His tone was exactly as if he were Xia Ran's older brother, and coupled with his perpetually smiling and kind demeanor, he successfully won over Yu Wu's heart with these words.
"Okay, thank you..."
Yu Wu didn't know how to address Lin Ziming in front of him, so he could only look to Xia Ran for help.
Xia Ran immediately noticed Yu Wu's embarrassment and quickly spoke up.
"Just call me Brother Ziming, we don't need to stand on ceremony!"
“Yes, that’s right,” Lin Ziming replied. “Just call me Brother Ziming. You guys chat first, I’ll go out first.”
Xia Ran: "Okay, thank you, Brother Ziming."
After everyone left, Yu Wu let out a soft sigh of relief, and Xia Ran couldn't help but tease him.
"Why are you still so afraid? You need to get used to being around people. You can't be shy and afraid to speak when you see strangers, can you?"
"I...no." Yu Wu blushed slightly. "I'm just a little uncomfortable with strangers."
"Take it slow. I'll be staying here for a long time. You can come over every day and I'll cook for you so you don't have to eat instant noodles and takeout all the time!"
Xia Ran knows Yu Wu very well; he must usually be eating instant noodles and taking out takeout.
Yu Wu hesitated for a moment, "But I have to go out every day, and I don't really want to..."
"Then Grandpa and I will visit you occasionally, it's not far anyway." Xia Ran didn't force Yu Wu, after all, it would be quite uncomfortable for someone with social anxiety to go out every day.
"Okay! Good!" Yu Wu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Although he had a good relationship with Xia Ran, he was still a little scared to go out every day.
The two chatted for a long time, and the people outside the door were also talking about them.
Especially Mr. Lin, who kept asking questions.
"So, what were the two of them talking about inside?"
Upon hearing this, Lin Ziming glanced at his father. To be honest, he felt there was something else behind his father's words.
but……
Lin Ziming glanced at Grandpa Xia, but in the end pretended not to notice anything.
"They were probably talking about their school days, and they seemed to be having a good time."
Mr. Lin: "I see. I wonder if Yu Wu has someone he likes. He seems like a very well-behaved child."
He was looking at Lin Ziming as he said this.
Lin Ziming paused, then roughly understood what was strange about his father's earlier strange remarks.
He sighed silently to himself. Had he gone too far? He had even caused his father to misunderstand him.
However, he didn't actually have any romantic feelings for Yu Wu. He was just curious because he rarely saw such a shy boy.
“Yes, that child is indeed good.” Grandpa Xia agreed, “but he is also a pitiful child. Xiao Ran told me before that he also grew up in an orphanage. In short, he has a hard life.”
After hearing what Grandpa Xia said, Lin Ziming and his father were both a little surprised.
Lin Ziming then thought that Yu Wu's shyness was probably related to his own upbringing in an orphanage.
"No wonder he looked so shy and didn't dare to speak," Mr. Lin remarked.
The group had a meal and chatted quite well, while Gu Zheng received a message from Qin Hao instructing someone to investigate.
"So Lin Ziming took Ranran to see Gu En that day?" Gu Zheng asked, looking at a surveillance video on the computer.
The surveillance video showed Lin Ziming and Xia Ran entering Gu En's residential complex and the building, and then coming out about half an hour later.
Qin Hao nodded reluctantly, "Yes, but we have no way of knowing exactly what they said or talked about."
"If you really want to know, brother, you can only ask Gu En, but I don't know if Gu En will tell you."
Without even thinking, Gu Zheng picked up the phone next to him and called Gu En.
Chapter 364 Something's Wrong
However, Gu En on the other end of the phone did not answer.
Looking at Gu Zheng's icy expression, Qin Hao couldn't help but ask,
"What's wrong? He's not answering the phone? Should I send someone to look for him?"
"Okay." Gu Zheng put down his phone. "Have someone go look for him, and while they're at it, find out what Ranran and Lin Ziming said to him."
"good."
Qin Hao left the office, intending to call someone to check where Gu En was, but before he could make the call, Lin Yi called.
"Hey, Lin Yi? What's up? Is something wrong? I'm busy right now, let's talk when I'm free."
Lin Yi asked in confusion, "No time? What are you busy with? Isn't your brother at the company?"
"No, he's busy at the company. It's just that we've found out some things, so we need to find someone else to clarify things. I need to go find someone now."
Qin Hao didn't intend to hide this from Lin Yi.
Lin asked instinctively, "Who should we ask? Where is that person? Do you need me to take you there?"
"This..." Qin Hao hesitated for a moment, "No need, this is a private matter, I can go by myself."
"Private matter?" Lin Yi's voice suddenly changed. "You think this is a private matter? Or do you think it's a private matter that I shouldn't know about?"
Qin Hao found Lin Yi's words rather strange and said,
"Indeed, this is my brother's private matter, and I cannot say anything without his permission."
Although Lin Yi roughly knew about the love triangle between his brother, Xia Ran, and Gu En, there were some deeper things he still couldn't reveal.
Although he and Lin Yi are now friends, they are still not family, and are still outsiders.
Lin Yi was unhappy because he understood this reason, which is why his tone was not very good.
Qin Hao only noticed Lin Yi's unpleasant tone and didn't realize the deeper meaning behind Lin Yi's words, feeling rather confused.
He was just about to ask Lin Yi if he was in a bad mood when the other person hung up the phone.
Qin Hao: "..."
"This is really baffling. Are all these CEOs mentally unstable? Or is it that all overly intelligent people are mentally unstable?"
Qin Hao muttered something to himself, but in the end, he didn't bother to investigate Lin Yi's strange behavior further.
He should focus on finding Gu En for his brother first.
Let alone his brother, even he himself felt that Xia Ran and Lin Ziming must have something to do when they went to see Gu En.
Of course, he didn't think Xia Ran was looking for trouble with Gu En, after all, he knew Xia Ran very well and she was never the type to go looking for trouble.
So it must be something they don't know. Maybe they'll find out what Xia Ran is doing to Gu En, which would give Gu Zheng a better chance to reconcile with Xia Ran.
However, finding someone in such a large city would take some time, so Qin Hao continued to handle company matters after posting the message.
Meanwhile, Gu En on the other side had already gotten what he wanted.
Looking at the hair in the sealed bag, a genuine smile finally appeared in his eyes.
No matter how much Gu Zheng tries to distance himself from him, they can never truly sever ties, unless Gu Zheng abandons the child, Gu Chen.
However, based on his understanding of Gu Zheng, Gu Zheng would never abandon his child.
And Xia Ran, did she think that finding that detective would stop him? His helpers aren't just the detective.
Yu Wu will be heading back in the afternoon.
"Then come over for dinner when you have time. It's a pity Dazhuang isn't here, otherwise we could get together."
Xia Ran said with some emotion, and Yu Wu smiled as well.
There will always be time.
"Okay." Xia Ran patted Yu Wu on the shoulder.
Grandpa Xia: "Xiao Wu, come to our house often in the future. Grandpa will be staying here for a long time. If you come often, you can keep Grandpa company and prevent him from getting too bored by himself."
Grandpa Xia said that because he was afraid Yu Wu would feel embarrassed and shy and wouldn't want to come again.
Yu Wu grew up in an orphanage, so Grandpa Xia couldn't help but feel sorry for him.
Yu Wu felt a warm glow in his heart, smiled shyly at the group, and replied,
“Okay, I’ll definitely come often in the future. Grandpa, I’ll be going now. Xia Ran, you don’t need to see me off. There’s a bus stop right at the entrance of the community. It’s only four stops to home. I can go home by myself.”
Xia Ran: "Okay, then I won't see you off. Go home by yourself and send me a message when you get home."
Yu Wu: "Mhm."
Mr. Lin: "Taking the bus? Buses are tiring. Anyway, it's not far. Why don't you take them home, Ziming?"
Lin Ziming's temples throbbed at his father's words, while the others looked at him with some confusion.
Mr. Lin remained calm and continued speaking.
"I think Ziming has nothing better to do anyway, so he can take Xiaowu home."
"I..." Lin Ziming was about to speak when Yu Wu, who had just realized what was happening, spoke up.
"No need, no need to trouble yourself, I can go back by myself, it's really close by here. Grandpa Xia Ran, Uncle, Brother Ziming, I'll go back first, you should go inside too, it's cold."
Yu Wu quickly finished speaking and ran towards the elevator, looking as if he was afraid Lin Ziming would chase after him and take him back.
Apart from Xia Ran, who was used to Yu Wu's behavior, everyone present felt somewhat confused and puzzled.
Mr. Lin: "This...could it be that what I just said scared them? Otherwise, why would they leave so suddenly?"
He's starting to regret it now; he shouldn't have been in such a hurry and scared everyone.
After hearing his father's words, Lin Ziming frowned slightly, as if he was also considering whether he had frightened the man.
But you can't blame him. He didn't have any particular thoughts, but now that his dad said that, it feels like nothing's wrong has turned into something.
“No, Uncle.” Xia Ran explained with a wry smile, “Xiao Wu has always been like this. He’s especially afraid of troubling others. Actually, he doesn’t have any other intentions.”
"Alright, everyone go inside. It's really cold outside." Xia Ran let the others go in, while he himself prepared to be the last to close the door.
However, he noticed that Lin Ziming kept looking in the direction of the elevator, and he asked in confusion,