seeing her.
The other shoe, which had been dangling for so many years, was finally about to drop.
Fu Chao felt nothing but unease.
’What if...’
’No!’
’There is no ’what if’!’
Familiar scenery rushed into view, snapping Fu Chao out of his daze.
"Are we almost there?"
The driver in the front seat confirmed while pulling the car up in front of a villa.
"Third Young Master, it’s raining outside. I’ll get an umbrella for you from the back..."
The driver said as he turned around.
But when he looked, Fu Chao was no longer in the back seat.
He had already thrown open the car door and was sprinting toward the villa in the pouring rain.
The security guard in the monitoring room recognized him and immediately opened the main gate for Fu Chao.
Fu Chao rushed straight to the living room without any obstruction—
Ten formidable bodyguards, both men and women, were stationed in every corner of the living room.
Two of the female bodyguards stood flanking the only chair in the living room.
A disheveled woman was cowering in the chair.
She was small and thin, her clothes looked like they hadn’t been washed in days, and her fingernails were caked with black grime.
She wasn’t tied up, but she remained huddled in the chair, too afraid to move.
Her eyes darted around, filled with panic and terror.
Even though he was more than ten meters away,
even though her face was no longer the gentle and kind one from his memory,
...Fu Chao still recognized the woman in a single glance!
Lin Xiang!
Zizhi’s nanny from all those years ago!
One of the culprits who brought such a devastating blow to their family!
Back then, Lin Xiang had been chosen as Zizhi’s nanny only after a rigorous selection process.
His whole family had a good impression of her, and Zizhi had trusted and relied on her deeply.
Who would have thought that such an ordinary-looking woman, with her honest and kind face, could commit such a terrible crime! And then stay on the run for over twenty years!
A blazing rage burned in Fu Chao’s chest, making him want to rush forward and demand—
’My family treated you well, so why did you betray us?’
"Xiao Chao."
The familiar voice made Fu Chao stop in his tracks.
He turned around, his eyes bloodshot and his voice hoarse:
"Mom..."
Qing Qing beckoned to him, signaling for him to follow her before she turned away.
Fu Chao looked at her, then turned his head back to look at Lin Xiang.
After a great deal of internal struggle, he reluctantly followed Qing Qing.
When they reached the study on the second floor, Fu Chao realized his father was there as well.
He was standing by the window, talking on the phone with a grave expression.
"Don’t disturb him."
Qing Qing lowered her voice, which, for a moment, held a gentleness that hadn’t been there for many years.
Fu Chao stood there, stunned, for a long, long time.
’This attitude, this atmosphere...’
’It was as if the friction and conflict of the past years had never existed, and they were still the loving family they once were.’
But at the same time, Fu Chao knew with perfect clarity that this was just an illusion.
The brief peace between his mother and father was only because they needed to present a united front.
The knot in their hearts could only be truly untied once his sister was found!
So, Fu Chao composed his expression and lowered his voice.
"Why are you both upstairs? Aren’t you going to confront Lin Xiang?"
Qing Qing’s expression was faint and cold.
"We’ve already investigated everything we can. The only things left are what we couldn’t uncover—secrets that only Lin Xiang herself knows."
Fu Chao wasn’t an idiot; he understood at once.
"...So you’re deliberately leaving her there to stew, waiting for her to talk on her own?"
"Yes."
Qing Qing was being extremely cautious.
This was their last chance, won by a hair’s breadth, and every single step had to be handled with the utmost care!
Because they simply couldn’t afford a single mistake!
"Someone willing to endure terrible conditions to escape the country has a terrifying desire to live. That will drive her to reveal all her secrets!"