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Zhou Jingren was not able to hide the surprise in his eyes as he watched the familiar notebook.
“Let me explain.” Qin Chuan said. “After what happened with Tang Lingyun, I went back to the Qin Family’s mansion in Hong Kong. I mean… they are technically a branch family, so I still have access to that house. I was looking for things… I thought I was looking for memories of Bec. I was snooping around in Old Man Qin’s room when I found a safe. It wasn’t locked.”
“You mean that safe was open when you got there?”
“You are aware of the safe?” Qin Chuan asked before he nodded. “But yes, it was open. And when I checked, I found this.” He handed Zhou Jingren the journal that makes little sense to him. “I mean…. It is not really complete. I tried to read it and understand its contents for weeks now. To no avail. A lot of words are missing. It was like — like it was only a part of a bigger journal? Anyway, I have the reason to believe that this has something to do with Lily. If you read it, you can see that her name and even school have been mentioned a couple of times.”
Zhou Jingren nodded in response. “Do you know who wrote this?”
“Should be Old Grandma Ye.” Qin Chuan answered, his face turned serious. “I have reasons to believe that some people had been watching Lily for a long time now. I know the text does not make any sense, but if you really analyze it properly, you would be able to see that she was mostly talking about Lily and her observations about her. It’s not complete, but you can still understand some sentences like the fact that she chose to get closer to Lily because she thought someone was spying on her. She wanted to protect Lily.” He made a deliberate pause as he tried to read Zhou Jingren’s reaction. “There is also the fact that she… she called Lilian Facci — Lily’s grandmother a few months before Lilian’s death.”
Zhou Jingren immediately lifted an eyebrow. “Did she mention this?”
“It was one of the last entries. Not detailed of course, she mentioned something like, called Europe, Lilian. Pretty vague, but if you know Lily and her grandmother, you would be able to figure it out.”
“So you think someone had been watching her?”
“And I have reasons to believe that these people were the same people who wanted to mess up my relationship with her. I don’t know… I tried to think about it. I spent a lot of time thinking… just thinking about what happened in the past, but I can’t seem to understand why would they watch a child with no intention of hurting her.”
Zhou Jingren nodded. If these people have the intention to hurt Lily, then they would do it while she was nothing but a helpless child. He pursed his lips. Leaning back, Zhou Jingren stared at the journal in his hands. Soon, Lily would have more clues, more answers to the questions that she hasn’t asked yet.
However, this would also mean more stress, more assumptions, and more anxiety for her. He let out a sigh. The current situation immediately caught him in a serious dilemma. He could give this to Lily, let her read it, and know whatever it is that her grandmother Ye hid from her. This would cause her, a pregnant woman, a lot of anxiety, a lot of stress. With her current condition, Lily’s body might not be able to handle stress, prompting her to give birth before her due date. That would mean… danger to herself and the baby.
He could not allow this to happen.
Or Zhou Jingren could keep the journal for now. He could give it to Lily a few months after she gave birth. However, this might make Lily angry. After all, he had no right to keep something that is not his in the first place. Sure, Lily might understand the reason why he did it. She might forgive him for doing it. However, this might damage the trust that she had for him. Lily might consider this a betrayal.
Lily had been through a lot. Trust is not something that she would just give to anyone — even to her own husband. Zhou Jingren let out another sigh. He understood that Lily was already her own person before they met. She does not need him to survive — that is a sad truth about marrying an independent woman like her. Sure, the betrayal might hurt her, it would scar her. But Lily would survive, she always will. She will move on with her life, smiling, pretending that she was not hurt. She will stand tall and proud. She might not leave but the connection, the trust in between them is no longer there.
She would doubt him. She would wonder if he was hiding something again. He could not let something like that happen.
Zhou Jingren lifted his head and met Qin Chuan’s curious gaze. The man must have known that was inside Zhou Jingren’s mind right now.
Qin Chuan nodded silently. He does not need to say anything to let him know his thoughts. He knows that Zhou Jingren is a very capable man — more capable than he was. He knew that no matter what, Zhou Jingren would always consider Lily’s wellbeing above anything else. He also understood the dilemma that the man was having now.
“One of the twins will guide you to the guest room.” Zhou Jingren uttered after a few minutes of silence. “With this kind of storm, a blackout might happen anytime soon. But we are well equipped with generators, so rest well. The storm shall pass sooner or later.”
Qin Chuan nodded as he stared at the certainty in Zhou Jingren’s eyes. He smiled. Zhou Jingren was right. The storm… no matter how strong. It will pass soon.
Soon…
Qin Chuan rose from his seat as he gave Zhou Jingren another glance before leaving his office, smiling, his eyes glimmered with hope. True. The storm shall pass soon.
