No. 16 Bathed in Moonlight
“Get out!”
After a bumpy two-hour ride, the van finally came to a stop. My hands were tied, my eyes blindfolded. Two armed men shoved Xiaodie and me out of the vehicle.
The air was fresh, filled with the scent of earth and leaves, a stark contrast to the city. I guessed we were somewhere far out in the suburbs. Two hours was enough time to transport us to another city. Since I had been blindfolded the entire time, I couldn’t be sure of our exact location.
All I knew was that my luck had officially run out.
You want to kidnap the mayor’s daughter? Fine. But why drag me into this?
“Try anything funny, and you’ll regret it.”
Before I could even regain my balance, something cold and hard pressed against my head.
“Number 3, you take the van back and report to the boss. We’ll handle things here.”
“Yes, sir.”
As they spoke, I quickly assessed the situation. There were three of them: one driver and two gunmen, one fat and two skinny. They were all masked, with no distinguishing features. Their handling of the guns suggested they were professionals. Based on Dati’s information, these men were probably trained mercenaries, veterans of countless battles. I couldn’t afford to act rashly.
No martial art could outrun a bullet.
To my surprise, Xiaodie, the main target of this kidnapping, hadn’t uttered a single word throughout the entire ordeal. I couldn’t tell if she was terrified or if her emotionless facade had returned.
They pushed us along a muddy path for about half an hour. A heavy door creaked open, and I felt a powerful shove from behind, sending me sprawling onto the ground.
“Thud!”
Before I could react, someone grabbed me and dragged me towards a metal pole. I heard a metallic click as they handcuffed me to it.
“Stay put, you two. We have men stationed outside. They have orders to shoot on sight. If you want to live, don’t move.”
The heavy door slammed shut behind them.
Seriously? At least remove the blindfold…
I was already worried sick about Lan Zhuoyue. Now, my heart sank to the depths of despair.
The world fell silent.
The faint croaking of frogs filled the air.
“Yi Yao…”
Xiaodie’s voice, laced with panic, broke the silence.
“Yi Yao, are you there?”
“Yes, I’m here. What’s wrong?”
I couldn’t see, so I just sat there, my back against the cold metal pole.
This place was filthy. It hadn’t been cleaned in years. The air was thick with dust.
“Why aren’t you saying anything?”
“There’s no point in talking to unreasonable people.”
“You…”
She was clearly annoyed. “Are you looking for a fight?”
“Save it. We can’t even see. How are we supposed to fight? By the way, Xiaodie, what’s your full name? Why do your friends call you ‘A-Pian’?”
“Hmph, none of your business.”
“Fine, fine, I won’t ask. Let’s just sit here in silence and wait for them to decide our fate.”
“Don’t…”
Perhaps my words had frightened her. Her voice softened, a hint of pleading in it. “I’m sorry… Yi Yao, do you think they’ll just leave us here? This place is so remote. What if snakes get in…”
She shuffled closer, guided by my voice.
Hearing the usually stoic girl sound so vulnerable sparked a strange sense of satisfaction within me. I couldn’t help but tease her. “I thought you weren’t afraid.”
“Who… who said I wasn’t afraid? They have guns… and… they don’t look like good people. I…”
She was, after all, just a teenager. Her voice trembled.
“What if they just kill us and demand ransom from my dad? Or force us to do those…”
“Calm down.”
I interrupted her. “If they wanted to do anything to us, they would have done it in the van. They’re probably planning to use us as leverage against the Jiang Nan Gang and the Black Dragon Society.”
“Leverage? What do you mean?”
“Before we go any further, I need to ask you something. Did the Jiang Nan Gang really send those people to my father’s shop yesterday?”
“Of course not!”
She practically shouted. “Tianhai Ge(Brother) forbade everyone from discussing that matter. Qinghao even promised me he wouldn’t bother you again. Aren’t you the one who’s obsessed with us?”
“That’s what I thought. Those men who caused trouble at my dad’s shop said they were hired by someone named Huang Qinghao.”
“But Qinghao was with me last night and the night before. His phone was dead because he forgot his charger. I can vouch for him. He definitely didn’t send anyone.”
“Which means someone is trying to instigate a conflict between us. And that someone is probably someone we both know. An inside man.”
“Who could it be?”
“How should I know? If Dati hadn’t called…”
The heavy door creaked open again.
“Well, well, well. Looks like you two are having a nice chat.”
The blindfold was ripped off my face. Blinded by the sudden light, I saw the two masked men, one fat and one skinny, shining their flashlights at us.
“Boss, is this her?” the fat one asked, pointing at Xiaodie.
“Yes.” The skinny one nodded, then turned to me. “They’re probably friends or classmates. We brought them both just to be safe.”
“Let her talk to him.”
“Yes, sir.”
The fat one pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
“Hello, Mayor Huang. No… I’m not a reporter. Your daughter is with us… No, we don’t want money. We just need you to do us a small favor… I’ll inform you of the details later… Really? Fine. Your daughter is right here. We haven’t mistreated her. You can talk to her if you want.”
He held the phone to Xiaodie’s ear.
Even from a distance, I could hear a man’s frantic voice. “Xiaodie! Xiaodie! Say something… Xiaodie, are you alright…”
“Dad…”
She choked back a sob. “Dad… I want to go home…”
“Heh heh heh…”
Satisfied with the effect, the fat man chuckled and took the phone back. “You heard that? I suggest you don’t call the police. Otherwise…”
“Bang!”
He fired a shot into the air. The deafening roar echoed through the abandoned factory.
“Here’s your dinner. If you’re worried about it being poisoned, don’t eat it.”
He tossed a packaged loaf of bread onto the ground between us, then holstered his gun and sneered at Xiaodie. “Huang Yingdie, blame your father for being the mayor. Let me tell you something. Whether he calls the police or not, you two won’t live to see tomorrow. This time tomorrow night, you’ll be dead. Hahahaha!”
He spat on the ground, then followed the skinny man out of the factory, slamming the door shut behind them.
We were plunged back into darkness.
“Keep an eye on them. If they escape, you know what will happen.”
“Yes, sir.”
Their conversation sent a chill down my spine.
He was right. There were men guarding the factory.
It was probably around 8:30 PM. We were just two sixteen-year-old girls, our hands cuffed behind our backs, with no tools or weapons.
If what they said was true, we had to escape, no matter the cost.
But first…
“So, your name is Huang Yingdie?”
I struggled to contain my laughter. “I wondered why they kept calling you ‘A-Pian.’ So, your name really is ‘A-Pian’…”
Xiaodie, Huang Yingdie, “Huang-yellow(p*rn) Ying(video) disc,” A-Pian.
“Hilarious, isn’t it? Go ahead, laugh.”
In the faint moonlight, I saw her face, as red as a ripe apple, her lips pouting in annoyance. She looked so adorable, I almost wanted to pinch her cheeks.
“No, you misunderstand. Everyone’s name is unique, just like every life. No life deserves to be ridiculed. I wouldn’t laugh at you.”
Liar… I was barely holding it together.
“Hey, Xiaodie, since we’re going to die tomorrow anyway, why don’t you tell me about your school?”
“What’s there to tell? It’s just…”
She stopped mid-sentence, her eyes widening as I stood up, my hair a mess, my hands free from the handcuffs.
“You!”
I rushed over and covered her mouth before she could scream.
“Shh… I can get us out of here, but you have to promise to do exactly as I say, no matter what.”
