Suo ran stood alone in front of his parents' graves holding a small bundle of white flowers in one hand, his dark coat moving faintly beneath the restless wind. For a long time, he said nothing. His eyes simply remained fixed on the familiar names carved into the stone while exhaustion sat heavily across his expression. The last few days replayed endlessly inside his head like something he could no longer escape.
Suo Ran stepped forward before kneeling carefully in front of the graves. His fingers tightened faintly around the flowers before placing them down gently against the cold stone. For several quiet seconds, he simply stared downward."Sorry!" he murmured softly. "I haven't visited often." His fingers brushed lightly against the edge of the gravestone. "I kept telling myself I was busy." Another pause followed before his expression tightened painfully. "Truthfully, I think I just didn't know how to come back here." His throat felt tight now. "I'm not a very good son."
His shoulders trembled faintly beneath the cold wind moving through the cemetery. "I really tried!" he whispered hoarsely toward the gravestone. "I thought if I ignored everything long enough… maybe it would finally stop hurting." His fingers curled tightly against the stone now like he needed something solid to keep himself together. "But everything just keeps getting worse." A broken laugh escaped him quietly after that, exhausted and hollow. "You probably already knew that would happen, didn't you?"
Suo Ran lowered his head further as emotion slowly overwhelmed the control he had been forcing onto himself for days now. Tears gathered in his eyes before one slipped downward despite him trying to stop it. He wiped it away with visible frustration at himself, but more followed anyway. "I'm sorry!" he whispered again. "I should've noticed something sooner." His breathing became uneven.
Then slowly, his gaze shifted toward the small photograph resting near the base of the gravestone beside the flowers.His trembling hands slowly picked the photo up. "Jun wei is grown a lot!" he said quietly. A small smile appeared through the exhaustion and grief. "He's almost the same height as me now." His eyes lingered on the picture gently. "He still talks too much though." A faint breath of laughter escaped him weakly. "You would've liked seeing that." The smile slowly faded afterward into something far sadder.
"He acts brave all the time now." he murmured softly toward his father like he was trying to share pieces of Jun wei they had never gotten the chance to see. "But he still gets scared during thunderstorms.". "He pretends he doesn't… then suddenly appears outside my room at two in the morning asking completely unrelated questions because he doesn't want to admit it directly." His throat tightened faintly as another weak laugh escaped him. "You would've laughed at him." Suo ran brushed his thumb gently across the worn family photograph. "He hates vegetables exactly the same way he did as a kid."
"And every single morning he argues about school like attending classes is some kind of personal betrayal." Another shaky breath escaped him quietly. "But he studies late at night when he thinks nobody notices." His eyes lowered slowly afterward. "He tries really hard." The sadness in his expression deepened visibly then. "Too hard sometimes." His fingers tightened slightly around the photograph while his gaze remained fixed on Jun wei's smiling face inside the picture. "I think… he's been trying to grow up too quickly because of me." The confession sounded honest. "Because he knows I'm tired even when I try to hide it." Wind moved softly.
"He misses you both a lot!" Suo ran admitted quietly. "Even if he pretends he doesn't." His fingers tightened slightly around the edge of the photograph. Then softer he whispered, "It would've been good if that night never happened."Suo ran lowered his head again, shoulders feeling heavier than before. "Sometimes I keep wondering…" he murmured slowly, voice rough now from emotion, "if things would've been different if I noticed earlier." His eyes closed briefly. "Maybe you wouldn't have died."
Elsewhere Lian ziho arrived outside Jun Wei's school that afternoon. The streets around the entrance were crowded with parents holding umbrellas while children ran noisily through shallow puddles toward waiting cars. Normally Jun Wei would already be standing near the front gate talking too loudly about something unnecessary the second he spotted him. Usually Lian ziho could hear his voice before even getting out of the car but today there was nothing. Lian ziho stepped out slowly beneath the gray sky, his eyes moving automatically toward Jun wei's usual waiting spot near the front steps."maybe he will be still inside"
He walked toward the entrance calmly at first, scanning the area again still no clue about Jun wei His brows slowly furrowed then his eyes suddenly caught something lying near the curb several meters away he saw Jun wei's lunchbox. One side cracked slightly from impact against the pavement. Lian ziho stopped walking instantly.Nearby, partially beneath a bench wet from rainwater, rested Jun wei's school bagHis breathing slowed immediately.Lian ziho grabbed the bag quickly and looked around again, this time with growing urgency in his expression. "Jun Wei?" His voice carried across the school entrance but disappeared beneath the sound of rain and traffic.
Lian ziho's grip tightened hard around the bag strap now.He walked toward the nearest teacher standing beneath the covered entrance. "Excuse me!" he said quickly, struggling to keep his voice calm. "Where's Jun wei?" The teacher looked slightly startled by the intensity in his expression before answering carefully. "Oh… Jun Wei already left." Lian ziho froze. "What?" "A little while ago " she explained. "He said someone came to pick him up."
The atmosphere around Lian ziho changed instantly. "Someone?" His voice turned noticeably sharper now. "Who?" The teacher frowned faintly, suddenly realizing something felt off. "I thought it was family." she said uncertainly. "Jun wei didn't seem scared." Lian ziho stepped closer immediately. "You let him leave with someone without confirming who they were?" The teacher blinked nervously at the sudden anger in his voice. "He said he knew them..." "He's a child." Lian ziho interrupted sharply. "Do you let children leave with strangers this easily?" The teacher looked shaken now. "I...I didn't know there was a problem." "Did you call anyone?" Lian ziho demanded. "Did you contact Suo ran? Me? Anyone?" "No…" she admitted quietly.
Lian ziho closed his eyes briefly. No… No, this isn't right. Jun Wei wouldn't leave without telling them. Not after everything happening recently. His thoughts immediately darkened. Someone took him intentionally. Lian ziho looked around the school entrance again like Jun Wei might suddenly appear if he searched hard enough. But the empty space only made the dread worse. "Did you see who picked him up?" he asked again quickly. The teacher shook her head weakly. "No… I only saw Jun wei talking to someone near the road before he left." Lian ziho immediately turned toward the street
He pulled his phone out immediately and called Suo ran but he didn't answer he called again.Still nothing. "Pick up…" he muttered under his breath while pacing sharply through the rain now. "Pick up the phone…" The call disconnected again. His chest tightened harder. Then suddenly another thought struck him. ' CCTV'. Lian ziho looked toward the school office. "Do you have security cameras facing the entrance?" The teacher nodded quickly. "Y-yes." "Show me."
Minutes later, Lian ziho stood inside the small security office staring intensely at the monitor footage replaying from earlier that afternoon. Then camera video flickered across the screen. He saw Jun wei appeared near the school gate carrying his bag carelessly over one shoulder while eating something from his pocket. Then a black car slowly pulled up beside the curb. Lian ziho leaned closer instantly. The passenger window lowered slightly. Jun wei stopped walking and said something then smiled faintly. He was not scared.He knew whoever was inside the car.lian ziho thought.
The footage continued. Jun wei stepped closer toward the window for several seconds before opening the back door and climbing inside willingly. The black car drove away moments later then gone. Lian ziho stared at the frozen screen afterward without moving. His hands had started shaking slightly now. Who took him? And how did Jun wei know them? Then one more detail caught his attention. Jun Wei's desk bag.
Lian Ziho immediately unzipped it searching desperately for anything useful. There were normal thing in bag like pens, book, snacks then he noticed folded paper hidden between notebook pages. His expression sharpened instantly. Slowly, Lian Ziho unfolded it. The moment he read the message, his expression changed "Stop investigating." beneath it "Next child disappears permanently." Silence swallowed the small office completely.
Lian Ziho's fingers tightened violently around the paper until it nearly crumpled inside his handImmediate realization hit him hard.This wasn't random jun wei had been targeted intentionally because of suo ran. Because of the investigation. Lian Ziho lowered his head slightly as guilt slammed into him without mercy. If I wasn't late… If I got here earlier… Jun Wei wouldn't have disappeared. His jaw tightened.Lian Ziho immediately grabbed his phone again and called Suo Ran one more time with trembling fingers. "Answer the damn phone…" he whispered hoarsely beneath his breath.
Back to cemetery suo ran was talking with his late parents then he heard footsteps sound came from behind.suo ran expression changed.He stood quickly and turned around at once toward the sound. He saw several meters away there was an older man who was standing beneath a black umbrella. He was well dressed.Suo ran noticed that that older man looking at grave.Suo ran stood frozen beside the graves, his eyes fixed sharply on the unfamiliar man several meters away. The older man remained beneath a black umbrella, dressed neatly in dark formal clothes that looked far too expensive for someone casually visiting a cemetery.
Who is he…? His breathing slowed carefully as suspicion rose beneath his exhaustion. Why is he here?Somewhere inside his coat pocket, his phone vibrated repeatedly against the fabric but Suo ran barely noticed it. His entire focus remained locked on the stranger. Then older man spoke first. His voice was low and calm. "You look like your father." Suo Ran's expression changed. His eyes narrowed faintly. "Who are you?" The stranger slowly shifted his gaze away from the gravestone thenlooked directly at Suo ran. His eyes were sharp despite his age then he said "Your father was a good man." A small pause followed then he continued "Too good for the people around him."
What does that mean? Suo ran thought.The stranger looked back toward the gravestone again. "He trusted people he shouldn't have trusted." he continued quietly. "And by the time he realized that…" " it was already too late." Suo ran's heartbeat slowed. "You knew him!" he said carefully. The man gave no direct answer. Instead, he lowered his umbrella slightly as rain mist drifted softly through the cemetery air. "Your father knew powerful people were involved in what he discovered." he said calmly. "Far more powerful than he originally believed."
"What did he discover?" he asked sharply. "And who are these people?" The stranger remained silent for several long seconds. Then he spoke again. "Evidence vanished after his death because someone wanted it gone." His gaze darkened slightly beneath the umbrella. "Witnesses disappeared, reports changed. Even the investigation itself was manipulated from inside."
Suo ran's expression hardened slightly now. "You're saying the police were involved?" The older man looked at him quietly. "I'm saying your father stopped knowing who he could trust a long time before he died." Silence swallowed.His phone vibrated repeatedly inside his pocket once more but he didn't notice.The stranger slowly stepped closer toward the grave before crouching slightly. His gloved hand disappeared briefly inside his coat before removing a sealed brown envelope. Without another word, he placed it carefully beside the flowers resting near Suo ran's parents' gravestones. Suo ran's eyes immediately dropped toward it. "What is that?" he asked sharply. The man straightened slowly beneath the umbrella again. "Some truths survive longer buried." he said quietly.
He took one step forward immediately. "Wait." His voice turned colder. "Who are you?" "If you continue searching for the truth…" he said quietly, "…eventually you'll understand why your father died."Then before Suo Ran could stop him, the stranger turned calmly and began walking away through the rows of gravestones beneath the falling mist. "Wait!" Suo Ran called sharply, immediately moving after him. "You can't just say things like that and leave!" But the man never looked back. Within seconds, he disappeared.
Who the hell was that person…? Why did he know so much about father? And why did it feel like he was warning me instead of helping me? Suo Ran lowered his gaze slowly toward the sealed envelope left beside the grave. His phone vibrated violently inside his pocket again. This time he noticed it. Frowning faintly, Suo ran pulled it out distractedly then froze. 12 missed calls. All from Lian Ziho. His chest tightened instantly. Something was wrong.
Suo ran called him back "hello! Lian ziho?" He continued "Why did you call me this many times?" For a second there was only silence from the other side.Suo ran's chest tightened. "Lian Ziho?" His voice sharpened instantly. "What happened?" On the other side of the call, Lian ziho sounded like he was struggling to stay calm himself then very quietly he answered "Jun Wei's gone." suo ran froze." What?" His fingers tightened violently around the phone as his breathing suddenly became shallow. "I can't find him." Lian Ziho said again." what do you mean he is gone? Where is he? "suo ran asked panickly."When I got to the school he was already gone."
Suo Ran stared ahead blankly without seeing anything. His mind refused to process the words properly. Gone? No...No. (....)
Jun wei wouldn't disappear. (...)
Jun Wei would wait for them. (....)
The flowers slipped from Suo ran's numb fingers and fell silently onto the wet ground beside his parents' graves. "No…"He turned slowly back toward his parents' gravestones like he couldn't stop himself. His expression looked genuinely shattered now. "..Not him." he whispered hoarsely. Rain mist drifted softly through the cemetery while his voice trembled harder with every word. "Please… not him too."
Tears blurred his vision despite how hard he tried to suppress them. "You already took enough from this family…" Then Images crashed violently through his head one after another. He saw Jun wei laughing too loudly at breakfast. In other complaining about school,Falling asleep on the couch beside him. And calling him gege every single day.
From the phone, Lian ziho's voice suddenly rose sharply through the panic. "Suo Ran!" Suo ran blinked hard immediately like the sound dragged him back into reality by force. He wiped harshly at his face with one trembling hand and forced himself to breathe despite the panic crushing his chest." Not now. I couldn't fall apart now." He took breathe then said " Jun wei need me."
He pressed the phone back harder against his ear. "Where are you?" he asked quickly, voice shaking despite trying to steady it. "I'm coming."Lian ziho after hearing him respond properly again. "I'm still at the school." he continued,"We found CCTV footage. Someone picked him up." Suo ran's expression changed instantly. Fear visible on his face."Did he look scared?" Lian ziho answered "No."
Suo ran closed his eyes briefly. Which meant Jun wei knew whoever took him. Or thought he did. "There was a note too!" Lian ziho added carefully now. "It said to stop investigating." Suo Ran froze again.His fingers slowly tightened around the phone until his knuckles turned pale. They're targeting Jun Wei because of me.
Lian Ziho spoke again, guilt finally breaking fully into his voice now. "This is my fault. I should've gotten there earlier." "No!" Suo ran interrupted instantly despite the panic tearing through him."Don't say that. It's not your fault."Suo ran swallowed hard before forcing himself to move. "Send me the location." he said quickly. "And don't leave alone." "Suo Ran!" "Just stay there." he repeated more sharply this time while already turning toward the cemetery exit. "I'm coming right now."
Then the call ended. Suo ran stood motionless for one last second beside his parents' graves while rainwater soaked quietly into the fallen flowers at his feet. Slowly, he bent down and picked the flowers back up with trembling hands before placing them carefully against the gravestone again. His eyes lingered briefly on the worn photograph attached near the stone. Then quietly almost like a promise he whispered, "…I'll bring him home." And afterward, Suo ran turned and ran through the rain.
Rainwater streaked endlessly across the taxi windows,traffic lights reflected weakly against the wet roads beneath the storm clouds gathering overhead,His one trembling hand pressed hard against his forehead while the other gripped his phone tightly enough to hurt.His mind kept replaying the same horrible possibilities against his will. Was Jun Wei scared right now? Hurt? Crying somewhere alone waiting for him?
He lowered his head briefly, trying to force himself to think clearly despite the fear spiraling harder every second. Think. Don't panic. Panicking won't help. (...)
Suo Ran's fingers tightened slightly around the phone.
Cai Lang had connections and resources.
(...)
People who could help search faster than the police ever would. If anyone could help find Jun wei quickly it was probably him.
(...)
But he hesitated to call him. After everything happening between them recently.
(...)
After thinking for minutes he slowly pressed the call button. The phone rang once, twice then three times. No answer came from cai lang. Suo ran swallowed hard. "Come on…" he whispered under his breath while staring at the screen. The call ended.He called again. Call was ringing.... Ringing. Still no answer suo ran's breathing became noticeably uneven now. "Pick up…" His voice cracked faintly this time. "Please pick up…"
"Why is he not answering?" He called again but again no answer.
Suo ran called a third time. His fingers were shaking badly now. No answer, no message. His expression changed. "Fuck!" Suo ran suddenly threw the phone hard against the seat beside him. The taxi driver visibly startled in the front mirror. "Sir!" He glanced back nervously. "Are you alright?" Suo ran froze briefly afterward like he suddenly realized how badly he'd lost control.He dragged one trembling hand down across his face before forcing himself to speak again. "I'm fine." he said,"I dropped it accidentally." The driver looked unconvinced immediately. His eyes lingered briefly through the rearview mirror toward Suo ran's pale expression and visibly shaking hands.
Suo ran leaned back hard against the seat afterward and closed his eyes briefly, trying desperately to steady himself again.