The mother and daughter were chatting while they took out the woolen pants from the bag, completely unaware that an ordinary silver van was approaching them.
In comrcial areas, it was common to see semi-new vans privately offering rides that could carry both people and goods. To avoid scrutiny, they usually covered the license plate with a CD.
Because it was so common, when the van stopped beside them, Shi Nian instinctively glanced at it and didn’t pay much attention. She only assud the driver might try to strike up a conversation and ask if they needed a ride.
As the door opened, Shi Nian was still talking to her mom, "We could add another small pocket on my dad’s knee. It’ll be perfect for putting a heat pack in when the weather turns cold."
Before she could finish her sentence, a man inside the van unexpectedly stretched his hand out, wrapped his arm around Shi Nian’s waist, covered her mouth, and pulled her into the van. Then the door was slamd shut, and the vehicle accelerated away!
Everything happened in a flash, and Xu Xinzhen’s attention was still on the woolen pants. When she looked up, her daughter was gone!
The paper bag holding the woolen pants was originally being held by both the daughter and her. Due to the violent pull, the bag tore in the middle, and the pants fell ssily to the ground.
Xu Xinzhen couldn’t be bothered about the pants anymore, and she frantically dashed to the road, screaming in desperation towards the direction the van had driven off, "Let go of my daughter..."
Even though there were many people in the comrcial area during the holiday, everyone was imrsed in a joyous atmosphere. No one noticed how everything had transpired in the blink of an eye, and no one saw the license plate or the features of people inside the van.
.
When Shi Nian woke up, she found herself in a smoke-filled room.
Judging by the style of the house, it was still an ordinary single-story house. And such houses in this city only existed in the suburbs.
Sure enough, Shi Nian also slled the scent of burning straw and heard the untily crowing of a rooster from so unidentifiable household at night.
She quickly examined her condition, moving her limbs slightly, and discovered that her hands were tied behind her back and she had been thrown onto a dirty, shabby single bed.
From the next room, she could hear a few n talking, and from their voices, it was clear they were half drunk.
One of them said, "Brother Yong, I think I didn’t mistake it, she must be Shi Haoran’s daughter."
Another said, "If she really is Shi Haoran’s daughter... Brother Yong, it’s like finding it without any effort at all."
Laughter followed, "It’s not iron skin, it’s iron shoes! Stop pretending to be cultured..."
Shi Nian felt a little confused.
When she moved, the wire bed underneath her creaked. The next room went silent, and then a man in a black tank top and overalls, with a buzz cut, walked in.
There were a few others behind him. He seed to be the leader known as "Brother Yong."
Shi Nian took a deep breath and squinted at him, "What do you want?"
.
The man was indeed Gu Yong. Online, he used his surna to follow the principle of borrowing a famous na, hence his screen na was "Gu Cheng."
This screen na also reflected his ambition: he hoped that one day the entire city would beco his territory, becoming his Gu Yong’s city. By then, he could introduce it to other people in the underworld, saying this place was called "Gu Cheng."
But at that ti, he was still just a small-ti thug, frequently in and out of prison, so he never spoke of this ambition to anyone. Otherwise, he would just make people laugh. Yet he didn’t expect that this thought hidden in his screen na would be uncovered by soone he t online.
The internet truly was full of hidden talents; after being introduced by soone, he used a software to access a foreign mystery bulletin board and was increasingly enlightened. Besides his acknowledged ntor Yan Qi, there was also this person.
When he first joined this BBS, apart from smoothly registering with Chinese characters, he was stumped when he got into the posts: this was a foreign BBS, so most people used English, which he couldn’t understand at all.
The webpage fra was manageable; he could guess what buttons were for using a translation software. But the posts refreshed too quickly for static translation.
At that mont, a user private ssaged him, asking if he was Chinese.
This user’s na was made up of special symbols resembling a smiling face. The smiling face looked very friendly and harmless.
Finally seeing Chinese characters, he was ecstatic. He poured out his frustration at not understanding English.
"Smiling Face" just laughed and said, there’s a simple solution: just privately ssage what you want to say, I’ll translate it into English, then you can copy and paste it.
Gu Yong could hardly believe his luck. "Smiling Face" just casually smiled and said: Chinese people are family.
At that ti, "Smiling Face" casually remarked, "There’s a strong underworld tone in your words, so it’s clear you’re not intending to be a poet; you want to na the entire city after yourself."
He was startled then, realizing there truly were geniuses on this BBS.
He beca convinced that here he would certainly run into soone more formidable than Shi Haoran. Soone who could help him topple Shi Haoran, avenging the 15 tis Shi Haoran had caught him.
He t Yan Qi later on and chatted with him, thanks to "Smiling Face" helping with translations.
It was only after Yan Qi started using Chinese, he no longer needed "Smiling Face" to translate their conversations.
And he also found out, "Smiling Face" never seed to chat, just stayed online. Whenever he sent content to "Smiling Face," he would respond quickly with translations.
In his impression, "Smiling Face" seed to be just an observer on this BBS, quietly watching everyone speak.
.
Gu Yong squatted down, staring at Shi Nian.
Regarding the girl in front of him, he felt conflicted.
Originally, she was the person his ntor instructed him to abduct, but the ntor repeatedly warned him not to hurt her.
They were supposed to et up later that night with his ntor to "deliver the goods," to repay a favor to the ntor and in return, seek his help to properly confront Shi Haoran.
But unexpectedly, soone under his command recognized her, identifying her as Shi Haoran’s daughter.
If it were true, he couldn’t afford to offend his ntor by handing her over tonight.
He squinted his eyes, "Tell , what’s your na?"
Shi Nian didn’t rush to answer, only asking him, "What exactly do you want?"
Gu Yong lowered his head, weighing the dagger in his hand, "No need to be nervous, I just want to see if I caught the wrong person. If I did, I’ll send you back imdiately."
"Although I’m part of the underworld, I have my own principles. If you’re not who we’re after, we won’t touch a hair on your head."
Shi Nian took a deep breath, "Then tell , who are you trying to capture?"
.
Even though Gu Yong’s words were persuasive, they didn’t cause Shi Nian to let down her guard.
She was Shi Haoran’s daughter, and from childhood to adulthood, she had received nurous threats and intimidations. She knew many criminals couldn’t deal with Dad, so they targeted her as revenge.
If she admitted being Shi Haoran’s daughter, her situation wouldn’t improve but would rather encourage their intentions. She was deliberately stalling, trying to buy ti. She trusted the police and Dad, believing that if she could delay longer, Dad would find clues and track her down.
Gu Yong narrowed his eyes, sizing up Shi Nian, "Who I want to capture has nothing to do with you. Be good, tell who you are. In half an hour, you could be ho."
Shi Nian shook her head, "I have a headache. You hit on the head earlier, and I can’t rember anything."
Shi Nian was still wearing her high school uniform, and Gu Yong thought she was just a little kid, easy to interrogate. But he didn’t expect her to make so many excuses and be this difficult to handle.
His subordinate, Xiao Mao, got impatient, "Brother Yong, just beat her up. See if she’ll talk then?"
Gu Yong tilted his head, glaring coldly at Xiao Mao.
If this girl wasn’t Shi Haoran’s daughter but was the one his ntor wanted to be caught, and if he hard her, wouldn’t that offend his ntor?
He reminded himself to be patient, staring into Shi Nian’s eyes and asked, "Can you really not rember?"
Shi Nian shook her head, "I just need a mont to think about it. I believe I can rember, just give so ti."
In such situations, one shouldn’t confront the kidnappers or provoke them easily. It’s best to stay calm and play along.
Gu Yong bit his lip, finishing the cigarette, reflecting on what his ntor had advised him over the years on that BBS.
After finishing the cigarette, he smirked. Taking out his phone, he recalled all his interactions with the ntor on the forum.
Finishing the call with the police, Gu Yong coldly chuckled and returned to the room, squatting in front of Shi Nian, "I know your dad is a famous detective, but do you really think I can’t deduce things myself? Don’t bla , little girl. Bla your dad, if anything."
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