Chapter 268 The House is Empty
The gathering place was not far from Shi's home, and Jiang Jingwen and Ning Shi arrived in less than ten minutes.
Behind him were Qin Ming, Xiao Jiming, and several others.
"You've come too?" Shi Jing asked, somewhat surprised.
"Of course," Xiao Jiming said with a smile. "Jinzhao is my sister-in-law after all. Since she's out of contact, it's only natural for me, as her older brother, to go and find her."
Xie Lang: "Get in the car, we'll go with you. No matter what happens today, we'll make sure you see her."
"……Thanks."
With a thousand thoughts swirling in his mind, all Shi Jing could say was "thank you."
"Let's go." Song Lingyue waved to him. "Your family will accompany you to rescue your wife."
Shi Jing: "Okay!"
A group of people set off from the Shi family with great momentum, heading towards the Zhu family at top speed.
On the way, Shi Jing continued to call and text Zhu Jinzhao relentlessly.
Jiang Jingwen and Xie Lang were sitting in his car when, after he had made who knows how many phone calls, Jiang Jingwen suddenly said something.
"Zhaochao has never been like this before. What happened to her today? I'm so worried..."
Upon hearing this, Shi Jing's heart tightened suddenly.
"Jiang Dahu, has Chaochao never been out of contact like this before?"
"No!" Jiang Jingwen frowned, her face turning pale with anxiety. "Chaochao is a very reliable person. If she encounters any trouble and can't check her phone for a long time, she will definitely tell us in advance so we are aware of the situation."
"This is the first time in all the years I've known her that she has suddenly disappeared without warning."
"Hey, we should always look on the bright side and not always assume the worst." Xie Lang patted Jiang Jingwen's hand and gently comforted her. "Chaochao went missing at home. Unless it's murder, arson, or robbery, she should be fine."
"...What?! Murder and arson? Burglary?!" Jiang Jingwen was instantly terrified, feeling that such a thing was very likely to happen.
Xie Lang quickly explained, "...No, I was just using an analogy. Jin Zhao is, after all, the daughter of the Zhu Group, living in a high-end villa with so many servants. Only a fool would dare to commit such a heinous act at the Zhu family's residence!"
As he spoke, Xie Lang patted Jiang Jingwen's head: "Don't overthink it, nothing will happen today."
Shi Jing also said, "The possibility of murder, arson, or burglary is about zero. There must be another reason why Chaochao has gone missing."
Xie Lang: "We'll only know the exact reason when we get there. Let's not overthink it and try to be optimistic."
"..."
Jiang Jingwen was brooding and couldn't be optimistic at all.
Xie Lang moved a little closer to her, standing very close: "Try to be optimistic, don't scare yourself."
"..." Jiang Jingwen shook her head in silence.
The street scene outside the window gradually changed from towering buildings to lush green trees; the Zhu family home was almost there.
Jiang Jingwen tilted her head and kept looking out the window. As she got closer to the Zhu family's house, her heart became more and more uneasy.
Three minutes later, the gate of the Zhu family villa finally came into view.
As soon as Shi Jing parked the car, she immediately opened the door and got out.
"You all wait for me outside. I'll go in alone and check things out."
"No!" Shi Jing couldn't wait even a second longer. "I'll go in with you."
"Don't do it yet." Jiang Jingwen frowned, her expression serious to the point of being cold. "At this time, Chaochao's three older brothers are definitely all at home. Her brothers have never seen you before, and if you barge in, it will definitely upset them."
“That’s right.” Xiao Jiming agreed with Jiang Jingwen’s idea. “Among us, only Xiao Jiang is familiar with Jinzhao’s brother. It’s best to let her go in and find out the situation herself.”
"Let's wait outside for now, since we're a group of strangers who have arrived unexpectedly."
“…Fine.” Shi Jing said with a dark face, reluctantly giving in.
"Hoo..." Jiang Jingwen took a deep breath, adjusted her emotions slightly, and then walked to the closed door and unlocked it with facial recognition.
"squeak--"
She pushed the heavy iron gate open a crack, and just as she was about to go in, she suddenly turned back.
"Ning Shi, come in with me. It seems a bit strange for me to come alone so late at night."
"Okay!" Ning Shi immediately jogged to catch up.
Jiang Jingwen took Ning Shi's arm and whispered in her ear, "Don't be nervous, relax, pretend we're here to play with Chaochao."
"Mm." Ning Shi nodded.
"Let's go." Jiang Jingwen led her, walking briskly into the Zhu family's courtyard.
All the streetlights in the courtyard were on, and the surroundings were fairly well-lit.
"Chao Chao!" Jiang Jingwen called out in a loud voice, pretending to be relaxed, "Chao Chao, didn't you say you wanted to go out for a drive and have some late-night snacks? Why haven't you left yet? What are you dawdling in your room for?"
...
The entire villa was quiet; there wasn't a sound from anyone.
Jiang Jingwen looked up at the house in front of her. The house was brightly lit, and it seemed that someone was inside. But strangely, there was not a sound from inside.
"Chao Chao?" Jiang Jingwen raised her voice slightly and called into the house, "Chao Chao, are you home? Ning Shi and I have come to play with you!"
...
The villa was eerily quiet; not a single human voice could be heard.
Ning Shi stared at the closed door and guessed, "The door is closed, could they have all gone out?"
Jiang Jingwen: "What are they doing out so late? And even if they went out for something, surely there should be at least one person at home. There should be at least one nanny or housekeeper left."
“…Oh right.” Ning Shi scratched her forehead, finally realizing something was wrong. “If the master has to go out, then the servants should stay and watch the house, but it doesn’t look like anyone is in this villa.”
Jiang Jingwen: "Let me call again. It's getting late, and the servants might already be asleep."
Ning Shi: "I'll shout it with you."
The two of them cleared their throats at the same time and then spoke at the same time.
"Chao Chao! Ming Yue! Are you home?"
"Didn't we agree to go out for late-night snacks together? Why did you suddenly stand me up?"
"Chao Chao? I've already driven out, are you still coming or not?"
"Mingyue, are you still awake?"
The two of them shouted around the villa for a while, until their voices were hoarse, but they didn't get a response from anyone.
"That's strange, why is no one paying attention to us?" Jiang Jingwen put her hands on her hips, a thin layer of sweat already on her forehead.
Ning Shi frowned as she looked at her, her expression suddenly turning somewhat frightened: "Jiang Dahu, could it be that even the servants in this house are gone?"
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