Ch. 1101..1110
Chapter 1101:1101 Fighting for the Doll
This game was the same as the ring toss and shooting games in the amusement park, except that the prizes were more exquisite. Moreover, players could only obtain the prize if they killed all the snow monsters. They could not lose even one snow monster. However, if someone was good at the game, it would be easy to kill all the snow monsters.
Tian Tian really wanted to play. “Then I’ll play this one first.”
She could only play one round for ten dollars. If she was lucky, she could bring the clay doll home in one round.
However, how could a clay doll that cost 3000 dollars be obtained for 10 dollars? Even if Tan Rou had never played it before, she knew that this game was not simple.
“Let’s eat first.” Tan Rou said, “Besides, there are quite a lot of people there. We might not be able to play during the New Year. Let’s play that game after we’re full.”
Tian Tian agreed, but she kept looking at the game console while eating as if she was worried that someone would take all her clay figurines. However, her worries were unnecessary. This was a scenic spot, and there was no lack of souvenirs.
When they finally finished eating, Tian Tian ran to the game console first and asked how to fight the snow monsters.
The rules were simple. At the start of the game, the snow monster would randomly appear on the screen. The player only needed to operate the controller in his hand to defeat the snow monster. It was worth mentioning that the snow monsters that appeared in each round were different. There might be four or five snow monsters in this round, or there might be more than ten snow monsters in this round. To clear the level, not only did one need shooting skills, but one also needed luck.
Tian Tian spent ten dollars to buy the first round. She stared at the game screen. When the snow monster appeared, she immediately fired. However, the snow monster disappeared very quickly. Before she could raise her gun, the first snow monster was gone.
She didn’t manage to kill the first snow monster, which meant that she had failed this round. The rule of the game was to kill all the snow monsters.
Tian Tian chose to end the game. There was no hope of success in the first round, so there was no need to continue.
She started another round, but she did not manage to hit the first snow monster. The snow monster was too fast, leaving her less than a second to react.
Tian Tian’s cute face was scrunched up. She pouted and said unhappily, “It’s too hard to hit them. I can’t hit them at all.”
However, she wanted that clay doll. Did she have to go back and buy it for 3,000 yuan?
“You can’t be the only one playing such a fun game.” Tan Rou took out her phone and scanned the QR code. “Why don’t we have a competition and see who can kill all the snow monsters first?”
Zhuang Liu agreed. He also chose a computer. “Okay, the last person will be treated to dinner tonight.”
Tian Tian was motivated again. She spent another ten yuan to open a game. “Come on, I won’t lose!”
Tan Rou and Tao Zhi looked at each other and smiled. They didn’t play this game to get first place, but to win a clay figurine for Tian Tian. Tian Tian had always wanted to prove herself. If they had directly said that they would win the doll and give it to Tian Tian, although Tian Tian would be happy, she would definitely be upset that she could not do anything well.
The best way was for them to participate in the competition together. No matter if they won or lost, everyone would participate. Even if they gave all the prizes to Tian Tian in the end, it could be said that they didn’t really need them. If Tian Tian didn’t take them away, they could only throw them away. Tian Tian was a thrifty person. She would definitely accept the clay doll.
When the game started, the number of snow monsters on their screens was different. Tian Tian had the least number. However, her marksmanship was the worst. Even if she managed to kill the first snow monster, she could not kill the second one. Therefore, she could only spend money to buy a number of times.
Tao Zhi and Zhuang Liu’s marksmanship was slightly better than Tian Tian’s, but they weren’t that much better. They always missed a shot. Once they missed, they could only try again.
Tan Ron’s marksmanship was the most accurate, and her reaction speed was also the fastest. She fired almost as soon as the snow monster appeared as if she had already predicted where the snow monster would appear.
Other than the first two rounds where she missed, she didn’t miss a single one in the remaining rounds. Every time, she would get a clay doll. This stunned the audience.
Chapter 1102:1102 Building a Snowman
Tian Tian was also attracted by Tan Ron. Since she couldn’t fight them, she might as well come over and watch Tan Rou fight the snow monsters.
Zhuang Liu and Tao Zhi also stopped because Tan Rou had already passed the round perfectly three times. As long as she could pass the round perfectly this time, they would be able to get four dolls.
With Tan Rou around, the outcome was naturally not unexpected. They easily took down the four dolls. The waiter’s expression turned ugly. She did not expect these people to be so good at it. If she had known earlier, she would have asked them to top up 3,000 dollars. 3,000 points could only be exchanged for one, and now they had only spent 200 points to obtain four.
There were many clay figurines. They were all made of clay, then painted with color, and finally dried in the shade. They were all famous figures in ancient times. There were generals who protected the country, heroic heroines, and some characters who appeared in novels and dramas. The most famous one was naturally the Monkey King.
Tian Tian chose the Monkey King’s because she really liked the two feathers on the Monkey King’s purple-gold crown. He looked very handsome. Tao Zhi didn’t like anything, so he casually picked a general.
Tan Rou picked a little girl who seemed to be a fairy. Zhuang Liu picked up the little boy beside him. This boy seemed to be with the little girl. They were called the ‘Golden Boy and Jade Girl’. They usually appeared together and had good wishes.
The waiter helped them pack the clay figurines, and then they left the rest area under everyone’s envious gazes.
Tian Tian had not learned how to ski yet, but she was tired from playing today and wanted to go back early to rest.
“It’s still early. Are you sure you don’t want to play for a while?” Tan Rou asked.
Tian Tian looked exhausted. “I don’t want to go ski anymore. Besides, I haven’t learned how to ski yet. It’s boring to ski like this.”
Tan Rou could tell that she was really tired, so she said, “Then let’s go back first.”
It was not easy to drive in the snow, so the four of them formed a team and went back to their wooden house hand in hand.
Halfway there, Tan Rou saw a few children building snowmen by the roadside. She suddenly realized that she had never built a snowman in her two lifetimes. Just thinking about it made her sad.
“Alt Liu, let’s go back later.” Tan Rou quietly tugged at Zhuang Liu’s hand and said, “I want to build a snowman. Do you want to go with me?”
Zhuang Liu had never made a snowman before. When he was young, he didn’t have time to make a snowman. When he grew up, his leg was injured, so he naturally couldn’t make a snowman. When he heard Tan Rou say that she wanted to make a snowman, he was very tempted.
However, Zhuang Liu was more reserved. He did not show an expression that he wanted to go. Instead, he said, “If Rourou wants to go, I can go with you.”
Tan Rou looked at Zhuang Liu suspiciously. After a few seconds, she pretended not to care. “Since you don’t want to, let’s go back and rest.”
She saw Zhuang Liu’s expression change a little, but he quickly regained his composure. “Alright, let’s go back and rest.”
Sometimes, Tan Rou really thought that her husband was quite cute. He clearly liked something, but he didn’t dare to express it because of his status. For example, Zhuang Liu liked to eat sweet things, but most men did not like sweet things, so Zhuang Liu did not say that he liked sweet things.
“I thought about it and felt that it’s still early to go back, so let’s go build a snowman.” Tan Rou said with a smile.
Zhuang Liu’s heart warmed. He squeezed Tan Ron’s palm and said solemnly, “I’ll definitely make a big snowman for you.”
Tan Rou laughed so hard that her eyes couldn’t be seen. “Then I’ll make a bigger snowman for you too.”
She shouted at the two people in front of her. “Big Brother, Tiantian, Ah Liu and I are going to build a snowman. Do you want to come with us?”
Tian Tian turned around and said, “What a coincidence. Alt Zhi and I were just talking about building a snowman. Although I can’t ski, I can definitely snowball, so it’s not difficult for me to build a snowman.”
The few of them discussed and finally decided to build a snowman at the entrance of the wooden villa. After they finished building the snowman, they could directly go back to the house to sleep. Moreover, because they were close, they could observe the snowman they built at all times to prevent children from coming over to cause damage.
Chapter 1103:1103 Secretly Fighting
In front of the wooden house was a forest without leaves. There was a lot of snow at the roots of the trees. The loose and soft snow was the best for making snowmen.
Tan Rou and Tian Tian put on cold and moisture resistant gloves and started to roll snowballs on the ground. Each of them wanted to build a snowman and see who built the most beautiful one.
Tao Zhi and Zhuang Liu didn’t wear gloves at first. They felt that as boys, it would be very pretentious to wear gloves, so they rejected Tan Rou and Tian Tian’s good intentions. However, as soon as they touched the snow, the bonechilling feeling made them shiver. Then they ran back to the cabin to get their gloves.
By the time they came out, Tan Rou and Tian Tian had already made two snowballs.
Tan Rou was very talented in design. She had even provided design drafts for the Tao family’s jewelry before, and it was highly liked by most. The jewelry that she made later also sold very well. Even after a few years, there were still old customers coming back to them asking if they still had any new designs.
She felt that building a snowman was like making a sculpture, except that the sculpture was made of soil while the snowman was made of snow. The soft snowflakes could be kneaded into any shape she wanted. Moreover, the snowflakes would only become very tight when kneaded together. There was no need to worry about them scattering. However, she had to be careful. If she used too much force, the snow ball would turn into a snow cake.
“Oh.” Tan Rou accidentally crushed the snowball in her hand. “I used too much strength.”
Tian Tian turned to look at Tan Rou and saw that her body and face were covered in snow. “Rourou, are you decorating yourself? Wiry is there so much snow on yourself?”
Tan Rou bent down and dug out a ball of snow. “I used too much strength. The snowball cracked.”
Tian Tian laughed after hearing that. “So Rourou is also not good at something.”
Tan Rou also laughed. “I’m not a decathlon expert. There’s definitely something I can’t do.”
Tian Tian walked over and said to Tan Rou, “You have to be gentle. Just think of these snowballs as balloons. As you roll them up, you can pinch them into the shape you want. You don’t have to use so much strength.”
“Then I’ll treat it as a tofu ball,” Tan Rou said after feeling it for a while. Tofu was very fragile. Every time Tan Rou sliced tofu, she was afraid that it would break.
After finding the feeling, Tan Ron’s speed of pinching the snowball became much faster. After making the core, she put the snowball on the ground and rolled it into a snowball that was bigger than a human head.
Tian Tian’s snowball was smaller. She said that she wanted to make an exquisite Tao Zhi. She didn’t want it to be big, but she wanted it to be very good-looking; only then would it match Tao Zhi’s looks.
Tan Rou felt that what Tian Tian said made sense. She thought for a minute before running into the house and bringing some tools over.
After taking back the tools, she pressed the originally fluffy snowball a little tighter and then carved it with a fruit knife. After a while, the snowball turned into a human face, looking a little like Zhuang Liu.
Zhuang Liu and Tao Zhi stopped to look at Tan Ron’s creation. They saw that the snowman was almost two meters tall. Tan Rou couldn’t reach the head, so she specially went to the house to bring a sturdy chair over. She stepped on the chair and put the sculpted snowman’s head on her neck.
It was unknown what method Tan Rou had used, but the huge and exquisite snowman did not fall. Moreover, it looked quite human-like.
Tao Zhi patted Zhuang Liu’s shoulder and said with a faint smile, “I think that snowman looks like you.”
“Is there a possibility that the snowman is me?” Zhuang Liu asked calmly.
Tao Zhi finally couldn’t help but laugh out loud. “Xiao Zhuang, you’re going to be replaced by a snowman.”
Zhuang Liu was not nervous at all. “What do you know? That’s the fun between me and my wife. She even made a snowman like me. It shows how much she loves me.”
Tao Zhi was speechless. “Do you have to show me how loving you two are? Don’t forget that I have a wife too. Moreover, we’ve already held a wedding.” “Does it affect you? My wife and I have already registered our marriage.”
The two of them stared at each other, neither of them willing to look away. If anyone moved, they would lose.
“Alt Liu! Why did you stop?” Tan Rou and Tian Tian asked at the same time. “Hurry up and make a snowman!”
Chapter 1104:1104 Demonstrating Cooking Skills
The two ladies also had a strong desire to win. They did not want their men to lose.
The two men stared at each other childishly and quickly threw themselves into the battle of building a snowman. They could not let their wives lose face. With Tan Ron’s demonstration, the other three also gave up on building a snowman with two balls and turned to the more difficult direction.
Zhuang Liu put a scarf on the snowman, and Tao Zhi arranged a hat for the snowman. Although the snowman they built was not good-looking, they tried their best to decorate it as beautifully as possible.
Tan Ron and Tian Tian were girls, so they were more meticulous. The things they made were also much more exquisite. Although Tian Tian’s snowman was not as beautiful as Tan Ron’s, it was still more beautiful than the two men’s.
There was no doubt that the first place would be Tan Rou, the second place would be Tian Tian, and the third place was not decided because Zhuang Liu and Tao Zhi were of similar standards. It was impossible to tell which one was good looking and which one was not.
The bet that they had made in the game in the afternoon had yet to be honored. At that time, they had said that the last person would treat them to dinner. However, other than Tan Rou, the rest of the people did not get the dolls, so they all lost. As for who would treat them to dinner, they had yet to decide.
“I think we can arrange it this way.” Tan Rou said, “The two of you lost just now, and now the two of you have lost again. Wiry don’t the both of you get dinner ready for us? We definitely can’t deliver food here, and we don’t want to go out to eat, so it’s your turn to cook tonight.”
Tian Tian raised her hands in agreement. She didn’t know how to cook, and neither did Tao Zhi, but she really wanted to see Tao Zhi cook.
Tao Zhi was a little hesitant. “Are you sure you’ll eat if I cook?”
Zhuang Liu was very calm again. He was a learned chef. How could he not know how to cook?
He glanced at Tao Zhi and said provocatively, “Big Brother, if you don’t know how to cook, just watch me cook. I won’t laugh at you.”
Tao Zhi clenched his fists and said firmly, “Just you wait and see. I’m sure I won’t do worse than you.”
Their eyes met, and sparks seemed to fly around them. It could be seen that the two of them had a strong desire to win.
Tian Tian started to worry again. “Will it really be okay for them to cook?”
Tan Rou whispered into Tian Tian’s ear, “Don’t worry. I still have a lot of snacks in my backpack. If they make the food taste terrible, we’ll eat our snacks. Don’t worry about them.”
“Alright, I’ll listen to you.” Tian Tian and Tan Rou reached a consensus.
In winter, there was no need for a refrigerator in the north because the snow outside was much colder than a refrigerator. If food was thrown into the snow, it would immediately turn into ice cubes. There was no fear that it would go bad.
The fruits and vegetables were placed by the wall and would not go bad in a short period of time.
Zhuang Liu saw the sweet potatoes by the wall and planned to make a sweet potato dish and then a stew pot. This was very suitable for eating in cold weather.
On the other side, Tao Zhi was fretting over a pile of ingredients. He and Tian Tian didn’t know how to cook. When they cooked yesterday and today, they only added firewood at the side. Now that he had to cook by himself, he was afraid that the pot would burn.
However, he didn’t want to lose to Zhuang Liu. After thinking about it, Tao Zhi decided to cook a pot of porridge. He didn’t believe that he could make a mistake in cooking porridge.
Cooking porridge was the easiest. Just wash the rice and put it into the pot. Add a little more water and you can put it on the fire to cook.
The two of them each occupied a pot. In one pot was a fragrant stew, and in the other was a tasteless porridge. It was already clear who would win.
The conditions were rather simple, so Zhuang Liu only made these two dishes. After the dishes were done, he called Tan Rou and Tian Tian down for dinner.
At this time, Tao Zhi’s porridge was just ready. It smelled bland, and she didn’t know what it felt like to drink it.
“Looks like I won. Big brother, do you admit defeat?” Zhuang Liu said proudly.
Although Tao Zhi was not convinced, Zhuang Liu’s cooking was indeed better than his. “I…”
“Wait a minute.” Tan Rou interrupted him. “You haven’t lost yet.”
Zhuang Liu and Tao Zhi did not understand. “What?”
Tian Tian smiled. “Because neither of your dishes is perfect.”
The two of them still did not understand
Chapter 1105:1105 Return
Tan Ron pointed at the two pots and the sweet potatoes on the side. “I told you to prepare dinner but one of you prepared the stew and the other prepared the main. If you count separately, you two will lose.”
Only then did Tao Zhi and Zhuang Liu realize their mistake.
Although Zhuang Liu had cooked, he only had one pot. There were still vegetables stewing in the pot. There was no extra pot to cook.
Tao Zhi was the same. His porridge was in one pot and so there was no pot to arrange the dishes. Moreover, he did not know how to cook. Even if the pot was given to him, he would only be cooking a pot of porridge.
“This match is considered a draw. Ah Zhi, let me try your porridge,” Tian Tian said affectionately as she held Tao Zhi’s arm.
Tao Zhi was still depressed that he had lost to Zhuang Liu again. When he heard that he and Zhuang Liu had a draw, he was quite happy. He immediately took out a bowl and scooped some porridge for Tian Tian.
Tan Rou also walked over to comfort Zhuang Liu. She said softly, “I think you won but for the sake of Big Brother, we can only say that you’re in a draw.”
When Zhuang Liu heard Tan Rou’s words, he stopped worrying about whether he was in first place or not. He kissed Tan Rou’s face. “Are you hungry? I’ll get you the most delicious prawn meat.”
With limited conditions, they could only use frozen live prawns to cook. Although they were not as delicious as fresh prawns, they still retained some of the freshness of fresh prawns.
After dinner, they played cards in the living room for a while before returning to their rooms to rest.
Lying on the bed, Zhuang Liu still felt a little regretful. On such a beautiful day, he should do something happy. However, Tao Zhi and Tian Tian were in the room next door. Tan Rou did not agree to do anything unrelated to sleep and only told him to close his eyes and sleep.
Zhuang Liu thought to himself that the next time they went out to play, they must not be with others. Otherwise, they would have to be restrained in whatever they wanted to do and could not do as their heart was relieved.
Little did he know that Tao Zhi, who was beside him, was thinking the same thing. He also felt that the next time he went on a vacation with his wife, they should go alone. If there was no one, he could hug her and have a happy nightlife now. There was no need for him to massage his wife’s shoulders instead.
The world of ice and snow was indeed very fun. In the next few days, they went to ride snowmobiles and even took photos of the legendary snow elf, the sable, with the photography team.
After that, they were going back to the capital. The trip in the snow was very enjoyable, but there were still many projects that had not been completed. For example, they had wanted to live in an igloo at the beginning, but they had not lived there.
In order not to leave any regrets, Tan Rou planned to buy this small wooden house. The winter in the north was longer. There were twelve months in a year, and six months were in winter. Therefore, Tan Rou could come back again before school started.
Although this area was a scenic spot, some of the houses here belonged to individuals. If Tan Rou offered a good price, the owner might sell it to her.
However, Tan Rou wasn’t the only one who had such thoughts. When she went to negotiate with the owner, the owner told her that the house had been sold and that she was too late.
Tan Rou asked him who he bought it for, but the owner refused to answer. “I’m sorry, I promised the buyer that I would keep it a secret.”
Since the owner had already said so, Tan Rou was too embarrassed to ask further. “Thank you for your time.”
Could it be that Tan Rou only found out before she went to school that the person who bought the wooden house was Zhuang Liu? Zhuang Liu had arranged for people to renovate the wooden house. The original living room was not modified, but some furniture was added to the living room.
Tan Rou still didn’t know that the house had been bought by Zhuang Liu. When she went back, she was very depressed. She wondered who was one step ahead of her.
After thinking for a while, Tan Rou gave up thinking. She looked up at the window. The white clouds would disappear and appear again. The weather looked very sunny.
When they went back, they took a private plane. The last time they came, they wanted to experience the feeling of high-speed rail. However, after taking the high-speed rail, the young masters and young ladies felt that the plane was more comfortable, so they arranged for a private jet to come over.
“We still have two hours before we reach the Capital. Let’s rest for a while.” Zhuang Liu put his arm around Tan Rou’s shoulder. “You can lean on me to rest.”
Tan Rou closed her eyes and lay comfortably in Zhuang Liu’s arms. “Okay..”
Chapter 1106:1106 A Strange Man
The plane was fast, and it didn’t take long for them to arrive at the Capital City airport. The Tao family and the Zhuang family’s car had already been arranged. As soon as they arrived at the airport, they could leave through the VIP passage.
The Capital was warmer than the north. Originally, they had to wear hats in the north. After returning to the Capital, they had to remove their hats. They felt that it was not very cold without hats.
Tao Zhi came out with his suitcase. His black down jacket accentuated his handsomeness. He turned his face to speak to Tian Tian. The smile on his face made him look more gentle, like a big brother next door.
There were many people inside and outside the airport. They also noticed the four good-looking people, especially the two who looked very similar. They were eye-catching.
A man in the crowd took a bite of the bread that was already a little cold and dragged his suitcase into the airport. When he saw those people coming out, he was stunned for a moment and then unconsciously followed them. To be precise, he was more focused on the man who was talking with his head lowered, Tao Zhi.
Tao Zhi seemed to have noticed that someone was staring at him, so he casually glanced at them. However, there were too many people looking at them. For a moment, he could not tell where that annoying gaze came from.
Tan Rou and Zhuang Liu followed him. When they saw Tao Zhi looking around, Tan Rou asked, “Big Brother, did you notice any reporters?”
Some reporters liked to camp near the airport or the high-speed rail station. They would either take photos of celebrities or famous businessmen, hoping to get news from them and make money.
“No, I haven’t. 1 feel a little uneasy. 1 keep feeling like there’s a very strange gaze staring at me,” Tao Zhi replied.
Tan Rou also looked around. Other than the men and women who were infatuated with them, there was no one suspicious. “Let’s walk faster. There shouldn’t be anyone staring at us when we get to the car.”
Tao Zhi nodded and sped up to the car.
Seeing that he couldn’t catch up with them, the man carrying the suitcase could only secretly remember the license plate number.
“Brother, have you taken the photos?” A young girl beside him asked excitedly.
Her brother said impatiently, “I got it. 1’11 send you the photo later but I’m quite curious. Why did you take Tan Rou’s photo? Shouldn’t you take photos of Zhuang Liu or Tao Zhi?”
The young lady said, “You wouldn’t understand. 1 can see handsome guys every day, but 1 might not be able to see my goddess everyday. She’s too low-key. There aren’t many photos of her online. If she wasn’t my senior, I wouldn’t have had the chance to meet her.”
“She doesn’t know you now,” her brother mocked.
The girl glared at him. “It’s fine as long as 1 know her.”
The man carrying the suitcase heard Tao Zhi’s name and quickly asked. “Do you know those people who just walked past? Who are they?”
The siblings looked at the man in front of them and took a step back silently. Then they said, “You don’t know them?”
The man carrying the suitcase noticed their movements and smiled. “To be honest, 1 know one of them, but he has disappeared for many years. I couldn’t find him and thought he was dead. I didn’t expect him to appear here again.”
The siblings did not believe it. After all, the man in front of them was dressed sloppily. It was winter, but he was wearing a pair of summer mesh shoes. His grayish-white down jacket was also dirty. It was easy to mistake him for a tramp.
“Who do you know?” asked the older brother. “The head of the Zhuang family or the young master of the Tao family?”
“My friend is Tao Zhi. He used to be my colleague, but he left his job. I’ve been looking for him for many years, but I couldn’t find him.”
The siblings looked at each other and laughed. “How is that possible? You’re dressed in rags. It’s obvious that you don’t have a good job. How can you be Young Master Tao’s colleague?”
When the man heard their mocking words, the veins on his hands bulged, but he held it in. “Then 1 must have remembered wrongly.”
With that, he turned around and left.
How could Tao Zhi be living so well? When he left back then, both his hands were crippled. He should have been living a miserable life. The man looked at his tattered clothes and the scales in his heart began to tilt again..
Chapter 1107:1107 Tao Zhi’s Colleague
It was almost the new year, and the Capital was very lively. There were people everywhere, and the roads in the Capital were blocked by people. A four-wheeled car could not move as fast as a two-legged person.
Tan Rou and Tian Tian went shopping together. This was the first time Tian Tian spent the New Year with the Tao family as the daughter-in-law. She planned to buy more things for the elders, but she didn’t want to go out alone, so she dragged Tan Rou out to shop.
The two of them didn’t drive. There were too many cars and people. They couldn’t drive either. They simply took the subway to the mall and asked them to deliver the things they bought to their door.
As Tian Tian walked, she looked around and felt a little uncomfortable.
Tan Rou noticed that she was looking around and asked, “Tiantian, are you feeling unwell? Why are you so distracted?”
Tian Tian couldn’t tell what she was feeling. She touched her eyes and said, “Rourou, my right eye keeps twitching. I feel like something bad is about to happen.”
Tan Rou smiled. “Maybe you didn’t sleep well last night. Let me give you a massage.”
These words did not comfort Tian Tian. She was still a little flustered. “Let’s find a place to rest first. I’m tired from walking.”
Tian Tian liked to eat desserts, so Tan Rou found a dessert shop for them to rest. There were too many people in the shop and there was no place to sit. They could only have takeaways from the dessert shop.
Tan Rou asked Tian Tian to find a place to rest for a while. She went to line up to buy something and then took it out to eat. Tian Tianxin was a little flustered and she didn’t want to stand in the middle of the crowd, so she found a corner and squatted down facing the wall. When she squatted down, she did feel a little better.
After a while, someone suddenly patted her shoulder. She thought it was Tan Rou and immediately stood up. “Rourou, you’re quick. Are you done already?”
However, it was not Tan Rou behind her, but a stranger she had never seen before.
“Are you Miss Tian Tian?” The man said, “Hello, my name is Zhu Ren. Your husband, Tao Zhi, used to be my colleague. I wonder if he told you about me in the past?”
Tian Tian knew that Tao Zhi used to work in a laboratory, specializing in state-secret projects, but she did not know what he did exactly. What Tao Zhi said was not important anymore, and he would not go back in the future.
The man in front of her looked to be around 30 years old. Coupled with the fact that he had mentioned Tao Zhi’s name, Tian Tian let down her guard against him.
“Yes, what’s the matter?” Tian Tian asked. As she spoke, she glanced at Tan Rou. However, there were too many people and she could not find Tan Rou at the moment.
Zhu Ren had a smile on his face. He reached into the pocket of his down jacket and rummaged through it. “Tao Zhi and I used to be good brothers. When we were in the laboratory, we did experiments together every day. We were very close but after he left the laboratory later, I haven’t heard from him since. I didn’t expect to come back to the Capital for a business trip and find out that he’s already married. Moreover, his family is so rich. This surprised me.”
When she heard the other party mention the laboratory, Tian Tian’s wariness completely disappeared. She knew that very few people worked for Tao Zhi in the past. Other than his family members, there were only his colleagues, so Tian Tian no longer guarded against this man.
“As his good brother, how can 1 not give him a gift?” Zhu Ren smiled and said, “It’s a pity that he’s too busy. I didn’t even have the chance to meet him. It just so happens that 1 met you here today. Then, I’ll give you my present.”
“Thank you for your gift,” Tian Tian said gratefully with a smile.
Zhu Ren rummaged in his pocket for a long time, but he couldn’t find the gift. He slapped his head and said, “Oh, I must have thrown the gift in the car.” Seriously, how could I be so careless? Time was very tight, but I made such a low-level mistake.”
Tian Tian was a kind person. “Is your car far away?”
Zhu Ren pointed at the car by the roadside. “It’s over there.”
“Then I’ll go with you.” Tiantian quickly offered.
Zhu Ren pretended to consider it. “It’s pretty cold outside.”
“It’s alright.” Tian Tian looked outside. “It’s just a short distance away. It won’t be very cold.”
She felt that Zhu Ren was a good person. He even considered whether it was cold outside; such a meticulous person was definitely not a bad person. Hence, she went out with Zhu Ren..
Chapter 1108:1108 Tian Tian is Missing
Tan Ron finally bought her things. She squeezed through the crowd and carried the bag to where Tian Tian was, but she did not see her. He was here just a moment ago. How did she disappear in the blink of an eye?
She sent a message to Tian Tian, but she did not reply. She called again, but no one picked up.
“Hello, 1 want to ask, did you see the girl who was squatting here just now?” Tan Rou asked the customer next to her, “The cute girl in a pink jacket.”
The customer shook his head and said, “1 haven’t seen her. I just came here. 1 haven’t seen a girl in a light pink down jacket. You should ask someone else.”
Tan Rou asked a few more people, but no one had seen Tian Tian. Perhaps someone had seen it, but everyone was busy with their matters. No one would notice where Tian Tian went.
Tian Tian was not an insensible little girl. If she went anywhere, she would tell Tan Rou.
Did she go to the toilet? There was no toilet in the dessert shop. If they wanted to go to the toilet, they could only go to the public toilet outside.
Tan Rou carried the desserts and ran out of the dessert shop. The first thing she did was to rush to the nearest public toilet. There was a long line at the entrance of the public toilet. She looked over and did not see Tian Tian.
Hence, she walked closer and called Tian Tian’s name at the door of the toilet. The people in the queue looked at her strangely, as if they were asking if this beautiful girl had a problem with her brain. Why did she run into the toilet with food?
Since Tan Rou couldn’t find her, Tan Rou returned to the dessert shop and looked around to see if Tian Tian had gone to another corner. However, she found a small pendant on the ground by the roadside. The pendant had been forcefully pulled off, and the rope on it had been broken.
Tan Rou recognized that it was the pendant on Tian Tian’s bag. Tao Zhi had personally made it for her when they went on a date the last time. There was even Tian Tian’s name on it.
The moment she saw the pendant, Tan Rou’s heart skipped a beat. She suddenly had a bad feeling.
Tan Rou did not have time to hesitate. She immediately called Tao Zhi and Zhuang Liu and told them to be prepared. Tian Tian might have gone missing. Then, she quickly returned to the dessert shop. After getting the boss’s approval, she retrieved the surveillance cameras in the shop. She realized that there was indeed a man who had spoken to Tian Tian. Tian Tian had also gone out with him.
There was only a small amount of surveillance footage after they went out, and they did not capture the location of the pendant. Moreover, there were no surveillance cameras in that area, so they couldn’t know how Tian Tian went missing.
Tan Rou carefully identified the man in the surveillance video and found that he looked a little familiar. She seemed to have seen him somewhere before, but she couldn’t remember where.
Tao Zhi rushed over very quickly. There was a traffic jam there, so he abandoned his car and ran over.
“Xiao Rou, what happened? Where’s Tiantian?”Tao Zhi asked, panting.
“How did she go missing?”
“Come over and take a look at this video first. 1 think you might know the person who took Tiantian away,” said Tan Rou.
Tao Zhi rushed over to take a look at the video. With just one glance, his heart was filled with anger. “Zhu Ren!”
Tan Rou was certain that the person who took Tian Tian away was Zhu Ren. Initially, she thought that this person looked familiar. While waiting for Tao Zhi and Zhuang Liu, she kept trying to recall who this man was.
Suddenly, a memory that she had forgotten surfaced again. At that time, she had asked Zhuang Liu to investigate the person who had hurt her brother and had also tracked Zhu Ren for some time. However, one day, Zhu Ren suddenly disappeared and even Zhuang Liu could not find him.
Tan Rou was very busy back then. In addition, her brother’s hand was gradually recovering, so she didn’t pursue this matter anymore. She wanted to teach Zhu Ren a lesson when he appeared in the future. She had almost forgotten about Zhu Ren. She did not expect Zhu Ren to appear in the Capital again and take Tian Tian away.
Tao Zhi wanted to drag Zhu Ren out of the screen and strangle him. “Where is he now?”
Tan Rou shook her head and said, “I don’t know. The surveillance cameras outside didn’t capture his figure. If we want to find him, we can only look for him through the road surveillance cameras. I’ve already asked Air Liu to contact the traffic police. They’re checking the surveillance cameras. 1 believe the results will be back soon.”
Tao Zhi clenched his fists.. “Alright, after we find Zhu Ren, we ll settle the old and new scores together!”
Chapter 1109:1109 Kidnapping
Tian Tian woke up from the darkness. She realized that she could not move her hands and could not make a sound. It was as if she had been wrapped in tape.
She only remembered that she had gone shopping with Tan Rou. Then, Tan Rou went to line up to buy desserts. She had been waiting for Tan Rou by the side. After a while, a man who claimed to be Tao Zhi’s colleague walked over and said that he wanted to give them a gift, so she went over with him.
She approached the car, and the man patted her shoulder gently. A strange fragrance sprayed onto her face, and she lost consciousness.
“Wu wu…” Tian Tian struggled a few times. She wanted to remove the tape on her mouth, but the tape was very tight. There was no gap at all.
After a while, the door was opened. Zhu Ren came in with a bowl of instant noodles. “It’s time to eat.”
“Wuwuwu…” Tian Tian was very agitated. She wanted to ask Zhu Ren what he wanted. Did he want money or revenge? What had she done to offend him that he had to kidnap her?
Zhu Ren seemed to have read her mind. “Do you want to ask me why I kidnapped you?”
Tian Tian nodded her head vigorously. Her mouth was also opened forcefully, wanting to speak.
“You don’t have to waste your strength. This tape is very strong. If 1 don’t help you take it off, you won’t be able to take it off.” Zhu Ren turned on the light, closed the door, and placed the instant noodles on the table beside Tian Tian. Then, he removed the tape from her mouth. He was quite gentle and did not use force to remove the tape.
“Pah!” Tian Tian spat out everything in her mouth and questioned loudly, “What exactly do you want? Do you want money? I can give you money, however much you want.”
Zhu Ren glanced at her and said, “1 don’t want yours. I want Tao Zhi to send me money. I wonder if you’re worth 30 million.”
Tian Tian was extremely shocked. “Thirty million? Are you crazy?”
“Hehehe. Thirty million is a small amount to your husband, but it depends on whether you’re worth it or not.” Zhu Ren smiled sinisterly.
“If he’s not willing to pay 30 million to redeem you, I’ll sell you overseas.”
Tian Tian couldn’t believe his words. “You want to sell me overseas? Don’t you know that this is illegal?”
“It’s okay. I’ll go overseas too. When I get the money, I’ll never come back.” Zhu Ren had already thought of a way out. “Our country’s laws can only be applied within the country. If I go abroad, the law will no longer be able to restrain me.”
“Don’t be too proud. The country will never allow you to leave the country,” Tian Tian said.
Zhu Ren frowned. He pinched Tian Tian’s pretty face with his left hand and slapped her face with his right. “Who said 1 have to go through customs? Our country’s borders are so big, I would be able to find a way to leave this country. As long as you have the money, there are plenty of ways to go abroad.”
Tian Tian’s face hurt. She was a little flustered. She didn’t expect this person to be so crazy. If she had known that he was a kidnapper, she wouldn’t have followed him out.
“Aren’t you Ah Zhi’s colleague? Then why did you kidnap me?”Tian Tian asked. “Are you an imposter?”
Zhu Ren sat down and ate the instant noodles on the table. “I didn’t lie to you. Tao Zhi is indeed my ex-colleague, but 1 didn’t tell you today that I was the one who caused him to leave the laboratory.”
After saying that, he laughed again. In the darkness, his laughter was very strange. Zhu Ren didn’t care if Tian Tian said anything. He told her a story.
“There was a little boy. He was very smart since he was young, but his family wasn’t very well-off. Since he was young, he had been sponsored by others to study. He was very hardworking. He got into a famous university in the country and was recruited by the country before he graduated. After graduation, he went straight to work in a secret national base. He looks like he has a bright future.”
“You’re the little boy you’re talking about, right?”Tian Tian interrupted him.
“Shut up!” Zhu Ren said angrily. “Don’t speak when I’m telling a story. If you dare interrupt me again, I’ll cut off your tongue!”
Tian Tian shut her mouth. She was afraid that this lunatic would cut off her tongue. After all, he had already kidnapped her.. What else would he not dare to do?
Chapter 1110:1110 The Past Conflict
Zhu Ren felt very comfortable when he saw her frightened expression. He generously placed his half-eaten instant noodles in front of Tian Tian. “Do you want some?”
Tian Tian glanced at the bowl of instant noodles that he had bitten off and said in disgust, “No.”
Zhu Ren didn’t mind. He put the bowl of instant noodles back in front of him and stuffed it into his mouth one mouthful at a time. He finished the bowl of instant noodles in a few bites.
“Where was my story just now?” Zhu Ren thought for a moment and then said, “Oh, I remember the little boy’s work. He was already in his twenties when he started working.”
Tian Tian’s mouth twitched. She really didn’t want to hear this story, but if she dared to object, that lunatic would definitely not let her off.
“In the beginning, that man was highly regarded. This was because he was relatively young and talented, almost all the seniors in the laboratory liked working with him. They often brought him along to do experiments. From time to time, they even knew a few things about him. This allowed him to improve very quickly.
“But good times don’t last long. In his third year of work, another young man came to the laboratory. This young man was also very talented, but he didn’t want to stay in the laboratory. He always said that he wanted to be a musician and dreamed of playing music in the Golden Hall.”
Zhu Ren suddenly laughed. “Tell me, isn’t this ridiculous?”
Tian Tian still remembered what he had warned her just now, so she didn’t dare to answer him. She just looked at Zhu Ren silently.
Zhu Ren was unhappy again. His gaze became fierce. “Why aren’t you answering me? I’m talking to you. Didn’t you hear me?”
“Didn’t you tell me not to speak?” Tian Tian’s heart trembled.
Zhu Ren clenched his fists and said, “I told you not to interrupt me. I didn’t tell you not to speak. When I ask you a question, you have to answer me!”
Tian Tian thought to herself that this psychopath was too difficult to please. First, he didn’t want her to talk and now he’s blaming her for not answering him? She wasn’t a worm in his stomach, so how could she know what he was thinking?
However, she did not dare to say these words to Zhu Ren. Her right cheek was still hurting, and she could not be beaten again.
“Yes, you’re right. You haven’t finished your story yet. Are you going to tell it or not?” Tian Tian answered perfunctorily.
Zhu Ren obviously wanted to finish the story. He continued, “The newcomer is highly regarded by the higher-ups. Every time there’s a new task, it’s given to the newcomer. This makes the man feel uncomfortable. He’s always competing with that newcomer and trying to do better than that person.
“But the newcomer was too outstanding. No matter how hard that man tries, he can’t catch up to the newcomer. However, that newcomer didn’t put his mind on doing experiments. He still wanted to be a musician. Every time he took a break, he would hold his guitar and play in the park, attracting a lot of people to listen to his music.
“Gradually, the man’s honor was snatched away by that newcomer, but the newcomer didn’t know how to cherish it. He didn’t like this place, and he didn’t want to stay here. If he had the chance, he would leave without hesitation.”
“Guess who the man in the story is?” Zhu Ren asked after finishing his story. “And who is the newcomer?”
Tian Tian knew who these two people were. The man who appeared in front was definitely Zhu Ren, and the newcomer who came later was definitely Tao Zhi. Tao Zhi’s arrival stole the glory that originally belonged to Zhu Ren, so Zhu Ren hated him.
However, she couldn’t understand why Zhu Ren was still looking for trouble with Tao Zhi when he had already left the laboratory.
“Alt Zhi has already left your laboratory and will never return, so you don’t have to worry about him wanting to take the honor that belongs to you anymore.” Tian Tian said, “I don’t think there’s any conflict between the two of you at all. There’s no need for this to happen. If you let me go, I’ll definitely talk to Ah Zhi and ask him not to have any more conflicts with you. You two can reconcile.”
The thought was very naive, but reality was very cruel. “It’s impossible. We won’t reconcile. I was the one who caused Tao Zhi to leave the laboratory, but I did it to help him..”