Chapter 33 (1/2): Escape

“Keep the line open, don’t be afraid.” Lu Lin’s voice was faintly tense.

Bai Xia wanted to say something else, but the phone suddenly lost signal—someone must have activated a signal jammer. When she turned her head, she saw the car behind was already showing signs of closing in.

Until a sudden “bang” exploded by her ear, she instinctively lowered her head and covered it with her arms, only to see the glass shattered by a bullet. Obviously, the other side was forcing her to stop.

Fortunately, the car had intelligent driving.

She could only keep her head down and hold the steering wheel, but the car behind suddenly extended a hand, aiming directly at her head as if to say that if she didn’t stop this time, the next bullet would be for her skull.

She couldn’t risk her life to test someone else’s marksmanship.

Bai Xia glanced at the slope ahead, gritted her teeth, and suddenly slammed on the brakes.

The car behind immediately surrounded her, and several big men got out. Only two of them held guns and without a word aimed them at the windshield of the front car.

Bai Xia opened the door, raised her hands, and stepped out.

One of the thugs immediately took out a phone and car keys from the car, then threw the phone to the ground and crushed it underfoot.

“Boss, we caught her!”

Another thug picked up a phone and dialed, listening briefly before glancing at Bai Xia again.

“I’ll transfer you one hundred million right now,” she said, eyes sweeping over the five men.

Hearing this, two of the thugs seemed tempted and exchanged looks, as if they had heard this girl came from a wealthy family. If she could really pay one hundred million now, that would be more profitable than this job.

“Cut the tricks!”

The leader thug raised his gun, aiming at her head, signaling the other two to tie her up immediately to avoid any unexpected problems.

“What if she really pays one hundred million?” The thug on the left seemed to waver.

They were in this line of work for money after all. Reputation was nothing—if things went wrong, they could just change their names and keep going.

“Yeah, if she can’t pay, we’re not losing out either,” another agreed.

Did they really think a few of them couldn’t watch over one little girl?

The leader thug thought for a moment, scrutinizing Bai Xia from head to toe, then took out a phone from his pocket and handed it to her. “Don’t try any tricks, or you’ll lose your life right now!”

The other two stepped back but didn’t immediately tie her up, instead watching their surroundings closely.

Bai Xia took the phone, scanning the empty mountain road in the afternoon—no one was around, and the hillside was steep and dense with trees, only the sound of flowing water could be heard.

“This phone has no signal,” she said innocently.

One thug quickly went to the rear car and turned off the signal jammer, then aimed his gun at her head as if to warn her that any sudden move would end with a bullet through her skull.

Bai Xia tapped the phone a few times and then handed it back to the thug. “You just need to input the account.”

Seeing this, the men’s eyes lit up—so the girl really could come up with one hundred million. But even so, they had to bring her back. After all, they had promised the employer, and what happened afterward was none of their business.

Just as one thug raised his gun to shoot, Bai Xia kicked the gun from behind the man’s hand.

The men in front reacted suddenly, and one pulled the trigger aimed at her shoulder.

The bullet tore through her arm, the sharp pain making Bai Xia gasp, but she turned and delivered a flying sidekick, knocking the gun away.

They only had two guns, maybe she could still take her chances.

At that moment, an electric baton swung toward her.

She immediately locked the attacker’s arm and punched him in the temple.

“Damn it!”

The other thug cursed and swung the baton again, but Bai Xia raised her leg and stomped his abdomen.

However, the difference in size was too great; he didn’t back down but swung a fist past her ear as the baton came down.

Bai Xia grabbed his arm, kneeled sharply, then twisted and kicked him hard, pushing him away.

While the other two went to retrieve the guns, she didn’t hesitate and slid down the hill.

Watching the girl disappear into the woods, the thugs swore and spat on the ground.

“That damn girl tricked us! Should’ve never listened to her nonsense!”

“I told you not to trust her. Who stays so calm during a kidnapping? Use your brains, idiots!” The leader thug’s face darkened as he glared at them.

They all looked helpless.

“Who knew that brat could fight like this? No wonder she’s so rich, not even a bodyguard around her!”

“Enough talk! We have to bring her back dead or alive!”

The leader thug didn’t waste words, grabbed a rope from the car, tied it to the seat, and wrapped the other end around himself before sliding down the hill.

At the police station, chaos reigned.

Lu Lin sat inside, watching the chief constantly making calls to deploy personnel. His fingers clenched tightly; his sharp, chiseled features were taut with tension.

Assistant Xu hurried to reassure him. “Don’t worry, sir. At least Miss Bai sent her location; she shouldn’t be far.”

Lu Shuo closed his eyes; his breathing fluctuated between rapid and slow, but the veins on his hand still betrayed his anxiety and impatience.

Suddenly, the office door burst open, and Bai Ruanwen and Song Xun entered with worried expressions. Assistant Xu quickly updated them on the situation.

“Miss Bai was kidnapped right after leaving the Song residence, and the driver is missing too. Before, she spoke to the CEO by phone, and the situation isn’t optimistic, but luckily, Miss Bai gave us a location.” Assistant Xu frowned deeply.

Lu Lin glared coldly at Song Xun. “Your Song family sure knows how to pick their people.”

Bai Ruanwen stepped between them, voice choked. “Right now, Xia Xia’s safety is the most important.”

Earlier, after her daughter took off her watch, she had planned to hide a tracking device in her hair tie. The moment Xia Xia disappeared, she immediately called Lu Lin, so at least they still had a signal.

“This area is suburban, with some chemical plants nearby. Few people live here. Miss Bai should be around Guangling Slope; searching will take time,” the chief said solemnly.

Song Xun thought for a moment. “We can use drones. Our company’s latest products have this tech support.”

“That’s perfect. Our equipment is limited. Deploying all resources will also deter the kidnappers,” the chief responded seriously.

Without hesitation, Song Xun grabbed his phone and made a call.

The atmosphere in the office was tense.

Bai Ruanwen’s eyes were red; she turned to wipe tears and looked at Lu Lin. “Xia Xia will be okay.”

She wasn’t sure if she was comforting him or herself.

She couldn’t imagine how she’d cope if something happened to her daughter.

Lu Lin looked at her with complex emotions but remained silent.

He had lost his mother, lost his lover—he would never lose his daughter.

Song Xun came over, embracing the tear-filled Bai Ruanwen and then looked at the tense Lu Lin.

He placed a hand on Lu Lin’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. I didn’t take good care of Xia Xia. Uncle Li has served my father for twenty years; none of us expected this. It was my oversight that led to this.”

He clenched his fist as if wanting to punch himself.

“If I’d handled everything sooner, Xia Xia wouldn’t have made so many enemies. I owe Xia Xia and Lu Lin an apology.”

“Sorry?” Lu Lin suddenly laughed.

Then he punched Song Xun hard in the nose, grabbed his collar, pinned him to the wall, eyes bloodshot. “She trusted you so much—she wouldn’t even ride in my car, but she was willing to ride with your Song family. Is this how you treat my daughter? Why don’t you just die!”

Bai Ruanwen closed her eyes and wiped away her tears as the chief quickly stepped in to separate them.

“Mr. Lu, please calm down. Anger won’t solve anything. We will find Miss Bai.”

Song Xun’s eyes reddened as he grabbed Lu Lin’s arm, voice trembling. “I’m sorry.”

Lu Lin shoved him off and walked to the window, staring at the moving cars outside.

He couldn’t imagine what a kidnapped girl endured. He couldn’t even protect his own daughter.

Suddenly, the phone vibrated.

Assistant Xu answered immediately but frowned when she heard the news.

She quickly went to Lu Lin. “The chairman just heard about Miss Bai’s kidnapping, suffered a heart attack, and has been rushed to the hospital.”

Lu Lin’s gaze faltered; he glanced coldly at Song Xun and walked out without another word.

The river water was cold; dusk was falling.

Surrounded by dense vegetation, Bai Xia climbed ashore and rested for a minute, knowing those men would surely follow.

The high society was dangerous—billions of assets were involved, and a single life was nothing to them.

She had been careless.

After years of caution, one moment of negligence had trapped her.

It had to be during dinner when the driver tampered with her car, forcing her to take the Song family’s car.

To capture Song Qiming, they needed the driver’s testimony.

After walking an unknown distance, Bai Xia’s head grew dizzy—a sign of blood loss.

Still, she gritted her teeth and kept moving.

There was a tracking device in her hair tie; the heroine would find her.

Suddenly, two drones flew overhead.

Bai Xia thought she was hallucinating.

Weren’t these the company’s latest products?

The drones hovered momentarily, and footsteps sounded behind her.

“There! Over there!”

The sounds of running footsteps grew closer.

Bai Xia hurriedly leaned on a stick and ran forward.

A bullet hit the ground near her feet with a “bang,” forcing her to stop.

Two figures quickly approached from behind—only two, one carrying a gun.

They probably wouldn’t kill her unless absolutely necessary.

“That damn girl can really run. Damn, she’s slippery!”

One thug cursed, drawing a pistol and aiming at the girl without hesitation.

“Run! Why’d you stop? You dared to lie to me!”

The thug pressed the gun to her head.

The other pulled out rope to tie her hands, sweating from the chase and fearing another accident, raised his hand to strike her unconscious.

Bai Xia raised her elbow hard into his nose, kicked the gun flying, spun, and delivered a side kick to his neck.

But she was severely exhausted.

The thug only stepped back a few paces and went to pick up his gun.

“Boss wants her alive!”

The other shouted.

Suddenly, a straight punch slammed into Bai Xia’s wound.

She gasped, her face pale, then was knocked to the ground by another punch.

The pain from the wound shot straight to her head.

Bai Xia’s face turned deathly white as an arm reached out toward her.

She suddenly locked his arm with both hands, placed her left leg across his neck, and slammed him to the ground.

With the figure-four lock locked in place, a crack echoed as the arm broke.

A howl of pain tore from the thug’s mouth.

“Damn it!”

The other thug immediately raised his pistol and fired a shot into Bai Xia’s abdomen.

The sound rang through the air.

Bai Xia froze, her heart racing.

She turned her head and saw a fully armed police team rushing over, a helicopter flying above.

The gunman was shot in the head and collapsed.

The thug whose arm she had broken froze, fear filling his eyes as he looked around.

“Miss Bai!”

The police leader quickly took off his jacket and draped it over the soaked girl.

The thug on the ground was handcuffed instantly.

The officers stared in disbelief at the gun on the ground.

Two kidnappers had guns, yet Miss Bai had broken a man’s arm—no one would believe that if told.

Bai Xia had no strength to speak, letting the police carry her onto a stretcher.

When she reached the main road, she saw numerous police cars and swarms of drones.

“Xia Xia!”

Bai Ruanwen threw open a car door and ran to her daughter, crying uncontrollably.

Seeing Bai Xia’s pale face and bloodied shoulder, she felt as if she couldn’t breathe.

“It’s nothing. It doesn’t hurt.”

Bai Xia lay on the stretcher, reached out, and held her mother’s arm.

“I knew you would find me.”

During the time she was missing, the heroine must have been the most worried.

They had almost been torn apart forever, but she had a bit of luck.

Bai Ruanwen couldn’t hold back and hugged her daughter tightly.

“Sorry, Xia Xia. Mom didn’t protect you well.”

“It’s okay.”

Bai Xia wiped the tears from her mother’s face.