Chen Ziming finished his night shift and returned home the next day, intending to cuddle his little girl in bed.
But he found the bed empty.
Under a paperweight by the bedside, a folded piece of paper was pressed.
A premonition of unease suddenly arose in his heart, and he slowly reached out to take the paper.
It was a letter from her.
—
Officer Chen, by the time you read this, I will have flown to England.
I'm sorry I didn't tell you face-to-face. I just wanted some quiet time, and I'm also looking forward to life abroad~
I never dared to tell you, but Su Minghua had other intentions towards me. I actively approached you back then, told you I liked you and missed you, and agreed to live with you because I discovered he was wary of you.
You should already know.
Thank you for your tolerance and care.
Give me some time to grow more. It's too hard to be your equal, but if I'm working, I'll have more confidence by your side.
I will definitely remain pure and chaste.
I have always loved you.
You have to wait for me.
—
At the bottom of the letter, another line was faintly written, advising him not to act against Su Minghua for the time being.
At the signature, she had written: Your darling, in her elegant script.
Chen Ziming froze.
He felt his whole body tremble uncontrollably.
He told himself this wasn't a breakup.
The little girl just wanted to escape for a while.
But he was still angry.
Partly from her leaving without a word, and the attitude in her message, "Don't disturb me again until I start working."
The larger part was because of Su Minghua and Chi Yiran.
His private investigator had only told him the day before that among the two groups fighting, each had a subordinate who met with a man before the fight.
Further investigation revealed that this man was connected to Su Minghua.
He was likely someone Su Minghua habitually used when employing underhanded tactics.
And through investigating Chi Yiran, it was discovered that she also had contact with Su Minghua.
Chen Ziming's anger had been building since then.
Considering Su Yue was leaving soon, he wanted to spend more time with her, and he also had his shifts.
He hadn't had a chance to confront Su Minghua yet.
Nor had he had a chance to confront Chi Yiran.
Chen Ziming looked at the words on the letter again and again.
His expression grew increasingly grim.
Once again, she had escaped from his side.
He folded the letter, opened the first drawer of the bedside table, and placed the letter with Su Yue's accumulated notes.
Then, from the second drawer, he took out cigarettes and a lighter he hadn't touched in a long time.
He walked to the balcony and stood there silently, his hand trembling as he lit a cigarette and took a deep drag.
As the smoke was exhaled, his handsome face gradually regained its composure.
When Su Yue wanted to escape, pursuing her would be useless; it would only be counterproductive.
At least this time.
She hadn't said they were breaking up.
She had also told him to wait for her.
After smoking five cigarettes in a row, he finally calmed down completely. He raised his eyes to look out the window, his gaze filled with immense coldness.
Su Yue's instruction not to confront Su Minghua must have been because of her mother.
She had asked him to do it, so he would comply.
But this resentment had to be addressed.
...
In the end, Chi Yiran was dismissed.
Chen Ziming handed over the care of the Chi family to a friend and completely severed ties with her family.
To Su Minghua, he sent a video through an intermediary.
It was the confession of the punk who incited the fight between the two groups under his command.
The man also passed on a message to Su Minghua.
He warned him to behave, stating that the video had backups, and if he dared to cause trouble behind his back again, he would no longer consider his status as a stepfather.
After completing all this.
Chen Ziming moved.
A year later, he finished his internship at the Yuluo Street Police Station.
And went to the Ministry of Public Security for official reporting.
He had endured it all, truly not bothering Su Yue.
He only repeatedly checked her social media.
He kept counting down the days until her return.