Xingxing readily agreed to Di Mingjue's request. He wanted Ye Ziyu to return safely more than anyone else, so he naturally wouldn't cause trouble and make things more complicated.
Watching Xingxing cooperate, Di Mingjue felt an indescribable emotion.
He had always thought they were at odds, but he never expected they would have the chance to cooperate with each other.
Xingxing watched Di Mingjue leave and turned around to see Xiaoran standing behind him.
"Did you hear everything?" Xingxing asked, noticing his panicked expression.
At this moment, he was just like he was at the beginning, unable to sleep for several nights after learning about Ye Ziyu's situation. Every morning, his first thought was whether Ye Ziyu had been found.
Xiaoran hadn't recovered from the shock yet, his words trembling, "Did my mommy really get into trouble?"
Xingxing nodded.
Since he already knew, there was no point in hiding it.
Xiaoran's legs gave out, and he slumped to the ground.
They waited at home every day, anticipating their return, and had imagined various scenarios, but never thought they would be kidnapped.
"Don't worry, everything will be fine." Xingxing walked over to Xiaoran and, like an older brother, gently patted his back.
After being comforted, Xiaoran became even more worried and frightened.
The panic in his heart could only be resolved by himself; any comfort from others was useless.
Xingxing stood quietly beside Xiaoran until his emotions had somewhat stabilized and he had accepted the reality, then he spoke again, "Don't tell Qianqian what you learned today, or she'll worry too."
"I know," Xiaoran nodded.
He could barely accept it himself, let alone Qianqian, who was even more fragile than him. In an instant, he remembered something.
"Besides you, Yuze knows too?"
"Mm-hmm. He was the first to know."
Xiaoran recalled. A few days ago, Yuze had been called into Di Mingjue's room alone. They stayed inside for a long time, and when they came out, Yuze had asked them not to cause trouble and to wait patiently at home for their parents to return.
He had been confused why Yuze would say that at first, but now, connecting the dots, he understood.
Fearing Xiaoran would misunderstand, Xingxing quickly explained, "He didn't not tell you because he was afraid of making another person worry. If you hadn't overheard, I wouldn't have told you about this either."
"I heard everything," Xiaoran said.
He hadn't heard what the two of them said earlier. It was only through their later agreement that he understood what had been happening behind his back all these days.
He understood Di Mingjue's intentions, but he still felt unhappy. If they were lied to like this, and if things became more complicated later, would Di Mingjue hide it from them forever, or even stop coming to see them?
Xiaoran looked at Xingxing, "Do you know who kidnapped my mommy?"
Xingxing shook his head.
"Didn't my daddy tell you?" Xiaoran continued to inquire.
Xingxing nodded.
In reality, they both knew roughly the same amount of information; neither knew more than the other.
After some questioning, Xiaoran sighed helplessly. It seemed that ever since they came to Si Jiucheng, they had always encountered trouble.
"Let's not talk about this anymore. It won't be good if Qianqian hears about it later," Xingxing reminded him.
The sky outside had completely brightened. Soft rustling sounds came from the quiet villa.
Xiaoran instinctively glanced towards the staircase, only to find it was Ye Shaoting coming downstairs, not Qianqian, whom they were most worried about.
Xingxing subtly moved away from Xiaoran's side, looking at Ye Shaoting nervously.
"Up so early?" Ye Shaoting didn't address anyone specifically, his gaze sweeping over the two of them, "Xingxing, did you practice your basic skills today?"