1223 Something Had Happened

in a private room in the gu industries headquarters.

after gu jingze entered, the people inside stood up one after another solemnly and respectfully.

“how long has he been missing?” he shrugged his coat off and tossed it onto his chair. a chill burst forth on his well-defined face.

“according to the maids, master gu had arranged to play mahjong with someone. he did not return after going out. his group of mahjong friends also said that master gu did not even go over.”

gu qigang had gone missing.

and at the moment, no one knew where gu qigang had gone.

gu jingze looked at the people in the private room. “everyone who knows about this matter is in this room today. all of you are my trusted aides. even if you’re scattered in different areas of the gu family, all of you are my people. you should know what to do to the outsiders.”

“yes, master.”

the head of the gu family had his own group of trusted aides. these people had been the trusted aides for years on end. it was only after becoming the head of the gu family that one could know their names and their positions. if not for this incident, to date, they themselves would not even know who else was part of the group.

and the few people who had gathered here today were but a part of the group.

their positions were inherited from their forefathers. since they were born, each of them knew their future position. of course, they usually lived like ordinary people. but the moment something happened, they would absolutely be loyal followers of the head of the gu family.

at the moment, they were known by the name “m.”

back then, they had been collectively called “man qin”. subsequently, when the modern era arrived, their name was changed to a simpler one.

today, gu jingze had gathered a few of them here because of gu qigang’s sudden disappearance.

“father gave most of his personal guards and shadow guards to niannian and did not have many by his side. but if someone wanted to take father away from his shadow guards and personal guards, it must be someone from the gu family,” gu jingze said.

the others said in astonishment, “so, master suspects that this was the doing of those clan relatives?”

“that’s right.”

causing trouble at a time like this…

was to be expected.

but he could not believe that they had used a method like this…

gu qigang. there was no doubt that he was his father. but he was also a very unusual father.

he had never even a.s.sumed the role of a father for a few days in gu jingze’s life. but at the same time, he was indeed gu jingze’s father by blood.

“master, in that case, what do you want us to do now?”

gu jingze looked outside. “save him.”

—

lin che was still waiting in the room. however, gu jingze did not return even after a long time.

she opened the door and called for dongzi.

“go and find out if anything urgent cropped up on gu jingze’s end.”

dongzi agreed and went out. she stood there with her hand holding her chin. she looked outside, unable to guess what had happened to make him leave abruptly in such an anxious manner.

right now, it was probably almost midnight.

mu wanqing called her all of a sudden.

lin che instantly felt that something was off. she picked up her phone. “mother, why are you calling so late?”

over the phone, mu wanqing said, “something happened, little che.”

“what happened?”

“let’s… let’s meet up and talk about it. it’s quite important.”

“alright. in that case, i’ll go over and meet you.”

“don’t go to the gu residence. go to 36 qinghe road. it’s a place owned by my family. no one else knows about it.”

before marrying into the gu family, mu wanqing was also from a prominent family. while the mu family was not a family like the gu family, it was nonetheless a family with a literary reputation. it had been a rich and powerful family for many years. they kept a low profile and were frugal.

lin che arrived and saw that mu wanqing was already waiting there.

lin che walked in hurriedly. “mother, what happened that’s so serious?”

mu wanqing stood up and said, “i was worried that someone would’ve wiretapped our phone line. after all, that would be a little unsafe.”

“what?” lin che instantly felt a stronger sense that the situation was quite serious.

mu wanqing said, “jingze’s father went missing yesterday…” while saying this, mu wanqing’s eyes had already turned completely bloodshot.

lin che was even more surprised. “father… has gone missing?”

there was a catch in mu wanqing’s voice, but she concealed it. she looked up and continued, “but jingze went on a search for him today. right now, he has fallen into a trap.”

lin che’s heart stopped. “gu jingze is in danger?”

“that’s right. we don’t even know where his subordinates have gone. we only know that after falling into a trap, he managed to escape. he brought more than ten personal guards with him, but they’ve been completely wiped out. however, they haven’t found jingze. jingze has escaped. we just don’t know where he is now.”

how could this have happened…

lin che’s heart beat so fast that it seemed as if it was about to jump out of her throat.

mu wanqing said, “the only person i can trust now is you, little che. what should we do now? if anything happens to jingze, i don’t want to live either. it’s all my fault. i allowed jingze to put his life on the line to save qigang. but in the end, he didn’t manage to save him…”

mu wanqing seemed to have broken down completely. she sat there looking completely battered out of her senses. she could no longer even speak clearly.

for a moment, lin che’s mind was a mess. however, she looked at mu wanqing, lowered her head, and lifted mu wanqing’s hand. “mother, it’s pointless to think about these things now. that’s our father. even if it wasn’t for you, he would still have gone to save him. because he’s gu jingze.”

gu jingze was simply such a good father, a good son, and a good husband.

lin che pondered for a bit. “well then. does the gu family already know about gu jingze’s disappearance?”

“yes. the clan relatives have gone into a frenzy.”

“in that case, at the moment, does anyone know who did it?”

“i don’t know.”

lin che said, “to have such intimate knowledge of the gu family’s movements and to even be able to trap gu jingze, i suspect it was the doing of the gu family’s clan relatives.”

mu wanqing looked up immediately. “then what should we do now?”

“mother, we have to return to the gu family. although gu jingze has gone missing, you’re still the mistress of the gu family. i’ll go back with you.”

mu wanqing looked at lin che.

yes. she was still the mistress of the gu family. she had to stay strong.

lin che went out and said, “dongzi, notify all the personal guards to a.s.semble. we’ll go home first before heading to the gu residence.”

at a time like this, even if she was being pushed to do something way beyond her ability, she had to step forward nonetheless.

they returned to the gu residence.

lin che looked at the people who had gathered at the entrance.

“i know that all of you are gu jingze’s personal guards. right now, gu jingze is in danger and we’re not sure if he’s dead. but as long as he’s alive, he will still continue to find his way back. all of you must wait for him together with me. furthermore, before he comes back, we must help him protect his territory.”

everyone looked at lin che.

there was a hint of respect on their solemn faces.

if it was someone else, they would not trust that person. but they knew what lin che meant to their master.

lin che was not just someone else. she was the person whom gu jingze trusted and loved the most. so, in all the years that had pa.s.sed, they themselves had actually already started trusting and respecting lin che very much.

lin che had always been such a good person. slowly, many people were imperceptibly influenced and were attracted to her. they were attracted to her personality.

even more so at this very moment.

everyone said in unison, “we are at your command.”

lin che’s expression turned grave and stern as she looked at them. “alright. in that case, everyone, listen to my command now.”