Chapter Nineteen: Family Reunion

****Please add to your favorites****

At noon, Zhuo Lanlan walked home from school. As she approached her house, she saw a beautiful young woman standing at the door. Curious, Lanlan asked, “Sister, who are you looking for?”

The visitor was Sun Yan. After seeing Du Fanhao at the detention center that morning, she had immediately set out to gather money. By noon, she had managed to collect one hundred thousand yuan in cash. Without a moment’s rest, she had come straight to the Zhuo family’s house, hoping to meet Zhuo Nan’s relatives.

However, upon arrival, she discovered no one was home and had to wait at the door. Zhuo Lanlan’s appearance brought her joy. “Little sister, do you know Mr. Zhuo Wengang?”

Lanlan was still cautious. She didn’t reveal that he was her father, only replying, “Yes, I know him. Why are you looking for him? I just saw him earlier.”

Sun Yan was delighted. “You just saw him? That’s wonderful! Little sister, where is he? Could you take me to find him?” Lanlan eyed her suspiciously, “You haven’t told me why you want to see him. I can’t just take you to him.”

Though anxious, Sun Yan found the little girl in front of her quite charming and explained with a smile, “I don’t know him personally, but I have a way to help Zhuo Nan. You know Zhuo Nan, right?”

As soon as Lanlan heard she was here to help her brother, her wariness evaporated. She grabbed Sun Yan’s hand eagerly, “Are you telling the truth? You can help my brother?”

Now it was Sun Yan’s turn to be surprised. “Little sister, you…?”

“I’m Zhuo Lanlan. Zhuo Wengang is my father, and Zhuo Nan is my brother. You must be tired waiting here, sister. Come in and have a seat.” She took out her key and opened the door. Sun Yan realized the little girl had been testing her, but she wasn’t the least bit annoyed. In fact, she found Lanlan even more adorable.

Once inside, Lanlan said, “Sister, let me pour you a glass of water to quench your thirst.” Sun Yan thought the little girl was very thoughtful, but as she was still young, she worried she might scald herself, so she quickly got up and said, “Little sister, don’t trouble yourself. I’m not thirsty. By the way, when will your parents be home?”

Only then did Lanlan remember, “Sister, my dad went out again during the day, and my mom is at the factory. I’ll call her right now and ask her to come back.”

Zhuo Wengang had returned home briefly in the morning after working overtime the previous night, but had gone out again to borrow money from friends. Though the amounts would be small, anything was better than nothing.

Sun Yan, growing impatient, urged Lanlan to make the call. Lanlan picked up the phone and dialed the number for Wang Liru’s workshop. When Wang Liru answered, Lanlan shouted into the phone, “Mom, come home quickly!”

Wang Liru was startled, fearing something had happened to Lanlan at home. Without even changing out of her work clothes, she tore off her gloves, borrowed a bicycle, and pedaled home as fast as she could. When she entered, she saw a young, beautiful woman sitting across from Lanlan, chatting happily.

Sun Yan was equally surprised to see Wang Liru. Though her attire was plain, the elegance in her features was not something ordinary makeup could enhance.

“Mom, you’re back! This sister says she has a way to help my brother,” Lanlan announced cheerfully as she ran over to Wang Liru.

Wang Liru was taken aback. She didn’t know this woman at all. Why would a stranger help her? Could she have been sent by Zhuo Wengang?

“Hello, miss. I’m Wang Liru. May I ask who you are?” Wang Liru asked politely as she approached Sun Yan.

“Miss Wang, sorry to disturb you. Please just call me Sun Yan. I’m here on behalf of someone else to bring you money. Here’s one hundred thousand yuan in cash, just enough for you to compensate the Wang family,” Sun Yan said, opening her purse to reveal stacks of blue one-hundred-yuan bills.

Wang Liru, who suffered from high blood pressure, nearly lost her balance. Fortunately, Sun Yan caught her just in time. “Miss Wang, are you all right?” Sun Yan asked with concern.

“Yeah, Mom, what’s wrong?” Lanlan chimed in.

To be handed money out of the blue—one hundred thousand yuan, no less—how could such good fortune exist for no reason in the world? “Miss Sun, what do you mean by this? Our family has nothing to offer you.”

Sun Yan smiled gently. “Miss Wang, there isn’t time to explain everything right now. Take the money and go find the Wang family members. Get Zhuo Nan out first—once he’s out, he’ll explain everything.”

Wang Liru was skeptical but, after considering her family’s circumstances, realized there was nothing worthwhile for anyone to covet. She certainly didn’t think the woman in front of her was like Wang Zhenguo, a lecherous scoundrel with designs on her. This young woman was attractive and well put together herself.

She picked up the phone and dialed Zhuo Wengang’s pager. Within minutes, Zhuo Wengang called back. Wang Liru spoke urgently into the phone, “Come home quickly, it’s an emergency.” Zhuo Wengang hung up and sped home as fast as he could on his old bicycle.

The night before, after being knocked unconscious, Wang Zhenguo had slept on the floor until morning. He woke with a throbbing headache. He considered calling the police, suspecting a thief, but then realized that the house’s purchase had involved dubious funds. If he reported the crime, it might only bring more trouble. As for Wang Liru, he didn’t have the heart to think about her anymore—he only wanted to check whether anything was missing from his home. To his horror, he found that the floppy disk was gone. He was so frightened he nearly collapsed.

Feigning composure, he left for work. But all day in the office, he was restless. Nothing else was missing from his home, only that disk. If someone planned to use it against him, he was ruined.

There was a banquet at the factory at noon, but he declined, citing ill health. Returning home, he ate a hurried meal. Hua Hongya asked where he’d been the night before, but he couldn’t be bothered to answer.

A little after one, he received a call from the Criminal Investigation Division: the Zhuo family had obtained the money and agreed to settle privately. “Damn it, where did that spineless Zhuo Wengang come up with the cash?” Then he remembered Wang Liru; she must know about the events of the previous night. He had to find her and get to the bottom of things.

At the police station, he saw the Zhuo couple sitting in front of Lan Qian’s desk. Wang Zhenguo marched over, glancing sideways at Wang Liru, who dared not meet his gaze, her mind filled with memories of the previous night.

Zhuo Wengang, oblivious to the tension, greeted him politely, “Director Wang, we’ve gathered the money. Shall we sign the paperwork now?”

Wang Zhenguo, troubled over the missing disk, had no energy to pursue Zhuo Nan further. Ten thousand yuan was better than nothing. He signed the papers to drop the charges and release Zhuo Nan.

Once Wang Zhenguo had signed, the couple finally smiled with relief. He left with the money, glaring at Wang Liru before he went, as if to warn her he’d be back to cause trouble. But perhaps he’d lost that opportunity for good.

Zhuo Wengang thanked him politely, “Thank you, Director Wang.”

Lan Qian, watching, couldn’t help but sneer at Zhuo Wengang. “Why bother thanking a man like that? He’s a complete scoundrel.”

Zhuo Wengang managed a slight smile. “Officer, you don’t understand. We’re just ordinary people. We can’t afford to offend men like that.”

He spoke the truth, and Lan Qian sighed inwardly. She, too, had been trying to help Zhuo Nan these past few days, considering whether to use her father’s connections. But she was always against such backdoor dealings, even if she herself had gotten her job through them.

“Officer, when can our Nan Nan be released?” This question came from Wang Liru.

Lan Qian suddenly remembered that, now Wang Zhenguo had dropped the charges, Zhuo Nan could be freed. “Come, I’ll take you there right now.” She picked up her Santana’s car keys and led the couple to the car.

In the detention cell, while Lan Qian was handling the paperwork outside, Old Wu came to unlock the door for Zhuo Nan. Du Fanhao, tearful and sniffling, clung to him, “Brother Nan, I’m counting on you.”

“Don’t worry, Brother Du. I’ll find a way to help you once I’m out.” Then he turned to “Ribs” and another companion who had just entered. “Make sure you keep Brother Du safe.”

Ribs nodded, “Don’t worry, Brother Nan. Leave it to us.”

As Zhuo Nan walked away, Du Fanhao hung by the door, straining to catch a last glimpse. As Zhuo Nan’s figure disappeared around the corner, he sighed in disappointment. Ribs came over and threw an arm around him, “Brother Du, relax. Brother Nan said he’d help you, and he will. We’re all here to protect you. Now, let’s play some cards—no point just sitting around…”

Zhuo Wengang and Wang Liru could only wait at the entrance for Zhuo Nan. Their hearts were pounding with excitement—Zhuo Nan had been inside nearly a week, and now he was finally coming out. When Lan Qian appeared at the main doors with Zhuo Nan, the couple could no longer contain their emotions. Wang Liru ran wildly toward her son. Seeing his mother rushing toward him, Zhuo Nan recalled what Long Kun had told him and felt overcome with guilt. With tears in his eyes, he dropped to his knees before Wang Liru, “Mom, I’m sorry.”

Wang Liru was already sobbing, her tears falling like rain. She knelt, pulling Zhuo Nan into her arms, “Nan Nan, you’ve suffered. It’s my fault, it’s all my fault…” Her greatest regret had always been not having a son…

Zhuo Wengang, a tall, strong man, now wept as well. He pulled his wife and son into his embrace. “It’s all right, it’s all right. You’re out, and that’s all that matters.”

“Dad, I’m sorry…” It was the first time Zhuo Nan had ever called Zhuo Wengang “Dad.”

Zhuo Wengang, overwhelmed with joy, laughed and cried at once. “Good, good. Nan Nan has finally grown up.”

From a distance, Lan Qian watched this touching reunion and quietly wiped away a tear. The happiness of a family reunited was truly moving.

Zhuo Wengang noticed Lan Qian standing nearby and said to his wife and son, “Officer Lan is still here. We should go thank her.”

Wang Liru nodded and helped Zhuo Nan to his feet. “Nan Nan, Officer Lan has helped our family so much. Let’s go thank her.”

Zhuo Nan needed no urging. Approaching Lan Qian, he noticed her eyes were slightly red and joked, “Sister, were you crying just now?”

She couldn’t help but laugh, half annoyed, “You’re the one who was crying.”

“But I did cry! I was overwhelmed seeing my parents so happy. What about you? Were you moved to tears?” Zhuo Nan grinned.

Wang Liru gently chided him, “Nan Nan, mind your manners.” She turned to Lan Qian, apologizing, “Sorry, Officer Lan. He’s still a child.”

Lan Qian shook her head, smiling. “It’s all right. Zhuo Nan is very charming—I quite like him.” The words had hardly left her lips before she regretted them. What did she mean, “like him”? Zhuo Nan was only slightly younger than she was, but still, he was a mature young man. Would he misunderstand?

Sure enough, Zhuo Nan was watching her with a mischievous grin. Wang Liru and Zhuo Wengang didn’t think much of it, but Lan Qian herself wished the ground would open up and swallow her.

“Thank you, Officer Lan,” Zhuo Wengang said, extending his hand. The gesture helped break the awkwardness.

“You’re welcome, Mr. Zhuo. It was my duty.” Their hands touched briefly, then parted.

“Sister Lan, we’re leaving now. Thank you…” Zhuo Nan said as they left.

Hand in hand, Zhuo Wengang, Wang Liru, and Zhuo Nan walked out of the detention center’s gate, filled with happiness.