"I can help you."
"Sorry?" The girl blinked in confussion.
"Yes, you heard me right, my lady." Rowan rose to her feet.
"You can help me avoid the engagement?" Xuemei stared deeply. A glimmer of hope flickered in her heart.
"The marriage, my lady," Rowan corrected. "But for now, it would be best to go along with what your Father has instructed," she advised softly.
"Really!?" Xuemei's face lit up with happiness.
The woman nodded. "Yes."
"But how am I supposed to know you're not lying?" Her eyes narrowed slightly, a trace of doubt forming.
"Have I ever lied to you while I've been your bodyguard?" Rowan responded with a question.
Xuemei went quite, thinking about that. Indeed, Rowan had never lied to her.
"But this time it's different," she spoke. "You might be saying that just to push me into the engagement. And then later you claim it's impossible to cancel the wedding."
Rowan could understand Xuemei's worry. If she were in her position, she would have reacted the same way.
She then pulled out her gun, pointing it at her chest. "I wouldn't hesitate to shoot myself if I dared to lie to you, my lady."
Xuemei widened her eyes. "Put your gun away," she said, panic rising in her voice.
Rowan lowered her gun. "Do you believe me now?" she asked.
"No," Xuemei answered curtly. She crossed her arms. "You have to do something to make me believe you," she smirked.
"I'm listening," Rowan replied calmly.
The girl started to think for a few moments. "I once had a teddy bear," she began. "It went missing fifteen years ago. Bring it to me before the meeting, and maybe... just maybe, I'll believe you," she winked at the end of her sentence.
Rowan was stunned. How on earth she supposed to find a teddy bear that vanished fifteen years ago?
She glanced towards the clock. Only seven hours left before the meeting. Could she manage it? Rowan swallowed nervously.
Xuemei laughed quietly in her mind, sensing exactly what Rowan was thinking. She knew how silly the challenge was, but she couldn't care less.
"I'll ensure the teddy bear is returned to you, my lady," Rowan stated firmly, her voice brimming with confidence.
"Are you serious!?" Xuemei's smile faded.
Rowan nodded. "Now rest. I'll have the maid tidy your room," she said, glancing over the disarray Xuemei had created.
"Alright... ," Xuemei blinked, looking down.
She wanted to doubt Rowan, but for some reason, she had a hunch the woman would succeed. Xuemei shook her head quickly, insisting it was impossible.
"Last time I played with the teddy bear was when I was five. By now, it's probably rotting in some forgotten corner... or long gone to the trash," she muttered then chuckled.
Xuemei lifted her head and noticed the room was empty, Rowan had left two minutes ago. She smiled and lay down prepared for sleep.
Outside, Rowan hurried down the stairs and approached the maid who was cleaning the living room table.
"Make sure the upstairs room is tidied once you're done," she instructed.
The maid nodded, understanding the unspoken urgency in her voice.
"Also, do you happen to know who Miss Zhang's caretaker was when she was a child?" Rowan asked.
The middle-aged woman stayed silent for a long moment, lost in thought.
"If I'm not mistaken, her caretaker's name was Mianru. She was so kind and warm... but that was ages ago. I have no idea where she works now," she answered honestly.
"Can you tell me where she lives?" Rowan stared intently, aware that time kept moving.
The woman frowned, clearly trying hard to remember.
"Oh, she did say she lived in the Feilu apartment," she murmured. "But she wasn't happy, her neighbors caused so much trouble. Maybe she's moved since then... or perhaps she still staying there."
"Thank you," Rowan tapped the woman's shoulder.
Without a moment's of hesitation, she rushed outside and slipped into the car, setting of toward her destination.
For thirty minutes, Rowan drove through the bustling streets of Shanghai. She glanced out the window, studying each apartment building one by one.
Ever so often, Rowan checked her phone, tracing the route to the Feilu apartment. The screen showed just two minutes remaining until she reached her destination.
"There it is," Rowan said, stopping the car and stepping out immediately. She made her way directly to the front desk.
"Do you have a resident by the name of Mianru?" she showed her security ID as she asked, careful not to appear suspicious.
The staff glanced briefly at the card. "Just a moment, I'll check," she said, her fingers flew across the keyboard.
"There are two names here, Fu Mianryu and Chen Mianru," the staff said clearly.
"Chen Mianru," Rowan spoke. "Which unit does she live in?"
"27A, 9th floor."
"Thank you."
Rowan dashed into the elevator, hitting button for the ninth floor. A few tense minutes passed before the doors finally parted.
She made her way to Unit 27A and pressed the doorbell twice. Soon, the door opened to reveal a woman in her early fifties.
"May I ask... who you are?" her eyes roamed over Rowan from head to toe, taking in every detail of her appearance.
"I'm Rowan Krause, Miss Zhang's personal bodyguard. You used to look after her when she was a little," she stepped inside without waiting a permission.
The woman's expression showed she knew exactly who Rowan was referring to. "What brings you to see me? Is there a problem?" she turned around, walked to the kitchen and filled a glass of water.
"Please, have a seat," she said softly, handing the glass to Rowan.
"Thank you," the woman replied with a smile. She then sat on the couch, drinking the water.
"I'm just here to ask a few questions. Did Miss Zhang often play with her teddy bear as a child?" Rowan put the glass down as she spoke.
"Yes," Mianru nodded. She sat in front of Rowan with a polite gesture. "She used to bring it with her whenever she went somewhere."
"I heard it went missing. Do you remember the last time you saw her with the teddy?" She kept checking her watch while waiting for the answer.
"I'm not quite sure... maybe when she came back from her grandma's house," Mianru began to remember the details.
"In the morning it was still with her, but that night she told me the teddy was gone. She didn't even go outside, so it should still be somewhere in the house. We looked, but we couldn't find it," she explained.
Rowan tapped her fingers on the table, lost in thought. After a few minutes she straightened up.
"I'll go now," she turned her body and stepped outside without saying 'thank you'.
Rowan chose to return to the mansion. She tried to look for the lost teddy in place people wouldn't usually touch—the storage room.
She only had three hours before the clock struck 7 p.m. But after spending thirty minutes there, Rowan still couldn't find the teddy.
"I have to find it. Think, Rowan. Think!" she paced back and forth.
Rowan changed her spot. She went to the kitchen and opened every drawer to check. Finding nothing, she moved on to another place, even the ones people usually passed through.
After fifteen minutes without finding anything, Rowan returned to the storage room. She looked around, scanning every item. Slowly, she opened each box she could find. Inside were only old clothes and some Lego toys.
She sighed. "I don't believe bodyguards are meant to do such things," she said, shaking her head.
Rowan moved to the stack of gift boxes. She opened them one by one. She was briefly startled to find some of them filled with branded items. It seemed strange to her that such things were kept in the storage room.
She then turned to the largest box. When she opened it, Rowan froze. There it was, the lost teddy bear. No wonder nobody ever found it, hidden in a gift box of all places.
Without waiting any longer, Rowan brought the teddy to Xuemei. She knocked the door before stepping inside.
"I've found your teddy bear, my lady." Rowan handed the doll to her.
Xuemei looked up from her book, she set it aside and grabbed her missing teddy bear. She seemed to be surprised.
"Where did you find it?" Xuemei tilted her head.
"Inside the gift box in the storage room," Rowan answered.
"Oh!" Xuemei's face lit up. "Now I remember, I actually shoved the teddy inside that box on purpose. The maid must've thought it was just random gift box in my room and dragged it off to storage to make the place look tidy."
Rowan kept her expression flat. "So... do you believe me now?"
The room fell silent for a while.
"Alright," Xuemei replied. "I'll be there at tonight's meeting. But you have to keep your word, okay?"
"Of course, my lady." Rowan glanced to her watch. "It's time for you to prepare. I'll have the maid to assist you."
Xuemei gave a small nod. She watched Rowan leave her room.