Those Classmates who Suddenly Disappeared
Chapter 232: I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.

Chapter 232: I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.

The weather was great today and Gu Fan’s plan was set in motion, beginning with inviting everyone for a game of basketball. Among them were Lu Yi, Jie, Hai, all under the guise of promoting camaraderie and friendly activity. But in actuality, this was a plan devised together by Gu Fan and Su Hui.

Hai didn’t pay much attention to it, not feeling as if he had exposed anything. So, he agreed gladly, expressing his enthusiasm to test his basketball skills with everyone else, promising his attendance.

Everyone quickly gathered at the old spot and began the game, Gu Fan, Lu Yi, Jie, and Hai sweating it out on the court, each challenge intense and thrilling, driving their adrenaline through getting points at full tilt or valiantly blocking the opponents.

Gu Fan seemed to take the basketball game seriously, but in reality was observing Hai’s forehead in secret. Last time when Gu Fan was attacked, he had landed a punch on the attacker’s forehead which left a mark beneath the sunglasses. However, the mark on Hai’s forehead was not clear, making it hard to confirm whether Hai was the attacker or not.

"Watch this!" Lu Yi made a jump shot, only to be effortlessly blocked by the tall and sturdy Hai, who seemed like an impenetrable wall.

After a long game, Gu Fan checked the time and expressed how he hadn’t exercised in a while and was feeling windy, so he promptly found a place to rest.

Not just Gu Fan, everyone was exhausted, so they returned to their seats to enjoy the refreshing sensation of gulping down water.

Suddenly a cell phone rang from a bag on the side, startling Gu Fan. He quickly picked it up to see a call from Su Hui coming through.

"Hello, what’s the matter, Sister Su?" Gu Fan said, his brow furrowing as if he was faced with a difficult problem. He then apologized to everyone, "I’m sorry, some matter just came up that I have to deal with. Please excuse me, I’ll make it up to you all with dinner another day."

"No problem, go on." Hai expressed nonchalance, but his heart was pounding, wondering what Su Hui was up to, calling Gu Fan away at this moment. He warned Gu Fan last time not to meddle.

No sooner had Gu Fan left, than Hai’s phone started ringing. Shockingly, it was a call from Leng Le.

To avoid being overheard, Hai stepped into a less populated corner to answer the call, "Hello, Sister Leng, what’s up?"

"Something’s come up. Gao Lu reported that Su Hui brought another bottle containing Old Xing’s fingerprints to the identification bureau. However, Gao Lu intercepted her and replaced her story with another one that the fingerprints aren’t clear." The news from Leng Le shocked Hai, who quickly responded, "That’s impossible. We cleaned the place thoroughly when we took Old Xing away last time, nothing could have been left behind."

Leng Le huffed, "Then how did Su Hui obtain it? You clearly overlooked something."

Hearing this, Hai broke into a cold sweat, "Then Sister Leng, what should we do now?"

Leng Le sighed, "We’re lucky that Su Hui’s fingerprint samples were intercepted by Gao Lu both times. Otherwise, Old Xing’s identity would be exposed, and I would be under suspicion by Gu Fan. Now, I worry about one thing: if Su Hui can obtain Old Xing’s fingerprints from elsewhere, we can’t rely on Gao Lu’s aid forever."

Hearing this, Hai grew concerned, "Sister Leng, I was playing basketball with Gu Fan just now. After he received a call from Su Hai, he said he had to leave to handle something, I suspect him of going after Old Xing’s fingerprints."

"Very likely. I’m tracking his location right now, await my orders." After saying that, Leng Le hung up and began to track Gu Fan’s location.

Hai put away his phone with a heavy expression, hoping nothing would go wrong.

Seeing Hai’s disturbed expression, Jie asked, "What’s wrong? You seem preoccupied."

"It’s nothing, just that I haven’t played basketball for some time and my body isn’t quite used to it." Hai gave a reserved smile, pretending that all was fine to reassure Jie.

Meanwhile, in an underground parking garage at a local law enforcement unit, Gao Lu made as if he was going to his car to retrieve something. He ran into Su Hui and whispered as they brushed past each other, "I’ve done as you asked."

"Very good." Su Hui replied lightly, the corner of her mouth curling into a satisfied smile.

Shortly after, Gu Fan arrived at the unfinished building where Old Xing was previously hidden. He started arranging various items to make it appear as if someone had been living there recently.

"All set. Now let’s see if you’ll take the bait." Gu Fan dusted his hands with an expectant expression.

Xu Haowen poked his head out from nearby, "Gu Fan, I don’t mean to rush you, but how much longer will this take?"

Gu Fan emphasized his reply: "Stay here until at least tomorrow morning for me. Can you do that?"

"No problem, I can handle it. But remember, you promised me that I would be included." Xu Haowen bargained in such a way that it somewhat troubled Gu Fan. But given their lack of manpower at the moment, Gu Fan had no choice but to agree: "Alright, no problem."

Gu Fan left right after, whereas Leng Le, having tracked Gu Fan’s location on the screen, realized he had gone back to the unfinished building from before, but a different one. He swiftly alerted his subordinates to take action.

An hour later, following Leng Le’s instructions, his subordinates quickly reached the unfinished building where Gu Fan previously stayed. They took away all the bags and containers from the ground and moved rapidly.

Despite their speed, they were no match for Xu Haowen. While they were scattering to gather the materials at the unfinished building, Xu Haowen managed to discreetly install a tracker on their vehicle unnoticed.

Soon enough, Leng Le’s men left the unfinished building carrying all sorts of garbage. Oblivious to the fact they were being tracked, they drove off.

Hidden in the shadows, Xu Haowen breathed a sigh of relief. The situation had been nerve-wracking; if discovered, the consequences could be dire, potentially life-threatening.

Leng Le had been banking on keeping tabs on Gu Fan’s movements. Seeing Gu Fan exit the unfinished building, he had decided to send his men. Now, Leng Le was considering how to react once Gu Fan handed over some items bearing Old Xing’s fingerprints to Su Hui. Gao Lu couldn’t shield Gu Fan indefinitely. The best course of action would be to intercept Gu Fan midway.

After another hour, Hai, who was a bit tired from playing basketball, suggested going home. However, Lu Yi, insistently urged all of them to have a meal together, citing it had been too long since they had last seen one another.

Seeing no particular reason to refuse, Hai agreed to Lu Yi’s invitation, and they all settled on a restaurant that seemed pretty decent.

While they were eating, Lu Yi suddenly received a message from Gu Fan, instructing them to go to an address mentioned in the message and not to ask any questions, just go. Thereupon,

"What is Gu Fan playing at with all this secrecy?" Jie expressed his confusion. Hai glanced at the address, his countenance slightly changed, he then said: "Given that Gu Fan asked us to go, maybe there’s a surprise waiting for us. We’ll go, but I need to use the restroom first."

Hai seized this chance to go to the men’s restroom, hurriedly sent a message to Leng Le that Gu Fan had discovered where his men resided and instructed them to flee immediately.

Leng Le’s face paled when he received the message. He couldn’t comprehend how Gu Fan managed to find his men’s place when the screen showed that Gu Fan was clearly on his way home.

Regardless, Leng Le immediately sent a message urging his men to flee and relocate as quickly as possible.

Upon receiving the order, his men quickly packed their belongings and drove off from their temporary residence, terrified. They had only embarked on a tiny errand, so how had they gotten found out? They had been vigilant, constantly watching their rear for any potential tail.

At this moment, Xu Haowen, who was observing from the shadows, witnessed everything. He immediately messaged Gu Fan, letting him know that the men had fled. Now they faced a decision — whether to alert the authorities and have the men intercepted.

However, Gu Fan was indifferent, advising them to let the men go. His objective had been attained. He then sent another message to Lu Yi, telling them there was no need to rush over as everything was over.

When they got the message, Jie and Lu Yi looked confused: "What’s he playing at? First, tells us to come, then tells us not to. What’s gotten into Gu Fan today?"

Hai reassured them: "Alright, calm down, we’ve had quite a day, let’s just go home." Hai then took his leave, as he had to set out to sea early the next day and decided to stay in the company’s dormitory.

Hai’s fishing trips were usually lengthy, sometimes he would disappear for a year at a time, making their meetings far and few between. Thus, Jie somewhat lamented, longing for his older brother to always keep him company.

Seeing Jie looking rather dispirited, Lu Yi patted Jie’s shoulder: "No worries, I’m here, so are Gu Fan and Sister Su. We’ll keep you company — no one will ever leave you alone."

"Thank you all, I’m really happy to have met you." Jie smiled, beaming with joy.

"I feel the same." Lu Yi said while forced a smile; He thought, "Gu Fan, I’ve done as you said, I just hope it doesn’t result in a situation none of us want."

As darkness fell, Gu Fan walked home, nonchalantly whistling as he went along, seemingly at ease.

"Kid, here we meet again. Remember what I told you last time?" Hai, his face masked by a hood and mouth cover, emerged from a dark corner, his fists clenched, ready to pounce. His intentions indicated nothing but hostility, even his murderous look was palpable.