Heyyyyy everyone! We are back and bringing some awesome news for you! Meraki is currently planning to release our translations at the same time on WordPress and Wattpad. So you can now have your favourite translations offline too! ?
Thank you for all your support, I’ve been reading all of your comments although I don’t have the time lately to reply yet! I’ll reply to all of them sooon~ It’s a great help and encouragement to us when we are juggling our different commitments and translations too. ❤ We heart you sooo much~ Also, the for Perfect Fiancé is still here~
We have an ALL NEW and sparkling special role name for PF fans! So what are you waiting for, join us~ I would love to give this first ever role name to the lucky 1st reader who requests it~ ? And we’re back with… A Hug (Chapter 17)! I’m sure you see that fluff coming eh? ?
Chapter 17: Hug Sometimes, we badly need a hug. Kidnapped?
Lu Xi swiftly stood up and the notebook on his lap fell to the floor. It fell onto the marble floor with a heavy thud.
The screen filled with text flickered twice before it went black. However, Lu Xi no longer cared about this and urgently asked, "Where is Jin"er now? How on earth did this happen? What does the person want?"
A series of questions overflowed without any pauses.
Su Yue sighed and rubbed his forehead as he spoke in a hoa.r.s.e voice, "we"ve only just found out that Xiao Jin was kidnapped. We"re unclear of her general situation at the moment; the bureau has already begun investigations… The kidnapper…" He raised his head as his eyes closed, "the kidnapper has yet to come forward with news."
The kidnapper has not shared any news? Lu Xi frowned, "at what time did Jin"er go missing?"
"8.10am." Su Yue replied, "at 8.10am, she came out of the Red Dragonfly and entered a taxi. The taxi then pa.s.sed Mingyu Park and drove towards a blindspot area at Ninghai Street. After that, both the driver and Xiao Jin went missing."
8.10am…
Lowering his head, Lu Xi gazed heavily at his wrist.w.a.tch.
Half past ten.
Two hours and twenty minutes had pa.s.sed and yet there was no sign or news from the kidnapper. If they were seeking money as ransom, this would have been negotiable but if they were seeking her life? Chief Zhou… The police? To put their hopes upon them?
Moreover, for Jin"er…
He forcefully clenched his mobile in his hands but those thin lips suddenly revealed a slight smile. His pair of peach blossom eyes were glazed over with icy-cool thoughts and his gaze was frosty and clear.
"I understand."
Suddenly calmed, his voice spoke this phrase and then he hung up.
Duu… Du…
From the phone, the sounds of the line being cut off could be heard. Flabbergasted, Su Yue stared at the screen of his phone and was shocked for a moment before he raised his head and asked, "Dad, what does this mean?"
With a hesitant frown on his brows, Su Chenghai shook his head. Although he was not home most of the time, after getting to know him, he could tell that Lu Xi greatly cared about Xiao Jin, his fiancee. However, this… phrase, "I understand"?
"Perhaps…" Cautiously, he spoke, "the Lu family has other means (of seeking information)?"
Other means?
At first, Su Yue was surprised then, he shook his head. Although the Lu family was an aristocratic family with hundreds of years of history and the Sheng Ming Corporation could also be considered as formidable, however, in the end, a strong dragon cannot repress a snake. Therefore, a local hoodlum is above the law. Even if the Lu family utilised their formidable connections, it was just adding on another layer of pressure on the authorities. In the end, it would still fall on Zhou Kangle"s shoulders. Even if… Even if they could make a request for an elite officer from the provincial administration office, this too would take some time.
As for time, for Su Jin right now, that time to find her would be her lifeline.
Having to wait with no news at all was torturous and as the length of time grew longer, so did the despair. If it was for fortune, the Su family would do their utmost to have her returned to them. However…
If he could have thought of this, how could Su Chenghai not have done so? As he glanced up at his father who sat before his desk, Su Yue noticed that the man, who was always immovably dignified like the very mountains, actually had eyes that were full of tears.
"Perhaps… If he really has other ways…"
As he heard the low mutters that came from his father"s lips, Su Yue lowered his head slightly as his eyes too shone with a trace of hope.
As despair approached, even if they knew that it was only a straw of hope, that too could make one delude themselves into denying the stark reality.
……
Where… Where was this place?
When Su Jin recovered consciousness, she felt that her head was still a little heavy. Shutting her eyes tightly to suppress her throbbing forehead, when she finally felt a little better, she then slowly opened them.
Although her body was a little shaky, this did not affect her vision.
Only… She closed her eyes tightly and opened them again. Repeating this a few times, she bit her lip forcefully.
Her surroundings… were completely pitch black.
"Is there anyone here?" She lowly called out and from her surroundings, a clear echo could be heard.
This place was probably not large.
As she heard the sound, Su Jin deduced this.
Only the whole area was too dark. As much as she tried, she could only faintly see her fingers before her. Around her, she could sense a slight cooling sensation. As she stretched out behind her in a search, she felt that what she had touched was likely some sort of metal that was cool to touch. It had uneven and large veined patterns on its surface.
Could it be that this was simply a steel warehouse?
With no light coming in… It was likely that the windows were all blocked or perhaps… There might not even be any windows?
As she pondered about this, she lightly frowned. As she leaned against the wall behind her, she found a direction to slowly crawl towards. After going about roughly two to three metres, she felt that she had reached a corner of the wall.
Su Jin slowly slid down the wall and sat. As she hugged her knees in a cradle, she leaned against the corner and tried to think back to what had happened before this.
With her current situation, she was definitely kidnapped. As for the kidnapper, it was the lady driver who drove that taxi. Or rather, it was likely that the woman was merely one of the kidnappers. With the excuse of making a detour… One reason was probably to a.s.suage her suspicions and to let her put her guard down, another could be that there was something in the car to cause her to become unconsciousness. However, it needed more than twenty minutes for it to come into effect.
Who could the mastermind behind this be?
A compet.i.tor of the Su family? Zhao Wenhua? Han Xuelan?
If it was Zhao Wenhua, then what use would there be to kidnap her? To use forceful means with her and compel her to submit? The heir of the Zhao family couldn"t possibly be this foolish right? The Su family was several times more formidable than the Zhao family, and when this matter was revealed, he would then have no chance of freeing himself from this crime.
As for Han Xuelan, in the novel, she was just a dispensable supporting character. Even if she was jealous, she was still a twenty-year-old girl, thus where would she have the guts to devise such a plan? Moreover, even if this situation really had something to do with her, then what could she do? Find someone to destroy her innocence? Yet, she was evidently alone in here.
Then what remained was a business compet.i.tor of the Su family?
However, her clothes were still intact and other than her fainting and feeling a little weak, she felt no other discomfort on her body. No matter who was the mastermind, if they had not done anything to her when she was unconscious, then that meant she was still safe now. As for everything else, she would have to wait for the negotiations between the mastermind and her family.
With regards to her brother and father"s att.i.tude… She had never suspected their love and concern for her. In the original work, even after she had devised a plan to have Lin Xiyue kidnapped, she was only sent overseas and her standards of living remained unchanged without a need to care for her daily necessities. This was due to her pure disposition and also, their twenty years of familial relations with her.
While Su Jin was slightly more a.s.suaged about her worries, the atmosphere in the chairman"s office on the top floor of the Su clan"s building grew more and more depressing.
The two people had their two pairs of eyes firmly glued onto the two phones neatly placed on the table. It seemed that even a light breeze could agitate them.
Unfortunately, there was no news from the bureau.
The kidnapper… had not contacted them either.
Suddenly, Su Yue"s phone rang. The two men were at first shocked but soon reacted.
The person who called was Han Meng.
With a wave of his hand, Su Chenghai gestured to his son to pick up the call.
"Mom," Su Yue pressed the b.u.t.ton for the handsfree mode and composed himself before replying, "is something the matter?"
"Nothing"s wrong, only Xiao Jin"s phone still isn"t connecting. It"s almost afternoon, could you call the cafe to ask if she is returning home for lunch?"
"Lunch…" As his thoughts swirled, Su Yue answered, "that"s right, Mom. Xiao Jin told me that her friend had recently ended her relationship so she was going to stay with her friend for a while. She might not even return this evening, but don"t worry though. She will give you a call once her phone is repaired."
"Xiao Jin said this?" Han Meng was a little suspicious, "why didn"t you tell me this earlier?"
"I must have forgotten it with so many things to do right now." Su Yue chuckled in reply.
"Is that so?" Han Meng was still rather suspicious but with Su Yue"s rea.s.surance and promises, she finally believed him and ended the call.
As he heard the sound of the phone call being hung up, Su Yue then heaved a sigh in relief.
"Let it go."
Su Chenghai"s voice resounded in his ears, Su Yue was startled and followed his father"s gaze. Surprised, he saw that his right hand had unconsciously gripped the paperweight on the table. As he loosened his grip, long and sharp protrusions that were digging into his palm left a deep red imprint.
He quietly sighed yet was unaware that Su Chenghai had long hidden his own clenched fist below the desk. His neatly cut, smooth and round nails had slowly pressed into his palm.
……
At an unknown location.
As she huddled in the corner in her cradle position, Su Jin suddenly felt a chill all over. Furrowing her eyebrows, her body seemed to have layer upon layer of perspiration. In the darkness where she could not even see her outstretched fingers, little by little, panic bubbled up in her heart and she felt a mild shortness of breath.
In her mind, a series of images flashed by.
The smiling faces of the children in the orphanage where everyone would play duck duck goose and hide and seek together. Also, there was an image of an empty house which was similarly steeped in darkness. Lastly, it ended with Aunt Fu"s kind smile and warm embrace.
Su Jin pressed onto her temples to curb her splitting headache and firmly shut her eyes.
She had always thought that she was indifferent by nature. She had always thought that even if she was an orphan, her life had been smooth sailing and she had never suffered any grievances. She had always thought that the reason why Aunt Fu held so much importance in her heart was that she had brought her up.
However, who knew? Even with her indifferent nature, Aunt Fu had always treated her well just like the other children in the orphanage, so why was she the only important person in her heart?
As it turned out…
She had been abandoned when she was young and Aunt Fu had single-handedly brought her up, treating her like her own flesh and blood. Naturally, how she treated her would differ to some extent. As for the children who had already been staying in the orphanage for a long time, these sentiments were extremely clear to them.
At seven years old, a group of children who were of similar ages took the chance to lock her in a dark booth when they were playing hide and seek. These children understood what discontentment was, however, they were not at a mature age yet. Therefore, when they did some mischief, it was done heedlessly without fear.
As dinner time approached, Aunt Fu then realised that she was missing and spent a long time searching for her before finally finding her in the booth. She had shrunk herself into the corner and was on the brink of fainting.
Once she recovered from her serious illness, she had completely forgotten this stretch of memories and slowly, all of her memories before she was seven begun to fade away.
However, even if she had forgotten, she naturally felt a sense of reliance and intimacy to the person who had saved her from the darkness. Therefore, even if Aunt Fu had treated her equally in front of everyone, she had still gradually placed this person who had accompanied her for most of her life as her most important person.
If it was not for this present situation, she would not have recovered these memories.
Su Jin smiled bitterly yet, she was not sure what to do. Although she obviously knew that the fear was irrational, these feelings still emanated from her heart. Her shaky body had steadily become inflexible and as she perspired profusely, breathing seemed to become difficult.
She did not know how much time had pa.s.sed.
In the darkness, there was a sudden loud sound.
Su Jin was shocked. At hearing this, she slowly yet stiffly raised her head.
Apparently, she had sat with her side facing a door. At this moment, the large doors seemed to have been kicked open.
The ever-present sun shone and lit up the s.p.a.ce in the not-too-large steel warehouse. It was a little piercing for her eyes.
But Su Jin did not want to close her eyes.
Those beautiful phoenix eyes remained open and unflinchingly stared at the door, revealing a slight trace of pain.
The person at the door had a slightly ruffled dress shirt. With a glow that seemed to come from the centre of the doorway, he slowly walked from the door until he stopped a step before her.
Su Jin blankly stared at the man who knelt on one knee before her. His features were distinctly handsome. With a slight curve of his lips and merriment in the depth of his peach blossom eyes, it was comparably brighter than the sunlight that shone from behind him.
Afterward, he slowly reached out with his two arms wide open.
With a light smile, he spoke.
"Hug."
Translated by irisu-san
Edited by Ely, Th.o.r.n.yan