Chapter 191: Chapter 191
Ji Baby’s text message ellipses, like heavy hammers, strike Ji Rui’s heart one after another.
Only at this moment does Ji Rui deeply realize how mature his five-year-old precious son is, perhaps understanding many things even clearer than himself as a father.
He’s only five, yet he believes that Le Tong doesn’t return for a long time because she doesn’t want to be his mommy?
In these days, as he becomes slightly calmer, he also tries to investigate why Le Tong left everything and decisively departed?
Is it because she dislikes Ji Rui?
Or is it because she can’t accept the condition of taking care of the child?
Or is it because five million is too little?
These reasons are repeatedly affirmed and denied in Ji Rui’s mind.
If she dislikes him, even an observer like Yang Sheng thinks she is overly kind to him, so this reason shouldn’t hold.
If she’s unwilling to take care of the child, Ji Rui can tell from her interactions with the child that even if she’s using the child to get close to him, her fondness for the child is genuine.
Thus, in the process of repeated affirmations and denials, finally, only the third possibility remains, the likelihood that she finds the money too small.
Five million, to Ji Rui, is a small sum, but to someone like Le Tong from a salaried class, it is almost a lifetime of earnings without having to spend. If Le Tong finds it small, one can only say she is too greedy!
However, if it’s just that she thinks the money is too small, she could have said it directly to him, why play disappear? Could it be that this is all a ruse to gain sympathy?
After these days of torment, Ji Rui’s resentment towards Le Tong has deepened to the point where he cannot resolve it himself.
And as the resentment towards her grows deeper, the more he remembers her, and the frequency of these thoughts increases immensely.
At work, when opening files, he recalls her flamboyant handwriting and sharp verbal expressions that don’t seem to originate from a woman.
After work, he unconsciously looks toward her workplace seat, and when he doesn’t see that slender, familiar silhouette, a mix of disappointment and anger naturally arises within him.
Back home, sitting on the sofa, he remembers her domestic figure taking steaming dishes out of the kitchen with an apron on.
Unconsciously, Le Tong has already invaded his life, and the extent of the invasion is even deeper than he can imagine.
Ji Baby on the bed turns over, his small legs sticking out from the covers kicking Ji Rui’s stomach with force, causing Ji Rui to feel a slight pain, reaching out to catch Ji Baby’s small leg, he tucks it back under the quilt.
In his dream, Ji Baby grabs his arm, mumbling sleep talking: "Sister..."
Ji Rui wrinkles his brow, it seems the level of his son’s dependency is also deeper than he can imagine.
Ji Rui tucks the baby back into the quilt, takes his phone, and continues to browse through the text message records inside.
Scrolling further down reveals chatting messages between Ly Tong and Ji Baby before her disappearance.
Mostly, they’re just Ji Baby acting cute and Le Tong coaxing.
Unexpectedly, Tong’s means of coaxing the child seem quite effective; from the records, Baby is obedient under Le Tong’s care. Conversely, he, as the father, is often stumped by Baby’s whimsical questions, eventually either playing dumb or indulging him, letting him do as he pleases.
Ji Rui reads one message after another and unexpectedly sees Ji Baby complaining to Le Tong.
Baobao: Sister, why does Daddy always leave Baobao at home and not care for Baobao?
Sister: Perhaps Daddy has very important work to do, that’s why he comes home late, not that he’s ignoring Baobao.
Baobao: Baobao wants to introduce a girlfriend to Daddy, but Daddy says no. Humph!
Sister: Baobao, that kind of thing depends on fate; what Baobao likes, Daddy may not like, right? Just like Baobao likes to eat ice cream, but Daddy doesn’t, right?
There are more than a dozen such complaints in the text messages, yet each time, Le Tong does not add insult to injury, instead patiently explaining to Baby in a way that praises him as a Daddy, showcasing her understanding of him far surpassing any previous secretary many times over.
No wonder he feels so unaccustomed since her departure! Follow current novels on novel·fire·net
After reading all the text messages on Baby’s phone, Ji Rui’s mood becomes increasingly complex, and the anger that had been rising from his bones slowly transforms into another indefinable emotion that makes him uncomfortable yet cannot be dispelled.
Ji Rui first places the phone on the bedside table, thinks for a moment, then decides to put the phone back under Baby’s pillow, secretly planning to replace it with a low-radiation phone for Baby tomorrow.
He picks up his own phone and heads to the living room, sitting down on the sofa.
As soon as the call connects, without waiting for the other party to speak, Ji Rui asks first, "How is it?"
On the other end of the phone, Mr. Huang seems to be taken aback, then cautiously says,
"Mr. Ji, I’m sorry... still can’t find any clues..."
Ji Rui raises his hand to pinch his brow, coldly says, "Throw away your signboard!"
Mr. Huang dares not speak, nor refute, after a while, probably thinking that Ji Rui’s anger might have subsided a little, he says,
"Mr. Ji, is there any feedback on Young Master Ji’s announcement from this morning?"
"Can’t you go ask the newspaper yourself?"
Ji Rui knows very well that for the newspaper to publish that announcement, aside from his son’s intelligence, the greater reason is that he is the Crown Prince of the Ji Group, meaning they are selling his face.
So if there’s any suspicious activity or useful information, the first person they would notify would definitely be Ji Rui, not his son.
No news means Le Tong’s side is completely silent.
"Mr. Ji... there’s something, I’m not sure if I should ask..." Mr. Huang stumbles hesitantly.
It must be said that Ji Rui is disappointed with this Mr. Huang! He thought the other party, as a professional detective, would have some unique means and channels to find people, yet after so many days, not a single piece of useful information has been found, let alone traces of Le Tong!
"Did you and Miss Le have a conflict, that she would leave?"
But as for the cause and effect of Le Tong’s departure, how could Ji Rui tell anyone?
"Mr. Ji, maybe... that’s the key!" Clearly, Huang too has realized Ji Rui is hiding something about this matter.
"If you’re incapable, just say so, don’t flood me with a pile of nonsensical garbage!"
Ji Rui says coldly, throwing the phone onto the coffee table with a snap.
Knowing very well that calling him would surely yield disappointing answers again, he still couldn’t resist doing it!
[First update has arrived, another update will come later, but it will be very late, girls can wait to read it tomorrow.]