Qin He entered a local cosmetic shop, picked out a few items, and bought a fabric shopping bag.
By the time Qin He emerged from the cosmetic shop, her face was already covered in dark foundation. She meticulously applied it to her neck and wrists, making her skin tone indistinguishable from that of the average Kundian person. Her long hair was coiled into a bun at the back of her head. With a baseball cap on, she was virtually unrecognizable except for her gender.
Afterwards, Qin He went to a supermarket to stock up on biscuits and mineral water. With two days' worth of food prepared, Qin He found herself on a secluded street, her gaze falling upon the private cars parked along the road.
She pursed her lips. If the car went missing, the owner would definitely report it to the police.
Once reported, Shen Yicong would certainly be able to track incidents handled by the police in such a small place. He could then trace the vehicle and find her.
Kundian’s economy was not well-developed, so car owners were generally from affluent families.
She walked around the street, constantly surveying the houses lining the road. Most of the houses were lit up at this hour.
As she neared the end of the street, Qin He's attention was drawn to a particular house.
Peering through the gate, she saw the yard covered in fallen leaves and dust. The grass was grown tall. Parked in the yard was a car covered in dust, still bearing a rusted protective net.
This house had clearly been unoccupied for a long time. Qin He made a mental note. She quietly climbed through a window into the yard.
First, she picked the lock to open the door. After that, Qin He spent a good while inspecting the car, confirming that its parts were still usable. She then climbed through the window into the house and found the car keys in the TV cabinet in the living room.
"That makes things easier."
Normally, Qin He could have started the car even without the keys. By connecting the ground wire, live wire, and ignition wire, and then wrapping them with tape, it would have been enough. She hadn’t expected her luck to be this good.
It was an unexpected bonus.
Qin He rummaged through the house for a while longer and found an old mobile phone, but it had long since run out of credit due to prolonged disuse.
Qin He found a charging cable and returned to the car.
At least she could ensure the safety of this phone. However, obtaining a SIM card in Kundian was not easy. She regretted not having snatched the scoundrel's SIM card earlier, but since those two had seen her, taking their SIM card would not have been safe either.
Driving out of the abandoned yard, Qin He glanced at the tire tracks left in the yard.
There was a strong wind tonight; it would likely cover the tracks in no time.
She felt relieved. She had food and water in the car, and still had some Kundian currency left. It was the perfect time to leave the small town under the cover of darkness.
Qin He drove out of the small town.
The beverage she had bought contained coffee. She drank the coffee to stay alert while driving.
She had traveled for half a day. By normal logic, even if Shen Yilin managed to stall Shen Yicong, it wouldn't hold him off for too long.
If Shen Yicong were to pursue her directly by car, he would be very close, and might even be ahead of her.
When Qin He reached a gas station, she deliberately spoke in English and asked someone to fill her tank.
The attendant filled her car with gas. Qin He’s eyes fell on the phone in the attendant's pocket. Bringing a phone to work at a gas station showed a lack of management.
Qin He had already stolen several things throughout the day, and her nerves had relaxed considerably. When paying, she deliberately got out of the car and stealthily stole the attendant's phone.
She walked to the side, removed the SIM card, and while no one was looking, pried open the back cover of the old-fashioned phone. Phones in this region still had removable batteries. Qin He disassembled it into several pieces and deliberately dropped them on the ground.
The phone's buttons scattered.
This way, when the attendant discovered the phone was missing, he would quickly find it here.
He would then assume the phone had fallen and broken apart, and if he couldn't find the SIM card, he would only think it had been lost in the fall, never suspecting someone had stolen it.
Having done all that, Qin He got back into her car and drove away.
After driving for about ten minutes, she pulled over to the side of the road and inserted the stolen SIM card into her phone.
Seeing the signal bars appear, Qin He gave a wry smile.
She never expected she had such a talent for doing bad deeds.
She directly called Gu Qichen.
After a few rings, the call was answered. Gu Qichen's voice was deep.
"Who is it?"
Hearing that familiar voice, Qin He's eyes welled up, and her voice was choked with emotion, "Gu Qichen, it's Qin He."
"He'er?! Where are you now?" Gu Qichen's voice immediately sharpened.
"I've escaped. I'm driving, just left a small town, and heading towards the Kundian capital."
Gu Qichen said immediately, "What's the name of the town? I'll come and pick you up right away!"
Qin He recalled, "Xiang'an Town. I've already left the town. The license plate of the car I'm driving is ***."
"Don't hang up. I'm coming now!"
Kundian wasn't large, and with both of them driving, they would meet in two hours.
Qin He placed her phone on the passenger seat to charge, her heart filled with excitement.
In the Kundian capital, at a villa, Gu Qichen strode out with his men.
Yu Jing's men had already rapidly converged from the surrounding areas. Within minutes, a convoy departed from the villa.
Yu Jing was driving, with Gu Qichen in the passenger seat, his face tense. "Faster!"
He had been working tirelessly to find Qin He's whereabouts. Xiang'an Town was a place Yu Jing had previously investigated.
Ever since he received the video from Shen Yicong showing Qin He being beaten, Gu Qichen had been filled with murderous intent. He couldn't bear to have Qin He in Shen Yicong's hands for even a second. But unable to find her, the prolonged suppression had made him increasingly cold and grim.
Yu Jing said as he drove, "Mr. Gu, we are already going as fast as we can!"
Gu Qichen held his phone, "He'er, wait for me."
Qin He was driving, a smile on her face. "I know."
After driving for more than half an hour, Qin He arrived at another village. As she passed through the village, Qin He saw several men in black.
Those men clearly weren't locals. Qin He's heart leaped into her throat.
As she passed by one of the men in black, Qin He saw a photo of herself in his hand.
Shen Yicong's people!
Qin He became vigilant, but to avoid drawing attention, she didn't dare to speed up too much.
As she was about to leave the village, a man in black noticed her car and stepped forward to block her way.
Qin He stared warily at him. Fortunately, she had disguised herself now, her skin tanned and a mole applied to her face. Anyone who didn't know her well wouldn't be able to recognize her.
Qin He calmly rolled down the window and, after glancing at the photo through the protective glass, shook her head.
The man frowned and was about to let her pass.
"Mr. Lu Mingxi, it seems this Aowen Town also has no trace of Miss Qin."
Qin He froze and turned to look at the man.
Lu Mingxi?
Qin He leaned out of the car window and casually asked in English, "Who are you looking for?"
The man was still on the phone and replied impatiently, "None of your business."
Qin He raised an eyebrow.
On the other end of the line, Lu Mingxi, who was conducting a thorough search, had just reached Aowen Town and was answering the call.
Hearing the familiar voice on the phone, though speaking in English, it was Qin He's voice.
He immediately stood up. "Who is with you?"