123: Outwitting and outmaneuvering the kidnappers

The crime scene was quickly enveloped by the red and blue lights of police cars.

Two Police Officers were questioning the onlookers, while another technician collected evidence around Chen Li's Audi.

An auntie wearing an apron gestured excitedly, "Officer, I saw that white van's door suddenly open, and two men rushed out..."

A delivery guy nearby chimed in, "Right, a man and a woman were kidnapped. The woman was very beautiful, so I remember it clearly."

"Can you describe the kidnappers' Appearance?" the Police Officer asked while taking notes.

A young man who looked like a student shook his head. "It happened too fast; I didn't see their Appearance clearly at all. But that van was very old, and the license plate seemed to be covered in mud."

"Is this Audi the victim's car?" the Police Officer pointed to the car by the roadside.

"That's right,"

The delivery guy said with certainty, "They were about to get into the car after finishing their meal when they were kidnapped. That guy even fought with the kidnappers for a bit..."

Through vehicle registration information, the police contacted the owner, Meng Yu.

Meng Yu on the other end of the phone was clearly just woken up, her voice still thick with sleepiness.

"It's my car. My boyfriend, Chen Li, drove it back to his hometown. May I ask what happened?"

Upon hearing the word 'kidnapping', Meng Yu was instantly wide awake.

She sat up abruptly in bed, her voice starting to tremble. "Kidnapping? Are you saying Chen Li was kidnapped? And there was another girl with him?"

After hanging up, Meng Yu's hands shook as she dialed Chen Li's number over and over, but the receiver only ever played the prompt that the phone was turned off.

Her heart beat faster and faster, and cold sweat unknowingly soaked her pajamas.

"It won't happen, nothing will happen..." she murmured to herself, pacing back and forth in the room.

Meanwhile, the Police Officers at the scene had already retrieved surveillance footage from nearby shops.

Although the footage was blurry, the figures rushing out of the white van and the process of Chen Li's desperate resistance could be clearly seen.

"Immediately issue an investigation notice, focusing on checking white vans."

The leading officer gave the order, "Also, contact Chen Li's family..."

The car cabin jolted on the potholed road. Chen Li felt waves of stinging pain from his hands tied behind his back, but he forced himself to calm down.

The more critical the moment, the more one must not lose their composure.

He took a deep breath, feeling Liu Nansheng's body trembling slightly with fear beside him, and the tightly closed car door.

This group had remained silent since they succeeded, neither threatening nor getting handsy.

This unusual calmness suggested they were likely just the executors, with someone else masterminding it behind the scenes.

Chen Li quickly glanced at Liu Nansheng beside him—he couldn't count on her at all.

He definitely couldn't win in a fight. "Calm down, I must stay calm..." he repeatedly warned himself in his heart.

The cramped cabin was filled with the smell of smoke and sweat. In the dim light, he could clearly hear his own racing heartbeat.

But when he turned and saw Liu Nansheng's terrified and helpless eyes, he had only one thought—he absolutely could not let anything happen to her.

Not only because the success or failure of the System Mission rested on her, but also because this girl had already occupied an important place in his heart.

Thinking about the tragic fate Liu Nansheng might face, Chen Li's heart felt as if it were being fiercely gripped.

Right now, his only weapon was money. As long as they could talk about money, there was still a chance.

If the other party didn't dare to take a life, this bottom line would become the fulcrum for his counterattack.

A clear strategy instantly formed in Chen Li's mind—a two-pronged approach of coercion and inducement.

He didn't believe that these people would remain unmoved in the face of a real threat and huge benefits.

"Big brother," Chen Li tried his best to keep his voice steady, "Why did you kidnap us? Who ordered it?"

There was silence in the cabin, only the roar of the engine.

"How much did he pay?" Chen Li continued to ask, "I can give you ten times that."

Scarface froze for a moment and let out a disdainful snort. "Ten times? Kid, do you think you're some tycoon?"

"one million. Let us go, and I'll transfer one million to you immediately. Not a cent more."

Seeing the other party remain silent, Chen Li's heart sank. He knew he had to use strong medicine.

He took a deep breath, his voice suddenly becoming bone-chillingly cold. "If you've made up your minds to do this business—then you'd better just kill me right now."

He paused deliberately, making every word like an ice-tempered knife, stabbing fiercely into the other party's heart:

"But as long as I have a breath left, if my girlfriend loses even a single hair—I, Chen Li, swear to the heavens,"

I will use all the connections and wealth I have in this lifetime to make you pay a hundredfold, a thousandfold price."

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried a chilling determination. "If five million isn't enough, I'll pay ten million.

I will hire the best people and use the most ruthless methods to not only find you but also find everyone you care about—"

Parents, wives and children, siblings... none of your family members related to you will escape."

"I am a man of my word."

His voice was low and firm, and his eyes, which had turned crimson from frantic rage, were as sharp as knives in the dim cabin.

This wasn't a bluff; it was the truest, most insane thought in his heart.

If something really happened to Liu Nansheng, he would definitely make these people pay in blood at any cost.

Scarface's heart suddenly sank. The word 'family' clearly touched a nerve. Having spent half his life in the underworld, what he cared about most now was his family's safety.

The ruthlessness in this young man's eyes didn't seem faked, and that all-or-nothing madness made one's neck feel cold.

He had been in this business for so many years; he could distinguish between truth and lies to some extent.

What if... what if what he said was true? If he went down, he'd accept it, but what about his wife and kids at home?

Thinking of his two children's innocent eyes, he felt his breathing become sluggish.

In the end, he was just a petty thug leader struggling at the bottom. He dared to fight and hustle, but he didn't dare gamble his family's safety on a 'what if'.

Chen Li noticed Scarface's wavering and struck while the iron was hot. "Big brother, don't you guys do this just for money?

There's no need to put yourselves in danger. I can give you the money, and I will definitely not call the police afterward."

His tone gradually softened. "If you don't intend to go to extremes, then I suggest you quit while you're ahead. Take this one million, and we'll be even."

He paused deliberately to give more weight to his next words:

"Someone who can produce one million in cash—I'm sure you can gauge something of my background and connections.

If you take the money and leave today, we'll consider it making a friend. There's a long way ahead, and we might even do business again. But if you insist on starting this feud..."

Scarface struggled intensely within. He indeed didn't dare to kill, and it really wasn't worth offending such a ruthless character for a mere 100,000 yuan.

He thought of his two lovely children and his elderly parents, and his palms began to sweat.

Chen Li's words accurately hit his weak spot. If he told Li Weishan the mission failed, at most he wouldn't get the final payment of 50,000 yuan.

If he released them now, he'd have one million and wouldn't have to bear any risk.

The atmosphere in the cabin suddenly became subtle. The two kidnappers both looked at Scarface, waiting for his decision...