"Gu En!" Duoduo's eyes widened. She tried to rush forward to help Gu En, but two young men blocked her, pushing her to the ground.
She struggled desperately, her schoolbag flying off. Just as she managed to get up, she was pushed down again.
"Little girl, if you want him to live, bring fifty million to this address! Money for goods. If you call the police, or tell your parents, don't blame us if he doesn't make it!"
Brother Shan threw down a piece of paper, then had his subordinate carry the unconscious Gu En into the car and leave.
"No! Help! Someone, please stop them!" Duoduo cried, trying to chase after them, but no matter how fast she ran, she couldn't catch up to the car with four wheels.
She pleaded with the shop owners nearby for help, but they had all been threatened by Brother Shan. They knew he had connections and were afraid of him, which was why they let them wreak havoc here.
Seeing them causing trouble again, they feared getting involved and pretended not to see anything, focusing on their own businesses.
Seeing that no one was willing to lend a hand, Duoduo was on the verge of tears. It was the first time in her life she felt so helpless and panicked.
She suddenly regretted relying on her Taekwondo skills and refusing her daddy's offer of bodyguards. If there had been bodyguards, Gu En wouldn't have been taken away.
"Daddy, Uncle..." She suddenly thought of someone and, with tear-filled eyes, got up to find her schoolbag and search for her phone.
"Duoduo?!" At that moment, Ye Qichen stopped his car and happened to be arriving. Noticing the situation was amiss, he quickly ran over.
"Uncle!" Duoduo finally saw hope, and with tear-filled eyes, hugged Ye Qichen.
Seeing the child's dirty and torn clothes, disheveled hair, and the clear signs of mistreatment, Ye Qichen's anger surged.
Who dared to bully Duoduo like this!
They must be tired of living!
"What's wrong? What happened?" He suppressed his anger, afraid of scaring the child, and asked in a gentle tone, his heart aching.
"Are you hurt anywhere? Let Uncle see."
Duoduo shook her head frantically. Ignoring the pain all over her body, she clutched Ye Qichen nervously and cried, "Uncle, my senior, Gu En, he was knocked unconscious and taken away by bad guys! Please save him quickly!"
Hearing Gu En's name, Ye Qichen immediately recalled the boy's stubborn expression.
Duoduo had told him at noon that Gu En wanted to see him after school, and he had been quite surprised then, not expecting the child to ask him out.
Not knowing what the boy wanted, Ye Qichen had readily agreed, as he also had something he wanted to ask Gu En.
He quickly concluded his business with a client, even declining their invitation for dinner that night. He rushed over as soon as he was done, only to encounter this situation.
"Don't cry yet, tell Uncle, who took him away?" Ye Qichen asked.
Duoduo wiped her tears, "The leader is called Brother Shan."
As she spoke, she remembered the note Brother Shan had thrown down before leaving and quickly picked it up. "He told me to bring fifty million here to ransom him."
Ye Qichen glanced at the address, his eyes turning cold.
To be so brazen in broad daylight, they must have backing.
He took out his phone, preparing to have someone investigate the address.
Duoduo thought he was going to call the police and immediately stopped him, "We can't call the police! They said if we call, Gu En will die! And, Gu En's mother seems to be in their hands too."
Ye Qichen: "What?!"
Duoduo recalled that Gu En was captured because he heard Brother Shan say his mother was in their hands, and she anxiously said,
"That's what the guy called Brother Shan said. Let's go save Gu En quickly! They're so wicked, will they hurt Gu En?"
"Alright! I'll have my assistant take you back first. I'll bring people to rescue them. Uncle promises you, we will bring them back safely," Ye Qichen explained.
After all, such a dangerous situation, it was best not to let her be involved. If Qin Beiting found out, he would likely skin her alive.
"No! I'm going with you!" Duoduo shook her head and refused. "My senior was taken away with me. They came for me, and I want to go with you!
"Besides, Brother Shan specifically told me to bring money for the ransom. I have to go!"
Seeing her persistence and the logic in her words, Ye Qichen could only agree. "Alright, but you have to listen to me the entire time! Don't be reckless!"
Duoduo: "Mhmm."
---
Meanwhile, in a dilapidated shack in the suburbs.
It was already dark, and a few flies buzzed around the dim light.
Brother Shan sat imposingly on a wooden chair, playing with a dagger, waiting for Duoduo to arrive with the money.
Gu En was tied up like a caterpillar and thrown in a corner.
He had woken up, his mouth stuffed with a rag, unable to struggle, only able to glare at them with resentment in his eyes.
Fortunately, he didn't see his mother here.
"Brother Shan, do you think that little girl will come?" The buck-toothed man asked nervously as time ticked by.
He felt that threatening a little girl for money seemed unreliable.
"I think that girl cares about this kid a lot, so she should come," Brother Shan said.
"But what if she tells her parents..." The buck-toothed man trailed off.
After all, they were dealing with Lord Qin Seven and the Divine Doctor Wu Ming. They couldn't afford to offend them.
"If she wants this kid to live, she'll be smart enough not to say anything!" Brother Shan said with certainty.
The buck-toothed man nodded in agreement, giving a thumbs-up, and flattering, "Brother Shan's plan is brilliant!"
Brother Shan smugly crossed his legs.
"But if she doesn't say anything, how will she get fifty million to ransom him?" A subordinate below said weakly.
Brother Shan and the buck-toothed man froze simultaneously, looking at him together: That makes so much sense. How did they not think of that?
Whether Yu Chenduo came or not, their current actions seemed rather foolish?
The atmosphere became awkward for a few tens of seconds before the buck-toothed man was the first to react, patting the subordinate's head, "You're the smartest! You're the smartest!"
"Hey, brat, tell us, will that girl come or not?" Brother Shan asked Gu En.
A subordinate removed the rag from Gu En's mouth. Gu En immediately spat out some saliva and said fiercely, "If you have the guts, kill me!"
He didn't believe anyone would risk their life to save him.
Yu Chenduo certainly wouldn't come. She was a pampered young lady. How could her parents let her be in danger? If she was unharmed, it would be a miracle if her parents didn't come looking for trouble.
For someone like him, without a father, and burdening his mother, it would be better to die.
If he died, his mother wouldn't have to work three jobs a day for his tuition fees, developing a stomach illness and refusing treatment.
If he died, his mother wouldn't have to beg Director Liu condescendingly anymore, and she wouldn't have to worry about him anymore.
If he died, people at school wouldn't mock him as a bastard anymore.
It was just that he felt a bit unwilling. He hadn't earned money to spend on his mother yet, and he didn't even know who his father was...