Momo's Gradual Change - VOL. 1

C161. A Glimmer of Hope.

Chapter 161: A Glimmer of Hope

It was nearly five o’clock, and people were trickling out of the amusement park, heading home.

Song Yimo wanted to slip away with the crowd as well; the fewer people left in the mall, the more dangerous it would be for her. Outside the mall might actually be safer.

But she didn’t dare leave. She was afraid her brother wouldn’t be able to find her if she moved, and even more afraid that those people from before might be lying in wait downstairs.

“By the way, we’ve known each other for a bit, but I still don’t know your name, little sister.”

“Song Yimo. Song, as in the Song Dynasty.” She then asked, “And you, sister?”

“Not as refined as yours—it’s Liang Dong. Just call me Sister Liang.” Liang Dong noted the worry in her expression and couldn’t help glancing again at the peacefully sleeping child in her arms.

This girl didn’t seem to know if the child had eaten or not. Either she’d only just taken the child from someone else, or… she didn’t know the child well at all.

Liang Dong leaned toward the latter, but she didn’t believe Song Yimo had any ill intentions.

“A-Dong.” Dai Le walked over. “Keep an eye on things; I need to use the restroom.”

“Sure.”

The restroom wasn’t far, just outside the amusement park area at the end of a corridor.

Dai Le didn’t head to the urinals but stepped into a stall, shut the door, and pulled down his pants. The white bandage on his thigh was stained with a vivid patch of red.

Without even a flinch, he pulled his pants back up. Just as he was about to leave, faint voices came from outside, and instinctively, he held his breath.

A woman’s voice said, “We checked every room—no one’s here.”

A man responded, “Go up to the fifth floor.”

Dai Le waited, hearing no other movement, and finally stepped out. When he saw Song Yimo again, he was deep in thought.

Clearly, she was the person they were searching for. Yet, standing directly across from them, they hadn’t recognized her. Did they simply not know her face, or was there another reason?

Technically, he was on vacation and didn’t want to deal with matters outside his duty. But with something happening right under his nose, he couldn’t turn a blind eye. Dai Le clicked his tongue in frustration, feeling rather irked.

“Would the lady with the Fang family’s child please come to the front desk? Someone is looking for you. Would the lady with the Fang family’s child please come to the front desk?”

Song Yimo looked up, startled.

The Fang family’s child?

Were they referring to her?

But there was no way this was her brother—this wasn’t how they’d agreed to communicate!

Liang Dong had also heard the announcement and leaned over, asking in a low voice, “Are they looking for you?”

“I can’t be sure.” Song Yimo was, by nature, someone who trusted her rationality, but when logic fell short, she relied on her instincts. Liang Dong, she instinctively felt, was trustworthy.

She kept her brother’s instructions in mind, but she wasn’t so rigid that she couldn’t adapt when things changed.

“If this were someone my brother sent, they’d know my name and wouldn’t use such a vague approach.”

Liang Dong exchanged a glance with her husband, uncertain if she should probe further.

Dai Le, however, stepped forward to take a closer look at the child in her arms. Remembering a piece of news he’d heard earlier, a sudden thought struck him.

Could it really be… just this coincidental?

A chill ran down Dai Le's spine. He quickly pulled out his phone, stepped aside to a quiet spot, and made a call. “It’s me. Yes, I’m on leave, but I need to ask—has the boss’s child been found?”

Whatever response he received made him glance back at Song Yimo, his eyes widening in shock. “How can we confirm that the child is his? I’m here at New World, and there’s a girl nearby holding a child. Got it, I’ll wait for your call.”

Song Yimo had caught fragments of his conversation and took two steps back when he approached, watching him with wary eyes.

Liang Dong looked between the two, then leaned over and whispered, “What’s going on?”

Dai Le ignored his wife’s question, instead reassuring the tense young girl. “Don’t worry, I’m not going to take the child.”

Song Yimo pressed her lips together and said nothing.

Then his phone rang. He picked up immediately, recognizing the number. “Boss, it’s Dai Le. Yes, I’m here at New World. There’s a girl around seventeen or eighteen with the child, who looks about a year old—chubby and fair-skinned. He’s wearing a little tracksuit, matching the girl’s outfit. The clothes are still creased, probably just bought. Hold on.”

He turned to Song Yimo. “Our boss wants me to ask—was the child wearing a cream-colored onesie when you first took him?”

Song Yimo’s expression only grew more guarded, and she didn’t answer.

She was beginning to understand the warning her brother had given her. Anyone looking to seize this child must be powerful, perhaps even with official backing. They could use any tactic to get the child, including appearing as someone trustworthy. Just because someone knew her brother’s name didn’t mean they were to be trusted.

Dai Le sighed. “She’s treating me like a threat, ready to bolt any second. The kid looks like the one in the photos you sent us, but for certainty, could you send another picture? Right. Got it.”

Hanging up, Dai Le addressed her more formally. “Miss, let’s make a deal.”

“What kind of deal?”

“You need someone to cover for you, and my current task is to protect you and the child. So, from here on, we’ll move as a team.”

After hearing both calls, Song Yimo was beginning to trust Dai Le. She hesitated but eventually nodded.

A message notification sounded, and Dai Le checked it. He turned the phone’s screen toward Song Yimo. “This is indeed our boss’s child.”

There he was—chubby and rosy-cheeked, just like the child on her lap. The only difference was that in the photo, he was smiling; in her care, he’d either been crying or sleeping. But the features were unmistakable.

“The boss will be here soon,” Dai Le said, “but the others are nearly here already. We don’t know how many of them are coming. If they’re using surveillance, we won’t stay hidden long. We need to leave immediately.”

Song Yimo knew he was right; staying here was too risky—they might already be combing through security footage.

“I’d like to make a call.”

“Of course. But make it quick.” Dai Le handed her the phone without hesitation.

Exhausted from holding the child, Song Yimo sat down, placing him on her lap, and dialed the most familiar number.

“Dage, it’s me.” The words trembled on her lips. This was the first time in either of her lives that she had faced anything like this. Calm as she tried to be, she couldn’t hide the underlying fear, which only surfaced in the presence of her steadfast family.

“Yimo, where are you? Are you safe?”

“I’m still in the mall.” She quickly recounted what had happened with Dai Le, then, right in front of him, asked, “Dage, can I trust him?”

“Hand him the phone.”