Wen Xiaoji raised his brow. “Really?”
“Yeah. The townsfolk saw it with their own eyes,” said the man.
“Then we should take a good look at the girl later,” another piped up.
The group of people chatted as they hiked up the small hill.
Right then, Zong Jinghao’s phone rang. He took out his phone and saw that it was Lin Xinyan’s number. Hence, he stopped in his tracks and waited for Wen Xiaoji and the others to walk away before picking up.
“Hello…”
“What took you so long to answer?” Lin Xinyan questioned in a hoarse voice.
“What happened?” His facial muscles tensed up immediately.
“Uncle… is gone.”
Zong Jinghao wasn’t surprised to hear that. After all, the doctor had mentioned that it was a miracle for him to even last till after Zhuang Jiawen’s wedding.
“I’ll head back now.”
He hung up the phone and called for Wen Xiaoji.
“What is it?” Wen Xiaoji ran back.
“I need to head back now. You guys can continue with the search.” Zong Jinghao said.
“Didn’t you just reach here? Why are you going back now? What happened?”
Zong Jinghao cut him off and explained that Cheng Yuwen had passed away.
Wen Xiaoji nodded. “Leave it to me then. I will base the investigation on what you’ve said.”
“I will do everything in my power to find his whereabouts…” Wen Xiaoji added to assure him.
He simply placed a hand on Wen Xiaoji’s shoulder without a word. A gesture was worth a thousand words. Wen Xiaoji was aware of how much weight he was carrying at the moment.
“I’ll drive.” Wen Xiaoji returned to the foot of the hill with him while the others continued their search for Zong Yanchen.
Zong Jinghao didn’t even stop to rest after getting here.
Moreover, they had to drive to the city to get on a plane.
Wen Xiaoji sped to the airport.
They had to switch to the high-speed rail since there were no available flights.
He only returned after watching Zong Jinghao board the high-speed rail.
It took them the whole night to make the round trip.
It was almost daybreak when he got back to town.
Much to his delight, there was good news waiting for him.
“We found Yanchen.”
Someone ran over and told him the good news the moment Wen Xiaoji parked the car.
“When?” he asked.
“Yesterday night.”
They continued searching after Wen Xiaoji and Zong Jinghao left and caught sight of Mu Yuan’er and Zong Yanchen having dinner in the courtyard last night.
“Where is he now? Why didn’t you call to tell me about it yesterday night?” Wen Xiaoji said in a low voice.
“We tried but couldn’t get through.”
“How is that possible?” Wen Xiaoji thought he was spouting nonsense. He pulled his phone out and saw that his phone had turned itself off as it ran out of battery.
“Out of power at such a crucial moment.” He felt a little frustrated.
“We’ve brought Yanchen and the girl who saved him back,” the guy reminded.
“Right. I should go check on him first,” said Wen Xiaoji.
Everything was fine now that they found Zong Yanchen.
“Is he okay?” he asked.
The man paused in his steps. “He lost his sight.”
“What?” Wen Xiaoji freaked out.
“But don’t you worry. The girl who saved him said he will regain his sight soon.”
Wen Xiaoji felt like he just got off a roller coaster ride from the shock and delight. “Let’s hurry over,” he said.
They stayed at someone’s house in town. It was a big family but most of them were out of town. Hence, there were a lot of empty rooms available.
They rented the place and brought Zong Yanchen over after they found him.
Wen Xiaoji saw Zong Yanchen sitting on a chair the moment he stepped foot into the house. He hurried over and said, “Yanchen…”
“Uncle?” Zong Yanchen guessed his identity by his voice.
Wen Xiaoji gripped his shoulders with trembling hands. “Thank God you’re fine. I wouldn’t know how to explain to your parents if otherwise. As for your eyes…”
“I’m fine,” Zong Yanchen said with a smile. “Yuan’er will find a cure for my eyes.”
Yuan’er?
He turned around and saw a girl standing behind Zong Yanchen.
“Her name is Mu Yuan’er. She’s the one who saved me.” Zong Yanchen introduced.
“Thank you. Let me know if you require anything in return. You’re the Wen family’s and the Zong family’s benefactor. We would satisfy whatever request you have as long as it is within our power to do so.” Wen Xiaoji wanted to reward her for saving Zong Yanchen.
“Uncle,” Zong Yanchen called out to him.
“I’m here.” Wen Xiaoji held his hand. “Why didn’t you contact us when you’re fine? Do you know how worried we’ve been? We didn’t even dare tell your mother about it as we were afraid she wouldn’t be able to take it after hearing about it.”
“I fainted for a long while and just woke up. Yuan’er told me there were people outside looking for me. I thought they were remnants of the gang and dared not contact you guys in case I get you guys into trouble. My loss of vision doesn’t help either.”
He was actually afraid that his family would worry since he lost his sight. That was why he didn’t contact them immediately when he woke up.
“Yuan’er said I will regain my sight in a few days. I was planning to contact you guys after that. Sorry for making you worry.”
“It’s fine. Everything is fine now that you’re here. I will call your dad. He just left yesterday night.” With that, Wen Xiaoji whipped out his phone.
“My dad’s here? What about my mom?” Zong Yanchen asked.
“Only your dad came. Your mom doesn’t know about your accident. We kept it from her since she has a weak body. We were afraid she wouldn’t be able to handle the news.” He dialed Zong Jinghao’s number.
“Don’t tell him about my loss of sight. I don’t want them to worry,” said Zong Yanchen.
Wen Xiaoji looked at him and said, “Ok.”
At the same time, the call went through.
“We found Yanchen.”
“When?”
“Yesterday night when you left. He’s fine, don’t worry. We will return now as well.”
“Ok.”
“We will head back to B City first before going to C City,” said Wen Xiaoji.
“Ok.”
Wen Xiaoji hung up the phone. He looked at Zong Yanchen and hesitated before saying, “Your great-uncle has passed away.” He continued, “Everyone will pass on eventually when they get old. Don’t be too sad about it.”
Zong Yanchen couldn’t help but felt sad. “Are we going back today?”
“Yes. We can attend the ceremony and send him off if we leave now,” said Wen Xiaoji.
Zong Yanchen had the same thought. Mu Yuan’er tagged along as she had to treat Zong Yanchen’s eyes.
Wen Xiaoji told Chen Shihan everything that had happened when he left. Hence, she was aware of what happened to Zong Yanchen and was happy for his safe return as well.
“I heard everything from your uncle. You guys should get some rest. Your uncle has arranged for the flight to C City. We will leave tonight.”
