1048 Perplexed and Smitten 108 (1/2)

\”Are you Xiao Chenyang's brother?\”

\”Yes. May I go in and have a chat with you?\” he asked with a smile.

\”Come in.\”

Fang Erlan did not let her guard down completely and left the door slightly ajar.

Xihou Jiaping scoffed in his head and thought to himself, Would the door even matter if I really wanted to harm her?

\”Would you like to have some water?\”

\”No, thank you. Please have a seat.\”

Fang Erlan sat down and stared at the man opposite her, feeling a little awkward and confused about his purpose for visiting.

\”I haven't contacted Chenyang in a long time, and I can't seem to reach him now. My parents are worried sick about him too. Do you know where he had gone?\”

Shaking her head, Fang Erlan answered, \”No.\”

Although she was answering his questions, she was still keeping her guard up against him and remaining vigilant. She also thought to herself, If what he said was real, is Xiao Chenyang really a nutcase? Why doesn't he inform his parents of his whereabouts?

\”Ms. Fang, may I ask if you're Chenyang's girlfriend?\”

Fang Erlan immediately denied, \”No, no, how could I possibly be his girlfriend? We don't know each other well at all. He's… merely my bodyguard.\”

\”Where did you hire him from, then, Ms. Fang?\”

Fang Erlan tucked her hair behind her ear and answered calmly, \”The entertainment studio hired him for me. He went through an interview to land himself the job. My boss assigned him to me for a probationary period, and I accepted him as my bodyguard after finding him to be great at it.\”

\”Now that he's missing, don't you plan to fire him?\”

Fang Erlan considered her answers carefully before saying them out loud, for fear that she would bring about unnecessary trouble. In fact, she was right to be so cautious.

\”He's applied for a long-term leave. I actually didn't want to hire him anymore because he applied for leave shortly after getting started on the job. However, I didn't insist any further after he offered to work for free.\”

After a moment of silence, Xihou Jiaping asked, \”Did he mention why he was willing to be your bodyguard for free?\”

Fang Erlan was quick to react and could make up convincing excuses on the spot. She was merely afraid of coming off as a miser if he really turned out to be Xiao Chenyang's brother.

\”He said that he has something important to do and was merely staying over at my place temporarily because of the convenience. There are two rooms in my apartment, he stays in that one,\” Fang Erlan explained, pointing at the other room.

\”Didn't he mention when he would be back?\” Xihou Jiaping probed.

Shaking her head, Fang Erlan answered, \”He didn't.\”

Seeing that she really seemed to be clueless, Xihou Jiaping stood up and said, \”Sorry to have imposed on you tonight, Ms. Fang. This is my mobile number. Please call me when he gets back.\”

Fang Erlan hesitated and did not take his name card. \”Um… he may be my bodyguard, but I don't wish to get involved in his personal life, so I'm afraid I can't do that.\”

Xihou Jiaping took his name card back and said, \”Alright, then, but there's something I need you to cooperate with me on. I hope you'll empathize with how I feel as his family member. Please don't tell him… about me coming here to look for you. I'm afraid that he would hide himself in a place that's unreachable to us again.\”

Fang Erlan agreed with a nod, \”Okay.\”

Xihou Jiaping wiped the smile off his face and turned around to leave.

Fang Erlan closed the door with her trembling hands.

She felt extremely guilty for lying.

She immediately called An Xiaoning. \”Hello, Sis.\”

\”What's wrong?\”

\”You know Xiao Chenyang, don't you?\”

\”Yes.\” Sensing that there was something unusual about her tone, An Xiaoning asked, \”Did something happen to him?\”