Father and son both had the same suspicion in their hearts: Could it be that the person who really knew the truth was Xia Lan?
And Xia Lan had inadvertently told Cao Guihua about the situation?
Soon after, Ou ZhenTing pondered for a moment and said, "Junjun, you just mentioned you wanted to go to Ling County, is it to investigate the matter?"
"Yes," Ou Jun replied with a nod upon hearing this.
He had no intention of keeping his father in the dark.
Seeing this, Ou ZhenTing pondered a bit more, then said to his son, "Junjun, all this while, youâve had one foot in the military, and the other in searching for Jiao Jiao."
"You havenât paid much attention to the political situation."
Fearing his son might not grasp his meaning, Ou ZhenTing directly explained, "Recently, someone from above wants us to take sides, but we have maintained neutrality."
"In such circumstances, to prevent us from switching to the opposition, they might, possibly, take action against us..."
Upon hearing this, Ou Jun was suddenly shocked. Then, his expression slowly became grave and after a long while, he said, "I understand."
His fatherâs meaning was clear: regarding Cao Guihuaâs matter, whether it was suicide or murderâit was most important that they donât give others the opportunity to criticize them.
Therefore, regarding Xia Lanâs matter, they had to be extremely cautious; without any evidence, they couldnât act rashly.
"You must remember what your father saysâno matter what, we must not jump to conclusions about any matter without solid evidence," Ou ZhenTing said, looking meaningfully at his son, and continued, "Junjun, do you understand what Iâm saying?"
"Dad, I understand," Ou Jun replied earnestly. "Dad, I bought a ticket for tomorrow to Ling County..."
As he spoke, Ou Jun seemed somewhat guilty.
By leaving now, wasnât he leaving his father alone in the Capital City to deal with Cao Guihuaâs matter?
Seeing his son like this, Ou ZhenTing chuckled and said, "What is there to apologize for?"
"Just go and search for Jiao Jiao. In our family, Jiao Jiaoâs matter is of utmost importance."
"As for Cao Guihuaâs matter, a verdict has actually been reachedâshe committed suicide out of fear of her crimes."
After a brief pause, Ou ZhenTing instructed, "What I just analyzed to you is just to tell you that, in our next actions, we need to be a bit more careful."
Itâs just preparation for any eventuality, not that a problem has actually arisen.
After speaking with his son, Ou Jun made up a reason to say goodbye to his mother and headed directly to H province in the Southern region.
Not long after Ou Jun had set off, Xia Chuyi and Xia Chengzong finally arrived at Ling County.
After barely managing to sort out their luggage, Xia Chuyi and his companion went straight to the hospital.
In the hospital, it was the care worker who was looking after Mother Xia.
It had to be said that this beating had probably been a great shock to Mother Xia; she seemed somewhat out of it.
"Mom," Xia Chengzong said as soon as he entered the hospital room.
Mother Xia, who had been in a daze, snapped back to reality upon hearing Xia Chengzongâs voice and asked in surprise, "Chengzong, how did you come back?"
"Werenât you going to Beijing?"
"I did go, but as soon as I arrived in Beijing, I turned back."
"Ah, Chengzong, youâre considerate!" Mother Xia reached out, pulling Xia Chengzong toward her and said, "Itâs good youâve come back, itâs good youâve come back!"
Confronted with his motherâs reaction, Xia Chengzong suddenly felt somewhat embarrassed.
"Mom, look who this is..." Suddenly, Xia Chengzong forcibly pointed towards the doorway where Xia Chuyi was waiting.
"You, youâve come back too?" Mother Xia became somewhat flustered the moment she saw Xia Chuyi.