If it were usual, A Zhu would have acted surprised, but today she was remarkably calm.
She wasn't particularly astonished by the news Li Ziling brought.
However, Li Ziling didn't notice this and continued, "A Zhu, I know what I'm doing is a bit much, but I really have no other choice."
"I'm planning to sell the house to investigate my dad's whereabouts. What do you think?"
"A Zhu, what's wrong?"
Seeing A Zhu unresponsive, Li Ziling asked again.
"Ah, okay, you'll definitely find out where your father is," A Zhu finally reacted and said to Li Ziling.
"A Zhu, I don't know how to do this. Can you help me?"
"Mhm, don't worry, I'll help you. Give me the property deed, and I'll help you sell it right away."
Li Ziling handed the property deed to A Zhu. Holding it, A Zhu left with a heavy heart.
Not long after she left, she bumped squarely into Chen Jie, who was walking in.
"Teacher Chen?"
Chen Jie frowned, "A Zhu, what's going on? Where are you going?"
"Ah! Yes, Teacher Chen, I need to borrow some money from you!"
A Zhu, as if suddenly remembering something, said to Chen Jie, "Yesterday, my dad took all my pocket money. Lend me some for now, and I'll pay you back later."
Borrow money?
Twenty thousand yuan was nothing to Chen Jie, so he took out his phone and transferred it to A Zhu.
"Is your dad okay?"
In his memory, A Zhu was quite wealthy, so she shouldn't have to borrow money from others.
"Don't worry about it. Can I borrow the car you gave to Li Ziling?"
A Zhu said again.
Chen Jie didn't ask further and handed the keys to A Zhu.
A Zhu intended to keep her promise to Li Ziling. She was going to help Li Ziling sell the house and then investigate Li Ziling's father's whereabouts.
A short while later, Chen Jie arrived at the dance studio.
Lin Shuang was interacting with a few female students, blending in with them.
Chen Jie's gaze swept across the room and he saw Li Ziling.
Li Ziling stole a glance at Chen Jie, and their eyes met, but she quickly turned her head away.
Although she had accepted Chen Jie in her heart, she didn't want to reveal it so soon.
At this moment, Chen Jie frowned.
He asked, "Why isn't Zheng Qingshu here?"
Wei Xiang, from the crowd, quickly said, "Teacher Chen, Zheng Qingshu took a leave of absence yesterday."
"He took leave yesterday? Why isn't he here today?"
Chen Jie remembered that he had sensed a hint of malevolent energy from Zheng Qingshu before.
He might be in mortal danger in the next couple of days.
Thinking of this, Chen Jie said to Wei Xiang, "Call him."
"Okay!"
Wei Xiang made a call, but there was no answer.
This made Chen Jie frown.
Then, he looked at Zhang Ling in the crowd.
He saw Zhang Ling practicing dance with another young man. The two had some intimate contact from time to time, after which Zhang Ling would show a bashful expression.
Isn't this Zheng Qingshu's girlfriend?
"Zhang Ling, do you know where Zheng Qingshu is?" Chen Jie interrupted the two and asked.
Zhang Ling said, "Teacher Chen, I don't know where he is either."
"Oh, then can you take me to find him?" Chen Jie asked.
"Sure!"
Zhang Ling readily agreed.
"Let's go."
Zhang Ling naturally walked beside Chen Jie, and they headed out.
This scene made everyone look at each other, finding it strange, but they couldn't pinpoint why.
Lin Shuang turned a blind eye to such matters. She believed that given Chen Jie's status, he had his reasons for doing anything.
"Teacher Chen, I heard you gave Li Ziling a car. Is that true?" Zhang Ling asked, looking up.
Chen Jie appraised her. This woman's looks were only average.
However, her dance attire, revealing a slender waist and long legs, elevated her aura.
"How did you know?" Chen Jie asked.
"We all know! You pick up and drop off Li Ziling to school; it's no secret! Just ask Li Ziling, and you'll know!"
"Teacher Chen, you're quite secretive! That outfit Li Ziling is wearing must cost tens of thousands of yuan. You're so rich!"
Zhang Ling said enviously, "I wish I had a boyfriend as generous as you. Everyone is saying now that Li Ziling is being kept by you!"
Chen Jie frowned.
He didn't want Li Ziling to be looked down upon.
So he said, "This is just a small matter for me. Don't overthink it."
"How can we not overthink it! Teacher Chen, why don't you let me be your girlfriend too!" Zhang Ling said with a giggle.
"Isn't your boyfriend Zheng Qingshu?"
Zhang Ling rolled her eyes, "That guy doesn't even like me. He'll dump me sooner or later. I'm not stupid. His family is so rich, why would he marry a woman like me?"
Chen Jie wasn't surprised by this.
He had long noticed that Zheng Qingshu wasn't particularly fond of Zhang Ling.
"Do you know where he is? Take me there."
Chen Jie said.
"He's at my place. Are you brave enough to go with me?" Zhang Ling provocatively looked at Chen Jie.
Chen Jie's gaze sharpened.
Then his face showed a thoughtful expression.
"Let's go, I'll go to your place!"
"You said it yourself, Teacher Zhen. Don't go back on your word!"
Zhang Ling's eyes lit up, and she immediately grabbed Chen Jie's hand, waiting for a taxi.
However, Chen Jie pushed her hand away.
Zhang Ling didn't say anything, and soon they got into a taxi.
Half an hour later, Chen Jie finally arrived at Zhang Ling's home.
Zhang Ling opened the door and said to Chen Jie with a giggle, "Teacher Chen, Zheng Qingshu is inside!"
Just as Chen Jie was about to speak, Zhang Ling suddenly pushed him inside, then followed herself and locked the door.
Chen Jie suddenly noticed two men sitting on the sofa in the living room.
One of them was Zheng Qingshu.
The other middle-aged man was Xia Quan, whom Chen Jie didn't recognize.
"Zheng Qingshu," Chen Jie called out.
But Zheng Qingshu didn't answer. Instead, he was fiddling with a laptop.
Chen Jie stepped forward and was startled.
Because Zheng Qingshu was operating the computer, transferring his money to an account.
Chen Jie's face turned cold. He suddenly patted Zheng Qingshu's head, and his spiritual power, along with his vital energy, probed into Zheng Qingshu's mind.
"Wake up!"
Zheng Qingshu, who was fiddling with the computer, trembled.
Then he let out a startled cry, and the laptop fell to the ground.
"Teacher Chen, it's you!"
Seeing Chen Jie, Zheng Qingshu was both surprised and delighted.
He raised his head, and Chen Jie noticed that the guy had dark circles under his eyes, looked gaunt, as if he had been drained.
"Zhang Ling!"
Although Zheng Qingshu was now awake, he was clearly still confused. He said to Chen Jie in alarm, "Teacher Chen, help! This woman is a demon! Let's get out of here!"