Chapter 469 — Xiaofen Is in Trouble

"?" Wei Zhao looked at Feng Xiaoxiao, baffled. A hero saving a damsel in distress might be an overused cliché, but it was also the kind of scene that readily won hearts. Still, Wei Zhao did not think what had happened yesterday could have moved Feng Xiaoxiao all that much.

If it came to saving damsels, he had rescued Tang Zhi several times, yet never once had she offered to give herself to him in gratitude; the feelings between them had grown only through long and steady companionship. And as for the eldest young miss, she hardly bore mentioning — he had saved her plenty of times too, and she had never shown the slightest sign of anything.

So Wei Zhao found it deeply unreliable that a single act of heroism could make Feng Xiaoxiao confess to him of her own accord.

"Wei Zhao, you are the most captivating man I have ever met!" Feng Xiaoxiao said, her face flushed, her gaze misty as she looked at him.

But at that very moment, before Wei Zhao could say anything, a phone rang — his phone.

"Sorry, let me take this call first." Wei Zhao gestured for Feng Xiaoxiao to wait a moment, then answered.

Feng Xiaoxiao was about to explode with fury. When had she ever spoken so meekly to any boy? She was Feng Xiaoxiao, for heaven's sake! She had once sworn that in her brief life she would bow to no one, that she would live as her own person and not waste this life.

And now, just when she had finally mustered the courage to confess to him, Wei Zhao had actually answered a phone call. Her patience had limits — and this was beyond them. Feng Xiaoxiao was furious; she lifted her foot and went for the back of Wei Zhao's foot.

Wei Zhao thought to himself, why do these girls all like to stomp on other people's feet? He instinctively pulled his foot back, and Feng Xiaoxiao stamped on empty air — with such force that, with a crack, she snapped the heel off her high-heeled shoe...

"Ah—!" Feng Xiaoxiao was frantic. She glared at Wei Zhao. "Give me your foot to step on! Otherwise you don't get to take that call!"

With that, she made a grab for the phone in Wei Zhao's hand.

Wei Zhao frowned, thinking her a little unreasonable, but seeing her so beside herself, so ready to fight him to the death, he let her have her way. He extended his foot and answered the call. "Hello?"

"I'll stomp! I'll stomp! Stomp, stomp, stomp!" Feng Xiaoxiao stamped furiously on the top of Wei Zhao's foot. The pain was nothing to him, but she was the one who came away badly bruised.

"Boss, Xiaofen's been taken!" As soon as Wei Zhao answered, Kang Xiaofeng's panicked voice came down the line.

"Xiaofen's been taken? What happened?" Wei Zhao was startled. Paying Feng Xiaoxiao no further mind, he frowned and listened closely to the phone.

"Boss, it's like this. I got up this morning and went to Xiaofen's place — we'd arranged to go for a walk and have breakfast together..." Kang Xiaofeng grew a little sheepish as he said this. "I go over early every morning..."

"Mm, get to the point — who took Xiaofen?" Wei Zhao quite understood Kang Xiaofeng's behavior; couples in love were always eager, and so Wei Zhao was hardly going to criticize Kang Xiaofeng for his daily early-morning diligence — had he himself not rushed over to Tang Zhi's place first thing in the morning?

"Early this morning, Xiaofen was waiting for me on the bench by the breakfast stalls as usual. Normally I'm the one who gets there first, but there was a traffic jam this morning and I was a little late," Kang Xiaofeng said. "The moment I got out of the car, I saw two men drag Xiaofen into a white minivan with no license plates. I was terrified. I grabbed a taxi and followed. Right now we've followed them to the gate of some big compound — the taxi driver only dared stop nearby, he wouldn't go in..."

Listening to Kang Xiaofeng's breathless account, Wei Zhao pondered for a moment. He could not figure out why anyone would take Xiaofen. Could they be men sent by Kang Jingming?

"Where are you? I'll be right there!" Wei Zhao asked.

"There's a street sign here that says No. 7A, Dunmeng Street, but it looks like hardly anyone passes through — must be the outskirts," Kang Xiaofeng said. "The taxi fare came to over three hundred yuan, so it must be way out on the edge of the city!"

"All right, don't act rashly. Wait for me, no matter what!" Wei Zhao said. "Keep in touch at all times!"

"Got it, boss! Hurry, please — I'm afraid if we're too late they'll do something to Xiaofen!" Kang Xiaofeng said anxiously.

"Ha, don't worry. With me here, nothing will happen." Wei Zhao said.

After hanging up on Kang Xiaofeng, Wei Zhao ignored Feng Xiaoxiao and turned to get into his car, but a glance to the side caught her awkward predicament. He hesitated a moment, then said, "Let me borrow your car for a bit."

As for speed, there was no way his own van could ever keep up with Feng Xiaoxiao's sports car. After all, an engine had its limits — even if he floored the accelerator, the van would never turn into an airplane. Wei Zhao had never even heard of the place Kang Xiaofeng mentioned, and since Kang Xiaofeng had spent over three hundred yuan on the fare, then barring the possibility that the driver had deliberately taken a detour, this was a journey of more than a hundred kilometers — no short distance at all.

"Huh?" Feng Xiaoxiao was taken aback, a flicker of resentment rising in her heart. So he only thought of me when he needed to borrow the car — why had he ignored me before? Feng Xiaoxiao gave a little huff. "Fine, you can borrow it, but I'm coming along in the car too!"

"Then tag along, if you're not afraid of danger." Wei Zhao had no time to waste on more chatter with Feng Xiaoxiao. The situation was still unclear, and every minute's delay added another measure of danger; he did not want to squander time trying to talk her out of it. "I'm not afraid!" Feng Xiaoxiao nodded. "The more dangerous and thrilling a thing is, the more I like it!"

"You really are a peculiar one — no wonder you love drag racing." Wei Zhao shook his head. "Give me the keys."

Feng Xiaoxiao obediently produced the keys, but she did not hand them to Wei Zhao directly. Instead she unlocked the car doors with the remote and said, "I'll give them to you once we're in the car. What if you leave me behind and drive off?"

"Heh." Wei Zhao smiled bitterly. "I'm not the sort to deceive a friend."

"You think of me as your friend?" Feng Xiaoxiao was instantly excited at his words.

"A friend of sorts — not especially close, not especially distant." Wei Zhao was speaking plain truth. He felt neither dislike nor fondness for Feng Xiaoxiao; in his eyes she was nothing more than a spoiled little girl who loved to make mischief, and how could he possibly stoop to quibble with her?

"Hug me, or we'll be wasting time!" One heel on Feng Xiaoxiao's shoe had broken off, so she was limping along, unable to walk quickly.

Wei Zhao glanced at her, then casually tucked her under one arm and swung her up, depositing her in the passenger seat of the car.

Feng Xiaoxiao was somewhat astonished. Who would have thought that Wei Zhao's frame, hardly what one would call burly, could hold such strength? To lift her with a single arm?

Wei Zhao got in after her, took the car keys from Feng Xiaoxiao's hand, started the engine, and said to her, "Navigate to Number 7, Secondary Street, Dunmeng Street."

"Oh..." Feng Xiaoxiao obediently switched on the navigation, her heart brimming with excitement. It looked like Wei Zhao was planning to drive like a madman! At long last she would get to witness it for herself.