Fifteen Million

"After we turned Lin Xuan into a eunuch, we casually dumped him on the side of the road. An hour later, we went back to check, and Lin Xuan was already gone. There were no surveillance cameras there, so we don’t know who took him away."

Old Liu spoke with such convincing detail that his underlings couldn’t help but give him a thumbs-up.

His acting skills were practically Oscar-worthy.

Lin Li took a deep breath and said, "Don’t you want that 13 million? It’s getting late—hurry up and put on your act."

"Fine," Old Liu nodded.

He signaled his men to tie up Lin Li.

Then, he called Jiang Shuqin.

Jiang Shuqin had already gone to bed and was rudely awakened by the call. "Hello?" she answered, her voice thick with irritation.

"Mrs. Jiang, Lin Li’s mother, right?" Old Liu said with a chuckle. "Your son is in my hands now."

Jiang Shuqin scoffed. "If you’re going to scam someone, at least come up with a better story."

With that, she hung up.

Old Liu’s eyes widened in disbelief.

She—she actually called him a fraud!

Well, he was running a con, but still.

Old Liu called again, only to be met with an automated female voice:

"The number you have dialed is currently switched off. Please try again later."

"Damn it!" Old Liu gritted his teeth, his face darkening. "She blocked my number."

His gaze shifted to Lin Li. "Give me your phone."

Bound hand and foot, Lin Li couldn’t move, so he could only gesture with his eyes toward his pocket.

"What the hell are you mumbling?" Old Liu frowned.

Lin Li: "..."

One of Old Liu’s lackeys chimed in, "He’s probably trying to tell us his phone’s in his pocket. Boss, his hands and feet are tied, and his mouth is gagged—he can’t talk."

"Oh, right."

Old Liu laughed sheepishly. "My bad, I forgot."

He pulled out Lin Li’s phone.

It was password-locked.

So, he yanked the gag out of Lin Li’s mouth, used facial recognition to unlock it, then stuffed the gag back in.

He video-called Jiang Shuqin on WeChat.

Jiang Shuqin, who had just fallen asleep, was jolted awake again.

Who the hell is calling at this hour?

Her face twisted in annoyance.

It was already 11 PM, and the calls just wouldn’t stop.

She was about to hang up—until she saw it was Lin Li calling.

Her expression softened instantly, and she answered.

"Li’er, are you still out? Are you having fun with your friends?" Her voice was gentle.

"Mrs. Jiang, it’s me. I called earlier, but you blocked me," Old Liu said.

Jiang Shuqin froze. "Why do you have my son’s phone?"

"Why? Take a look."

Old Liu grinned, turning the camera toward Lin Li. "Here’s your son. He’s in my custody now."

Jiang Shuqin’s drowsiness vanished in an instant.

Her face went pale.

She’d thought it was a scam call—but it was real. Her son had actually been kidnapped.

Her hands trembled. "What do you want with my son? Do you know this is illegal? I’ll call the police and have you thrown in jail!"

Old Liu sneered. "Go ahead. Call them. But if you do, don’t expect to see your son in one piece."

"If you dare involve the police, I’ll chop off his hands, feet, and head, boil them, and feed them to the wolves." His voice was ice-cold.

Jiang Shuqin shuddered at his words.

"No, no, I won’t call!" Her lips quivered.

"Just tell me what you want. As long as you don’t hurt Li’er, I’ll give you anything."

Old Liu said, "Simple. Bring me 15 million in cash, and I guarantee your son won’t lose a single hair."

Lin Li’s eyes bulged.

Fifteen million?!

Weren’t they asking for 13 million?

Since when did it go up by two million?

"Fifteen million?!" Jiang Shuqin gasped. "That’s too much!"

"Can’t you lower it? Our company just went bankrupt—I don’t have that kind of money lying around!" She tried to negotiate.

Truthfully, she had about 35 million in her bank account.

But handing over 15 million would wipe out nearly half of it.

She couldn’t bear to part with that much.

"No. Fifteen million. Not a cent less."

Old Liu pressed a knife against Lin Li’s throat.

"No, no, don’t!" Jiang Shuqin screamed, terrified the blade would slit his neck. "Fifteen million—I’ll pay! I’ll pay!"

Old Liu smirked. "You have two hours. If the money isn’t here by then, prepare to collect his corpse. And remember—no police."

With that, he ended the call.

"Mmph! Mmph!" Lin Li struggled violently.

Old Liu pulled the gag from his mouth. "What do you want to say?"

Lin Li gritted his teeth. "You said 13 million. Why did you raise it?"

Old Liu tapped the flat of the blade against Lin Li’s cheek.

The cold steel made him shiver.

Old Liu smiled. "Our boss originally agreed to 13 million. But putting on this little show for you cost manpower. Plus, there’s the risk of getting caught by the cops. We deserve a little extra for our trouble, don’t you think?"

Lin Li clenched his fists.

Two million just for a two-hour act?!

But he was at their mercy. No matter how furious he was, he had to swallow it.

Back at the Lin family villa, Jiang Shuqin was pacing frantically. She called her three daughters and Lin Chang.

Within twenty minutes, they had all rushed over.

The entire Lin family wore expressions of panic.

"Mom, how’s Xiao Li now?" Lin Qingwan asked anxiously.

Jiang Shuqin’s eyes were red. "They said they’ll only let Li’er go if we give them 15 million."

Lin Chang had never been threatened like this before.

"Call the police," he growled. "Let’s have them arrested."

"No! We can’t!" Jiang Shuqin grabbed his arm in alarm. "They said they’d kill Li’er if we involve the police. For his safety, we can’t call them!"

Lin Chang’s fists tightened.

His face was stormy.

Jiang Shuqin said, "We only have an hour and forty minutes left. We need to gather the money and deliver it immediately—only then will Li’er come home unharmed."

She could afford the 15 million.

But she had been saving for her future.

Handing over that much was unbearable.