Chapter 115: The result of the eager waiting...
The atmosphere in the living room instantly dropped to freezing point.
The three of them looked at each other, then walked to the sofa and sat down with gloomy faces.
As soon as Song Zhiyan sat down, he couldn't wait to ask Zheng Wenhui, "Mom, how did you know Ji Kai was also in L City? Did you see him?"
When talking about this issue, a trace of embarrassment and panic flashed across Zheng Wenhui's face. Her eyes wandered and she hesitated, not daring to look them in the eye.
She didn't say anything for a long time, and Song Zhiyan asked anxiously: "Mom, please say something."
When Zheng Wencheng saw his sister's appearance, he immediately had an ominous premonition in his heart.
He slammed the coffee table with a loud bang, narrowed his eyes, and spoke in a serious tone, "Zheng Wenhui! Did you sneak out to gamble again?"
Zheng Wenhui was so frightened by her brother's sudden anger that she trembled all over, her face pale. She quickly waved her hands and tried to argue, "No, no! Don't be angry, brother. I just... I just felt like playing a few cards with my friends!"
"Really! Besides, my card has been limited by you, so I can't do anything big..." As she explained, Zheng Wencheng's expression became more and more gloomy. Zheng Wenhui trembled, her voice became smaller and smaller, and she looked at her son for help.
Song Zhiyan also frowned and looked at his mother disapprovingly.
He knew his mother had this hobby. Normally, it was just a minor quarrel, but at this critical moment...
Seeing Zheng Wencheng's face turn pale and a scolding about to come out, Zheng Wenhui quickly changed the subject, her tone fast and urgent: "The point is not this, the point is that I met Ji Kai in that place in L City!"
Zheng Wencheng swallowed back the curse that was about to come out of his mouth and asked in a deep voice, "Anything else?"
Zheng Wenhui breathed a sigh of relief, seeing that she had gotten through the situation temporarily, and quickly recounted what she had seen: "There was a middle-aged man with him. I immediately thought that man looked familiar. Although I was wearing sunglasses and a mask, I was still afraid that the man surnamed Ji would recognize me, so I didn't dare to look any further and quickly left. After I came back, the more I thought about it, the more I felt something was wrong. It took me a long time to remember that man worked for Xu Shangyan!"
"Xu Shangyan?" Song Zhiyan and Zheng Wencheng said in unison, their faces becoming even uglier.
Xu Shangyan is Song Youning's number one confidant. His people are hanging out with Ji Kai, which is definitely not a good sign.
Zheng Wencheng immediately stood up, walked to the window, took out his mobile phone and began to contact his contacts in L City, and hurriedly ordered them to check Ji Kai's whereabouts immediately.
The living room was filled with anxious anticipation. Less than half an hour later, Zheng Wencheng's phone rang. He picked up the call and listened to the report, his expression growing increasingly gloomy.
After hanging up the phone, he turned around, facing the nervous gazes of his sister and son, and said in a deep voice: "The people over there said that Ji Kai suddenly disappeared today."
The three of them instantly thought of Song Youning who appeared in L City on the same day.
Song Zhiyan suddenly felt something was wrong, and his heart sank. He looked at Zheng Wencheng with a pale face, his voice a little tense: "She... did she know something?"
Zheng Wenhui was also panicking and grabbed Zheng Wencheng's arm. "What should we do? Big brother, what should we do now? If I had known earlier... if I had known earlier, I should have dealt with the Ji family as well to prevent future troubles!"
Zheng Wencheng looked at the panicked mother and son before him, suppressing his anxiety and trying to maintain composure as he scolded them, "What are you panicking about? Losing your composure is the biggest taboo!"
He took a deep breath, trying to calm the situation. "We handled that incident very cleanly. All the people involved were silenced and sent away. All evidence that might point to us was destroyed. How old was Song Youning then? How much can a half-grown child remember? Even if she feels something is wrong now and becomes suspicious and wants to investigate—"
He paused, a sinister and calculating look flashing in his eyes. "She can only find out as far as the third house. Song Zhenglan has a lot of children anyway, and there are many who dislike her and wish she would disappear. This muddy water is perfect for the people from the third house to wade into!"
His words temporarily soothed him, but the worry between Song Zhiyan's brows did not dissipate: "Uncle, what should we do now..."
Zheng Wencheng pondered for a moment and said decisively: "The most important thing now is to stabilize our position. At the same time, we must find out what Song Youning did in L City, who he met, and whether it has anything to do with Ji Kai's disappearance!"
He looked at Song Zhiyan and said, "You stay home, stabilize the company, and keep an eye on your father. I will go to L City myself tomorrow."
Late at night, an inconspicuous van with a cloned license plate sped along the suburban highway and finally stopped on the side of a deserted road.
The car door swung open with a crash, and a figure was roughly pushed down, falling heavily to the ground. The van didn't stop, closing the door and quickly disappearing into the night.
The person who was thrown down was struggling on the ground like a maggot. He finally managed to rub the blindfold away a little, revealing a face stained with tears and twisted with pain - it was Ji Kai.
His two arms hung in an unnatural posture, and he was in severe pain. Ji Kai struggled to get up from the ground and looked around. There was no village in front and no shop behind. He could only drag his injured arm, grimacing in pain and cursing, moving towards the direction of the light, one step deep and one step shallow, hoping to find someone to help.
He didn't know whether it was lucky or unfortunate, but after walking in this desolate place for nearly two hours, he actually met a driver passing by in the middle of the night.
The driver was moved by the sight of him covered in wounds and in such a miserable state that he sent him to a hospital in the city.
The sky was already getting light.
The doctor in the emergency department gave him a preliminary examination and fixation, told him that the specific extent of his injuries had to wait for the results of the X-ray, asked him to wait on a chair in the corridor, and left to take care of other patients.
Ji Kai endured the excruciating pain and huddled in a corner of the noisy emergency room.
The emergency room was bustling with people. Ji Kai was hungry and thirsty, and couldn't help but scan the crowd. He happened to catch a glimpse of several men with fierce faces walking into the emergency hall. They kept looking around, as if looking for someone.
Ji Kai's heart suddenly skipped a beat.
That was the hand of a loan shark he owed in another city!
Ji Kai was so frightened that he quickly lowered his head, ignoring the injury on his arm. He used the passing crowd as cover, crouched down, and moved slowly towards the back door of the emergency department.
Those people obviously didn't notice him, and Ji Kai successfully slipped out the back door. He breathed a sigh of relief, thinking he had escaped.
Suddenly, a big hand covered his mouth from behind, and another arm tightly clamped his body, and carried him into a black car parked in the dark without any resistance.
The car made many turns and finally turned into a secluded forest. Ji Kai was dragged out of the car and saw Zheng Wencheng waiting there.
Ji Kai was stunned at first, then a flattering smile immediately appeared on his face. He endured the pain and nodded and bowed: "Director Zheng! What brings you here?"
Zheng Wencheng glanced at him coldly, his gaze lingering for a moment on his two arms, which had been simply bandaged and fixed. He asked with feigned concern, "What happened to your hands? Did you go gambling again and get beaten up?"
"No!" Ji Kai immediately became agitated upon hearing this, cursing and complaining, "Damn it! I don't know where this crazy woman came from, tied me up and beat me up like this without saying a word."
A subtle hint of disdain flashed across Zheng Wencheng's face, but when he heard the word "woman," his eyes flickered slightly, and he continued to ask in a pretentious manner, "Oh? What woman? What's going on? Tell me in detail."
Trying to sell one's son was shameful, so Ji Kai could only vaguely say, "That crazy woman kidnapped me and asked me if I knew where my son was... How the hell did I know where that little bastard had died? And then... I don't know what I said to provoke her, but she went crazy and started beating me up!"
He grew increasingly angry, shouting, "Director Zheng, you have to make a decision for me! I'm going to call the police and have that crazy woman arrested!"
"Call the police?" Zheng Wencheng glanced at him and asked tentatively, "Do you know who that woman is?"
Ji Kai, who was yelling about calling the police, suddenly lost consciousness and said, "My eyes were covered the entire time. I didn't see anyone."
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, and he started cursing: "Damn it, crazy woman, don't let me catch you..."
Zheng Wencheng ignored his complaints and threats, and didn't believe what he said. He continued to ask, "What else did she ask you?"
Ji Kai was so preoccupied with the pain in his arm and his anger that he didn't react at all, still cursing, "That's all, he's a psychopath!"
It was not until the bodyguard brought by Zheng Wencheng impatiently stepped forward and kicked him hard that Ji Kai suddenly woke up with the pain and realized that Zheng Wencheng did not come here specifically to care about him.
He fell to his knees with a plop, not caring about the severe pain in his arm, and quickly expressed his loyalty: "Director Zheng! Director Zheng! I didn't say anything! Really! You know, I'm the most tight-lipped person! Back then, I took it all on my own, and even after being sentenced for so many years, I still didn't..."
Zheng Wencheng's eyes were like knives. Ji Kai's throat choked and he quickly changed his words: "I didn't say it then, and it's even more impossible to say it now!"
Zheng Wencheng's face turned even colder, and he looked at him like a dead dog: "Think carefully, what did you say to her yesterday?"
Ji Kai cried and swore, "I really didn't say anything! That woman didn't ask me anything else, she..."
He tried hard to recall, and suddenly remembered Song Youning's sinister words. He looked up as if he had suddenly realized something: "That's right! She seemed to have said... 'I should have dealt with you first back then.' But Director Zheng, I, I don't even know her!"
"I should have dealt with you first back then" - as soon as these words came out, Zheng Wencheng was almost certain that the person who took Ji Kai away must be Song Youning.
She came to find Ji Kai specifically, but didn't ask any questions. She just broke his hand in anger. This may mean that she may no longer need to ask anything from Ji Kai.
They had deliberately left clues pointing to the third room. It seemed that Song Youning still had her suspicions. She might know more than they thought!
Zheng Wencheng's heart sank, and he cursed inwardly that Song Youning was indeed a tough guy, and his actions were quick and ruthless.
Ji Kai was still playing the victim there, trying to get close to Zheng Wencheng. He had confessed his guilt and gone to jail for money, but the hush money was divided up by his creditors. After serving several years in jail, he was still penniless.
He did think about asking Zheng Wencheng for money, but he couldn't even get into the company's front door. He took the opportunity when Zheng Wencheng came to him to ask for some money.
"Boss Zheng, look... I was beaten like this, but I didn't tell anyone about you. I suffered this because I wanted to protect your secret! Your Hongyuan Group is such a huge industry. If even a little bit of it slipped through your fingers, it would be enough for me to live on for the rest of my life. Just think of it as... just think of it as giving me some medical expenses!"
To Zheng Wencheng, his greedy face sounded like a naked threat.
Zheng Wencheng lowered his head and squinted his eyes at the mercenary and shameless villain under his feet, with murderous intent in his eyes.
This person cannot be kept.
Just like Song Youning, if it is not dealt with in time, it will become an increasingly troublesome obstacle.
In the VIP ward area of the hospital, the air is filled with the smell of disinfectant.
When Song Youning pushed open the door of the ward, Song Zhenglan was sitting upright on the sofa in the outer living room.
He was wearing a blue and white striped hospital gown, and as he leaned against the sofa, he still carried an air of undeniable dignity. It was just that his temples seemed to have grown thicker, and the deep wrinkles around his eyes were clearly visible in the dim light.
Time and illness have eventually left their marks on this business giant who once had the final say. A serious illness can easily drain away half of a person's spirit.
He held a copy of the group's latest financial report in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed. Song Youning suppressed all outward emotion, walked forward, and respectfully called out, "Dad."
Song Zhenglan raised his eyes from the report, his gaze lingering on her face for a moment. A hint of surprise seemed to flicker across his eyes, as if a sense of loss that even he himself hadn't noticed.
When people get old and lie on the hospital bed looking back on the past, they may be surprised to find that the things called family affection that they have ignored for many years now seem somewhat precious.
"Yeah." He replied lightly.
Song Youning sat down on the single sofa opposite him, his back straight and his posture so dignified as if the person opposite him was not his father, but his business negotiation opponent.
After all, they rarely had the usual atmosphere of father-daughter conversation before.
Song Zhenglan's gaze returned to the report card. His tone was steady, with no emotion in his voice, as if he was just casually asking, "Did you go to L City?"
Song Youning sneered inwardly. Even if the old man was ill, he still had a sharp eye. Her trip couldn't be kept secret in the first place. Instead of letting Song Yuheng bring the news to her father and spread rumors, it would be better for her to bring it up herself so she could take the initiative.
"Yeah." She admitted frankly, her tone equally calm, "After all, even if it's a marriage of convenience, 'feelings' need to be maintained." She emphasized the word "feelings" a little more, with a tacit understanding.
Song Zhenglan actually nodded, his eyes still on the document, and agreed, "That's right. You're usually too strong-willed. If your relationship is as serious as your work, it really won't be very popular with men."
The fingers on the knees tightened silently, and the nails dug into the soft palms.
A strong feeling of disgust and discomfort surged in his heart, but Song Youning's face remained calm, and even the corners of his lips curved up in a perfect arc: "Dad is right."
A brief silence hung in the air.
There wasn't much warmth left between them, and after the businesslike greetings, there was nothing more to talk about.
Song Zhenglan finally turned the page of the report in his hand, and without even looking up, he ordered him to leave: "Okay, I don't have anything to do. You can leave after you've read it."
"Okay, Dad." Song Youning stood up obediently without any reluctance, turned around and walked towards the door.
Just as her hand touched the cold door handle, Song Zhenglan's still calm voice came from behind her, as if he suddenly remembered something insignificant to add.
"Go back and rest." His tone was as calm as if he was discussing the weather. "After all, you will still have to take care of the group's affairs in the future."
Song Youning's steps as he was leaving suddenly stopped, he turned around and looked at his father on the sofa in disbelief.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
