Chapter 282: I Have Your Son
Chapter 282: Chapter 282: I Have Your Son
Nan Zhi and the others stayed until school let out.
When the children went home, they prepared to head back as well.
Before leaving, she couldn’t help but look back, wanting to etch this scene into her memory.
"Mom!"
Nan Yi suddenly ran over, interrupting the wisp of sorrow lingering in Nan Zhi’s heart.
Nan Zhi bent down questioningly, moving closer to Nan Yi.
Nan Yi fidgeted with his fingers shyly and whispered:
"C-Can I go play at Xiao Hu’s house for a little while?"
Nan Zhi was a little surprised.
But Nan Yi misunderstood her reaction and hurriedly explained:
"I was just thinking, we’re leaving tomorrow, and I won’t get to see Xiao Hu again... And... and we won’t play for long, just for a little bit... A little bit is fine!"
He wracked his brain, terrified his mother would think he was being troublesome and inconsiderate.
Nan Zhi reached out and gently flicked Nan Yi’s forehead.
It wasn’t hard, but it silenced Nan Yi instantly.
Nan Zhi smiled.
"Of course you can."
’She couldn’t have been happier for Nan Yi to have more friends!’
However, she was a little worried. She asked if Xiao Hu’s parents were home, and after getting an affirmative answer, she personally walked them over.
It wasn’t just Nan Yi going to Xiao Hu’s house; Qi Zhang and Qing Xi went too.
None of the little buddies could be left out.
Nan Zhi asked gently:
"Is two hours okay? It’ll be dark if you stay any later, and the road won’t be safe."
"Yes, yes!"
The group of kids chirped in unison.
Nan Yi’s voice was the loudest of them all.
Fu Chao and Qi Pei’er didn’t think it was a big deal and agreed they would all go pick up the kids together later.
With that, Nan Zhi had nothing more to worry about.
After confirming that Nan Yi and the others had entered Xiao Hu’s yard and reminding them not to run off anywhere, Nan Zhi finally went home, reassured.
She still had a few last things to pack. She also planned to give the house a deep clean before leaving, so she could return it to the owner spotless.
When Nan Zhi got busy, she tended to lose track of time.
When her forehead was beaded with sweat and her lower back started to ache, she remembered Nan Yi and quickly grabbed her phone to check the time.
’Good, there was still an hour before the agreed-upon time.’
Nan Zhi felt relieved and was about to put her phone down...
DING.
A new text message had arrived.
The sender was "Unknown."
"I have your son."
In that instant, a chill shot up from the base of her spine to the crown of her head!
Her arms, her back... goosebumps erupted all over her skin!
She could even feel a powerful, terrifying malice, lurking and watching from the darkness!
Nan Zhi fought to keep her fingers from trembling as she replied:
"Who are you! What do you want?"
Two minutes passed before the other person replied:
"Come to Lin Hu’s house. Alone."
"Don’t call the police."
Nan Zhi’s first instinct was to scan her surroundings warily.
The cameras in the house had already been taken down, and the area around the house was desolate, with no suspicious figures in sight.
Nan Zhi pressed her lips together, thinking of sending Fu Chao a discreet message...
It was as if the other party was secretly monitoring her phone.
The moment Nan Zhi opened the messaging interface, another message immediately followed:
"I’m watching you. Don’t try anything funny."
"Not unless you want your son to die."
Nan Zhi slowly clenched her jaw.
Her gaze was lowered, the reflection of the phone screen gleaming in her eyes with an inorganic, cold light.
In that moment, all fear of the unknown receded, leaving only anger... and more anger!
Nan Zhi typed on the keyboard with a blank expression:
"Got it."
"You’d better behave yourself too. Otherwise, I guarantee you’ll be the one who dies first."
After sending it, she didn’t bother waiting for a reply. She simply turned off the screen and hurried out the door.
Xiao Hu’s house wasn’t far from Nan Zhi’s, only about a five-minute walk.
This was why Nan Zhi had felt at ease letting Nan Yi play at Xiao Hu’s house.
Besides, Qi Zhang and Qing Xi were with Nan Yi.
Yet this threat was aimed only at her...
’Who could it be?’
Nan Zhi thought calmly.
But she didn’t slow down. Moving at nearly a jog, she reached the gate of Xiao Hu’s house within three minutes.
An hour ago, they had parted here with laughter and cheer, completely unaware of the danger.
An hour later, the half-open gate seemed peaceful, but if one listened closely, they would realize that the dog Xiao Hu’s family kept was silent.
Nan Zhi tightened her grip on the hard object in her sleeve, pushed open the ajar gate, and walked in.
The house was silent.
Only the sound of Nan Zhi’s light footsteps could be heard.
She continued forward, cautiously observing her surroundings.
However, she didn’t find anything out of the ordinary.
Until she crossed the threshold of the main house... when everything changed in a flash!
A dark shadow lunged at her.
Nan Zhi reflexively tightened her grip on the small knife strapped against the skin inside her sleeve, about to strike back.
But when she got a clear look through the chaos, she saw that her attacker was only holding a hemp rope. Her counter-attack faltered, and she pushed the knife on her inner arm further back into her sleeve.
All this happened in less than two seconds.
The person who lunged at her only felt a slight struggle from Nan Zhi.
He thought his strength was enough to subdue her, never imagining that she had voluntarily given up resisting.
"Got her! I got her!"
The man threw the rope around Nan Zhi, yelling excitedly before he had even tied it tight.
As if trying to take credit in front of someone.
Nan Zhi knew that not moving at all would be more suspicious, so she tried to raise her hands and struggle a little.
The man reacted a beat too slow.
Then another woman rushed out, took over from the man, and tied Nan Zhi up tightly.
"You useless piece of trash, you can’t even catch one person!"
The woman laid into the man with a barrage of curses.
The man shrank back, but refused to back down verbally:
"You shrew, you curse me all day long, no wonder I can’t get anything done..."
"So it’s my fault you’re a good-for-nothing who can’t do anything?"
The two looked like they were about to start a full-blown argument.
Finally, someone couldn’t take it anymore and slowly emerged from the darkness:
"Quiet! You’re too damn loud!"
Nan Zhi had actually recognized the people who tied her up long ago—
Lin Hu’s... that is, Xiao Hu’s parents.
She had heard the villagers mention this pair occasionally. The gist was that they were two idle good-for-nothings who had ended up together, mooching off their elders all day. It was a cosmic joke that they’d been given such a sensible and clever son.
Nan Zhi had met them once because of Xiao Hu. To be honest, her impression of them hadn’t been great, but she had thought they were just a bit lazy at worst. She never imagined that on top of being lazy, they were also malicious, cruel, and blinded by greed.
She watched as they turned to the figure in the darkness with fawning, obsequious smiles.
"Boss, that 10,000 yuan we agreed on, you can’t forget about it!"
"And w-we only take cash!"
"Oh, right, right, right! Only cash!"
"..."
The husband and wife went back and forth, showing much more coordination than they had a moment ago.
Only Nan Zhi found it both ironic and laughable—
’Was a mere 10,000 yuan enough to make these two risk everything and cross the legal line to kidnap someone?’
’If they were like this, then what about their child, Xiao Hu?’