The subordinate's eyes lit up with a trace of anticipation as he hurriedly opened it.
This…
Seeing the contents, his hands trembled uncontrollably.
Ling… didn’t come after all.
If Ling cared so much about Lin Xuan, she would never have ignored the fact that he was in their hands.
That left only one possibility—Jiang Qing hadn’t told Ling about this…
How dare Jiang Qing, as Ling’s subordinate, keep this from her?
"Speak!" Zhao Long’s voice was laced with murderous intent.
"Boss, I’m sorry. We called Ling, but her phone was turned off the whole time. So we contacted her secretary instead. I thought her secretary would inform Ling about Lin Xuan being in our custody."
"But…" The subordinate’s palms were slick with sweat. "Ling never came to save Lin Xuan."
"Idiots!" Zhao Long’s face twisted in fury. "The moment Ling finds out Lin Xuan is with us, she’ll rush over. That Jiang Qing, for Ling’s safety, would never tell her!"
"Why wasn’t this reported immediately? Do you have any idea how much time you’ve wasted ruining my entertainment?"
Not to mention, the longer this dragged on, the higher the chance of unexpected complications.
"Boss, we’re sorry. Next time, we won’t make the same mistake." The two subordinates dropped to their knees with a thud.
Their bodies shook violently with fear.
"You know what? I don’t like people who think they’re clever." Zhao Long pulled out a gun, coldly pressing the muzzle against one of the subordinates. "Since you dared to act on your own, I have no use for you anymore."
The two subordinates jerked their heads up in horror.
The boss was going to kill them…
"Boss, we truly know we were wrong! Please, give us another chance, just one more!" They desperately kowtowed, begging for mercy.
Zhao Long let out a chilling laugh.
His eyes were devoid of warmth.
He pulled the trigger.
Two loud bangs echoed.
A bloody hole appeared in each subordinate’s forehead.
Their burly bodies collapsed heavily backward.
Without a flicker of emotion, Zhao Long put his gun away.
"Go," he ordered the remaining subordinates. "Find any way possible to inform Ling that Lin Xuan is in my hands."
The other subordinates glanced at the corpses on the floor, shuddering.
"Yes," they replied obediently.
---
United States
Inside a hotel room, Su Hua remained seated on the sofa, her delicate brows furrowed as she stared intently at the surveillance feed of the sleeping figure in the other room.
"President Su," Jiang Qing entered, bowing slightly. "It’s almost time. We should leave for the negotiation."
Su Hua didn’t respond immediately, her gaze still fixed on her phone.
Curious, Jiang Qing leaned in. "President Su, why are you so focused on watching Young Master Lin sleep?"
"Jiang Qing," Su Hua finally spoke, "don’t you think he doesn’t quite look like Ah Xuan?"
Jiang Qing’s heart skipped a beat.
Had President Su noticed something?
"President Su," she forced a smile, "why would you think that suddenly?"
"Ah Xuan is slimmer and paler," Su Hua murmured.
And the way this person felt… it wasn’t like Ah Xuan at all.
Jiang Qing: "!!!"
How could she tell?
Jiang Qing had thought the difference between Lin Xuan and Cheng Da’s complexion and build was negligible. She glanced back at the screen, racking her brain to recall Lin Xuan’s exact appearance.
Her conclusion?
They were practically identical. Otherwise, Young Master Lin wouldn’t have chosen this man to impersonate him.
"President Su, you must be overthinking it. That’s clearly Young Master Lin’s face. As for the complexion and build, maybe it’s just the difference between surveillance footage and reality that’s giving you this impression," Jiang Qing reasoned.
Su Hua’s frown deepened.
She wanted to message Ah Xuan to confirm.
But he was sick and resting—she didn’t want to disturb him.
Fine.
She’d wait until he woke up to talk to him.
With that, Su Hua put her phone away and followed Jiang Qing out of the hotel.
A team of bodyguards surrounded Su Hua, ensuring no one could harm her.
The remnants of the Shang Organization in the U.S. were few, so they had hired outsiders to relay messages to Su Hua. Success meant a hefty reward.
Kristy, a fifteen-year-old boy, lived with his gravely ill younger sister. With no money left for her medicine, he was desperate.
He needed that payout.
From a distance, Kristy stared at the stunning woman at the center of the entourage.
No—he had to get to her!
Once she entered the hotel, he’d have no chance. His mission would fail, and the reward would slip through his fingers.
"President Su! I need to speak with you!" Kristy shouted.
Jiang Qing’s guard instantly went up.
"Cover his mouth," she ordered a bodyguard.
"Yes."
The nearest bodyguard moved swiftly.
Kristy sensed the danger.
If they caught him, he’d never escape!
Thinking fast, he changed tactics. "Lin Xuan! Lin—"
Before he could finish, the bodyguard clamped a hand over his mouth.
"Mmph—!"
He thrashed wildly, but the towering bodyguard’s grip was unbreakable.
Jiang Qing tensed at the mention of Lin Xuan’s name.
Sure enough, Su Hua halted, her gaze locking onto Kristy and the bodyguard.
"President Su," Jiang Qing stepped forward, "that man was causing trouble, so I had him removed."
Su Hua narrowed her eyes. "I could’ve sworn he called Ah Xuan’s name."
"Did he?" Jiang Qing feigned surprise. "He doesn’t even know Young Master Lin. Why would he shout his name? President Su, you must have misheard."
Outwardly calm, Jiang Qing’s palms were sweating.
An hour ago, after that call from the Shang Organization, she knew they’d stop at nothing to inform President Su that Lin Xuan was in their custody.
She had taken precautions to block their attempts.
But she never expected them to resort to something this direct.
"Really?" Su Hua’s piercing stare bore into Jiang Qing.
"Why would I lie to you, President Su? I truly didn’t hear anything."
Jiang Qing kept her head bowed, her voice lacking conviction.
She had forgotten one thing—Su Hua’s obsession with Lin Xuan. Anything related to him, no matter how trivial, she pursued relentlessly.
Even if it was false, she would dig to the bottom.
---
Thank you to 15ww51 for the super gift!
And to the lovely supporters: Slothful Capybara, Redamancy Love, Midnight Geng, and others!
for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?
e school belle recognized by the whole school, a genius girl from the kendo club. She also has a hidden identity, the youngest legendary demon hunter. Chen Shuo just transmigrated and found himself turned into a weak, helpless little vampire. He was caught by Su Xiyen and taken home at the very beginning. Since then, Chen Shuo's life creed only had two items. "First, classmate Su Xiyen is always right." "Second, if classmate Su Xiyen is wrong, please refer back to item one." Many years later, Chen Shuo, who had turned back into a human, led a pair of twins to appear in front of all the vampires to share the secret of how he turned back into a human. "It's simple, I tricked a female demon hunter into becoming my wife!"
lanned to earn money steadily and take life at a slower pace. But he never expected... his father's remarriage, and the stepmother bringing along a dependent, would completely disrupt his life's plans...
grated, and just when he finally managed to get into an elite academy, he discovered that he actually had a system, and the way to earn rewards was extremely ridiculous. So for the sake of rewards, he had no choice but to start acting ridiculous as well. Su Cheng: "It's nothing but system quests after all." But later, what confused Su Cheng was that while he was already quite ridiculous, he never expected those serious characters to gradually become ridiculous too. And the way they looked at him became increasingly strange... (This synopsis doesn't do it justice, please read the full story)
