1093: Trouble

Trouble

"She won't. Trust Daddy," said Lu Yi, rubbing his son's head. "Mama loves you all the most. Even if Mama doesn't come back, it's only because she has work to do. She will be back when she's done. Adults all have something to do, you see. Daddy can't spend all day with you either, right?"1

"But Leilei's Mama is always at home!" said Lu Qi. He was very envious of Little Lei, who had already grown into a proper elementary student. He was tall and tough and could take a beating. Still, he was his mother's baby boy. He DID get beaten once in a while, but his mother was there to prevent it from being a frequent occurrence.

Lu Yi's children had always been envious of the fact that Little Lei had a mother.

Lu Yi hugged him tightly. "Be good and go to sleep."

"Will Mama come back if I sleep?" asked Xiao Qi, looking up at him.

Lu Yi didn't have any answers to that. Will she be back by that time? Maybe, maybe not. He himself didn't know, and he didn't want to give empty promises.

"Go to sleep," said Lu Yi, tucking him in. Xiao Qi sniffed. Soon enough, he fell asleep. He was too young to have the stamina to stay up late, after all.

Just as Lu Yi stepped out of the room, Ye Shuyun arrived.

"What's going on here?" asked Ye Shuyun. She felt something off as soon as she stepped in. It was almost eight. Why were the lights off?

"Mom," said Lu Yi. "Huanhuan has not come back yet…"

"What?" cried Ye Shuyun loudly. She quickly lowered her volume when she remembered her grandchildren's presence.

"What happened? Why isn't she back at this hour?" she asked. "Where did she go before this?"

Lu Yi shook his head. He didn't know. He had to find her.

"Take care of the kids, Mom. I'm heading out," said Lu Yi. He picked up his car keys and headed for the door. As he stepped out of the house, it began to snow.

This was the first snow in Sea City this year. It came a little too soon, and made the weather a little chilly.

It wasn't snowing heavily, perhaps due to the overly-high temperature, so there weren't heaps of snow on the ground. Occasionally, he could see a snowflake or two fluttering down before him. Where the snowflakes passed, the grass was still mostly green, but many trees have already lost their signs of vitality.

A car zoomed past his, limning his face with its glaring headlights. He turned away instinctively. When the ray of light disappeared, Lu Yi opened his eyes again. They were unbearably sore.

It was his fault. Without thinking things through, he assumed that the danger was behind them. He never found out about the person who made Yan Huan disappear.

Yan Huan might have her own reasons for not telling him, but he should never have forgotten about the existing threats. He hadn't taken the necessary precautions, and because of that, she was once again in peril.

She could have gone missing again.

He vowed to himself that he would never let her out before clearing out the lurking threats. If he could find her, that is.

His car screeched to a sudden halt. He covered his face in his hands.

How could he hope to find her in such a huge city? Where should he start? What should he do? Someone tell him, please.

There weren't many places Yan Huan could have gone to; home, the Lu Estates, Lin Lang, or Yi Ling's home. She hadn't even been in contact with Liang Chen for a long time.

He had gone to every place he could think of, even Madam Yan's grave.

Still, he couldn't find her.

"What? She's missing again?" Lei Qingyi sprung to a sitting position. "How and when did that happen?"

"Wait for me. I'll be there in a minute," said Lei Qingyi. He put down the phone and got out of bed to get his clothes. Every trace of sleepiness had left him.

"Where are you going?" asked Yi Ling groggily, grasping his arm.

"It's nothing. Go back to sleep. I'll be right back," said Lei Qingyi, stuffing Yi Ling's arm back under the blanket.

Yi Ling had been sound asleep, but Lei Qingyi's call had roused her. What he said had not escaped her either. She pinched his arm.

"What were you saying just now? Someone going missing? Don't tell me it's my Huanhuan again," she said offhandedly with a yawn. Of course, she didn't really think that was the case, or she would have sprung up and gone hunting for her already.

Lei Qingyi broke into a cold sweat and quickly shoved her arm back beneath the sheets. "It's work stuff. Nothing to do with the two of you. Now go back to sleep."

"Fine," said Yi Ling sleepily. She had stayed up late to review the script the night before, and she didn't have work today, so the plan had been to sleep in. She and Lei Qingyi often slept in till around 11.

But now, Lei Qingyi had to go out before it even hit six.

"How's the situation?" asked Lei Qingyi as soon as he met up with Lu Yi. Lu Yi had not had a wink of sleep. His eyes were bloodshot and his hair was disheveled. The stubble above his lips added to his ragged look.

Since last night, he hadn't had a single bite of food or a single drop of water, driving through the metropolis in search of Yan Huan. He hadn't found her, or any leads. Yan Huan had not magically gone home by herself either.

She wasn't the type to stay out late. Lu Yi knew that.

Something must have happened to her. She wouldn't play such a nasty joke on him. She wouldn't make him worry and wait, or make the children starve and cry, unless she couldn't help it.

"This spells trouble," said Lei Qingyi, scratching his head. How could she have gone missing again? Things seemed fine before this. How many enemies does Yan Huan have for such things to happen one after the other? 

Previously, she had come back looking like a half person. After all that effort of fattening her up to look like a proper human being, she was gone again.

If this was meant to happen, she should never have come back. That way, Lu Yi and the children would have gotten used to living without her.

But she did. And everything seemed to have been alright. So calm and peaceful. Just who on earth was responsible for this?

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