Chapter 48: Kidnapped by Bandits

Zhong Huayan and Xu Chuyin, along with four other young women, had all been tied up in a wooden cabin. On the bed opposite lay another girl, her wrists already chafed raw from struggle, though curiously, her mouth had not been gagged.

At a glance, Xu Chuyin recognized the woman on the wooden bed—it was Yang Hualing from Jingfu University. Yang Hualing was different from the other girls: her parents were divorced, and her mother was a well-known model. That explained her striking figure; she was unmistakable, even if you didn’t see her face.

All of their mouths were taped shut—except hers.

A group of armed men came in, pacing and smoking cigarettes anxiously.

“The car can only take six people.”

“Everyone from Jingfu University is either wealthy or powerful. Their families all have money. Pick two to take with us; release the rest. If we take more, they’ll just be a burden.”

So it was a kidnapping for ransom.

Luckily, they were near the Burmese border; otherwise, if their true faces were exposed, these people would likely kill everyone to cover their tracks.

After hearing this, everyone became restless, desperate not to be chosen.

Suddenly, Yang Hualing spoke up, “Come here! I have something to say!”

The kidnappers exchanged glances, then dragged her out and slammed the door behind them.

Yang Hualing had been targeted simply because she looked wealthy—her clothes, her demeanor, everything about her screamed money.

“You’ll want the two who are richest. Among them, there’s the second young master of the Xu family, and the mistress of the Fu Group’s chairman. Take them across the border and you’ll never have to worry about money again.”

As she finished, she had the kidnappers pick up her phone. In her photo album was a video of Fu Yanyan and a woman playing piano together at an arts festival.

“The Fu family and the Xu family? They probably have connections abroad too.”

The kidnappers hesitated, clearly not wanting things to get too complicated.

“It’s fine. Xu Chuyin is an illegitimate child. Give you a wad of cash, get rid of him, and the Xu family’s madam might actually thank you. And that woman is just Fu Yanyan’s mistress, not his wife. She’s just a plaything.”

Her words convinced them. They strode back into the cabin, eyes settling meaningfully on Fu Yanyan’s mistress for the first time.

She was the calmest among all the women, exuding an air of nobility even in captivity.

“No wonder she’s Fu’s mistress—she’s in a league of her own.”

After a few crude remarks, the men yanked off the cloth binding her mouth.

Zhong Huayan’s mind was racing. She half-squinted at them and said, “Let them all go. I’m worth more than any of them.”

She clearly intended to shoulder the blame—for it was her fault that everyone had been kidnapped.

“Impressive! That’s exactly what we were thinking. Those others, always sniveling—not much fun.”

Xu Chuyin, beside her, had his mouth untied as well. “Take me instead. Leave the women alone.”

Soon, the kidnappers released the other girls, keeping only Xu Chuyin and Zhong Huayan.

The car drove for an unknown distance as dusk fell. The road was flanked by forest, deserted and quiet. The men chatted in Burmese, then suddenly stopped the car to swap license plates.

Next, they took out a case and withdrew a syringe.

They started laughing lewdly, then injected Zhong Huayan’s arm. Xu Chuyin, suddenly surging with fury, kicked one of the men hard.

His mouth was still gagged, so no one could make out what he was yelling.

He fought desperately, only to be beaten for his efforts.

Zhong Huayan had no idea what they had just injected her with. Was it drugs? Burmese heroin? And why had they just cut off her gag?

She began rubbing the ropes binding her wrists against the back of the seat. They had just retied her, but not as tightly as before.

“What do you want from us? How much money do you want?”

She and Xu Chuyin were led deep into the forest. She had no idea where they were, only that it was far from where the school outing had taken place.

“We’ll talk money later. We’ve never had a turn with Fu Yanyan’s woman before!”

“So, what did you inject me with, exactly?” Zhong Huayan couldn’t tell if it was an aphrodisiac or poison.

“Nothing much—just didn’t want you struggling too hard later.”

“This second young master from the Xu family seems to like you. When we’re having our way with you, we’ll make him film us!”

Zhong Huayan was thrown into the grass. Xu Chuyin was held down by two men.

Her skin was as white as snow, marred here and there by blood and disarray, making her even more alluring. Her hips, especially, drew their lascivious eyes.

Xu Chuyin’s eyes turned blood-red, like a beast gone mad on drugs.

But the more frenzied he became, the more excited they were—after all, they wanted nothing more than to see the second young master of the Xu family in agony, and Fu Yanyan’s mistress humiliated at their feet.

“Wait! That giant fallen black tree by the river—that’s ebony! Worth millions!”

Her words brought sudden silence.

The kidnappers looked toward the riverbank. Indeed, there was a massive, pitch-black log lying there, seemingly ordinary at first glance.

“Don’t bother struggling. Give in, we’re not stupid enough to be fooled by a little girl.”

They waved their guns right in her face, warning her to stay quiet.

“I’m not lying. On my phone is a live-streaming account filled with my treasure appraisal videos. You can look up what ebony is and how much it’s worth! This piece is not only huge, it’s transformed underground from red sandalwood or golden nanmu!”

No one ever thought there could be too much money.

They took her phone, found her account, and searched online—sure enough, the pictures matched the log exactly.

Worth millions?

All the kidnappers crowded around the ebony, examining it from every angle. Suddenly, her phone rang again.

A strange number.

One of the kidnappers, fed up, answered it, cursing, “Can’t you give it a rest? Stop calling or I’ll start killing people!”

A cold, sinister voice came through the line, sending a chill straight to the bone.

“Name your price.”

“Who the hell are you? We want a hundred million! Can you pay that? If not, stop calling—what a pain!”

They paced around the ebony, plotting how to get it out of the country, growing more impatient by the second.

“I am Fu Yanyan.”

“You’re fucking—” The sentence died mid-curse.

Suddenly, all the kidnappers sprang to attention, gathering around. They quickly checked the phone—the unfamiliar number was real.

And the man on the line claimed to be Fu Yanyan?

They were going to be rich—filthy rich!

Originally, they’d planned to finish with the woman first, then extort the Fu Group for a price they could accept. After all, how much could a mistress really be worth?

Who would’ve thought Fu Yanyan cared so much for this woman, calling again and again. At first, they’d thought it must be family or friends and ignored the calls.

“You really are Fu Yanyan?”