Yu Wei hadn't expected this woman's mind to work so quickly. "What are you talking about? I don't understand," he said, coldly ordering her mouth to be gagged. Zhan Jiayi saw killing intent in his eyes in her panic. This man wasn't like a typical kidnapper demanding ransom; he didn't seem to want money, only her life!
She couldn't fathom who Xie Zhendong had offended to incur such deep hatred. Yu Wei ordered his men to push her to the edge of an unfinished high-rise building, where a little more force would send her plummeting. Zhan Jiayi closed her eyes, afraid to look down. Her legs were so weak she couldn't stand, and she knelt on the ground, leaning her shoulder against the unfinished window frame.
Yu Wei, following the plan he and Shasha had devised, called Xie Zhendong. The only way to threaten Xie Zhendong was by using Zhan Jiayi. They wanted Xie Zhendong to come here so they could deal with them all at once. Once Xie Zhendong was dead, Jie Jie would be the rightful heir, and Shasha could then return to the Xie family as Jie Jie's mother. The Xie Group would then be under Shasha's control.
...
When Xie Zhendong received the call, he initially thought it was a scam and was about to hang up impatiently. Yu Wei ordered his men to remove the gag from Zhan Jiayi's mouth and made a show of pushing her over the edge. Terrified, Zhan Jiayi trembled and screamed, "Don't push me anymore! Please, I don't want to fall to my death!"
Xie Zhendong, of course, heard this on the phone and asked in shock, "Who are you? Do you know who I am? Let her go quickly!"
Yu Wei, with malicious laughter on the other end of the line, said, "Don't call the police. Don't bring anyone with you. Come alone to save her. Otherwise, you can prepare to collect her corpse." With that, he hung up.
Xie Zhendong could hardly believe it. Who in Lancheng would dare to kidnap a member of the Xie family? A hundred years ago, their Xie family had dominated both the underworld and legitimate businesses. His great-grandfather had started with gangs before going legitimate after washing his hands of the old ways. Although their family had since engaged in legitimate business, their roots in the underworld remained. Figures in Lancheng's underworld treated their family with great respect; no one dared to target them lightly. Now, someone had the audacity to kidnap his wife, which meant challenging Lancheng's underworld!
Although he had agreed to go, he wasn't foolish enough to venture there alone. He contacted the person with whom his family had the best relationship within the underworld, both to investigate who was behind the kidnapping and to request backup. He also didn't want to involve the police; help from the underworld should be sufficient. He drove to the location provided, finding it strange that the kidnapper had only instructed him to come alone and hadn't mentioned any ransom. What did this kidnapper want if not money? He couldn't help but be alarmed. Could this be someone utterly ruthless who just wanted them dead?
As he neared the unfinished building, he received a call from one of the bosses, who said he had some information. No one in Lancheng had planned to kidnap anyone from the Xie family. However, someone who had returned from abroad had hired several thugs at a high price, but no one knew what these thugs were supposed to do. Someone from abroad? Xie Zhendong couldn't recall offending anyone abroad or dealing with foreign gangs. He still couldn't understand why this person wanted him dead.
Arriving at the deserted unfinished building, he didn't dare to go up alone. He wanted to wait for the people sent by the boss to infiltrate quietly, allowing for some preparation before he went up to negotiate. Just then, his phone rang again. It was the same person who had threatened him with Zhan Jiayi.
"Mr. Xie, I see you," Yu Wei said from his vantage point on the rooftop, able to see Xie Zhendong, who had just arrived below. Xie Zhendong wanted to stall for time and asked, "On which floor? Don't do anything rash."
"Just keep walking up the stairs, and you'll see your wife," Yu Wei's tone turned fierce. "If you don't come up soon, she'll be pushed down, and you'll meet her in another way." As he spoke, Zhan Jiayi was pushed to the edge of the window frame, half her body dangling precariously outside. The person holding her only needed to let go, and she would be smashed to pieces. She closed her eyes, her mouth still gagged, unable to cry out.
Xie Zhendong yelled into the phone, "I'm coming up! Tell me what you want, but don't hurt her..." But before he could finish, the other party had already hung up. Xie Zhendong didn't dare to delay any longer. He quickly sent a message and started up the concrete stairs.
Zhan Jiayi was pulled back by the people holding her. She actually didn't want Xie Zhendong to come, knowing that even if he did, he couldn't save her and would also be in danger. The kidnappers wanted their lives! When she saw Xie Zhendong finally coming up the stairs, she sobbed and shook her head desperately, unable to speak, but her meaning was clear: he should leave quickly.
Xie Zhendong felt his strength waning. Climbing the stairs to the tenth floor in one go left him breathless. After catching his breath, he just wanted to negotiate with the kidnappers to buy time. He believed the person he had asked for help would find a way to subdue this man and help them escape danger.
"Are you alright? Don't be afraid..." He thought Zhan Jiayi was shaking her head out of fear. Before he could finish speaking, something hard was pressed against his back. "Mr. Xie, you actually came alone. As expected, a hero cannot resist a beauty." With that, Yu Wei forced him to walk over to Zhan Jiayi. He signaled for his men to tie them together, and several thugs immediately moved towards Xie Zhendong.
Xie Zhendong pushed them away and looked directly at Yu Wei. "I'll give you as much money as you want, as long as you let her go!" Yu Wei chuckled. "Just let her go? Aren't you in my hands now as well..." Before he could finish speaking, he felt his phone vibrate. Taking it out, he saw a message from Shasha: "Deal with Xie Zhendong and that woman as soon as possible!" He closed the phone screen, deciding there was no need to waste any more words with them. He raised the weapon in his hand and opened fire on Xie Zhendong, who was not yet fully tied.
Before Xie Zhendong could figure out what was happening, Zhan Jiayi reacted first. While the people tying Xie Zhendong were distracted, she broke free and lunged towards Xie Zhendong, knocking him down and shielding him from the bullet. Even as he fell, Xie Zhendong heard the sound of the bullet piercing the air and entering Zhan Jiayi's body. He rolled over and yelled at Zhan Jiayi.
...
Zhan Jiayi felt a sharp pain in her waist and then fell unconscious. In her unconsciousness, she had a long dream. She dreamt of being pushed down, falling from a great height. Her lost child was waiting for her below, arms outstretched. She also dreamt of Xie Zhendong being shot, bleeding profusely, and the man who kidnapped her laughing menacingly at her. Then, Yang Shasha walked out from behind the man and fired another shot at Xie Zhendong...