In the evening, Du Xiaoxian sat on the bed and counted the money. She had already got her salary. Most of the money was in the bank card, and there was a total of 183.50 yuan left with her. She counted three times to make sure that the amount wasn’t wrong. Then she sorted out the money and put them back under the mattress.
Lanzhi had told her that they were in the homemaking industry. Lanzhi used to work in a homemaking company. But then she resigned from the company and began to work for the Gu family directly on her own, because in this way she did not have to pay any commission to the homemaking company. Du Xiaoxian felt that she could also go look for a job at homemaking companies. After she found a new job, she would leave.
Now that she had made up her mind, her heart was no longer in a mess. She became dull and timid again, just like the way she had been when she first arrived here.
Actually, there were changes in her during she stayed in the Gu family. At the beginning, she was dull and then she became a little lively. Now she became dull again. However, her changes were inconspicuous. Moreover, there weren’t many people who paid attention to her, so no one noticed her changes at all. Only Ah Ling’s eyes were a little bit curious when looking at her, but Ah Ling didn’t ask her anything either.
In fact, it was Gu Nianbin who had the most direct feeling about her changes. In the past, when Du Xiaoxian saw him, she always couldn’t help but be overjoyed. She would stand in front of him like a small pet and smiled flatteringly at him. But now, she avoided him from afar. She even ran away as soon as she saw him. In the end, he simply couldn’t see her anymore. It was like she had returned to what she had been when she first arrived.
But he could always find traces of her from somewhere. His room was always tidied up, the cabinet was always full of bottles of water, and the vase in the study had fresh flowers every day. Gu Nianbin looked at the blooming flowers and felt a little lost in his heart. But he didn’t want to change anything. His reason told him this was the right thing to do.
After dinner, he sat in the hall enjoying the tea as usual. But he glanced at the dining room in his split vision. It had been two days since he saw Du Xiaoxian last time. He…actually missed her.
After the maids had cleaned up the dining room, Gu Nianbin still did not see Du Xiaoxian. He put down his teacup and stood up sullenly, preparing to go upstairs. Suddenly, he heard Fang Yaru talking to Gu Guangxian, “Xiaoxian hasn’t called yet. I’m not sure whether she has settled down or not.”
Gu Nianbin’s mind went into a buzz. He fell to sit into his seat with his whole person. “Mom, what are you talking about? Du Xiaoxian… What’s wrong with her?”
Fang Yaru said slowly, “Oh, I forgot to tell you. Du Xiaoxian has resigned. She said she wanted to go outside and see the world. As a matter of fact, our family is quite a good employer, and we have paid her good salary. I don’t know what that young girl was thinking about. She doesn’t look like a greedy person. However, since she wanted to leave, we didn’t have proper reason to stop her. Probably she has been familiar with the environment and had an ambitious heart. She wanted to see the outside world. It’s understandable. I can’t figure out the thoughts of these young girls. I’m just concerned that she’s alone…”
Gu Nianbin stared blankly at his mother’s mouth that kept moving and talking. His mind was still buzzing. He didn’t hear a single word except for the first sentence she said. After a long while, he asked, “Has she resigned? Doesn’t she go to school?”
Fang Yaru told him, “She said that she was very sorry to disappoint your expectations. She would pay the tuition back to you once she earns money.”
“Where did she go? When did she leave?”
“She left yesterday. She didn’t say where she was going. She just said that she would call to tell us her situation when she settled down.” Fang Yaru was suddenly frightened by Gu Nianbin’s gloomy expression. “Why are you so angry? She left, so be it. It’s not a big deal. We will hire another maid.”
“I hate the most this kind of irresponsible person who gives up halfway!” Gu Nianbin stood up and walked outside.
“Hey! Where are you going?” Fang Yaru shouted at his back.
Gu Nianbin didn’t even look back and disappeared at the gate.
“What’s wrong with him—?” Fang Yaru looked at her husband in confusion. “It’s just a little maid resigned. Is it worth for him getting so angry?”
Gu Guangxian remained silent. His gaze fixed on the gate where Gu Nianbin had disappeared, as if deep in thought.
Gu Nianbin drove out by himself without calling Little Ding. It was eight o’clock at night, right the time for the darkness of the night to grow. The neon lights on the streets flickered, and the crowds flowed endlessly. Gu Nianbin was suddenly dumbfounded. In the vast sea of people, how could he find her? G City had tens of millions of people. Looking for someone was like looking for a needle in the ocean!
He drove around the streets like a fly without head, with his heart burning with anxious fire. An indescribable fear lingered in his heart. Would he really never find her again? Did she really disappear from his world? When he thought of this, his heart ached uncontrollably, and it was like a sorrow unbearable to him. He parked his car by the roadside and gasped for breath. Looking at the gorgeous night, he was at a loss and helpless. He never thought that she would leave.
Although she would eventually leave him, it shouldn’t be now. She hadn’t grown into the person whom he had hoped for. She was pure like a piece of white paper. She didn’t understand anything. She was timid and vulnerable. She couldn’t take care of herself. Even if she could live on her own in the Daliang Mountain, she could not make it in G City. In this metropolitan city where luxurious and golden traps were everywhere, any small whirlpool could devour her. How could he not worry about her?
Gu Nianbin knew that he should calm down and think about how to find Du Xiaoxian. However, his mind was in a mess. All sorts of complicated emotions piled up together, including sadness, disappointment, heartache, missing, fear, and confusion… He was completely in a mess. Finally, he took out his phone and called Shao Boqing.
Shao Boqing was drinking with a lot of beauties in a bar. He could not hear Gu Nianbian clearly in the noisy environment, but he could sense that Gu Nianbin’s voice sounded abnormal. He got rid of the beauty on him and went outside to answer the phone. When he heard about Du Xiaoxian’s leave, he was also shocked. As far as he knew, Du Xiaoxian and Gu Nianbin were close. It did not occur to him that Du Xiaoxian did not say goodbye to Gu Nianbin personally when she left.
At this moment, Shao Boqing said to the phone without any fear, “What are you panicking about? She’ just a maid. It’s not a big deal!”
Then, as expected, an f-word came from the other end of the phone. Gu Nianbin was a gentleman. He had great manners and patience. Things must be serious when he cursed. Shao Boqing could even picture Gu Nianbin’s angry expression as well as his bewildered heart. Gu Nianbin was pride. He wouldn’t call him unless he was extremely panicked.
It was not easy to find someone in G City. Fortunately, the Gus had pooled a wide range or resources with both the Mafia and the government over the past few years. With their help, it should be much easier to find someone. However, Du Xiaoxian had no background in G City. Other than the Gus, there was no one familiar with her. She didn’t even have a photo. Therefore, even many people were sent out to look for her, there would be no news soon.
At this moment, Shao Boqing was sitting in Gu Nianbin’s car. Shao Boqing felt that it was necessary to stay with and watch his old friend, because Gu Nianbin looked really terrible. Every time the phone rang, Gu Nianbin would step on the brake hard. If Shao Boqing hadn’t tied his seat belt, he would have been left with serious bruises on his head through this whole night. In the end, he had no choice but to force Gu Nianbin to make a choice: he needed to either park his car at the roadside and wait patiently for the call, or go back to sleep.
But Gu Nianbin only glanced coldly at him and continued speeding up. He could not stop himself. Time gradually passed by. He was almost in despair. Du Xiaoxian’s face was flashing before his eyes. He regretted that he had neglected her. Du Xiaoxian was simple-minded and stubborn. When someone who had been nice with her suddenly changed the attitude to her, she must think that she had done something wrong and dissatisfied the person. That was why she decided to leave.
Gu Nianbin pressed the horn button absent-mindedly, because the car in the front was in his way. He tried several times to overtake the car but failed. Shao Boqing looked at Gu Nianbin’s gloomy face and hurriedly said, “Hey, hey, take it easy. We’re not in a hurry.”
Just as he finished speaking, Gu Nianbin overtook that car from one side in a flash, almost rubbing against the other party’s car body. The reflector of his car was hit tilted, and the reflector of the other car was completely knocked off to the ground. The driver of that car rolled down the window and shouted at them. Gu Nianbin stopped his car right ahead of the other car and forced the driver to stop. He opened the door. Just as he stepped out with his long legs, Shao Boqing ran over to stop him. Shao Boqing shouted to the driver, “Roll up the window and lock the door. Don’t come out!”
However, the other driver was also ill-tempered and showed no fear at all. He got out of the car and walked towards Gu Nianbin angrily.
Shao Boqing closed his eyes with a sigh “alas”. Then he heard a miserable scream. Although he had held Gu Nianbin’s waist to stop him, Gu Nianbin’s hands were left free. As soon as the other driver rushed over, he was punched onto the car by Gu Nianbin.
The two cars stopped in the middle of the road and the drivers fought with each other. The traffic was no doubt blocked as a result. It was past eleven o’clock at night, and the traffic police had already been off work. No one came to stop them for a while. Instead, some onlookers stood on the street and watched them fighting.
It had never occurred to Shao Boqing that Gu Nianbin would be so irrational as to fight with others on the street. He saw some people were filming the scene with their phones. He had to leave the two people fighting alone on this side and rushed to stop those people. Things would get out of control if the video went viral online. It would damage the company’s image, or the stock price of the Gus would plummet. Neither of these was a good thing. Shao Boqing knew the price well. So, he smiled and asked those who were filming the scene to delete the video. Gu Nianbin was clearly furious. The veins on his forehead were highly visible. Shao Boqing realized that the conditions were grave. He took out a pile of cash from his wallet and stuffed it into the driver’s hand. He said in an anxious and low voice, “You are not his match. Take the money and leave quickly!”
The driver wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. Of course, he knew that he was no match for Gu Nianbin. However, with so many people watching them, he felt embarrassed. While being dragged into his car by Shao Boqing, he kept cursing. Shao Boqing slapped him on his head and roared in a low voice, “Shut up, otherwise I will step away from this business! Go and fight with him!”
The driver then shut his mouth and drove away angrily. The onlookers dispersed as well.
Gu Nianbin left his car behind and slowly walked to the roadside and sat down. He was not a god, but he was quite influential in G City. But now, he could do nothing but vent his anger in a fight…
Shao Boqing moved the car to the roadside and pulled over. Then he walked over and sat beside Gu Nianbin. “You are really promising. You fought in public for a maid. You will be laughed at if things go public! Hey…”
Halfway through his words, the phone rang. Gu Nianbin raised his head and stared straight at Shao Boqing.
“You found her? Great, great, great. You are awesome, Old Ling. Okay, I’ll be right over.”