"Zhizhi, if it were you, would you be willing to come back to me?"
The look in Chi Yu's eyes as he gazed at her held something Jiang Zhirou couldn't decipher.
She stood still for a couple of seconds, and just as she was about to speak, Chi Yu's voice rang out again.
"Have some lychees first. They won't taste good if they're left for too long."
"Okay..."
Jiang Zhirou's train of thought was interrupted. She took the lychees from Chi Yu absent - mindedly, watched him walk into his room, and then slowly averted her gaze.
She wondered if it was just her imagination, but when Chi Yu asked her that last question, it seemed like he really wanted an answer from her.
This confused Jiang Zhirou greatly. She had only known Chi Yu for a few days. If it were her, she certainly wouldn't be willing to go with him. But she wasn't his girlfriend, so it was strange for him to ask such a question.
Unable to figure it out, Jiang Zhirou decided not to think about it anymore. She grabbed a lychee and popped it into her mouth.
It was very sweet.
Just then, her phone on the table suddenly rang.
Jiang Zhirou picked up the phone. It was Si Moshen's number.
The moment she answered the call, before the person on the other end could speak, her voice came out first.
"Have you landed? Were you busy just now? I called you and Uncle Shen before, but neither of you answered. I was afraid you were entertaining clients, so I didn't dare to ask. Have you eaten? Are you just done with your work?"
Hearing the series of concerned questions from the other end, Si Moshen tightened his grip on the phone slightly and gave a soft grunt.
"I just finished. What about you? Have you eaten well at home? Has Mr. Chi been keeping a good eye on you?"
Hearing Si Moshen mention Chi Yu, a hint of unease flashed across Jiang Zhirou's face. "I'm fine too. He's okay. He made Chinese food for me today. It tasted pretty good. You might think he looks like a playboy, but he can really cook. When you come back, let him make something for you to try."
Si Moshen listened quietly. Jiang Zhirou didn't even notice the occasional glimmer of happiness in her words when she talked about Chi Yu.
Jiang Zhirou kept chattering away, completely oblivious to the man's mood on the other end of the phone.
"By the way, I want to ask you. Did you ask him to stay in Yuelan because of his girlfriend?"
As soon as the words left her mouth, a hint of meaning flashed across Si Moshen's brow. "Why do you suddenly ask this?"
"Nothing." Jiang Zhirou lowered her head while talking on the phone, and her other hand played with the bedsheet from time to time. "He said some strange things to me today. I didn't quite understand, so I wanted to ask if he's staying here because of his girlfriend."
Si Moshen on the other end of the phone was silent for a while, and then slowly said, "Sort of."
Hearing this, Jiang Zhirou's hand that was playing with the bedsheet stopped, and her heart tightened. "Does he really have a girlfriend?"
"Yes."
This time, Si Moshen answered quickly without any hesitation.
"I see..."
Jiang Zhirou on the other end of the phone didn't know why she suddenly felt a bit disappointed, but this news really didn't make her happy.
Even though she was unhappy, she understood one thing, which was that she couldn't get involved in other people's relationships. That would be immoral.
A forced smile appeared on Jiang Zhirou's face. She said into the phone, "Then you go ahead with your work. I'll wait for you at home. Bye."
After hanging up the phone, Si Moshen looked at the darkened phone in his hand. A bitter smile curved his lips as he murmured, "She fell for him after all."
When Si Moshen and Uncle Shen arrived in Mexico, it was already late at night.
Chen Yu'an had deliberately driven to wait outside the airport early.
As soon as he saw Si Moshen coming out of the airport, Tan Si immediately stepped forward.
"Mr. Si, this way, please."
Tan Si opened the back - seat door, and Si Moshen bent down and got in.
Uncle Shen sat in the front passenger seat.
As soon as Si Moshen got in the car, Chen Yu'an nodded slightly at him. "Mr. Si, you've had a hard journey."
Then, the next second, he handed the documents in his hand to Si Moshen.
"Qingmian—"
As soon as these words were out, both of their expressions changed slightly.
"I'm still used to calling her Qingmian."
Si Moshen gave a soft grunt, signaling him to continue.
"Qingmian came to me before and asked me about the orphanage. She also asked about the people in the group photo very briefly. Although she didn't show it very obviously, I still noticed that she wanted to ask about that man in the black robe."
"I was just 18 years old at that time. Due to financial reasons, I didn't meet the adoption requirements, so it was my nominal guardian, Wei Jianguo, who handled the adoption procedures. According to the information, the man in the black robe in the group photo was a staff member of that welfare home."
"But I don't think it's that simple, so I dug deeper. He is—"
"He is Zhizhi's biological father."
Si Moshen interrupted Chen Yu'an.
Chen Yu'an showed no surprise at this.
Since he could find it out, with Si Moshen's connections and means, it wasn't difficult for him to find this out.
However, it would be much more difficult to find out more.
"Not only that."
Chen Yu'an continued.
He pointed at the documents, signaling Si Moshen to turn to the next page, and said at the same time, "I found out that when they were in that black factory, he would visit Qingmian's place every day with the purpose of hypnotizing her."
As soon as the words were out, a look of surprise clearly flashed across Si Moshen's face.
He had sent people to investigate that place, but since it was an illegal industry involving a gang, his people had never been able to conduct a further investigation.
Si Moshen was a bit curious about how Chen Yu'an got this information.
The look in his eyes when he looked at Chen Yu'an was full of inquiry.
Chen Yu'an knew what he was thinking. He said expressionlessly, "I traded goods for information. It's a very reasonable and cost - effective deal."
Hearing this, Si Moshen frowned slightly.
The Si family had also originated from a gang in the previous generations. It was only from his father's generation that they had completely cleaned up their act. So the Si family knew very well how difficult it was to get rid of their shady past.
Not cooperating with gangs was a rule set by the Si family over the years, and no one was allowed to break it.
Si Moshen was a bit unhappy when he heard that Chen Yu'an had cooperated with those people.
But he was also half - brother to Jiang Zhirou. If it weren't for his protection during the years Jiang Zhirou had lived in the imperial capital, she might have already gotten into trouble.
Thinking of this, Si Moshen's tone softened a bit.
"You know, once you get involved with those people, it's hard to clean yourself up."
This was both a reminder and a warning for him to be careful.
Hearing this, a hint of surprise flashed across Chen Yu'an's eyes. Si Moshen was well - known in the business world as an extremely self - interested person.
Not to mention considering others, it would be a blessing if he didn't exploit others to the fullest.
He really didn't expect Si Moshen to suddenly remind him like this.