Chapter 204: Encounter on a Rainy Night

Chapter 204: Chapter 204: Encounter on a Rainy Night

Tao An had always thought he’d disciplined himself, just like his outstanding predecessors, to unconditionally trust and follow his boss, to never be surprised by any of his decisions...

He was, it turned out, still too young.

’Guisheng Province? A vacation?’

Tao An glanced at Mr. Lu’s back—as poised and detached as a Banished Immortal’s—and grumbled to himself.

’How could a man who did nothing but work, a man for whom the word ’vacation’ seemed to have no meaning, suddenly grasp the importance of a work-life balance?’

’And of all places, he hadn’t chosen a sunny seaside island or a tranquil, pleasant mountain retreat. He’d picked the mountains of Guisheng Province?’

’Guisheng Province was great, of course. He liked it a lot and had even visited during college...’

’But there were different parts of Guisheng Province!’

’Who goes on vacation to the poor, undeveloped mountains of Guisheng?’

’It’s not like it was Zhongnan Mountain, where one might go to live as a hermit and seek enlightenment!’

’Ah, wait a minute.’

Something suddenly occurred to Tao An. He discreetly pulled out his phone and did a quick search.

And just like that, everything that didn’t make sense suddenly had a reason—

Cub Observation Diary was currently filming in the mountains of Guisheng Province.

In other words, Miss Nan Zhi was there.

Tao An felt a strange mix of emotions.

Lu Shixu’s ethereal, distant image—as if he dwelled among the clouds—was suddenly tinged with the dust of the mortal world, bringing him down to earth and making him seem almost approachable.

It even gave Tao An the mistaken impression that ’Mr. Lu is just like me, after all—just another guy troubled by love.’ The thought sent him spiraling back to his own college days...

Tao An’s hesitation drew a sideways glance from Lu Shixu.

The look was light, almost casual, yet it was filled with so much pressure that the hairs on Tao An’s arms stood straight up.

"...I’ll get right on the arrangements!"

’Thinking Mr. Lu was anything like him was the biggest mistake of his life!’

A two-week vacation sounded wonderful in theory, but it came with a decidedly un-wonderful workload.

To clear the backlog of work before leaving for Guisheng Province and to ensure the company would run smoothly for the next two weeks without issue, Tao An worked overtime for three days straight.

Of course, he wasn’t the only one exhausted. The entire secretarial department was running at full throttle.

And the one who shouldered the heaviest burden was Lu Shixu himself.

Given his temperament, the only way he could command such loyal subordinates was through his intellect and his habit of leading from the front.

For example, while Tao An had left work at 9 p.m. for the past three days, he hadn’t once seen Lu Shixu leave the office.

’And to think, all this hard work was just so the boss could use ’vacation’ as an excuse to go to the mountains of Guisheng...’

Tao An had to resist the urge to laugh.

The thought of his seniors, who were completely in the dark and probably assumed Mr. Lu was off to conquer new markets, was particularly amusing. They were all pumped up as if on steroids, which made Tao An want to laugh even harder.

Soon enough, all the work was completed on schedule.

Gleefully pocketing his triple overtime pay, Tao An, as the only assistant in the know, accompanied Lu Shixu on a flight to Guisheng Province. After landing, they immediately drove nonstop toward the mountains.

The rain was torrential, making for terrible road conditions. Fortunately, their car was steady, and they encountered no mishaps along the way.

The driver, Old Sun, was one of Lu Shixu’s long-time men. A military veteran, he was tough, a man of few words, and often doubled as a bodyguard.

After several hours on the mountain roads, Old Sun showed no sign of fatigue, much to the envy of Tao An, who was slumped in the passenger seat, struggling to stay awake.

Just as Tao An leaned back, his eyes half-closed and on the verge of sleep...

Old Sun suddenly slowed the car, his eyes fixed on the road ahead. He spoke abruptly:

"Someone’s there."

In the back seat, Lu Shixu, who had been resting with his eyes closed, snapped them open, his gaze sharp.

Tao An, jolted wide awake, stammered in a panic:

"Someone? Who?"

’It was late. Who would be on a remote mountain road in the middle of the night? Could it be...’

"A ghost?"

Tao An curled into a shivering ball.

For once, Old Sun, who was usually as silent as a piece of the scenery, shot Tao An a speechless look.

He then hit the brakes, bringing the car to a slow stop, and explained:

"It’s a little kid. Looks to be about three or four."

Old Sun had been in the special forces; identifying a person in the rain at night was a basic skill for him.

But his assessment turned Tao An’s terror into indignation. "A kid?" he said, annoyed. "In the middle of the night, in this rain? What kind of parents would be so careless as to let their child wander out?"

Gazing at the small, curled-up figure in the distance, looking so pitiful, Tao An couldn’t help but feel a surge of sympathy.

He wanted to get out and check on the child, but he kept his wits about him, worried it might be a trap—a ploy by criminals to lure them out of the car.

Tao An was just about to turn and ask Mr. Lu for instructions when a figure blurred in the back seat.

Mr. Lu had already pulled an umbrella from the door pocket, pushed the door open, and stepped out.

Tao An was stunned.

Old Sun was just as surprised.

As Lu Shixu’s subordinates, they knew their boss’s temperament perfectly well.

He was by no means a man who could be described with words like "kind" or "compassionate."

Allowing Tao An to go and help would have been the absolute limit of his leniency.

So why would he personally step out into the rain to offer help?

"I’ll go see," Tao An said, hurriedly pushing his door open.

The unlit night already made it difficult to see, and the heavy rain blurred his vision even further.

Tao An could just faintly make out Mr. Lu crouching down in front of the small bundle... ’Wait, crouching?’

"Mr. Lu!"

Tao An hurried after him.

As he got closer, he could see the child more clearly—

He was wrapped in a raincoat and clutching an umbrella, a tiny ball huddled by the side of the road. His pant legs were covered in filth, and even his pale little face was spattered with mud. His cheeks were soaked.

But his eyes were astonishingly bright, holding a raw, childish fierceness, like a wolf cub ready to pounce and bite at a moment’s notice.

It took Tao An’s brain a couple of seconds to process before he paled in shock.

"Nan Yi? Why is it you? What’s wrong?"

If even Tao An could figure out that finding Nan Yi on the road in the middle of the night meant something was wrong, how could Lu Shixu not?

In fact, his thoughts had already gone much deeper.

From his almost instinctual understanding of the boy, Lu Shixu knew there was only one person who could make Nan Yi go to such lengths.

He stared intently at Nan Yi, his voice turning icy.

"Did something happen to your mother?"

It was less a question than a statement of fact.

At that moment, Lu Shixu radiated a chilling, murderous aura, as if he were ready to obliterate anyone who stood in his way.

As for Nan Yi, he simply stared back at Lu Shixu for several seconds.

He stared until he was certain that the man before him was indeed the annoying one who was always chasing after his mom.

He didn’t like the man, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t ask him for help.

’Whatever his reason for being here, the most important thing right now is Mom, who’s sick at home!’

And so, Nan Yi spoke decisively.

"Mom’s sick. The power’s out at home. I came to find help."

Nan Yi explained the situation succinctly.

The lines of Lu Shixu’s face tightened. Without another word, he scooped Nan Yi into his arms.

"Let’s go."