He had kidnapped him, after all. Not in the usual way. More subtly. He had simply taken him away. He said, he would take care of the formalities to adopt him. Wenjie doubted, he would do that. 

His new passport and documents were forgeries. If Xu Zhengqing went through official channels, it would only be a matter of time, before the police locked him up. Perhaps, he should go to the police himself, tell them who Xu Zhengqing was. But what if he was innocent? What if he really just wanted to help him?

His hesitation dragged him deeper into the web the older had spun. He knew how to manipulate him. By making him feel, like he always had a choice. In weiqi, this method was called fishing. His father had taught him that. 

He didn't have to bite. But if it was all a mirage, Xu Zhengqing would never allow him to wake up, until he had what he wanted. His unconditional loyalty. It was risky. Wenjie knew that. By taking the risk, he allowed the events to become part of his memories. And the longer he stayed here, the more difficult it became to distinguish between real and false memories. 

They left Qingcheng with a caravan. Wenjie didn't know their destination. Most of the time, Xu Zhengqing let him sit in the front passenger seat. On the road, he told him stories about the places they passed through and the secrets hidden somewhere in the distance. He and Zhuang Yaobai had experienced a lot long before Wenjie was born. 

“You will too,” said Monsieur. 

Wenjie pricked up his ears. 

“You and Ding Wei.”

Wenjie looked at him with wide eyes. Ding Wei had never told him about his childhood and youth. He hadn't asked. How much did Xu Zhengqing know about his friend's past? ”Who is Ding Wei?”

“The son of a mutual friend, your father and me. Ding Shenghuo. He won't be able to take care of his son for the next 10 years. And you need friends your own age.”

Wenjie remained silent. Hm. There was an age difference between him and Ding Wei. 

“We will travel China together. You will see a lot. I will teach you everything you need to know.”

Wenjie looked out the window. They were traveling along a river. On the right side was endless land. Meadows. Fields. Forests. “Aren't we going to school?” he finally asked.

“I'll always register you for a year. We'll use the summer vacation to travel further.”

The countryside changed. Houses came into Wenjie's view, the outskirts of a city. Xu Zhengqing turned off the country road. The population density increased. 

“Do you think my father will follow us, if he survived?“ Wenjie asked at last. 

“I hope so.” But he didn't sound very convinced. 

“You just want to encourage me.” Even if all of this was real, not just a strange dream of an alternative reality. Then they must have lost any possible pursuers already. Xu Zhengqing had already taken care of that. Why would he let his father find him? So, that he would thwart his plans? Certainly not. Besides, there was still the possibility, that he was actually dead. He didn't want to believe it, but it wasn't impossible.

He clenched his fists. “The police were on the scene shortly after the accident. If he had survived, he wouldn't have escaped them. And if he had escaped them, he would have picked me up before you came.”

Xu Zhengqing pulled over to the side of the road. 

Wenjie continued to stare out the window. A hand touched his shoulder. Instinctively, he slid closer to the door, whereupon Monsieur withdrew his hand. 

“You're right.”

Wenjie blinked. He turned his head cautiously. 

Xu Zhengqing drummed his fingers against the steering wheel. “I'm a coward. I stayed out of the whole matter and hidden.” He sighed deeply and let go of the wheel. “We will find him. When you're old enough and Ding Shenghuo is released from prison, we'll go back to Qingcheng and reopen the case. We'll have to be careful.”

“Maybe it was a mistake to leave in the first place.” He expected harsh words. But they didn't come. 

Instead, the older man just shrugged.  “I don't know. All I know is, that no body was found and there are gaps in the police's reasoning. Something about the reporting is wrong.” He opened the driver's door and got out. Kurz remained standing next to the door. Leaning on the door with one hand, he looked inside. “I also know that the police will ask you some uncomfortable questions when I take you back.”

Wenjie swallowed noticeably. “I don't care.”

“You're upset. Let's take a walk. Ding Wei stays not far from here. If you still want to go back tomorrow, I'll take you back to Qingcheng.”

Wenjie pricked up his ears. “Really?” 

Xu Zhengqing smiled. “I promise.” He slammed the door and walked around to the other side of the car. 

Wenjie unbuckled his seat belt, too. Then he pushed down the latch of the passenger door, which swung open. After Wenjie had got out, Xu Zhengqing locked the caravan. 

They walked along the street together. On their side of the street, two-story apartment buildings lined up next to each other. At the corners of the buildings, they were interrupted by narrow alleys or green spaces. On the other side was a park surrounded by a stone wall. 

After a few meters, the road made a turn. Xu Zhengqing stopped in front of a café. A sign with a menu and prices was hanging next to the entrance door. Passers-by could see inside through a window. Boxes of various sweets were on display. 

“Let's try something.” Xu Zhengqing turned to him with a loving smile. ”In case your father is following us after all, but resents me for abandoning him. We'll go inside. You can choose something tasty, and then I'll go get Ding Wei while you wait in there. What do you think?”

Wenjie blinked in surprise. Since they had left Qingcheng, he had never been alone. Xu Zhengqing had always kept an eye on him. With this action, he risked losing him. Or not. As realistic as it all seemed, it had been going on for so long. His memories had not been overwritten, only pushed back. 

He nodded hesitantly. “It's worth a try.”

to be continued ...