Chapter 39: Chapter 38 The Xie Family Couple
Xie Kaixiao furrowed his brows upon hearing that Lu Jiaxin wanted to seek out the human traffickers and said, “Isn’t this nonsense? If the Public Security Bureau can’t find those people, how can she possibly do it?”
Madam Xie sighed and said, “This child has changed drastically after being kidnapped. No one can stop her from looking for the traffickers. What we can do is to find someone trustworthy to protect her.”
Two days before Lu Jiaxin went missing, she fainted in her room due to a heart condition. Fortunately, a nurse at home found her and saved her life just in time. However, the doctor instructed her to rest and avoid any emotional excitement at all costs.
Once her condition had stabilized, she called her husband after learning about Lu Jiaxin’s disappearance. It turned out that her husband had known about Lu Jiaxin’s disappearance from the outset and had arranged for a search, but to no avail.
While she was worrying about the situation, she suddenly heard that the child had returned. She was happy that the child had escaped danger, but then, unexpectedly, Lu Jiaxin moved to Radiance Road. Afterwards, she received news that the child failed the college entrance exam and was almost abducted by human traffickers—all because of her stepmother.
In fact, when the rumor first spread that Lu Jiaxin had run away from home after failing the college entrance exam, she felt that the situation was more complicated than it appeared. Knowing the child, she might become dispirited or discouraged by the failure, but would certainly not leave home in resentment. Yet, without any clues, there was no way to determine the cause of her disappearance. As she had expected, all of this was the conniving work of that mother and daughter. Regrettably, although Jiaxin had revealed the truth, without evidence, they couldn’t punish the culpable stepmother and her daughter.
Xie Kaixiao asked doubtfully, “You Read the latest chapters on NovelHub - completely free! Lu hadn’t died trying to save his son, she would still be alive, and the child would surely have remained carefree. Not like now, oppressed by her stepmother and overlooked by her own father, she recently even came close to losing her life.
Madam Xie was silent for a moment, then mentioned how Su Heming had been duped, “He thought it was just a fake watch and casually wore it on his wrist. Hadn’t Lu Jiaxin reminded him in time, he would still be flaunting that gold watch worth over a hundred thousand in public.”
Xie Kaixiao’s expression immediately became stern, “What did you say? Someone gave Heming a gold Rolex watch with a dubious origin?”
Xie Kaixiao said, “A month ago, a rich businessman from the South Sea was robbed in Peng City. He had his greenbacks and all the jewelry he was carrying stolen. Because of this, the businessman thought the domestic security was too poor and returned home the next day, and the deal for the investment he had negotiated also fell through.”
“Hong Ying, among the items stolen from that businessman was a Rolex gold watch. That case remains unsolved to this day.”
Over a hundred thousand greenbacks and valuables worth one to two hundred thousand — this was a major crime. However, the perpetrators were itinerant criminals, and as of then, no arrests had been made.
Madam Xie’s face changed, “Are you suggesting that the gold watch Heming has been wearing might be the one stolen from that businessman?”
Xie Kaixiao thought it very likely but wasn’t going to say so without evidence, “I will have someone check this matter thoroughly. Hong Ying, where is that gold watch now?”
Madam Xie, looking relieved, said, “After knowing about this, I had him pay a high price for a fake and put the real one away. A few days later, Heming pretended to be drunk while out drinking with friends and ended up giving the gold watch to one of them.”
When his friend sobered up the next day, he tried to return the watch. Su Heming just laughed and said not to take a watch so seriously, and he didn’t take it back.
Xie Kaixiao took a deep breath and said, “The authorities are currently cracking down hard on criminals. If someone tries to exploit this issue with the gold watch, we could all be implicated.”
Madam Xie’s expression hardened, and she lowered her head to apologize, “Kaixiao, I’m sorry, I just didn’t want to bother you further since you’ve been so busy lately. In the future, I’ll tell you everything immediately.”
Seeing that he wasn’t angry, Madam Xie said, “Kaixiao, I think Jiaxin is very perceptive and acts with a sense of propriety. It’s possible she might indeed be able to catch the human traffickers in Ancient Capital.”
Ever since she had her son, her health had deteriorated significantly, and she even developed a heart condition, sometimes suffering so much she wished for death. But for her son’s sake, she clenched her teeth and persevered. However, she hadn’t expected that those with such evil intentions would harm her son, fortunately, Ding Xiaoxia had been there and saved him. After Xiaoxia’s death, the situation of Lu Jiaxin filled her with fear. For her son’s sake, she would endure anything, to see him marry and have children.
Two days later, Su Heming brought two people to see Lu Jiaxin, and he explained, “There are many kidnappers out there now, some of whom specifically target young women. One bodyguard might overlook something, so I found you two more.”
After his explanation, he made the introductions. The taller man was named Zhao Dajun, and the slightly shorter one was Gu Wenfeng. Both of them were very robust, as proven by their bulging muscles.
Lu Jiaxin greeted them politely, “Brother Zhao, Brother Gu, I’ll be relying on you in the coming days.”
Gu Wenfeng said he was just following orders and there was no need for such politeness, “Miss Lu, I heard from Brother Heming that you almost got kidnapped by traffickers before. Are you going to Ancient Capital to track them down? Miss Lu, human traffickers are very cunning.”
If it was so easy to find traffickers, the Public Security Bureau wouldn’t have so many unresolved missing persons cases piled up.
Lu Jiaxin said, “These past days, I’ve been having nightmares. If I don’t catch that old woman, I will keep having nightmares for the rest of my life, maybe never sleeping peacefully again.”
Gu Wenfeng spoke frankly, “Miss Lu, if I may speak my mind, your trip will certainly be in vain.”
“If I don’t go, I won’t be satisfied.”
She knew what the old woman looked like and had even sketched her face. While she couldn’t claim it was an exact likeness, it was very close, at least eighty or ninety percent. She didn’t believe that with a portrait, they wouldn’t be able to find that old woman.
She hadn’t told anyone about this, not even Xue Mao. A trump card, after all, had to be played at the right moment.
Seeing her resolve, Gu Wenfeng didn’t attempt to dissuade her further. They were only there to protect Lu Jiaxin; they could warn her about potential dangers, but if she didn’t listen, there was nothing they could do.
Xue Mao’s eyes lit up when he learned the two men knew martial arts. He asked Zhao Dajun, who seemed approachable, “Brother Zhao, are you guys soldiers?”
Lu Jiaxin felt somewhat helpless, knowing they certainly weren’t soldiers. If they were from the military, how could they possibly come to protect them going to Ancient Capital?
Zhao Dajun revealed that he was formerly a soldier, but had been discharged recently and was now waiting for a job placement. This job had been recommended by his cousin, and he hadn’t really wanted to come.
Lu Jiaxin knew that major downsizing in the military would occur in a couple of years, and that it would be harder to find job placements then. By comparison, Zhao Dajun was lucky.