Plunder-Chapter 145 He Disappeared

Zhou Jin’an pulled over the blanket, a mischievous smile on his face, and covered his head.

Qiao En was both angry and embarrassed.

This was just the first day, and he had already kissed her twice.

Now, she was somewhat regretting having agreed to Cheng Lu’s proposal.

"Hurry up and sleep; no laughter allowed, and you can’t kiss me ever again."

Qiao En’s face turned red as she berated Zhou Jin’an once more.

By the time she stormed out of Zhou Jin’an’s bedroom, Cheng Lu had just finished his work.

"I’ll take you back."

He walked out with Qiao En.

The car headed towards Chengnan Apartment, and Cheng Lu looked at Qiao En doubtfully, "Why do you live here?"

This was where Qiao En had once lived.

"Director He found it for me, saying it’s close to the company and convenient for commuting."

The reason was sound, and Cheng Lu was aware of Qiao En’s relationship with He Peng, so he didn’t think much more of it.

"You don’t need to go to the company early tomorrow; just report directly to Chu Garden. Director Zhou will be waiting for you there."

Cheng Lu parked the car at the entrance of the residential complex and said to Qiao En.

"Okay,"

she replied.

The streetlights were bright, casting an unusually long shadow of hers.

Qiao En walked forward, but unexpectedly ran into Chen Yin at the base of the apartment building.

Clearly, she had been waiting for Qiao En.

"Secretary Chen, what are you doing here?"

Qiao En slowly approached Chen Yin, pretending to be unaware of anything.

"Xu Yayun, tell me honestly, what exactly happened today?"

There was a trace of anger on Chen Yin’s delicate little face.

At Nanchen, aside from Cheng Lu, she was the person closest to Zhou Jin’an.

But now, a newly arrived cleaner had taken her place.

Not only had she taken her place, but it seemed she was even closer than her.

Zhou Jin’an had held her hand, and this scene deeply wounded Chen Yin.

She wanted to know exactly what had happened.

However, Qiao En couldn’t say anything. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"What do you want to know, Secretary Chen?"

Qiao En looked directly into Chen Yin’s angry eyes, her own face unruffled.

The calmer she was, the harder it was for Chen Yin to contain her rage.

The Qiao En standing in front of Chen Yin seemed so ordinary it was inconceivable that she posed any threat.

But Zhou Jin’an had actually taken the initiative to hold her hand.

How could he, a man so obsessed with cleanliness, hold the hand of a cleaner?

Chen Yin really wanted to ask directly, but she held back.

"What I need to tell you is that here at Nanchen, besides doing your job well, you must understand your place."

As the chief secretary, there was a stark difference in their statuses. It would be beneath her to ask too directly.

"Secretary Chen, I’ll remember that. If there’s nothing else, I’ll go up now,"

Qiao En said, dragging her heavy feet, still moving forward slowly.

As she passed by Chen Yin, she could clearly feel the other’s jealousy crackling in the air.

That night.

Qiao En dialed Detective Wu’s number.

"Have you found any news about that person?"

This time around, aside from worrying about Zhou Jin’an, her biggest wish was to find Su Nian.

"She’s dead,"

Detective Wu said.

Qiao En’s head buzzed, "Dead?"

She didn’t believe it.

"The day of your accident, she was on your bridal car, and later she drowned. Now, she is buried in the Ding Family Cemetery."

"Are you sure?"

Qiao En still didn’t believe.

Why would she have been on the bridal car?

"Absolutely sure. She has completely taken your place now; everyone thinks it was you who died."

Hearing this, Qiao En let out a cold laugh in her heart.

In life, she was that woman’s substitute.

But unexpectedly, in death, that woman had become her substitute.

"Send me the address of the cemetery; I want to visit her."

"You can’t go," Detective Wu immediately objected.

"Secretary Qiao, even though you’ve changed a lot, there’s a chance someone might recognize you. Since you want to play it big this time, you’ve got to be ruthless and keep moving forward,"

"I know, don’t worry. No one will recognize me,"

Qiao En assured.

Qiao En insisted.

Finally, Detective Wu couldn’t argue with her anymore and sent her the cemetery’s address.

The next day.

At the crack of dawn, Qiao En took the earliest bus directly to the cemetery.

The Ding Family’s cemetery had someone to take care of it, Qiao En bought some yellow chrysanthemums outside the cemetery.

The newly built tombstone, in the most secluded spot, bore the inscription: Ding Hao’s fiancée, Qiao En.

Qiao En placed the yellow chrysanthemums in front of the tombstone.

The name on the tombstone was hers, so was the photograph, but the person lying inside was someone else.

It was hard to describe what she was feeling inside.

She was alive, yet she was already dead.

How she wished the person who had died could come back to life, for she had so many questions she wanted to ask her.

When Cheng Lu’s call came, Qiao En hadn’t left the cemetery yet.

"Miss Xu, where are you now?"

Cheng Lu sounded somewhat urgent, Qiao En didn’t tell the truth, she lied.

"I’m losing weight, came out for a morning exercise."

"Director Zhou is missing."

Qiao En was quickening her pace towards the exit when Cheng Lu’s voice came through from the other end of the phone.

"What did you say? He’s missing? How could he be missing?"

Qiao En couldn’t help but raise her voice.

Cheng Lu let out a long sigh, "He was still in the bedroom when I got up this morning, but when I went to call him for breakfast, I discovered he was gone. He left a note in the bedroom, saying he went to find you."

He came to find her?

Qiao En’s heart suddenly plummeted.

Director Zhou Jin’an’s mental capacity was now that of an eight-year-old child, and he remembered nothing.

Him leaving Chu Garden by himself, anything could happen.

"Assistant Cheng, please ask someone to help look for him immediately."

Qiao En couldn’t think anymore, she ran all the way back.

There was a bus stop near the cemetery that went to the city center, the same bus Qiao En had taken earlier, and now she was waiting at the stop.

But after waiting for over ten minutes, that bus just wouldn’t come.

She got anxious, and simply started running back along the road.

It was almost twenty kilometers from there to Chengnan Apartment, and she ran all the way back in one go.

She, who had always hated long-distance running since childhood, now totally disregarded it for Zhou Jin’an.

And the weather was truly hot that day, with the sun scorching overhead, baking the earth.

Qiao En’s sweat flowed like water, relentlessly seeping out from her pores.

Her hair was wet, her clothes were wet, she ran back home like a little water nymph.

When passing the security room, the old man with grey-white whiskers stopped her.

"Miss Xu, there is a gentleman here looking for you."

Qiao En almost ran past him; she stopped in her tracks, hands propped on her knees, gasping for breath.

Zhou Jin’an, wearing pajamas, leisurely poked his head out from the security room.

"Sister Yun, I’ve come to bring you breakfast."

He had a lollipop in his mouth and a plastic bag in his hand, happily rushing towards Qiao En.

"Sister Yun, where have you been? Why are you all wet?"

He took the lollipop out of his mouth and looked at Qiao En with a puzzled face.

She was soaked through, her clothes clinging to her body.

"Who told you to run off? Haven’t I told you not to run off by yourself? Why don’t you listen?"

For no apparent reason, Qiao En was furious.

She shouted at Zhou Jin’an, wishing she could reach out and twist his ear.

"I..."

Zhou Jin’an suddenly lost his words, his head drooping down like a frostbitten eggplant.

Qiao En felt her anger rise from nowhere, she was about to scold him, but Cheng Lu called again.

"Found him, he’s here with me, come and get him."

She immediately hung up the phone.

Zhou Jin’an had already approached her, cautiously explaining.

"Sister Yun, please don’t be angry, okay? I already made you angry yesterday, and the reason I ran out was to buy you breakfast as an apology. Cheng Lu brother said you lived here, so I asked all the way and walked over. Look, my slippers are worn out."

Qiao En looked over; Zhou Jin’an’s slippers, one had half the upper torn off, and the other had a chunk missing from the heel. His big bare feet were exposed starkly.

The distance from Chu Garden to Chengnan Apartment was not short.

He had come all this way on foot.

The anger in her heart somehow vanished by half.

"Come with me."

She said, turning her head and walking away.

Zhou Jin’an hurried to follow her, "Sister Yun, I know I was wrong, I won’t run off by myself again. Will you please forgive me this time?"

He was like a little begging dog, incessantly pleading for Qiao En’s forgiveness.

Qiao En’s heart was hard one moment and soft the next, as if it were completely in his grasp.