Lian Ziho remained hidden behind the rusted freight container. His grip around the metal pipe hadn't loosened for nearly ten minutes. The metal dug into his palm, but he barely noticed. He stared into the darkness stretching between themachinery. The warehouse was too quiet.Only the distant dripping of water echoed somewhere overhead and footsteps sound was getting closer.His body reacted before his mind did. The metal pipe rose slightly. His breathing slowed and his eyes narrowed.Then a figure came from between the rows of machinery. Lian ziho raised the pipe fully, ready and prepared to swing.
The figure stepped beneath one of the overhead lights. For a second both them froze. "Lian Ziho?" the newcomer said in disbelief."Zheng Rui." Lian ziho put down pipe . Zheng rui blinked and hurried toward him. "What the hell are you doing hiding behind containers?" he asked. Lian ziho replied, "I thought you were one of them." "At this point," Zheng rui replied while glancing around the warehouse, "that's not exactly an unreasonable assumption."
Zheng rui looked around and his eyes locked on chair with chains.His expression changed. Slowly, he walked toward the chair.The closer he got, the worse his expression became.His gaze moved carefully over every detail. He saw metal restraints bolted to the armrests, rope fibers left behind and scrape marks on the floor.Zheng Rui swallowed hard and looked back at Lian ziho. "Where's Jun Wei?" Lian ziho didn't answer he remained standing where he was.Zheng rui frowned."Did you find him?" Still nothing.His voice grew sharper. "What about Suo ran?" Lian ziho's eyes drifted back toward the chair. His expression was unreadable, but zheng rui could see fear, guilt and somthing worse underneath.After several long seconds, Lian ziho spoke. "He was here."
Zheng Rui froze his eyes scanned the evidence again. "He was here? then where is he now?!" Zheng rui said.Lian ziho nodded once. " He was here but not anymore.And I don't know where is he now." Zheng rui's chest tightened. He walked around the chair, examining everything, searching for something but there was nothing. "Damn it..." He dragged a hand through his hair. "We were too late." Lian ziho's jaw clenched. "No." Zheng rui looked at him. "No?" he repeated. Lian ziho shook his head."We weren't late." "Then what?" His eyes moved toward the floor, toward a broken zip tie lying near the chair. "They took him." Zheng rui felt anger rise. "Who?" "I don't know." "You don't know?" His frustration slipped through before he could stop it. "Lian Ziho..."
Lian ziho rubbed his face tiredly. His clothes were dirty, knuckles bruised and there were dark circles beneath his eyes. Only now did zheng rui realize how terrible he looked. "You've been searching alone?" Lian ziho didn't answer. "How long?" Lian ziho eyes didn't left chair and he replied,"Don't know." Zheng rui stared at him. Lian ziho reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone.The cracked screen lit briefly.There was no signal. For several moments neither spoke. Both them simply stared at the empty chair.
Elsewhere suo ran stood there in confusion. Then after few seconds figure entered in room.The man appeared to be around forty-five years old.He was tall, broad-shouldered.
His posture was straight and composed.His black coat hung neatly over a dark shirt, simple but immaculate.He eyes were locked on suo ran.Then the driver lowered his head. "Boss." His tone carried genuine respect, not fear, just respect, natural like a habit formed over years.The older man gave a slight nod in return.
Beside him, Qin Yue folded her arms and shook her head with a helpless smile, she exhaling softly."Honestly." The man glanced at her briefly, a faint flicker of amusement passing through his eyes before disappearing again. Qin Yue sighed, shifting her weight slightly. "Why does everyone who gets close to you end up becoming curious?"
Suo Ran frowned and stepping forward half a pace. "What are you talking about?" Qin Yue turned toward him slowly, her eyes narrowing slightly in quiet amusement. Her smile deepened,"You already understood."Suo ran's jaw tightened. "I understood what?"
She looked at photograph and then smiled "The reason you're standing here." Suo ran's expression darkened instantly, irritation flashing in his eyes as he straightened his posture. "I understood absolutely nothing." Qin Yue blinked once, as if impressed by how stubborn he was being. "Really?" "Yes." His voice came out firmer this time. Qin Yue tilted her head slightly, studying him."Then why have you been staring at him since he walked in?"Suo ran froze for half a second, then abruptly turned his head away from the older man.
Suo ran's ears tinted faintly with irritation as he snapped, "I was not staring." Behind him, the driver coughed into his fist, a little too quickly, a little too suspiciously, making Qin Yue's lips curl upward. "You were." "I wasn't." "You were." "I wasn't." Qin Yue lifted a finger and pointed directly at him, unbothered by his frustration. "You haven't looked at anything else for the last thirty seconds." Suo Ran opened his mouth sharply, ready to argue again, his brows furrowed and his eyes flashing with annoyance. Then he stopped. Closed his mouth. And slowly looked between all three of them Qin Yue watching him like she was satisfied, the driver pretending innocence, and the older man still observing him quietly without interruption. His expression turned completely blank for a moment. "You're all insane." he muttered, rubbing his temple as if trying to physically erase the situation.
The driver glanced at him for a second, then casually raised a hand as if trying to calm things down. "Okay, stop teasing him!" Qin Yue shifted her gaze between suo ran and the driver, her eyes lighting up with mild amusement. "Ohh… you two seem close! Good!" The driver smiled faintly as if that statement pleased him for no logical reason. Suo Ran turned sharply toward them. "We are not." Qin Yue tilted her head, clearly entertained. "Really? Because you speak like you've known him for years already." "I've known him for a few hours and I already regret it," Suo Ran snapped back. The driver placed a hand over his chest in mock offense. "That hurts." "It was meant to." Qin Yue chuckled softly. "Interesting dynamic." Suo Ran shot her a look. "There is no dynamic." The driver nodded thoughtfully. "He denies everything quickly. That's usually a sign." "A sign of what?" Suo Ran asked sharply. "Emotional resistance!" the driver replied very seriously. Suo Ran stared at him. "Say one more sentence and I swear..." "You'll what?" Qin Yue cut in, smiling. "Throw him out of the building?" The driver stepped back half a step. "I'd prefer not to test that theory."
The older man said nothing, but the faintest curve at the corner of his lips betrayed him. Suo ran noticed it and looked away again, more annoyed than before. "Stop smiling like that!" he said sharply, pointing vaguely in the older man's direction. "Like what?" the man asked calmly. "Like you're involved in whatever this is." Qin Yue let out a quiet laugh. "He is involved." Suo ran turned his head instantly. "Excuse me?"Even the driver stopped fidgeting. Qin Yue didn't retract her words. Instead, she looked at the older man, then back at suo ran."You really don't feel it?" Suo ran frowned harder. "Feel what?" The older man spoke,"Enough."
The driver looked like he was trying very hard not to laugh, his lips twitching as he lowered his gaze, while even the corners of the older man's eyes seemed to soften slightly, a subtle trace of amusement breaking through his otherwise composed expression. That only made suo ran more irritated, his brows furrowing sharply as he looked between all of them. "Can all of you stop looking at me like that?" Qin Yue raised an eyebrow slowly, her arms still folded. "Like what?" "Like you've caught me doing something." The driver cleared his throat and said,"To be fair..."
Suo ran pointed at him, eyes narrowing."No." The driver blinked."I haven't said anything yet." "You were about to." The driver nodded. "That's true." Qin Yue laughed softly, shaking her head. Suo ran rubbed his forehead, exhaling through his nose as a headache began to build. "This place is unbelievable." Qin yue grinned, clearly enjoying his frustration. "You're changing the subject.""I'm not." "You are." Suo ran snapped back, voice rising slightly, "You are all wasting time." The driver noddedin agreement. "I agree."Suo ran shot him a sharp glare.The driver quickly raised both hands in surrender. "Innocent." "You are literally the least innocent person here." "Thank you." "That wasn't a compliment." "I'll take it anyway."
Qin Yue shook her head lightly, stepping forward half a step as her expression shifted back into something more serious. "Focus." Her gaze returned fully to suo ran, cutting through the noise. "You were staring." Suo ran crossed his arms tightly over his chest, refusing to back down. "And if I was?" Qin Yue's smile changed, becoming quieter, more knowing,mischievous in a way that made suo ran uneasy. "Then I'd say your instincts are working." Suo ran frowned deeply, suspicion sharpening in his eyes. "What does that mean?" Instead of answering she slowly turned her head toward the older man.
The man remained silent, his posture unchanged, but his gaze was still fixed entirely on suo ran.Suo Ran noticed it immediately and his irritation faded slightly into alertness. "Can you stop looking at me now?!" he said coldly, breaking the silence again. The older man didn't look away.The driver looked away, as if suddenly fascinated by a crack in the floor, while Qin Yue pressed her lips together, clearly trying not to smile at the situation unraveling in front of her.
The older man blinked once,then he lowered his head and said, "I'm sorry." The apology caught suo ran completely off guard, his irritation stalling for a fraction of a second as he studied the man more carefully. The older man continued quietly, "It's difficult not to."Qin Yue suddenly tilted her head back and stared at the ceiling as if it contained the answers she refused to provide, while the driver remained very still, deliberately avoiding eye contact with anyone. Suo ran stared at the older man, confusion tightening his expression. "What?" he asked. The man's gaze did not waver, his posture still calm, but there was something deeply emotional hidden beneath it. "You've changed!" he said simply.
Back to rail yard Lian ziho and zheng rui were still searching for clue. They searched everywhere but they didn't find anything yet.
Then zheng rui crouched beside the restraints his eyes narrowed suddenly."Wait." Lian ziho looked over. "What?" Zheng rui pointed toward the floor. "There." Near one of the chair legs was a small dark stain. It was not blood or paint.Lian ziho moved closer. "What is it?" "I don't know."Zheng rui touched it carefully."But somebody left in a hurry." Lian ziho's pulse quickened. "You think they left a trail?" "I think they want to us to reach there." Zheng rui said while standing slowly, " Then why did they change place?" Lian ziho interrupted. "Who knows?" Zheng rui stared. Lian ziho clenched his fists. "He was here but I..." His voice shook slightly this time.Zheng rui studied him for a long moment and said, "I know are you feeling now." Then he picked up a flashlight from a nearby crate."Then let's stop standing around." Lian ziho straightened.
Both of them continued searching through warehouse, boots crunching over scattered debris as they scanned every corner, every broken surface, every possible trace that could explain what had happened. Lian Ziho moved with sharp, restless urgency, crouching near the chair, running his fingers over faint scratches on the floor, then standing again as if the answer might simply appear if he kept moving. Zheng Rui, more methodical, checked the edges of the room, flashlight cutting through the darkness in slow arcs, his jaw tightening with every empty discovery.
He slowly sank down onto the warehouse floor, hands pressing against his knees as his head bowed. His voice came out broken, barely audible at first. "Jun Wei…" he whispered,His throat tightened. "Lian-ge… can't find you…" His shoulders shook once, sharply, "Sorry… I'm sorry…""Where are you? Just… where are you?" Tears slipped down and falling onto the dusty floor as his voice dropped into something raw and helpless. "Suo Ran… I promised…you...but..."More tears fell down.
"Lian Ziho?" he called, stepping closer. "Hey!focus. Don't lose it now." But Lian ziho didn't respond. He just sat there with head down and then he suddenly froze.The tears stopped mid-fall.His entire body went still he heard voice that calling his name.And that voice was jun wei's.He opened his eyes.Lian Ziho slowly pushed himself upright, unsteady at first, like his legs didn't fully belong to him. "Wait…" he said quietly. Zheng rui turned instantly. "What? What is it?"
But Lian ziho didn't answer instead his gaze drifted toward the warehouse entrance. "While I was driving…" he said slowly, his voice tightening as the memory sharpened. "The rain was loud… I was distracted… I was focused on getting here." His fingers curled unconsciously, nails pressing into his palm. "I thought I was imagining... I thought it was nothing."Zheng rui frowned, stepping closer. "Imagined what?" Lian Ziho swallowed hard, his expression changing, the confusion replaced with something sharp and certain. "Someone," he said quietly. Then corrected himself. "No… voices."Zheng rui blinked. "Voices?"Lian Ziho nodded and said,"A child's voice." His breath caught slightly. "I hear Jun Wei."
Zheng Rui's expression changed completely. "Jun Wei?" he repeated. Lian ziho's jaw tightened as the memory hit fully, no longer fragmented. "He was calling my name," he said, voice breaking slightly at the edges. "And Suo Ran's." His hands curled into fists at his sides, trembling with frustration and guilt. "He was right there… I was right there…" He shut his eyes briefly, as if trying to erase the moment. "And I didn't stop."Zheng Rui stared at him for a long moment, then slowly looked around the warehouse again.Lian Ziho looked toward chair where jun wei was tied and said,"I missed it."
*Flashback of Jun wei *
Rain hammered against the windows of a speeding van, each drop hitting the glass. Inside, the car jun wei sat squeezed tightly between two men, his small wrists bound and sore, his body trembling with every turn of the vehicle. His eyes were red from crying, but the tears had not stopped.Outside, the storm blurred everything into streaks of grey and silver. Jun Wei stared through the rain-covered window, his breath fogging the glass as the van sped forward. Then suddenly, through the shifting curtain of water, he saw familiar car and his heart stopped.
"Lian-ge…" he whispered first, disbelief flickering across his tear-streaked face."Lian-ge!" he shouted, pressing both palms against the glass. "Lian-ge!!" The kidnapper beside him frowned. "What's he yelling about?" But Jun Wei didn't hear him."Lian-ge!!" he cried again.He pushed himself harder against the window, banging it with his small fists, "Lian-ge! I'm here! I'm here!! Help me!"Tears filled his eyes instantly and blurring everything.He hit the window again, harder this time. "Lian-ge!!" "Shut him up!" one of the kidnappers snapped suddenly.
A rough hand seized jun wei's shoulder.Jun wei struggled instantly,panic exploding through his tiny body. "No!" he screamed. Another hand clamped over his mouth, cutting the sound off mid-breath. "Mmph! Mmph!" He thrashed harder, kicking, fighting, trying to force even a single sound through, but it was swallowed instantly. A strip of tape was ripped free, and before he could turn away. It was pressed firmly across his mouth. "Mmph!" he tried again, eyes wide with terror and disbelief.The van kept moving.
Outside, the car he had been screaming toward began to shrink in the storm, growing smaller through the rain-streaked glass. Jun Wei watched helplessly, shaking against the seat as the distance widened with every second.The car disappeared into the rain like it had never been there at all.Jun Wei slowly lowered his head, shoulders trembling him. A tear slipped down his cheek, then another, falling onto his bound hands. His eyes shut tightly as the van rushed forward into the darkness. You were right there…Why didn't you see me…
Back to warehouse zheng rui stepped closer cautiously, watching his expression change from confusion to realization to something far heavier. "Lian ziho…" he said quietly,"what exactly did you hear?"Lian Ziho swallowed, his throat dry. "It wasn't just sound," he whispered. "It was him." His fingers trembled slightly as he pressed them against his temple. "Jun Wei… I heard him calling me. I was so focused on the road, the rain, everything around me…I didn't look properly." His voice cracked faintly. "I didn't realize…" He stopped, breathing uneven. "I didn't realize he was trying to reach me."
Lian Ziho's eyes lowered,"I was right there!" he said again,"So close…"Zheng Rui's gaze snapped downward toward the base of the broken metal frame near the chair. His expression changed instantly, sharpening with focus. "Wait," he said abruptly.Lian Ziho blinked."What? What is it?" he asked.Zheng rui didn't answer right away.He crouched slowly, eyes narrowing as he reached beneath the twisted metal structure. Dust shifted under his fingers "This doesn't look right…"he muttered.Lian ziho stepped closer, heart beginning to pound again. "Zheng Rui… what did you find?" Zheng Rui's fingers brushed against something concealed underneath the frame.
Lian Ziho's breath caught sharply. "No…" he whispered, taking step forward.His eyes locked onto it instantly,"Wei Wei…"His hands trembled as zheng rui slowly stood, holding it between his fingers. Wrapped around the bracelet was a thin folded strip of paper, edges slightly crumpled as if it had been hidden in haste. Zheng Rui didn't speak at first he simply stared at it."Open it!" Lian Ziho said urgently.Zheng rui hesitated only a moment before unfolding the paper.There were only four words were written.
*Transfer completed successfully.*