0166 175 As dusk falls and I wake from my drunken stupor, the person is already far away; a storm rages down from the west tower.
Thick smoke billowed from the hot pot restaurant.
Kong Lingqi looked more mature and adorable than before; she was still that little white flower, that camellia. Ling Xingzhi rolled up his sleeves, picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks, dipped it in the sesame sauce, and took a big bite.
"Cousin, why do you like eating this now?"
Ling Xingzhi swallowed the meat, put down his chopsticks, dabbed his lips with a tissue, and said with his head down, "My tastes have changed now; I prefer more stimulating things."
Kong Lingqi smiled and said, "Cousin, you've always liked exciting things."
"Really?" Ling Xingzhi smiled, a smile tinged with complex emotions. He leaned back in his chair, relaxed, and looked at Kong Lingqi through the steam. There were only the two of them in the private room. Kong Lingqi smiled awkwardly, poured herself a cup of tea, and said, "Cousin, it's been so long. You seem like a completely different person."
Ling Xingzhi nodded, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Do you know about your sister-in-law's passing?"
"...I know, cousin, please accept my condolences and don't be too sad..." Kong Lingqi looked at Ling Xingzhi, who was so close to her, and felt that there was a lot between them. She felt closer to him than when she was abroad.
Ling Xingzhi sighed deeply, crossed his arms over his chest, and looked down at the tea leaves floating and rolling in the teacup.
Kong Lingqi put down her teacup, glanced at Ling Xingzhi, and said, "Cousin...actually, I've missed you quite a bit lately."
"Hmm," Ling Xingzhi indicated that he understood, then turned to look at Kong Lingqi, waiting for her response.
"...I'm getting ready to go back to Beijing."
"They've agreed to let you go back to Beijing?"
"Well, Dad said the storm has passed and I should go home. It's not good to keep wandering around outside all the time."
"That's great, congratulations."
The two looked at each other, and a glimmer of light appeared in Kong Lingqi's dark eyes. "Cousin, could you... come back to Beijing to be with me?"
"cannot."
In an instant, the atmosphere between the two became tense.
"I know why you came to see me..."
"I didn't help them, I just really missed you..."
The two spoke at the same time, arguing. Ling Xingzhi stopped talking and listened as Kong Lingqi said, "...I miss you. I want to be with you. You don't have a wife now, can't we be together, cousin..."
"You miss me, can't you stay here for me?"
After a moment's hesitation, Kong Lingqi hurriedly said, "Yes, if you don't want to go back to Beijing, I can stay in Kunming with you. But, in Kunming... I'm afraid I won't be able to find a job."
Ling Xingzhi immediately understood, but his face remained expressionless. "You should go back to Beijing. This place is not suitable for you."
"I'm not in a hurry to find a job; I want to stay in Kunming with you for a while."
Ling Xingzhi nodded, raised his hand to look at his watch, and said, "It's getting late. You should go back. I have something to do."
The two stood up, but Kong Lingqi remained standing. Ling Xingzhi pushed open the door, turned to look at her, and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Cousin, I just landed and I don't have anywhere to stay yet..."
Ling Xingzhi was getting a little impatient, but he still patiently said, "Let's go, I'll take you to the Hilton."
After checking in, Ling Xingzhi turned around and handed the room key to Kong Lingqi, saying, "You can go upstairs now. I have something to do and I'm leaving."
Before Xingzhi could leave, Kong Lingqi tugged at his sleeve, her eyes full of confusion. "Cousin, why are you being so cold this time? Did I do something wrong?"
A beautiful woman in a moment of confusion is adorable and clumsy, but Ling Xingzhi had no mind to appreciate it at the moment. "I've been busy with work lately, let's talk about it when I'm done," he said, trying to leave but unable to shake off the man.
“You’re busy with work, you can go back to Beijing and ask your uncle for help, cousin, Ling Xingzhi…”
Ling Xingzhi sighed with his eyes closed, looking at Kong Lingqi. He didn't want to get angry, but he wasn't very happy either. "You don't understand, Kong Lingqi. You were a flower in the garden, but we're different now."
"But you said you..."
"Kong Lingqi, it's all in the past!" Ling Xingzhi raised his voice and pushed her hand away. "I have no problem with you staying with me in Kunming, but don't disturb my work."
"Your job is more important than mine, right?"
“…” Ling Xingzhi hesitated for a moment, then nodded. “It seems so at the moment.”
Kong Lingqi's eyes reddened. She slowly moved in front of Ling Xingzhi, wrapping her arms around his waist. "Don't do this... please? Don't leave me..."
Ling Xingzhi raised his hand and patted her shoulder, then placed his hand on her shoulder to create some distance between them. "There are some things we really need to talk about properly sometime... I apologized to you first, but..."
Before he could finish speaking, his phone rang. Ling Xingzhi took it out and saw that it was a call from the hospital.
"Hello, yes, it's me... what's wrong?"
"What!?" Ling Xingzhi turned around and waved to Kong Lingqi, "...Okay, I understand, I'll go back now!"
After hanging up the phone, Ling Xingzhi hurriedly ran away, leaving Kong Lingqi standing there with tears streaming down her face.
The car braked suddenly. Several black cars were parked at the entrance. Ling Xingzhi ignored them and ran inside. The elevator was slow to come down, so he pressed the button several times. When the elevator arrived, he slipped in and pressed the close button again. The auntie who was helping to press the elevator button at the door looked puzzled, but she didn't say anything, just huddled by the door and leaned against the wall.
As soon as they reached the floor, the elevator doors slowly opened, and Ling Xingzhi rushed out. He stopped at the door of Zhou Xiye's ward. "What happened?!" Ling Xingzhi was covered in sweat, looking at Li Qingshan and the security personnel beside him. "How can someone just disappear into thin air?! What were you doing guarding the door?! Is there any CCTV footage?!"
Li Qingshan had never seen Ling Xingzhi lose his temper so rudely. He couldn't help but take a step back, seeing the violent shadow of Ling Qingyun in him. "We checked the surveillance footage... Actually, it was Secretary Zhou who came out alone, calling your name all over the corridor... and then she disappeared from the camera's view... We searched for a long time but couldn't find her. In this situation, I didn't dare to call the police, so I called you..."
Ling Xingzhi took a deep breath. "A living person just vanished like that? This is a hospital, how can someone just disappear like that?!" He still couldn't believe it. After a few seconds, he said, "Go and call Meng Qinggong over here. I'll have him look for him."
The call connected, and Ling Xingzhi briefly explained the situation. Meng Qinggong didn't dare delay and rushed over. The hospital corridor was lit by a pale light late at night. Ling Xingzhi sat in a chair, leaning back against the wall with his eyes closed, his phone twirling in his hand.
Hearing Meng Qinggong's footsteps, Ling Xingzhi opened his eyes and turned to look at him.
"Mayor Ling, why is Secretary Zhou nowhere to be found?"
Ling Xingzhi shook his head, looking exhausted. "I don't know the specifics either. The most important thing now is to find someone."
"Don't worry, I've already arranged for plainclothes officers to recruit people, so it won't cause any disturbances..." Meng Qinggong hesitated for a moment before saying, "If Secretary Zhou is gone, the provincial party committee's organization department will soon be organizing a vote regarding Secretary Zhou's matter. Her disappearance at this time... isn't that..."
Ling Xingzhi remained noncommittal. He turned his head and said, "As long as she's alright, that's fine. Her mind is just like that right now..." After saying that, Ling Xingzhi suddenly fell silent, and his face became even more gloomy.
Meng Qinggong also saw through his thoughts, "Is Secretary Zhou really crazy? Actually... I don't really believe it."
Ling Xingzhi turned her head, her eyes fixed on him, "Why would you think that?"
Meng Qinggong was woken up in the middle of the night, still a little groggy. He wiped his face with his hand. "The last time she was suspended from her duties for investigation, regarding the agritainment business... she came to see me. She's stronger than we thought... I don't think she's been defeated so easily..."
After listening to Meng Qinggong's explanation, Ling Xingzhi turned his head and chuckled. This was a woman he admired, but he couldn't feel happy.
If she was faking it, she really didn't trust him at all, which made Xingzhi feel uncomfortable, but he couldn't quite put his finger on why.
"I hope she's alright..." Ling Xingzhi stretched out his legs. His shoes were a little dirty, but he didn't care. He looked around, then took out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket. "The doctors and nurses aren't here right now. Want one?"
Meng Qinggong smiled and accepted the cigarette from Ling Xingzhi.
The two remained silent, puffing away on their cigarettes for a long time, until someone ran over and said, "We couldn't find Zhou Xiye at the hospital." Only then did they put out their cigarettes and stand up.
Meng Qinggong got a little anxious and started berating his subordinates.
Ling Xingzhi sensed something was wrong. After thinking it over, he called Qiao Senxi. The call was answered quickly. Ling Xingzhi frowned and asked, "Why aren't you asleep yet? Are you busy?"
Qiao Senxi chuckled lightly, "I was scrolling through Douyin when I happened to receive your call. What brings you here, Mayor Ling?"
Ling Xingzhi hesitated for a moment, not finishing his sentence, "Secretary Zhou was recently hospitalized. How is everything at the Municipal Party Committee?"
Qiao Senxi was taken aback. Ling Xingzhi was the acting municipal party secretary; why was he suddenly saying this? "That's good. Mayor, if it's convenient for you, you can also move your office to the municipal party committee."
"Alright, I'll go to the municipal party committee office tomorrow. I'll trouble you to help me tidy up Secretary Zhou's office."
After saying this, Ling Xingzhi hung up the phone, turned to Meng Qinggong with a gloomy face, and said, "Come with me to Qiao Senxi's house and see what he's busy with."
The room was pitch black when the door clicked open.
Then came the sound of weary footsteps, followed by the clinking of keys...
Suddenly, the footsteps stopped.
Josen saw a red light shining in the darkness.
A familiar smell of smoke wafted over.
Before he could react, the lights in the house came on, blinding Qiao Senxi. When he opened his eyes again, he saw Ling Xingzhi sitting in the middle of the sofa with his legs crossed, a cigarette between his fingers, his white collar open, and his jawline sharp.
Qiao Senxi nervously swallowed.
Ling Xingzhi slowly turned his head to look over, a faint smile appearing on his lips, his eyes revealing disdain. "Wasn't Secretary Qiao asleep? This is..." He drew out his words, looking Qiao Senxi up and down before finally fixing his gaze on his face, "...sleepwalking?"
Josh smiled. "No, Mayor Ling, after work I have my own time, right? What I do in my private time is my own business..."
Ling Xingzhi ignored his answer and asked to herself, "You went to see Zhou Xiye off, right? Where is she now?"
Qiao Senxi didn't understand. "What do you mean? What happened to Secretary Zhou?"
Ling Xingzhi leaned over and stubbed out his cigarette. "Secretary Qiao, I'll give you three chances. If you don't answer, if you don't tell me..." He stood up. "I'll make sure you don't see the sun tomorrow."
Qiao Senxi didn't understand what Ling Xingzhi meant, but Ling Xingzhi also made him understand what it meant to keep one's word—he was locked in the garage by Ling Xingzhi for three days and three nights.
However, they still couldn't find out Zhou Xiye's whereabouts.
Li Qingshan couldn't stand it any longer. "Mayor...maybe he really doesn't know anything...besides, it's absurd that Secretary Zhou trusts him but not you."
Ling Xingzhi's expression darkened further upon hearing this, and that was exactly what angered him.
Zhou Xiye would rather cooperate with Qiao Senxi than with me, which is really...heartbreaking.
But Ling Xingzhi abruptly changed the subject, "It's been several days, and we still can't find Zhou Xiye. What are we going to do when the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Department votes? What are we going to do at the Provincial Party Committee meeting?!"
Indeed, this is the most important matter. Before the two had exchanged more than a few words, Li Qingshan's expression suddenly turned strange. "What's wrong?"
"Um... Miss Kong is waiting for you in the conference room..."
Ling Xingzhi nodded, stood up, and walked out. After taking two steps, he stopped. He had thought countless times: if he didn't leave, would Zhou Xiye still exist?
"mayor?"
Ling Xingzhi turned around and walked to his seat. "Tell her I have something to do and can't leave. Send someone to play with her!" After saying this, he pinched his brow and exhaled.
The news of Zhou Xiye's disappearance spread throughout the organization.
Day after day, Ling Xingzhi couldn't eat or sleep. He even suspected that Zhou Xiye's disappearance was orchestrated by Ling Qingyun. He called the secretary, who answered but was scolded before being thrown away. The provincial party committee's voting meeting was approaching, and Zhou Xiye remained unreachable.
Beneath this eerie stillness, undercurrents surged, eroding the nerves of everyone present.
Everyone thought that Zhou Xiye was finished this time.
If someone is mentally unstable and gets lost, their career and future are ruined.
It's coming.
It's coming soon.
Everything will soon be settled.
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