Chapter 400: Chapter 400: At this time, why aren’t they at home?

Cheng Xing ate little and was the first to finish, she used to wait for Zhou Ruoki after meals, always taking him to watch TV together.

But now, she just sat there obediently, not paying him any mind.

After Cheng Zhiwei finished eating, she took Cheng Yang and Cheng Xing to the children’s room.

Cheng Yang was unusually behaved, sitting on the carpet taking apart toy cars, and soon after, he went to look for Cheng Xing to read storybooks.

Cheng Zhiwei was silently sending messages with her phone.

No one was hysterically making a scene.

The house, still filled with many people, had an exceptional stillness to it.

Zhou Ruoki persisted downstairs for an hour but couldn’t help sneaking upstairs, the door was not closed tightly, and he could hear Cheng Xing’s soft voice reading stories.

And the discontented debates of Cheng Yang.

Looking at the same illustration, they always found different stories to tell.

Cheng Zhiwei gently joined their discussion, harmonious and joyful.

Suddenly, it made Zhou Ruoki seem all the more lonely outside the door.

"Mommy, Qiqi is outside, are we really not going to invite him in?" Cheng Xing’s voice rang out.

Zhou Ruoki’s eyes brightened.

A faint voice from Cheng Zhiwei came through, "No."

Cheng Xing, a sensitive child, asked quietly, "Did Qiqi make Mommy sad, is that why you cried?"

Cheng Zhiwei was silent for a while before answering with a smile, "Mhm."

"Why?"

"Because he lied."

Cheng Yang couldn’t wait to hear those things and urged impatiently, "Turn to the next story quickly, Xingxing, this time I will definitely do better than you."

...

At the kindergarten, Cheng Xing stealthily asked Zhou Ruoki, "Qiqi, did you really lie to Mommy?"

Her serious expression and clear eyes made Zhou Ruoki feel how awful lying was.

Zhou Ruoki didn’t speak.

Cheng Xing pressed on, "Mommy was so sad when she cried, Qiqi, did you really lie?"

"I..." Zhou Ruoki couldn’t explain himself; he did lie, and so he didn’t want to lie to Cheng Xing again.

Cheng Xing patted his shoulder, seriously saying, "Qiqi, if you didn’t lie, I can tell Mommy."

"I’m sorry," Zhou Ruoki apologized with his head down.

Cheng Xing pursed her lips, looking at him with disappointment, "Why?"

He really did lie, which is what made Mommy so sad.

...

The weather in June was unpredictable, sunny in the morning, with the afternoon sky turning ink-black like splashed paint.

At the airport, Cheng Zhiwei stealthily stood at a distance, watching Guo Cuihua and Cheng Zhiyin sit together waiting for their flight.

Guo Cuihua told her not to come, the words spoken that day in the hospital were clear enough to set boundaries.

Yet Cheng Zhiwei still asked Cheng Zhiyin for the time and followed quietly.

Watching from afar was the only way to alleviate some of the pain in her heart.

The plane was at four in the afternoon, and now it was three, with a heavy rain imminent; it was uncertain if there would be a delay.

Cheng Zhiwei leaned against the wall thinking; she didn’t want Guo Cuihua to leave, but still hoped for her to have a smooth journey.

As the boarding time drew closer, only Guo Cuihua and Cheng Zhiyin were there; Cheng Zhiwei even saw Cheng Zhiyin make several phone calls.

She was calling Cheng Shang.

But by the looks of it, Cheng Shang wasn’t answering.

Doesn’t he want to leave?

Cheng Zhiwei frowned but then thought it was normal; Cheng Shang’s mind was full of Seo Zhenzhen and Zhou Ruoki right now, how could he willingly leave Yucheng.

Just as she thought of Cheng Shang, her phone rang, and it was Cheng Shang calling.

Cheng Zhiwei answered, "Hello?"

Cheng Shang’s brooding voice came through the phone, "Cheng Zhiwei, to save Cheng Yang and Cheng Xing, come to Trade Tower."

"What do you want to do?"

"What I want to do, you know. Come here alone; if I find out you’ve told anyone about this, I don’t mind using them to pay for my Zhenzhen’s life." Cheng Shang hung up directly.

Cheng Yang, Cheng Xing... were kidnapped by Cheng Shang...

Cheng Zhiwei nearly collapsed, her limbs ice cold; after a few seconds, she got up again and stumbled outside.

In the past few days, Zhou Lin restricted her movements, forbidding her to drive, providing her with a car and a driver instead.

Now, it was waiting by the roadside for her.

But she only glanced at it before heading taxi at the road’s edge.

Once in the car, she then messaged Zhou Lin with the address given by Cheng Shang, and called Wang Mei to ask if the children had arrived home.

Today was Friday, and the kindergarten let out at three.

Under normal circumstances, the three children should have been home by now.

Wang Mei was stunned for a moment, "Today was Xiao Man’s turn to pick the children up, and at this time... why aren’t they at home?"

She had been busy in the kitchen all along, not noticing the time nor whether the children had arrived home.

Cheng Zhiwei swiftly tried to contact Zhang Xiaoman but couldn’t get through at all.

Indeed, something was wrong.

Glancing at her phone, Zhou Lin hadn’t responded; she directly called Secretary Zhang, but no one answered.

Fortunately, she had the contact for another female secretary on her phone, stored a long time ago; the other side picked up quickly, "Young Madam."

Cheng Zhiwei asked, "Where is Zhou Lin?"

There was silence for a few seconds, and the sound of a door closing, before responding, "President Zhou is in a meeting with President He."

"Can you get him to take the phone?" Cheng Zhiwei’s hand was trembling uncontrollably, but her voice still maintained its steadiness.

The female secretary spoke in a low voice, "No, they are currently involved in some critical negotiations regarding the project. Everyone entering was required to leave all communication devices outside, and there are guards stationed at the door of the meeting room."

Her fingernails dug fiercely into her palm, letting Cheng Zhiwei remain somewhat rational amidst her panic.

Taking a deep breath, she told the secretary, "Whatever method you use, please see Zhou Lin as soon as possible and tell him his children were kidnapped."

The voice of the female secretary rose sharply, "Kidnapped?"

"I can’t call the police, so I can only ask for your help," Cheng Zhiwei hurriedly said, "The details are on his phone."

"Ok, I will go right now. Tell me the address, and I will arrange for someone to come to you straight away."

"Alright, have them be discreet; the other party has forbidden me from bringing anyone."

"Rest assured." After the female secretary hung up to make arrangements, she immediately rushed to the meeting room, naturally getting stopped.

"I need to see President Zhou, right now, immediately, it’s very important," the secretary urgently said.

Zhou Lin’s bodyguards recognized her, instinctively trying to enter but were stopped by He Rongwei’s bodyguards.

"President He said no one is allowed to go in. If you insist on entering, you’ll be treated as attempting to steal corporate secrets."

...

Cheng Zhiwei clenched her phone tightly, unsure how long it would take for the secretary to see Zhou Lin, but for now, she could only hope that Zhou Lin would come out as soon as possible and see her message.

And get there quickly.

Trade Tower wasn’t in the center of Yucheng but was in a more secluded area. Even without traffic, Cheng Zhiwei barely made it on time to the top floor.

The wind raged.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read