Chapter 52

Chapter 52 (New) I'll Give You Five Minutes Jiang Shixu sneered, "Threatening me? You think you're worthy?" Back in high school, when Chen Jingsu confessed to him, he had declined politely. But that girl stuck to him like a stubborn plaster, always trailing behind him. She chased him so openly that everyone at school knew about it. Exasperated beyond measure, he used his family's influence to force her to transfer schools. After Chen Jingsu transferred, he finally had some peace. But the peace didn't last long—he ran into her again after entering university. She'd somehow found out he'd enrolled at Jiangcheng University and followed him in through the entrance exams. Every day she brought him breakfast, followed him to his classes, and showered him with an endless stream of love letters and gifts. Once again, Chen Jingsu became the talk of the school because of her pursuit of him. Chen Jingsu sobbed bitterly, "A-Xu, do you really not care whether I live or die? Why are you so heartless? Is my life not worth more than an engagement ceremony?" Jiang Shixu was as calm as an emotionless machine, his tone utterly frigid, "That act of yours might work on other men, but it won't work on me." Chen Jingsu wanted to say more, but Jiang Shixu didn't give her the chance. Without wasting another word on her, he decisively hung up and sent people to find her, while the engagement ceremony proceeded as planned. It wasn't that he cared about Chen Jingsu—it was just that if they didn't find her quickly, she would surely sabotage today's engagement ceremony. If she really did something drastic and jumped off a building, dying at his and Tangtang's engagement ceremony, that would be a horrifying affair. If someone died at his engagement ceremony, it would leave a psychological scar on Tangtang, and there was a real chance their marriage would never happen. ... In a room at the villa. After the call was mercilessly cut off, Chen Jingsu froze for a few seconds, then hurled her phone against the wall with all her might, followed by another fit of madness as she smashed things everywhere. In the room, Xu Jingxuan watched Chen Jingsu's meltdown with cold eyes. "Miss Chen, why are you so impatient?" After trashing everything, Chen Jingsu collapsed limply onto the floor, muttering to herself in a daze, "He really doesn't care whether I live or die... How can he not care whether I live or die?" Xu Jingxuan let out a derisive snort, a flicker of contempt passing through her eyes. She pulled out a lighter and leisurely lit a cigarette. A knock sounded at the door. The bodyguard behind Xu Jingxuan walked over and opened it. "Miss Xu, that woman has bodyguards around her—we didn't get a chance to grab her. But we did catch a little one." Outside the door, a tall, burly bodyguard in black held Ruan Jiaojiao like one would carry a chick. Ruan Jiaojiao's hands were bound behind her back with rope, her legs kicking wildly as she struggled desperately. Black tape was plastered over her mouth, and her eyes were filled with terror. Xu Jingxuan took a slow drag of her cigarette, blew out a smoke ring, and uttered two words softly: "Useless." The bodyguard kept his head down and said nothing. Xu Jingxuan raised her wrist to check the time on her watch. "It's about time. Let's go." She stood up, looking down from above at Chen Jingsu, who sat crying on the floor, squinting at her with contempt. Xu Jingxuan smiled like Satan from the depths of hell—a smile that somehow sent chills down one's spine with its sinister, bone-piercing dread. "Miss Chen, I suggest you pull yourself together and follow our plan. If anything goes wrong on your end, you won't see a single cent of your father's medical bills!" With that, Xu Jingxuan didn't bother to see how Chen Jingsu would react and simply turned and left. Chen Jingsu wiped her tears, got up from the floor, and followed dejectedly. ... Twenty minutes remained before the engagement banquet began. Ruan Jiaojiao was nowhere to be found. Yang Xuelian was so anxious that tears were streaming down her face. "We were just chatting in the lounge, and Jiaojiao said she wanted to go out and play for a bit, so I let her go. Now I've searched everywhere and can't find her." Mrs. Jiang, Lin Yueying, comforted her, "Don't worry. Everyone here today is a guest attending the engagement ceremony. Jiaojiao won't be in any danger. Kids love to play—she might have run outside the villa to play. The estate is too large, so it's normal that you can't find her right away. We can start by checking the surveillance footage." Chu Tang said, "My father has already gone to check the surveillance. Let's split up and search, and send more people to look as well." Just then, a sudden burst of gasps erupted from the crowd ahead. They turned to look and instantly turned pale with fright. The electronic screen that had been set up to play a short video for the engagement ceremony was now playing footage of Ruan Jiaojiao crying and screaming in terror as she was kidnapped. "Daddy, Mommy, Sister, where are you? Waaaah... I want my mommy! Let me go!" "Mommy! I was taken by a bad uncle! Come save me! Waaaah..." On the screen, Ruan Jiaojiao was tied to a chair, crying and throwing a tantrum. Yang Xuelian's legs gave way and her vision went dark—she nearly fainted. Chu Tang caught her just in time. "Auntie Yang—" "Tangtang, what do we do about Jiaojiao? Think of something..." Yang Xuelian sobbed, unable to form complete sentences. "Jiaojiao... how could Jiaojiao have been... been kidnapped... I..." Yang Xuelian sobbed heartbrokenly, "Wuwuwuwu... if Jiaojiao dies, I don't want to live either..." "How could this happen? Aren't all the people here today guests of our two families? How could someone kidnap Jiaojiao?" Lin Yueying was utterly perplexed. Just then, a strange voice processed through a voice changer came over the hall's loudspeaker. "Ruan Chutang, if you want your sister to live, come to the rooftop." Ruan Chutang froze for a moment, then snapped back to reality and immediately turned to run toward the elevator. Jiang Shixu chased after her and grabbed her arm. "Tangtang, don't go. It's dangerous!" Chu Tang struggled fiercely to break free. "I have to go! This is aimed at me. If I don't go, Jiaojiao will be in danger." "Call the police first." Jiang Shixu remained very calm. "You guys call the police, but don't stop me. Every second I delay puts Jiaojiao in more danger. I can't risk her life!" Chu Tang was on the verge of tears. "Jiaojiao was kidnapped because of me. I can't just stand by and watch her get killed." Jiang Shixu raised his voice, tightening his grip. "And you can risk your own life instead?" At that moment, a man came hurrying over. "Young master, we've found Miss Jiaojiao. She's on the top floor." Jiang Shixu said coldly, "Call the police." The man replied, "Already done. The police are on their way." Jiang Shixu remained composed, his mind racing. "Tangtang, they took Jiaojiao hostage just to lure you there. You can't fall into their trap. I'll immediately dispatch all the bodyguards at the estate to the rooftop. You have to stay calm, alright?" Chu Tang was so frightened her hands were trembling. "I..." Suddenly. A scream erupted from the hall. Chu Tang jerked her head up to look. On the screen, a dagger was now pressed against Ruan Jiaojiao's neck. A hooded figure held a knife to Ruan Jiaojiao's throat. "Ruan Chutang, I'll give you five minutes. If you don't come, your sister will die in your place!" Almost the moment those words were spoken, Jiang Shixu felt his hand suddenly empty. Ruan Chutang had taken advantage of his momentary distraction to break free and run.