Why not let her go?

Long Yejue didn't answer. He put away his phone and gazed at the deserted factory, his jawline slightly tensing.

Tang Mianmian was his bottom line. No matter who it was, if anyone dared harm her, the consequences would be beyond their imagination.

As they left the factory, the money that had been placed in the open space was already gone.

Su Wanru was settled in the RV. She had stopped crying, but it was clear she'd been severely shaken. Wrapped in a blanket, she remained silent.

The RV's monitoring system failed to pick up Tang Mianmian's signal. Mo Chengyu issued orders to everyone, telling them to watch all major intersections.

Long Yejue stared intently at the screen, as if he could burn a hole into it.

Before long, Mo Chengyu's subordinates reported that twelve cars had left the C District factory. They had already deployed people to track them.

Su Wanru squinted slightly, moving closer to Long Yejue. Tugging on his sleeve, she said, "Brother Long, can you take me home? I just want to go home."

"Mo, find someone to take her back," Long Yejue said impatiently.

Mo Chengyu, fully aware of Su Wanru's feelings for Long Yejue and equally aware that Long Yejue felt nothing for her, gave a subtle signal to one of his men.

The man caught on, stood up, and said to Su Wanru, "Miss Su, come with me. I'll take you back—there's a car waiting at the door."

Su Wanru immediately shook her head, adamantly refusing. "No, I only want to stay with Brother Long."

Long Yejue completely ignored her, his eyes glued to the screen.

Feeling rejected, Su Wanru pouted. She turned to Mo Chengyu's subordinate and said, "Sorry, but I'm not leaving. I want to know what happens to Tang Mianmian. She got captured because she was trying to save me. I won't feel at ease until I see her safe."

Mo Chengyu rolled his eyes, irritated by her indecision. Women, he thought, such trouble.

"We've got a signal!" someone monitoring the screen suddenly exclaimed.

Long Yejue immediately leaned closer, watching the flashing dot move quickly on the screen. "Head west, now!"

With the direction confirmed, the car started, following the moving signal.

Su Wanru pressed tightly against Long Yejue, occasionally glancing at the blinking dot on the monitor, lost in thought.

Tang Mianmian slowly regained consciousness, her whole body aching and weak, her head unbearably heavy.

Fragments of memories before she passed out floated back into her mind. She opened her eyes to see a masked face looming over her.

"Awake?" a man's cold voice asked. "And here I thought putting a tracker on you was high-tech enough."

He held up the tracker he had removed from her body, waved it mockingly, then opened the car window and tossed it out.

Tang Mianmian wanted to shout, but no sound came out. She could only stare at the man.

"Huzi, turn the car around. Head for the West District," the man instructed the driver.

The car shifted gears, made a sharp turn, and headed for the highway toward the West District.

Their original destination had been the South District, but after discovering the tracker, they knew they were being followed. The plan had to change.

Tang Mianmian took slow, deep breaths, trying to clear her head.

"You have no connection to the Long family. Why would you bring them money?" The man in black glanced at her occasionally, asking casually.

Tang Mianmian blinked, then opened her eyes wider to see the man leaning closer, scrutinizing her. "Not bad-looking. You could fetch a decent price."

Fetch a price?

Alarm bells went off in her mind. Dark thoughts surfaced, and her already pale face grew even paler.

Still, she forced herself to stay calm, searching for weaknesses in his words. Hoarsely, she asked, "Are you going to sell me?"

"Of course!" he sneered. "Not only did we get the money, but we got a bonus. This deal is a win-win."

His hand rested on one of the two boxes he had brought, which Tang Mianmian knew were filled with cash.

She gritted her teeth, pushed herself upright, and leaned against the seat. Even such small movements left her gasping for breath.

Whatever drug they had used on her was still making her body weak. She raised her eyes to the man and said, "Actually, I can get you more money than that. Do you believe me?"

"Yeah, right," he scoffed, clearly unconvinced.

Tang Mianmian wasn't in a hurry to explain. Instead, she asked, "How much can you sell me for?"

The man rubbed his chin, genuinely considering it. "Five hundred thousand, maybe."

Not bad, she thought grimly.

But compared to the millions the Long family could offer, that was a pitiful sum.

After a small cough, she said, "Actually, I'm the Long family's young madam. I don't know how much I'm worth, but it's definitely more than five hundred thousand."

"The Long family's young madam?" The man sneered. "And I'm the Long family's young master!"

Tang Mianmian blinked awkwardly.

"I know it sounds unbelievable, but it's true. I'm Long Yejue's wife. If you don't believe me, you can check the civil records. Isn't your gang supposed to be good at hacking?"

"Girl, do you think we're in some spy movie? If I had those skills, do you think I'd still be kidnapping people?"

Fair point, Tang Mianmian thought. Maybe she was being too naïve. But she really was the Long family's young madam!

"If you don't believe me, you can call the Long family to confirm," she suggested earnestly.

"Do you think I'm stupid? They're already monitoring everything. One phone call and my location is exposed. I wouldn't even know how I died!"

"…"

Damn it!

This kidnapper's too smart. Do his parents know about this?

"Then how do I prove I'm the Long family's young madam?" she muttered, feeling stuck.

The kidnapper seemed amused by Tang Mianmian's frustrated tone, letting out a rare chuckle. "You must be infatuated with the eldest young master of the Long family, right? I've seen his photos—he's absurdly good-looking, almost inhuman. It's no surprise that girls like you are all over him." 

Tang Mianmian: "…" 

Well, it was true that Long Yejue was ridiculously attractive to the point of being otherworldly! 

But was that last comment meant to be a dig at her, or just a general dig at women? 

"What do you mean, 'girls like me'? And who else likes him?" she asked casually. 

She already knew she had plenty of rivals. 

But the thought that even a kidnapper knew this made her realize how tough her future was going to be. 

"Why should I tell you that?" 

"…" 

He was the one who brought it up! She was just asking a follow-up question. Did he really have to act so wronged? 

"I'm really the young madam of the Long family. If you sell me for just 500,000 yuan, you'll regret it so much later. It'll be like that time I thought of a winning lottery number but didn't buy a ticket. When the jackpot was announced, I regretted it so much I almost cried." 

Tang Mianmian wore a look of deep regret, as if she'd actually experienced such a loss. 

The kidnapper couldn't help but laugh at her earnestness. "If you really are the Long family's young madam, then yeah, I'd regret it." 

"Exactly, exactly! So hurry up and contact them—I really am Long Yejue's wife." 

"Ha! Trying to trick me into making a call again? Not falling for it!" 

"…" 

Damn it, damn it, damn it! 

Tang Mianmian was fuming inside. 

Since when had it become so hard to fool a kidnapper? 

"Oh, wait! You can check my phone. The first name in my contacts is my husband—Long Yejue. Call him, and you'll see I'm not lying!" Tang Mianmian suddenly remembered and said excitedly. 

The kidnapper gave her a look like she was insane. "Did you forget you don't have a phone on you?" 

Huh? 

Where was her phone? 

Now that she thought about it, how long had it been since she'd seen her phone? She always kept it in her coat pocket, but now her pockets were completely empty. 

Was the universe out to get her? 

Looking up at the car ceiling, she felt despair creeping in. She had no idea what to do next. 

When the car reached its destination, the kidnappers yanked her out. The rough handling made her wince in pain. 

Do these guys not know the meaning of gentleness? 

No wonder they were single—no woman would marry them! 

She cursed them bitterly in her mind as they dragged her into a shabby little house. It was a chaotic mess inside, clearly a place untouched by a woman's touch. 

They threw her onto a bed, then began calling others to arrange a location for splitting the cash. Afterward, they stood around grinning foolishly, thrilled by their windfall. 

The amount of money was indeed impressive. 

Tang Mianmian almost felt envious. 

After some thought, she decided to try one of those "bathroom escape" tricks she'd seen on TV. 

"Ow… ow…" 

She clutched her stomach and started moaning. 

"Now what?" The driver, Huzi, asked irritably. 

"My stomach hurts. I need to go to the bathroom," she pleaded, pouting. 

Huzi snorted coldly. "Old Hei, this girl's probably trying to run away. Like one of those fake bathroom emergencies you see on TV. Don't fall for it." 

Old Hei nodded in agreement. "Definitely." 

Tang Mianmian: "…" 

These two were impossible to deal with! 

Furious, she dropped the act and demanded, "What will it take for you to believe I'm the Long family's young madam?" 

"Nothing will make us believe it!" Old Hei snapped. 

Tang Mianmian almost coughed up blood from frustration. Gritting her teeth, she retorted, "I know there are 57 people in the Long family. The head of the family is Long Zhenfei. He has five sons: Long Fengteng, Long Fengcheng, Long Fengxun, Long Fengying, and Long Fengyuan. Long Fengteng—my father-in-law—has two children: my husband Long Yejue and his younger sister, Long Ruoshui, who you've kidnapped. Long Fengcheng has one son, Long Yechen…" 

"Stop!" Old Hei interrupted her tirade. "You know Long Yechen?" 

Tang Mianmian's eyes lit up. "Of course! Long Yechen is my second uncle's son. He just returned to the country recently. I was with him last night at the Royal Club's VIP lounge." 

Old Hei looked uncertain. 

Huzi, confused, asked, "What's the big deal? Who is this Long Yechen?" 

"Huzi, remember that thing from eight years ago?" Old Hei said grimly. 

Huzi's face changed. "You mean…" 

"Yeah, that thing. Long Yechen was behind it. Afterward, he vanished without a trace. Almost no one knows where he's been since. If this woman has met him, she must have a deep connection to the Long family." Old Hei analyzed the situation seriously. 

Tang Mianmian seized the opportunity and nodded vigorously. "Exactly! I'm really the Long family's young madam, and Long Yechen really is back." 

She wasn't entirely sure what they were referring to about eight years ago, but as long as it helped prove her identity, she'd roll with it. 

Huzi, looking uneasy, asked, "So what do we do?" 

"Should we… let her go?" Old Hei was clearly wavering.