Chapter 229 - 103: Shepherd Dog (Part 1)

Chapter 229: Chapter 103: Shepherd Dog (Part 1)

Zhang Shutong felt that Gu Qiuyan seemed to have changed, but he couldn’t put his finger on how.

He told her to think it over, and she nodded. He asked if something was on her mind, and she just shook her head and gave a faint, small smile.

In that moment, she seemed more like a young lady of a distinguished family—not the bratty, arrogant type, but a very demure one.

But he had never understood what Gu Qiuyan was thinking. Something felt off, but he didn’t know why.

They sat on the sofa. Zhang Shutong watched her take small sips of water. They had forgotten to bring snacks or drinks when they went down earlier, so she must have been very thirsty, looking for water as soon as she came back up.

Zhang Shutong also knew she had burned her finger. This time, without needing to be reminded, he proactively got up and refilled her glass. Gu Qiuyan said "thank you" to him. Zhang Shutong nodded instinctively, then had another thought. ’She seems to have gotten a lot more polite, too. I rarely—or rather, almost never—heard Gu Qiuyan say thank you before.’

No one came near them. Song and the others had gone to sit at the dining table, as if intentionally creating a private space for the two of them to talk.

Zhang Shutong only now realized that Gu Qiuyan had always been the one to initiate their conversations. If she didn’t take the lead, things would devolve into the current situation: a silent stalemate.

But that wasn’t quite right. A silent stalemate implied they were looking at each other without speaking. In reality, Gu Qiuyan had lowered her gaze, leaving him to space out on the sofa by himself.

’What else is there to do but space out?’ The last ferry was at six. It was three now. Factoring in travel time, he had two and a half hours left to wait.

To wait for Gu Qiuyan to give him an answer.

There was no need to make his friends wait around any longer. Zhang Shutong got up and went to the dining table, telling them they could head back first. Ruoping nodded and called her dad; if they left now, the timing would be perfect.

Zhang Shutong walked them to the main gate in the fence. Within ten-odd minutes, the once-noisy villa fell silent again. He knew the password now, so he didn’t need to bother Gu Qiuyan anymore. Zhang Shutong walked a few more steps with them, their footprints a chaotic mess on the white snow.

"Go back, don’t see us off any further." Ruoping gestured at him. "And don’t be so paranoid all the time. We don’t mind, but you’ve clearly scared Gu Qiuyan."

Zhang Shutong stopped in his tracks. He was actually a little worried they might run into trouble on their way back, even though the possibility was practically zero.

Emulating his revered teacher’s method, Zhang Shutong arranged to check in with them on QQ every five minutes. He watched the three of them walk away until their laughing and chatting figures disappeared at the end of the path.

Just then, his phone buzzed. It was a message from Qingyi:

"Doesn’t seem to be going very well."

Ruoping and Du Kang were always optimists; when they said they were going back, they really just went back. But Qingyi still had his concerns.

’Yeah, it really isn’t going well,’ Zhang Shutong thought upon seeing the message.

His mind was a mess right now. He’d thought finding the footprints was a major breakthrough, but one set of footprints wasn’t the same as another, and now everything was in chaos. He didn’t know whether to tell people to leave or to stay.

’Things aren’t going well with Gu Qiuyan...’ He had intended to type that, but after a few words, he deleted it and rephrased:

"What was she doing downstairs?"

"Not sure. When we came up, she said she needed to call her dad back," Qingyi replied. "Are you planning to stay here and stand guard tonight?"

"Not planning on it." Just him alone wouldn’t be enough, and Lu Qinglian had to go back to the mountain tonight. Zhang Shutong was more inclined to hide than to just lie in wait.

"What if she still refuses to leave in the end?"

Zhang Shutong’s fingers paused.

He used to think that was unlikely. Leaving the island was the final, and easiest, fallback plan. If all else failed, he could just run away with her. But now, Gu Qiuyan seemed unwilling, turning this easy escape route into a dead end. ’Am I going to have to kidnap her?’

Qingyi wrote:

"Well, it’s understandable, I guess. I’m actually surprised she’s willing to believe you at all. If it were me, I’d probably be skeptical. But then again, even if she does believe you, it’s not like she’s going to do everything you say. You need to be prepared for that."

At this point, Qingyi offered an idea:

"If she still won’t leave by then—I mean, if she really refuses—should we just tie her up?

"It won’t come to that, will it?" Zhang Shutong’s eyelid twitched. He had only been thinking about it, but his friend was already planning to put it into action.

"Well, you’ve been into taking desperate risks lately, right? Like digging that pit."

"Don’t bring up the pit again..."

Zhang Shutong thought again. It was precisely because of that pit that he needed to control the neurotic ideas that occasionally popped into his head.

"Anyway, I’ll wait here and see for now. Even if she doesn’t agree to leave the island, maybe I can convince the housekeeper to have the two of them find a small motel to stay in."

"Alright. The road ahead is a bit rough, so I’ll talk to you later."

Zhang Shutong turned off his phone’s screen.

He stood outside the empty villa and sighed, habitually considering the worst-case scenario. ’What if Gu Qiuyan absolutely refuses to leave and insists on staying in the villa? I can’t actually tie her up like Qingyi said.’

A strange thought suddenly occurred to Zhang Shutong. He actually had the ability to do it now. He knew the villa’s password. He could wait until tonight and sneak in, just like the murderer, and carry her off without anyone knowing. Of course, he was still missing a getaway vehicle.

But he decided against it. Based on his understanding of her, all it would take was a bit more persuading. Gu Qiuyan was still easy to coax and convince; there was no need to tie anyone up.

He turned and went back into the villa. Just as he was about to find Gu Qiuyan to talk some more, he saw she was no longer on the sofa.

In her place stood Song.

"Shutong, good news." Song wore a relaxed smile for the first time in a long while.

’I hope this isn’t another piece of "good news" like class being cancelled,’ Zhang Shutong thought. The man continued:

"Qiumian’s father just called. He’s back."

"...He’s back?" Zhang Shutong was stunned.

"Yeah. He was trying to call Qiumian, but she must have left her phone downstairs. When he couldn’t get through, he called me. Qiumian just went to a room to take the call."

Song Nanshan stretched.

"What are you spacing out for, you kid? Don’t tell me you were actually planning to take that girl to stay in a motel. You’re both minors! I can only pretend to be blind for so long. You can finally relax a bit now, right? Stop shouldering this burden all by yourself. To put it nicely, reinforcements have arrived. To put it bluntly, that’s her old man. He’s going to care more about this than we ever could."

"Wasn’t his flight delayed?" Zhang Shutong asked subconsciously.

"It was delayed, but Boss Gu was worried about his daughter, so he chartered a private jet to fly back. He’s been traveling all day and just reached the city. He’s on his way to the harbor now." In private, Song dropped his formal air and chuckled. "He just called Qiumian to ask if she wanted him to bring her anything, or if there was anything she wanted to eat. Don’t think he doesn’t dote on Qiumian just because he was away for a few days. He might be a big boss, but everyone’s got a soft spot."

"Oh, right, right," Song added. "I forgot to tell you. Wasn’t he rushing back because of that Zhou Ziheng business? Well, he brought no shortage of bodyguards with him this time—four of them. I told him about the footprints, and Qiumian’s father’s face immediately darkened. He said he had to make a call first, and he called a city official directly. The official took it very seriously, too. After all the trouble they went through to attract a big-shot investor like him, how could they fail to guarantee his daughter’s safety? He’s having two police officers dispatched from the city. How’s that for a deluxe lineup?"

Zhang Shutong hadn’t fully processed this "good news" yet when Song waved his hand and cut in again:

"I know, I know. You’re still worried that person might come over tonight, right? I told Qiumian’s father about that too. So this is going to be a comprehensive, no-blind-spots operation. Not only will they be guarding the villa 24/7, but they’ll also be patrolling outside. It’s just a damn set of footprints, scaring the hell out of us and making us worry for half the day. But now the professionals are here. I’d like to see what he can possibly do now."

Having said all that, Song finally let out a sigh of relief and took a sip of water to wet his throat.

"So, Shutong, your teacher is just trying to tell you that you don’t have to be so on edge anymore. It pains me to see you running around busy all day. We’re not fighting alone anymore. What’s that term from online games? Oh, right—the heavy cavalry has arrived. The two of us can finally take a break.

"While it’s been nice watching TV in the villa, with three amazing meals a day, a spacious living room, and a soft sofa... I’ve been enjoying the perks all day thanks to you. But this is someone else’s house, after all. It’s not right to overstay our welcome."

Song hesitated, as if he wanted to say more.

"If you still don’t get it, I’ll be more direct. I don’t mean to lecture, but surely you’re not still thinking of convincing Qiumian to leave the island, are you? Or are you planning to go convince her father directly? But Shutong, the man’s a tycoon worth hundreds of millions. The fact that he brought so many people back shows how seriously he’s taking this. He’s not going to just abandon his own house and run off with his daughter like a refugee. Forget a big boss like him, even an ordinary person wouldn’t be willing to do that. And besides, from what I know about Qiumian’s mom... oh, right, you don’t know yet."

Song bent down and lowered his voice.

"You saw that family photo earlier, right? Isn’t it strange that no one ever mentions Qiumian’s mother? I know you’re a sensible kid, so I’m telling you this, but don’t go spreading it around. Qiumian’s mother passed away a long time ago. Her grave is right here on the island. Her father visits it every time he comes back from a business trip. Do you understand now?"

Song said no more, letting the point sink in.

Zhang Shutong nodded.

He really did understand now.

Gu Qiuyan’s father was finally back. Zhang Shutong had prepared for his absence, but this time, he had really returned. And he’d brought plenty of bodyguards and even police. His worst fears wouldn’t come to pass—everyone was on high alert. Seven adult men would be in this palace-like building around the clock, providing close protection and patrols. No matter how he looked at it, it was far more reliable than anything he could do.

Just as Song had said, this was fantastic news.

But Zhang Shutong felt a little lost. The situation seemed to have reversed itself in an instant, almost comically, like a joke played at his expense. A moment ago, he was agonizing over what to do if Gu Qiuyan wouldn’t leave the island, where to investigate for clues next, and how to evade the murderer in the early hours of Saturday morning... but now, all of those problems had ceased to exist.

Like Song said, this was her own home, and the protection she was getting was ten thousand times better than having him around. Why would she need to leave the island?

He turned and looked around. The living room was empty, still locked in the same quiet, tranquil afternoon. A few uncollected glasses sat on the coffee table. The guests were gone, and the tea had grown cold.

He suddenly realized he had no reason to stay any longer. All his previous anxiety and worry had vanished into thin air in that instant, leaving him feeling utterly at a loss.