Chapter Twelve
1100 Words
Late that afternoon, a limousine pulled up in front of the wooden fence. A man in a tailored suit stepped out, walked around the car, and opened the passenger door. A young girl climbed out and followed him to the trunk. Together, they unloaded both the trunk and the back seat of the limousine. The girl was naturally none other than Lianhua. She opened the wooden gate and placed a stone in front of it to keep it from swinging shut. The two of them quickly carried everything into the front yard. The man talked almost nonstop, while the girl only replied every now and then. It took them nearly half an hour to move everything into the yard. Across the street, Tian sat by the window, watching the entire scene unfold. Qiwei noticed the deep frown on his boss's face as he carefully observed the girl and the man unloading the limousine. "Boss, why are you watching the house across the street?" Tian answered without taking his eyes off the pair. "Take a good look at the driver of that limousine. Do you recognize him?" Qiwei frowned and studied the man for a moment before shaking his head. "I can't say that I do." Tian pointed at the newspaper lying beside him. Qiwei glanced at it, and his eyes immediately widened. "That's the CEO of the Xu Group? What's he doing here? And who is that girl?" Tian said calmly, "That's not the strange part. Who is that little girl? I first noticed her yesterday in the supermarket because a man was secretly following her. She looks so young. On the way here, that man called someone, but they couldn't get inside. Later, I found out that the little girl lives over there. Since she arrived, this is the first adult I've seen coming to visit her. Where are her parents? And I have this feeling..." When he had been gravely injured, someone had leaned over him and shielded him. Everything after that was blurred... but why did he keep thinking it had been that little girl? Frustrated, he continued staring out of the window before letting out a quiet sigh. Qiwei stared at his boss in confusion. Why had his boss suddenly sighed? Tian finally spoke again. "Why would the CEO of the Xu Group personally drive a little girl around? Don't you think that's strange?"
Tian sank into thought before finally saying, "Bring me Weizhe." Qiwei nodded and left the room. A short while later, Weizhe walked in, followed closely by Yangchen. Tian turned to Weizhe. "I want you to go back to the location in the forest and look for any traces that were left behind. I want photographs of the entire crime scene. You still have that nice little toy of yours, don't you? Take it with you and see if you can determine the direction our rescuers came from." Weizhe nodded. "Understood." He motioned for Qiwei to follow him, and the two of them left together. Yangchen remained behind. He casually bit into an apple, but as his gaze wandered across the street, he suddenly choked and began coughing violently. Raising a hand, he pointed toward the house opposite them. "Boss... what's the CEO of the Xu Group doing here?" Tian nodded slightly. "Don't you think it's strange as well? Not only is he acting as someone's chauffeur, he's even helping carry their things." On the other side of the street, Lianhua could clearly feel that someone was watching her. She was fairly certain that the men from the hospital had already been discharged. A thought suddenly crossed her mind, and she turned to Luyang. "Uncle Luyang, is your face really that well known?" Luyang nodded with a helpless smile. "There was another article about me in the newspapers this morning." Lianhua resisted the urge to smack her own forehead. She placed the last shopping bag in the front yard before turning back to him. "Uncle Luyang, the next time you come to pick me up, let your driver do the driving while you wait inside the limousine. There are far too many eyes and ears around here, and the people across the street don't seem to be as simple as they appear." Luyang nodded immediately. "But I'm still allowed to come, right?" Lianhua smiled faintly and nodded. "Of course." The road ended at these two houses, with the forest beginning immediately beyond them. Behind her own house lay an open meadow, and beyond that was the forest. The house across the street only bordered the woods along one side. Suddenly, a flock of birds burst into the air. Lianhua narrowed her eyes. She was now certain that she wasn't merely being watched. Someone was already on their way to inspect the crime scene. She took out her phone and typed a single message. Satellite imagery. Monitor the crime scene in the forest and take photographs. Follow the individual. The message immediately sent several people rushing to their computers. Within moments, satellite images appeared across a large projection screen. One of them suddenly pointed at the display. "The birds." Everyone focused on that area at once, and a few seconds later, a lone figure became visible moving through the trees. They immediately tagged the target and watched as the figure headed directly toward the crime scene. A confirmation was sent back to Lianhua without delay. Lianhua glanced at the message before turning to Luyang. "Uncle Luyang, please give my regards to Auntie. She can send me a message anytime she likes. My driver has arrived, so I'll be fine from here." Luyang nodded with a smile. "Wonderful. Why don't you come by the company tomorrow? We can discuss several projects." Lianhua nodded in agreement. She waited until he had gotten back into the limousine before watching it disappear down the road. Just as she was about to close the gate, a truck loaded with construction materials arrived, followed by another vehicle carrying several workers. Lianhua walked over to the person in charge and said, "I've already finished the plans. Please place everything in the front yard while I go and get them." Across the street, Tian watched as the young girl quietly looked after the departing limousine. To his disappointment, there wasn't the slightest change in her expression. He slowly sat up straighter. Perhaps that was why he kept having that strange feeling. There wasn't a single emotion visible on the girl's face. He had never met anyone who was so tightly closed off. She was like an oyster with its shell firmly shut.
- Writer
