"So they want me in exchange for Lan Yu, in addition to the ransom," Su Su voiced the unspoken words for him.
"Yes, which is why it's so difficult," An Jing said, rubbing his head in distress.
Su Su immediately spoke up, "I'm willing to go exchange for Lan Yu..."
"Absolutely not," Tian Yi interrupted her resolutely.
An Jing also disagreed, saying, "While I'm very worried about Lan Yu, we can't actually use you for the exchange. Su Su, the person they originally intended to kidnap was you, and you are the most dangerous to them. Even if you don't go for the exchange, they will plan a second kidnapping. I think you shouldn't stay here anymore; you should return to Lancheng immediately."
"But if I don't go to exchange for Lan Yu, what if they kill her?" Su Su knew An Jing was more worried about Lan Yu than she was, but she didn't want to sacrifice others.
Qin Tian Yi would not stand by and watch Lan Yu be harmed. He said, "An Jing is right. Su Su, you'll take tomorrow's flight back to Lancheng. We'll handle things here, Tian Yi and I. We will definitely find a way to rescue Lan Yu."
At this moment, Su Su didn't want to go back. Even if they didn't let her exchange for Lan Yu, her bottom line was to stay here and wait until Lan Yu returned safely before leaving.
"I'm not leaving! I want to stay here and wait for Lan Yu to return safely." Su Su's attitude was also very firm. "If you're going to save her, maybe I can help. Just let me stay. I promise I'll stay in the hotel and won't show myself outside."
Tian Yi glanced at An Jing. Seeing Su Su's determined attitude, he didn't insist on her leaving immediately. He said, "Alright. But until we find the kidnappers and rescue Lan Yu, you can only stay within the hotel. You cannot let them discover your whereabouts."
Su Su nodded in agreement, thinking she wouldn't cause them any trouble.
Tian Yi beckoned them to sit and asked An Jing, "You said you knew who the kidnappers were, so why can't you find out where they took Lan Yu?"
"I've been asking around for the past two days. Someone told me that a subordinate from their original gang has started his own new crew and has suddenly become very wealthy, recruiting new members lavishly. Those who wanted to join them were told that the newly formed crew had a big job that required manpower, which should be this kidnapping and extortion."
Tian Yi asked again, "Do you know the name of the subordinate who started the new crew? Since he's taking on jobs, there must be someone directing him from behind the scenes."
"That subordinate is named Wen Wei. It's not yet clear who is paying him to do these things," An Jing replied. "However, I've checked Wen Wei's background. He's not a local. He's of Chinese descent, previously committed crimes in China and fled here, joined a gang, but didn't fare well in the local gang. He spent a few years in Lancheng and only returned here this year, after which he became wealthy."
"Lancheng? He has experience staying in Lancheng." Tian Yi mused. Currently, the only person who wanted to harm Su Su seemed to be Yang Shasha.
Since these people were clearly targeting Su Su for kidnapping, the person behind it was likely Yang Shasha.
An Jing saw that he hadn't spoken for a while and asked, "Did you think of something?"
"Have you checked what Xie Qining and Yang Shasha have been doing lately, especially around the time Lan Yu was kidnapped? Who did they contact and what did they do?" Tian Yi voiced his thoughts.
"You suspect they are the masterminds behind this?"
"It's not a suspicion; they are likely involved."
An Jing had a flash of inspiration. How could he not have thought of it? He was too flustered. "I'll go check immediately."
"Wait." Tian Yi asked, "When the kidnappers called you for the ransom and the exchange, how did you reply? Did you set a time?"
An Jing felt he had been extremely foolish. This was the most important matter at hand. "Of course, I agreed to everything. However, I also said it would take time to gather the one million US dollars, so I bargained with them on the timing. We finally agreed on three days later for the exchange of money and people. That's why I rushed to discuss it with you."
"You handled it very well." Tian Yi, with a rescue plan already forming in his mind, said, "The money can be gathered quickly, but for the exchange of people, I want to find someone to impersonate Su Su."
An Jing asked, "Who do you think would be a suitable impersonator?"
"Of course, a female police officer," Tian Yi said. "Since the kidnappers have contacted you, we must inform the police and let them take action. You will then take the money for the ransom, and a female police officer will impersonate Su Su and accompany you. I will follow the main police force to track your exact location. As soon as their hiding place is found, we can rescue Lan Yu and apprehend them all."
"Okay." An Jing felt a glimmer of hope for rescuing Lan Yu upon hearing his plan.
Tian Yi saw An Jing agree with his idea and said, "But you must also know that the person handing over the ransom is the most dangerous. You must be careful. I came by private jet, and my itinerary is confidential, so I will remain hidden within the main police force. Staying in the shadows will allow me to be more effective."
"You don't need to explain this to me; I understand. Why would I care about this danger?" An Jing was already too grateful to him to complain. "If you hadn't come, I would have been completely lost, unable to think of any plan."
"Lan Yu is the person closest to you, so it's natural to be worried. I understand," Tian Yi said. "Now, you go investigate the whereabouts of Xie Qining and his wife, and I'll go to the police station to report that the kidnappers have contacted you. We'll split up and act."
While they were discussing countermeasures, Su Su listened from the side without interjecting.
She knew that both of them had been navigating the business world since childhood and were decisive individuals. Therefore, on some major matters, she couldn't compare to them.
Seeing that they were about to split up, Su Su could only urge them to be careful and to contact her promptly if anything happened.
After they both left the hotel room, she also remembered the matter of asking Su Kangxi to investigate Yu Wei before the New Year.
Although Yu Wei was detained on suspicion of using prohibited drugs and illegal trading of artworks, the source of the drugs he possessed was not in Lancheng.
The police officers working with Su Kangxi found that the drugs were produced abroad, but they still couldn't trace the factory overseas.
She also suspected that this matter was related to Yang Shasha because Yang Sijie's business previously included pharmaceuticals, which she was aware of.
The drug that Yang Sijie injected into her at the time, although developed by Allen, was produced in Yang Sijie's pharmaceutical factory.
Could Shasha have rebuilt Yang Sijie's pharmaceutical factory?
Now that Shasha was targeting her like this, it was truly terrifying and could even harm those around her.
Instead of constantly defending herself, it was better to take the initiative and thoroughly investigate Yang Shasha's illegal activities. If Yang Shasha was too busy dealing with her own problems, she wouldn't be able to harm her.
She had intended to discuss this idea with Tian Yi, but rescuing Lan Yu was the most important thing right now.
After Lan Yu was rescued, she would discuss it with Tian Yi and begin the real counterattack!