As they returned to their condo, Jun and Ai could hear some familiar bickering sounds coming from inside the house.
"Mom? Dad?" Ai asked, surprised as the duo was arguing in the kitchen.
"Jun-cute! Ai-chan!"
Zhou Yichen dashed towards them and pulled them in a big hug. "I am so glad you are back. You two were so late that I got worried!"
Xie Nuying calmly stood at a distance from him and hugged them too. "We were supposed to have dinner after the anniversary but after knowing what happened, I thought it was better to come here and prepare the dinner. You two must be tired."
Jun let out a genuine smile. "Thanks, Mom. I really appreciate it."
She patted his head but felt her heart squeeze seeing them stressed out. Today was supposed to be filled with celebration and laughter but instead…
Zhou Yichen snorted. "Thank you for your good intentions Miss. Xie but it's of no use when you seem to not know your way around the kitchen."
Her brow twitched.
"You think you are any better? Just look at your side of the kitchen. It's a complete mess. I cannot imagine what mess the food will be."
He sneered. "You know that don't you? Between the two of us, whose food is more edible?"
Lightning crackled between their eyes as they stared at each other with hostility.
Ai pursed her lips. "This is not the time to fight."
*Meow*
Jun lowered his head and saw Ai-chan nudging his leg.
"Hey," he picked her up in his arms and curved his lips into a peaceful smile. "Did you have fun having the whole condo to you?"
*Meow*
She stared at him intently for some reason.
Ai looked for Jun-cute who was lazing around in the crescent swing as usual but who was also sneaking glances at them. When he noticed Ai looking at him, he immediately retracted his gaze as if he didn't have anything to do with her.
"..."
How mean…
Xie Nuying said, "He seems to dislike us but actually cares about us a lot. You know? I had almost slipped and was about to fall but thankfully, I held my balance. But Jun-cute immediately ran to my side and circled around me with concern," she looked pleased. "When I first entered the house, he was keeping his distance from me and wouldn't even look at me."
"That's what everybody should do…" Zhou Yichen whispered under his breath.
"Mind your words Mr. Zhou or you might just find your food unpalatable," she narrowed his eyes.
"When was it palatable in the first place? This whole evening is saved because of the food made by yours truly hah!"
Lightning crackled between them once again.
Jun and Ai coughed and quickly pushed them towards the dining table. Washing their hands, they took their own seats before the duo started arguing again.
Jun noticed all the dishes on the table and smiled. "Everything looks delicious."
"The mapo tofu too?" Xie Nuying expectantly asked.
Jun glanced at the said mapo tofu and inwardly twitched seeing the curry slightly burnt. "It looks delectable, Mom."
Xie Nuying beamed. "Good, good."
Zhou Yichen snorted at Jun's obvious lie but kept to himself. He then bent and furiously patted on his shoulder as he said, "Eat all up, Jun-cute! You must be famished. And don't you worry about the situation at all! I believe Sky will definitely come out of this predicament," he nodded.
A glint of coldness flashed across his eyes for a moment.
"Yes, Dad. I won't let this mess stay for long and the one who is responsible for this…will soon have a heavy price to pay," he clenched the chopsticks in his hand.
Xie Nuying asked, "Could you were able to find who made all those messages to the reporters?"
He narrowed his eyes. "I do have a name."
"Who is it?"
Ai slowly said, "We don't have clear evidence yet but we know it's…Zhan Yahui."
Xie Nuying and Zhou Yichen blinked their eyes.
"I feel I have heard the name before…" Zhou Yichen touched his chin.
"Isn't she Guiying's editor?" Xie Nuying said.
"Yes."
"Ah yes! That's right," Zhou Yichen nodded. "Ah but wait. Why would she do all this? She is completely unrelated to Jun-cute."
"Indeed. That's why Chyou is digging into her past."
"I see, I see. No worries! Jun-cute, if you ever need my help, just come to me straight away hoho," He proudly added, "With the variety of careers I have worked on, I have accumulated some good contacts myself."
"Thanks Dad," Jun appreciated his gesture.
Xie Nuying poked. "Since they are your contacts, I doubt their reliability."
"..."
Zhou Yichen gritted his teeth. "Well at least I HAVE contacts unlike a certain professor here from whom people choose to always run away."
"Only guilty people run away," she said with poise.
"Hah! Well at least I will be of some help if things went south. Do you remember when Ai-chan almost got lost when she was seven? It was my friend who noticed her on the street and quickly informed us."
Jun glanced at her. "You really got lost?"
Ai cleared her throat. "I was attracted to a bookstore on the other side of the street."
"..."
She says it like she got attracted by somebody handing out candies…
Zhou Yichen said, "Point being my friend saved us from running around in circles. You, on the other hand, had almost fainted with worry."
"Of course I did," Xie Nuying pressed her lips, "My Ai was so cute. She is cute even now but as a child, her cuteness level was unmatchable."
Jun choked.
"My cute daughter suddenly disappeared…How could I be calm? What if some bad people found her first and tried to harm her?"
Her voice trembled even now when it had been years since the incident happened.
Zhou Yichen flared his nostrils. "As if I would have ever allowed that to happen. If Ai-chan is in trouble, I will bend the whole world if I need to, but I will definitely save her no matter the cost. I won't spare anybody who dares eyes my daughter!"
All of a sudden, the cats, Jun-cute and Ai-chan, stood upright and alert. Their eyes were locked onto Ai's whose body shook slightly, and the chopsticks in her hand trembled but it was actually her hand that was shaking. She felt her heart pounding faster in her chest as Zhou Yichen's words echoed but this time, in her mind.
"I won't spare them, Nuying...They say my daughter killed herself? It's impossible! No way our Ai-chan can kill herself! My daughter was not weak!"
"She would never...she would never think of ending her life and giving us this pain to live with for the rest of our life!"
"I will find them, Nuying...I will bend the whole world if I need to but I will find whoever killed my daughter and I will punish them with my own hands!"
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