Chapter 3

Chapter 3

My hand instinctively tightened the moment I saw that message.

I whipped my head around-

There was no one there.

The leaves trembling slightly in the breeze, the tightly drawn curtains, the shadow that had flickered past earlier-they all seemed like nothing more than figments of my imagination, let alone the idea of someone actually standing there.

I slowly turned back and typed a reply: [How did you know I was talking to a child?]

On the chat interface, the words [The other party is typing…] slowly appeared, but no answer came for a long while.

“Big sister, you haven’t answered me yet! Are you this big brother’s girlfriend too?”

The little boy across from me was getting a bit grumpy at my silence.

I snapped back to reality. “Little guy, my boyfriend only has one girlfriend-me.”

Liang Xuan had pursued me for three whole years, and we had been together for another three. From our college dorms to my current workplace, almost no one had a bad word to say about him. It was just as Liang Xuan had said when he confessed his feelings to me: his heart and eyes were filled with almost nothing but me.

I knew his phone passcode, and I knew his bank PIN. In short, regarding anything that required secrecy, even if I said, “We both need our own space; even if we’re a couple, you don’t need to tell me all your secrets,” Liang Xuan would still reveal everything to me without reservation.

Could a man like Liang Xuan really be cheating?

Thinking of this, I remembered Liang Xuan’s sister, Liang Nian.

“Little guy, is the ‘girlfriend’ you’re talking about the daughter of this family? My boyfriend has a sister, you know. She’s very pretty too!”

“No!” The boy suddenly flared up, seemingly offended that I doubted him. “I know the big brother’s sister! She’s always mean to me! She says I live in the other building and won’t let me play at this playground… The sister I’m talking about wears really heavy makeup.” He gestured around his cheeks with his chubby little hands. “Way heavier than my mom’s! And I’ve seen lots of different sisters.”

The little boy began counting on his fingers. “One, two…”

I watched as he counted until he had nearly used up all ten fingers, and I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

Even for a ‘sea king’ player, having that many lovers would require a lot of time!

Liang Xuan was usually very busy with work, and he spent all his free time with me. Even if I were to suspect him, I would need actual evidence. But right now… the boy’s story was simply too exaggerated.

Still, I gently patted the boy’s head. “Okay, thank you for telling me.”

“Those sisters even offered me yummy treats, but I don’t care about that at all,” the boy said, shaking his head.

Speaking of treats, I rummaged through my pockets. I didn’t have anything special, only a few pieces of salty fruit candy I had picked up from the coffee table at the Liang Family home.

I held out my palm and asked the boy, “Thank you. Would you like some candy?”

“That’s it!” The boy practically jumped. “Those sisters gave me this candy too! It tastes bad! I don’t want it!”

With that, he grabbed his skateboard, turned around, and ran off.

This exact candy?

Was this candy that common?

I looked down at the salty plum candy in my palm, my brow furrowing slightly.

I hadn’t really tasted this candy before. When I went to Liang Xuan’s house today, I saw several bags of it laid out on the coffee table. Liang Xuan mentioned that his father loved this specific brand, so I took a few pieces specifically to try them.

I had simply forgotten about them later and stuffed them into my pocket.

Could what the little boy said actually be true?

But… I felt I shouldn’t suspect Liang Xuan without cause. After all, we had known each other for nearly six years.

Just then, a message from Liang Xuan popped up:

[I was just standing by the curtains watching you!]

[You’ve only been gone a moment and I already miss you~]

[Did that little boy say anything to you? I always see him playing at the playground around here!]
Seeing the smiling emoji Liang Xuan sent at the end of his message, I instinctively thought back to a moment ago. But when I had turned my head, the curtains hadn’t been pulled back, and as for the person…

I hadn’t seen anyone either.

I was overthinking things again.

I shook my head and typed a reply: [It’s nothing. Maybe they just thought I was pretty and were asking if I was your girlfriend!]

Liang Xuan replied almost instantly: [Alright, stay safe on the road.]

On the way back to the newspaper office, the taxi was warm and cozy. Although it was spring and everything was coming back to life, there was still a slight chill in the air.

The driver was a talkative man. I gave him a brief response, and as I looked up, I happened to see a photo hanging from the rearview mirror.

It was tied with a red string and showed two girls’ faces, one on each side.

They were both very young. While not stunningly beautiful, they looked youthful, vibrant, and quite delicate.

“Sir, are those your two daughters? They’re both very lovely,” I complimented with a smile.

The driver sighed. “No, this is part of a missing persons campaign my company started recently. Both the girls in these photos are missing.”

I was startled. Looking closely at the two different photos, I saw that the contact information for their families was indeed printed at the bottom of each side.

“Your company’s initiative is wonderful,” I remarked.

Taxis travel all over the city, so using them to raise awareness for missing people was a truly effective method.

“Yeah, that’s why I keep it hanging there every day! It’ll be a good thing if even one is found, right?”

The two girls in the photos were in the prime of their youth, likely the pride and joy of their families. For them to vanish without a trace must have been a devastating blow to their loved ones.

I hoped these missing girls were, at the very least…

Still safe…

Since it was the weekend, the office was mostly empty. I was cleaning up some documents I’d left behind when I suddenly heard someone call my name: “Xiaoxiao, what are you doing here?”

I knew from the voice that it was Xiao Zhao, a colleague from my office. Without turning around, I waved the documents in my hand. “I forgot to take these. Why are you still here on the weekend?”

“I have some stuff I haven’t finished yet,” Xiao Zhao said with a long sigh.

I put the documents into my bag and, suddenly remembering what had happened in the taxi, turned to call out to her, “Xiao Zhao, do you know anything about the recent missing persons cases?”

Xiao Zhao didn’t even look up. “Which missing persons cases are you talking about? If you mean the ones that count as missing but also don’t count as missing, then I know a bit about those.”

“Count as missing but also don’t count? What do you mean?”

“These missing people are all girls. You could say they’re missing because they don’t see their parents for a year or two, and no one knows where they are during that time. But you could also say they aren’t missing because, every once in a while, their parents receive texts or voice messages from them.”

As she typed, Xiao Zhao continued, “These kinds of cases have been slowly increasing in A City in recent years. When parents report it to the police, some girls even show up to prove they’ve just gone out to find work and aren’t missing. But after that period passes, the girls disappear again, and their parents can’t reach them. After this happens a few times, the police are left with no options, right? What can worried parents do? Sometimes they hire private investigators, and sometimes they…”

“Sometimes they what?” I asked curiously.

“Have you heard of that company that’s been really popular lately? It’s like a search firm. Many parents of these types of missing girls go to this company for help. Although they haven’t actually found many girls, their fees are low. The parents just provide some clues, and it’s much cheaper than a private investigator. Since the families don’t have much power on their own, they’re all quite grateful to this company.”

“What’s the name of this company?”

“The name? I have the files right here, let me see-

Oh, it’s called Anxin. This missing persons company-Anxin Missing Persons Company.”