CEFYMA: Chapter 74

Yan Tingxuan sat in the police station for a whole day. He looked through the thick stacks of police records but couldn’t find any information about the You family, not even the names You Jiyuan and You Mian.

The iron railing cut the afternoon sunlight coming through the window into strips. This fell on Yan Tingxuan’s suit pants and felt warm to the touch.

Yan Tingxuan took off his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose in a tired manner. Suddenly, the office door opened. It was the young policeman who came in with a document in his hand. The other person let out a surprised sound when he saw Yan Tingxuan.

“Lawyer Yan, you haven’t left yet?”

Yan Tingxuan neatly placed the stack of files back on the desk. He put on his glasses with a smile and said, “I’m going. There were a lot of documents, and it took a while.”

The policeman laughed. “It is hard work.”

It didn’t just take a while. He sat here all day.

The moment Yan Tingxuan walked out of the police station, he received a call from the assistant of the law firm.

The other side reminded him as skillfully and simply as usual, “Lawyer Yan, Mr Wang from Henghua Real Estate has a case. There is also an international transportation contract breach case at the port. I see that all the cases you have on hand have been closed. Do you want to help with these two next?”

The assistant’s tone might be asking, but according to Yan Tingxuan’s previous temperament, the answer would be a yes.

Just as the assistant was already preparing to stamp it, he suddenly heard Yan Tingxuan refuse neatly. “No, I have something to do these days.”

“Huh?”

Yan Tingxuan heard the person on the other end of the phone saying, “Lawyer Yan, one of the two cases has a bid of over 10 million, and the international transportation case has a bid of over 100 million. Are you really not going to accept it?”

Yan Tingxuan gave everyone in the law firm the feeling that everything could be compromised for profit. As long as enough money was given, his time could be divided into countless pieces.

Now this person actually pushed away the money and said he wouldn’t accept it.

Yan Tingxuan clicked on the car’s navigation. He typed in the words ‘Anxin Welfare Home’ while refusing again, “No, help me push it. Or transfer it to Lawyer Lin and the others.”

Yan Tingxuan’s mind was churning as he hung up the phone.

He had seen the traces on You Mian’s body of being tied up with hemp rope. He had also seen the bruises on the corners of the other person’s mouth.

There should be a police record as long as a phone call was made in a kidnapping case.

However, there was no trace of the You family in the police records of Huajiang City in the past 15 years. There was only one explanation. The You family never reported the kidnapping cases to the police. They chose to go the private route and pay the ransom.

Yan Tingxuan frowned. He fiercely stepped on the accelerator and drove quickly toward the welfare home.

What other things had he been kept in the dark about until now, how much had he hurt You Mian, and what type of accomplice had he become?

He needed to know it clearly.

Yan Tingxuan’s hand clenched the steering wheel strongly. The veins of his neck bulged slightly.

—

The wind in the late autumn night was chilly and cool. The bare tree trunks on the roadside were swaying gently in the moonlight.

You Mian stood in the sculpture room of the high-rise JL Building. In front of him was a wide sculpture platform with bright lights all around his head.

Tomorrow was the deadline for the second round of the competition. You Mian was concentrating on pouring the final round of plaster water.

A gentle piano sound flowed from the young man’s headset. Bach’s twelve-tone equal temperament blocked out any distractions.

You Mian’s eyes were extremely serious. As the last layer of plaster water poured down, he lightly pursed his lips, and his long eyelashes trembled.

He finished pouring it, stood up and put the plastic bucket on the ground. He had just reached out to take off the headset and hang it around his neck when there was a knock on the door behind him.

It was just three times, no more and no less. It was a reminder and was polite and restrained.

You Mian turned his head to the side. He saw Pei Huaiji, who was dressed in a black, straight suit, standing at the door of the sculpture room. The man glanced at his watch as he had done every evening for more than a week. Then he gave a reminder, “It is time for dinner.”

You Mian untied the gray apron in front of him. He subconsciously suspended the work in front of him.

This was unusual for his previous self.

When You Mian first moved into the JL sculpture studio, he couldn’t get used to Pei Huaiji calling him at fixed times.

Obviously, the other party looked more like a workaholic than him. It was the type of domineering chairman with stomach problems.

But it turned out that these conjectures were just You Mian’s stereotype of the position of chairman. Pei Huaiji not only had no stomach problems, but he ate three meals a day on time. Dinner would be sent up by elevator at 6 o’clock.

In the past, when You Mian stayed alone in the sculpture room of College A, he often carved all day and ate simple bread and milk for lunch and dinner.

A week ago, You Mian thought that sooner or later, he wouldn’t be able to stand Pei Huaiji’s clock-in ordering. What he didn’t expect was that as time passed, he was actually used to following Pei Huaiji to eat when the time came.

Pei Huaiji made him develop a sense of hunger.

You Mian arranged his gloves and had just turned around to leave the sculpture room when he noticed Pei Huaiji’s eyes looking at the plastic platform behind him.

He smiled. “I just poured the plaster water. You can’t see clearly what is being carved.”

Pei Huaiji quickly retracted his gaze when he heard this.

The two people walked along the quiet corridor toward Pei Huaiji’s office. The man said, “It isn’t like a figure sculpture.”

You Mian’s sculpture this time had a lot of lines. The outline was also very messy. Pei Huaiji couldn’t see what he was carving for the time being.

You Mian narrowed his eyes mysteriously. “As long as it fits the theme.”

Pei Huaiji pushed open the office door for him with soft eyes. The lights were already turned off in Vivian’s office on the opposite side. This resolute woman had chosen to go downstairs to the cafeteria to eat as early as the second night after You Mian moved in.

You Mian caused quite a stir when he first moved in. The entire JL internal group chat was discussing him. The topic couldn’t escape the relationship between You Mian and Pei Huaiji, as well as You Mian’s outstanding appearance.

But everyone’s enthusiastic gossip would always stop when Pei Huaiji glanced over.

More than a week had passed, and their curiosity gradually calmed down.

It was because You Mian would hardly come out of the sculpture room, let alone do something that would make others gossip.

Pei Huaiji’s office was large. It faced a huge French window and looked down at the bustling commercial center of Huajiang.

You Mian sat on the sofa by the window. In front of him was the three-layered food box of Shouxi City already laid out.

You Mian’s eyes widened slightly in surprise. Before, Pei Huaiji only asked him to eat simple meals from the cafeteria. Why was it so luxurious tonight?

Pei Huaiji sat across from him and said, “Tomorrow is the deadline for the Star Cup. Just relax tonight.”

Pei Huaiji said this very seriously.

If it wasn’t for You Mian’s workplace being in JL, he never would’ve thought that You Mian was a person who would never move once he stayed in the sculpture room.

Pei Huaiji might’ve deliberately interrupted with the excuse of dinner, but this desperate attitude continued intermittently until the last day of the Star Cup’s deadline.

He was the one who knew best how much effort You Mian put into this work.

Pei Huaiji counted the days and waited until today. So at this moment, it wasn’t only You Mian who sighed with relief. He did as well.

You Mian seemed to sense Pei Huaiji’s emotions. He smiled softly without shrinking back. His amber eyes exuded a warm and peaceful mood under the lights.

“Chairman Pei is generous.” You Mian unceremoniously picked up the chopsticks.

Pei Huaiji’s brow relaxed. His stern profile no longer had the usual strong sense of oppression.

In the quiet and cozy atmosphere, You Mian ate happily.

Pei Huaiji didn’t move his chopsticks much. Once he saw that You Mian had finished eating, he slowly got up and walked to the desk to pick up a folder.

You Mian noticed Pei Huaiji’s gaze.

His eyes fell on the document that Pei Huaiji was holding. His heart suddenly jumped as he realized what it might contain.

Pei Huaiji walked to You Mian’s side and handed over the documents in his hand.

The man said in a deep voice, “These are some things I have found out these days. They might also be things you didn’t know before.”

You Mian clearly heard his own heartbeat as he raised his hand to take the document.

In the quick and long kaleidoscope after his death, he discovered that he existed in a novel, that he was adopted for some reason, and that his life as a cannon fodder was also determined.

Now the truth of everything seemed to be in front of You Mian.

Pei Huaiji lowered his eyes and said casually, “But too much time has passed. Some things haven’t been found for the time being.”

Pei Huaiji might’ve said this, but You Mian knew that with the other person’s personality, the fact that he handed over the document proved that there must be some past events You Mian had never known about.

You Mian pinched the folder and was silent for a moment. He found that his fingers were actually trembling a bit.

Pei Huaiji sat back down across from him. The man said softly, “I went to check the police records of the kidnapping cases in Huajiang a week ago, but I couldn’t find your name…”

As Pei Huaiji spoke, You Mian opened the document.

Pei Huaiji said, “But I changed my thinking again and looked for theft reports and robbery reports.”

“Guess what I saw?” Pei Huaiji asked in a low voice.

You Mian opened the document in front of his eyes and replied while suppressing the undercurrents in his heart. “You saw the names of You Jiyuan and Bai Peilan, right?”

You Mian raised his eyes and met Pei Huaiji’s unfazed, dark eyes.

Pei Huaiji said, “Yes, on June 8th twelve years ago, there was a police record of a burglary case. The person who called the police was Bai Peilan.”

Accompanied by Pei Huaiji’s voice, You Mian also saw the alarm record and the on-site mediation record that was clearly recorded in front of him.

The name of the burglar was Ba Quan. He was 42 years old, a male, and registered in Huajiang…

You Mian frowned fiercely. If it was really a burglary, Bai Peilan and You Jiyuan definitely wouldn’t be able to accept mediation based on their personalities. They were people who took pleasure in pinching bugs to death. They wouldn’t let go of this person called Ba Quan.

Unless the opponent had something on them.

Pei Huaiji said, “Your doubts are also my doubts.”

“It just so happened that my uncle had a cooperation with Xiuming a few days ago. On the pretext of promoting the development history of Huajiang’s leading company, he found some preparatory documents for Xiuming before it went public.

“Xiuming used to be a partnership with three founders.”

You Mian remembered that this was indeed mentioned in the novel. He just didn’t know who the three people were except for You Jiyuan.

The next second, he heard Pei Huaiji say, “The name of one of the founders is Ba Quan.”

“The other person is Sheng Jiang, who jumped from a building and died 17 years ago.” Pei Huaiji paused for half a second before continuing, “This Ba Quan happened to be imprisoned for five years for a serious intentional injury 17 years ago.”

You Mian completed the sentence that Pei Huaiji hadn’t finished.

The first thing Ba Quan did when he was released from prison five years later was to break into the You family and find the You family’s couple. This was the reason why the alarm record of a burglary case 12 years ago with Bai Peilan as the caller appeared.

But they eventually reconciled.

You Mian frowned slightly. Since they had reconciled, will this be the key fact that the You family couple had been covering up?

Before You Mian could continue to think, Pei Huaiji’s voice sounded in the silent office.

“But Ba Quan died nine years ago.”

You Mian’s fingers holding the document tightened. “Dead?”

Pei Huaiji nodded. “He committed suicide by jumping off a building. The place of death was the same unfinished building where Sheng Jiang died 17 years ago.”

Pei Huaiji’s voice was dry for a moment. He hesitated for a few seconds before asking, “Do you still remember the characteristics of those who kidnapped you? Their appearance, height, etc.”

You Mian’s gaze fell on Ba Quan’s age. If he was 42 years old at the time of the burglary, Ba Quan would’ve been 45 when he died.

You Mian shook his head. “The person who kidnapped me was very young. I can’t remember it very clearly, but he was a tall man.”

There were discrepancies with Ba Quan, who was only 1.7 meters tall in the police record.

Suddenly, Pei Huaiji said in a deep voice, “Ba Quan has a son who is 26 years old.”

The moment You Mian raised his head, he heard Pei Huaiji say, “But I can’t find this person for the time being. There is no news.”

The moment Pei Huaiji finished speaking, You Mian finished flipping through the information in his hand.

You Mian originally just wanted Pei Huaiji to investigate the entanglement between the Anxin Welfare Home and the You family. He didn’t expect that Pei Huaiji would even find out about such a long ago manner. He felt complicated for a while.

In the silent office, Pei Huaiji said, “The adoption records of the Anxin Welfare Home are more difficult to check than the police records. Many materials and documents are missing.”

You Mian had already thought of this result, but before he could speak, Pei Huaiji said again, “You Mian, do you want to find your biological parents?”