Chapter 160: Still Alive

Chapter 160: Chapter 160: Still Alive

Fu Yunfeng asked her,

"Want some?"

"I’m fine."

Qing Qing quickly composed herself.

The flicker of curiosity on her face vanished, replaced by a distant, aloof expression that suggested she couldn’t be bothered to speak with him.

But Fu Yunfeng didn’t back down so easily.

He was vexed by their earlier argument and regretted getting angry over her heated words. He deliberately sought an opening to defuse the tension.

Fu Yunfeng simply picked up a piece of beef with the serving chopsticks and placed it directly into the empty bowl in front of Qing Qing.

It happened so fast that Qing Qing didn’t have time to react.

"Hey! You—!"

Assistant He and Xiao Chen fell silent again, terrified the two of them would start another fight.

Fortunately, Qing Qing didn’t want to make a big deal out of it.

"I just don’t want to waste food!"

Qing Qing finally picked up her chopsticks.

Fu Yunfeng knew she had a light palate and rarely ate heavily seasoned food, so he had deliberately chosen the thinnest slice of Lantern-Shadow Beef.

’Hmph. Is he underestimating me?’

Qing Qing scoffed inwardly and tentatively put the beef in her mouth.

At first, her expression was calm, showing no reaction.

Fu Yunfeng, however, lost his composure.

He called out to Assistant He,

"Quick, bring the teapot over!"

Assistant He moved quickly, but both he and Xiao Chen were a little bewildered.

’President Qing looks fine. Why is Chairman Fu suddenly...’

"Mmph."

Qing Qing let out a muffled gasp, nearly choking.

A flush started at the base of her ears and quickly spread through her whole body.

Fine beads of sweat even appeared on the tip of her nose.

It was hard to imagine someone could have such a strong reaction to the spice from a single bite of Lantern-Shadow Beef!

Fortunately, Fu Yunfeng realized the hot tea wouldn’t be enough to counter the spice and promptly asked a waiter for a bottle of cold milk.

After Qing Qing drank some, she felt much better.

Fu Yunfeng said worriedly,

"I’m sorry, I didn’t realize..."

"It’s not your fault."

Qing Qing raised a hand and wiped her mouth.

She had a good idea why Fu Yunfeng had overestimated her tolerance for spicy food—

Back when their relationship was good, she hadn’t minded trying the spicy dishes Fu Yunfeng loved. Eating them often had raised her tolerance for spice.

But after their relationship shattered and grew ice-cold, she became consumed by work and stuck to a bland diet planned by her nutritionist. As a result, her spice tolerance had plummeted...

Fu Yunfeng quickly realized the reason as well.

It took him a long moment to snap out of it.

It felt as if only now did he truly realize how many years had flown by.

The days when he and Qing Qing were inseparable, sharing all their joys and sorrows, were now a distant memory.

"I’m sorry."

He apologized again.

This time, however, it was for something else.

Qing Qing ignored his apology and changed the subject.

"I know it was Fu Chao who tipped you off."

Fu Yunfeng quickly understood what she was talking about.

He said hesitantly,

"Xiao Chao just wants us to get along."

"Of course I know that. He’s the one who’s suffered the most from our relationship ending up like this. No matter how much we try to make it up to him, it doesn’t change the fact that he’s caught in the middle, torn between us. But what he doesn’t understand is that some things, once they’ve changed, can’t be unchanged."

’Just like us,’ Qing Qing thought, a complex mix of emotions stirring within her.

Given the tacit understanding between them, Fu Yunfeng naturally understood what she was saying.

He understood both her spoken words and her unspoken meaning.

But his thoughts differed from Qing Qing’s.

"We’ll go back to being a family... No, we *have* to."

Qing Qing looked up, her gaze cold.

The little incident with the Lantern-Shadow Beef had eased the atmosphere between them considerably.

But now, it plunged back into an icy chill.

"How many times do I have to say it..."

"I found Lin Xiang."

Fu Yunfeng suddenly dropped a bombshell.

Qing Qing, however, was slightly confused.

Her memory was excellent. Of course she knew Lin Xiang was Zizhi’s nanny all those years ago.

And she immediately understood the purpose behind his action.

"Why look for her? Didn’t we already investigate her years ago?"

Lin Xiang was even on the initial list of people to be investigated!

With Qing Qing and Fu Yunfeng’s resources, they had investigated everyone down to Lin Xiang’s elementary school classmates. They still hadn’t found a single clue, or else they never would have let her go so easily.

So why was Fu Yunfeng bringing up Lin Xiang now?

This time, Fu Yunfeng held nothing back. He told Qing Qing everything—what he had discovered, and the trail he had picked up on Lin Xiang’s whereabouts from his investigation in the small town.

This included the possibility that Lin Xiang might have left the child in the snow.

Before telling her, he had considered hiding that part.

For both of them, rehashing what had happened to their daughter was a form of torture, like death by a thousand cuts.

But he told her anyway.

Because Fu Yunfeng knew Qing Qing. He knew she would rather face a painful truth than live in blissful ignorance.

Sure enough, as he continued his story, Qing Qing’s breathing grew ragged.

Her hands, resting on the table, slowly tightened into fists.

"She... She actually..."

Qing Qing was filled with hatred.

’The person who harmed my daughter just walked right out of our home and lived peacefully for all these years! It was all our fault, our negligence. How could we have missed something like that! The thought of my Zizhi, left in the snow, perhaps weakly crying out for her mommy and daddy... I want to flay Lin Xiang and Xu Dong alive, tear out their tendons and devour their flesh, and unleash every vicious method I can imagine upon those two monsters!’

"Where is Lin Xiang?"

"I found her. Right here in Yanjing."

Fu Yunfeng’s tone was exceptionally calm.

But Qing Qing, knowing him as well as she did, sensed something was off.

"What’s wrong?"

Fu Yunfeng said grimly,

"Someone is helping Lin Xiang, trying to stop me from finding her."

Qing Qing asked through gritted teeth,

"Who?"

"I haven’t found out yet."

Fu Yunfeng shook his head with regret.

Qing Qing, however, didn’t panic. Her mind was calmer and clearer than ever before.

"Xu Dong is in prison. Lin Xiang has been living in hiding under a new name for years. If she or someone close to her had the power to hide her from you all this time, she wouldn’t have lived in such a pathetic state. This means the person helping her only recently appeared, and they have a motive! There are only two possibilities—either it’s another act of revenge targeting us, or..."

Fu Yunfeng slowly raised his eyes to meet hers and finished her thought without hesitation:

"...or they’re targeting Zizhi! And either way, it points to one thing—Zizhi is still alive!"

In that shared glance, the tacit understanding they had built over decades as husband and wife reached its zenith.

"Your *yan du xian* is here."

Fu Chao appeared, carrying the dish himself.

He noticed the strange atmosphere between his parents and gave them a few puzzled glances.

Qing Qing and Fu Yunfeng both let out a slow breath.

It was clear they were both in a good mood.

"Thank you."

They nodded at their son but, by unspoken agreement, didn’t say much.

Fu Chao grew even more baffled.

But with the cameras present, he couldn’t say much. He gave them a meaningful look before leaving.

Qing Qing watched his retreating back with a gentle expression.

"Xiao Chao will be so happy when he finds out."

Fu Yunfeng nodded.

"The priority now is to find Lin Xiang. I’ve already uncovered a few leads—that person might be helping her flee the country, and it’s happening in the next few days!"