Heart Stealer

The first rays of morning light penetrated the mist. Xiao Tuobang drove the car along the winding road towards Yingnan City.

His mood was complicated and excited. On the one hand, he was sincerely happy that his junior sister had returned safely. On the other hand, he was worried about the unknown problems in the company and missed his new wife Qiu Xue.

In the car, Xiao Tuobang's thoughts were wandering. He recalled the time he spent with his junior sister when they were young. That lively and lovely junior sister had finally been reborn after going through many hardships.

He could imagine the lively scene of the old captain and his fellow apprentices gathering together, toasting to celebrate the return of his apprentice sister...

But more often than not, his heart was occupied by Qiu Xue, that gentle and virtuous woman.

Ever since they parted, her smile and her figure have always lingered in his mind.

Xiao Tuobang didn't call Qiu Xue or send any message because he wanted to give her a surprise.

He imagined the moment when Qiu Xue opened the door and saw him standing at the door, exhausted.

What expression would appear on his face—surprise, delight, or both?

As the wheels rolled forward, the outline of the city gradually became clear in the field of vision.

Xiao Tuobang's heartbeat also quickened. He couldn't wait to see Qiu Xue, to hug her tightly, to tell her everything he had experienced during this period of time and his endless longing for her.

The car stopped steadily in front of the house.

Xiao Tuobang took a deep breath and straightened his clothes.

Then, with full of anticipation and a little nervousness, he stepped onto the stairs leading to the living room of the villa.

Xiao Tuobang gently pushed open the door of the living room. He looked for Qiu Xue anxiously, but he did not see her in the living room on the first floor.

Considering that his wife would occasionally sleep in, Xiao Tuobang guessed that she might still be dreaming.

He took off his light gray suit jacket, held the jacket in one hand, and walked up the stairs quietly with the other hand.

He carefully pushed open the door of the bridal chamber, but found the bed empty and Qiu Xue was not in the bedroom.

Xiao Tuobang threw his clothes casually onto the sofa. He walked quickly to the window and pulled open the heavy curtains with force. Suddenly, a dazzling ray of sunlight came in, illuminating the entire room.

He raised his hands to block his eyes, and at the same time stuck his head out and looked at the small garden downstairs.

There are many exotic flowers and plants planted in the garden, as well as colorful roses, forming a gorgeous sea of ​​flowers.

Qiuxue usually likes to wander in this sea of ​​flowers and cut a few of the most beautiful flowers to decorate her room.

Thinking of this, Xiao Tuobang couldn't help but wonder whether Qiu Xue was busy in the garden at this moment.

With such expectation, Xiao Tuobang turned around quickly, went downstairs in two steps, and ran straight towards the small garden.

When he arrived at the courtyard, he found that there was no one else in the garden except Sister Zhen.

Sister Zhen was concentrating on watering a pot of pink roses, and the water droplets sparkled with crystal light under the sunlight.

Xiao Tuobang raised his voice from a distance and asked Sister Zhen expectantly, "Sister Zhen, where is the young lady?"

Upon hearing this, Sister Zhen quickly put down the watering can, turned around, and replied respectfully, "Master, the young lady has been back to her parents' home for a few days."

Hearing this answer, a trace of disappointment crossed Xiao Tuobang's face. But he still politely said "thank you" to Mrs. Zhen.

Xiao Tuobang quickly returned to the bedroom, put on his suit jacket, took his car keys, and drove to his father-in-law's house.

After arriving at the Qiu family villa, he parked the car and instructed the workers to unload the local specialties he brought from his hometown, and then he stepped into the house.

Walking into the living room, Xiao Tuobang saw Qiu Xue chatting with his father-in-law and mother-in-law. The three of them had happy smiles on their faces and the atmosphere was very harmonious.

Qiu Xue turned around and saw Xiao Tuobang coming back, a hint of surprise and joy flashed in her eyes.

She stood up, walked quickly to Xiao Tuobang, and asked softly, "Tuobang, why did you come back so suddenly? You didn't even tell me in advance."

Xiao Tuobang held Qiuxue's hand tightly, looked at her affectionately, and said gently: "I missed you, so I came back."

After saying that, he turned around and greeted his father-in-law and mother-in-law with a smile: "Mom and Dad, I came back to see you. These are some specialties I brought from my hometown. They are all pure natural green foods. I hope you will like them."

The father-in-law and mother-in-law nodded happily, warmly welcomed Xiao Tuobang home, and thanked him for the gift.

The family sat around on the sofa and chatted happily about family matters.

Qiuxue's eyes showed concern. She asked softly, "Tuobang, I heard that Sufang has returned safely. Is that true? How did she get back?"

Xiao Tuobang nodded and replied calmly, "Yes, Junior Sister was lucky. She took a cruise ship passing by the island and finally returned safely."

Qiu Rongyao stood aside and heard their conversation. After thinking for a moment, he said to Xiao Tuobang, "Tuobang, this way, you can put your mind at ease and focus on your work at the company. After all, the company's operations require your full commitment."

Xiao Tuobang nodded, his expression suddenly becoming serious, and asked, "Dad, what happened in the company? Why do you need me to come back so urgently?"

Qiu Xue's emotions suddenly collapsed, and she threw herself into Xiao Tuobang's arms, tears rolling down like pearls from a broken string.

"Tuobang, I... I just took over the position of CFO, and after only a few days on the job... three million yuan disappeared from the company's accounts. Dad only disclosed this information to a few senior executives."

Xiao Tuobang frowned and patted Qiu Xue's back gently, trying to calm her down.

He thought for a moment and decisively suggested to Qiu Rongyao: "Dad, I think we should call the police immediately. This kind of thing is likely to be done by an insider."

Qiu Rongyao pondered for a moment, a hint of hesitation in his eyes. "I thought so too, but I want to give them a chance first. If they are willing to return the money voluntarily, we can consider not pursuing legal responsibility against them. To stabilize the company's overall situation, I have decided not to call the police for the time being."

After hearing this, Xiao Tuobang still had doubts, but he respected his father-in-law's decision.

Xiao Tuobang thought for a moment and said, "Then we will issue a notice stating that as long as the money is returned within the specified time, there will be no consequences. At the same time, we must also strengthen the company's security measures to prevent similar incidents from happening again."

Qiu Rongyao nodded in agreement. "Then we'll do as you say. However, this incident has also sounded the alarm for us. The company's management needs to be further strengthened."

Qiu Xue's mood calmed down a little. She raised her head, looked at Xiao Tuobang, and said gratefully, "Thank you, Tuobang. With you around, I feel more at ease."

Xiao Tuobang gently stroked Qiuxue's hair and said, "Don't worry, we will face it together. I believe this is just a minor episode and will not affect the development of the company."