Chapter 1562: Are you really considered her boyfriend?
“I heard your uncle mention your mother earlier. Should we go ask auntie to see if she knows anything?”
Pei Ge nodded to his suggestion. “Okay. I’ll ask my mom later.”
Ji Ziming propped up her body as they left the prison. When they were inside the car, the woman fished out her phone to call her mother. The phone rang for some time before it was picked up. Through the receiver came Zhang Manhua’s hoarse voice.
“Hello, Ge Ge; what is it? Why are you calling me at this hour?”
She had just fallen asleep when her phone rang, only to find that it was her daughter.
Only then did Pei Ge realize that her mother had a different time zone from being overseas. She had actually forgotten about that, but since the call was already made, she proceeded to clear the other’s confusion. “Mom, back then, when dad got murdered, did he tell you anything?”
“Anything?” Zhang Manhua opened her eyes. Her daughter called her to ask about her husband’s death years ago.
“Let me think… Before your dad was murdered, I remember him talking… about a surprise for me.”
Zhang Manhua dug deep into her memory, but it seemed that this was the only thing she remembered.
“What surprise? Did he not tell you about it?”
Pei Ge continued asking, her eyes slowly getting dyed with nervousness.
“No. I asked him, but he said that, since it’s a surprise, I can only wait for it. No matter how much I pestered him about it, he still did not tell me anything.”
In a voice filled with sorrow, her mother recounted that scene. No matter how many years had passed, even if she had already left that land of sorrow, the beautiful and painful memories she had with her deceased husband would always follow her.
“Alright, mom. How is Xiaoyu? Is she okay?”
Her daughter knew that asking more would be futile, so she changed the topic.
“Your friend, she… is doing fine,” she stuttered, not knowing where her daughter’s close friend was. More accurately, the lady had been missing over these few days.
“Mom, why do you sound nervous?”
Pei Ge had a premonition that something had happened to her dear friend.
“I’m not; I just wanted to tell you that she is doing fine.”
Zhang Manhua quickly found an excuse. She knew that her lie would not get past her daughter, but she also did not want to let her know about the lady’s disappearance. Her daughter was already frustrated and busy enough with Ji Chi’s illness. She could not give her another thing to worry about.
“Tell me honestly: What exactly happened to her?”
As expected, her daughter did not believe her. If nothing truly happened to Tang Xiaoyu, she would not be stuttering like this.
“I…”
She sat up in bed. Her dark surroundings were only illuminated by the moonlight. She sat amid this darkness and confessed, “Ge Ge, let me tell you the truth; Xiaoyu’s been missing. I’ve been looking for her all this time, but there’s still no news even now.”
“Have you filed a missing-person report?”
Pei Ge got nervous. Could her best friend’s disappearance have something to do with Gu Zhengrong? If it is so, then I will never forgive him.
“Yes, but the police still haven’t found a clue to her whereabouts. She seems to have disappeared into thin air.”
“How is that possible? Did she not even leave behind an item to trace?”
She did not believe it. Even if her best friend had to leave, she would have a reason. How would it be possible for her to leave without a reason?
Upon noting her nervous expression, Ji Ziming, who was driving the car, tensed up. He placed his hand on hers to reassure her.
This action made the woman feel secure as she conversed with her mother on the phone.
“Mom, don’t panic; I will fly over to look in a few days. I believe that she wouldn’t leave for nothing. She must have a reason.”
“I also don’t think that she is the type to just up and disappear, but no matter how many times I called or texted her, she didn’t reply even once. I’m almost dying from anxiety.”
Zhang Manhua was indeed feeling panicky. The moment she realized that the young lady had gone missing, she started searching all the places the latter would usually go yet still did find traces of her.
“Mom, it’s fine; I will bring her back. It’s pretty late on your side, so hurry up and go back to sleep. I will give Gu Zhengrong a call to check on the situation.”
Pei Ge waited for her mother to hang up before immediately calling the man. While waiting for the call to get through, Ji Ziming’s eyes darkened. “Are you calling that guy?”
“Mhm. Xiaoyu is missing. I must ask him as I think it has something to do with him.”
Immediately after she finished speaking, Gu Zhengrong answered the call. He had originally been working overtime and did not intend to answer the call when he heard the phone ring. However, as the phone kept ringing, he finally stood up to retrieve his phone, only to find that it was Pei Ge.
On cloud nine, he quickly answered the call. “Why are you calling me?”
“Let me ask you: Do you know that Xiaoyu has been missing?”
The woman did not hear the happiness in his voice for she was furious.
“She’s missing? How did she go missing?”
He did not understand why the woman would seek him first the moment that woman went missing.
“Don’t you care for her even a bit? She did so much for you, yet in the end, your feelings for her only amount to this?”
Her heart turned cold upon hearing his response. She could not understand what it was that she had done which made him misunderstand her, causing the guy to refuse emerging from the deadlock he had put himself in. Now, even when her best friend was missing, he still did not care an ounce.
“It’s not that. I was just a little agitated upon seeing your call, but I didn’t expect you to ask me about her. I truly did not know that she’d gone missing. I would tell you if I had. I think she likely isn’t missing but just wants to time to herself for a few days. She just did not inform us about it.”
“That is your girlfriend. Do you really think that? Do you not care about her life or death at all? Her feelings and emotions? Are you really her boyfriend? I have never seen such an irresponsible boyfriend like you!”
Her gaze had become icy by now. She itched to give him a tight slap when she heard how uncaring he was toward her best friend.
“It’s not that I don’t care about her; it’s just that I have been very busy recently and did not have time to take care of her. Plus, she has been the same as usual, and this is not the first time.”