Chapter 104: Returning to China, Should Headquarters be notified of President Xiao's accident?
Zheng Liu's promise immediately calmed Liu Yan's heartbroken and flustered heart. She didn't know why, but she felt a sense of security and peace of mind towards the honest and kind man in front of her. It was as if he could solve any problem as long as he was there!
Liu Yan clasped her hands tightly together. "Xiaxia, I'm sorry. It's all my fault that you died and never returned. Don't worry, after I go back to Xiangcheng and settle things, I will definitely come to be with you!"
You died because of me, so don't worry. No matter what, my life is yours, and I will never go back on my word!
"Okay, then... could you take me to that bombed-out villa to take a look?"
Liu Yan looked up at Zheng Liu with pleading in her eyes. Zheng Liu wanted to reach out and touch her sad face, but he restrained himself in the end and nodded solemnly.
"I'll take you to see it now, then take you back to your hotel to pack your things, and then accompany you back to Xiangcheng!"
"You went to Xiangcheng too, so what about here..."
"Don't worry, Liu Qi is in charge of the search here. He'll definitely find clues about Miss Gu and President Xiao!"
The word "corpse" seemed to weigh heavily on both Liu Yan and Zheng Liu, making it hard to breathe. In the end, Zheng Liu used clues to convey his meaning. Fortunately, Liu Yan understood. She didn't speak, but turned her head to the window and watched the scenery receding outside. Her tears fell silently.
Zheng Liu didn't say anything more the whole way, just focused on driving. He wasn't the kind of man who was good at saying nice things to comfort people, and even though he knew Liu Yan was sad, he couldn't say a word.
They soon arrived at the villa, which had been reduced to ruins. Zheng Liu parked the car, and Liu Yan, still barefoot, stepped out. Looking at the large empty space filled with ashes in the distance, Liu Yan's eyes were slightly vacant as she walked forward step by step.
"Boss, this..."
Zheng Liu shook his head, not letting him continue. Some things, sadness is something that cannot be expressed in words. At this moment, Liu Yan must be filled with endless sorrow. He couldn't comfort her, nor did he know how to comfort her. The only thing he could do was let her vent her sorrow. Only when she completely vented could Liu Yan regain her rationality and calm. Otherwise, if she continued to be so confused, something bad would happen to her sooner or later!
He admitted that he had selfish motives, but Zheng Liu just couldn't bear to see anything happen to Liu Yan. He didn't know what kind of feeling this was, but he knew that it was his most sincere wish!
"Let her vent, none of us should go over there!"
Liu Yan walked to the edge of the ruins, her knees buckled and she knelt on the ground. She felt no pain from the sand, gravel and broken bricks digging into her knees. She lowered her head, her forehead touching the ground, and tears fell drop by drop.
"Xiaxia, I'm so sorry, it's all my fault! If it weren't for me, you wouldn't even remember to come to South Africa. I'm so sorry!"
As she spoke, Liu Yan felt she couldn't continue. Large tears fell to the ground and quickly seeped into the soil. Something inside her was breaking apart bit by bit. She knew it was her friendship, and with Xia Xia's death, those things were withering away little by little.
How she longed to be best friends with Xiaxia for life! But fate was so cruel, unable to bear the deep bond between them, and so heartlessly and capriciously separated them forever, leaving them to live in two different worlds!
Liu Yan's heart was breaking, but she couldn't die right away to be with Xia Xia because she still had things to do. After returning to Xiangcheng and explaining everything, she told herself that she must go and be with Xia Xia!
Her parents passed away early, and Liu Yan inherited a large fortune. Although she lived a carefree life, she was never happy. Only Gu Mingxia took care of her and stayed by her side, like an older sister. In Liu Yan's heart, she had long regarded Gu Mingxia as her own sister. Now... her heart was really aching!
"Xiaxia, don't worry! After I go back to Xiangcheng and take care of things, I will definitely come to see you! No matter which world we go to, we will always be the best of friends, the best of sisters!"
After saying that, Liu Yan looked up at the ruins. She would never forget this place. It was here that she lost her best sister in her life! She stood up, ignoring the blood dripping from her knees, and walked up to Zheng Liu, looking at him expressionlessly.
"Send me back to Xiangcheng! Remember what you said!"
"Okay, you get in the car first, I'll talk to them!"
But Liu Yan stubbornly stood there listening to Zheng Liu's instructions. Helpless, Zheng Liu had no choice but to turn around and look at the two mercenaries who had been staying there since last night.
"Song Jia, you're in a hurry to get all the brothers to search through these ruins bit by bit! No matter what, we need to find them alive or dead, understand?"
"Okay, boss, we know what to do!"
Song Jianian was about forty years old and still maintained a very strong physique. After listening to Zheng Liu's words, he went to the side to make a phone call without asking any questions. Zheng Liu turned around and stared at Liu Yan.
"Can you get in the car now? I'll take you back to your hotel to get your things, and then you can catch your flight back to Xiangcheng today!"
Even if it weren't for Liu Yan, Zheng Liu would still have to go back to Maoguang Group! Although he was a bodyguard hired by the Morgan Group, his boss was still Xiao Yan. For both personal and professional reasons, he had to go back to Xiangcheng.
Back at the hotel, Liu Yan tidied up her things. When she saw a photo album on the bed, she hesitated for a moment before reaching out. The cover of the album featured a photo of her and Zhang Yunqi.
One was dressed in a white tuxedo, the other in a pure white wedding dress. They were both beaming with smiles, their faces radiating an arrogant happiness. But now... everything has changed!
After hesitating for a moment, Liu Yan finally packed the photo album into her suitcase. Some things had to be explained, both for her and for the Zhang family.
After everything was packed, Liu Yan carried her luggage, and Zheng Liu carried the things Gu Mingxia had brought. After checking out downstairs, they took a car to the airport and bought tickets for the earliest flight to Xiangcheng that day. Along the way, Liu Yan wore a black dress and large sunglasses and didn't say a word. Knowing that she was in a bad mood, Zheng Liu also chose to remain silent.
It was already the early hours of the next day when they got off the plane. Liu Yan hailed a taxi and took Zheng Liu back to her place.
"Please find a guest room to rest in. I'm tired!"
Upon entering the house, Liu Yan kicked off her high heels, threw her things on the ground, and went into the bedroom in a hoarse voice.
Zheng Liu nodded, looked at the messy living room, said nothing, silently picked up the suitcase Liu Yan had thrown on the floor and put it away, and then went into a guest room near the living room and lay down on the bed fully clothed.
Inside the Maoguang Group, Liang Yuhao sat behind his desk, staring at his phone as it dialed a number, his handsome face furrowed in deep frown.
It's been three days, and I can't get through to either Xiao Yan or Gu Mingxia on their phones. Could something have happened to them?
"Sorry, the number you dialed is currently switched off!"
After hearing that cold, emotionless voice countless times, Liang Yuhao hung up the phone and tried calling Gu Mingxia's cell phone, but the result was still the same cold and heartless voice.
"Sorry, the number you dialed is currently switched off!"
Liang Yuhao hung up the phone unhappily. He didn't want to hear that woman's voice anymore and casually tossed his phone onto his desk.
"Damn it, turn off your phone! Xiao Yan, you're so unfair! You went out having fun with your sweetheart and left the company to me. If you're so capable, turn off your phone forever!"
"Boss, a gentleman from South Africa wants to see you. He says he's the driver and bodyguard hired by the Morgan Group for the CEO!"
Upon hearing the words "South Africa," Liang Yuhao immediately perked up. He sat up straight in his chair, nodded to Qianye, and Qianye smiled in response before leaving Liang Yuhao's office.
A moment later, Zheng Liu appeared in front of him. Looking at the person sitting opposite him, Liang Yuhao sized him up. This person looked quite muscular, but he wondered if he could really be a good bodyguard.
"Did you fly in from South Africa?"
"That's right, Mr. Liang!"
Zheng Liu glanced at the nameplate on Liang Yuhao's desk and answered his question seriously.
Have you met with President Xiao?
Liang Yuhao leaned back in his chair and casually asked a question. Little did he know that this one question would bring a touch of sadness to Zheng Liu's usually composed face.
"I met Mr. Xiao and Ms. Gu during my time in South Africa..."
"Are Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia alright? I knew it! Those two heartless people went off to have fun and left me with this huge mess. They're such ungrateful people!"
Liang Yuhao interrupted Zheng Liu before he could finish speaking, and started rambling on and on. Zheng Liu tried to speak several times but couldn't get a word in edgewise, so he could only sit there somewhat frustrated and watch him ramble on and on.
"Did they mention me in South Africa? Did they have fun? And why did Xiao Yan send you back to Maoguang at this time? To be my driver and bodyguard? Don't be ridiculous, Xiangcheng is so safe, I don't need to!"
"Mr. Liang, may I say a few words?"
Finally, when Liang Yuhao shut up, Zheng Liu raised his voice and shouted. Liang Yuhao's hand holding the teacup trembled, and he looked at Zheng Liu somewhat embarrassed.
"Sure, sure, absolutely! But please don't speak so loudly in the future, it's a bit scary!"
Zheng Liu took two deep breaths, looked at Liang Yuhao with a serious and earnest expression, and stared at him for a full two minutes before speaking.
"Mr. Liang, Mr. Xiao and Miss Gu have met with misfortune in South Africa. It's very likely... they're no longer alive. I've come to discuss with you whether we should report Mr. Xiao's death to the Los Angeles headquarters!"
Liang Yuhao stared at Zheng Liu in disbelief, then flipped through the information about Zheng Liu that had been sent from South Africa on his computer. He carefully compared the photos with the information before letting out a disdainful laugh.
"Damn it, what nonsense are you talking about? Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia are in trouble? How is that possible? Xiao Yan is probably afraid I'll ask him to come back, so he sent you back to tell me all this nonsense, right? No way, I have to call him and ask him!"
After Liang Yuhao finished speaking, he reached for his phone and dialed Liang Yuhao's number, but the same cold voice that annoyed him came from the other end of the line.
"Sorry, the number you dialed is currently switched off!"
"That guy, he always does this when he leaves the company to me—he won't answer the phone! I'll take down Mingxia!"
He was about to dial Gu Mingxia's number when Zheng Liu reached out and grabbed Liang Yuhao's wrist, his face serious and focused.
"Mr. Liang, it's true! I was there at the time. If you don't believe me, you can call Ms. Liu Yan and ask her; she was there too!"
"Are you kidding me! Xiao Yan would be in danger?"
Liang Yuhao shook off Zheng Liu's hand and looked at him in disbelief. But when he met the seriousness in Zheng Liu's eyes, Liang Yuhao suddenly stood up, kicked the chair away, walked around the desk to Zheng Liu's side, and grabbed his collar.
"You said you were there at the time, why didn't you go and save them? You're Xiao Yan's bodyguard! Your job is to protect him, why did you just stand there and watch that bastard Xiao Yan die!"
Zheng Liu didn't move, letting Liang Yuhao grab his collar and vent his anger. But after yelling, Liang Yuhao released Zheng Liu with bloodshot eyes and slumped to the ground.
Over the years, he has grown accustomed to spending time with Xiao Yan. Although Xiao Yan is cold and sharp-tongued, he always helps and takes care of him when he is in danger!
But how could a perfectly good trip to South Africa end with him and Gu Mingxia losing their lives? This was what Liang Yuhao couldn't understand. He looked up and forced back the tears in his eyes. Before he found out exactly how Xiao Yan had died, Liang Yuhao felt that he had no right to shed tears!
He took several deep breaths, but Liang Yuhao still couldn't calm himself down. He turned his head to the side, but tears still fell silently onto the marble floor, splashing up broken patterns.
After a long while, Liang Yuhao wiped away his tears and turned to look at Zheng Liu.
"What exactly happened? How could Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia have perished?"
Seeing Liang Yuhao's dejected state as he sat on the ground, Zheng Liu simply sat down as well, his gaze falling on the window not far away.
"Miss Gu was imprisoned in an abandoned villa by Mr. Feng, who had strapped a cluster bomb to her waist. To save Miss Gu, Mr. Xiao... the two of them were blown up inside the villa! My friend has been guarding the villa's perimeter for four days now, but hasn't seen Mr. Xiao and Miss Gu emerge. Moreover, the villa is now a burnt-out ruin. There's a 90% chance that Mr. Xiao and Miss Gu perished the moment the bomb exploded!"
No matter how strong a person is, they can't withstand the bombing. Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia are just ordinary people. How could they possibly escape after the bomb exploded?
Liang Yuhao stroked the cold marble floor with his hand. Even such coolness could not dispel the chill in his heart. He smiled bitterly.
"I told you long ago that Xiao Yan would definitely lose his life because of Gu Mingxia. See? You knew it!"
His words were full of bitterness and resentment. Xiao Yan was so young. He had suffered for so many years, and his career was just starting. Heaven had so cruelly taken his life. Even Liang Yuhao, an outsider, found it hard to accept!
"How did Gu Mingxia offend Mr. Cai Feng?"
He had been to South Africa before, so he naturally knew the name of Cai Feng. However, he found it a bit strange that the phone call that delivered the message clearly said that Gu Mingxia had been kidnapped and was to be sold to Arabia. How did it change to her being strapped with a time bomb by Cai Feng and left in an abandoned villa?
Cai Feng's actions didn't seem like he wanted to sell her at all; on the contrary, it was obvious he wanted Gu Mingxia dead! He just wondered how Gu Mingxia could have offended Cai Feng in the first place? Or was Cai Feng himself the one who kidnapped Gu Mingxia?
The more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed, but even if it was strange, no one could answer it for him right now!
"It must have been a friend of Mr. Xiao who gave him an address, and Mr. Xiao then asked Mr. Cai Feng to help him find Miss Gu's address. We originally found out that an underground market was auctioning slaves, so we went there, but we ran into Mr. Cai Feng. We discovered that the woman being auctioned only looked a lot like Miss Gu. Then Mr. Cai Feng told us that he had locked Miss Gu in the basement of an abandoned villa, and the key point is that the entire basement was equipped with time bombs, including two female time bombs strapped to Miss Gu's body! As for how Miss Gu offended Mr. Cai Feng, I don't know!"
Zheng Liu's answer was very simple, but Liang Yuhao already understood. He clenched his hands. Maoguang Group was established by Xiao Yan. He had known Xiao Yan for six years and naturally understood his thoughts!
Such a proud person certainly wouldn't want the Maoguang Group to be taken over by that perverted Alice in Los Angeles and brought under the control of the Morgan Group, so... the news of Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia's deaths in South Africa must absolutely not be known to Alice!
Thinking of this, Liang Yuhao's face lost its usual indifference and disdain, replaced by a serious, focused, and cold expression as he looked at Zheng Liu.
“Mr. Zheng, I hope you will not report this matter to the Los Angeles headquarters, understand?”
"But Maoguang has never had a president. Even if it's not reported, headquarters will find out sooner or later!"
Zheng Liu frowned slightly. He understood Liang Yuhao's meaning, but a person's death could not be hidden no matter what!
"We need to see them alive or dead! Even if Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia really did die, we have to wait until we find their bodies before we talk about it. Until we are completely certain that they are dead, I hope that no one else in Xiangcheng knows about this except for you, me, and Liu Yan, okay?"
Liang Yuhao still couldn't believe that Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia were dead, which was why he said those words. Zheng Liu frowned; after all, he was hired by the Morgan Group headquarters, and if he didn't report it...
Thinking of this, Zheng Liu suddenly saw Liu Yan's pale face covered with tears. Yes, she certainly wouldn't want him to announce the news of Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia's deaths right now!
For Zheng Liu, Liu Yan's influence was definitely greater than that of Liang Yuhao, the vice president. Zheng Liu looked at Liang Yuhao's serious expression and smiled innocently.
"You're my boss now. You tell me what to do, and I'll do it!"
Liang Yuhao nodded weakly, then waved for Zheng Liu to leave. But just as Zheng Liu turned around, Liang Yuhao spoke again.
"Take a good rest these next few days. I'll call you if I need anything!"
"Okay, Mr. Liang, if there's nothing else, I'll be going now!"
Without speaking, Liang Yuhao simply waved his hand weakly. Only after hearing the office door close did he let out a heavy sigh. Xiao Yan... Gu Mingxia... how could they have met with such an accident? And why did Gu Mingxia provoke Mr. Cai Feng, causing Mr. Cai Feng, who never harms innocent people, to make an exception?
Liang Yuhao's eyes were red as he looked at the photo of him and Xiao Yan on his desk. It was a photo of the two of them in Los Angeles five years ago. The people in the photo were young and fearless back then. He always mocked Xiao Yan for his infatuation with women, while Xiao Yan always mocked him for being dragged along by Qi Mengying to one blind date dinner after another.
But now, is the person who always threatened him with such a ridiculous condition as having to go back to the Liang family for a blind date no longer there? Thinking of this, Liang Yuhao felt his eyes sting and swell, with tears welling up in his eyes.
Leaning back in his chair, Liang Yuhao tried his best to hold back his tears. What Zheng Liu said was only a possibility: Xiao Yan and Gu Mingxia had only perished, but whether they were truly dead was still unknown. Why? Because their bodies had not yet been found. At the explosion site, even if they couldn't find complete bodies, they should at least find remains, right?
Therefore, Liang Yuhao still harbors doubts about this matter. But why is he still so sad even though he said he didn't believe it?
"Yu Hao, let's go out to eat together!"
Fu Ziyu had been coming to Maoguang to see Liang Yuhao every day recently, so Qianye was quite familiar with her. She didn't even bother to report to Qianye anymore and just let her go to her boss's office!
"I'm not eating! You'll drink with me!"
After saying that, before Fu Ziyu could speak, Liang Yuhao, with red eyes, grabbed her arm and walked straight out.
"Hey, Yu Hao, don't walk so fast! You've hurt my wrist!"
However, Liang Yuhao didn't hear Fu Ziyu's words at all. He dragged her to his car in the underground garage, opened the door and shoved her inside. He sped off to a bar called "Decadent." Clearly, Liang Yuhao was a regular there. As soon as he entered, a bunch of pretty girls surrounded him, but Liang Yuhao didn't even glance at them and just yelled.
"Get out of my way, I'm not in a good mood tonight! Don't mess with me!"
After yelling, he pulled Fu Ziyu into a private room. Soon, a waiter brought over the wine that Liang Yuhao usually liked to drink. He didn't even look at it, but directly pulled out a stack of bright red banknotes from his bag and started drinking one bottle after another.
Fu Ziyu, rubbing her wrist, looked at Liang Yuhao, who remained silent, and spoke with some concern.
"Yuhao, is something bothering you? You can tell me, don't just keep drinking!"
However, Liang Yuhao didn't say anything and continued drinking until he had drunk more than a dozen bottles of wine. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore and collapsed onto the table.
"Yu Hao... Yu Hao... are you alright?"
"It's alright! Xiao Yan... From now on, I have no good brothers!"
Liang Yuhao mumbled a reply to Fu Ziyu, who frowned, thinking of Fu Heng, and suddenly asked a question out of curiosity.
"Yu Hao, do you know where Gu Mingxia went?"
"Gu...Mingxia? She...she's dead! In South Africa...dead!"
Fu Ziyu was taken aback, clearly startled by his words, and asked again uncertainly.
"What do you think happened to Sister Gu?"
“Dead…bombed to death in South Africa…everything is gone…dead…all dead!”
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