After thinking about this in a jumbled mess for a long time, I finally opened my eyes and looked at Ye Zhi. I said to her in a low voice, "I don't know why things turned out this way, but it's definitely not a good thing for me... All I want now is to go home and have a comfortable New Year... My parents have been waiting for me at home; I haven't spent a New Year at home for many years... I've thought a lot about what will happen after I get home... Sisi is right, I am a man with a bit of vanity... In recent years, my reputation at home has been bad, and I just wanted to prove myself in this way, and make my parents happy... But why has such a simple thing suddenly become so difficult?... I feel like the situation is out of control. None of us have the ability to control it, yet we are all more panicked than the other... I have a very strong premonition that in this tense atmosphere, someone will definitely choose to take extreme measures..."

Ye Zhi sighed softly, then replied, "That's what I was thinking too... Regardless of whether the evidence she sent is real or not, don't hand it over to the police for now, because keeping it in our hands will give us leverage."

After a brief pause, Ye Zhi continued, "Now we can only pin our hopes on Cao Xiaobei. If he can protect Sisi and prevent Cao Jinbo from having any contact with her, there shouldn't be any danger."

"I hope so."

After saying that, we fell silent. We couldn't contact Yang Sisi, so we could only wait passively... wait for evidence, wait for news about her.

...

Before I knew it, it was already evening. Except for the fact that I hadn't received the evidence from Yang Sisi yet, everything seemed calm and peaceful. My tension finally eased a little. I heard the sound of firecrackers in the distance, and I could smell the aroma of steamed buns...

I was in a daze, as if I were at home, waiting for the New Year... It wasn't until I saw Ye Zhi beside me that I snapped out of this state; she had been with me all day, without eating or drinking.

I let out a soft breath and finally spoke to her, "Go back now."

It's still early.

"I'm asking you to go back to Shanghai."

Ye Zhi looked at me with some surprise. She didn't know why I would suddenly say that. Actually, I wasn't acting on impulse. I knew she came to me because of the message Yang Sisi sent. However, we no longer had any possibility of being together, so there was no need for this entanglement... Therefore, Yang Sisi ultimately misjudged us. She thought this was for the sake of our happiness, but we were already like strangers... Besides, I didn't want her to get involved in this vortex. I also had some wishes for her; I hoped she could live a happy life.

This can be considered a mature way of understanding and letting go.

I then spoke to Ye Zhi, saying, "You're about to become a mother. From now on, when you do things, besides considering the big picture, you also need to think more about yourself... I'm truly grateful that you were able to gradually rebuild yourself after experiencing such a great ordeal, so you should cherish yourself even more."

"Always think more about yourself, think about the baby in your belly..."

Ye Zhi shook her head and replied, "In the end, all these things started because of this. How can I sit idly by at this time... Michael, the person I've wronged the most in this life is you, but I can't make it up to you... The only thing I can do now is to give Sisi back to you... Because I know that she is very important to you, even the most important woman in your life!"

I lowered my head and remained silent, my mind a jumble of thoughts...

I really regret not listening to Yang Sisi and staying at the wedding... If I hadn't left halfway through, things might not be like this now.

...

The sudden ringing of my cell phone startled me awake. I quickly picked it up and saw that it was Cao Xue calling. Before I could feel disappointed, a very bad premonition suddenly rose in my heart.

Whose call was it?

I looked at Ye Zhi and replied, "The call from Cao Xue... is probably not good news."

"Put the hands-free mode on."

I answered the phone; Cao Xue's voice sounded very deep as he asked me, "Where are you right now?"

Dali.

“My uncle took some people to Shangri-La… He said that something he gave to Cao Xiaobei was lost by Cao Xiaobei… How could something so important be lost?… Did Yang Sisi give it to you?”

At that moment, countless thoughts flashed through my mind, but in order not to arouse Cao Xue's suspicion, I answered intuitively, "Sisi and I haven't been in contact since yesterday. What is this important thing you mentioned?"

"Michael, don't you really consider me one of your own?"

“I didn’t mean that… No one wants to contact Yang Sisi more than me, but right now, I can’t get through to her on the phone at all. How could she possibly hand anything over to me!”

Cao Xue sighed, then replied, "I know you don't trust me, but you have to listen to my advice; you need to prepare for this as soon as possible. I'm calling you now; by the time my uncle calls you, it'll be too late... If you can contact Yang Sisi now, tell her to run. The car Cao Xiaobei drove out in belongs to my uncle; it has a GPS tracker... One last thing: if you get your hands on that thing, don't hand it over to the police, otherwise none of us will have a good ending... I'm not joking; you can't imagine how ruthless my uncle is..."

After saying that, Cao Xue hung up the phone, and I, my heart pounding, just stared blankly at Ye Zhi.

As if by instinct, I made a decision in the next instant. I said to Ye Zhi, "I have to go to Shangri-La... I have to find Sisi before Cao Jinbo."

"Calm down, don't believe Cao Xue, this could very well be a setup!"

“I don’t care whether it’s a police station or not… If anything happens to Sisi, I’ll live with self-blame and regret for the rest of my life… I don’t want that… I’m leaving now. You stay here and wait for the evidence. As long as we have the evidence, Cao Jinbo will definitely not dare to make any rash moves.”

"Don't make any rash decisions... Regardless of whether you can contact Sisi or not, send her a message first to make sure she sees it as soon as she uses that phone number again; send one on WeChat as well... Then, we'll set off for Shangri-La together."

"No, you can't go."

Ye Zhi looked at me and said in an extremely firm tone, "Now is not the time to play it safe... Michael, I remember telling you before... when things are good for you, anything is fine... when things are bad for you, I will definitely be there for you through thick and thin... If you feel like you're a burden to me, then prove to me with your actions that you have the ability to make yourself happy..."

(End of this chapter)