Chapter 133: Chapter 133

The people in the courtyard followed to report to the police station. They searched until the middle of the night but found nothing. Since everyone had to work the next day, they returned home to rest. The Ye Family didn’t turn off the lights all night, and Mrs. Zhao, upon returning home and realizing her grandson was out searching too, didn’t worry.

Zhao Guodong, Zhang Linong, and Wang Ping first went to Zhang Linong’s grandmother’s bungalow, found the door locked, untouched, and then continued searching near the school, but still found nothing by the middle of the night, leaving them increasingly silent.

"Dongzi, let’s go back. After all, it’s late, and we’ve already reported it to the police. We might find them tomorrow," Zhang Linong advised, patting him on the shoulder as if to offer some comfort.

Zhao Guodong remained silent.

Wang Ping yawned, "I heard it was Song Mei who caused the issue. In the afternoon, I saw Song Mei and Jiang Yan’s mother aggressively heading to the Ye Family, but I didn’t take it seriously at the time. After all, Ye Qian usually gets along quite well with Song Mei and Jiang Yan. Thinking back now, Song Mei’s mother’s face didn’t look good."

Zhao Guodong finally reacted, "You’re sure about that?"

Zhao Guodong clenched his teeth in anger, "I knew Ye Ling wouldn’t lose her temper for no reason. It must be her doing. Just watch how I’ll deal with her."

Speaking of dealing with people, Wang Ping perked up, grinning mischievously, "I caught half a jar of caterpillars in the grove yesterday, thinking of using them to catch birds. Now it’s perfect timing to use them on Song Mei."

Zhao Guodong snorted, though he said nothing, he agreed.

Wang Ping felt very proud, believing he had come up with a good idea, while Zhang Linong remained very silent. Though he had just advised Zhao Guodong not to rush, he was worried about where someone could run off to at night.

The three friends returned to the courtyard, finally ending up at Zhao Guodong’s house to sleep. They lay in bed but couldn’t sleep, chatting until it was almost daylight before falling asleep.

As Zhao Guodong and his friends were walking into the courtyard, Wang Danhong and Ding Jie were also just returning from looking for someone. Ding Jie sent his daughter home first, then went to the Song Family.

Once inside, Wang Danhong wore a distressed expression, "What do we do now? Who knew it would turn out ? If something really happened, our two families would be pointed at for a lifetime."

"You shouldn’t worry too much. I think it’s fine. People always seem to despise living less, but they wouldn’t really dare to die. We haven’t found them yet, but by tomorrow, she might return on her own, cooled down. Besides, this isn’t the first or second time she ran away from home. Didn’t she always come back obediently? We left at the time. Whatever happened afterward is their family’s issue and unrelated to us. You need not worry. Even if someone talks, we shouldn’t be afraid," Ding Jie comforted, though he secretly thought Wang Danhong’s words were not correct.

Leaving aside other things, Song Mei started this whole incident. His daughter only tried to mediate. Now it has escalated, dragging his daughter into it. Do they really think this way they can make his daughter share the blame with Song Mei? Ding Jie was unconcerned, believing he could explain if rumors spread, ensuring his daughter wouldn’t be implicated.

Understanding Ding Jie’s words were merely excuses, Wang Danhong didn’t feel relieved, "Let’s wait and see tomorrow. It’s best if they find her. In the future, we must keep the children away from Ye Ling. Otherwise, if something really happens, it’ll be troubling."

Ding Jie nodded in agreement, privately feeling his daughter shouldn’t be too close to Song Mei. If she got close to Ye Ling, she might have taken the exams with Zhao Guodong and the others for high school. Now, she has to repeat the year, and among the repeaters in the courtyard, besides Ye Qian who is ill, his daughter didn’t pass. It was disgraceful.

After leaving the Song Family, Ding Jie kept thinking about this matter. Upon returning home, he found his daughter awake and decided to sit down and talk, "I don’t object to who you make friends with, but I know you are a smart kid. If something goes wrong, you should avoid it, not get involved. Today Ye Ling ran away. If nothing happens, it’s fine. But if something really happens, although I can get you out of it, it won’t be entirely clean. Ultimately, it won’t sound good for your reputation."

Jiang Yan, exhausted from searching with them, asked, "Mom, could Ye Ling have really committed suicide?"

Remembering Ye Ling’s eyes full of hatred made Jiang Yan fearful.

Ding Jie reassured her daughter, "It’s late, sleep now. We’ll discuss everything tomorrow. No matter what happens to Ye Ling, it’s unrelated to you. You haven’t done anything wrong. You merely tried to mediate. Always remember that."

Although Jiang Yan felt uneasy, she said no more and obediently lay back in bed. Ding Jie got up, turned off the light in her daughter’s room, and returned to her own room.

Before dawn, Ye He Ping rushed back from work. Despite the lights still being on at home, which should have made him feel the warmth of home, Ye He Ping felt a chill.

The house was silent. Ye Qian had fallen asleep on the living room table. Bai Xue and the niece hadn’t slept. Bai Hehua nodded off but dared not sleep, knowing her trouble caused this; Bai Xue stared blankly out the window until she heard the door and turned sharply.

Seeing her husband, she inevitably showed disappointment.

Ye He Ping noticed this, threw his briefcase onto the shoe rack, and sarcastically said, "The key to Ye Ling wasn’t taken back by you when we went to the company last time. Were you thinking she’d return and open the door herself? With what?"

Previously, when Ye Ling accompanied her father to his workplace to experience life, Bai Xue took the key from the eldest daughter, claiming her own was lost. At that time, Ye He Ping was present. A lost key could be replaced, but taking back the eldest daughter’s key felt like treating her as an outsider.

Ye He Ping had pretended not to notice, wanting his daughter and wife not to grow further apart. But, seeing his wife’s attitude now, coupled with these events, he couldn’t tolerate it.

Upon Ye He Ping’s return, Bai Hehua was startled awake and timidly addressed him, "Uncle."

Awoken from her nap, Ye Qian showed worry upon seeing her father, "Dad."

She stood and offered her seat. Ye He Ping waved his hand, "You two go to your rooms and sleep. I need to talk to your mom." (To be continued. If you work, feel free to vote for it on Qidian (qidian.com), your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile readers, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)