After returning home with the child, her ex-husband knelt down and gently coaxed her.

It is certainly a good thing that this hard-to-find patent can be used free of charge, but how easy is it to help Jiang Pei and his wife and Kong Yiyun and their daughter who have been missing for many years?

"How do you find someone in this vast sea of ​​people?"

In the restaurant, An Ning rested her chin on her hand, looking worried. "Twenty-three years ago, the internet coverage wasn't as extensive as it is now. Aunt Jiang said that even when Professor Jiang and his wife reported the case to the police, there were no results."

"So many years have passed, I wonder how that girl is doing now, it's hard to say if she's still in China."

She sighed. News of human trafficking was everywhere; almost every moment, in every unknown place, children were being abducted.

Moreover, Jiang Xiaoshan said that many people coveted Professor Jiang and his wife's medical achievements back then, and in order to protect their daughter, not a single photo of her was taken when she was a child.

This is like finding a needle in a haystack.

Seeing that she looked worried and had no appetite for lunch, Lu Xiyan smiled and said, "But it's better to have conditions to discuss than nothing to discuss. As long as the conditions are set, there is a possibility that they can be met."

His gentle smile carried a calm confidence, and An Ning loved his composed demeanor, as if he could handle anything.

She hurriedly asked, "west Yan, do you have a way to find out?"

"I can't guarantee we'll find it, but we can try." Lu Xiyan slowly placed a piece of tender fish into her bowl. "Eat first."

Just then, Anning's phone rang.

She picked up her phone, glanced at Lu Xiyan, and answered the video call.

"mom?"

"Anning, eating out?" Li Chunfang was tidying up at home on the other end of the phone. She glanced at the place where Anning was eating and asked, "Is this a restaurant arranged by the company? It looks pretty good. Are you enjoying the food?"

"Yes, it was arranged by the company." An Ning glanced at Lu Xiyan, who was slowly picking up his water glass. "It's alright, the food is quite good."

"If it's delicious, then eat more. Don't starve yourself while you're traveling." Li Chunfang then asked, "Your place seems quite quiet. Are you alone, or with your colleagues?"

An Ning turned on the speakerphone, and Lu Xiyan happened to hear Li Chunfang's words. He calmly poured a cup of tea and placed it in front of An Ning.

"With..." An Ning glanced at Lu Xiyan, and their eyes met.

"With a colleague." An Ning, afraid Li Chunfang would ask more questions, quickly asked, "Mom, why did you call me?"

"It's nothing serious. We just need to take Xuanxuan to get vaccinated today, and I wanted to ask where he put his vaccination record."

Li Chunfang added, "After I finish giving him the vaccine, I'll bring some things to your brother this afternoon. He stayed at school this summer, and I'm worried he might be lacking something."

"Oh, the vaccination record is in the second drawer under my wardrobe, next to his birth certificate," Anning said, then asked, "Has Xuanxuan been behaving well these past few days?"

"He knows you're going on a business trip, not a vacation, and he's been quite well-behaved. He even told you to bring him a big toy when you come back," Li Chunfang said with a smile. "Alright, I won't disturb you having dinner with your colleagues any longer. I'll pack my things and take him out."

After hanging up the phone, Anning noticed a resentful gaze fixed on her.

She looked up and met his alluring gaze, which held a hint of scrutiny.

"So we're colleagues?"

Lu Xiyan spoke slowly, his voice neither too loud nor too soft.

But An Ning detected a hint of resentment in his voice.

"No, I was just saying it to my mom, I—"

Anning was interrupted by someone before she could finish her explanation.

"I followed you from Jinghai to Qichuan, ate with you, slept with you, and worked with you, but in the end, I had no official title or status; I was just a colleague."

Lu Xiyan sighed, lowered his eyes, and stared at An Ning with a resentful look. "You really are irresponsible."

He looked so pitiful, especially with that bullied and resentful expression on his otherwise perfectly handsome face; it was heartbreaking.

An Ning felt like she'd been pinched in the heart, and quickly tried to appease her, "I'm sorry, I was just trying to appease my mom. You know what kind of person she is. If she knew I was having dinner with you right now, she'd definitely ask all sorts of questions, maybe even about everything that's happened in the last few years."

Afraid he wouldn't believe her, An Ning took his hands from the table, holding them tightly. Looking into his handsome eyes, she softened her voice, "We're still in Qichuan, and there are some things we can't tell her. I promise you, once we get back, I'll definitely tell my mom about our relationship and give you back your status, okay?"

Lu Xiyan raised an eyebrow and deliberately asked, "What's your relationship? What's your status?"

"You can have whatever you want," Anning agreed readily.

Whether it's a boyfriend-girlfriend relationship or a husband-wife relationship, Lu Xiyan is fine with whatever kind of relationship he wants to have.

Whether or not Old Master Lu acknowledges her is none of her concern.

Even if she never enters the Lu family, as long as Lu Xiyan loves her, she will be content.

"Alright." Lu Xiyan smiled with satisfaction. "Once you've agreed, you can't go back on your word."

He met An Ning's gentle gaze, thinking to himself that he couldn't let her be with him in such an ambiguous situation.

He also had to give Anning this title.

"But you just reminded me." Lu Xiyan put away his previous mournful look and appeared normal. "Starting with the child's birth certificate might lead to some clues."

......

In the afternoon, the R&D department colleagues found a temporary studio to work in, and Anning took her laptop and materials to the meeting.

Lu Xiyan left his switched-off phone at the hotel, went out to buy a new phone, got a new SIM card, and made a call.

The phone rang for a long time before it was answered.

"Who is it?"

"it's me."

Lu Xiyan had barely opened his mouth when the other party's voice exploded like a bomb.

"Lu Xiyan? Are you crazy?! You're running away from your wedding?!"

Liang Xu's voice was almost deafening, "Do you know that if it weren't for your PR department releasing that PR news at the perfect time, Jinghai would be in complete chaos right now! Your phone is off, nobody in the company can reach you, and you're not answering any of our calls. Are you planning to flee the planet?"

Lu Xiyan held the phone away from him, and only spoke after the other person finished speaking, "I won't be going back for the next few days, can you help me investigate something?"

"Investigate my ass!" Liang Xu exploded. "Are you really planning to leave Earth? If you don't come back soon, your grandfather is going to come here with a knife! I heard Cheng Wanwan was so angry she ended up in the hospital; the Cheng family is going to cause a huge uproar!"

"That won't affect you," Lu Xiyan said calmly. "Investigate, or not?"

"Investigate! Investigate! You're my ancestor!" Liang Xu was so angry he was at his wit's end. "Just tell me what you want to investigate, Mr. Lu."

Lu Xiyan said a few words briefly, then emphasized, "Give me the results before tonight."

Upon hearing this, Liang Xu exploded again, "No, Lu Xiyan, you can be inhuman, but you have to treat me like a human being!"

Before he could finish speaking, Lu Xiyan abruptly hung up the phone.