Tang Shikang scolded him for a long time after seeing him like this, then used it as an excuse to drop the matter.
"Daddy?" Hua Bao, who was half-asleep, woke up midway.
She looked at the hazy sky and curiously at her father, who was carrying her. She didn't understand why he was walking with her in his arms.
Seeing his daughter wake up, Zhang Liunian stroked her head. "Awake? Want to sleep a bit longer? We'll be home soon."
Hua Bao blinked her big eyes, hugged Zhang Liunian's neck, and said in a milky voice, "Daddy, where are we? Why did we come out?"
"A bad guy took you away. Daddy came out to find you, and then we'll go home." Zhang Liunian said this to instill a sense of caution in his daughter for the future.
"Why would a bad guy take me?" Hua Bao looked bewildered, but her little hands gripping Zhang Liunian tightened slightly. It seemed she was still a bit affected.
"Because they were jealous that my Hua Bao is so beautiful and wanted to snatch you away from Daddy.
So, Hua Bao, from now on, if anyone wants to take you away, don't be fooled, understand? Don't eat anything from strangers, otherwise Daddy might not be able to find Hua Bao anymore." Zhang Liunian whispered his instructions to his daughter, his heart heavy.
Jiang Qingqing was still missing, and he felt a constant anxiety, fearing she might be harmed.
"Hua Bao will be good, listen to Daddy, don't talk to strangers, don't eat strangers' food. Daddy can't lose Hua Bao." Hua Bao pouted and promised, having understood Zhang Liunian's meaning.
Seeing her so adorable, Zhang Liunian finally managed a smile.
"Liunian, you found Hua Bao? That's great! What about Qingqing? Isn't she with you?" Upon returning home, Zhang Liunian was met by Zhao Zhijie, who was waiting inside.
Zhang Liunian shook his head with difficulty. "Not yet."
"Don't worry, I've already mobilized my connections to help you look. I'm sure we'll find her," Zhao Zhijie said, taking Hua Bao from him and comforting Zhang Liunian.
Zhang Liunian gave a noncommittal reply, but he didn't have time to linger. He needed to go find Jiang Qingqing. "Uncle Zhao, please take Hua Bao to school for me. By the way, hasn't my aunt returned yet?"
"She's back. But when she heard Qingqing and Hua Bao were missing, she went out to look for them too."
"Has my aunt's Xiao Bao been found?"
"He's been found. I heard the child was playing and fell asleep in a haystack. This child is really a handful."
In a haystack? Zhang Liunian didn't believe it. No matter how playful a boy was, he wouldn't just spend the night in a haystack!
This was clearly someone's doing, possibly from the Tang family.
"Uncle Zhao, I need to go find Qingqing. I'll have to trouble you with things at home. Don't worry, I've already arranged for two people to protect them. They used to work during the day, but I'll have them rotate 24-hour protection from now on." The people Zhang Liunian hired lived opposite the complex, not far away. When Zhang Liunian went to find them, they had already come out of their homes to start their work.
"Did you notice any suspicious people around my house yesterday, or anyone asking questions?" Zhang Liunian asked the two youths recommended by Master Huang.
The two youths exchanged a look and shook their heads. "No. Did something happen?"
"Last night, my wife and daughter were taken away by someone. I forgot to call you at the time, so I wanted to ask."
"What? Sister-in-law is in trouble? Who did it?" The two youths' eyes immediately flared up upon hearing that Jiang Qingqing was in trouble.
"I'm not sure. I've found Hua Bao. You two will be on 24-hour duty for now, one covering the day and one covering the night. I'll call two more people later to keep you company.
You must ensure the safety of my family, understand?" Zhang Liunian instructed sternly.
The two youths nodded vigorously. "Yes."
After making these arrangements, Zhang Liunian headed straight for South City. However, just as he was about to enter the South City teahouse, he encountered Zhang Liuxing.
"Third brother, long time no see!" Zhang Liuxing was on his way to report to the Tang family's food factory, so passing by here, meeting Zhang Liunian was purely coincidental.
Zhang Liunian stopped and looked at Zhang Liuxing's smiling face, then walked away, ignoring him. But before he could take a step, Zhang Liuxing blocked his path again. "Third brother, don't go. We brothers haven't had a good chat. It's a perfect time to talk!"
Zhang Liunian rolled his eyes. "No time."
Seeing himself treated as nothing, Zhang Liuxing felt a pang of resentment. However, thinking that he was about to start as a production director at the Tang family's food factory with a high salary of four hundred a month, he wanted to find Zhang Liunian to brag about his good job.
"Thanks to you, I almost didn't get out last time, and I lost my job. You must have been very happy then, right? You probably didn't expect me to get out, let alone find an even better job than before, did you?"
Zhang Liunian, unaware of his intention to show off, pushed him away and said coldly, "I don't have time to chat with you nonsense. You're really too idle."
Zhang Liunian pushed with considerable force. Zhang Liuxing stumbled back a few steps, his face contorted. "Zhang Liunian, you're really something else."
"Not as much as you. Selling out your brother, stealing your brother's money and ingredients, saving your brother's enemy – is there anything you wouldn't do?" Zhang Liunian finally couldn't help but mock Zhang Liuxing for his actions.
Zhang Liuxing flinched, glancing at Zhang Liunian with some unease, wondering if he knew everything.
What to do? Would he go to the police again?
Zhang Liunian didn't care about his thoughts, nor did he have the leisure to deal with Zhang Liuxing, because at this moment, all he wanted was to find Jiang Qingqing as quickly as possible. But as he took a step towards the teahouse, he suddenly stopped.
If he went to the teahouse in front of Zhang Liuxing, who knew if Zhang Liuxing would figure out the teahouse's purpose? If he then reported it to the Tang family, the Tang family would likely be the first to come and clean it up.
This wouldn't do. He still intended to use the information from the teahouse to bring down the Tang family.
"Zhang Liunian, what nonsense are you talking about? I never did those things. Don't falsely accuse me. If I didn't do it, then I didn't do it." Zhang Liuxing, seeing Zhang Liunian turn back, chased after him to retort.
Zhang Liunian said without turning his head, "You're so guilty, yet you still have the nerve to deny it? Even the city walls aren't as thick as your face."
Passersby, chatting in twos and threes, heard the commotion and stopped to watch.
Zhang Liuxing realized the implication and became even more unwilling to admit it. "A gentleman is open and aboveboard. If I didn't do it, then I didn't do it."
"Heh!" Zhang Liunian let out two cold laughs and continued forward. But for some reason, Zhang Liuxing just wouldn't let him go and insisted on clarifying things.
"You have no foundation in South City. If you want to smear me, you have to see if you have the ability."
"I may not have the ability, but others do!" Zhang Liunian spotted a group of police officers approaching them. Leading them was the officer in charge of the Hong Fei case. Zhang Liunian's interest was piqued.