Chapter 240 – Report to the CEO: Madam Has Run Away Again – A Disheartened Soul (03)
Bai Tang followed Sha Yao home.
The apartment Sha Yao rented wasn’t very big—just two bedrooms and a living room. Originally, she had planned to use one room as her bedroom and the other as a study. Having her own study had felt like such a cozy, delightful thing.
Now, she simply converted the study into a bedroom—just right for Bai Tang to move in.
Inside Bai Tang’s small pouch were priceless jewels and ornaments, but in the modern world, she didn’t dare to casually take them out—each piece could easily be considered an antique.
Xiao A randomly picked one antique and converted it into modern cash, depositing the money into a bank card for Bai Tang’s future use.
Sha Yao had just started her internship, and after renting the place, she didn’t have much money left.
Bai Tang handed her the card. Sha Yao asked in surprise, “Where did this card come from?”
Bai Tang, who saw Sha Yao as someone close from the bottom of his heart, briefly and clearly explained how he had been kicked out of the villa.
Sha Yao hadn’t expected her idol—President Gu, whom she had admired so much—to turn out to be such a cold-blooded, heartless man.
Her fantasy shattered. Bai Tang was living proof.
It never even crossed Sha Yao’s mind that Bai Tang might be lying. The moment the young man mentioned Gu Yan, he started to cry. That expression, the emotion in his eyes—how could that possibly be fake?
“Don’t worry, Tang Tang,” Sha Yao said. “You’re safe here. Don’t overthink it. Gu Yan isn’t worth it—you deserve someone better.”
It would’ve been fine if she hadn’t said anything—but the moment she did, the young man’s tears wouldn’t stop.
No one could ever love him better than the male lead did. But now it was over—he didn’t love him anymore…
Sha Yao ordered a new bed online, paid for it, and it was delivered within a few hours.
After everything was set up, Sha Yao looked at Bai Tang, whose eyes were swollen like walnuts from crying. She didn’t even know what she was feeling anymore. She had never been in a relationship, never experienced heartbreak, but seeing Bai Tang like this made her feel angry, anxious, and helpless all at once.
Bai Tang cried himself to sleep. Sha Yao sighed, gently pulled the blanket over him, and felt an intense disgust for Gu Yan—the man she had only met once.
So much for judging a book by its cover—he looked polished and proper, but turned out to be a complete scumbag who toyed with people’s feelings.
The next day, Sha Yao was worried about leaving Bai Tang home alone. But she had just passed her job interview—it wouldn’t look good to ask for leave on the very first day.
Bai Tang, ever considerate, said, “I’ll be fine. Go to work.”
“Don’t overthink, Tang Tang. Watch some movies or TV at home. I’ll be back after work.”
They say love makes people blind—Sha Yao had seen firsthand the depth of Bai Tang’s feelings for Gu Yan, and what she feared most now was that he might do something drastic.
“Mhm, I got it,” Bai Tang gave her a weak smile.
Sha Yao glanced at the time—if she didn’t leave now, she’d be late. With a heart full of worry, she stepped out the door.
Meanwhile, Xiao A had spent the night monitoring the male lead. Gu Yan hadn’t slept a wink. He’d ordered Assistant Jin to search all the major hotels in the city, but Bai Tang was nowhere to be found.
“Mr. Bai didn’t take any luggage when he left,” Assistant Jin had reported.
Gu Yan guessed Bai Tang probably didn’t have much money on him, so he spent the whole night driving around, checking budget hostels and small guesthouses—even those sketchy inns on the roadside without proper licenses. Still, no sign of Bai Tang.
By dawn, he was unshaven and disheveled, slumped against his car smoking a cigarette, looking utterly defeated.
Every time he closed his eyes, the sound of that sobbing over the phone from the day before echoed in his mind.
“Where are you…” the man murmured as he squatted down, his voice filled with despair.
He couldn’t understand why he cared so much about someone he had barely spoken to—someone he hadn’t even met in person. And yet, he couldn’t stop thinking.
Why had he vanished?
What if something happened?
What if he ran into bad people? He didn’t have any money—what if someone scammed him, or even trafficked him…?
The more Gu Yan thought about it, the worse it got. It was as if he could hear the young man calling out to him for help.
By the time Assistant Jin found him, Gu Yan looked like he was on the verge of a breakdown.
“President Gu.”
“Did you find him?” Gu Yan looked at Assistant Jin with a flicker of hope in his eyes.
Assistant Jin shook his head. “I checked all the large, medium, and small hotels—none of them had any record of Mr. Bai checking in. But I did find the taxi driver who picked him up yesterday. He’s currently in police custody.”
In police custody? Did something happen?
Gu Yan went to the police station with Assistant Jin. After questioning, they learned that the taxi driver had returned in a disheveled state. Others noticed something was off and approached him out of concern, only to discover he was injured and had blood on him. After checking the dashcam footage, it appeared he might have attempted to rob a passenger, so his superior reported him to the police.
Blood? Gu Yan’s heart clenched. He quickly asked, “Where is he?”
The police told him that, according to the driver’s statement, he had heard police sirens at the time and panicked. He abandoned Bai Tang and drove off alone.
So, the driver had no idea where Bai Tang ended up.
It was a remote, mountainous area—no cars around. Even walking all night until morning might not have been enough to make it back.
Gu Yan drove to the location the driver had mentioned. The scenery was lush and beautiful, filled with birdsong and the scent of flowers—but there was no sign of Bai Tang.
“President Gu, let’s head back,” Assistant Jin urged. Serves you right, he thought. If you hadn’t been so cold and cut him off without even taking his calls, we wouldn’t be here now.
Assistant Jin didn’t feel the slightest bit sorry for Gu Yan, but he was genuinely worried about Bai Tang. He had also looked into Bai Tang’s past—how he had lived through inhumane conditions in the Bai household. He wasn’t allowed to study, was beaten and scolded daily. At their poorest, the couple had even forced Bai Tang to work as a dishwasher at shady restaurants to support them. They were despicable.
Bai Tang had no education. It was entirely possible he could be abducted or trafficked.
They considered filing a police report—but they had no legal grounds or personal standing to do so. What could they say—that he was a former fiancée?
Bai Tang had already signed a severance agreement. He had no connection to Gu Yan anymore.
Assistant Jin said, “President Gu, let it go. Mr. Bai might not be the person we imagined, and besides, he has nothing to do with you anymore.”
Gu Yan tightened his grip on the document. “No. He’s still my fiancée. I haven’t signed it yet—the agreement isn’t legally valid.”
It was true—the document only became effective once both parties had signed. Gu Yan was immensely relieved that he had the habit of signing last. If he’d signed earlier, he truly would have had no grounds now.
However, it hadn’t yet been 48 hours since Bai Tang went missing, and without confirmation that he was truly missing, they still couldn’t officially file a report. All they could do for now was search. Only if Bai Tang was still unaccounted for after 48 hours would they be able to file a missing person case.
Gu Yan hadn’t slept all night. Assistant Jin urged him to go home and rest for a while.
Gu Yan waved him off. “Take me to the office.”
Right now, he just wanted to keep himself busy—anything to avoid being consumed by the horrifying thoughts of Bai Tang being hurt.
Assistant Jin had no choice but to take him back to the company.
That same day was Sha Yao’s first day on the job. She had just been informed she was assigned to the president’s direct team. The team’s deputy leader, Zhao Lou, showed her around and introduced her to everyone.
“This is Meili, this is Siyuan, and this is Wu Yi…”
After Sha Yao had greeted all the team members, Zhao Lou led her to the president’s office and knocked on the door.
“President Gu, this is the new team member, Sha Yao.”
Sha Yao looked at Gu Yan, whose chin was now covered in stubble—she barely recognized him as the once spirited and confident man she had seen speaking in the auditorium.
Author’s Note:
Who was it that asked for double updates?
Your sweet romance author is answering the call—just this once! 💪